Painter X

Posted by Ani on Saturday, October 4th 2008

4
Oct

Painter X

I received my upgrade for Painter in the mail last week and finally got to play with all the tasty new features. I still have a long way to go but the image to the left is a quick little sample of what came about from my first time using Painter X.

I also purchased a DVD done by Fay Sirkis a while back so now I can finally use all the new brushes included with it since upgrading. It really is an insighful DVD with lots of great tutorials…a couple of my other favorite tutorials or DVDs are from Susi Lawson and Brad Buttry. All a huge wealth of information, enjoy!

Popularity: 3% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to subscribes to our rss feeds

A.M.U.S

Posted by Ani on Friday, October 3rd 2008

3
Oct

I was feeling a little cheeky last night and as Rick usually tells me, when I have a good idea or say something funny I should always write it down, so I did and I went one step further and made it into a tshirt

I know it’s cheesy but sometimes ya just gotta be!

Get yours here!

Popularity: 3% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to subscribes to our rss feeds

HDR, Ignorance and Art

Posted by Ani on Thursday, October 2nd 2008

2
Oct

I was just over visiting Dubtastic’s blog and came across a post he had made in regards to his Flickr image processed using HDR, which stands for high dynamic range in case you are wondering, Wikipedia has an explanation you can read more about on this subject.

I guess the reason I a moved to write my own post, is because I have not submitted photos to open forums for a while now because of the negativity and ignorance behind so many comments that people make. Art is from what a very wise man once so eloquently put it:

No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.

The last part of that quote from you guessed it, Ansel Adams is my favorite: “encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.”

I believe in my heart that if you have a negative thought towards someone that it does no one any good creatively or spiritually, if you feel no passion or are not moved by an image created by an artist or someone trying to just find a creative outlet, then you should just move along with your negativity, instead of spreading your empty thoughts.

Another phrase or quote I would like to add is an oldy but a goodie:

“If you have nothing nice to say, then say nothing at all!”

Thanks for the rant, Dub!

Popularity: 5% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to subscribes to our rss feeds

Mt. Townsend Hike

Posted by Ani on Wednesday, October 1st 2008

1
Oct

: Hiking to Mt. Townsend

Rick and I got back from our hike a couple hours ago, we are showered and our bellies, full He had turkey stir fry and me well, I opted for a turkey omelet with parmesan and Jack cheese

We had our usual supply of water, hard boiled eggs and mixed fruit/nuts for our hike. We also brought along Dante…he is always so patient waiting for us to reach our destinations.

Once we reached the trailhead off the winding and sometimes scary heights on logging road 6514, we began a 4 or 5 mile trek through old growth trees of pink and yellow ties that were scattered and at times didn’t make much sense.

Rick and Dante

We didnt make it to Eagle Lake, which was our original destination. We were told that the logging road would

lead us to a shorter descent to Eagle Lake, needless to say the trail was hard to find and we were running short on hours; instead we hiked to the base of Mt. Townsend. Mt Townsend has absolutely beautiful views, including that of Baring Mountain, Gun Peak and I believe we were actually in a meadow named Paradise.

Rick and Dante

If we had taken the Barclay Lake trail that leads you to the supposed Eagle Lake trail, we would have been climbing to a 1400 elevation gain in approx. 3/4 miles. Knowing that I have a bum left knee and time constraints this was why we opted for the shorter route.

Basically, we were on the opposite side of the trail we should have been on if we had taken the Barclay Lake trail. Nevertheless the trail to the lake was not marked so we just enjoyed the views we came upon.

It was a nice hike through old growth trees and along side a rushing creek; the fall colors were amazing. There were a few bugs but nothing to really make our hike unpleasant.

After going through several different marked trails that lead us in circles we decided to climb Mt. Townsend a ways to try and gain a view of Eagle Lake, but to no avail. It was getting late and we had a bit of a drive on Hwy 2 so we decided to head for home. Hopefully we can get a lil better information on the shorter trail and venture out another day.

Rick enjoying Mt. Townsend View

All in all, it was a really nice day of hiking and photography and I got to have my singles pack of famous amos cookies from the local Mom and Pops general store on the way home…YUM!

BTW, click on the thumbnails for a larger version…all shots taken with my Canon Rebel xTi. More descriptions and information to the Barclay Lake/Eagle Lake Hikes can be found in Rick McGuire’s, 55 Hikes Around Stevens Pass: Wild Sky Area (100 Hikes in)

Rushing Creek

Rick Crossing Creek

Mt. Townsend

Rick in front of Mt. Baring

Rick and Dante

Mt. Baring

Beckler Creek

Enjoy the pics and ciao bellas!

Popularity: 8% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to subscribes to our rss feeds

Tonga Ridge Hike

Posted by Ani on Friday, September 19th 2008

19
Sep

Tonga Ridge Trailhead

Today Rick and I decided to take a drive out to Tonga Ridge, the weather at home was soggy and overcast and we thought at least we would have a nice drive even if it turned out to be a bad day for hiking once we reached our destination. Well, we reached Tonga Ridge and we could not turn away, the sun was shinning, we were above the clouds and our plan was set and now in motion…BTW if you are into hiking around the beautiful Pacific North West, then please pick up a copy of Rick McGuire’s book, 55 Hikes Around Stevens Pass. We’ve found some amazing places to explore and have not been dissapointed yet, this guide is packed with information on some of the top places to hike.
Check out the photos from our hike to Wallace Falls, a hike we found in the above guide and continue reading more below for our latest venture!
As we began our venture to new territory, we had a group of three before us…these 3 ladies were backpacked and ready to go in their Columbia hiking gear…hydration packs, Maxpedition backpacks and mind you I think the youngest gal of the bunch was in her late 50’s and oldest in her mid 70’s! They were such a delightful and helpful group as we ran into them at least 3 times during the hike. They educated us on one of the coolest and most friendly birds, sorry the name escapes me at the moment, checkout the photo below of Rick feeding it from his hands.

Rick feeding da birds!

Our hike started at 11:00AM and ended at 3:15pm as we reached our starting point…yes the truck…my legs and Rick’s as well as Dante’s were screaming for the comfort! In short, the hike was amazing…beautiful views, amazing weather…although our intention was to reach Fisher Lake…too many mosquitos and an additional 1.5 miles, we opted to turn out and head home due to time constraints; but all in all a wonderful day spent with my baby!