Mockingbird

Now that Life is beginning to turn back to "normal," whatever that is (!), the ole camera has been dusted off and actually being used again. (Hubby is doing very well now - thank you all for your kind comments, thoughts and prayers - it worked!) This weekend promises to be lovely and I intend to take a road trip and do some shooting. In the meantime, all my blogging buddies have inspired me to peek outside into my own backyard to see what's flying around.

To my surprise, I've an abundance of white crowned sparrows. A yellow-shafted flicker visited, and a hawk was high above in a nearby tree. I spied a nuthatch clambering up a tree, and a downy woodpecker clambering down another. Tons of house finches and robins, a cardinal couple and a sweet little chickadee. I need my friend Eve to come walk with me and identify the gazillion songbird calls that I hear but cannot ID - she's a master of auditory identification. This cute little mockingbird landed on the patio and posed for about 10 minutes, completely unaware of Baylee on the other side of the glass and me with my camera and zoom lens.

This sweetie was so close that I got some good shots of him. However, I'm hating the nasty patio background that desperately needs power washing. Thankfully, I can hide the ugliness of my patio with a gentle texture applied as a layer then softened, followed by masking off some of the layer from atop the bird. This improves this photo immensely by my way of thinking and adds a dreamy quality. Playing with textures has saved my sanity of late and I owe it all to a genius by the name of Jerry Jones.

Recently I've discovered and been inspired by Jerry, who sits blissfully within his Shadowhouse Creations joyfully creating masterpieces. His FREE textures have opened up a new world for me, and they can do the same for you. Jerry's textures are diverse and stunning, rich and various. The colors are amazing. How does he DO what he DOES? I dunno, but I'll be eternally grateful for his talents that he so generously shares. In today's dog-eat-dog world Jerry Jones is a refreshing departure from "business as usual." Jerry is gracious and humble - this post might even embarrass him - a simple Thank You suffices as payment to Jerry. We all know that comments feed our blogging souls, and when someone gives so much of himself it's the very least we can do. Link from this post by clicking on Shadowhouse Creations or from my blog roll. Tell Jerry I sent ya.