Color Me Paint: playing with my magic crayons

It's a wet Winter this year and it slows me down from any outdoor activities, confining me at my home playing with my images. This time, I'm playing with my crayons in Photoshop.


"Neon Central Park"
This is a shot taken last February in New York City. You'll never miss any golden photographic opportunities inside Central Park even after the snow storm.


"RainFALL At The Big Meadow canvas"
My FALL image for this year. A big surpirse from Mother Nature when I spotted this big FALL meadow while exploring Lake Tahoe backroad. I turned it into a canvas so l can present to you like a painting.

"Farm Night Colour"
For my cat "Buttons", the image that I shot on the the day she died. Drove to the farm to see for any interesting landscape despite of the rain. The original image is a lonely scenery but when I played with my crayons, I turned it into something ... magical.



"Artists are just children who refuse to put down their crayons. " ~ Al Hirschfeld
[click the image to enlarge]

St. Clare Retreat Center: polishing my halo

"Come apart and rest a while".
St. Clare Retreat Center will provide you a peaceful place to reflect, surrounded by nature.

St. Clare of Assisi is an Italian saint and one of the first followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. She founded the Order of Poor Ladies, a monastic religious order for women in the Franciscan , and wrote their Rule of Life.

Located in Santa Cruz Mountains California, St. Clare Retreat Center has a beautiful chapel, library, lounge, garden, dormitories, large dining room, swimming pool, and a hiking trail with Station of The Cross.

The retreat is conducted by the Franciscan Fathers and the Franciscan Missionary Sisters. There are conferences, masses, individual counseling/confession with ample time for private prayer and reading. Added attraction is Bear the dog (he looks like a bear) who was rescued from Hurricane Katrina. And you'll never get hungry at St. Clare, the sisters and the volunteer chef always make sure that they will satisfy your palate.

Traditionally specializes in Silent Women's Retreat, St. Clare also offer other types of retreats; married couples, mothers&daughters, Secular Franciscan, men and women, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, AA-Alanon, and Legion of Mary. Members of all denominations are welcome!

The sun shines at St. Clare! I usually get up before sunrise for my meditation walk up on the hill, to witness the breaking of a new dawn comes the light of a new day and the endless possibilities of that day. Solitude is my companion on my way up there. The trail has Station of the Cross where each cross has a built-in prayer that you will feel like having a personal dialogue with God.

Retreat has been a part of my life growing up in Catholic School. It was in 2006 when I started going to St. Clare. Since then, it becomes my tradition: a 3 day Silent Women Retreat every year. Personal preference is the Palm Sunday weekend in preparation for Lent when St. Clare's magnificent plants in Spring bloom.

And when life's goodness is overshadowed by critical challenges, it is at St. Clare where I pick up my life, renew my spirit and polish my halo o:-)

St. Clare Retreat Center website:
http://www.nonprofitpages.com/stclaresretreat/

Life is not a series of gig lamps symmetrically arranged; life is a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning of consciousness to the end.” ~ Virginia Woolf

[click the images to enlarge, click the play button to play Beyonce's Halo]

Misty Glass Window

As the High Sierra got snow today, I'm enjoying the RAIN from my window.

"Rain falls
Dark clouds are racing up above
I gaze in solitude
Looking through a misty glass window
‘Cause then it used to be the two of us

This empty room
Filled my thoughts with memories of you
I turned and looked around
Oh, but found no sight of you
I guess it'll never be as true, no no ooh

Starlight
All I need is you tonight
Oh, starbright
Grant my wish tonight
I'm beggin' you, starlight
All I need is you tonight
Hoh, starbright
Get rid of the spell tonight, ooh

Rain falls
Dark clouds keep racing up above
It's still in solitude
Oh, longin' for you
Guess my heart will always be with you
My heart will always be with you
Looking through a misty glass window" ~ Pido

[click the image to enlarge, click play button to play the music Misty Glass Window]

Water Mosaic: Best In Show

Creative Projected Images - Basic
Best In Show
First Place
November 1, 2010 LVCC

our camera club webmaster emailed me today:
Congrats on your "water mosaic" shot, it got best in show last night out of about 100 projected images! Beautiful shot!


My Water Mosaic is my 1st ever Best In Show winning image aside from being selected as 1st place.

I seldom compete in Creative competition as my full time job keeps me busy. Doing alot of computer/photoshop manipulation to create an image is cool, but for now, I want to capture an image that is already creative itself like my Water Mosaic.

Please check out the link below to see more of my Water Mosaic.
http://www.thefearlesseye.com/2010/10/mosaic-reflections-on-pool-winning.html

"Each of us puts in one little stone, and then you get a great mosaic at the end.” ~ Santiz Alice Paul
[click the image to enlarge]

My Blair Witch Project: happy halloween

So I spend almost all the daylight hours in the forest. There is a chill in the air. The leaves are gone and what's left is the wooded forest and its Spirit.

Inspired by the movie Blair Witch Project, I took this shot from my tripod while taking a walk in a cold early Spring in Des Plaines Illinois. The Forest is the ideal setting and my hooded coat is the best wardrobe so I can create an image that will give you a li'l fright. But if you know me by heart, looking at my big round eyes will make you smile :-)


The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 American horror film; the narrative is presented as a documentary pieced together from amateur footage, filmed in real time. The film was produced by the Haxan Films production company. The film relates the story of three young student filmmakers (Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, and Michael C. Williams) who hike into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland to film a documentary about a local legend known as the Blair Witch, and subsequently go missing. The viewer is told that the three were never found, although their video and sound equipment (along with most of the footage they shot) was discovered a year later.

"It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanation from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

[click the image to enlarge]

October Winning Images

"Reflections on the Pool"
1st place
2010-10-04 - Creative Projected Image, Basic

"Straight On"
2nd place
2010-10-18 - Color Prints, Intermediate

[click the images to enlarge]

Photographing Plumas: a photographer's heaven

The recent trip in Plumas County covers the town of Portola, Graeagle, Blairsden, Maybe, and Quincy. For my 1st release 2010 Plumas Photo Trip images as Plumas County Official Photographer, I decided to blog Plumas as a place for photographers due to its versatile land features enhanced by a pleasant climate. The world of photography keeps on growing: its networks and influence. Hope that through this blog will create awareness to all photography enthusiasts that Plumas is another place that I can call A Photographer's Heaven!

"Photographing The Saw Mill"

The Siera Pacific Industries (SPI) in Quincy manufactures small and large saw mill and has a cogeneration plant. While they harvest trees, SPI uses high technology to lessen the overall impact on the environment while providing jobs to the community.

"Photographing Davis Lake"

Lake Davis (elevation: 5785 ft. and a shoreline of 32 miles) was created in 1967 for recreational purposes and as a water supply for the nearby town of Portola. It is well noted for its great camping, picnicking, fishing, hunting, boating, mountain biking and wildlife viewing.

"Photographing The Canyon"

The drive from Highway #70 to Frenchman Lake takes you through the beautiful canyon of Little Last Chance Creek. This canyon was formed as the result of several geologic "volcanic" events .

"Photographing Frenchman Lake"

Frenchman Lake (elevation: 5,588 ft and a shoreline of 21 miles) offers a wide variety of summer outdoor experiences including: camping, picnicking, fishing, hunting, boating, jet skiing, mountain biking, swimming and water-skiing. In the winter, ice fishing, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing are favored activities. It is my favorite lake in Plumas County and will definitely go back there to kayak and shoot!

"Photographing Wildflowers"
Colorful shows of wildflowers can be seen along major Plumas County roads during the late spring and early summer. Among the best places to spot color are: The Feather River Highway 70, Indian Valley, Lake Almenor, Chester, Bucks Lake Road (Quincy-Oroville Highway), Butterfly Valley Botanical Area, and Lakes Basin Recreation Area.


"Photographing Fall Foliage"
Go out and catch a glimpse of natures splendor while Fall is still here and enjoy the changing leaves and feel the crisp breeze of Autumn.

"Photographing Downtown Quincy"

Not known to many, the town of Quincy in Plumas County has the best California Fall foliage color. Recent media coverage and photography social network has attracted more visitors this year. The future looks promising, expect more visitors arriving in the years to come.

"Photographing The Farm"

Go to the farm before sunrise and catch the early morning light. And when the daylight breaks in with fog, you will feel you're in Photographer's Heaven.

"Photographing For Fun"

Whether traveling solo, with someone or in a group. Whether it's a disposable, film, digital point and shoot, or DSLR camera. Photography produces pleasure especially in the company of fun friends. And when birds of the same feather flock together, they stay together.

"Photographing The Good Earth"
Discover Plumas and let Mother Nature surprise you!

Acknowledgement:
John & Ed: America knows you got brains, talent, and models! and now, you are my models :D Such a priveledge to know and work/play with you. Had so much fun on this trip. More trips and modeling to come. Keep expressing yourself through your camera and lens. Thank you.

“Life on earth is the preface to the book, the warm-up to the concert! Heaven is the main event!” ~ Randy Alcorn

[click the image to enlarge]

Me...in Plumas County News

From casual talk to published article...my fellow photographers told me that I am now a published pro and famous in "blogosphere". Below is the unsolicited article (which I was mentioned) in Plumas County News from Suzi Brakken, Plumas Visitor's Bureau director.

[from the left: Marichu Pereira, Ed Mestre, John Goyer, and Kari of Plumas County Visitor's Bureau]

****************************************************************
Photo bloggers are boosting Plumas County tourism
10/13/2010

Suzi Brakken - Plumas County Visitor's Bureau

The promotion of Plumas County’s fall foliage has attracted unprecedented numbers of visitors and inquiries this year, but there’s been an additional benefit, thanks to technology. The changing leaves have been attracting more and more photographers and photo clubs who post their pictures online via websites, blogs and Facebook, thereby adding to the viral marketing effort.

Through Google alerts, the Visitors Bureau is able to track these photographers and make contact, which has led to various photo sharing arrangements or purchases, future photo shoots and even friendships.

Tony Mindling is a great example. Mindling is a talented amateur photographer-geologist who was discovered by local photographer Richard McCutcheon when both were out shooting fall foliage in Indian Valley a few years ago. We contacted Mindling, who lives a few hours away, and asked if he could come back up to shoot some images with models. Mindling’s productive visits have resulted in cover shots for the Plumas County Visitors Guide for the past three years. Mindling’s shots also were featured in VIA magazine and led Tom Stienstra’s outdoors column in the San Francisco Chronicle this month. In exchange for Mindling’s talent, we’ve offered modest compensation and a couple of free RV camp spots donated by local businesses.

Last year, we found another photographer through Google, Marichu Pereira, who donated some images used in the Visitors Guide. In exchange, we arranged for a cabin (donated by Chalet View) last weekend, which she shared with two other photographers she brought along from her Livermore Valley camera club. Pereira is a delightful, talented photographer that we had the pleasure of meeting in person last weekend. Her fellow photographers – one of whom is a “master” (in the photo competition world) – shot images across the county all weekend, and will likely be back, perhaps even as a club field trip. Photography is a huge social network, and turns out there are some 30 camera clubs just in Northern California!

Meanwhile, Pereira, who works in a Stanford Hospital laboratory, herself used social media to spread the word about Plumas County. She was so excited to become an “official photographer” for us that she blogged and Facebooked the news, linked the online Visitors Guide, and encouraged her hundreds of friends and fans to visit Plumas County.

This upcoming weekend, two photo groups are coming to Lake Almanor/Lassen Park as the result of a web-based tool known as “meet up.” This worldwide social network allows people with common interests to organize group functions, in this case, a photo trip to Plumas County. The invite is illustrated with Pereira’s photos, so we know that’s how they got the idea. We’ve already been in touch with the group leader from Sacramento who’s gathering 30 photographers; the other group from Tehama County is bringing seven. Local tourism businesses will benefit of course, but we’re hoping to form some new relationships with photographers as well.


http://www.plumasnews.com/index.php/home/7443-photo-bloggers-are-boosting-plumas-county-tourism

“As I have practiced it, photography produces pleasure by simplicity. I see something special and show it to the camera. A picture is produced. The moment is held until someone sees it. Then it is theirs.” ~ Sam Abell
[click the image to enlarge]

Mosaic Reflections On The Pool: winning Creative Image

"Reflections On The Pool"
1st place Creative Projected
LVCC October 4, 2010

Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral. Small pieces, normally roughly cubic, of stone or glass of different colors, known as tesserae, (diminutive tessellae), are used to create a pattern or picture.

My Mosaic WATER Images were taken from a swimming pool. The pattern and colors are from the dark blue sky, reflections of the house and the ripples from a boy swimming on the right side of the pool.

Our camera club defines Creative Photography as producing an image through the use of imaginative skill or originality of thought including the altering of reality. The Mosaic Reflections On The Pool are already Creative on its own!

Acknowledgement:

Merrie - for opening your beautiful house and pool.
Marek - Boy! you really are a good swimmer!



“We become not a melting pot but a beautiful Mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.” ~ Jimmy Carter

[click the images to enlarge]

September Winning Images

"Fork Feather River Canyon, Plumas County"
3rd place
2010-09-10 - Travel Projected Images, Intermediate







"Color Of FALL"
Honorable Mention
2010-09-24 - Pictorial Projected Images, Intermediate








"Curious About Water"
Honorable Mention
2010-09-24 - Pictorial Projected Images, Intermediate

Plumas County Visitor's Bureau: official photographer

Autumn approaching and hope you had a great Summer. Autumn is my favorite time of the year and it's time to plan a visit to Plumas County California to capture its dazzling displays of yellow, red, and golden leaves against a crystal clear blue sky.

The Plumas County Visitors Bureau appointed me as one of their official photographers(Unofficial through email March 20,2010; Official when I received the GUIDE June 8, 2010). And to fulfill that, I need to go and photograph their beautiful place at least once every year.

The 2010-2011 Plumas County Visitors GUIDE features 3 of my images (one on the left and the 1st 2 below), some were used for advertising and some became Travel winning images from our camera club competition.

To view the Guide online: http/issuu.com/mcondon/docs/2010_pvg_final-websmallest

"North Fork Feather River Canyon": 3rd place 09/10/10

"The Road To Lassen": 2nd place 08/31/10

"Manzanita Lake": 1st pl 08/31/10

This blog has really served me well ~ to express myself through my captured images, stories and information so I can share them to all of you...It is through this blog that the Plumas County Visitors Bureau discovered me... from my 2009 Fall Color trip: http://www.thefearlesseye.com/2009/10/fall-colors.html

Consider Plumas first in your Fall Foliage trip. It's in our own backyard in California/West Coast and let Plumas surprise you like it did to me!



"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."
- Albert Camus