Scavenger Hunt Sunday 05.11.14

Hello!  And welcome to another Scavenger Hunt Sunday!  Spring has finally arrived here in western Pennsylvania!  In fact, we had a day of summer-like temps this week with more on the way, if the weather folks are correct.  No complaining from me!  I'll take it!  Just wish we had a little more sunshine and a little less rain.  Though I guess there are other parts of the country that are feeling just the opposite.  Strange how it works that way.

Anyway, let's get to this week's finds ...

{details}

A friend of Keira's created this beautiful drawing of her.  It is Keira in fairy form.  I just love all the details!  She obviously took her time drawing this and is very talented.

{precious}

My babies are so precious to me!  Even though Alex is a little out of focus.  :/

{hungry}

I watched some hungry birds hanging around my feeder this week.  I didn't notice the one hanging upside down until I went to edit this photo, then I wished I had lowered my aperture a little so both birds would be in focus.  Oh well.

{water}

Water on a dandelion fluff always looks so cool.

{wide angle}

Two different views of the same tree - one wide angle, one close(r) up.  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day, whether you are celebrating your mom or being a mom yourself!

Be sure to visit Ashley for more great Scavenger Hunt finds!

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Scavenger Hunt Sunday 10.27.13

Chilly weather has set in here in Western Pennsylvania and we even saw our first snow flakes this week.  I must admit I'm not ready for snow yet.  So I chose to stay indoors and keep warm while it was snowing instead of venturing out with my camera.  However Alex, Honey, and I did venture out one day this week and go for a short walk around the area.  (It wasn't snowing that day).  :)  I don't want to completely miss autumn because of busyness.

Anyway, on to the Scavenger Hunt ...

{change}

One of the things we saw on our walk was the neighbor's tree in the process of change from green to red.

{your mood today}

This is an outtake from a session with my sister-in-law and her two girls from last month.  Christi was apparently getting tired of having her picture taken.  :)  While I'm not really in a bad mood today, I am tired from going going going, and kinda feel like this lately when asked to do something.

{dark}

If you happen to be a fan of my facebook page, you already saw this.  If not, here's a link to my page.  (Kimberly Vensel Photography) I'd love for you to go give me a "like".  :)
During a senior photo session with Kourtney yesterday, one of the places we went to was an old train tunnel which is now part of the rails-to-trails bike trails in PA.  Normally I am drawn to light for photos and would not consider going into a dark tunnel to take pictures.  But we decided to give it a try and I'm glad we did.  I had my kids shine their flashlights on the back of Kourtney's head and this is the result.

{welcome}

Any kind of rainbow in the sky, like this sun dog, is always a welcome sight.  This was the second one we saw on this particular day.  I didn't get my camera out in time to capture the first one.  So God blessed me with another chance.

{depth of field}

Depth of field is something I love to play around with.  Experimenting with narrow DOF to deep.  And seeing what a difference it makes.

So that's it for me.  Gotta get back to processing more photos from the sessions I did recently.  Thanks for stopping by!  Be sure to visit Ashley for more great Scavenger Hunt finds if you haven't already.

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Nurture Photography ~ Orange/Fiery and Red/Snapshot

Last week's Nurture Photography link up slipped by me, so I figured I'd just share both my orange and red photos today.  Hope you don't mind.  :)

First up ... orange/fiery ...

At a photography workshop that I taught recently, the ladies wanted to learn how to do some still life shots.  Which is where this pumpkin shot came from.

We visited a local farm a couple weeks ago.  They had lots of bins of mini pumpkins and gourds. 

The maple tree in my backyard.

Having a little fun with Keira.  I guess this would fall under the "fiery" category.  :)

Next up ... red/snapshot ...

Just a lone leaf we came across in our travels.

My zinnias had been going strong.  I have to check on them since we have had a couple frosty mornings and even had some snow yesterday.  But it is cold and I don't want to go outside.  :)

Alex showing me a red leaf he found.

One of my neighbor's trees.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope to be able to participate again next week when the theme is Purple/Spooky.

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Nurture Photography ~ Yellow/Shine

Last week the Nurture Photography fall challenge started with the color green.  This week we are exploring all things yellow.  I love yellow!  It is such a cheery color.

Here are a few of the yellow things I have come across lately ...

The promise of things to come ...

A new sign in a park we visit frequently.  I can't wait to see what they do with this!

Even though daisies are usually most common in spring and summer, we came across quite a few on our nature walk this week.

The sunsets this time of year are so colorful and vibrant!  Purples, pinks, yellows, and oranges.  Gorgeous!

My zinnias are still going strong.

And a couple that represent "shine" ...

My daughter on her 15th birthday.  It was a rainy, wet, cold day until right before sunset.  Then the sun came out and shone beautifully.  It was a great end to the day.

Thanks for stopping by!  Before you go, check out the giveaway I am hosting for a sweet children's board book, Ryan and Rufus Go to Church!  Today is the last day to enter.

Have a great week!  Next's week color challenge is Orange/Fiery.

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Scavenger Hunt Sunday 10.06.13

Sometimes I'm just too tired to say anything about the Scavenger Hunt.  This is one of those times.  :)

{something colorful}

Sometimes Doug buys me flowers just because he loves me.  Like these colorful ones he brought home the other day.

{light}

I know I shared this the other day in the Nurture Photography challenge, but I just love the way the light was hitting these leaves.

{you}

A few weeks back the whole family went mini golfing together.  It was a fun time.  Keira took this photo of my trying to get my ball unstuck from between these two "rocks".

{in motion}

I asked Keira to help me with this prompt by allowing me to capture her in motion.  It was fun to play!

{afternoon}

Thursday afternoon I needed to run a quick errand and the boys came along for the ride.  While there they found these Duck Dynasty beards that they just "had to have".  :)  Nick plans to be one of the DD guys for Halloween this year.


That's it for me.  Thanks for stopping by!  Be sure to go visit Ashley, if you haven't already, for more great Scavenger Hunt finds.

Oh, and if you are interested, I'm giving away a sweet children's board book that would be great for a young child in your life.  Go check it out!

Have a great week!

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Nurture Photography ~ Green

Fall is one of my favorite seasons.  Along with spring, summer, and winter.  :)  I just love all the earthy tones of fall.  And the cool, crisp air.  And the warm, comfy clothes.  And the comfort foods.  And pumpkin.  I love pumpkin.

Anyway, I've been busy this fall with photo shoots.  Seems many people want family photos during this time of year.  But in between photo sessions I have managed to still take in the nature around me.

The Nurture Photography Challenge is starting back up again and this week's prompts are Green/Active.  Here are the green things I was able to discover lately ...

While waiting for Keira to finish up her violin lesson this week, I noticed the light hitting her teacher's tree.  So I had to hop out of the car and snap a few shots.  Her neighbors were probably wondering about me.  My neighbors are used to it.  :)

The leaves are changing from green to yellow/orange.

We had a thunderstorm this afternoon.  It rained hard!  Afterward the sun shone brightly so I went out to take in the glimmery beauty.

The leaves they are a'fallin'.

Despite the fact that fall is here, my zinnias are still blooming.  There are LOTS of flowers still growing and some buds yet to open.

Alex loves the heart-shaped leaves on our little tree.  So pretty with its shades of green and red.

Next week's prompts are Yellow/Shine.  You should play along!

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Scavenger Hunt Sunday 07.28.13

Time once again for Scavenger Hunt Sunday ... this time inspired by Ashley's dreams of cooler weather.   :)

{cool colors}

We had fun playing with glow sticks at the drive in the other night and ended up with some cool colors.  This is one of Alex's creations.

{leaves}

A bug was hiding from the rain in the leaves of our little tree.

{iced beverage}

I found a good recipe for a sweet, low calorie treat.  It consists of 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk, 1.5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, stevia for some added sweetness, and 4-6 ice cubes.  Blend all together in a blender and you have a refreshing, iced beverage.

{cooling off}

It hasn't been all that hot this week, but that didn't stop Alex from cooling off on the swings while we played at the park.

{raw}

I made the switch from shooting exclusively jpeg ... to jpeg and raw ... to just raw over the past couple years.  What does that have to do with this spiderweb photo?  Nothing really.  Although I did shoot it in raw.  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a fabulous week!  

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