Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

photography

Can You Capture The Sun Rays Of Fall?

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by Kimberly A. Cook          (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

When I took a three-month camping trip to Europe in 1983, I carried 70 rolls of film with me. Some of my best shots were sticking the camera out the window and just shooting. Shit shots, I called them. Nothing to lose!

The rolling clouds, the Washington gorge hills, the bridge and the Columbia River; without ever leaving my car!
The rolling clouds, the Washington gorge hills, the bridge and the Columbia River; without ever leaving my car!

On our recent adventure to Hood River we went to one of the Columbia River parks for a look-see before heading home. It had started to rain and the wind was whipping up in the gorge, so I did my usual and took a few pictures from the car window. Just like in Europe. (Yes, I rolled the window down.)

Sometimes the most important thing as a photographer is to just take the shot. I had some cars coming toward me and I was about to hold up someone driving behind me, so I grabbed the shot. I’m pretty happy with it.

One of the reasons I always carry one of my little Canon Elph cameras with me is I never know when I might see a photo I need to take. Kind of like the Boy Scouts, always prepared. Which includes a fully charged backup battery too.

With the leaves starting to change colors and the pumpkin decorations everywhere, this is a great time of year to capture the golden light in the morning and evening. You don’t need a ton of equipment or to even get out of your car; be lazy and creative. You might be able to use the photo for a blog post.

Whether taking pictures on the road, in your own backyard or trying to capture your pet’s latest antics, for us photo freaks it’s always a good day to take a picture. The weather folks say the rains are coming in this week. Yeah! Cloud and rain pictures! Woo Hoo!

Do You Have The Eye Of A Photographer?

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by Kimberly A. Cook               (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

Spent part of last week on vacation at the beach, Depoe Bay, Oregon, one of my favorite spots on the planet. In the quest to get there we ended up in two traffic jams, so a stop at the Oregon State Park Van Duzer Corridor rest stop in the Coast Range was a great idea and a necessity.

Photo 1 - overall scene setting shot. Photojournalism rule - always make sure you get an overview picture.
Photo 1 – scene setting shot. Photojournalism rule – always make sure you get an overview picture.

I love to visit the stream which runs through the trees by the picnic tables, away from the rest stop building. The sound of the gurgling water is so relaxing. Even with low water at this time of year.

There are two rest stops, one North and on South. On on the way back we always check the river on the South side too, since it runs deeper than the North side stream.

I’ve been travelling this road for 35 plus years so I must have hundreds of photos of this stream. Thought it might be fun to show you the series of photos I took that day, in order. Kinda.

Photography, like writing, requires practice. What better fun for us shutter bugs than to take pictures outside by a forest brook? It was late in the afternoon so the light was still bright, so the green in the left side of photo one fades by being bleached out by the sun.

Next up I decided to zoom in and focus on the larger rock in the stream bed in photo three. Normally the water is deep here any other time of the year, so this was an opportunity to use the rock as a focal point in the lower left of the photo.

Photo 3 - yes I skipped two. I put the rock in the upper third on pic 2, then changed my mind and put it in the lower third to draw in the eye. Better.
Photo 3 – yes I skipped two. I put the rock in the upper third on pic 2, then changed my mind and put it in the lower third to draw in the eye. Better.

Close ups are good, but I also wanted to see what a mid-range photo would look like so I pulled back the zoom and framed shot five. Liked the filtered light coming through the trees and into the water and the better contrast between the water, rocks and trees.

So the last picture is my favorite of the five I shot in this series. I checked the times on the photos and I shot them all in two minutes.

The great thing about digital cameras is you’ve always got pixels to spare; as long as you carry an extra charged battery and memory card.

Spent part of the trip trying to use my new Canon PowerShot Elph 340  HS camera. Somehow managed to shoot video when I hadn’t planned on it, so more time is needed with that camera. It has a much longer zoom and greater pixels, the better to get harbor seal close-ups!

These stream photos were shot with my trusty old Canon PowerShot Elph SD800 IS. It’s so hard to give up an old reliable and move onto the next one. I’m talking about cameras here, by the way, just to be clear.

Have you played with your camera today?

Picture 5 and my favorite. I can count, I just skipped two other photos in between.
Picture 5 and my favorite. I can count, I just skipped one more photo in between.

Been On A Weekend Shopping Safari?

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by Kimberly A. Cook               (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

Spent this past weekend dashing around like a maniac. Zipped over to Craft Warehouse for their tent sale on Saturday, then managed to get stuck in our first rain storm in two months on the freeway. The downpour created two traffic jams and two car wrecks I avoided in 75 minutes trying to get to my writer support group; but All’s Well That End’s Well. Made it!

A favorite sign at Craft Warehouse. I may have to go back and get this....
A favorite sign at Craft Warehouse. I may have to go back and get this….

On Sunday I zoomed over to the grocery store to hand off a wedding gift and try to beat the after church crowds at the same time. While waiting at the designated outside meeting spot, I noticed the bees busily working away on the flowers in the garden center. Go bees! Took out my ever ready camera and got a few pics.

Then finished up Sunday by binge-watching three “Who Do You Think You Are” shows on The Learning Channel before the start of the new season that night. It’s like a cozy mystery for every show and so fun to follow the genealogy trails.

I enjoy when they use military records, since heaven knows there is always paper involved when serving in the military. A nice by-product of the tv watching was Spec Ops Cat approved of the lap time.

So we got some rain, had a cool weekend, and here comes the heat again. Seriously, Mother Nature is having hot flashes and I can do without temps in the 90s. Let’s hope for cooler temps than predicted and if not, keep your cameras ready for the outfits! In high heat I see the most amazing clothes combos.

Bee on the job. Even on Sunday!
Bee on the job. Even on Sunday!

P.S. Happy Birthday to Beatrix Potter today. Her “little bunny book” as she called it, “Peter Rabbit,” helped her preserve hundreds of acres in the Lake District of England. The little bunny that could!

Sun, Feta And Pasta – Happy Summer!

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by Kimberly A Cook                 (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

With our wacky weather giving us early hot temperatures and then thunderstorms and humidity, the best thing to do is pace ourselves. Or in my case, be lazy. One way I accomplish that is to make salads I love which last for a week. I think calories don’t exist during heat waves, at least according to the ransacking the grocery store ice cream aisle took last Wednesday night.

If I had my way, this would be Feta Greek Salad with pasta, but I am watching my cheese intake. Kinda. Greek Pasta Salad ala Kim!
If I had my way, this would be Feta Cheese Greek Salad with pasta, but I am watching my cheese intake. Kinda. Greek Pasta Salad ala Kim!

Today I’m sharing two fabulous pasta salad recipes. All you have to know how to do is boil water and chop.

Out to dinner with a friend last Thursday night and we explored the joy of making food, knitting and jewelry items that look complicated but are easy. Not lazy, I prefer to call it efficient. These two salads fit the bill, just in time for the long holiday weekend!

The original Shrimp Pasta Salad recipe from a co-worker at the day job is second. I modified her recipe for a Greek Pasta Salad I adore right below. Perfect for hot weather and the coming Fourth of July picnics! Here goes:

Greek Pasta Salad ala Kim

1 package Orzo pasta, 16 oz. – I use Barilla

1 bottle Girard’s Greek Feta vinaigrette

1 Cup chopped celery

1 whole cucumber, chopped

3/4 pint of cherry tomatoes cut in half

6 to 8 ounces of Traditional Feta crumbled cheese

9 Kalamata olives cut in fourths (I found they have ones already halved and pitted, score!)

Bring 4 to 6 quarts of water to boil. (I used a 6-Quart pot, but a larger pot works better so you don’t have to watch it all the time.) Add dash of olive oil to boiling water. Cook pasta for 9 to 10 minutes. Drain in strainer using lukewarm water, not cold. Place in 4-Quart bowl. Pour entire bottle of salad dressing over pasta and stir. Cover and place in fridge overnight or for four hours. Chop everything else and mix well.

Original recipe – Shrimp Pasta Salad

1 package Orzo pasta, 16 oz.

1 bottle Girard’s Champagne dressing, lite

1 Cup Chopped celery

1 Cup Sliced green onion

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise (optional)

1 Tablespoon Mustard

1 tablespoon Dill Pickle Relish (I’m a sweet relish girl myself, do what you want)

1 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 to 3/4 pound Salad Shrimp

Same as above, marinate pasta overnight, then thrown all the ingredients in. Fabulous! This is so simple and looks great too.

Let’s raise a bowl to summer, cheese and pasta!

Photo Alert: To my photographer friends, tonight is the full Thunder Moon so get out there with your cameras between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. and get some great pictures. If you can see the moon, that is! Have fun!

Are There Hidden Photo Gems On Your Computer?

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by Kimberly A. Cook           (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Drove out to the Columbia River for a car picnic with my Mom this past weekend. We packed a lunch, enjoyed the sun and river sights and stayed in the car. Unusual warm weather for January. (Sorry East Coast blizzard people)

We talked about photography and how much I enjoy it, plus the fact my current home computer must be replaced since it is out of memory and eight years old. Obviously the Windows self destruct program hasn’t activated. Yet.

Photo stalking the wild chipmunk in his native habitat. A true test of photo skills. Especially when they appear ready to charge!
Photo stalking the wild chipmunk in his native habitat. A true test of photo skills. Especially when they appear ready to charge!

Back at home I decided to print out a couple of my favorite vacation photos to take to the day job; scenic memories to give me a mini-vacation sun break time out. I focused on recent trips to Sisters, Oregon, with my friend Joann, one of my top five favorite places.

I rediscovered fun memories and a few good pictures I’d forgotten about. When I switched from film to digital photography in 2007, the whole “I can’t see my pics” problem began. It’s so easy to forget the fabulous pixels we have stored on our hard drives, which I also back up three other places since I’m paranoid.

Half of my digital photos are organized by date and the other half by topic. The goal is to switch all the pics into topic groupings, but I keep taking more pictures and not finding the time to sort, and now the computer memory problem.

Two of the crafty camera shy sprinters in one picture. Miracles do happen.
Two of the crafty camera shy sprinters in one picture. Miracles do happen.

But it’s time to take action soon and get a new computer with enough memory to last a couple of years. Then start the transfer and sorting of photos, video and stories. (This will require tons of peanut M&Ms to accomplish, just saying) Since I haven’t loaded new photos for the past couple months, who knows what wonderful photo gems I’m missing. Or not.

So here are a few pictures from one of my Sisters, Oregon trips to encourage you to frisk your computer hard drive and find some fab photos. Enjoy the trip!

Sneak attack! Or sneaker attack, you choose. Love this photo even though I had to contort myself into a pretzel to get this shot of my friend's foot when she was sitting beside me.
Sneak attack! Or sneaker attack, you choose. Love this photo even though I had to contort myself into a pretzel to get this shot of my friend’s foot ala chipmunk when she was sitting beside me.

 

Are You A Holiday Decorating Diva?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                     (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Spent Sunday putting up a few holiday decorations and getting the Christmas tree up. Each year I decide whether to go all out or pace myself. This year is a simple but classy holiday decorating agenda. In the process of putting up the three fake wreaths on my front porch, I spied an industrious woodpecker getting snacks from the tree across from my porch bannister.

Mr. red feathered woodpecker on the left side of the tree. See, he's only a couple feet off the ground!
Mr. red feathered woodpecker on the left side of the tree. See, he’s only a couple feet off the ground!

This tenacious little bird, all decked out in his holiday red-head feathers, did not leave the tree. When a car came flying by, he scurried to the other side of the tree trunk.

When the boy walking his dog strolled by, the bird circled again so he was hidden from view. I got the camera and began taking pictures of him to see how long he would last. Then I went back to work.

I put up the other two wreaths, which involves me climbing up on my three-step stool and then getting on my railing and popping the wire backs of the wreaths into the hooks.

Still able to do it and haven’t fallen in the bushes, yet. When I finished Mr. Red Bird was still eating and enjoying his obviously tasty finds on the tree.

 

Digging in for snacks on the right side of the tree.
Digging in for snacks on the right side of the tree.

For all I know he’s still out there, since he never went away and kept pecking for insects.

Seems to me this is a perfect plan for getting through the holidays; focus on food and ignore the rest of the distractions or move out of the area if things get too noisy or bothersome.

Several people walked by the tree with the bird and never saw him, right there in front of them.

Take time during the holidays to enjoy the simple things. Slow down and see if you find a holiday decorated visitor in your yard or area park. Who knows who might be Santa’s helper this time of year.

Happy Holidays!

 

My best up close and personal woodpecker pic. Maybe he was posing for me.....
My best up close and personal woodpecker pic. Maybe he was posing for me…..