These are a Few of My Favorite Things

Posted on December 9, 2012 by artsifrtsy

You know the song.

Since Thanksgiving you’ve heard it a hundred times. Listening to the lyrics it’s not explicitly about Christmas, but it is from a movie we watch during the holidays. The list in the song is not my list. I’m not big on whiskers – I prefer the rest of the kitten. I don’t think I need mittens when using a kettle – it’s all a bit disjointed. Lyrically it’s genius – in practical use it’s not my cup of tea.

So what would my list be? I decided for my 100th post to share the list of things that inspire me behind the lens.

Raindrops on…

Anything.

Naked Lady in the rain.

You can see my house inverted in this raindrop.

A newly opened dogwood drenched in the rain.

Lilac buds shining after a shower.

I love redbuds – the first color of spring.

I’m not so much into bright copper kettles, but I am fascinated with…

Rust.

This is the rust and patina on my copper fire pit.

This hay rake was in my woods when I bought the house – every surface is beautifully rusted.

This padlock was on the jail in Midas Nevada. The lock spoke to me more than the shack it was attached to.

I don’t even know what schnitzel is – it sounds odd to me. I know it’s odd to love…

Dandelions.

I like the delicate structure and I like to find a way to look at them in new ways.

The structure of the actual flower is pretty amazing even before it goes to seed.

The substructure is so intricate. I shot this with a manual macro lens from the 70s.

I grew up in the desert so the idea of sleigh bells is foreign to me, but door bells make me think of home. I have a strong bent towards…

Sentiment and Kitsch.

I love kitsch and I love it unusual places. I have had lawn flamingoes in the front lawn of every home I have ever owned.

These are my Grandpa’s keys. I love shooting things that belonged to someone special.

My Grandma taught me about purple glass, I love to shoot things that are transparent and have color.

My great-grandfather carved this out of a peach pit. I love the surfaces of handmade things like this.

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes. I like snow, but not so much for its photographic opportunities. I prefer…

Spring Flowers

Crocus – the first color on the ground, often before the grass starts to green up.

Cherry Blossoms opening skyward captivate me.

Daffodils have amazing color before we even notice them.

Lilacs open as the sun hits them – here for too brief a time.

Hyacinths – My garden fairy planted a few of these a couple of years ago in a spot were there was once a cistern. I love them.

Cream colored ponies and dogs biting. I’m not too far off here. I love the company of…

Dogs.

Sunshine is my Goldendoodle. He’s a lovely goofball and is a bit camera-shy, I like to catch him when he is unaware of me.

These are my brother’s pointers – I shot this one Christmas when Vegas had a rare snow. I loved the sheer joy the pups exuded as they ran in the frosted desert.

These are my two female terriers. They hate each other’s guts unless they are sleeping – they are precious when they sleep.

This is a pup I met on a trip – I love that he was interested in my camera. Curiosity is a favorite thing to capture in an animal.

Zipper was my first Kayak dog – he was so relaxed on the water.

Brown paper packages, blue satin sashes, silver white winters – there’s a lot of color in this song. I love color and am drawn to vivid colors. One color draws me more than all the others.

I shoot anything that is…

Orange.

The color of this car drew me to it – hundreds of cars and this was my favorite.

I’m pretty sure I chose this hard drive for that orange bumper.

In the shop where I work I see lots of color, but this set of mixers caused me to go get my camera.

These Tiger Lilies grow wild around the Ozarks. I have them pretty thick in the springs right at the edge of the woods

These Tiger Lilies grow wild around the Ozarks. I have them pretty thick in the spring – right at the edge of the woods.

This sunset was so vivid that I missed an appointment when I stopped to shoot it.

Now that winter is here and it’s a grey day, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don’t feel so … bad.

57 thoughts on “These are a Few of My Favorite Things”

Heyjude on August 6, 2013 at 1:40 pm said:

Came here from your naked ladies post, and glad I did. So many of YOUR favourite things are in fact MY favourite things – and I love your take on them. What I don’t love however is that song – a real earworm if ever I heard one 😉
Jude xx

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- artsifrtsy on August 6, 2013 at 5:19 pm said:
  
  Thanks for hitting that link! I know – the song is so overdone during the holidays. I sometimes look for a thread that lets me connect dissimilar images and that song worked at that moment. I do find myself shooting these types of things over and over.
  
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Pingback: Naked Ladies in the Rain | the eff stop
elizabeth2560 on January 12, 2013 at 1:49 pm said:

Great collection and congratulations on your 100th post.
Do you have any posts / pictures on sunrise?

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- artsifrtsy on January 12, 2013 at 2:25 pm said:
  
  Thanks, I wish I did – I am on a hilltop, but am completely surrounded by woods so I get no view of either sunrise or sunsets from home – I tend to be on the road in the evening so I luck out on the sunsets.
  
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  - elizabeth2560 on January 15, 2013 at 1:51 pm said:
    
    My view looks out to the east so I get to see the sunrises. I watched a magnificent one the other day as there was cloud in the sky and so the sky lit up with an intense pink for about 10 minutes before the sun rose. It was brilliant. I thought of you as I watched it as your photos have the ability to capture the essence of the moment and transport one there. I searched your photos, but – as you say – no sunrises. Still it gave me the opportunity to have a look at more of your collection and there is great work there!! Congratulations again.
    
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    - artsifrtsy on January 15, 2013 at 8:42 pm said:
      
      You know, since you asked I have been looking at a spot on the way to work where I get a vista as I drive east – the sky has been stormy and you’ve got me intrigued – I may have to make time to stop when the sky is right. At home I’m surrounded on all sides so I miss both sunrises and sunsets at the house. Thanks for taking a look around my shots 🙂
      
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russtowne on December 13, 2012 at 7:25 am said:

Gorgeous. Orange is my favorite color for flowers. You’d love the California Golden Poppies that grow on our property. They glow a vivid orange in the sunlight. And we have some orange and pink hibiscus that are stunning. They bloomed until a week or two ago.
Russ

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- artsifrtsy on December 13, 2012 at 2:25 pm said:
  
  Sadly, all my orange is gone until spring. I have seen fields of poppies in photos – sounds beautiful.
  
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Elyse on December 12, 2012 at 12:34 pm said:

Lorri, this was a beautiful compilation. I do love your photographs — drops of rain caught, your special peach pit. All just lovely. I will be smiling all day now thinking of YOUR favorite things and your photos. Well done!

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- artsifrtsy on December 12, 2012 at 3:38 pm said:
  
  Thanks Elyse! I appreciate it – I’m hoping to shoot some raindrops this weekend 🙂
  
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  - Elyse on December 12, 2012 at 3:42 pm said:
    
    It is hours later and that song is still running through my head!
    
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    - artsifrtsy on December 12, 2012 at 4:23 pm said:
      
      Sorry for that – It’s been getting almost hourly play here on local rural radio. I find that it is often February before I get it out of my head:)
      
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mrs fringe on December 11, 2012 at 9:50 pm said:

Great photos, great post. That second shot (raindrop on branch) is brilliant! I also love dandelions 🙂

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- artsifrtsy on December 11, 2012 at 10:06 pm said:
  
  Thanks Mrs Fringe. I remember living in the burbs and everyone worrying about dandelions – like they were the plague. I love my hillside when it’s covered with them.
  
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  - mrs fringe on December 11, 2012 at 10:11 pm said:
    
    Love that image, makes me think of a favorite children’s book I read with Flower Child. Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney. 🙂
    
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    - artsifrtsy on December 11, 2012 at 10:26 pm said:
      
      I never read that one, but searching for it I found a recipe for Dandelion Syrup – I may have to try that:)
      
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      - mrs fringe on December 11, 2012 at 10:31 pm said:
        
        Just the sound of Dandelion Syrup has me intrigued. 🙂
      - artsifrtsy on December 11, 2012 at 10:33 pm said:
        
        Check it out: http://www.elizabethfoss.com/reallearning/2011/04/dandelion-reprise.html
      - mrs fringe on December 11, 2012 at 10:41 pm said:
        
        LOVE IT!! Not sure where I’ll find 250 dandelions. 😮
      - artsifrtsy on December 11, 2012 at 10:55 pm said:
        
        LOL – I bet that’s a tough order in the city. I could do that between my house and the drive way:)
myoilpaints on December 10, 2012 at 9:19 am said:

Love the song. Love this post!

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- artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 2:26 pm said:
  
  Thanks!
  
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bulldogsturf on December 10, 2012 at 3:30 am said:

I love this post.. and your photos are beautiful… certainly covering a lot of my favourite things.. I love the dog photos… so special…

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- artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 3:52 am said:
  
  Thanks so much – I like the dogs too – mostly because they are my pals.
  
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dianasschwenk on December 10, 2012 at 1:49 am said:

I never paid much attention to raindrops until I saw photos with directions from you at what to look for on your blog. They are amazing shots!

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- artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 2:08 am said:
  
  Thanks Dianna. My camera is weather sealed so a rainy day makes me want to get out and shoot.
  
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  - dianasschwenk on December 10, 2012 at 3:07 am said:
    
    A photographer once told me that rainy days were the best lighting for photos (he was taking outdoor pictures on a drizzling day at my friends wedding) and they did turn out beautiful.
    
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    - artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 3:47 am said:
      
      Yeah – a bright overcast day is like shooting in a light box. It’s bright with no shadows.
      
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lylekrahn on December 9, 2012 at 11:22 pm said:

You hit the 100th post with a bang – nice work and congrats on the milestone not easily achieved. I think I liked the padlock the best of all these good photos.

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 11:59 pm said:
  
  Thanks Lyle – I love that padlock too. It was on a jail in a ghost town in northern Nevada.
  
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victoriaaphotography on December 9, 2012 at 11:20 pm said:

Great series of photos, Lorri.
(it seems we share a love of raindrops, flower close-ups and RUST – I tried to post a couple of photos of rust 3 times last night, but they kept disappearing into cyberspace and my computer said 3 times it would send a report to Apple – really weird, as I’d just posted the beach photos and there was nothing unusual or different with the rust photos – will try again tonight).

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 11:58 pm said:
  
  Thanks Vicki – what program were you working in when you were uploading – it sounds like something is crashing
  
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  - victoriaaphotography on December 10, 2012 at 6:33 am said:
    
    Here we go again, Lorri.
    I was just uploading photos using WordPress’s uploader from iPhoto.
    Each time it crashed it said it was sending a report to ‘Apple’.
    This ‘reply’ to your comment keeps disappearing when I press the ‘Reply’ button (also).
    How very odd.
    
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    - artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 2:26 pm said:
      
      Have you restarted? By default a report will go to Apple when there is a crash of any program. I have never used the iPhoto uploader for WordPress, I used to use to for FB – but it had some glitches. I use iPhoto only for storage and organization. I drat the photos for my blog to my desktop and drag them into the “insert image” window as I write. I have had comments disappear before, but mostly because of WordPress.
      
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JackieP on December 9, 2012 at 9:53 pm said:

Your pictures as usual are great! I love animals of any kind. And dogs always are angels when sleeping. Beautiful orange pics too!

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 10:04 pm said:
  
  Thanks Jackie! They are so sweet sleeping, those two girls can’t tolerate each other if they are conscious 🙂
  
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Allan G. Smorra on December 9, 2012 at 9:43 pm said:

Great post, wonderful photos. I love the Tiger Lilies, my grandmother grew them in the shade of a big tree on their farm in Ohio.

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:47 pm said:
  
  Thanks Allan – I had never seen a tiger lily before I moved here. I love them too. Such a surprise in the woods.
  
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Honie Briggs on December 9, 2012 at 9:28 pm said:

Yay! The big centennial. My 100th post was of the eclipse this year. Capturing the sunset is one of my favorite things. No two are alike. These shots are spectacular. I love them all.

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:46 pm said:
  
  Thanks Steph – it snuck up on me. I love capturing the sunset too. It’s so hilly here I don’t always have a view – I was driving around yesterday trying to get a shot and missed it. The colors are so different each day.
  
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stuffitellmysister on December 9, 2012 at 9:12 pm said:

These are now my favorite things, too!!!! LOVE!

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:37 pm said:
  
  Thanks – what’s your favorite thing to shoot?
  
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  - stuffitellmysister on December 9, 2012 at 11:39 pm said:
    
    We’re talking with a camera, right?
    
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    - artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 12:00 am said:
      
      LOL – of course. I get that a lot on FB – shoot = camera to me, but I can shoot some other things too:) Heck – either is fine – what’s your favorite?
      
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      - stuffitellmysister on December 10, 2012 at 3:28 am said:
        
        turtles in the pond…..random whatever things. you can decipher which is which! LOL!
      - artsifrtsy on December 10, 2012 at 3:49 am said:
        
        LOL – I love shooting turtles too – with my camera 🙂
      - stuffitellmysister on December 10, 2012 at 4:37 am said:
        
        🙂
cravesadventure on December 9, 2012 at 9:05 pm said:

Loving your captures – thanks so much for sharing – makes me happy and smiley!!!

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:08 pm said:
  
  Thanks – I’m glad 🙂
  
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The Green Study on December 9, 2012 at 9:01 pm said:

Congratulations on your 100th post! As usual, the pictures are gorgeous – we share many of the same favorite blossoms.

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:08 pm said:
  
  Thanks – seems that spring brings us some of the same things:)
  
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Jo Ann on December 9, 2012 at 8:59 pm said:

Some of my favorite things, too! I loved the pictures, particularly of the dogs and particularly the one of the dogs running – I love to see horses and dogs run!

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:07 pm said:
  
  I do too – it’s not easy to capture. I lucked out on that shot.
  
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Adam S on December 9, 2012 at 8:55 pm said:

Awesome!!!

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- artsifrtsy on December 9, 2012 at 9:06 pm said:
  
  Thank you!
  
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berthamakes on December 9, 2012 at 8:34 pm said:

Reblogged this on Bertha's Blog.

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