Shadow Shot Sunday: Creepy Crawly in the Shadows

I was out looking for shadows recently, and found this small tarantula lurking in the leafy shadows on the side of the house.

Here's a close-up view (sorry it's a little grainy). Even though he wasn't very big and he (or she?) was way up near the roof, I definitely kept my distance.

Happy Sunday, everyone! And have a wonderful week. And watch out for spiders!

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Bluebonnet Blues

Well, here's my obligatory annual bluebonnet post.

Lonely bluebonnet and its shadow.

Every year we have a few bluebonnets come up on our property, and we get very excited. Texans LOVE their bluebonnets. But every year, the deer that roam around the area manage to gobble up every blossom — even though deer aren't supposed to like bluebonnets. Our deer have obviously developed a taste for the plants because they have completely denuded our place of anything remotely resembling a bluebonnet. Even this little beauty (possibly the last one we'll have) is gone now.

But it was lovely while it lasted.

Happy Sunday, everyone! And have a wonderful week.

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Shadow Shot Sunday: Searching for Shadows

So far, February has been mostly cold and misty around here. Lots of gray days, not much sunshine. Shadows are hard to find. These are a couple of shots I took last month, during our brief spell of spring-like weather. Shadows on the steps leading up to our side yard....

And some winter garden shadows....

The weather "experts" tell us the week ahead should be warmer, with a bit more sun. I'm hoping they're right about that. Can't take many more of these dismal days. Thinking seriously about moving further SOUTH.

Happy Sunday, everyone! And have a lovely week.

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Shadow Shot Sunday: Patio and Porch Shadows

Table on patio

Potted nandina on front porch

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SSS 137: Shadows of Christmas Past

I know Christmas is over, and everyone is probably sick of seeing Christmas-themed posts. But we still have our decorations up and since this might be our last Christmas in this apartment, I've been taking lots of photos of the place this holiday season. I'm always being surprised by the shadows that get thrown onto the vertical blinds over the door to our balcony - here we have the shadow of a Christmas stocking that's hanging on the balcony door. First a closeup:


And then another one that shows a teensy shadow of the Christmas lights around the door, and even a bit of balcony furniture:

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

OK, I'll try to make this the last of the Christmas posts. Must move on to 2011. Gee, I already miss 2010!

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday 134

Shenandoah National Park VA
October 2010
(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday 133: Shadowy Skull

Cow skull with beads.
Lago Vista, TX
November 2010
(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday 132: A Visit from Mr. Lizard

While we were staying in a rented condo in the Texas Hill Country earlier this month, this little lizard showed up on our patio one morning. I just happened to have the camera handy, so I was able to get a snap before he scampered off into the abelia bushes. Also caught a bit of the barbecue grill (which I thought about cropping out, but decided I liked the way it looked so left it in).

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday 131: Fencing Shadows

I took several shots of this fence and then couldn't decide which one I liked best, so I'm posting two. First, this one:


And then this one with a bit of road showing:


And finally, this is that last one, before I cropped out my own shadow down in the right hand corner:

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday: Bistro Shadows

Snapped this at one of our favorite neighborhood eateries, just before the lunchtime crowd descended.

(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday: Shadows in the Sand

(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday: The Walk to the Beach

(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet.
To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday: Happy Hour Shadows

(Click on photo to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday #107: Ancestral Shadows

San Antonio National Cemetery
San Antonio, TX

Just a bit late for Memorial Day. My husband's great-great-grandfather, William Jackson Locke, who fought in the Civil War, is buried here (that's his grave in the foreground, on the right). In the background, you can see the Tower of the Americas, one of the more modern landmarks in downtown San Antonio.

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday #106: Spider Shadows

Garden sculpture, Marble Falls TX
October 2008

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday #105: Shadow Edits

I'm still amazed at what you can do with these photo editing programs. A simple shot of one of our balcony chairs along with its shadow can be transformed with some very interesting effects.

Here's the original shot, not cropped or retouched:


And here's the same shot with an embossing effect. Not too different - just a bit grainier:


Or I can turn it into a pencil sketch, still not too different:


Or go for something much more dramatic, like this negative image:


Which also lets me see what those chairs would look like, painted white.
Neat, yes? Well, at least it's a neat way to waste a Saturday afternoon.

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Shadow Shot Sunday #95: Terrace Shadows

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

Here we have the shadows of our balcony furniture on
vertical blinds, one morning last week.

(Click on images to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday #94: One Last Snow Shot

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

OK, this is cheating just a little bit, I suppose. This photo was actually taken last year around this same time. But the image isn't too different from what we've had around here the last week or so. However, we've had a few really nice, sunny, above-freezing days recently. And as of today, the snow has almost completely melted on the grass and sidewalks, and the roads are mostly clear. We still have huge mountains of black, fuzzy snow in many places, but that's also starting to melt now. All of which makes me very happy. Well, maybe not that part about the black fuzzy snow, but the melting bit is a great spirit-booster. And I'm really, really hoping that this will be my very last shot of snow shadows this year.

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Shadow Shot Sunday 93: Over the Top

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Who the heck is that other cat down there?

Shadow Shot Sunday: Leafy Shadows

Shadow Shot Sunday is a weekly photo meme hosted by Hey Harriet. To see many, many more shadow shots or to contribute some yourself, head on over to her blog.

(Click on images to enlarge.)