Hallmark owns & maintains a 100+ year old farmhouse north of Kansas City in Kearney, Missouri. It's in use much of the time for artists' and writers' workshops, and I had the good fortune of being invited up there for the day to participate in a leadership workshop. Not only was the workshop great, but the weather couldn't have been better. We had the windows open in the studio, with sunlight & a fantastic breeze streaming in. And our after-lunch assignment required us to work individually, so we were turned loose on the grounds. I headed out on one of the trails, surrounded by a tallgrass prairie, armed with my notepad & my camera. When I got sufficiently down the trail to ensure solitude, I laid down in the grass & began to write. It's amazing how clearly you think when you're out in nature by yourself! Having drafted my answers, I headed further into the woods to see what I could find. As I approached a creek bed two large deer heard me coming & bounded out of the way. (They were too obscured by trees for a good photo, despite my camera being ready.)
Into the woods...
After finishing up the workshop for the day, I took the chance to take a few more photos, concentrating on the crabapple orchard, which was at the height of bloom. The flowers smelled incredible & were breathtaking in the sunshine:
The massive tree in the front yard with a swing, just as I remember
it from my internship nearly 14 years ago!
It was a perfect & memorable day for so many reasons!
After finishing up the workshop for the day, I took the chance to take a few more photos, concentrating on the crabapple orchard, which was at the height of bloom. The flowers smelled incredible & were breathtaking in the sunshine:
Back around the house...
Beautiful shots! What kind of camera do you use?
ReplyDeleteThanks! It's a Sony HX-1. Quite large for a digital camera, but I've had it almost a year & have been very happy with it. Strengths: 20x zoom and nice macro shots; seamless "sweep" panorama mode. Weaknesses: I haven't been able to get the most ideal shots in low light, which may be operator error rather than the camera. And sometimes shots can have more graininess than I like. Here's a pro review: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sonydschx1/
ReplyDeleteJen: These are lovely! I especially like your close-ups of the crabapple blossoms and the shot along the branch (trunk?) of the redbud. My Nikon is much simpler than yours, but I am frustrated by the same low light problem. I can make some adjustments on the camera, and a few more on the computer - but still disappointing.
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