Photography Challenge

A is for ART-ichoke

Still life Artichoke with scarf. Window light.

A is for Apple. Photography Challenge

Every now and then I come up with a crazy idea and if I don’t think it through, before you know it, I’ve committed myself to a 26 day photography challenge. And hence I present to you #debsisolationalphabet.

f/4.5
1/50sec
ISO 400
60mm
Window light

Handheld, because I was in a hurry. And, umm, too lazy to set the tripod up.

Everyone has a spare artichoke in their house, right? Well, no. I wouldn’t know what to do with an artichoke other than photograph it. My partner had headed to the shops for dinner supplies so I sent him a text and said ‘buy me an artichoke’. I can only imagine the quizzical look on his face.
I can’t wait for C. I think I’ll have to photograph some chocolate and some cheese!

While I’m here. Have you heard of Canva? It’s brilliant (and I don’t get anything for saying that!). It’s a Graphic Design program that’s super simple to use and you can create just about anything you want by using the templates available. So you don’t have to be super creative to create something super creative! Posters, cards, social media promo’s, you name it, you can do it. And it’s FREE! There is a paid pro-version of course. Check it out. It’ll make you look like a pro with whatever you design! CANVA.com

And feel free to join in the Debs Isolation Alphabet Challenge. You can start any time you like. Have some fun with it. I have my non-photographer partner involved in it and he’s already commented on how aware of his surrounding he is or things around him that he otherwise would have missed because now he’s looking,

I hope you join in. Or just follow along.

#debsisolationchallenge

Hello Blog

Seems I got a little distracted and haven’t been around to finish blogging my trip from 2019. Guess being locked down in a Pandemic is a good time to get back to it.

In the meantime, here’s a few gorgeous gumnut flowers from a walk on Good Friday.

Rome

Rome and I had a patchy start. It took me a while to warm to her. I think we left on solid friendship terms though.

Dead Sunflowers

If you can tell me what you thought or felt when you looked at these photos, then I will tell you what I felt and saw as I was photographing them.

Pienza to San Gimignano

One of the frustrating things about travelling as a photographer is that you simply can’t be everywhere you want to be at the right time of day. We had limited time in Southern Tuscany as it was, and then we lost a day having to back track to San Gimignano. We were supposed to call in on the the way from Lucca to Pienza but we got lost in Pisa and ran out of time. It’s about a 2 hour drive from Pienza so we weren’t going to get there for either early morning or late afternoon light so it was the middle of the day or nothing. We stopped along the way to take photos of iconic sites like the Chapel of Our Lady of Vitaleta below. It was not the right light and you can walk closer but of course we didn’t have time, so I just got what I could and kept on going. I hoped I’d get another chance but it didn’t happen on this trip. I’ve already mentioned I’d return to this part of Italy and allow much more time to explore and be in the right place at the right time of day .

Sunflower season was over so there were only a few stray patches left hear and there. I did find a fabulous field of dead sunflowers which I’ll share in a separate post. One of the hard decisions would be to decide which season to return in as they all offer something different. The sunflowers would be a big draw card but the heat and the crowds would be a definite turn off.

San Gimignano - lots of character, and lots of crowds

(most of which I cropped out to retain the character)

I think we should introduce more of these little 3 wheel vehicles into Australia. They’re like a cross between a motorbike and a ute. How practical is that!

This photo looks a bit cold or austere whereas San Gimignano was quite warm and bustling. It’s just that the street was full of tourists so I cropped them out and the light was shit because it was the middle of the day and adding nothing to the scene.

A bit of a debacle trying to find an alternate route home via the Chianti region. Three times around a crazy busy roundabout before we were on the right road to find a winery for an afternoon Vino. Then a very narrow, very winding dirt road before we back tracked to this little village we’d passed through. Next time in Italy will include more time to explore the Chianti region.

Pienza - An early morning walk around the Old Town

Quiet, peaceful, beautiful. Take me back there!