Out to sea

I don't really know what to say about this one, which is just as well, since I don't much feel like writing anything today. So maybe this once, it'll just be the photo:

Splendor in the grass

I figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to share something in color for a change, so I'd like everyone to meet my mother's unnamed pseudo-bonsai tree:



Also, wouldn't you know it, it's voting time again for the Photo Friday challenge. This week's theme is 'Monochrome', and I've submitted The Street as my entry. So if you have a minute and happen to like that particular photo, be a dear and head on to the voting stall, and cast a vote for entry #305.

I didn't make it to the final pick from last week's challenge, but you know what they say - if at first you don't succeed, pester them till you do. Cheers!

Rollin' on a river...

Well... not actually a river and not really rollin', but you get the picture. Apparently I'm continuing the black and white streak with another oldie from Bulgaria, reminding me just how much I miss the sea. Hell, how much I miss being on holiday... anywhere. Either way - boats on a break:



In other news (wow, a lot of "other news" lately), I'm seriously considering a major make-over, along with moving to WordPress, since Blogger is becoming quite limiting, so if anyone has any wisdom to impart in that area, don't hesitate to hit the comments button. Oh, and thanks a bunch to whomever took the time to vote for my entry in the Photo Friday Challenge!

Voting time!

As promised, I'm back with the voting link for those of you who have a minute to spare to make this blogger's day. So here's where you can cast your vote. Scroll through the entries on the left down to #143 - W.A.T.M.C, and hit the "cast your vote" link on the top frame.

So thanks a bunch and see you tomorrow, probably, with a new photo.

Vintage II

I'm back with the second installment of my small "Vintage" series, another detail shot - that is, until I manage to find myself a decent matte white background, so I can afford the luxury of stepping away from my subject before pressing the magic button.



In other news, my last post, Vintage I, has been polished and prettified and sent off to the photo blog equivalent of a beauty pageant over at Photo Friday, so if anyone happened to like it, has a minute to spare over the course of next Friday and Saturday (June 12th and 13th), and would care to be a total sweetheart (man, that's a lot of conditions), then pop on over to your favorite blogger's entry (no, silly, I mean me) and click the magic vote button. Voting is only open during those two days, so I can't give you an exact link until then, but I'll post one as soon as it becomes available, this being only the heads-up. So thanks a bunch in advance to whomever fits the above criteria.

Vintage

I was digging through some "old stuff", so to speak, a couple of days ago, and happened to stumble upon what is probably my dad's most treasured possession - my grandfather's old camera, a vintage Zeiss Ikon acquired circa 1948, that got to witness and immortalize pretty much all my dad's holidays while growing up. After being somewhat afraid at first to even touch something so precious, it occurred to me what a fabulous subject it would make, so I got around to playing quite a lot with it. Here's the first shot in what I hope to be a small series...

Goodies galore

Soon enough it's going to be exam season again, which, from my standpoint, can only mean more blog maintenance, since it's such a noble cause for which to procrastinate. And during my many recent travels throughout "I'll start studying tomorrow. I swear!" - land, I've discovered some very yummy treats for my many, many readers (enter the cricket sound). And when I say treats, I mean neither sugary goodies, nor doggy biscuits. What I did, however, find is a couple of truly inspiring photography blogs and/or online galleries, and what a sight for sore eyes they are, which is why I thought I'd share. So without further ado...

• Perspective Images - This is the online gallery of photographer Will Williams, which is so far my personal favorite among my recent findings, and on which I must've spent around two or three hours simply because I couldn't stop clicking that darned "Previous" button. As the title description succinctly mentions, the theme is "Travel and Nature Photography", but this seems somewhat generic to do it any justice. I suppose that what I most love about the style of these photos is the clean, elegant simplicity and the impression you get that each and every item, from an entire mountain to a speck of dust, has its exact place, making for some flawlessly balanced photos (in my humble opinion, obviously). And then, of course, there's those charming black and white Holga photos, that may very well be my favorite from the whole package.

• John Marquess Photography - I've found this to be a gallery equally impressive, though in an entirely different style. As with the previous gallery, this also consists mainly of landscape photography, but where "Perspective Images" is about serene, almost Zen-like photos with zero clutter, these are all about motion and dramatic contrast, with plenty of raging waves, dark cloudy skies, both mostly in black and white, making for a much more intense viewing experience. Of course, that's not to say that all images fall within this specific category. There's also a number of considerably calmer ones, either in natural color, or in a very charming old photo tone, vignette included. All in all, a spectacular portfolio.

That's it for now (actually there's more, but I can't even remember the last time I wrote a post this long, if ever, and I have my lazy writer reputation to think of), so I'll be back next time I don't feel like doing homework.

Discarded Sunset

I thought I'd take a small break from all the snow (although I seriously wouldn't mind some right now) and show you a quickie I took quite a while ago and completely forgot about.



This was taken in the tiny seaside resort of Balchik, Bulgaria, the day after New Year's. The entire day was unbelievably warm and sunny, and I especially liked the warm sunset light flooding this empty terrace.

Sunny Side

Here's that same place, from a different perspective.

Which Way?

I'd like to start a short series of photos I took during my last hiking trip, up to the Malaiesti cabin, in the Bucegi mountains. The track itself was a tad too tricky to stop for photos, not to mention the fact that I obviously didn't have my tripod with me for those long exposure night shots. Oops... I didn't mention we left Busteni at 10 p.m. and got there at 5:30 a.m., did I? Good thing my parents don't read this...

However, once we got there, I was fortunate enough to get this glorious picture perfect weather that morning (after a couple of hours of sleep, that is), so I figured I'd share what I have to show for it.

Silhouette

I happened to find this little fellow sitting right outside my window one fine evening. It proved to be my most cooperative live subject so far.

House of Wine

Footsteps

In Vino Veritas