April Squares: Top Shots, Snowdrops

ISO 250 f/11 0.1sec 27mm

Day 30, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: January 30, 2020. Anglesey Abbey a National Trust site with much to see. This particular shot was taken on a visit where I had secured myself a spot of a behind the scenes tour of their snowdrop collection. It was a great tour that I would highly recommend.

Thoughts on the Edit: Luminar Look, Retro Film, added.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, Auschwitz

ISO 25 f/2.2 1/1221 sec 4.2mm

Day 29, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: Dec 21, 2019. The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. It was a sad visit, but I felt that it was important to pay my respects.

Thoughts on the Edit: Luminar Look, Expired L9, which is an expired film filter, chosen to give the photo a documentary feel.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, St. Albans Cathedral

ISO 32 f/2.2 1/100 4.2mm

Day 28, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: October 26, 2019. St. Albans Cathedral. The town of St. Albans has a long and interesting history, so it’s a great place to explore. On this particular day though, we had tickets for the tower tour and also took the floor tour at the cathedral. The cathedral had recently opened a display on the history of the cathedral as a place of pilgrimage, and we looked through that as well. The weather that day was terrible but we got a lucky break in the rain and were able to pop out and take a few photos from the top.

Thoughts on the Edit: This file has the Luminar Look, Mono, added to it. It’s a black and white filter that I then set to 38%. Mixing color and black and white in my edits is something that I often enjoy experimenting with.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

 

 

April Squares: Top Shots, Longstowe

ISO 320 f/5.6 1/100sec 19.6mm

Day 27, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: September 29, 2019. Longstowe, in the Cambridge area. Another of the many English countryside type photos I have in my files from the last four years. These cows seemed very interested in us so I was glad there was some water between us.

Thoughts on the Edit: This photo was taken with my point and shoot camera, so the original file is in jpeg format. So, the blown-out sky could not be salvaged unless I was willing to attempt a full sky replacement. I know that’s a commonly used technique these days, but I’m not a fan of it generally speaking. Also, for this image, the lack of an intriguing sky doesn’t really bother me. The file has the Luminar Look, Dramatic Landscape, added to it.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

 

Cheers!

 

April Squares: Top Shots: Netherlands American Cemetery

ISO 160 f/11 1/200sec 48mm

Day 26, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: August 22, 2019. Taken at Netherlands American Cemetery. In addition to being another beautifully maintained cemetery, the grave markers are all adopted by families of locals a tradition that I find very moving.

Thoughts on the Edit: I didn’t really feel like I wanted to edit this image too much. I did crop it and boosted the small details slider a bit, other than that, I let it be.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots: Mummelsee Lake

ISO 320 f/11 1/250sec 37mm

Day 25, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: August 13, 2019. Mummelsee Lake in the Black Forest region of Germany.

Thoughts on the Edit: My initial edits of this included removing some signage and people from the far side of the lake. The erase function in Luminar did this quite nicely. I’ve added the Luminar Look, Subway, and also the Golden Hour filter set to 18%.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, Wicken Fen Nature Reserve

 

ISO 500 f/11 1/1250sec 20mm

Day 24, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: July 11, 2019. Wicken Fen Nature Reserve. This windmill is on wooden boardwalk path not far from the visitor’s center. If you visit the reserve, take the time to go on a walk a bit further afield, it’s a beautiful reserve teeming with wildlife.

Thoughts on the Edit: I’ve added the Luminar Look, Intersection, at 64%. I chose this particular file to edit because the original exposure was really quite bad, but I had shot in RAW format, so there was plenty of wiggle room on the edit.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, Luxembourg American Cemetery

ISO 320 f/11 1/320sec 18mm

Day 23, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: May 28, 2019. Taken at Luxembourg American Cemetery maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission.

Thoughts on the Edit: All the military cemeteries I have visited over the last four years have been beautifully maintained, which is why in this edit, I have left a workers cart in the background. The staff are always busy working in the background making these places beautiful places for reflection. I’ve added the Luminar Look, Soft Colors, to this file, removing certain effects that were a bit too strong for this photo.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, Close to Home

ISO 25 f/2.2 1/2262sec 4.2mm

Day 22, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: May 12, 2019. Shot at a lake near my home. My last four years of photo folders are full of images of the swans that live on a lake nearby. I see them almost everyday, so they are frequently here on the blog. To see this little one being ferried around was unusual, so I chose this image to be a representative one of the swans.

Thoughts on the Edit: The Luminar Look, Aethereal, was added to this image. The look was made up of many filters, including the soft focus filter, which I then clicked off because I didn’t care for it, a reminder that it is pretty easy to edit presets, so feel free to do so.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!

April Squares: Top Shots, A Postbox

ISO 25 f/2.2 1/103sec 4.2mm

Day 21, find other responses here.

Date and Location of Photo: April 10, 2019, St. Michael’s Mount, Cornwall. St. Michael’s Mount is a National Trust property, an island that is beautiful and scenic. Usually photos from the area are more like this one. But it also has this postbox! It’s a Queen Victoria cypher, a monarch whose postboxes are still fairly common and in use today. I developed a bit of an obsession for postboxes in my four years here, going as far as to make a trip into London to locate a rare, still in use, Edward VIII box. A replica Elizabeth II box, a Christmas gift, will be our new postbox once we move and get it installed.

Thoughts on the Edit: This postbox has a lot of character having been exposed to the elements for years, so I kept the edits pretty basic. In a nod to its location, I’ve used the Luminar Look, A Day at the Beach.

April Squares, an Explanation:

When Becky announced that the April Squares theme was going to be “top”, I thought it over and then sent her a message, then pitched my idea. She was open to my theme within the theme and the result is my response to the April Squares challenge.

I move a lot and I have a move pending. I’ve lived here in England for about four years and will be heading to the United States. Exact dates to be determined, given the current world situation, details have yet to be worked out. My April Squares is a “top shots” reflection on the last four years. Each square represents some moment or place that was meaningful to me. They are in chronological order moving forward in time. I’m attempting to post every day. All photos will be edited in Luminar 3. I hope you enjoy following along, I’ve enjoyed the process of creating. Your comments and thoughts are welcome below.

Cheers!