Not Your Average Hardware Store

Today was rainy and cold (at least for me, in August) so I went indoors for this one.  I was shopping over the weekend and saw some neat stuff on the walls of Restoration Hardware.  So this afternoon I went to a different location and got some interesting shots. Here's one of them.

Are You Talking To Me?

Even I know that Summer is on its way out, so I thought I better spend some time outside today and see what (or who) I could find. This Little green guy introduced himself and I never looked back!

Rice

This is what's left of a rice bowl at Pings restaurant in Minneapolis. When my husband sees this shot, he will want me to enlarge it and hang it in our kitchen.

Come On In?

 Yikes! Talk about needing a tetanus shot. I don't really have an explanation, I just like it.
                                          Welcome to the dark side.

Pedi - Cab

I've never been in a pedi-cab in my own country before. I took this shot from the cab. It's our driver whizzing through traffic downtown as the bars let out tonight. Very cool experience, very cool photo.

Day One

The great Minnesota get together officially started today. I left work at 9:30, got an excellent parking space right across the street, headed straight to the cheese on a stick booth to bliss out for bit, and then set about to photograph the sights. As you can imagine, I had many to choose from, but this shot sums it up so well.

I swear I didn't plant the ticket or the cheese curd. They are both how I found them. Aaaahhhhh. The sights, the smells, the fabulousness of it all!!

Monica

I had the pleasure of shooting this beautiful girl's senior pictures tonight after work. I didn't even look through half of the photos - I just chose one to post tonight.  I don't do much portrait photography because I'm lacking a studio, and frankly I find it uninspiring, but if every subject could be this pretty and natural in front of the camera I would do more!

Thank you, Monica. I hope you like them.

Custom Deluxe?

That's what it says! I found this old rust bucket down an alley close to my work this afternoon and liked it. It instantly made me feel like I was in another country.

Ghost

                                                        Kind of spooky, huh?

City Sunset

This is the sun setting on the ING building downtown. I got there just in time to catch the glow!

Glowing Eyes

Today's photos included the woman's gymnastics championships, go kart racing, and a close-up of beetle skeletons, but this shadow of Kennedy holding my glasses won out. Sounds like I had a bunch to choose from, but none compared to this shot of the glowing eyes.

Birthday Fun

My youngest turned 13 today and her and I spent the day at the Mall of America. We ended our shopping extravaganza at The Amazing Mirror Maze. This is a shot of what the inside looks like. I highly recommend it!

Happy Birthday Kennedy!

Baby Jaya

This is not the most perfectly shot photo, but I laugh every time I look at it, so it wins for today! I have been visiting Jaya since he was born last Winter and he never ceases to entertain me. He's always very mischievous and today was no different, but right in the middle of jumping around and showing off he stopped and looked right at me! He just stared and put his hand up to his face like I caught him.

Indeed I did!

Cactus

I took 99 photos today and when I got home and looked through them, I had a bunch of garbage! I went outside my front door and took 6 shots of Russano's cactus. This was better than all the rest. Go figure.

My Next Project - A bridge a Day?

Yes, another bridge shot! I've now photographed most of the bridges in the Minneapolis area, so I better move over to Saint Paul! Or another state would be great.....I will work on that. This is a different shot of the Martin Olav Sabo bridge that I posted a few weeks back. What can I say? I'm inspired. Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Smashed

                                                            R I P  Heineken

River Lights Through The Trees

A perfectly framed shot through a break in the trees. I was in a hurry to get a shot on my way home from a late movie tonight and I got lucky.  I like when that happens.

Howdy Partner

A friend and I went to the horse races today. (We actually went for the 1st annual food truck festival, which was at the racetrack.) I didn't get any good shots of the horses (or the fabulous lobster po' boys we consumed) but there is something about this cowboy and the flag in the background that I like, so I'm going with it!

Northern Hibiscus

This shot was possible thanks to my neighbor Sally's beautiful garden. I learned something new tonight: each of these huge flowers only last one day. I'm sure many of you know this, but I am quite amazed that something so gorgeous and intricate has such a small life span.

Summertime in The City

My Daughter has always said "Every road leads to McDonald's".   My road led to this one on University avenue today.  Can't you just feel the heat coming off the pavement and making soup out of this dropped cone?

The Car Wash

Bear with me folks! I'm really practicing with a lot of things in low light. Here's my latest experiment: the wash me sign reflected on a dusty car, (mine). The old broken down van, the graffiti covered grain silos, and the darkening sky.

Gritty. Urban. Fun!!

Floating Fuzzy

This photo may not seem so exciting to you, but I captured this fuzzy floating in the air. I've been trying to get a good shot of one for a week, but they always leave me in the dust! (Too much time on my hands you say?) It's harder than it looks, I swear.

Grainbelt Office

The small office is the only Grainbelt building that hasn't been demolished or turned into something else. I got this shot standing in the doorway looking toward the old brewery that has been remodeled into an architecture firm. The buildings are unretouched, but I played with the sky color to make it look a bit spooky.

It's a little over the top, but that's why I like it.

Dee Dee Delicious

This is my Daughter Kennedy.  (There's a long story behind her nickname Dee Dee). She was sitting by the window tonight and I got her! I turned this photo to black and white afterwards. Isn't she pretty?

Church

My Husband's cousin got married today. There were two little girls sitting in the pew behind me in their Sunday best and I wanted to capture something unique, so I put my camera on the floor to see what I could get. As soon as the prayer book fell, I knew I had my shot!

Martin Olav Sabo Bridge

My Daughter wanted to come along on my photo shoot tonight, so it was perfect - I had a helper! We carried all my equipment up the bridge stairs and onto the bike path. This is the outcome. It looks fake, doesn't it?

All I see when I look at this is The Love Boat! Anyone out there feeling me?

Follow The Tracks

I have been photo blogging for 182 days, and tonight I had my first real epiphany: I am crazy about night shots! It is when I am the most excited to be out shooting, and the end results are always the photos I am most happy with.

I started this project to be a better photographer. It took me 6 months to learn what I really like to photograph........(I can't decide if that's a slow learning curve or a fast one!) Whichever it is, I learned something big!!

I don't even know exactly what this place is, but I like the looks of it.

Mill City Lights

I posted a similar shot to this one when it was freezing cold outside and there were no leaves to be seen. It was in black and white, which fit the cold feel of the night then. I got off work tonight just in time to get below the bridge before total darkness and capture a few good shots. This time I thought all the rich colors looked better in color. Ahhhh. Summertime!

Going Home

                                                It is what it is. The best of today.

Rainbow Fun

Can you guess without me telling you? This is a wet playground slide at the neighborhood park. It would have been better if I could have captured a kid looking up at me from the bottom, but it was raining and there was no one to be found.