little red planet » sky

If Dreams Die

dale — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 11:06:21 +0000

Hold fast to dreams for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly. Langston Hughes

el hombre cielo grande

dale — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:46:18 +0000

I decided that it had been far too long since I had pulled out the ol’ camera and took some shots. I walked around this morning with my daughter and took a few experimentals. While editing them on my favorite editing software, the GIMP, I accidentally choose the Threshold option. This gives a very stark black and white image. I was impressed with how the stripes on the shirt contrasted the other elements in the composition.

I decided to use the threshold edit and layer it with an alpha mask and a circular gradiant. This pulled in color and gave me a great color and texture contrast. If all this sounds like goobledy gook and you wouldn’t know your GIMP from a lame Pimp, then check out the GMIP tutorials located on the site here. The second part of this tutorial explains the threshold tool and how to use it.

Adding Color To the Storm

dale — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:03:49 +0000

“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.”

Rabindranath Tagore (Indian Poet, Playwright and Essayist, Won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, 1861-1941)

creative photography submission

Jumping with Zest and Vigor

dale — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:49:05 +0000

Here’s my entry this week in the Creative Photography Contest. My daughter Willow is a free spirit. She pursues everything with zest and vigor. Here’s she’s giving all she has to jumping on the trampoline. I really admire her energy. If only I could keep up!

Searching for Something …

dale — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 12:40:20 +0000

I know I’m searching for something
Something so undefined
That it can only be seen
By the eyes of the blind
In the middle of the night.
Billy Joel

Full Moon and All Its Weirdness

dale — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 12:36:20 +0000

Last Month, I took this photo. I really liked the simplicity of it. I have been watching the skies and noticed that it’s almost time for another full moon. Given my daughter obsession with Mothman, I wonder if he (Mothman) would be attracted to a full moon much like a moth to a flame?

As a skeptic, I have always scoffed at the idea of a full moon influencing peoples moods and behaviors, However, there does appear to be data in my office to suggest there is a connection. Anyone have any scientific evidence they wish to point out?

Zenwalk Linux – Fly Free Wallpaper

dale — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 13:05:59 +0000

Zenwalk Fly Free Wallpaper Download (3848 x 2592 px – 4GB file)

So far, I love using Zenwalk Linux 5.0. It’s a very nice lean linux distribution. I had the hankering to create a nice background for my Zenwalk box’s 20″ monitor. I started with a photo I took of some interesting clouds. To that, I added a photo of my youngest daughter jumping on the trampoline. I used the GIMP and also Wine running Photoshop CS2 to cut her away from the original background and blend in with the sky photo.

Above is a screen shot of my desktop using XFCE. Feel free to hit the link and download the large file. If you wish a smaller version, you can find it on my flickr account.

Camera: Canon 400D
Downloaded to Zenwalk with DigiKam
Edited using the GIMP and Wine with Photoshop CS2