Day 100

Day 100!!!! Wow, I can't believe I've made it 100 days! Thank you SO much for all of the encouragement!

Had an awesome day in the city! Mom is here visiting so we started the day with bloody mary's at Dunlay's along with a fantastic brunch! Eggs Florentine, Fruit Pancakes, Gourmet Fried Egg Sandwich, etc....like I said, fantastic!! Next we (Nicole, Mom and I) ventured down to the Wickerpark, Bucktown neighborhoods. What a great place. We wandered around, stopped and had a cocktail and then made our way home for.......a Mexican Fiesta! Well, not really, but there were beans, fajitas, guacamole, and margaritas....and best of all great company because along with the husband and I, Nicole, Becca and Mom joined us. Great day!

Tonight's photo was taken in an alley not too far from where we live. While I was taking pics the owner came out and asked if I wanted him to move it so I could get a better shot, or remove the tarp that was covering the back half of the car. So nice! I did decline, but secretely wish that I would have let him. :)

Cadi Handle:

Day 99

99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer, take one down, pass it around....

Appropriate given the daily posting number of the blog and the fact that it is a Friday! Although to be honest I'm not sure where the week went. If you were to ask me what I did Monday - Thursday I'm not sure I could tell you. I didn't get anything done at work that I had actually planned on but not for lack of trying. Owell, Monday it will start all over! For now though it's the weekend.

In PS I added an exposure and contrast layer. I also cropped it.

Shoe-lemma:

Day 98

How is it Thursday already??

Had some wine and sushi with my friend Nicole tonight while doing a little bit of much needed house cleaning. Wine makes everything more fun, even cleaning! Thanks Nicole!

This is a pic taken outside of a convenience store. I loved the way the blue sky and store were distorted with the angles of the mirror. In PS I didn't do anything new. An exposure, contrast and saturation layer.

Things are Closer Than They Seem:

Day 97

Troy and I went to a Chicago Blackhawks game tonight - my first hockey game ever. And, I have to say that after only one game I've now been converted to a fan. We had a blast. Go Blackhawks!

Things I learned:
- Hockey has periods, not quarters, halves, etc., and there are three of them
- They can catch the puck with their hands - had no idea!
- A lot of sticks get broken throughout the game
- And this I already knew, but there is a lot of fighting! I lost count of how many we saw.
- Hockey has "Ice Girls" similar to cheerleaders in football, basketball, etc.
- I am absolutely NOT good at action shots

We sat 8 rows behind the glass and had fantastic seats! Unfortunately, being right behind the glass does not allow for great photos.

Goalie:


Extra Leg: (figure it out for yourselves)

Day 96

Hello Everyone!!
Tuesday was a good day. No particular reason, it was just good. I hope everyone else's was the same.

I thought this shot was interesting. Normally you see all kinds of graffiti while walking through the city, but what you don't normally see a graffiti in "layers". The green netting on the fence has worn away, but behind it you see a whole new "layer".

In PS I added an exposure, contrast and saturation layer. The last step was to add a warming filter to well, warm the picture up some. Enjoy!

Graffiti Layers:

Day 95

Sun, Sun, Sun!!!!!

This shot didn't turn out at all what I was going for. Although I was looking for the sun to burst through the flower pedals, what I wasn't going for was the silloutte effect. I actually wanted to show the color of the flowers against the sky as well as bright orange vase they were in. Owell, maybe next time.

In PS I added an selective color to try to bring out as much color as possible....not much obviously. I also added a contrast layer.

Sunny Flowers....Not Sunflowers:

Day 94

Happy Easter!!!! I hope everyone had a wonderful day!
Headed to the airport.....again. But this time I'm going to pick up my wonderful husband! Can't wait to have him back home!

I love this picture. To me, it represents the epitome of city living with outside dining, friends, and of course man's best friend....or friends in this case!

Beggars:

Day 93

Had a great lunch date with Becca today and then a relaxing afternoon at home with the boys.

I have a small fascination with bikes. They are one of the first things that I photographed back on my family's farm. So, no surprise that tonight's post is of a bike. And a rusty one at that! A way to combine my love for old stuff and my love of bicycles!

In PS I added an exposure and selective color. The last step was a warming filter.

Rusty Bicycle:

Day 92

Home Sweet Home! Wow, Chicago seems so small compared to New York. It's a nice feeling though after all the "stuff" to come home to a city that we call our own. Plus, my feet enjoyed the rest today!
Troy went home to KS for the weekend for an impromptu trip so I'm on my own this weekend. I've got a lunch date with my friend Becca tomorrow and then I've got nothing planned.....except to enjoy the weekend!

This shot was taken outside of a fire station. In PS I added an exposure layer.

Master Lock:

Day 91

Farewell New York. This is not good-bye I assure you.
I've had an absolutely amazing time while I was here. Sadly enough, the pictures just don't do it justice. This place is like a whole other world. Completely overwhelming.
Because of the enormousness of the city I found that my standard 55mm wasn't cutting it. Soooo.....I decided to rent a lens today. The pictures you see below were all taken with a 17-55 wide angle lens.

The first photo was taken in the middle of Times Square. I added and exposure contrast, and b&w layer. Lastly I duplicated the background layer and changed it to b&w as well and then used the eraser tool to select the few cabs.

Times Square Yellow Cabs:


The second shot was taken at Central Station. Wow. This place is unbelievably beautiful!! I couldn't get enough of it. High Ceilings, giant windows, people running about. To see that much wide open space in NY (aside from Central Park) is rare. I added a b&w layer and added a tint to give it that "old-timey" feel. My main goal with PS here was to bring out the rays of sun coming through the window.

Sun Rays at Central Station: