52Frames Fill the Frame Weekly Photo Challenge

The subject this week for the 52Frames weekly photo challenge was “fill the frame.” We haven’t driven in to town for a while and this is the season for tulips. So I thought there must be something at the Smithsonian Castle gardens that might be a good opportunity, as well as a morning walk. So we parked in our old neighborhood on Capitol Hill and headed first towards the Botanic Garden. There were hundreds of tulips to pick from there but I think we missed the blooms at their best. Many of them were already falling apart. This year we stayed away from all of the crowds at the Tidal Basin at the height of the cherry blossoms and it was still very busy now. When we got to the castle, the tulips were even further along there. The flowers had definitely seen better days. In the end there were a few images that looked “ok” but nothing special. So we thought a ride to Old Town Alexandria was in order later in the week. I was on the lookout for the wisteria vines. Along the way there were some interesting windows with shutters that got my attention. We couldn’t find the wisteria while walking, but when we got back in the car we drove around a bit and came across a few options. Again, I think we missed peak bloom and many of the vines looked rather bleak. But then we came across a substantial vine on a brick wall. It started to rain but I ran out and got a few photos anyway. They petals almost look like tiny lanterns and fairy like. For whatever reason I wasn’t up for this challenge. I just didn’t feel inspired this week. 

52Frames Fill the Frame Photo Challenge

The subject matter for this week’s 52Frames photo challenge was “fill the frame.” That meant it was a pretty wide open option to do just about anything. We started the week at Theodore Roosevelt island. We hadn’t been to the island for quite some time and I spent a lot of it taking photos of the bridge, the leaves, the pavement, and the Potomac River. Both my husband and I both liked the River image, but it wasn’t really a detailed shot - it was more impressionistic. I also had ten dollars worth of brass dollar coins with presidents and Sacajawea faces that we unexpectedly ended up getting at the Capitol south metro station after one of our transit cards was outdated - it’s a long story. I actually ended up using this photo because it seemed to meet the definition more. But we also took a ride in to town to see the Smithsonian African American Museum for the first time. I finally got ticket passes last month and it was a beautiful day for a morning walk. I tried taking a lot of close up textile shots but they just didn’t turn out well - bonnets, dresses, etc. The  building itself was gorgeous. Inside was very dark so a lot of images were quite grainy using my iPhone as the camera. I did like the image of the “test” baby dolls that were used for finding out children’s feelings about the dolls. The results of the study ultimately provided support for the Supreme Court Brown vs. the Board of Education ruling. Sometimes when the subject is so wide open it makes it more difficult to find something appropriate. So I’ve been at this for a year now and am starting the first week of another 52 frames sequence. I wonder where it will take me this year?