Nimavenl - Nicole's Random Ramblings

It took me a while to decide what "Photo Challenge" to go for this week. I wanted to choose my own topic this week, not one I found online. While I considered several topics such as sidewalk shots, walls, For Sale signs, trees, benches, cloud pics, water and animals, in the end I decided to go with Bridges. Although I did see lots and lots of animals - real and decorative - so that might be next week's topic. I'll think about that some more... Heck, I've got time to choose and repeat / re-visit lots of challenges, it's my party challenge after all! Functional yet decorative, bridges are awesome. I've taken photos of bridges before and have written about why I like bridges. In a nutshell, they connect worlds (there, saved you the trouble of clicking on that link!); worlds above and worlds below as well as worlds on either side of the bridge. Here's the first Bridge photo, will add more photos later today. Enjoy!   Photo Challenge: Bridge #1 | ...

Having decided that I'm going to assign myself Photo Challenges on a weekly (perhaps bi-weekly? perhaps fortnightly?) basis, the time has come to investigate Challenges. The whole idea is that I want to challenge myself to take photos based on themes and ideas or photograph certain features such as trees, flowers, buildings, windows, doors, playgrounds etcetera. The first Challenge was to walk a route I normally don't take my camera on and photograph what I see every hundred or so steps. After completing that Challenge and posting a set of eight photos of nature and the Dutch landscape, the next challenge is... To decide on the next Challenge. While  I want to challenge myself to take photos of new and different things, to look at the world in a new way and to go 'hunting' for photos (something I don't usually do), I don't want to pick challenges that are too hard or difficult and don't want to lose interest in the whole concept. The whole idea is to have ...

#01 - Polderscape The Challenge: Find a route I've never photographed along. Stop every 100 steps or so to take a photo. As I've explained in previous posts, I don't like taking photos of strangers. This means I plan to photograph locations, structures, natural features and perhaps some animals, however not people. I'll go for a nosey around town today and decide where to go. I've got a few ideas already... #02 - Cows The hoops and the hurdles: While it was most definitely my intention to take photos in the city (downtown / in the binnenstad ), when push came to shove I felt quite uncomfortable trying to take photos with people all around. People don't stop living their lives, walking past and going about their business just because I want to take a photo of a funky building, an interesting door or a pretty window. While yelling "Oi you lot, get off the street now unless you want me to shoot you" might have seemed funny to my teenage se...

Out walking this past weekend, I came across lots of funky-looking branches. After taking photos of lots of them I am sharing my favourites this week. I already shared an original and an edited photo of tree branches yesterday, and today - you guessed it - is a great day to share another photo. I love taking photos of nature: Trees, flowers, grass, rivers, rocks, stones, pebbles, earth, the sky, clouds, bushes, plants, weeds, you name it. I also love taking photos of bridges and buildings and other man-made structures, however nature  remains my favourite subject. Nature is always beautiful and amazing,  Always special and yes, always changing. I wrote this yesterday, however it feels appropriate for today's post due to the recurring theme of trees and branches: "The birds outside seem to be having a wonderful time surfing the winds and basking in the sun. The trees are swaying in the wind, the branches seem to have a life of their own. A beam of sunlight light...

Treebranch photo 01 | Nimavenl I love nature and I love colour. I also love taking photos of nature and playing with colours. We live in a beautiful world full of gorgeous pathways, roads, rocks, rivers, bridges, buildings, skylines, sunsets, clouds, cliffs, flowers, fabrics, textures and trees. I've written about taking photos of bridges before and how the world of 'in between' fascinates me. I also love taking photos of cities / urban landscapes and buildings with character, however I try to avoid taking photos of strangers without permission, which means a good photo (without people in it!) can be a drama to plan. I went out for a Photo Walk last weekend and found myself focusing not on bridges or buildings but on trees and branches. It was late in the afternoon and starting to get dark, which means the contrast between the darker trees and the lighter sky behind it was easier to capture (and a lot less grainy!) than landscapes or nature scenes. Treebranch ...

Out walking last month I came across numerous bridges. To be expected, as I was walking in an area with lots of little streams and rivers, an area that attracts many who want to enjoy nature and 'the outdoors' without having to go very far. There's something about bridges that speaks to me, something that draws me to them. Standing on a bridge looking down, watching the world below go by, it can feel as if the world below is separate from the world above that I am in. Which bridge one stands on makes little difference - whether it is people and cars passing down below or ducks and boats, the feeling remains the same. A different world, so close yet also so far away... One world above the bridge and another separate world below it. When it comes to enjoying bridges as a lover of photography and an explorer of the world, I most enjoy photos that show not just the world above the bridge and the world below it, but also the separate world that connects the two. Today's ...

While the Dutch climate can leave a lot to be desired, I am of the opinion that old Dutch cities are simply stunning... And are always worth my time and attention! Yesterday's trip down memory lane took me to this gorgeous little street in Alkmaar's old city. The Hekelstraat has at least some buildings dating back to the 16th Century - such as this building façade from 1579 . The Hekelstraat is an integral part of Alkmaar's Old City Centre and, judging from some of the photos I've seen, still looks a lot like it did a hundred or two hundred years ago. I edited this photo to make the colours a bit warmer, other than that I didn't change a thing. I didn't have to! Post by Nimavenl .

Gondelvaart A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Aug 19, 2012 at 12:49am PDT

Hidden Treasure A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Aug 2, 2012 at 12:40pm PDT

Railway bridge street art A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Jul 25, 2012 at 4:03pm PDT