Leaving Autumn Behind

Since winter is almost officially upon us, I thought I'd throw out one last photo of some autumn leaves. I spotted these alongside a street, and felt a metaphor for the passing of one season to the next swelling within me. Thankfully it passed before it was fully formed in my head. I think that much thinking would have made my brain explode.

If you're so inclined, check out my other autumn-related photos posted here from taken this year and last fall. You can also check out my autumn photoset on Zooomr. It has a lot more I didn't post here.

Firm In My Be-Leaf

*sigh*

Well, here we are with more autumn leaves. My camera, completely on its own, immediately gravitates to any and all autumn leaves in its vicinity. See, it's not even my fault, they're just too picture-worthy.

The lame pun in the title is my fault, though.

Opulent Orange

Yes. Another photo of autumn leaves. But it's been... um... oh, 10 days since I last posted one! I think that shows remarkable restraint on my part. Besides, soon they'll all be gone, so I have to get in while I can.

This tree lives near the top of the hill on 10th Ave., otherwise known as Hospital Hill, since the hospital sits at the top. But that's kind of irrelevant, except that the tree is about half a block from the hospital.

Cold Dead Hands

It was a cold and dreary day when I took this photo last week. The whole sky just said, and I quote, "Ick." But the mostly barren tree branches made it prettier, so it was okay.

The title comes from the fact the tree branches look like hands. Cold dead hands.

It's been raining since the day after I bought my new scooter, so I haven't been able to go out and take new photos. I think today will be better, though, so hopefully I'll have some new stuff to post tomorrow.

A Shock To The Heart

For today's photo I went to the exotic location of my backyard, since I'm still minus transportation. The lovely red color is provided by the last few leaves left on a Japanese maple. Such a pretty tree.

Whole Lotta Yellow

I still am lacking transportation, so here's another "filler" photo of autumn leaves. I apologize for yet another photo of this sort of thing. I'm still waiting to find out if my scooter can be fixed (since I kinda crashed it last weekend), or if I'm going to have to buy a new one.

Somebody Get A Rake

Since I'm presently without transportation, y'all are gonna have to put up with some more autumn leaves photos until I can get around again.

The above is pretty representative of Stayton at the moment, since trees all over town are depositing leaves on sidewalks, streets, and yards. It always makes me sad to see someone cleaning up the leaves, because gosh darn it, I could take photos of them! I mean, Isn't that what's really important, after all? ;)

Red Leaf

Today's photo is of a lovely red leaf off of some tree or another. I did a color "cutout" to make the red of the leaf stand out.

For those curious as to how I did it (because folks have asked before): I used Paint Shop Pro X2, but any image editor which allows you to custom select areas of an image will work. In PSP X2, I used the Magic Wand tool on the area outside the leaf and its stem and branch. You can also select the area you want to remain in color, then invert the selection.

If you have a steady hand, you can also use a 'lasso' type tool to draw the selection with your mouse, but I personally suck at doing that.

I then converted the selected area to black and white. Not really complicated, but it can be a little tedious to do.

Autumn Rain

Stayton has had some rather nice weather recently. That lovely weather has provided some great opportunities to take pictures of autumn leaves, which is why I've posted so many recently.

But since it's been literally days since I last posted such a photo, it's perfectly fine to post another. Yep. I'm not obsessed, just, uh... greatly interested.

Right?

Super Squirrel - Part II

Back in April I reported on Stayton's own Super Squirrel, a seemingly regular grey squirrel which has the ability to fly. I now have further photographic evidence of this phenomenon.

Regrettably, I was not able to ascertain if this is the same squirrel from April, since he refused both times to stop for questions. I'm just lucky I was able to get his picture. He's an elusive fellow. Provided, of course, he is a male. He could be a she.

I do know this super squirrel was spotted at the same location, Neitling Park. Coincidence? Perhaps, perhaps not. Obviously, further investigation is required.

I will continue to bring you updates on this important story as it unfolds. Stay tuned to Stayton Daily Photo, your official Super Squirrel blog.

And Yet A Few Still Linger

This is historic, friends. Yes, today I am not posting autumn leaves! They said it couldn't be done (or maybe that was me), but it's true.

Well, okay, mostly true. There are a couple of leaves on the tree, but just barely. Hardly noticeable. In fact, the overly dramatic title of today's post comes from the fruit of some variety which still hang from the branches. If you can't see them, click on the photo and choose 'all sizes' to see a bigger version.

For those who may care (and, really, why would you?), this was taken at the east end of Jefferson St.

Autumn Suits Me Fine

Yes, another photo of autumn leaves. I did post a warning yesterday about that, so you shouldn't be surprised. It's not my fault if you didn't be-leaf me. In fact, you really should have known I wood. It's knot like I'm going out on a limb here. True, I may be a sap -- I may even be nuts -- but such is life.

Yes, I know I should branch out and post photos of other things. You might be out there, pining away for something non-leaves related. You may even be temped to send me an email aspen when something different will be posted. Please don't, as you would be barking up the wrong tree. For now, I must stand fir(m). The leaves are pretty, darn it, and I'm gonna post pictures of 'em. Don't they spruce things up around here? That's really the root of it, now that I think about it. So even though it may not be the poplar thing to do, you can bet your ash more will be posted.

Autumn In Technicolor

Um. So, this is another photo of fall leaves. I know, I know... I've already posted some, but gosh darn it, I like fall leaves. So here's another photo of fall leaves.

Fall On The Diagonal

It's pretty much a given I will be posting autumn leaves photos on and off until they go away for the year. Blame nature.

This is one of the photos I took two days ago when I had the feline visitor I posted about yesterday. The stripes are courtesy of the parking lot of Neitling Park.

Scattered

Yes, friends, we have another autumn leaves photo. This time it's a color cutout, meaning the whole thing is in black and white except the yellow leaves. Click on the thumbnail at right to see the original version.

Someone on Zooomr (a photo sharing site I recommend -- check out my Zooomr photos) suggested I do the cutout version. I think it worked out well.

Let Them Fall Where They May

There are a lot of trees in Stayton, and as a result there are a lot of autumn leaves scattered all over the place right now. Which means I shall take pictures of them.

These particular leaves were on a sidewalk on 2nd Ave., near the Jones Hotel apartment building.

An Autumn Casualty

Autumn is definitely here. The weather's turned wet and colder, and the leaves have started to turn lots of nifty colors. I found this maple leaf on the ground, looking like it had been chewed up and spit out by the changing of the seasons.

If This Isn't Scary, I Just Don't Know What Is

I'm a little concerned. When I was out a couple of nights ago I saw this inflatable Halloween decoration not once, but twice, in two yards in separate parts of town. This leads to the inevitable conclusion that they're either multiplying or one was following me. Either way, this can't be good.

If they are breeding or are sentient and capable of movement, then we should all be on high alert. Pay attention next time you're out driving around and you'll see them everywhere. What are these creatures thinking? What are they hiding? This is an issue I strongly feel should be looked into closely. Possibly with the aid of large federal grants.

We need act now, before it's too late. The evil inflatable Halloween monsters are everywhere, in every yard across the country. There's nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. They're coming for you!!

Ahem. Sorry. I may be rushing to judgment. Forgive me.

I leave you with a final warning: do not approach any of these... beings. We don't know what they're capable of, so it's best to not engage. Use extreme caution.

A Patch Of Pumpkins

I'm not ready. The local stores have put Halloween-related items on sale, and I'm not ready. I love Halloween, but it's way too soon to acknowledge it even being October.

A Shy Way About Her (Or Him)

I spotted this scarecrow decoration hanging out at the Lone Oak Cemetery a couple of days ago. She (or he) was shy at first and would only face away from my camera. It took a bit of coaxing for her (or him) to turn around. As you can see in the photo, she (or he) was still shy about having her (or his) picture taken.

Crocus In Focus

I was wandering around Lone Oak Cemetery yesterday evening, when I spotted this little group of fall crocus. So I took pictures. Which is why I was wandering around in the first place.

Speaking of taking pictures, for no apparent reason I can discern, I've started another photoblog called (and here's where I get really clever) Photos By Celine. It will have photos not published here and some that are. It's focus isn't on Stayton, but on my photography in general. For whatever that's worth.

A couple of other views of the crocus:

 

Happy Turkey Day!

Happy Thanksgiving! It's time to give thanks, so let me name a few things I'm thankful for:

This blog and its visitors and commenters (you rock!), all the daily photo bloggers out there (especially Eric at Paris Daily Photo for starting it all), my family (both two- and four-legged), and M&M's (just because).

The photo above is another of the sky. The very rainy weather has prevented me from being able to go out and take photos, so I had to dig back to earlier this month when we still had blue skies. I hope to go out this weekend and take more photos. Wish me luck.

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Trees... Yes, Again :)

Okay, so it's been raining a lot, which makes it a bit difficult to go out and take photos. That's why I'm posting yet another photo of trees, one which I took the other day. Yep, the only reason. It's not that I'm obsessed with taking photos of trees or anything. Nope.

These trees -- dunno what they are... maybe birch? -- have lost all their leaves. You can sort of see them with some of the leaves in another photo I took last month. That photo was taken via the rear view mirror on my scooter.

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House Building

Another new home is being constructed, this time just off of 6th Ave. in Stayton. The workers on the roof in the photo are brave souls... makes me dizzy just to look at them up there.

My favorite part of the photo? The colorful trees behind the house, of course. Gotta love autumn.

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Autumn Aligned

Once again, we have a photo of colorful fall trees, but they are trees I haven't previously posted, so it's all good. :) These trees are across a side street next to the hospital in Stayton. I believe the technical classification of the trees is "pretty."

(Note: I'm posting this a bit early, as I'll be working on my computer to install a new hard drive and will be offline for a few hours.)

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Wet leaves on pavement

Sometimes there's nowhere to go but down. The leaves in the photo not only fell to the ground, but they ended up plastered there by the rain. Today was actually dry, so my big outing was to the store (Bi-Mart, which is kinda like Wal-Mart but smaller), which is where I took this photo. Yes, friends, it's a parking lot. Oh, the glamor. :)

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Tree street

I can't remember which street in Stayton I actually took this photo on (somewhere between 3rd Ave. and 6th Ave.), so let's call it tree street. Anyway, the trees are almost through losing their leaves for the year, and I thought they were pretty, especially with the rather colorful trees down the road a bit behind them.

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Autumn at the duck pond

I went to visit my duck friends at my favorite pond in Stayton a couple of days ago. The two mallards on the left appear to be playing follow the leader. I thought about joining in, but I didn't want to get my camera wet. ;)

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Walk amongst the leaves

I've discovered it's almost physically painful for me to take photos of something not involving autumn leaves at present. That means today we have another photo with leaves.

Today's photo, a leaf covered sidewalk, is about a half block away from Pioneer Park in Stayton. I've always been enchanted by that little patch of sidewalk, with the bushes and grass growing around it... it just seems to be its own little world.

Don't forget to check out my autumn photoset on Flickr. It keeps growing every day. I tell you, I'm obsessed with fall.

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Autumn's reflection

Today's image is... well, it's of autumn leaves. Again. But this one's different, in that it's taken via the rear view mirrors of my scooter. See? Totally different.

A comment I received on Flickr from someone named elTwitcho sums the photo up well:

In front of the scooter, fall, leaves on the ground. Behind the scooter, remnants of summer, green, and trees only starting to turn. I like that.

That is absolutely what I was going for... except I didn't think of it until I saw the comment. :)

The photo was taken in front of the school district offices on 3rd Ave. in Stayton.

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Burnt Orange

Hi, my name is Celine and I'm addicted to taking photos of autumn leaves. I can't help myself. There are so many beautiful orange and red and yellow trees right now, I feel compelled to try to photograph them all. I won't be able to stop until all the leaves are on the ground. And maybe not even then.

It's to the point where I feel sad if I see someone sweeping or raking up leaves, since each and every leaf is a potential photo subject.

Is there is a recovery center for this sort of addiction? Just curious. But if it involves taking away my camera, I'm not interested. ;)

I've created a photoset on Flickr called Autumn, which houses various fall-themed photos, some which have appeared here and some which haven't. I'm sure it will grow before the season is through.

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Yellow leaves

Yes, friends, we have yet another photo of autumn leaves. This time we have some lovely yellow leaves, apparently off a maple tree. The tree, whatever kind it is, lives on Wyatt Ave SE in an area of Stayton known as West Town. No, I don't know why the street is labelled as southeast when it's on the west end of town. It's just one of life's many mysteries.

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Red Leaves and Such

In the Stayton Community Center Complex, which houses the city's pool, community center, and a park. It also has some lovely plants, flowers, and trees, like the one pictured above. I have no clue what type of tree it is, but its leaves and whatever the lighter colored stuff is (seeds?) sure are pretty.

There was another tree of the same type a few feet away whose leaves are yet to turn for the season.

I also took a couple of photos of some roses which were near the trees, if you're interested. Click on the thumbnails below for the bigger versions:

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A sign of autumn

Happy first full day of Autumn! Yes, it's that time of year, when the leaves start to turn colorful shades, like on the oak tree pictured above. It's also the precursor of winter, which is my least favorite season, but let's not hold that against it. It's just doing its job, after all.

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