52Frames Levitation Weekly Photo Trending

I was rather disappointed last week when my weekly photo entry was not trending. The only reason is because my photos have been trending every week since April - when I first learned such a thing existed. I believe it may have something to do with the number of likes the photo received from fellow framers from all over the world. So I was nervous about this week’s entry… would it trend or not? The album always opens on Tuesday and my photo has been trending on Tuesday night or the following day. I was somewhat relieved to see that it was trending beginning last night and it lasted until this morning - usually around an eight hour period or so?  I’ve had somewhat of a dry spell of making the 52Frames best cuts that come out on Thursday, and haven’t been showcased on the instagram site either for quite a while. They say this isn’t a contest but it really is. I guess it’s really all about the attitude. It’s a hobby where you get to meet people from all over the world and it gives me an opportunity to be as creative as possible using the tools that I have. I’m not really a photographer anyway. That’s why so many really great photographers had a problem with the subject this week because it requires more than point and shoot. It was more of a project of layering several images to create “levitation” that goes beyond a simple edit. I actually love the editing process more than taking the photos. Let’s see what happens this week! 

52Frames Levitation Weekly Photo Challenge

It was a very difficult decision to post either the miniature roses or the Capitol building. The subject for the 52Frames weekly photo challenge this week was “levitation.” I knew there would be several floating watering can entries but there would be only one Capitol dome floating unattached to the massive structure below. But my husband loved the thirsty and spent roses with the whole vibe of the sweltering sun over the controversial Capitol building and the negative impression of DC. He didn’t like the original background I selected so I worked on it to make him happy. I also tried some levitating rocks in the neighborhood park, my husband floating magically in the circular structure at the gardens in DC, my husband levitating above the sidewalk in the park, and a white cat walking above the fence line. Then there were the floating berries and the yellow flowers. All of these were composites of sorts, but the roses required a lot of work and several layers as it was composed of six photos and a bit of painting in of a sun burst and water drops. I haven’t had a lot of luck lately in getting selected as a top 52 for many weeks. Even though it’s not a contest, who doesn’t love getting selected? 

Grocery Store Miniature Rose

I can’t believe this little rose plant is blooming again! This is about the eighth time - if not more - that the miniature blossoms have sprung. My husband has been taking such good care of this plant since we first got it during the pandemic so we could have a bit of color in the house. Since then he has moved it out to the balcony where it gets watered daily and provided very affectionate care. We always had flowers in the window baskets but decided not to this year, so the roses are the only flowers there. Who would have thought the flowers would keep coming - at least twice, if not three times every summer. Just having one plant makes it even more special. Who would have guessed? 

52Frames Red Weekly Photo Challenge

The challenge this week was “red” for the 52Frames photo op. My mom’s seventy five plus year old vase was a great idea - even though the stem of it was broken right after I brought it home. It was placed on the windowsill in full sunlight that cast interesting shadows and also brought out the delicate floral design. Then the base was isolated and placed against a solid black background. To add a bit of interest to the scene, a photo of my husband’s miniature rose plant was taken. One bud was isolated from the image, copied, shifted in to different positions - including a falling flower that gave it some movement. Then a red swirl was added to the base of the vase representing the broken piece and added to the “redness.”  I also tried the same scene using a white peony flower but in the end preferred the roses. I really enjoy creating composite images as opposed to just taking a photo and submitting that with a bit of editing. I’m not really a photographer as such. I enjoy taking pictures and turning them in to projects. It’s all part of the digital art world and is a great hobby and keeps my creative juices flowing. And my husband is the best critic. He always helps me get the image to look just right. Usually it takes several iterations. And he has the patience to do this every week. 

Miniature Roses Bloom Again!

We bought the tiny rose plant at the grocery store at least three years ago. If anyone ever told us that it would still be growing and blooming three years later we would have been surprised. But if my husband has anything to do with it, that’s the key to the success of this miniature rose plant. We don’t have a lot of plants - or anything - anymore since we moved to the condo in northern Virginia. We had a small patio garden in our Capitol Hill condo, and a few houseplants now. On the balcony there are three coco lined window baskets that we try to keep going with seasonal flowers. But the crows and other birds keep throwing the dirt around - tempting us to remove the planters after this season. But the one outdoor plant that remains is the miniature rose. We used to keep it in the house but it seems to thrive in the humidity and west side of the building that gets full sun. My husband waters it twice a day. Currently there are three blossoms, and one of the branches was just cut back this week. We anticipate that it will bloom once again this year. Last year we left the plant outside over winter and it still came back. My husband prefers to have very few things. But he takes care of them so well. 

Grocery Store Miniature Roses Revived

We bought a miniature rose plant from Giant last year. We wanted to add a bit of color to the plant stand that was primarily green. It bloomed not once, but twice. It became my husband’s pet. So throughout the winter it hibernated. Then in March we trimmed back the leaves and waited to see what might happen. My husband babied the plant - every day moving it to and from the sunlit windowsill so it would get all the heat and light any plant in spring requires. He was watering it almost every day. Then it looked like a small bud appeared. We watched as it started to thrive. We checked to see how long it usually takes for a bud to actually bloom and become the lovely flower the plant is intended to have. Two weeks was the answer. The buds kept getting a little bigger and all of a sudden it was just a matter of time. Then the bud opened a bit - just enough to see the color it would become - sort of a dusty rose. Now it’s warm enough today to see the full bloom in the full sun. There are actually small four plants and each one of them has a single bud. Hopefully it will last a bit longer. I suppose that goes to show you that with enough attention and care even a miniature rose from the grocery store can return to life. Sounds like a great theme for a children’s book! 

Miniature Roses

We have a lot of green house plants. It is very green, so we got a miniature rose plant from Giant several weeks ago to add a bit of drama. The blooms lasted for over a week. Then the plant started looking sad. So my husband took it upon himself to nurture this plant. He has been bringing it over to the west facing window every day from the console table, and making sure it’s getting enough water. Apparently these little plants stop flowering in September. Now, after all the loving care it has received, several buds appeared and now they are all back in bloom - and there is one more in the making.  So I took some photos of the roses - each one is a little different dusty rose color than the next. We used to get cut flowers every week or two and put them in the wall vase and the console vase to add more color. This little rose plant replaced that option and has surprised us both. After these blooms fade we are going to try and keep it going. The results for my husband’s efforts were stunning!