WHAT IS IT THAT YOU DESIRE MOST?

I'm thankful that the internet and social networks have made communication amongst the people of the world much easier. Found this on Facebook: "What is it that you desire most?" http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+videos%2fwhat+is+it+that+you+desire+most%3f&FORM=VIRE1#view=detail&mid=697765A006A25CC33002697765A006A25CC33002

PIANO PRODIGY HARMONY ZHU

So as many of my friends know, I'm retired and I now have lots of free time to sit and watch daytime TV shows all day.  I was watching the Ellen Show and one of her guests was little 8-year-old Harmony Zhu.  Harmony is an excellent example of how an immensely talented prodigy can still be just an innocent, happy little girl.  Watch this clip of her on Ellen:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VdwmRxOK1Y

CHRISTMAS GUITAR AT ITS FINEST

Listen to the music box quality of Tommy Emmanuel's guitar and Rick Price's electric piano here>>>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cbk8JUxmnM

TWO PERFECT CHRISTMAS SONGS

Rediscovering Jaci Velasquez.  With Christmas coming soon, I'm posting Jaci's beautiful rendition of The Angel Song.  Crank up the volume on this one and discover the true meaning of Christmas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jDnVr8xreA.


Also the nostalgic and beautifully performed song, The Christmas Song, performed by Tommy Emmanuel and accompanied by John Knowles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ud0Sh2Ladj0

THE VIA FERRATA

This past summer my brother's family and I traveled to Telluride, Colorado and camped at the Alta Lakes campground.  One of the excursions we took while visiting this historic mining area was the Via Ferrata.  More than a thousand Via Ferrata ("Iron Roads", in Italian) trails exist in the world today.  Most of them are in the Alps and date back to World War I, when they were built in the Dolomite region of Italy to aid in moving troops through treacherous terrain.  The one at Telluride was started by Chuck Kroger and his mountaineering friends around 2006.  My nephew Cliff is an experienced climber and spent some time in Yosemite teaching mountain climbing to enthusiasts visiting the area. He and  his wife Tasha and their two young boys navigated this "cliff" trail.  NO, I did not accompany them!  http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x27gog1_the-rocky-terrain-of-the-via-ferrata-episode-3_auto

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC WILD HD

Fantastic footage; fantastic editing; perfect musical background.  Watch it!




https://www.youtube.com/embed/Hodomt6bBOw

REJECTION

Hey, just because I've been involved with photography for over twenty years doesn't mean I'm immune to rejection.  Whenever an artist submits his art to a jury for judging entries to an art show, he takes the risk of having his work being rejected.  This means, for whatever reason, the juror, or jurors, made a decision that your work was not acceptable for the show.  There is no way any artist can accept this decision without feeling that not only was his artwork rejected, HE was rejected as well.


All artists have big egos.  We share our art because we know how much effort we put into it and take pride in our accomplishment and want others to see it and feel emotional about it.  Hell, why would we put a value on it and expect strangers to purchase our work if we didn't think it was worth buying? But none-the-less, if we have been involved with art shows, we know rejection.  It's a part of the process of striving for perfection and striving for acceptance and learning what the jurors want.  There is no set of laws for these jurors.  They make their decisions between winners and losers based on their own individual feelings.  It's purely subjective. This was the case in the show I entered which did not have a theme, so therefore had no guidelines for subject matter other than 2D or 3D format.


Unfortunately, when organizations in charge of managing art shows refuse to offer any reason for the rejection, it just adds another level of disappointment because without constructive criticism, it's hard to learn from a mistake that was never defined.  I was told, "There wasn't enough wall space".


Although I'm disappointed, I'm reminded of an old Gerry Rafferty song that offers words that console me and more importantly tell me in no uncertain terms,


GET OVER IT!


The song?  Get It Right Next Time: listen to it with lyrics HERE.



SCARY BIKE TRIP

Danny Macaskill is a Scottish trials cyclist with a serious flair for extreme mountain biking.
“The Ridge,” by Macaskill’s Cut Media, is a brand new film featuring this Scottish daredevil as he hops on his mountain bike and returns to the Isle of Skye, Scotland – his native home.
Watch as he takes on the death-defying Cuillin Ridgeline: click here

NEW DIGITAL PHOTO TIPS!

Attached is an article from Digital Camera World that gives "5 Digital Camera Features No Photographer Should Be Without". It also has many other links for useful information.  Read here .

MORE OF ANGELINA JORDAN

Hope you have had a chance to listen to her sing.  Last April, I posted a couple of her songs.  She is eight years old now and has won Norway's Got Talent.  Listen again and hear her even  more mature performance of Billy Holiday's "What a Difference A Day Makes".  (It may take a while to load up but it's worth the wait. Afterwards, find "Summertime" and listen to that one too!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSfgCIGd7k4

WOODSTOCK

In today's times, when it seems the whole world is at war, I listened to a recording by Eva Cassidy singing "Woodstock".  I wonder if it's time once again to have a music festival and a gathering of souls whose only goal is to enjoy life and strive for peace and love.


In 1969, there was such a music festival.  It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to 18, 1969. Bethel, in Sullivan County, is 43 miles (69 km) southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, in adjoining Ulster County.  Among the 32 performers was a group called Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. In 1970 the movie, "Woodstock" was released. Read the below lyrics, written by Joni Mitchell, then click on the link below to watch and listen to Eva Cassidy's beautiful cover of the song.    


PS - I've added another link below showing actual film of the Woodstock Festival with background music of Crosby, Stills and Nash's original version of the song.

WOODSTOCK

I came upon a child of God
He was walking along the road
And I asked him, "Tell me where are you going?
This he told me

Said, "I'm going down to Yasgur's farm
Gonna join in a rock and roll band
Got to get back to the land
And get my soul free

We are stardust, we're golden
And we've got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

Can I walk along beside you?
I have come here to lose the smog
And I feel like Im a part
Of something turning round and round

And maybe its the time of year
Maybe it's the time of man
And I don't know who I am
But life is for learning

We are stardust, we are golden
And we've got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

By the time we got to Woodstock
We were half a million strong
And everywhere was the song
And the celebration

And I dreamed I saw the bomber jet planes
Firing shot into the sky
Turning into butterflies
Above our nation

We are stardust, we are golden
And we've got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

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http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=eva%20cassidy%20Woodstock&qs=n&form=QBVR&pq=eva%20cassidy%20woodstock&sc=2-21&sp=-1&sk=#view=detail&mid=8872A5932FE48DDDEA5C8872A5932FE48DDDEA5C

Read more: Eva Cassidy - Woodstock Lyrics | MetroLyrics


http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=crosby+stills+nash+woodstock+music+festival&qs=AS&sk=VI1AS2&FORM=QBVR&pq=crosby%20stills%20nash%20%2Fwoodstock&sc=8-29&sp=4&qs=AS&sk=VI1AS2#view=detail&mid=E716A7172175CB4BD7CCE716A7172175CB4BD7CC

What To Do After All the Beer is Gone

We've all been there some time in our lives.  Big party or cookout and what do you do with all those empty beer bottles afterwards?  Throw them away (good)?  Recycle them (better)?  Or......(click below link)


http://www.loopinsight.com/2014/06/05/what-to-do-once-youve-finished-all-the-beer/?utm_source=loopinsight.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=Feed:+loopinsight/KqJb+%28The+Loop%29&utm_content=FeedBurner

#1 PARK IN THE U.S./#2 PARK IN THE WORLD

Since I live in Colorado Springs, it's no news that our local park, The Garden of the Gods, is one of the most famous public parks in the country and world. But I had no idea just how well known and popular it was until I saw this morning's Gazette.  The online travel site TripAdvisor has recently ranked the park No. 1 in the country and No. 2 in the world!


The second-ranked park in the country is New York's Central Park, and the first-ranked park in the world is Vancouver Canada's Stanley Park.  The ranking for the Garden of the Gods and the other parks is based on feedback from TripAdvisor's users, who posted over 3,000 reviews for a 5/5 rating.  I've posted several images of the park here on this blog and even posted a couple videos recently.
(Go to gazette.com to read the article I saw on this date.)

JASON MRAZ - I WON'T GIVE UP

You may have heard this song and didn't know what the singer looked like. Here's your chance to meet Jason Mraz, a great talent. Here he sings an inspirational song called I Won't Give Up.

GARDEN OF THE GODS VIDEOS

Here's a video presentation of my home town park, Garden of the Gods. It's beautifully done in HD, by Sun Gallery Photography with a wonderful musical background, narrated by Lewis Carlyle and photography by Danielle Chrysogelos.  It's a presentation of American Photographic.  See it HERE.


I also found another video of the park that has time lapse photography including night time stars. Very well done by Peakviewproductions.com.  CLICK HERE

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

I can't do something special for my mom Sunday on Mothers Day.  She passed away in 1988.  But hardly a day goes by that I don't think of her or miss her.  The attached music video is for her and my daughters, who are wonderful moms, and all the other moms out there. Hope you all have a special day!  The video is by the Backstreet Boys and the name of the song is The Perfect Fan.
CLICK HERE

FLY ME TO THE MOON

Here's an old favorite sung by Tony Bennett - NOT.  No, this link is a performance by little Angelina Jordan.  Haven't heard of her?  Well, I predict she will someday become a huge star.  I actually was looking to download a video of Mr. Bennett singing the song and saw this video of Angelina. I was curious to see how well she would do the song.  Well......I was blown away!  Decide for yourself, but the maturity in which she sings the song is amazing!  By the way, English is not her primary language.  She is Norwegian.  Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFWs2Z_RZ3Y


Since posting the above video, I watched others that little 7 year old Angelina had on YouTube.  Here's another one of her singing a song made famous by Billy Holiday called Gloomy Sunday.  Again, she is just 7 Years Old! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2da7N6ADm9s

15 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS FROM THE PROS

Here are some ideas on how to improve your photography.  It first starts with deciding what you want to do the most.  Check it out HERE.

TOM THUM

Here's a guy you may not have heard of: Tom Thum (not that circus person named Tom Thumb). He's actually a young, good-looking chap from Brisbane, Australia who makes a living performing with his mouth. He is not a singer or a musician in the standard sense.

Have I peeked your curiosity?  Click on the link and enjoy his performance at the Sidney Opera House:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNZBSZD16cY

THOUGHT TO PONDER #1

"Everybody's got a boat upon the ocean,
 Not everybody's sailing out to sea..."

The Real Thing - Kenny Loggins

ENCORE

I've been following Tommy Emmanuel for years now and have, as I said, posted many of his videos on this website.  I've recommended his cd albums to my friends and relatives and shared his music with those who have viewed this blog.  I've tried to explain why I like him to others and have mentioned his ability to perform as a one man band on his guitar for all of the world.


But the attached video explains Tommy Emmanuel better than I ever could, because Tommy does it himself:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENJuNCkPfx0

HOW HIGH THE MOON

Here's a fun music video!  It's Tommy Emmanuel's jazzy arrangement of How High The Moon written by Les Paul.  Tommy is on the left with Frank Vignola in the middle and Vinny Raniolo on the right.  I've posted Emmanuel videos several times before but Frank and Vinny are famous musicians in their own right, performing together on many albums and in concert.  Listen to their amazing synchronicity on this old but wonderful song performed live on radio station WGN 720:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45bmc5zvNAk 

WATERFALL PICTURES

Some of the images on this blog taken by me are of  'slow water'.  The slow water shot is a deliberate representation of moving water, not frozen in time, but left to move during the exposure, usually from one quarter to two seconds long. This procedure can give landscape scenes a dreamy mood or feeling and therefore tends to add a more artistic look to the shot.


The amount of movement or light given to the water is directly affected by how long the scene is exposed by the settings of aperture and shutter, filters used and the amount of radiant light falling on the subject.  This type of shot has always been one of my favorites and I love creating the effect.  From small brooks to cascading waterfalls, long exposure water shots add a dramatic touch of beauty to any water image.


In keeping with my intention to provide photographic information to this blog, here is a link to The Digital Camera World's website explaining how to take great waterfall photos: 
http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2012/03/09/waterfall-pictures-set-up-your-dslr-to-shoot-moving-water/

SARA BAREILLES

A while back I posted my thoughts on discovering Jared Leto and mentioned I was amazed I was unaware of his existence until I watched the movie "Prefontaine".


I'm embarrassed to say that once again, I am guilty of not knowing anything about another artist by the name of Sara Bareilles.  I love her!  I watched her last night on Jimmy Kimmel Live and then afterwards browsed her music videos so I could find out more about her.


I must admit, once I watched and listened to her perform "Gravity" I was hooked!  She wrote the song as she does her other ones and the way she wrote the melody and sings it, well, it's hard to describe, but I would call it being in "love song heaven".  I listened to the song three times in a row.


Here's the link:  http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Sara+Bareilles+Gravity&FORM=VIRE2#view=detail&mid=21C40512C1F67712E3F721C40512C1F67712E3F7YouTube

EMMANUEL

I discovered a beautiful song called "Emmanuel" and linked it to this blog in an earlier post.  That's when I also discovered Lucia Micarelli, a master violinist who was traveling with Josh Groban on his concert tour. She performed and recorded the song with trumpeter Chris Botti. 


I remembered the song when I was trying to decide what music to use for a slide show of my landscape photos. Since it's copyrighted, I needed to get permission to use it and needed the name of the composer as well. In that search for information, I found that a Frenchman named Michel Colombier composed it.  I decided to use the version with Lucia Micarelli and Chris Botti as background music to my slide show mainly because it's more dramatic and a longer version.



YouTube has several different artists performing Emmanuel, including guitarist Antonio Onorato and harmonicas Toots Thielemans.  Here's the link to Onorato's version for your enjoyment :  http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Michel+Colombier%2Fyoutube%2FEmmanuel&qs=n&form=QBVR&pq=michel+colombier%2Fyoutube%2Femmanuel&sc=0-0&sp=-1&sk=#view=detail&mid=113115303FD9F3018D31113115303FD9F3018D31

UNDERSTANDING HISTOGRAMS

It's real easy to let our digital cameras adjust our images automatically for us.  After all, most cameras have an auto setting don't they?  Yes, but if we've learned anything, we've learned that not every light level or source is the same.  Contrasted subjects especially can make it difficult, if not impossible for our cameras to adjust to how our eyes see it. Spot metering and filters can help correct low and high contrasted scenes, but to get an overall look at everything our camera graphically sees, the histogram never lies.

True, most histograms will show us where a correction might be called for, but it may be that we want high contrast or to show a whiter or darker scene.  Therefore, we should take the time to understand how histograms can help us make these decisions.  Otherwise we're shorting ourselves the advantage of a very useful tool.

Attached is a link to one article on the Digital Photography School website by Darlene Hildebrandt that will help you understand the usefulness of the histogram.  CLICK HERE.