First Photos With My New Camera: Outside From Small To Large

April 17, 2013April 17, 2013 / Ally Bean / 34 Comments

Over the weekend I bought a new point & shoot camera. It is a Nikon COOLPIX P520 18.1 MP Digital Camera with 42x Zoom. It will replace my Nikon COOLPIX P90 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 24x Zoom that I’ve enjoyed using for many years.

This new camera is similar to the old one, but has more bells & whistles on it. *yeah* I’m looking forward to learning about each cool thing that my P520 can do, but for these photos I just winged it. This camera is, after all, a point & shoot model, so why not go with the obvious?

~ ~ • ~ ~

~ • ~

~ ~ • ~ ~

[Hello FTC! It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? I haven’t bought much lately. Huh. Well, just as a reminder, please note that I’m not being paid for my opinion here. I’m just explaining my experiences without any compensation whatsoever. That’s the way I roll, but then you knew that.]

I Was Wrong. Snow. Again. And I Am Not Overly Thrilled With It.

March 13, 2013March 13, 2013 / Ally Bean / 25 Comments

~ • ~

So I wake up this morning in a cheerful mood.

I am ready to face the day with joy and purpose and hope. It is springtime after all. This is the time of year where things get done. And I am ready to do things. Oh. Yes. I. Am. And then I look outside and see SNOW!

~ • ~

This does not make me happy.

Have I not put up with this crap for months now? Have I not been a good person who doesn’t whine about the mess & inconvenience that snow brings with it? Have I not stated clearly here in this blog that the time for snow is over? HUH? Did I just not say that but a few posts ago?

~ • ~

Yet, there is snow in my world.

And as much as I’d like to continue on with this rant, I have to admit that the blue sky that has accompanied this LAST SNOWFALL* is beautiful. And encouraging. And rather, dare I say it, springlike.

~ • ~

Being nothing if not pragmatic, I have a plan.

Today I will focus on the pretty white clouds in the sky and totally ignore the white mess on the ground. Yep, that’s my plan. DENIAL. When asked by other people what I think of this snowfall, I will say: what snow? I don’t see anything like that around here. All I see is Spring in the making. Hallelujah!

~ • ~

* from my ~~lips~~ blog post to God’s ear

The Last Snow Of The Season… Or So I Imagine

March 9, 2013March 9, 2013 / Ally Bean / 18 Comments

On Wednesday we had what I imagine will be our last snow of the season.

It was the kind of snow that covers everything it touches with what appears to be wallpaper paste or cotton balls. This snowfall didn’t slow things down like early and mid-winter snow does. In fact, by mid-day Thursday the streets and sidewalks were clear.

But while it remained on the trees and bushes, the heavy snow made for some pretty photos. There are times when the grayness of winter is quietly stunning.

~ • ~

{ maple leaves on a snowy branch }

~ • ~

{ snow-covered rosemary in a pot }

~ • ~

{ view outside through the front door sidelight }

~ • ~

{ moss + snow on the trunk of a tree }

~ • ~

{ a view into our ravine from high above }

~ • ~

A Mid-Winter Sunday Morning In The Park

February 10, 2013July 1, 2025 / Ally Bean / 19 Comments

“Many people don’t realize that it’s in what you think are the limitations of a certain form that you can often find your own rhythm and space.”

~ Isabelle Huppert

Sunday was one of those monotone, nondescript days that was neither lovely nor lousy. Not too cold. Not too wet. Not too bleak.

I had almost no energy. Whether it was because of the weather or because we ran around all day on Saturday, I don’t know. Doesn’t matter because I had no pep.

But I thought that we really should do something, so I talked the hubster into going to a city park that we hadn’t been to in years. I remembered that it was flat, paved and had decent parking.

At first I wasn’t going to take my camera with me thinking that without vibrant color outside there’d be nothing to take a picture of. But then I realized that taking photos on a winter day that offered neither sunshine nor snow would be a fun challenge, so the camera came with us. Just in case I saw something I wanted to photograph.

Here’s what I saw…

~ • ~