Shutterbugs and photo-lovin’ friends, welcome to The World Through My Lens, 01.2021. Today I am sharing my snapshots for Terri’s Sunday Stills series. I share those pictures once a month. You can revisit December’s post, here.
But this post also serves as an update for the iSpy challenge with my blogging buddy Lysha at A Camera and a Cookbook. Lysha gives us 5 prompts each week and hopes to inspire us to “look for the marvelous in the mundane.” And the Winter Photo Scavenger hunt (WPSH) with Mary Lou and Ellen. Thoughtful prompts that allow for interpretation in our own ways.
Sunday Stills Prompts 01.2021
These are the prompts with which we were delightfully tasked:
Jan 3 Your 2020 Retrospective (share your year in images)
Jan 10 Night
Jan 17 Color Challenge: Glacier Blue
Jan 24 Fog and Clouds
Jan 31 Your Favorite Landscape
THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS WEEK 1
SUNDAY STILLS, 01.03.2021 Your 2020 Retrospective
I didn’t put together a true retrospective but if you click here, you can revisit any of my Sunday Stills posts from the past. In looking back over 2020’s Sunday Stills photos, these shots taken in January BC-before Covid-were some of my favorites, and popular with you, too.
THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS WEEK 2
SUNDAY STILLS, 01.10.2021 Night
From Valentine’s Day 2 years ago. We stayed in the boutique Indigo Hotel downtown, had our first escape room experience, dinner in a quaint cafe, and a nightcap on the patio before bed. Oh, how we could use a mini-vacay like this again this year. Photo was taken on the patio. I like the way the bits of light keep your eye moving from one area to the next on the photo.
THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS WEEK 3
SUNDAY STILLS, 01.17.2021 Color Challenge: Glacier Blue
The first 2 photos below were taken in Lexington, Kentucky during an early spring visit to see Mom. My sister and I were enchanted by the snow.
A different glacial blue. The water in our pool. And a storm rolling in from the east.
THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS WEEK 4
SUNDAY STILLS, 01.24.2021 Fog and Clouds
Because it is soooo dry in El Paso, we positively never have fog. Except when we do. Which was – most conveniently – during January.
THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS WEEK 5
SUNDAY STILLS, 01.31.2021 Your Favorite Landscape
I love the beach. That probably goes without saying. But the landscape of the place where I live is still my favorite. Partially because it isn’t always beautiful. It is an imperfect beauty. Dusty, and dry, polluted, and peppered with wind blown trash. But it is home. And the mountains are beautiful every single day. From the window of my plane, flying over El Paso on my way to visit PC who was working at Ft. Lewis, Washington, that beauty is pretty evident.
Here are the prompts we are working on for February. Come join us!
Feb 7 Fallen
Feb 14 Color Challenge: Rosy Red
Feb 21 Feed the Birds
Feb 28 Things that are White
Other Challenge Photos
The photos below are updates to the other challenges I am participating in.
ISPY PHOTO CHALLENGE 2021
Sharing 2 weeks worth of photos for this challenge.
iSpy Week #4
Different Angle – Selfie after sit-ups.
Before & After – My sister and I created a laundry day collage as a Valentine’s gift to our mom. The first photo is the beginning of the collage background. The bits and pieces of patterns and book pages that became the base for our piece. In the second photo you can see the tiny clothing my sister made for the collage. She also sketched the tiny bird cage onto a piece of pattern paper. The last photo is the finished art.
Sadly, I sent it Mom on Wednesday and it has arrived but her dementia has convinced her that from the size of the package, we have sent her a mirror. And she doesn’t want to open the package because she doesn’t want to see herself in the mirror. We have explained that she will like what is in the box but so far she still hasn’t opened it.
Fruit or Veggie? – a bowl of the ingredients for our morning smoothies. Fruit or veggie? Both!!
Backyard (Winter) – snapped this from our balcony ten days ago. The mountains are so pretty when they are iced with a dusting of snow.
iSpy Week #5
Collection – of memories. From PC’s soldiering days. Dog tags, ribbons, rank. Proud to be a soldier’s wife.
Yellow – had to look for this one. And found it while I was showering. Noticed through the shower glass that my hand towel is…yellow! And so is the post-it I have stuck to the mirror which reads “God will promise and provide.” The vanity lighting is also a warm glow. This whole corner of the bathroom is like sunshine: the wall color, the frame, and mirror.
Tiny – my Queen of Hearts. Ordered her on Etsy last year for my tiered tray. She brings me big smiles.
Photographer’s Choice – my kitties are never far away when I do my quiet time. Most mornings, I do it in my loft before sunrise but on this particular day, it was cold and my bed was warm. We all piled back in after PC left for work. Purrsnickitty entertained herself with the elastic around my planner while I did my Bible study. A bit distracting.
Photographer’s Choice – a very well constructed nest. This bird should go in the home construction business.
WINTER PHOTO SCAVENGER HUNT (WPSH)
The WPSH runs from 12.01.2020 to 03.21.2021. The only rules: all photos must be your own work and must be taken between those dates.
For review, here is the list of 20 prompts. But remember that up to three of these can be substituted using the alternative prompts at the end of the list if necessary.
- A set of three
- Round and round
- Peek inside
- Glass
- A treasured item
- Horizontal
- An opening
- A sign of the times
- Weather conditions
- Work in progress
- Measures
- In the distance
- Something beginning with C
- One of many
- Something with legs
- A face
- Comfort food
- Something you do every day
- Something yellow
- Marking time
Alt A. In pieces
Alt B. Textured
Alt C. Black and white
WPSH Update
- #10 work in progress – getting started on my Valentine wreath. I better work fast!!
- #11 measures – taking measures of the fabric for my Valentine wreath. Measure once, cut twice.
I better get after this wreath!! I have 1 short week to get it finished. Heck, started!!
YOUR TURN
Are you participating in any photo challenges this year? If not, come join us for Sunday Stills, iSPY or the WPSH. Taking photographs has encouraged me to take a second, sometimes even a third look at our world. There’s so much beauty but in the hustle and bustle of each day, it’s easy to let it go unnoticed. When I participate in a photo challenge, I go through my days with the current prompts in mind. And always paying more attention to the world around me.
I challenge you to try a photo challenge, even for just a month, a week. See if doing so won’t have you looking at the little things in your world with a new, more appreciative eye.
Thank you for spending a few minutes of your day here with me.
Hugs and kisses,
Hi, Leslie – I always enjoy your photography. You have a very creative eye and a very steady hand. For the past five weeks, I’ve also been taking part in #SundayStills. It’s been a great way to nudge my muse out of hiding. And a great way to meet up with other bloggers/photographers. I look forward to continuing to participate and continuing to see you there!
So glad you are taking part in Sunday Stills, too! I so enjoy seeing everyone’s interpretations of the prompts.
You have an eye for a good photo! That view of the mountains is fabulous.
What a shame your mum won’t open her parcel after all your hard work. Would she let one of her carers open it for her to prove it wasn’t a mirror?
Good luck with the Valentine project, you don’t have many days to get it done now!
Thank you! Ha, Deb, that Valentine’s Day project didn’t get finished. I still want to work on it and maybe I will have it ready by next year. I finally persuaded Mom to let someone open her collage but she seemed totally unmoved by it. Almost as if she didn’t understand what it was.
Lovely photos here!
Thank you!!
SO many great photos, Leslie! Love the cross shadow on the floor!! And the wintery pictures are beautiful as well. We finally got some snow over the weekend, so I just bundle up and get out there to capture some of its beauty.
Thank you, Bri. That cross photo is one of my favorites, too. Snow makes for such great photography. It just makes the most commonplace items lovely.
I always love your monthly collection of photos, Leslie and this month is no exception! I, too love that cross reflection, such a stunning image and frame worthy. Your glacier blues are gorgeous! I’m sorry to read about your mom’s refusal to open your beautiful collage. Cute selfish of you!
Thank you, Terri. Mom finally allowed someone to open the collage we sent and it is on her window sill but I am not sure she ever realized what it was.
I always love your dessert photos! Sorry to hear that your mom hasn’t opened her package. 🙁 I hope that she will soon.
Thank you, Danielle. Mom finally opened her package but there was really no reaction to the collage we created. Kind of strange that she didn’t comment about it. But I wonder if it confused her or that maybe she didn’t understand what it was.
I love those snow dusted mountains! We have snow buried ones at the moment. Those photos of your cat playing with the elastic are also quite funny.
Thank you, Joanne. My kitties love to join me for quiet time and make that time much more playful.
What a fun post Leslie.
We always try to hide some veggies in our smoothies…I try to get at least 2 in!!
OXOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Paul is just terrible about eating veggies, so it’s either drink ’em in smoothies or pour them in his ear.
I’ve been doing the Sunday Stills. I’ve been wanting to do the other two as well, but haven’t done them yet. Eventually….lol. Love all your photos and your take on the prompts
I really enjoyed your Sunday Stills photos. I take a photo of the prompts and then have it with me on my phone. Then whenever I am out and about I can look at the list and look for the prompts to photograph while I am out.
You have some lovely photos – and some a little ‘strange’. Well, probably strange to me because I’m not really into what I consider unusual photos. I love the scenery ones and especially the snow. I love to see snow in photos, I just don’t want any here. Thanks for sharing – don’t mind me.
Grace & Peace, Iris
http://www.IrisOriginalsRamblings.com
Ha!! Thank you for coming by and I appreciate your critique. Doesn’t the snow make everything prettier? Like icing on a cake.
The snow on the cactus is so weird to me. It just seems so wrong, but I like the picture. LOL Really, such fun pictures.
Thank you! I love seeing the snow on the cactus and palm trees. Isn’t it like an oxymoron or something?
Oh, I’m sorry your mom hadn’t opened the package yet. Dementia is soul-killing for both the person who has it and the people whose loved ones are affected by it. I love your corner of sunshine. It’s so pretty! And I LOVE the colours of your smoothie.
Thank you, sweet friend. My mom has had a good week and we are thankful for every good day.
I love all your pics! The snow pics are gorgeous! Love your different angle shot especially.
Thank you, Lysha. Really enjoying these prompts.