March 20, 2010

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First Day of Spring

Not as warm as the past few days, but I did manage to get out with a friend to one of my favorite places to shoot, the Toledo Botanical Garden. Apparently I missed my fellow blogger and friend, Toledonative at the garden, and it seems we had about the same photographic eye today. Since she posted before me, I posted something she did not to keep a variety! I think I've been to TBG at least three times this week. Oh well, it's close to home and lots of wildlife and beauty!

February 14, 2010

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The street sculpture outside the Toledo Mud Hens stadium

I just loved this brass sculpture on the street looking inside the ball field - so realistic and nostalgic. The fact that it is winter, with snow on the ground - the farthest we can be from baseball season - just made this shot even more curious. A baseball field in the winter seems so desolate.

So what do they see when they look through the wall?

...certainly not a baseball game on Valentine's Day :)

February 2, 2010

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Campiello Del Remer #2

Normally I don't photograph works of art - just seems irrelevant. Not to mention, cameras were strictly forbidden in this Dale Chihuly art exhibit at the Toledo Museum of Art. I have never seen a Chihuly up close, but this man does amazing things with glass, and so I risked stealing a few shots. It was all about glass today... not only were the works of Chihuly amazing, the gallery itself is a work of art. It's made entirely of glass. I can only imagine how the seasons and time of day play a big part on the atmosphere of this building. This is a new building for the Toledo Museum of Art. I used to spend lots of time in this museum back in the day when I was pursuing my bachelor of Fine Arts. In my opinion, it's one of the finer art museums I've ever had the pleasure in which to visit and study. I couldn't think of a better place to be on this gray and snowy day. So enjoy some "bootleg" photos from the Glass Pavilion of Toledo Museum of Art.

The above work is called Campiello Del Remer #2. It was one of 14 chandeliers designed for Chihuly Over Venice in 1996, - it was made in collaboration with the glassorkers at the Waterford Crystal Factory in Ireland. Chihuly subsequently split the chandelier in two, one "half" going to the Kemper Museum in Kansas City, and the other to Toledo. Chihuly's team installed the chandelier themselves in the Glass Pavilion lobby, rearranging the 243 pieces to make it unique to this location. The photo below is the full view of the chandelier in the lobby.

January 18, 2010

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A meeting in the garden

Today I met fellow daily photo blogger Susan a.k.a. toledonative for a photographic outing. What better way to spend a Monday afternoon doing what we love? Walking around in freezing cold temps until our feet and hands get numb! In any case, not ideal weather for shooting, but perfectly ideal for connecting with a new friend. Thanks, Susan, for hanging out! I can't wait to see what you post!

For me, it was between a few - but this one was one of my favorites by far. I varied it in PP a few different ways, but for this post, I am going with the color version for a bit of warmth. I did use my tripod, and when I took this shot, I was still able to feel my feet and face. (see my Flickr photostream for variations and some other favorites from today).

January 10, 2010

The brass sculpture of a tree

Another cheat today - yes, another cheat. I am admitting it. For those who have been following, I have been having difficulty lately because I broke my laptop, and haven't had my tools or my ability to post effectively.

Well, I am happy to say that I am writing this from my new computer. I got me an HP - all the bells and whistles, great processor, lots o' RAM and pretty big hdd, I know... you're probably thinking, well, why didn't she get a Mac? I just can't bring myself to the mac book. God knows I've tried... I've been a Microsoft gal for a long long time and I can't seem to break myself of the habit. The fact that I know Microsoft inside and out has put bread on my table for many years. So here I am, doing what I do best.

It's late, and I'm a few glasses of wine in, but I will continue tomorrow. I didn't get a chance to shoot today. I'm hoping that my apps are compatible with this 64 bit windows 7. But for now, it's good to have my own window to the world, a mouse, and tomorrow - my camera in hand.

November 23, 2009

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McMenamins Kennedy School sculpture

What is this?? TWO days in a row without rain? Today I took advantage of the nice weather and walked over to the Kennedy School for lunch. McMenamins' establishments are rich with quirkiness in their decor, whimsical sculptures and surrealistic paintings. This is only a section of the sculpture.

Lots of fun to shoot here, and also to have lunch. Why not kill two birds with one stone, right?