Daily Photo 20190119 Little beach house . . .

Chris and I walked out on the dock at Langley Marina this morning where, looking back, I noticed this little beach house sitting almost at water's edge.

Overcast, dark-ish lighting made the house gleam, especially that bit of red on the front, and also the very light-colored tree trunks and branches.

A bluff rises up right behind the house, almost four times its height -- most impressive, and just a bit scary. I kept the horizon line low to emphasize the height of the background bluff.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Around the Island: Autumn on Whidbey

The weather has been classically wonderful (big blue skies, no rain, plenty of sunshine, temps ranging from the upper 40s at night, upper 50s/lower 60s during the day). Perfect for getting out and exploring the island.

Farm stands display freshly picked apples and pears as well as wheelbarrows, shelves, and baskets full of pumpkins. The produce is fresh and locally grown (except for some pumpkins I spotted at a local nursery, each one proudly displaying a sticker from . . . Woodburn, Oregon!

Scarecrows line the streets in Coupeville and painted brooms, looking like candy corn, add color to the overlook in downtown Langley.

People are selecting their pumpkins in fields here and there; the dahlias are just about finished blooming; and the air is fresh and clear.

Here are a few pictures I've taken over the past 10 days or so. What a happy time of year.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Around the island . . .

At Lone Lake on Whidbey Island, I looked out the car's sunroof to see this cute little heart-shaped cloud floating around. Naturally, I had to photograph it.

And then at the Edit shop in Langley (hello, Holly!) there were these oversized Scrabble tiles out front in the grasses. And yes, naturally, I had to photograph them as well.

It was a good day!

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your understanding and kindness.

Around the island . . . clinging vines in Langley

Nothing like cold weather to reveal the underlying architecture of trees, bushes, and vines.

Although this wall is beautiful mid-summer, cloaked in lush green leaves, I prefer it mid-winter, seeing how the vines gently snake their way up a sky-blue downspout, or angle away, exploring new territory.

Ah, the joys of meandering back alleys, finding beauty in unexpected places.

May your day contain at least one encounter with unexpected beauty.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you for your kindness.

Around the island . . . Langley Marina

A lovely day yesterday. Went down to the Langley Marina and out onto the pier. No one else around, all very quiet. An eagle sat on a branch in a tall tree; its mate sat on a post down at the waterline, each able to keep an eye on the other. A kingfisher chattered nearby, and cormorants perched on pilings, wings outstretched to dry. Took out the iPhone and created this panoramic image, looking south-ish, with Camano Island off to the left.

All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

A Saturday morning on Whidbey

We had a great morning yesterday, beginning with seared oatmeal at Braeburn restaurant in Langley, and then a walk around the town, camera at the ready.

At the Star Store, we ended up talking about photography, art, composition, design, etc. with two of the store employees — Kelsey and Margaret. The conversation was fun, inspiring, interesting, with a wonderful sharing of ideas, nobody hogging the time, an even give and take.

Respect, humor, intelligence, curiosity. No politics. What a refreshing change.

I bought a sweatshirt.

Next, we drove down to the marina, walked out onto the docks. The mountains in the distance were lovely, but the overall light was drab and dreary. A dozen cormorants on the next dock over were hanging out together, as cormorants do. My 70-200mm lens too short to do anything exciting with them.

Then we hear the chortling of an eagle. Maybe two eagles. Maybe three! Two adults and what I presumed was a juvenile approaching from the north. They were fast. I wasn’t ready. I shot as they approached, one going right overhead.

Not frame-filling at all, so I combined two versions of the same eagle here, one with him farther away, and the other as he passed overhead. (Neither is enlarged, but individually they didn't fill the frame.) The shots are two seconds apart, but I thought comparing the wing angles was interesting.

The marina manager came out with his binoculars and a “Birds of the Puget Sound” book. He was thinking the juvenile bald eagle might actually be a golden eagle. Which of course wasn’t in his book, because golden eagles don’t hang around up here, apparently. A photographer down the dock, with a 200-500mm lens, said nope, juvenile bald eagle, not a golden.

Again, a very enjoyable conversation talking about what we were seeing, sharing the information, curious about the birds (who nest nearby). And the marina guy had great eyelashes...

I wanted a copy of that bird book, so we headed back up the hill to talk to Josh at Moonraker Books (no website). Nope, they didn’t have the book. “Does it have a red cover?” “I don’t know. There’s a bird on the front, though.” She gives me a look that implies “smartass,” leans over and whispers something very snarky in my ear. We laugh. She goes downstairs to order it for me.

I bought “House at Pooh Corner” by A.A. Milne.

We walked over to a terrific store called Artisan Crafted Home. There’s a new window display featuring the most interesting floor and table lamps. We chit-chat with the owner. The lamps are handmade by two sisters. One on the east coast, one here on the west. One makes the glass and metal stands and the other makes the exotic silken shades. They’re lovely. (The lamps, that is. But the sisters probably are, too.)

Time to head home. We drop off some things at the Senior Services thrift store en route.

That was our morning. We were outdoors and in. Talked with a variety of people. Saw cormorants and eagles, heard a kingfisher. Looked at lovely artworks and learned about the artists. And I got one photograph that isn’t very good, but I’m sure that sometime soon it will appear in a photomontage and will be just perfect.

Wishing you all days like this.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Early morning walk

Sunday morning we went down to Langley to have breakfast at Braeburn Restaurant. They open early (7 a.m.!) and we could beat the Sunday crowds.

Afterward, we slowly walked the town. The air was cool, skies overcast, no wind, no people. Ahhhh!

(These are all iPhone photos, and it was fun feeling unencumbered by weighty DSLRs.)

Fall has hit the Pacific Northwest. Started about two weeks ago, and now leaves are everywhere. I loved how these yellow ones looked as they collected in the cracks between cobblestones, and in the grid of a metal sewer plate.

Planters filled with flowers were everywhere, everything well taken care of.

Bright colors really stood out in the diffused morning light, and I loved how a chair became a strong graphic form against a sunshine-yellow wall. The sprinkling of leaves on the ground echoed the wall's bright color.

There's one building in town that has the coolest weathered reinforcement anchor plates on it and someday I'd like to do a more considered, more professional series of photos of them.

Spires on an iron gate caught my eye, looking like macho metal figures in skirts.

There is a group of volunteers in Langley who take care of all the trimming, pruning, watering, etc. of the town's hanging baskets, planters, and flower beds. I was drawn to a woman bending over with her secateurs in hand, doing what gardeners do. She was lovely, with great hair, casual, functional but elegant clothing (lovely pleating and stitching on her white shirt), thin silver bracelets, a purple watchband. I was smitten. And she kindly consented to being photographed as she worked.

And then one of my last photos was of a planter full of coneflowers, signifying the impending end of summer.

For me, this was just a perfect early morning out. Exploring, noticing, wandering, meandering, shooting, quietly talking. With Chris.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Summer flowers

We're in the heart of summer here on Whidbey Island, and everything seems to be in full bloom right now.

However.

Leaves are beginning to slowly drift down from a few trees in the yard. Gentle reminders floating in the air, reminding us not to get too complacent. Autumn is nigh.

Technical stuff: Cellphone shots of flowers at Bayview Nursery in Langley, where colorful grasses made a lovely background. And the yellow ones were blooming in a flowerbed on a street in downtown Langley. Shallow depth of field and a painterly touch give the images an overall soft look, yet with a bit of sharpness so my eyes don't go crazy looking for something to focus on. 

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. 

Local signage

In my days of stock photography, I trained myself to look for (and photograph) signs. And they sold. Some still do. I've sold a "No Parking" sign I shot in Breckenridge, Colorado a number of times. Same with tsunami evacuation signs I shot in Waldport, Oregon. "No Pets" signs. "No Minors Allowed."

So if a sign seems interesting to me, or humorous, or colorful, I tend to photograph it. It's become a habit.

Here are two I found lately. The "Antiques" sign was in front of a shop in Langley on Whidbey Island. It was a bright, sunny day, so I was looking in the shade for possibilities, and I liked how the light was rather muted, letting the warm colors of the oars and the basket stand out when combined with the greyish blue and green colors of the metal sign and the old wicker. (And look at how everything diagonates from upper right to lower left. Love that.)

And then the "Welcome to the Third Room" is a terrific sign I found inside the Marine Hardware store in Anacortes. We bought a bag of old rusty flanges. And of course you're thinking, "who wouldn't?", right? Chris and I are going to be making some assemblage art and yeah, old rusty flanges will be just the ticket! We shall see...

I should make a large print of this sign and put it on the studio door. "If we don't know what it is or what to do with it, it's in here." Open the door and there I am. With the cat.

Perfect.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Summer pinks

Walking around Whidbey Island these days is fun -- flowers growing everywhere. These four come from Langley, the perfect place to be early in the morning, before the crowds arrive, when it's quiet and, apparently, PINK!

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Around the island . . .

We spent a terrific afternoon earlier this week walking around Langley. No particular destination. Just walking. Just looking.

The bright red Dog House Tavern is empty and has been, apparently, since at least 2012. But they still leave the neon light on . . .

Down at the marina, during an EXCEPTIONALLY low tide, little things caught my eye, such as boat lines around a cleat, detail on a brilliantly red boat, and a retro-looking plastic fish below the marina office.

A good day. Wishing you one as well.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh.

Around the island . . .

Freezing cold temperatures this past weekend, but the sunshine was enticing, so we walked around Langley, out to the Coupeville wharf, and watched the fog slowly glide across the bay, also from the wharf. No wind, lots of sun, yet the streets were rather slippery. Two out of three ain't bad.

 ©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you!