Red Sunflower

We planted sunflowers in the back yard and were very surprised when one of them turned out to be a red sunflower, rather than the usual yellow, as we had never seen one before.

I've added a texture by les brumes.

Canalside

This scene was captured from atop the Accademia bridge in Venice. I've added a texture from Shadowhouse Creations to give it a muted effect.

Sail Away



Photo by Steve Bohn

 This is another photo taken as our cruise ship sailed from Venice and passed by the Lido island. In my opinion, it's nearly worth the price of the cruise just to have such a wonderful vantage point when sailing in and out of ports of call.

In order to enhance the late afternoon lighting, I've made several layer adjustments to this photo taken by my travel partner.

House on Santorini

This lovely house is located in Oia on the beautiful island of Santorini, in the Greek Cyclades island group. We spent a fun day on Santorini, walking around Oia and Thira and visiting a winery before taking the funicular back down to the port to return to our cruise ship. I wouldn't mind going back and spending a few days there someday.

I've used adjustment layers to enhance the color and contrast.

May Day in Venice




Photo by Steve Bohn

This picture of the San Marco area of Venice was taken as our cruise ship sailed through the Giudecca Canal on its way to the Mediterranean Sea.

May Day is a holiday in Italy and throughout much of Europe and celebrates International Workers Day.

Photo by Steve Bohn

And here is another view from our ship, taken a little further along the canal.

I've added textures from Shadowhouse Creations for an aged effect.

Gondolas by the Ponte Accademia

Back to reality. Sigh!

It turns out it wasn't all that practical to post new photos to the blog while on vacation. While we had the means, we ended up being so busy with the cruise, sightseeing in ports, etc., that we didn't have enough time to go through all the photos we were taking (over 100 daily), choose one and post it with commentary. Not only that, but our Internet hookup was often hit or miss on the ship, not to mention incredibly expensive! Excuses, excuses.  The biggest reason is probably that we were in vacation mode and just wanted to kick back and enjoy every minute (which we did).

Now I hope to get back to posting on a regular basis, beginning with this photo of gondolas on a little canal not from the Accademia bridge. I've added a texture called Entropy 5 by Shadowhouse Creations.

Lake Pleasant

This image began with a photo taken while hiking at Lake Pleasant, just outside Phoenix.

I added a texture called Gold Days from Shadowhouse Creations and then made some saturation and hue adjustments.

Guild House of the Free Boatmen

This beautiful Ghent guild hall has a sandstone facade which dates from 1531 and has many carvings of sailors and sailing ships. It is located on the Graslei, one of the canal side streets that lined the old Medieval port.

Texture courtesy of Shadowhouse Creations.

Monterey Bay

This photo of Monterey Bay was taken several years ago. Even though it had some nice elements - rocky beach, nice colors, sailboat and seagull, I felt it was lacking something. I added a subtle HDR effect and a texture from Shadowhouse Creations.

Red Flowers in the Jordaan

Bright red flowers adorn this bridge over a canal in the Jordaan district of Amsterdam. I love the way each bridge and each canal are so unique and photogenic.
Texture: 136 ttv by Nasos3

Pale Butterfly

Just a little experiment, this was one of those five-minute creations that I think turned out better than many of the hour-long projects I've done.

Textures by les brumes and Shadowhouse Creations result in a somewhat mystical effect on this photo of a butterfly.

Riomaggiore

Last May, Travel Partner and I visited the Cinque Terre as part of a 10-day Mediterranean cruise. From the port in Genoa, we took a bus to Manarola and from there we walked along the Via d'Amore seaside path to Riomaggiore, where we boarded a boat to Vernazza then on to Monterosso al Mare. As you can imagine, this day was very rushed and we had far too little time in most of the towns. I did manage to get a few photos of the colorful terraced buildings on Riomaggiore. I've added free textures by Distressed Jewel and Shaefer.

Graceful Dancer

Another composite image of a dancer photographed at the Japanese Matsuri (festival) in Phoenix. The colorful banner was from another photo I took at the festival. The background was created using a starburst brush over the texture Doriath by Max F. Williams.

Cholla Buds

This photo was taken in the mountain park near our home. These cholla cactus buds caught my eye as they were just ready to bloom. Several varieties of cholla, like the teddy bear cholla, look fuzzy rather than prickly. But you definitely don't want to touch them or let your pets get too close to them!

Textures by jinterwas and Shadowhouse Creations.

Sottoportego

Taken in Florence, I've added Square 87-Aged Wood and Square 103 from Shadowhouse Creations.

Girl with Pink Parasol

This image is a composite of several different photos. I had extracted the girl dressed in pink from a photo taken at the Chinese New Year's celebration. I liked the way she was dressed, but the rest of the photo was so busy that she got lost. I combined the photos of the beach and sunset and then added the girl. I've included an image showing the original photos used. No textures were added.

Pagoda Night

This is another photo taken during our recent visit to the Chinese Cultural Center.  I really liked this structure's dramatic architecture, but the modern building beside it seemed too distracting, so I decided to experiment and see what it might look like as a night shot.. To get the desired effect, I added a moon and a texture called cana1 by joes sistah.

Bonaventure Angel

This image is a redo of a project I originally did last year for Susan Tuttle's Digital Layers class. My texture experimentation was just beginning and, although I liked the result, I felt the first attempt was a little "heavy handed."  This time I applied the same crackle texture with lighting effects.

I photographed this little angel at the Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia on a cold winter day. Her bowl is often adorned with freshly cut flowers.

Lizard on Petroglyph Rock

I spied this lizard while hiking in Sabino Canyon in Tucson. I also had the rare opportunity to photograph a roadrunner during the same hike, although we're not sure whether it was Big Mac, their resident roadrunner. In the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains, Sabino Canyon has many wonderful hiking trails with spectacular viewpoints.

I've added a petroglyph texture to the photo.

View from Ghent Belfry Tower

This is the view from the belfry tower in Ghent, Belgium. It dates from the 1300s and is considered one of the finest examples of such a structure in Flanders. At one time four soldiers stood guard atop the tower.  Although it rained the entire day we visited Ghent, I enjoyed this beautiful city and I would love to return again.

I've added textures from Shadowhouse Creations - Square 92 and Square 116.