Tuesday, February 11, 2014

February 11, 2014

February 11, 2014

   All photos are mine unless otherwise noted.

   Enlarge photos to full screen by clicking on any image. 

        “Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”
                                                                           Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky

    An echo of the above statement can be heard in the following link. I would like to suggest that you take a few minutes listening in silence before continuing.


   This last weekend I changed something of the way I see the world through my new lens implant and in how I perceive some of the photos I took on Saturday. It is a return to a few places I have been to often in my photographs and a fresh look at what I am doing with them on the computer screen. Digital photography has unlimited potential for creativity that it is sometimes daunting, so I have a tendency to go with what has already worked. 
   This week I offer first a delightful photo of two men, two horses and a sled preparing to go out on Fields Pond to cut ice the way it was done before electricity. This was a big business in the Northeast for many years as ice could be shipped long distances without excessive melt.
    This image works for me and I will continue to put similar photos out as Maine deserves to be somewhat changeless in its daily life. 
   After that there are seven images that are products of something I see in them, and are an experiment in seeing the familiar in a different way. There is always a story or a metaphor in every photograph that is life asking us to be observant as we open our outer and inner eyes. 


Fields Pond is in the background past the trees.

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The morning sun is brazen, pushy,
as it seems to force its way into the day.
The night has no choice in this daily event -
always giving way to the inevitable.


I never knew that God put speed signs up 
to slow down the clouds racing by -
Perhaps this is so we can enjoy more of
the wondrous creations of a new day.


   A tree says:  "A kernel is hidden in me, a spark, a thought, I am life from eternal life. The attempt and the risk that the eternal mother took with me is unique, unique the form and veins of my skin, unique the smallest play of leaves in my branches and the smallest scar on my bark. I was made to form and reveal the eternal in my smallest special detail."

                                                                                      Unknown author 



In that space between awake and sleep,
I dream of trees and let my roots reach out
to entwine themselves in their roots.
Then sleep brings the welcome connection
to everything that is waiting for morning, to be seen again.


On clear mornings the sun arrives at the cloud factory,
anxious and ready to receive the days finery
which will adorn the sky, as we, looking up,
marvel that such beauty is sent to feed our heart and soul.



A story of symmetry laid down straight and true. 

Every story has a picture that reveals ........



The lamp post said,
"I rise to the heavens straight and true!"
The tree replied,
"Good for you."

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Some humor:


   "Do you agree George, that Immanuel Kant stood for the middle ground between rationalism and empiricism? Or do you take the side that all knowledge comes from experience and not reason?"

(Passing time during a slow period at work.)

   Until next week, 

      Bill Lagerstrom









Monday, February 3, 2014

February 3, 2014

February 3, 2014


   Photos can be viewed full frame by clicking on any image.


   All photos are mine unless otherwise noted.

      After two weeks I can report that I have new eyes. The surgery to replace the lens and correct the astigmatism in my left eye has been wonderfully successful. I have new sight, 20/20 for everything beyond 5-6 feet and drugstore reading glasses for reading and computer viewing. All the glasses prescribed over the years are now to be donated to an organization that I believe uses the frames to help those who can't afford glasses to have a pair or two. 
   I have what is called a Toric Interocular Lens implant which as a treatment for astigmatism became available only in 2011, so there are no regrets about not having this done sooner. Enjoyment of clarity of sight begins today, this hour, this moment and it is a delight to have crisp vision. My first visit to the local supermarket, a huge place, was startling as the vegatable and fruit displays are lit with greater intensity than the rest of the store to highlight the colors of the produce. I got a little dizzy with the intensity of the view with this new implanted lens. 
    Also the clarity of the computer screen is equally amazing. It's almost as if I was practicing my photography with a blind man's cane. This is not to say I could not see just that I always had a somewhat difused view of the world. My old friend and mentor Tad Mosel used to say that he hardly used his glasses as the world looked better without them. I agreed with him as I could not see things with perfect clarity and learned to deal with that in the creative and work dealings I spent most of my life around. 
   What a joy! I now have the  opportunity to improve on my creativity through photography in a new way that promises to shift some of my viewpoint around photos in a slightly different direction. This involves some change in technique and that is good as it is the nature of the ever changing world of digital photography. There are always new things to learn along with old ways of doing this work that can be improved. In so many ways I am awed by the world we live in and what is available to learn from.

    The first image is difused and those that follow can be an example of my new vision.

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   Here is a photo taken on Saturday that is difused yet still a good impression of the day at a Nordic ski center in Waterville, Maine. I have been moving somewhat in the direction of impressionism for awhile now and will continue to develop this side of my creative seeing in the future.

   Best seen full screen - click on the image to bring it up -


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The storm that caused limited visibility is passing through
and the heavens that are always there
show their face to those who look up
with new eyes.


Winter scene in Acadia.

   My plans are to spend one day a week in Acadia to see and photograph all that I love there with a different perspective and some new techniques that presented themselves this last week. The image above is an example of small changes that are gratifying for me - perhaps not obvious in general yet I know they are there. 


The Nordic Center in Waterville, Maine



Walking the dog under the grandeur of Maine scenery


Young Beech trees do not lose their leaves in Winter
as they offer color to enjoy while waiting for Spring to explode.

Taken outside the front door I go out of every day.

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I reworked this photo with my new eyes to test the doctor's work. 
I am pleased.

Taken last Summer at a garden in Southern Maine.

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Two views of dangerous ways to live ......


No matter where we are in the world,
a box to seclude ourself in is ever available.
Hidden in seclusion, some sit in dark corners
and pick at the wounds that may never see
the healing light of day.



   Living on the edge over the Androscoggin River in Brunswick Maine these ice fishing enthusiasts are in danger as the temperature is around forty degrees and the river is moving beneath their shacks. Why do they put their huts so close to each other when so much space is available? Well, perhaps it is the herd instinct, or is it the beer and not wanting to drink alone. Both Photos taken on Sunday.

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Some Humor:

   Until next week,
    
        Peace,  Bill Lagerstrom









Friday, January 17, 2014

January 17, 2014

January 17, 2014


    Photos can be viewed full frame by clicking on any image.


    All photos are mine unless otherwise noted.

    Lee and I went on Sunday to the section of Acadia National Park located on the South arm of Mount Desert Island adjacent to the town of Bass Harbor. The main section of the Park is on the North arm of the Island. The seas were up somewhat to 10-12 feet giving a different view than ordinarily seen as the Continental Shelf tends to keep all wave activity to a minium. The day was magnificent with Winter temperatures rising into the high 40's, and there was no need for hats and gloves making the trip even more enjoyable.

   I have added location comments to give a sense of where they were taken for those who may be familar with the area. 

   I will not be able to offer a post next week as I am having eye surgery on Tuesday to replace the lens in my left eye due to a cataract that is finally a problem with having clear sight. This is something of a Grace for me as the problem I have had with astigmatism my whole life will be corrected at the same time. Since the new lens will only correct distance issues I will have to get new glasses for reading, photo and computer work. I am told that this is a walk in the park but at this side of surgery have a problem believing that. The replacement will be done in hospital which tells me something about how seriously the opthemologist takes the proceedure. If she is cautious I will also be cautious and wait until next week before I may be able to echo the experience of others that say it was no big deal. 

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    Three photos at "Seawall" adjacent to one of the campgrounds in Acadia:


   Some music to watch the ocean with:  

             Click here: https://app.box.com/s/de61644ac73fa7caf396



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   Three photos take at the Bass Harbor Lighthouse:



If I were to live at the edge of the sea,
there would have to be no barriers
between God's ceaseless calling from the waves,
and my answer everytime I looked out at the Vast Expanse.


Lee, pondering the ocean below.

Very few can go to Water's Edges and not be ....
It is the Present Moment spoken with a Universal Language,
understood by all who see and listen.


Like the rocks slowly giving up their resistence to Love's constant caress,
so we as well are enveloped by our Creator's touch as we are told,
"I am here. Look no further."

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   Lee on the Ship's Harbor trail near Bass Harbor taking on the job of traffic control so the birds could land safely. (The truth be told I think I heard, "Take that picture and you'll get both of these on your head.)


Waiting on Spring



This dog rushed over wading through a pool of sea water,
said hello, got a quick pet and went back to work
after plowing back through the same wet stretch. 

(The two pictures above taken at Seawall.)

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Some Humor:


Why geese are rarely seen in Maine

   Peace,

      Bill Lagerstrom