Digital Art from Vacation

While on vacation, I played with some photos and created some digital art.  I thought I'd share them! ( You will probably need to click on the images to read the quotes.)

I loved this little bee, hanging onto the flower bloom for all he's worth!  I created a watercolor background and framed the photo with some computer graphics.  Then, I added an appropriate quote.

For the above piece, I applied a creative filter to this photo of a butterfly.  His pose was so perfect, I knew I had to do something special with this image.  And, of course, the quote just seemed to speak to this image.

I loved this image of these flowers.  I processed it through my HDR software to improve it, and then added this appropriate quote.  It truly speaks to life in general.

I just loved this image and placed in on top of some background paper that I made using Citrasolv.  The actual paper was scanned so that I could use it for digital art.  I just loved this quote and how it also applies to every aspect of life.

 

Enjoy!

Almost Home !

Our last day of this trip began with a climb up a narrow mountain and ended with home sweet home, but here are some scenes in between!

Altho at times the mountain road was a bit harrowing, there would be intervals of beautiful scenery as we reach a sort of break in the climbing up or down the mountain passes.

At one point, we stopped to give Miki a change to take a potty break, and I took a photo break!  Altho this wasn't a window, I thought it looked like one with a view of the mountain in the distance.

When I turned from the "window", I saw these lovely wildflowers blooming along side an old fence.  What a lovely little intimate nature portrait....

Wouldn't this be quite the place to live?  What great views out of all your windows!  Such a calming peaceful feeling, too....

 

Enjoy!

Arches National Park

 

The last national park we visited on this trip was Arches National Park.  We had accidentally discovered this national park on a previous trip a number of years ago, but it is one that we both really like, so we decided a return trip was just the ticket!

As we drove into the park, the clouds were sort of hanging over or peeking over the bluffs on the other side of the road from the park, and I just had to capture this image.  The clouds sort of give it a bit of 3-D effect.

I don't generally like to have people in my images, but this image proves the exception.  We were at Windows Arch (NOT named after the computer operating system!) and I saw these 2 people in the arch, one standing and one sitting.  They really give some perspective to this, so that you can get an idea of how large the arch is.  You may need to click on the image to see a larger version to really see the people.

I had a small summer cold when we visited here, so I wasn't up for much walking or hiking.  However, we did walk to Sand Dune Arch and I did get sort of inside and under the arch to capture this image.  I just love the sort of flow, texture and shadows in this image.

 

Isn't this a wonderful view inside the park?  I just love the contrast in this image - the stark, dead tree, lush green of the bushes and the red clay earth - not to mention the beautiful blue sky!

 

Enjoy!



Scenery on the Colorado Side of Dinosaur National Monument

We also explored the road on the Colorado side of Dinosaur National Monument, and saw some really lovely sights....altho no dinosaur bones!

I just loved the texture in the rocks in this image!  And the color is so bold when compared to the rocks on the hill/mountain behind it.

Altho there were no dinosaur bones, homesteads or petroglyphs on this side of Dinosaur National Monument, there was some really striking scenery.  The above image really conveys a sense of the vast countryside surrounding us.

This last image was looking out toward the Utah side of Dinosaur National Monument.  I couldn't help but think of those large beasts sort of dotting the land as I looked out on this.  However, I'm sure the landscape was vastly different during the time they roamed the earth.

 

Enjoy!

Dinosaur National Monument Petroglyphs

On the road to Josie Morris' homestead, there were a few areas that contained some petroglyphs.  I am always sort of taken by petroglyphs.  I don't know if it's the artist in me, or just the fact that I'm standing so close to actual communication from people that lived where I'm standing so very long ago....

This is probably the first petroglyph of what appears to be a vase and flowers that I've ever seen!  I don't know if that's what it really is, but it certainly looks that way to me.  I'm not sure what the small carving is at the bottom of the vase....a dead bloom....maybe a bug....?  It's fun to use one's imagination when looking at these!

Here's a petroglyph of what I think is either a warrior or a hunter.  Who knew there were such tall, dark men in our past?  But, the question still remains - was he handsome???

I had just commented to Jeff that we hadn't seen as many antelope on this trip as I thought we might, when I spotted this one in the rock!  It was right next to the tall dark gentleman in the image above, so maybe he was a hunter....

 

Enjoy!

Josie Morris Homestead

 

At the end of the road in the Utah area of Dinosaur National Monument is the old homestead of a real pioneer type personality - one Josie Morris.  This was Josie's home until her death at age 89 in 1964.  She seemed to be quite the character, married 5 times until she decided she was better off single (that's the way she phrased it!), accused of cattle rustling (altho never proven!), she made this her home, with no utilities or running water....at least the way we think of it!

This was Josie's cabin.  I think there were 3 or 4 rooms total in this cabin....which was hardly luxurious!

I took this image inside her cabin, standing in one room and looking into another.  Yes, the floor in her cabin was a dirt floor!  I just love the sort of reflective feel of this image, tho.

This was the view standing just outside Josie's cabin, looking toward her pasture, where she kept various animals, including those cattle she didn't rustle!  On the right side of the path, the green bushes are actually grape vines.  Jeff did walk over there and sampled a few of her grapes.  He said they were pretty good!

This last image is of Josie's version of running water.....a bit different from my version, that's for sure!  There was a sign here telling us not to drink this water....I guess Josie was from hardier stock than we are......

 

Enjoy!

Vivid Flowers among the Grey Bones at Dinosaur National Monument

 

Right outside the visitors center at Dinosaur National Monument were a collection of beautiful flowers.  Their vivid colors were in stark contrast to the brown/grey tones of the bones in the exhibit area.

 



The above image is of a bloom called a Brillan waterleaf, I believe.  In addition to the fabulous color, I really like the sort of spiky tendrils that radiate from the bloom.  They remind me of those fiber optic  tendrils that I see on my artificial Christmas tree!

Such a pretty sunflower!  I love the detail that is reflected in the center of this bloom.....and the soft feel to this image!

I really like the color of this variation of a hawksbeard bloom.  It's both vivid and almost pastel at the same time.  Hardly seems possible, but that's Mother Nature for you!

 

Enjoy!