30 Minutes in the Life: January 2022

Posted on January 31, 2022

Welcome back to 2022 and a new year of 30 Minutes in the Life. Last year we took a sabbatical for the last few months. We were all worn out and, to be honest, I had a new baby in the family and he was taking up a good deal of my time. We have been so excited to watch Luka grow over the past few months and I have been equally blessed that my daughter has allowed me to spend so much time with him. He is such a sweet boy and he brought light into my soul after an incredibly tough year.

But January came around and once again, I wanted to start the year on a positive and healthy note. I was back to work and Friday’s are my only day to play. I wanted to go and walk but I also wanted to see Luka, so I suggested to Amy that we meet at the Japanese Gardens and take a walk through them and have lunch at the gardens. That way I get out to walk and I see my boy as well.

The added bonus was that I went back to her house so that I could watch him while she did some studying.

The Japanese Gardens are beautiful and the weather temperature was perfect so we were able to walk through them and not feel like a bit drip. However, it was a little dull and overcast. If I were walking by myself I would take about 2 hours to meander the gardens but I forgot that I am walking with Amy the road runner. We zoomed through the park at a super fast rate. Apparently she was hungry and wanted to get to the lunch stop 🙂

So here are some images from Morikami Japanese Gardens.

I love this wall at the entrance to the park, and while I was waiting for Amy and Luka I played around.
Just the other day I was talking to Richard about the Azealia plant. We used to have a garden full of them in South Africa, but I have not seen them around in Florida. I was pleasantly surprised to see them in the gardens.
Amy and Luka as we start out our walk. He is not too keen on the sunlight right now, but Amy has since bought him sunglasses and the dude looks pretty cool with them on.
The lake appears to have Koi and turtles in it.
I love the different scenery’s around the lake. These grasses make a nice edging.
Reflections can be found all over the park and this was just one corner at the beginning.
I had my Lensbaby Sweet 35 in the bag and so when I got to the bamboo trees, I played around a bit.
It’s nice to see slight shades of winter amongst all the green.
We had to have a pit stop and so it was a good place to take some photo’s of our little guy.
Ornamental decorations can be found scattered around the park. The walk is very soothing and I often when I go I will find a place to sit and just blank out the noise.
This is the wall to a raked garden. I have sat on the seats just below this wall many a time.

My 30 minutes technically ends here but I am going to continue with our walk through the gardens.

Natures colors on a dull overcast day.
I often stop and think about how creative nature truly is with it’s designs and it colors.
Another beautiful raked garden.
Through this section there are waterfalls, and small winding rivers, that quiet your mind.
This image of is of the rooftop of a wooden gateway that separates the previous area with that of the Japanese house. We did not visit the house this time.
However, we did need to take a pic of Luka with the Budda. I told Amy they looked similar. Luka got tall and filled out pretty quickly for his 3 months. Now he needs to get moving to loose all that baby fat.
By passing the Japanese house we followed the walkway through the trees and open spaces. I loved seeing the air plants growing out of this tree
Another sign, however small, of winter in south Florida.
I saw something out in the water and was not sure what it was until I zoomed in. For me this is a sad sight, but a common one when temperatures drop in south Florida. The iguana freeze and if they are in trees above water, and they fall out the trees, they will drown. If they are on the ground apparently they will come to life again as the temperature warms up. I cannot vouch for that as I have not seen that happen. A cold winter really reduces the number of iguana in the area. I am going to be watching the 3 I see outside on the trees. While many don’t like iguana, I really do.
The end is in sight. Just beyond those steps is the restaurant, and Amy is in a hurry to get her food and to stop the grumbling in her stomach.
Nature gives us such beauty if we just take time to stop and look. It isn’t always about the animals. Plants bring a smile to my face as well.

If you haven’t taken a walk in nature for a while, I would certainly encourage you to do so. As we head into another covid filled year, getting outside into the fresh air is a good way to restore harmony to your soul, and to just refresh in general.

30 Minutes in the Life is a circle blog and we have some very talented photographers in the group. The sneak peaks are stunning and I cannot wait to see the rest. Take some time to follow the links and see what they have for you this month. Ashley Soeder Photography is up next. She is sharing a delightful new puppy so I can’t wait to see what images she has to share. You can see more of her work by clicking on her Webpage or  Instagram  page. Definitely check out her incredible art.

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Share Six: January 2022: Abstract_22

Posted on January 6, 2022

Happy New Year and welcome to the year 2022. I am so grateful to see the back of 2021. I am excited to see what this year has to offer and praying that life does not get so crazy like it was last year.

Starting out with 2022 on a bang, Janet of @wiredtothemoon_ has chosen the them {Abstract}. We have done this them some years ago, so that will explain the _22 on the end of the hashtag.

I looked up the definition of “abstract art” to see what the internet would come up with. Here is what I got:

“art that does not attempt to represent external reality, but seeks to achieve its effect using shapes, forms, colors, and textures.“

I love abstract art to start with. I have abstract art on the walls in my home. However I took a different take on it this time around. I looked at {Abstract} in nature. Very often I get that impressionist kind of feel to the photos.

I love the out of focus feel that the lensbaby gives a sunset.
Branches in the wetlands. What you don’t see is the Little Green Heron that I cropped out. He had hopped into the trees to hide from me. I loved the effect that the gray branches gave on natures background when out of focus.
In this image I was looking for a “breaking the rules” image and so I had a flower on the extreme right of the image. I cropped it out and now I have an abstract image of the reeds in the wetlands.
Again another out of focus post crop. My focus was on a Great Blue Heron but when I looked at the background I loved the impressionist feel that this image gave me.
Lensbaby and bokeh. What more can I say. For me the abstract of this is all of the crazy bokeh in the image
While I would love to say that this is an alligator submerging it wasn’t. I managed to capture the tail end shot of an Anhinga diving for food in the lake.
In the forefront of this image was a female Grackle. I love the soft out of focus effect of this image that creates and abstract feel.
This image was the top of the nesting area where the Great Blue Heron were building their new homes for spring. I loved the eeriness of the branches reaching out. Bokeh always gets me as well.
Cropped out of this image was a dragonfly, but the background is again something I would put on my walls.

Technically the next three are not in the wetlands but I did love the abstract feel of these images.

I had gone to the wetlands, and driving home with no cars on my side of the road, and the lenbaby on my camera. I held the camera up to balance on the steering wheel and just took a series of images of the oncoming cars. This kind of pic is up on my wall.
For this image I was trying to get movement but it functions as abstract as well. I was running water into our kitchen basin and shooting with a macro.
An for a little bit of crazy abstract, a garden flower and some fun and games in photoshop.

Thank you for joining us as we start out yet another year of photography sharing.

This is a circle blog and as I mentioned, we have some very talented ladies in the group. The sneak peaks are stunning and I cannot wait to see the rest. Take some time to follow the links and see what they have for you this month. My incredibly talented friend Janet of @wiredtothemoon_ up next is up next. I can’t wait to see what she has to share. You can see more of her work by clicking on her  Instagram  page. Definitely check out her incredible art.

Come and share your images  Facebook and Instagram tagging #sharesix_abstract_22

You can also find me on Facebook, and Instagram.

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The best pumpkin in the patch. Luka hanging out with the pumpkins. #sharleenstuartphotography #fall #pumpkinpatch #portrait #pumpkins
Luka and his Granda hanging out together. When did my baby boy become a little boy. He’s growing way too quickly #sharleenstuartphotography #outinthegarden #portrait
I am a little behind but the share six blog is up on the web and we chose the theme (Your Choice). I opted to share way more than 6 images and detailed our walk from Bondi Beach to Bronte. A walk well worth doing. Also on the blog is the work of my very talented friends @elizabethwillsonphotography and @wiredtothemoon_ You can read more about this by going to www.sharleenstuart.com and clicking on the blog page. #sharleenstuartphotography #ontheroadagain #travel #travelphotography #travelblog #travelblogger #australia #bondibeachsydney #brontesydney #bonditobrontecoastalwalk #outdoors #nature
Cellphone version of the beach huts at Mornington Beach, Victoria, Australia. Reminds me of the changing huts in Brighton. Can’t wait to get my computer back to get the full view. #sharleenstuartphotography #australia #morningtonbeach #beachhuts #ontheroadagain #vacation #travel #travelphotography #travelblogger #traveler
Mothers Day hike to a waterfall. Lots of ups and downs by I did make it. Somewhere outside of Melbourne. #sharleenstuartphotography #dayhike #hikingaustralia #waterfall
Artwork in Melbourne. Walking the Yarra River. #sharleenstuartphotography #travel #travelphotography #travelblogger #travelblog #australia #melbourne #ontheroadagain
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