Photo Heart Connection April

My Photo Heart Connection for this month is this picture of a Pasque flower from our garden

Early in April I went into the garden and took pictures of the flowers that were out. One of the reasons for doing this is that we are about to put our house on the market and move from the country into the city. This will be a big adventure for us, we have lived here in this beautiful, quiet, spot for over thirty years and have been lucky to have a large garden that has presented many photographic opportunities.

We will almost certainly have a small courtyard garden in the city which I will like, but which will be very different, so I am savouring my garden and its flowers while I still have it.

Oo see the other Photo Heart connections for April or to join in click on the badge below

Liberate Your Art 2014

This will be my third round of Kat Sloma's wonderful 'Liberate your art postcard swap", and as always it has been great fun.

First off I made the same mistake as last year, I sent off 6 different postcards fairly early on and now have absolutely no idea which ones they were!

I have now seen one of them on the Facebook page and the recipient of another emailed me so these are two of the six I sent!

and these are the beautiful works of art I received.

The first card I received was this serene Buddha was from Twistylane Texas

Next up was this gorgeous mixed media card from Tina who included this hand written quote on the back of the card. You can find her on flickr

“Every horizon, upon being reached reveals another beckoning in the distance. Always I am on the threshold.”

— Eugene Smith

This seems really pertinent today as on our walk across the downs yesterday we experienced just this sensation!

Love this self-portrait from Lynne who you can find on flickr

Postcard number four is this glorious abstract from Carlyn Clark it has the following handwritten quote on the back which I just love

“Creativity is contagious. Pass it on”

— Albert Einstein

Number five is of beautiful sea birds from Annie Kelleher of Crimson Cove Photography with this quote on the back

“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source you will truly have defeated age”

— Sophia Loren

Last to arrive was Kat's card which was as always just beautiful

Here you have them on my white board all together

and with a bit of context!

Huge thanks to Kat for organising this swap again - do go visit some of the other participants in the swap via this link

Photo Heart Connection March

“God’s in his Heaven -
Alls alright with the world”

— Robert Browning

The year's at the spring
And day's at the morn;
Morning's at seven;
The hillside's dew-pearled;
The lark's on the wing;
The snail's on the thorn:
God's in His heaven—
All's right with the world!

Extract from Pippa Passes by Robert Browning

This poem sums up what I feel about this month's Photo Heart Connection. As regular readers of my blog will know I have just returned from a short break in Berlin where we had a fabulous time. There was, however, one defining moment when everything came together to produce a sparking moment of joy and happiness.

I am currently taking James Baraz's course 'Awakening Joy'. A part of this is increasing your ability to recognise and savour joy in the present moment and just such a moment occurred during our trip. We had visited the East Side Gallery of the Berllin Wall ( pictures coming soon) and then stopped for lunch in the Hackescher Markt, a square containing a number of open air cafes and restaurants. We choose one, sat down to peruse the menu and I ordered a glass of Gruner Veltllinger, a wine I really like that not readily available outside Austria and Germany. So we sat there in the warm spring sunshine (you know, the first day when sitting outside is not any kind of ordeal because of the cold wind) in a square full of buzzing happy people and a busker began playing the trumpet (an instrument I love), and I just thought 'It really doesn't get any better then this!'

Photo Heart Connection February

It's time to join in with Kat Sloma's Photo Heart Connection for February.

I have been severely challenged in taking photos this month due to a combination of the appalling weather conditions and the fact that I've been very busy at work so when we have had good weather when I've been working, I haven't been able to get out.

I could of course have set up some shots to take indoors using props but although I really like the results when others do it, It doesn't appeal to me as an activity.

So as you can see I was a little stumped by what to choose as my photo heart connection, until Thursday that is, when I looked up from my desk to notice the light and reflections of a string of metal leaves I have hung up in the window - everything changed!

I took a number of pictures zooming in and out and was surprised when I found I had a triple reflection which I had not noticed just looking at the leaf

one of the original images with just a bit of touching up in lightroom

I thought it would be good to pop across to Photoshop and experiment with blend modes and textures - these are some of the results

I have also just started Kelly Rae Roberts Hello Soul Hello Mixed-Media Mantra's course, which is about painting rather than photography, but the first part of the course is about coming up with mantras which are personal to us - so of course I couldn't resist including some of them on these pictures which seemed the perfect vehicle for them.

Experimenting was really fun

and it's hard to choose a favourite

But I think this is the one that most makes my heart sing and therefore is my Photo Heart Connection for February

I think what I really love about this one is the way the original leaf shines out in silver with the lacy reflections behind.

I'd love to know which is your favourite!

This post is part of Photo Heart Connection - click on the icon below to check out more fabulous photos with a connection to the heart

Photo Heart Connection January

This month for the first time I am joining in with Kat Sloma's Photo Heart Conection. The idea is to 'Deepen the connection between your photos and your heart and soul by participating in this monthly review of your images, to find the one that best connects to your heart.' after much thought I choose this image of someone I saw on the tube in London.

I got on the train at the terminal ( where it is not underground) and noticed this man sitting in the corner opposite me - I thought he had the most amazing face somehow full of humour and wisdom. I reminded myself that my word of the year is courage and asked him if I could take a picture - he agreed and though you can't really see it ( I had my 50m fixed lens on) made a kind of Jazz hands gesture. In that moment I felt a real connection with this stranger here on the London Underground where our our paths intersected for a brief, (he got out at the next station), moment.

Liberate Your Art Postcard Swap

This will be the second time I have participated in Kat Sloma's swap and I would thoroughly recommend it. It's very simple; you send 5 cards to Kat who redistributes them to swappers around the world and you get five back, plus a bonus card from Kat herself. (I rather suspect that most of us include a bonus card for Kat too).

I chose to send 6 different cards and sent them off in rather a rush just before going on holiday - this means that I now don't know which ones I sent except for the two I have had news of (this is much better than last year when I didn't find out if anyone had received my cards - and it is such fun when someone posts them on the Facebook page or emails to tell you of their safe receipt!)

The first of my cards appeared on Facebook right at the beginning of the swap - I was so excited. the picture is of a window of the George Hotel Yarmouth dressed for the Queen's Jubilee last summer. The George is a wonderful old building formerly the residence of the governor of the Isle of Wight. King Charles 1 spent the night there on his way to imprisonment in Carisbrook Castle and ultimately his death at the hands of Oliver Cromwell.

This is the second card I had news of and I was moved to receive this message from Will who lives near Boston

'I received your post card yesterday...Rodin's "The Thinker" with the Einstein quote. Very nice. Doubly so since it arrived the day after the Boston Marathon bombings'

Now to the cards I received. First to arrive was a fun Yoga card from Sassy, very apt as I have just started yoga classes. it was closely followed by a fun monocrome design from p'shaw designs which had this hand written quote on the back

“Creativity is thinking new things,
Innovation is doing new things.”

— Theodore Levitt

Next up was a violin and bow on exhibition in the musical instrument museum in Arizona from Deanie Houghtaling, This card had a quote too, printed on the back this time.

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. you bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved”

— Ansel Adams

this was followed by this Colourful mixed media piece from Tina Wittmer, this time with a quote on the front

“I prefer drawing to talking. Drawing is faster and leaves less room for lies.”

— Le Corbusier

Then we get to the 5th card, the one thats really got me thinking about why we participate in the swap. Obviously I can only speak for my own motivation. I do it because it's fun, it's a way of exchanging real as opposed to virtual art across continents, and it fosters connectivity and community. Other benefits might include additional traffic to my web site but they are extras. Overall I see the swap as an exchange of gifts between artists. When I received my 5th card I was surprised to see that the artist's website and email address was printed prominently over the photograph on the front of the card, thereby diminishing my pleasure in the art. On the back of the card was a promotional statement, so I guess the artist uses these as business cards. Nothing wrong with that of course, but for me it didn't capture the spirit and generosity of the swap. Plus it really spoiled much of my enjoyment of the picture, taking away from the concept of sharing gifts. For that reason I am not posting a picture of the card on my blog.

Finally I received Kats's lovely card - thank you so much for organising the swap agin Kat, I know you have also inspired a number of smaller swaps in some of the other artistic communities I am involved with.