Small signs of spring

Linking up with Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday eDition, Flower Power, using two of her textures - jessica and coolgrunge.  Wishing you all a Happy Easter and some warm spring weather!

Banjo string

Close up of a banjo string (with dust!).  A photoshop frame (duplicated) which was made into a png file, with the image  added later. 

Details

orchid again

In spite of much neglect this small orchid plant refuses to die off and produces beautiful white-pink flowers twice a year.  Its label which has also survived says 'Orchidaceae Dendrobium'.  I've grown quite fond of it!

Seat with a view

A well known local view, between Alnwick and Rothbury in the border county of Northumberland, also appears in one of The Hobbit film posters!  The 'fold' was created in Photoshop and the page curl in Paint shop Pro.  On a nice day you can spend quite a time here admiring the view of the Cheviots and the Simonside hills.  One of my favourite places!

Signs

The two hyacinths were shot in my kitchen with the window behind the flowers, the blue one has one of Kim Klassen's textures added (edith) whilst the pink one has one of my textures.  The snowdrops were seen in Hulne Park in Alnwick on a warm day before the snow came in from the east reminding us that it's not quite spring yet.

A splash of colour

Masking it!

Having seen various masks on different blogs, I decided to have a go at creating one myself.  In Photoshop I opened a new page and using various sizes and shapes of brushes created the mask shown above.  With an image of a hydrangea the first mask layer is Lighter Colour 75% and the second layer, using the same mask, is Difference 75%.
Please feel free to have a try using the mask on one of your own images - just link back please!

'Ugly duckling'!

Back to the piece of vilene plus molding paste - not very exciting to look at -

but can lead to some interesting digital effects!

Still finding out how to place text and photos in Blogger - thanks to Su and Emma for suggestions.

Take a piece of vilene ...

I took a piece of vilene, about A4 size, made a pattern with molding paste and a sequin waste template, added acrylics and treasure gold .. and made a cover for sketchbook.


Using the same piece of patterned vilene I  created a digital image in Photoshop.  Now I need to work out how to put script below the image - help gratefully received!

Moving on

Using the image of the crop of the cut glass jug, I played in Photoshop and added  a topaz filter.  The selection was  made with the magic wand (sounds very Harry Potter-ish!).

Too easy!

No fooling you lot!  A glass 'jug' with drops of food colouring added to the water.  Must find something more difficult!

What is it?

Really stuck for something to photograph!  Here's something I did this morning - can you guess what it is!?

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!  May the year ahead be filled with surprises and adventures!  Here's a quote from a good friend (Paul Leader)  - "Replace the fear of the unknown with curiosity".  I'll drink to that!

Old hydrangea

Too cold and wet to go outside to find something to photograph, then I remembered that I had cut some hydrangea heads before the bad weather set in, so I spent a happy half hour photographing this with the 50mm lens, adding a Kim Klassen texture and using the 'angelic wars' font.  I think the quote was from a psalm in Eugene Peterson's The Message.  Something to remember, whether the feeling goes with  it or not!

Happy Christmas!

Wishing all blogland friends a happy and peaceful Christmas!

Sorrow

Sharing in the grief of the parents who lost their children and their teachers.
"The smallest amount of light is infinitely more powerful than massive amounts of dark"  (Rob Bell)

Im-mobile

The cranberry was a bit worse for wear and the strawberries don't have much taste but it was the best I could do!  (Still using the mobile phone.)

Facing the light

I haven't any photography lights or flashes (except the one on the camera) so I usually use light from a window or more recently a torch, but I pushed the boat out with this one and used the light from my mobile phone!  Taken with the 50mm lens in a dark room!

Christmas lights