The Night Sky

 

Falling snow and tree branches in the night sky, snapped with flash.
Click the pic to enlarge

Bits and pieces flung into the universe,

sticking in the sky like cotton balls on a jet black velcro surface.
Bradley Chicho

See skies from around the world HERE @ SKYWATCH FRIDAY

View more monochromes HERE @ THE WEEKEND IN BLACK AND WHITE

See what's reflecting around the world HERE @ WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

Look who's getting creative HERE @ THE CREATIVE EXCHANGE

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Happy Holidays

Season's Greetings

My favourite Christmas ornament

I'm taking a holiday hiatus...see you in the new year!!

CHEERS!

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ MACRO MONDAY

See more shades of yellow HERE @ MELLOW YELLOW MONDAY

See photos from the heart @ THE CREATIVE EXCHANGE

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O Christmas Tree - Weekend Reflections

Hubbers left his laptop on the ottoman. I am always reminding him to put his stuff away when he's done. I am glad he forgot this time, it made for a great shot!

See what's reflecting around the world http://weekendreflection.blogspot.com/

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In Memory - Sky Watch Friday

Lots of grey skies here, so I am posting a photo from my archives, September 2011

Kennisis Lake.

In memory of Michael

Rest in peace my friend
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Take a look at more beautiful skies from around the world @ Sky Watch Friday

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

Christmas Colours

A post for Macro Monday/The Creative Exchange/ i heart macro/Ruby Tuesday

Colours are the smiles of nature

~Leigh Hunt

The flowers of this poinsettia (green buds) are less than 1\8th of an inch in size, so my Raynox DCR-250 conversion macro lens did wonders on this shot!

The brightly coloured parts of a poinsettia are not the plant's flowers. They are actually bracts, or modified leaves surrounding the real flowers, which are the (3-5 mm) greenish-yellow buds in the centre of a bunch.

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ MACRO MONDAY

See photos from the heart @ THE CREATIVE EXCHANGE

See more hues of RED @ RUBY TUESDAY

More Macro mania to be seen @ i heart macro

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Calm - SkyWatch Friday/Scenic Sunday

Click on the pic to enlarge

After a storm, comes calm

~Matthew Henry

Take a look at more beautiful skies from around the world @ Sky Watch Friday

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

Bead Bokeh

Click on the pic to enlarge

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold,

everything is softer and more beautiful. 

~Norman Vincent Peale

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ MACRO MONDAY

See more shades of yellow HERE @ MELLOW YELLOW MONDAY

See photos from the heart @ THE CREATIVE EXCHANGE

See more hues of RED @ RUBY TUESDAY

Lots more red to see over @ Sue's blog on REDNESDAY

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Silken Whispers - The Weekend In Black and White

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soft silken whispers

travel gently through the air

dancing on a breeze

~Karen

See more great monochrome shots from around the world - 

HERE at THE WEEKEND in BLACK and WHITE

Billowing - SkyWatch Friday

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Wisdom begins in wonder 

~Socrates

Take a look at more beautiful skies from around the world @ Sky Watch Friday

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The Model In Red - Minus Teeth

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T is for teeth...or ummm toothless ;)

I already have my Christmas dress so...

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!

See more hues of RED @ RUBY TUESDAY

The letter T was brought to you today by ABC WEDNESDAY

Lots more red to see over @ Sue's blog on REDNESDAY

Creepy Beauty

Click on the pic to enlarge

What is it?

See the little heart shape?

Did you guess right?

I am arachnophobic, but this spider had such beautiful markings, I had to photograph it!

It wasn't that big, the body was about 3/4 of an inch, and it's not poisonous.

PS. It's a Cross Spider (Araneus diadematus), common in Europe and North America. The basic colour varies between different species, from light yellow to brown/red to dark/grey. The thing they all have in common is their cross-symbol located at their back. The cross is actually formed by white dots which are closely attached and shaped into this perfect cross. (thanks for identifying it squirrel)

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE at Lisa's Chaos

Take a look at critters from around the world HERE at CAMERA CRITTERS

See other found hearts from around the world HERE at Clyties blog, Random Hearts

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Skywatching

Click on the pic to enlarge

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you," that would suffice. 

~Meister Eckhart

View more gorgeous skies from around the world HERE @SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

Freckle Berries (Solomon's Seal)

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 Solomon's Seal Berries (False)

(Smilacina racemosa)

False Solomon's Seal is a lovely woodland perennial native to North America. Unlike True Solomon's Seal berries, the berries of this plant are not poisonous. In late fall the berries turn brilliant red and are eaten by birds and wildlife.

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ Lisa's Chaos MACRO MONDAY

View the many hues of red here at RUBY TUESDAY

The letter S was brought to you today by ABC WEDNESDAY

The Fairest Of Them All - Weekend Reflections

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Childhood is the most beautiful of all life's seasons.

  ~Author Unknown

Taken in late October at Lake Huron, an exceptionally warm day.

Look at what's reflecting around the world HERE @WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

Cloudscape

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Behind every cloud is another cloud.
Judy Garland

View more gorgeous skies from around the world HERE @SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

Lake View

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Outdoor/Watery Wednesday/NF Waters

 

Man's heart away from nature becomes hard. 

~Standing Bear

Click over to Nature Footstep new WATERS meme HERE for more watery views.

Take a look at the great outdoors HERE at OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY

Get your eyes wet @ WATERY WEDNESDAY HERE

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The Three R's - ABC Wednesday

After a busy morning outside playing in the leaves, chasing the dog around the yard, and flying sky high on the swing, my granddaughter settles in for some

R R and R... 

Rest, Relaxation, and Reading.

A difficult word

...but she got it!

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.

Joseph Addison

 

The letter R was brought to you today by ABC WEDNESDAY

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Froggy- Macro/Mellow Yellow Monday

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ Lisa's Chaos

See more Mellow Yellow shots HERE @ Mellow Yellow Monday

Sunset Sparkles - Weekend Reflections

Click on the pic to enlarge

The world is full of poetry. The air is living with its spirit;

and the waves dance to the music of its melodies, and sparkle in its brightness.
James Gates Percival

Look at what's reflecting around the world HERE @WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

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Between Shadows and Light - SkyWatch Friday

Click on the pic to enlarge

The present is the ever moving shadow that divides yesterday from tomorrow.

In that lies hope.

Frank Lloyd Wright

View more gorgeous skies from around the world HERE @SKYWATCH FRIDAY
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Quack Quack

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If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, we have at least to consider the possibility that we have a small aquatic bird of the family anatidae on our hands.
Douglas Adams

The letter Q was brought to you this week by ABC WEDNESDAY

Click over to Nature Footstep new WATERS meme HERE for more watery views.

Take a look at the great outdoors HERE at OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY

Get your eyes wet @ WATERY WEDNESDAY HERE

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Itty Bits -Macro/Mellow Yellow Monday

Click on the pic to enlarge

So...I really want a macro lens! But I can't afford one right now (it's on my Christmas list). I thought I would try a magnifying filter. I didn't have much hope really, but I was pleasantly surprised with the results of my first try with the Raynox DCR-250 Super Macro Conversion Lens. The Raynox DCR-250 is not a dedicated lens…meaning you can’t attach it directly to your camera. It clips on to a lens with a filter size between 52mm to 67mm. The clips grab on to the internal ring on the front lens element.

The snail shell and feather above are teeny tiny...how teeny tiny? Well the shell is about 1/4 of an inch...

Size comparison

So...what do you think? Was it worth the 80 bucks I paid for it?

See more great Macro shots from around the world HERE @ Lisa's Chaos
See more Mellow Yellow shots HERE @ Mellow Yellow Monday

Cottage Sunset Series #5

Kennisis Lake, Haliburton, Ontario

View more gorgeous skies from around the world HERE @SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Look at what's reflecting around the world HERE @WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

 

Soft Ripples - NF Waters/Watery/Outdoor Wednesday

Long Lake, Haliburton, Ontario

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. 

~William Shakespeare

Click over to Nature Footstep new WATERS meme HERE for more watery views.

Take a look at the great outdoors HERE at OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY
Get your eyes wet @ WATERY WEDNESDAY HERE

Pear-shaped Puffballs

A post for ABC Wednesday/Guest Heart Thursday

Scroll down to the second photo for the heart.

P is for Pear-shaped Puffballs

(Lycoperdon Pyriforme)

One of the several species of smaller Puffballs, is the Pear-shaped Puffball. Huge masses of hundreds of these puffballs can cover the length of well rotted hardwood logs. Individual fruiting bodies are 2-5cm tall, shaped like a pear, with the swollen end up. They are smooth with fine, mealy grains. As the spores ripen inside, a small hole develops on the top of the fruiting body. Raindrops that land on the puffball, tap the thin skin and force out a cloud of spores that will drift away in the wind.

Small Puffballs can be eaten safely, but it is important to identify them well. They should be cut open from top to bottom, to be sure there is no eveidence of a developing stem, cap or gills. The button stage of the deadly Destroying Angel mushroom resembles a Puffball.

The letter P was brought to you this week by ABC WEDNESDAY

This shot is for Clytie at Random Hearts! A heart in a puff.

See more Random Hearts @ Clytie's Blog RANDOM HEARTS

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Hemlock Lacquered Polypore- Macro Monday/Ruby Tuesday

I was fascinated by the wide variety of fungi present in the forest up at the cottage.  This is my favourite species.

Click on the pics to enlarge

The Hemlock Lacquered Polypore

(Ganoderma tsuage)

The fruiting body which can be up to 30cm (11inches) in diameter, develop in a single season. They begin growth in June as soft white and orange knobs, soon fan out, and both the stalk and upper surface become heavily lacquered in shades of red and burgundy.

These fungi belong to the Polypore species, often known as, shelf or bracket fugi. Although not all species form shelf-shaped bodies, the commonality exists in the fact they have tough or woody fruiting bodies, that produce spores in tubes or pores found on the underside.

See more great Macro Shots from around the world

 HERE at Lisa's Chaos MACRO MONDAY

Take at look at various shades of red

HERE at Work Of The Poet's RUBY TUESDAY

Cottage Sunset Series #4

Click the pic to enlarge

On our recent vacation at the lake, I sat on the elevated deck of the cottage and watched the sun set every evening. The beauty of the sky held me in awe from the beginning of the sunset until dark.

I watched and photographed from the same vantage point each night. It was never boring!

The photos are not edited other than being cropped and/or resized.

*PLEASE NOTE...for those using DYNAMIC VIEW IN BLOGGER,

I am unable to a comment on your post.

View more gorgeous skies from around the world HERE @SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Look at what's reflecting around the world HERE @WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

Lots of scenery from around the world can be seen HERE @SCENIC SUNDAY

I Love Pizza - Guest Heart Thursday

I usually hand toss my pizza dough, but this batch was a bit stiff.

I had to roll it out before tossing, and when I saw it. I knew it would be great for

 GUEST HEART THURSDAY over at Clytie's Random Hearts blog HERE

A Touch Of Autumn

The Ausable River, Pinery Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada

Click the pic to enlarge

The world turns softly Not to spill its lakes and rivers,

The water is held in its arms And the sky is held in the water.

What is water, That pours silver, And can hold the sky?
~Hilda Conkling 

Click over to Nature Footstep new WATERS meme HERE for more watery views.

Take a look at the great outdoors HERE at OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY
Get your eyes wet @ WATERY WEDNESDAY HERE

Gnome Home

Click the pic to enlarge

Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria)

This species may be recognized from illustrations in children's books, as the classical fairy or gnome mushroom or toadstool, (more often in red). It may be the source of the folk term "toadstool" as it was once thought that handling toads would give you warts, and if a toad sat on a mushroom, it would develop warts as well...hence toadstool.

The Fly Agaric is poisonus, but will not cause death in humans. The poison was once used to kill house flies.

See more great macro shots from around the world HERE @ MACRO MONDAY

Visit MELLOW YELLOW MONDAY to see many shades of Yellow

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The Deck Reflects - Weekend Reflections

Click the pic to enlarge

The upper deck at the cottage is a great spot to sit and look out onto the lake. And as you can see in the reflections, a great spot for our small dog to catch 40 winks!

Yep, cleaning the deck glass paid off!

Looking up from the beach. A beautiful day in late September.

See what's reflecting around the world HERE @ WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

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Forest Floor - The Weekend In Black and White

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Find inspiration in small brilliant bursts right at your feet.

See more great monochrome shots HERE @ The Weekend In Black And White

A Whatchamacallit- Sky Watch Friday

Click the pics to enlarge

 This first one is my entry for the Favorite Photo Of The Week Contest.

A paraplane...

is the safest aircraft that you can fly, even if the engine fails you have a parachute already deployed, and the best part is that your not enclosed inside a cabin.

I took this shot before he flew off into the sunset in the first photo.

See more skies from around the world HERE @ SKYWATCH FRIDAY

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Summer In Autumn

A post for NF WATERS/ OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY/WATERY WEDNESDAY

Click the pics to enlarge

My granddaughter at the lake (Lake Huron, Ontario), on Thanksgiving (Oct 10), with the temperature of 80F, (and today it's 46F), only in Canada ;)

Click over to Nature Footstep new WATERS meme HERE for more watery views.
Take a look at the great outdoors HERE at OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY
Get your eyes wet @ WATERY WEDNESDAY HERE

Doll's Eyes

For Macro Monday/Ruby Tuesday

Click the pic to enlarge

Beneath the early autumn canopy of turning trees, the doll's eye plant stands out on the forest floor, with striking white berries, each centred with a black dot, on a thick, deep red stalk. Named for the resemblance to the eyes of old fashioned porcelin dolls, this plant is pure poison. Also known as baneberry, all parts of this plant can cause ill effects in humans if ingested. This is one plant that does not follow the old folk adage that any berries eaten by birds are okay for humans. Ruffled grouse, robins, wood thrushes and other songbirds eat these berries with no consequences.

Visit Lisa's Chaos to see more great MACRO shots from around the world HERE

Check out the many shades of red over at Ruby Tuesday HERE

Testing - Weekend Reflections



Click the pic to enlarge

 Testing a telephoto lens from the camera shop doorway a block away.
I bought it.

See more great REFLECTION shots from around the world HERE @ WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

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Wonderment - Sky Watch Friday/Scenic Sunday

Lake Huron, Pinery Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada

Click on the pic to enlarge

viewed in wonderment

this day drawing to a close

my soul replenished

~Karen

My entry for the Favorite Photo Of The Week Contest.

See more gorgeous sky scapes from around the world HERE @ SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Take a look at beautiful scenery from around the world HERE @ SCENIC SUNDAY

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Twilight At The Lake

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Heavenly shades of night are falling
It's twilight time

~The Platters

See more of the great outdoors from around the world HERE @ Outdoor Wednesday

See more watery scenes from around the world HERE @ Watery Wednesday

Check out the new meme at Nature Footstep "Waters" HERE