Please visit me and subscribe to my Alibony Photos and Lessons blog. I’m sharing new photos in 2011 and also videos and lessons for Photoshop Elements, Lightroom, and digital photography. I’d love to see you there!

Out with the Old, originally uploaded by brockney52.

.. in with the New blog at:

http://www.alibony.com/wordpress

It has been a wonderful year sharing photos and life stories with you through the Virtual Photowalk in 2010 challenge.

Now I have a confession to make. My husband is the love of my life and he’s irreplaceable – but I have two loves on the side.

My first side love takes me to exciting places, introduces me to new friends, and engages all my senses. This love surprises me daily with new sights and delightful surprises. I sometimes neglect my second side love to spend delicious time with Love #1.

My second side love is more of a solitary pleasure. Love #2 stimulates my mind and appeals to my compulsive need to make small changes and organize my world. Love #2 challenges me to learn and grow intellectually and share what I learn with new friends.

Can you guess who my loves are?

Love #1 is digital photography.

Love #2 is the Alibony web site.

I can’t decide between them. So I’m giving up the struggle – and keeping them both. I’m combining both loves in one blog. The new blog will contain daily photos and lessons and videos for Photoshop Elements, Lightroom and photography.

This photo blog will end today. Please subscribe to the new photo blog at:

http://www.alibony.com/wordpress

..and Happy New Year!

Karen

P.S. How do you mange your competing loves?

Seagull 528 stands out from the flock. This flock of birds likes to hang around in the parking lot of the Price Chopper where I do my grocery shopping. Of course, this parking lot is in the middle of Massachusetts, at least 50 miles from the seacoast. What the heck are these birds doing here?

Purple Elephant, originally uploaded by brockney52.

Wishing you all a very happy Holiday Season! May it be filled with whimsical, impossible delights! Imagine joy, peace and love.

These two ornaments are Christmas treasures – handmade by my husband’s mother.

Poinsettia Variations 2, originally uploaded by brockney52.

I took several photos of a poinsettia plant yesterday indoors. I used the pop-up flash on my camera and Professor Kobe’s lightscoop. And I was very pleased with the results.

The lightscoop is an ingenious and inexpensive gizmo that fits into the camera’s hotshoe. It contains a mirror that bounces the light from the flash off the ceiling so you get nice even light on the subject without that ugly flash glare. And without an expensive external flash. It’s great for indoor portraits and still life photos, too.

The lightscoop comes with specific instructions for Nikon and Canon Cameras. You get the best results if you use the suggested camera settings.

Camera Info:

Canon EOS REBEL T2i
0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture f/5.6
Focal Length 55 mm
ISO Speed 800
Flash On, Fired

Post-Processing:

Lightroom 3.0
Photoshop Elements 9

Ice, originally uploaded by brockney52.

An icy river on a cold winter’s day. This photo was processed in Lightroom and finished in Photoshop Elements 9.

Santa in Putnam, originally uploaded by brockney52.

I got some nice sparkles, too, in the outing yesterday with Sheila and Ed to Putnam, CT. The setting reminded me of an old postcard, so I applied a photo mask from Shadowhouse Creations to create this effect.

This is an HDR processed in Photomatix Pro and Photoshop Elements 9.

An Advent wreath shines brightly. I cheated – and added three extra flames to complete the candles. Now I noticed I should have cloned more to make the candles on the right look like they have burned down a bit.

Golden light and wonderful music filled the air in Mechanics Hall in Worcester, MA today at a free Christmas concert.

I took this picture with my small compact camera and processed it in Lightroom and Photoshop Elements – and applied a Topaz Adjust filter, too.

Jerry peeks out from behind the tree to watch me as I take his photo on the farm.