Drum Roll, Please!

I actually finished my 365 Project!!!

What's a 365 Project?

It can be whatever you want it to be - all you need to do is take a photo everyday and post it - some people do daily self portraits, some concentrate on birds or squirrels, etc. Big surprise, I decided to focus on Mackinac. But not the Mackinac you see in the tourist brochures, I focused on the small, hidden beauties that the casual visitor never notices.

I thought it would be easy, after all, I already take photos everyday - except that while I was already shooting many. many photos, I really didn't come close to shooting every day.  You find that out when it's been raining for six days straight and you're desperate to find something, anything that might be interesting for a photo.

If you visit my blog regularly, you've seen some of the shots, if you're interested, you can see them all at the project site. 

To celebrate completing my project, I created a photo mosaic using all 365 photos, here's a closeup, showing just the number six:

It was really simple to do, using EasyMoza. I choose the main image, in my case the turtle block print. Then I selected the small images (you need at least 300) and the program did the rest!

I can see using this in so many creative ways - what about a Civil War era dress made up of images of other dresses? Or one of my beaded pieces made from photos of the inspiration? Just too much fun!

I've committed to another year of 365, but I'm changing the focus a bit this time - less emphasis on Mackinac and more emphasis on experimenting. I'm sure the Island will still be a large component - after all, it influences all my work, even if it's a bit obscure sometimes!

Shooting the Moon

I stayed up waaaay too late last night, trying to catch the "Super Moon"; a full moon of rare size, a super "perigee moon"--the biggest in almost 20 years.

"The last full Moon so big and close to Earth occurred in March of 1993," says Geoff Chester of the US Naval Observatory in Washington DC. "I'd say it's worth a look."

Full moons vary in size because of the oval shape of the Moon's orbit. It is an ellipse with one side (perigee) about 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other (apogee). Nearby perigee moons are about 14% bigger and 30% brighter than lesser moons that occur on the apogee side of the Moon's orbit.

I managed several detailed shots:


And then I started playing, silhouetting various bits of plant life in front of the moonlight:

This one is my favorite, a glowing orb cradled in cedar fronds:

Spring? Maybe...

It's been tough shooting images for my 365 Project lately, everything just seems so tired, worn out and as abandoned as this nest from last year.

But there are a few encouraging signs, the birds are becoming more active and visible, especially the crows. I'm hearing cardinals calling and courting, it always sounds to me as if the males are saying "I'm so pretty, pretty, pretty" - which, of course, is completely true!

There's no activity in this greenhouse yet, the pots patiently waiting to be put to use.

But I did notice this very pleasant sight today - bright, new, green growth, a preview of blooms to come - soon I hope!