52Frames Blue Hour Photo Trending

The subject this week for the 52Frames photo challenge was “blue hour.” That meant you needed to take a photo either very early in the morning before the sun came up or later in the evening after the sun set. Neither one of those scenarios works for our morning walk schedule that usually starts around 9:30. So I submitted a cotton candy cloud image that was a simple edited photo rather than the composites that I love to create. On the 52Frames website they show photos trending and they switch out about every eight hours or so. I usually keep an eye out for it ever since a fellow framer told me my photo was trending back in April. And ever since then my weekly photo has shown up in the trending spot. It usually happens the day after the album opens. My only explanation is that my photos get a good number of likes. I haven’t had a 52pick for quite some time. So my view on the subject is that I need to be happy with whatever I submit. If the image gets a nod now and then that’s all that matters. And if it doesn’t get a nod that’s fine too. I was never a photographer anyway - I just enjoy taking pictures. 

52Frames Blue Hour Weekly Photo Challenge

The subject this week for the 52Frames photo challenge was “blue hour.” I don’t care for subjects that are for a specific time period - especially in the early morning or late evening or night. I never get up before 8:30 AM and we rarely go out at night. We like using the subjects to help us decide where we will be taking our morning walk. So this challenge basically kept me on our balcony because it is west facing and would be the only place to take pictures right after sunset - without having to go anywhere. Luckily the clouds and colors cooperated. Every evening there was something a little bit different. We decided the cotton candy clouds with a bit of a balcony in the scene was most appealing. The colors were like nothing we have ever seen. I also did two other options of layering the same scene of pictures that were taken over a period of thirty minutes. I actually preferred one of those because everyone will be submitting sky images of which mine will be one of many. I suppose not every subject will be my cup of tea. I just don’t get very enthusiastic about it. 

Rain Clouds, Storms and Sun

It’s been extraordinarily hot for the last few weeks. When the forecast called for severe thunderstorms we made sure our electronic devices were charged because it’s not uncommon to lose electricity. So when the rain clouds were in sight we watched the sky turn from frightful to pouring rain to down right scary. Then the sun emerged from beneath the clouds and the rain started again. Then the sky color changed to a bright orange - which isn’t that unusual. But what was unusual was the emergence of another line of clouds that almost looked like a mountain range above the tree line. I had never seen anything quite like this before. I’m just glad that we chose to live on the west side of the building. You never know what might happen. 

Stormy Skies

I didn’t like Florida because of hurricanes and water spouts. I didn’t like the Midwest because of snow, ice and blizzards. We left New England when I was six to get relief from icicles and snow. For whatever reason I always thought the eastern seaboard/mid Atlantic area would be a great place to live. Since we moved to DC a seventeen years ago there have been all of the above weather events including an earthquake! I even have three different umbrellas based on the type of rain that is falling. We have actually been luckier than most this year weather wise, but the threat of severe storms and tornadoes is more common that I would prefer. This week we had two significant events - so much so that the federal government employees were sent home early to avoid the chaos. We now live in a condo in northern Virginia and have a balcony that faces west. So we literally see the storms approaching.  I’m not the one who loves lightening and thunder either. But I do have to admit that some of the most interesting views come after the storm. The most recent event ended up turning in to a most unusual night sky that was hypnotically yellow as the sun was finally setting. I wish the weather didn’t have such an impact on me and any plans to do things around it. Maybe it’s better to be ignorant about what’s going on around you - but that’s never going to happen. 

The Evening Sky

It was from 6:05 to 6:21 PM. The view from our balcony was simply lovely. I wouldn’t live in a place that didn’t have a western vantage point. So when we moved to northern Virginia almost two years ago from Capitol Hill, it was a big item on the wish list. I am a night person and the early evening hours are my favorite. The idea of waking up in the morning is not my cup of tea and hasn’t been for as long as I can remember. I don’t know how I managed all those years working the first shift. With spring coming and daylight savings switching back soon things look so much brighter. And the fact that I am getting my second vaccine this Sunday gives us some hope after being cooped up for a year. So it’s with a great deal of pleasure that I can see and feel the sunlight in the afternoon and watch the sky turn in to night. I am looking forward to sitting out on the balcony - the only place without a mask - and relaxing, playing video games with my husband, or just doing nothing. Having another “room” to use is so therapeutic. 

A View from the Twentieth Floor

We aren’t on the Lake side. We are on the city side - but not facing the down town or anything recognizable. It’s the vast western view of Milwaukee. We are on the twentieth floor of Park Lafayette Towers on the lower east side. It’s an area we spent a lot of time in when we lived in Milwaukee for over thirty years. But rather than drive any friend crazy, we thought living in a one bedroom apartment for almost two weeks might be a good option. The oriental theater and Ma Fischer’s are two blocks away, my hair stylist Nadeen was a few blocks away, the lake front is just on the other side, and Downer Avenue is just up the street. I got a few pair of my favorite eye glasses at Optix and we had many dinners in the neighborhood. Unfortunately it’s been raining most of the time since we arrived so the views from the twentieth floor have been interesting. I know for certain I’m not a high rise kind of person. The howling wind during thunderstorms at midnight can be frightening! Can’t imagine how that feels in the dead of winter. So, as temporary housing it couldn’t have been better. Next time I’d prefer a lower floor and a lake view.