Welcome to Friday Foto Flogging, a place to share your photos and photography news. We were inspired by the folks at European Tribune who post a regular Friday Photoblog series to try the same on this side of the virtual Atlantic. We also thought foto folks would enjoy seeing some other websites so each week we’ll introduce a different photo website.
This week’s theme: Texture. Smooth/rough/soft/hard or the combination of elements, photos that make us feel.
Website of the Week: The Luminous Landscape. A website packed with information and discussions on taking the best photos possible.
AndiF’s Combo Textures
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Bumpy and soft
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Edged and gritty
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Cracked and ropey
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olivia’s textures
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Behind the paint
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Soft fur
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Cool and soft and a bit prickly
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- Next Week’s Theme: Surprise! Unexpected photo ops
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Previous Friday Foto Flogs
Button grass tussocks, Cradle Mountain, Tasmania
Wildflower, Western Australia.
Sheep, New Zealand Royal Show.
Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand.
They’re all really good but the sheep picture is outstanding — not just for the texture but also for the perspective and the nifty symmetry.
They were amazingly cooperative sheep.
Don`t tell that to the guy from Idaho, with the rubber boots on.
Very nice set.
Do you know if it ever rains on the glacier face to clean the rock & earth off of it?
I bet the blue would be astounding against the black mountains.
OT
I was watching a show on glaciers. Through a cave underneath it, 350 feet below the top surface of the glacier, you could see the bottom of it.
A bicycle wheel with a trip meter was sprung up against the bottom to measure how far the glacier moved & a camera was set up to film the movement.
I watched what 5 months of glacial movement looked like in a speeded up film, & even though it only moved 2 inches an hour, it`s definitely amazing.
I don’t think there’s a heavy enough rainfall to wash the boulders out of the face of this glacier. Franz Josef carved it’s way through the mountain, embedding the rockfall as it went. It’s now in retreat, and the stones are slowly re-emerging.
Here’s a close up of the glacier face, with crazy people climbing it.
WARNING: VERY LARGE IMAGE
For a YouTube of some extremely cooperative sheep go here.
Keres
Thanks,
I did see this last week. Simply amazing, then someone commented on the “moaning lisa”
Looking at the glacier I became aware that cold has a texture, and I wouldn’t want to fall on it. I also like the hint of blue in the ice.
Such a variety of textures. I like the name “button grass.” And the sheep are quite something. There are a couple that have their heads turned in the same way – I am not sure how to tell them apart.
I want to touch the wildflowers to find out: Are they soft or stiff? If I run them through my hand will the fluff come off? Are they like dandelion puffballs – if I blow on them or pluck them and spin in a circle, will the fluff float away?
Lovely photos keres – especially the sheep (gorgeous photo!) and the spikey wildflower.
Prickly Pleats, Saguaro National Park, Ventana Canyon
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Between the Lines, Snow Canyon State Park, UT
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All That’s Left, Fourth of July Creek burn area, ID
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I love the burned bark shot — it’s one of my all-time favorites of your photos.
Jim, what I like about your first two shots is the precise way you pair pattern & color, so that they are 1) completely organic and 2)truly exceptional.
I can’t see #3 because dial-up is my enemy.
Jim,
Very very cool.
Is the pattern on the cactus a repetitive one on that kind of cactus, or is it a natural curve of events?
The blackened trunk is a beauty, & nature`s plow can sure cut a neat furrow.
‘Between the lines’ is amazing … wow.
Andi, The first one is my favorite. Without anything for scale, it’s a guessing game to tell what it is: a well, a tunnel, a mine shaft, ….
Olivia, I think that is the most relaxed I’ve ever seen Noods. The third one in your set looks like one of those tests where you have to pick out which item doesn’t belong.
Great photos, both of you.
Thanks Jim. That warm sun does strange things to kitties. 😉
I agree w/ you on Andi’s first shot. That’s what I thought it was at first too — a secret opening. 🙂
that fits with textures but since you did say “photos that make us feel”, how does homelessness make you feel?
I’m thinking I might just create a set for pictures of the homeless and/or less fortunate that I take to group them all together. I think they at least deserve that much attention.
Wow. The black and white, combined with faceless huddle of a body trying to either keep warm or shut out the world of maybe both…makes me feel sick to my stomach that such a condition exists.
so while it was cool, it wasn’t particularly cold, so to speak.
That doesn’t rule out health or mental issues with this person, though.
There a lot of texture there; it’s just the emotional kind.
I see a good deal of visual texture, too — indicative of the quality of the photograph aside of its message.
Not that I’m immune to the message; I move through a number of emotions, which arise from an awareness that my period of homelessness was relatively easy.
This photo reminds me of some of the great ones that came out of the last depression. Very nice capture.
Definitely makes one feel stand strong. You’ve captured a very powerful image.
Very powerful photo. It really does create a feeling.
What an incredible shot and photograph. You are invoking the spirit of Walker Evans.
I wasn’t familiar with his work but am now! Thanks!
What led the subject of your photo to be sleeping in a doorway?
This is a bronze sculpture at a new coffee shop/bar/live music venue here in Raleigh. The building is 150 years old and they’ve exposed the old brick, which is just beautiful. And almost a hundred years ago it was a little dining room called The Busy Bee, so they’ve reincarnated that name and theme.
With my naked eye this was a rather boring orange gerbera daisy with a solid green center. Onscreen it blew me away.
I don’t know if because I’m old and my eyesight is failing up close, but I love that when I take pics of things up close and then put them on screen, a whole new world of color and texture opens up:
That sculpture is very cool but it is overwhelmed by the flower photos. I especially like the middle one — it makes me wish it wash huge so I could go walk through it.
Neat sculpture, but I wouldn’t want to sit near it.
Gorgeous flowers.
I hear you. This sort of thing happens to me a lot — moreso with wide shots, since I’m notoriously near-sighted & don’t wear my specs. In a few of the mountainside photos I took yesterday, I didn’t realize until later that there were birds in ’em.
The color in these flower shots gives me an enormous buzz. The honeycomb photo actually presents a nice contrast, since both comb & flower are crucial for bees — but the comb is totally artificial.
Those are beautiful flower shots! Re: close ups seeming to have so much more detail – fear not, I don’t think it’s age – I think it’s like listening to music with headphones – it’s another dimension. That looks like a Gerbera daisey?
three images of the top tier of a heavy timber retaining wall that’s slowly succumbing to the forces of nature:
spikes…1 & 2:
w/ fungi:
and up above, shingles and shadows:
clik images to enlarge
The first three makes me feel like I should be pulling splinters out of my fingers. And the last one is like a art deco design. As always, I am wowed by your eye for the telling detail.
Dada, I like the simplicity of your images because it’s deceptive. Many of your other shots have a similar quality. It’s great.
thx ww. l’m pleased you’ve made that connection.
l’m not sure how to explain the way l approach photography other than to say, l’m basically a minimalist in that l try to capture whatever the subject/theme is in an interesting way, and w/ as few shots as possible. old habits from several decades of shooting film, even w/ the digital throw away format.
sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
Beautiful use of light.
‘Shingles and shadows’ is wonderful dada. Nicely done.
Nothing new, but here are a couple of fall textures:
I like them both but I prefer the top — it’s so well composed and nicely defined.
I really like the flowers!
other than they both occurred within the last 20 minutes
The texture of yum –
The texture of Hope’s sad face –
It looks like Hopeful is eyeing that yum, trying to figure out how to get out of her picture and into that one. 🙂
Well, she’d love the goat cheese. The roasted beets and spinach would just be a big, colorful mess on the rug.
Damp skies:
ha! I love that one. Flying fish.
That’s a fascinating picture — great use of reflection and the glow of the fish gives an especially ethereal look.
Ask, you have such a happy sense of color! Refreshing, vivifying & slightly outrageous.
😉
Neat, flying fish.
Nice catch … hehe … Great to see your photos in the flog, ask!
That’s one for the printer!
I want to touch each one of your three photos – I can’t choose a favorite.
How is the “C” completed? Cold? Cream? Chest? Cellar? Closet? Case? Container?
You got it the first time — cold.
“Soft fur” cries out for a pet – is that possible or does your cat just tease you?
Hi tampopo — on no, petting is strongly encouraged. 😀
We’re traveling this week so only one.
Click for maximum textcha as they say in the Boston area.
It may be only one but it good ‘un. The green just glows right off the screen.
Green on gray, great.
Hi Bob. That is gorgeous–the large view must be seen.
Hope you’re having happy travels.
Thanks Olivia. So far so good but lousy access to the internet as it’s been intermittent or heavily filtered.
Ah very nice … and the first two are a bit scary. Those are some mean looking thorns; did you find them growing around Sleeping Beauty’s castle? 😉
“…did you find them growing around Sleeping Beauty’s castle? ;)”
Of course, they’re right outside my window 😉
I was told the tree was a “needlepoint locust.” I thought somehow this was connected to the leaves being much smaller than the locusts I was more familiar with. Then I saw the thorns which took a few years to show up, and wondered if the connection was needle in “needlepoint.”
What I see in your set is a portrait of nature’s resilience. Incredibly cool & dramatic forms. I like your thistle especially, for the color combo.
The Little Prince and his rose bush with only thorns to protect it came to mind.
There have been efforts to eradicate the thistle (which I grew up calling a “jagger bush”). I gather they are not good for the cows.
Oh yes. The Little Prince, absolutely.
I wonder if ‘jagger’ came from ‘jagged’?
I can’t ever remember writing “jagger bush” before, so I looked up “jagger” in the dictionary to check spelling:
If we stepped on a jagger bush we would get “jaggers” in our feet.
Speaking of pricks, one wonders about the relationship to the surname.
Like Mick?
He was actually the first entry for “jagger.” 😉
Oh my. We sure do love our celebrities.
I’ve actually gone to do a wee bit of research on the name; apparently, the ‘jag’ in the name comes from a pack (as in backpack); Jagger (or, in a surname variant, Jager) was a hawker or peddler with his jag, or pack. It dates to medeival England.
No pricks in sight at this database.
On the other hand, check this out ..
When you’re that prickly, it’s no wonder you can’t get no satisfaction, Mick.
Actually, this plant doesn’t reproduce — it just repeats itself & collects royalties.
Great set tampopo … well done!
What a beautiful selection we have so far!
I humbly submit my contribution for your feely pleasure.
What a great set — I like the fungus and the lichen best.
Thanks, as always, for your encouragement!
I see something of a relationship between your tree photo & mine (though yours is a bit more varied).
One would almost think we live in similar surroundings.
😉
Scratchy bales and soft fur
Old wood, warm and familiar
The peddler, a different touch for everyone
That’s a lovely interior shot — makes me want to set down a spell and chat.
ID, in your set I see a very nice way of life, blessedly relaxed & comfortable.
Oddly enough, in your third shot I focus — finally — on the gentleman’s hair & clothes, as well as his stance. He also seems comfortable.
He’s the son, the man on the right with the outstretched hand is the dad. They’re very dedicated motorheads, with more than a touch of whimsy, as evidenced by the “Peddler Wagon” piece. Dad also rides a beautifully restored WWII army Harley-Davidson. One of these days, I’ll get a shot of it too. The guys have an amazing car & truck collection in various states of restoration.
Sounds like a wonderful photo opportunity, if they’re willing.
I’m sure we’d enjoy seeing what you get.
And yes, life here is pretty good.
Andi, your number one photo is really intriguing!
I think it shows that 1) if you get close enough to anything, it can look mysterious and 2) old, abandoned homesteads are fertile picture hunting grounds. That’s a cement block that part of a few feet high and a feet across square structure. It’s downhill from the old cabin I’ve shown in pictures before; so I’m guessing that they burned trash in it.
Well, how about that! Thanks for solving the mystery for us.
Miss O, I like your set very, very much.
As we all know, I dig natural forms the most — but what I like best is your kitty’s awareness. It’s very affectionate & also completely a part of her essential nature.
Fall leaves.
This is a very pretty musical composition, b2 — especially with green leaf accents like little bells.
I’m actually partly color blind and hadn’t noticed that green until just now. Sigh.
Nice jigsaw puzzle. 🙂
I`ll post these in three comments because I usually have a lot of trouble posting on Fridays. I don`t know why.
I love all the previous offerings here. It`s getting to look like more photogs are shooting & happy about it.
Thanks Olivia & Andi, & all contributors.
I included a few for Olivia & Andi, you`ll know them.
TORTOISE SHELL
(On marble base)
TEXTURE CRAB
HATCH COVER
SILK FISH
(Embroidered on extremely sheer silk between sheets of glass, on a mini-leopard skin print)
BOOKS OF KNOWLEDGE
(Muscles, bones & bindings)
CORAL SKELETON
CORAL SKELTON 2
CORAL SKELETON 3
SEA SPRITE ON BAMBOO
DREAM WEAVER
(Woven wood frame , woven bead bag)
ALOE BANANNA
(Paper background & frame)
SNOW LEOPARD
(Painting in our bedroom, frame from a pillow on the couch)
FISH FINGERS
COLD COMFORT
LIPSTICK TESTER
BEAR FEET
iPOD
GRRRR
(Chihuahua)
CHIA PET
EXOTIC DANCER
(With ant)
FREE HUGS
BLACK SABBATH
(Click for original title, Andi)
REPUBLICAN TEABAG
EASTER SKY
Another great collection, KH! Some amazing critters you have.
Thanks Indianadem,
I swear that republican teabag isn`t one of them. I shot that down the street.(It didn`t die, though)
I noticed that beautiful cabin you posted.
That`s my kind of place, but yours is neat & tidy. I have so much stuff around here, I should get that Tinker & his truck to come by.
Once again fantastic, ‘Head. And once again, I can only see a few before my computer faints.
Will try again tomorrow.
Wilderness wench,
Thanks,
Sprinkling smelling salts on your monitor may or may not work, for the fainting spells.
Maybe it just has “the vapors”.
I do love that edges picture, Head but in this set — even with a wonderful blenny picture and Kokopelli — my heart belongs to CORAL SKELETON.
Andi,
Hah, I try.
I`ll post the beautiful beaded bag of Kokopelli at WK soon.
It`s really a one of a kind piece of beadwork & I don`t know how it was done.
It`s all free beaded, with no backing/liner.
The CORAL SKELETON looks like an image taken with an electron microscope.
Each individual circular structure had an animal living in it, along with it`s commensurate photosynthetic algae giving the particular coral it`s unique color.
What I don`t understand is the regular mounds on this one.
The terminations of the colony growths, which differ from coral to coral, are also a mystery I`ll have to learn about, before expounding on such a fantastic subject.
The red in # 2 & # 3 is a coral skeleton also.
The size of that one is like an extra large jumbo pizza in circumference by about a foot thick.
It`s rare that the skeleton is red, rather than bleached white.
Hmmmn, I just realized another mystery.
You continue to amaze!
Hey Boran2, Thanks.
I`m soon going to go to your place to surprise myself.
Copper, Brass, Stone, Seidnayya Convent, Syria
Church Door, Beirut Lebanon
Door, Hariri Mosque, Beirut, Lebanon
Hurriah,
Doors are one of my hobbies.
I love them.
Gringo, from ET, posted a bunch from Mexico, then posted more when I asked him about them.
I`ve built quite a few in the past.
Are the two bottom ones very old, do you think?
The bottom one is modern. It is one of the doors of the mosque named for the late Rafique Hariri. Not sure of the age of the other two. I think the second one is quite old, and the first one should be old as well. It is one of several brass and copper doors in that convent, which is one of the oldest working convents in the world, and dates back to the Byzantine period.
PS I am not saying the door dates back to the Byzantine period, but the convent and its basic structure does. There are a lot of items there that are more recent, some of which have dates attached and others do not. I do not know about the doors, and did not research it. There are several similar doors in the convent, but due to the position of the sun it was difficult to get decent pictures of most of them.
I am leaving for Syria one week from today. My plans are, as usual, very vague and fluid, but I will try to keep an eye out for interesting doors while I am there.
If anyone else has a special interest let me know. I plan to take even more pictures than I did last time.
Hurriah,
Thanks for the reply.
Have a safe but eventful trip.
And take thousands of pictures.
I love the travelogues.
Contact me asap for some cool & simple tricks to shoot large panoramas. Don`t come back without some of those. You will not regret it.
If you see any interesting doors that are used by ordinary people, at their homes or compounds, I`d appreciate seeing them.
The rural images you post are the most interesting. The people & how they live & interact ones are the most special ones.
I did notice how perfectly clean it is in the center of Beiruit.
I notice the leisure mood of possibly soldiers on the street. What`s the story on that? Are they policemen as in any city or soldiers on vacation or what.
For a city that has been in existence as a thriving place since 15 centuries BC, I find it fascinating that some of the ruins still stand even though most of the destruction seems to have been caused in the last hundred years. I`ll have to go read up on the city.
I would be delighted to contact you, but how? I do not see any contact information here for you. You could e-mail me, of course.
Hurria,
I did.
Check your mail.
I focused on the inscription carved in the middle door, and enlarged it. There is a date there of 1294 AD, but I do not think that is the age of the door, but of the structure.
And I had misremembered this shot. It is not a church.
Lovely set. The middle door seems to glow as if it is the sun … so it’s no surprise that it has rays coming off from it. 🙂
All the doors are beautiful. The carving and embossing capture the theme of texture so well. I like the first one th best because it is open slightly making it more inviting than the other two.
Hariri Mosque, Beirut, Lebanon
Beirut, Lebanon
Beirut City Center Rebuilt
Beirut City Center, Still Some Work To Do
Remnants of the Ancient World in the Middle of Modern Beirut
I like the juxtaposition of the city center picture and the ancient ruins — what takes times centuries to do, people can do in a minute.
It may sound funny but I really like that Starbucks shot. I think it is because of the green Starbucks sign repeated in two languages tying into the green tree on the right. It isn’t the subject matter so much as the composition.
The first picture of the mosque surrounded by concertina wire is a real contrast in textures: inviting and forbidding. Great shot.
It is a real statement about Lebanon.
The mosque is huge. I wanted to approach the front entrance, but as you can see it was blocked. I went to the gate and asked the guards if it was OK to enter, and they politely told me no, it was not allowed. so, I took the photo showing the concertina wire with the mosque behind it. Then I was able to get to the back and sides of the mosque, and took some photos of the doors.
Next to the mosque is a memorial tent for Rafique Hariri and those who were killed with him. I went in and found it quite moving, despite the fact that I am no fan of the Hariris.
In that area there is also a tent encampment of one of the numerous factions in Lebanon. It is the only place I was advised not to try to enter. Though I doubt seriously I would have been in physical jeopardy, it might have been unpleasant.
Here are a few picture of the Hariri mosque that shows something very typical about Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine especially, but really much of the Arab world, that might surprise most Americans. I wish the photos themselves were better, but you can see that the mosque is surrounded by churches, and these are by far not the only ones in that area.
These are all beautiful images, Hurria — sharing a very unique warmth of tone, which I particularly like.