Fresh Flower
I’m late to the party this week. Peter and I were up skiing for our last trip of the season. It was so great at Breckenridge yesterday that we stayed all day and got home late. Anyhoo…here’s my offering for this week’s challenge.
I had some time in the studio last week so I was delighted when I saw the word “Fresh!” For those photographers out there – this photo was shot with a Lensbaby Composer Pro using the Sweet 50 optic and the macro converters on my Nikon D600. I LOOOOVE these lenses. They allow me to move the sweet spot of focus around on the frame instead of just in the center and this wonderful company out of Oregon has created an amazing array of optics that are interchangeable with the Composer Pro. I also have a Composer Pro for my Olympus micro four thirds camera and I can use my optics on either camera. Check it out: Lensbaby.com Warning: these things can be addictive! Also just to tease you some more, they have created a lens for your cell phone. I haven’t played with it much yet, but I’m enjoying the effects that I’m getting.
To learn more about the Weekly Photo Challenge, click here.
LargeSelf 
That gadget makes your photo look like a painting, Cathy. Very cool special effect. I should get one for my cellphone, take a selfie and blur out 20 years.
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Never thought of a selfie, V. I’ll have to try it and let you know how it goes! There was a selfie challenge about a year ago, maybe WP will bring it back! True, it could blur out several years – I’m not of the selfie generation but maybe this would change my mind.
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I can see why you love this lens, Cathy! So very beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing the lens info!
Btw, we used to ski in Breckenridge when we lived in Boulder. 🙂
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I didn’t know you lived in Boulder at one time! Also, you might really enjoy these lenses. They take a little getting used to, but they open up a world of possibilities for composition and creativity!
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I really want to try the lens, love the possibilities. We used to ski every other week. 🙂 Thank you again, Cathy!
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I love this! I agree with Lame — it looks like a painting. What kind of flower is it? Thanks, also for the great information! Going to check it out right now before I forget.
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Hi Mary. The flower is called an ornithogalum dubium or a Sun Star plant. I’m always snooping around the fresh flower section of my local supermarket and had never seen these before. They apparently bloom regularly and the plant is really pretty too!
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Beautiful, Cathy. I was just playing with my Olloclip on my iPhone 5s and now it appears I could get something to do the same thing on my Nikon. Have to check this out!
janet
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Thanks, Janet. The lenses for a DSLR are like regular lenses in that they are much larger and attach to the camera in the same way and the mobile device looks and works very much like the Olloclip but creates a bokeh everywhere in the frame except near the sweet spot. I also find that the mobile device creates a more extreme area that is out of focus. I have more control with my Composer Pro lenses on the Nikon and Olympus. Both are really fun!
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Outstanding capture. When thinking about the theme, interesting is the number of ways freshness pops through the image!
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Thanks, Frank. I like your take on it!
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A number of my online photographer friends are very fond of their Lensbabies. I’m embarrassed to admit I don’t even know what it is! I’ll have to go read about it. Beautiful photo, by the way. Love the hot orange color!
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Thanks so much, Leon! You might really enjoy a Lensbaby with your wonderful still life work! They take a bit of getting used to and I’m just on the very front end of the learning curve, but I’m liking what I’m getting so far. What I really love about their system is that all of the optics are interchangeable so you invest in the Composer Pro (as long as you have either a Nikon, Canon or micro four-thirds camera) that fits on your camera and then add optics as you like. Very clever design. I have a Nikon and an Olympus OMD-EM! so I bought Composer Pros for both of them and now all of my optics will fit both!
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I can see how the Lensbaby can become addictive! Beautiful photo that definitely looks fresh.
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Thanks so much, Susan! It is an addictive habit! 🙂
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Gorgeous Cathy. I love orange and I’ll have to check out this lens because I love the effect. Did you know marketing uses the color Orange a lot because it evokes a feeling of pleasure, happiness, etc.? You’ll begin to see it everywhere now. 😃
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As an artist, I think you’d really like the effect. If you didn’t want to invest in one for your DSLR, you could get the mobile device. They’re really fun! And Yes, I love orange, too! (We really should meet some time – it seems we have so much in common 🙂 ) It doesn’t surprise me that orange is used a lot in marketing. I know when I’m ever in those red rock canyons in Utah, I feel almost high!
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Sweet spot indeed! The focus on one small cluster, with the others buds distorted/blurred gives this shot a very artistic edge– appearing much like a painting, instead of a photo. I’m a huge fan of orange too, and this really grabbed me! Beautiful, Cathy! (you, and the photo 😉 )
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Thank you so much, Dawn! You’re embarrassing me! I’m having so much fun with my Lensbabies! So glad you enjoyed it and thank you always for the support!
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oh i love this. what a gorgeous photo
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Thank you so much, Tink! I’m glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for stopping by!
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[…] Weekly Photo Challenge – Fresh […]
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All your pictures are amazing!
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Thank you so much Mithai! and thanks for the blog visit!
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You are welcome 🙂
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