Have you ever needed to get away for few days?
At the end of July, our two teens were gone for a week. We had a weekend to get away by ourselves. We went camping. I know, you're saying, "really, again?" It's what summer in Montana is made for...there's no other way to explain it. The beautiful blue skies and the landscape is just too irresistible. We packed up the basics we would need and headed for the mountains. It's under an hour's drive and we have our little home-away-from-home parked and settled. We had a great time sharing one another's undivided attention. There wasn't a set schedule and we ate when we were hungry. It was so freeing to not be thinking about a regular mealtime schedule. We ate our favorite junk food. We didn't have to be a good example of healthy eating! It was a nice vacation from the typical camping trip for our family of four. We missed our kids while they were gone for that ten days but the break relaxed us a great amount. The weather that weekend brought high temperatures and I noticed that many flowers were done blooming. The vegetation was changing, preparing for late summer turning to become autumn. There were signs that the local area was dry, which would in turn result in a great number of wildfires.
While we were out taking the dog for a walk, I had my camera but it late morning which meant the sun was high. The lighting was not best for photography. Everything had a tendency to be washed out and had less contrast. The longer shadows of morning and evening really add to composition. I ought to make myself get out earlier and sacrifice sleep for my art. I wished that I'd been out early in the morning but sleeping in late was such a welcome option. I didn't really view this weekend outing the same as others. I had been pushing so hard at home in the studio and felt the need for some time off. My main focus was on enjoying a relaxing time with my husband. Photography for art references wasn't the main goal that it had been on previous camping trips.
This area runs along the road and is a series of beaver dams. The colors were a little washed out, especially in the sky but I used a few Picasa filters for improvement. When I have a photo I'm not
