Yesterday we headed up to Artists' Point with Margie, Alex and my brother Steve. It was a perfect day to photograph Shuksan in Picture Lake. Alex and Margie got an eye full of what Washington State has to offer. We stopped at Milano's in Glacier for a delicious dinner. The whole day was a feast for the senses.
Our Seattle friends Chris and Jyl Leininger are great jazz singers. They were up visiting so they could meet Margie and Alex. We had a small party on Saturday and they sang for us. They are getting amazingly good!
We've been having a great time with my cousin Margie and her husband Alex. They are heading out today for Vancouver and a wine cruise back down the coast to Long Beach CA where they live. They've been here since Friday and we've been having a ball together. We all now know we need to get together much more often. It's been years since we last got together. What a neat couple!
Trish Harding lead a group of us on a three day trip to Oregon. We stayed at McMenamins Edgefield and ventured out along the gorge to paint. The first day we went to Stone Henge in Washington. It was a beautiful drive over the Bridge of the Gods and up the Washington side of the Columbia River. The second day was very windy. Three of us ventured out and painted along the Sandy River near the Troutdale Bridge. These are just a few of the photos I took. Trish is painting at Stone Henge in the top photo. Vikki, Susan and I cast shadows on the Sandy River in number two. The last is the whole group except me. From left to right: front row - Marilyn, Elaine and Pat; back row - Vikki, Jacky, Susan, Kathleen and Trish.
Here it is. The new deck railing and one of the two new posts. Sure is a big improvement over the old ones. And it won't need painting either. Thanks Ric.
Monday night we had dinner with friends. It was a lovely occasion. Pictures like these are the reason I always have a camera with me in my purse. Just after we arrived I popped out to their back yard to take some photos. They live on the shore of Lake Whatcom. What a beautiful spot. The dinner was pretty special too. Elaine had cooked salmon that they had caught. Yum! And the conversation with a wonderful group of friends was great too. Thanks Elaine and Mike!
Stopped in at Dave and Nora's on Sunday to play games and get ready for the surprise party for Judy Wallace that was happening nearby. As I walked down the hall I noticed the light patterns on the curtains in the back bedroom. Had to grab my trusty GH1 and take some pictures.
This was a few days ago. Now the railings and posts are up and Ric is working on the wire mesh holders in the railings. He's a speedy worker. When I took this I didn't realize how much dust he was creating until I looked at the movie I also took and saw all the dust swirling around. Phew! A bit dicey for the camera but all is well. Soon the deck will be finished. I'll take a few photos when Ric is done.
Last night was the opening of the second annual Woodstock Farm Art Show and we were invited because three of my paintings are in the show. A chef from Bellingham Technical College provided the food and it was wonderful. All of the paintings and sculptures were wonderful too. We met lots of friends and had a great time at the show. Toward the end of the evening we were treated to a beautiful sunset. No wonder I love Woodstock Farm so much.
The other day I noticed that the trex deck material was sagging deeply at one of the corners of the deck. We called our friend Ric Lieberman who does handy work for us. He came and quickly found the problem. Due to inferior construction and 20 years of use, not to mention heavy planters along the deck edge for a couple of years, the support posts need replacing. He uncovered some rot and more work that needed to be done. So he's hard at work returning our deck to safety and solidity. It is good this happened before our house painting that is scheduled for next spring. Thanks Ric for your skill and support.
It was great to see Emmett and Jennifer on Saturday. They are out for a visit from Las Vegas. We went to Dave and Nora's for dinner and games.
Friday night I attended the opening of Trish Harding's show "Altitude" at the Blue Horse Gallery. You could recognize me by the two cameras hanging around my neck. I took my new Panasonic GH1 with the 14-140 kit lens and my old Canon 5D with 50mm f/1.4 lens. The opening was a moving and beautiful event. Here are a few of the photos I took. People in the photos include my friend Evelyn in #2, Susan, Trish and Tom in #3, Trish in #4, Helen and Kathleen in #5 and Trish and Tom in #6.
The verdict is still out. The new lens is noticeably heavier than the kit lens on my G1. I like the longer range of the zoom. The two of Fiona were taken at ISO 3200. I do see a bit of banding as others have reported but I still like being able to take photos in such low light. The one of Duma is at ISO 1600 and is better in the banding dept. I'm still exploring the sharpness of the new lens and its color. More to follow. Haven't tried video yet. I'm stuck home on a gray day and as you can see the cats are dozing so not much action around here.
