Frustrated - Day 66 #CY365

We still have a copper POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) line at our house. I know, I know - dinosaurs are we. We a few weeks back Verizon called us and wanted to shift us over to the fiber optic network. We scheduled an appointment for this Saturday to have the work done. So we think we'll all set. But Nooooo! Earlier this week the confirmation calls started. Automated calls requesting us to confirm the appointment, again and again and again. I guess most people stand them up for appointments. Each call was a pleasant recorded female voice asking to confirm our appointment and then quickly rattling off an 866 number to call and a 10 digit confirmation code. The code number is not repeated and its required when you call back. You would think they could track this by your home phone number but not so. No confirmation code and no where else to go on the automated menu. So I was popping through the caller ID and decided this was prefect for today's 365 prompt. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/50 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 1600, first use of my new LED macro ring light and post-processed in Picasa using the Lomo-ish effect.

Muse - Day 65 #CY365

I had to find my muse on the Capture Your 365 project gallery today. It was easy because I have been admiring the work of contributor Pam Scott since joining the project in January. She has a great closeup eye for photos. I choose her Day 49 "In the Front Yard" photo of a pink camellia as my inspiration. Here's my pink camellia completely desaturated and presented in black and white. I was looking to capture the same texture and feel as Pam did but with my own view. Canon 7D, 1/125 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 400, converted to black and white using Silver Efex Pro.

A Story in Three - Day 64 #CY365

Today's challenge was to tell a story with three pictures. This has been a cold and gray winter making me long for the beach and warm weather. I created this story in three with the beach in mind from photos I made last year. The first photo is a Florida coast sunrise with a lone shore bird in the surf, the second is my grandson Robert enjoying the mid afternoon sunshine in Virginia Beach, and the final shot is a sunset of shore birds at the Boneyards in Encinitas California. This weekend's forecast is for sun and temperatures in the 60's, so I think a walk on the beach is just what the doctor ordered.

Party! - Day 63 #CY365

Well it not exactly a party per se, it's lunch at the Chartreuse Bistro in downtown Norfolk, Virginia. It's one of my favorite places to eat. The food is wonderful, the tableware and decor are inspiring and the whole team make it a wonderful place for a relaxing break in the middle of the day. Chartreuse is locally owned by husband and wife team - general manager Karine Varga and executive chef Christopher Corrie. Just in case you're interested today's lunch was fish stew; a kale salad with goat cheese dressing, almonds, apricot, and onion; and an amazing mushroom & fontina focaccia. The menu is different everyday, you must try when in Norfolk.

iPhone 5 - with a newly cracked screen, Camera+ app.

Choose a Favorite - Day 62 #CY365

Today's challenge was to choose a favorite color. My favorite color is red but I thought I try a little color theory with today's photo. I formed a color wheel using my grandson's crayons. The arrangement of the colors around the wheel help define both complimentary and analogous colors. Complementary colors can be found by choosing any color around the wheel and then looking straight across the wheel. For red the complimentary color is green, think Christmas. Yellow's complimentary color is violet and blue's is orange. Analogous colors are those on either side of main color. In the case of red, it's red orange and red violet. A color wheel is a very useful tool for decorators, artists, photographers and even a guy when picking a tie or socks to match that shirt. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/500 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro, LED ring light and two LED litepanels.

Cattus Petasatus - Day 61 #CY365

Happy Birthday Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss, who was born on March 2, 1904. This is a Latin translation of the children's classic first published in 1957. It belongs to my son Michael who teaches high school Latin and it's looked over by my prized Lucky Cat. iPhone 5, one LED Litepanel and the Camera+.

Step Outside - Day 60 #CY365

Today challenge was "Step Outside" and the first day of month is always a self portrait. So here's my selfie taken in the front yard with my neighbor's bare pecan trees in the background. I captured the late afternoon sun which appeared briefly on an otherwise cloudy and gray day. Used the camera's popup flash to add just a little fill light with the flash compensation set at -2 stops. The camera's self timer was used, manual focus using the distance gauge on the lens, and of course, the camera was tripod mounted. Canon 7D, 1/250 sec @ f/8, ISO 200, 35mm prime lens.