SOME PHOTO EXAMPLES OF WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH YOUR FREE & EASY TO USE PICASA PHOTO EDITING PROGRAM

‘STRAIGHTENED’ THE HORIZON‘ PLUS CROPPED’ BOTH BOTTOM & TOP OF THIS PHOTO, ADDED SOME ‘FILL LIGHT’ TO LIGHTEN THE FOREGROUND & THEN SOME ‘GRADUATED TINT’ TO DARKEN THE WASHED OUT SKY, PLUS I ‘SHARPENED’ THE PHOTO TO BRING OUT  SOME DETAIL

Tonight’s photos were all taken today & I am going to use some of them in this post to explain a few of the tool buttons used in the PICASA PHOTO EDITING program I & many fellow RV Bloggers use.  Each word under the photos has ‘these’ marks around them refers to a specific Picasa button, or tool.  Tomorrow night I will pick a couple tools & explain how to use them.  Tonight, it’s just photo examples.

 

COUPLE EXAMPLES OF USING ‘FILL IN FLASH’ PLUS I ADDED SOME ‘FILL LIGHT’ & ‘CROPPED’ THE SKY A BIT ON THE JEEP PHOTO…ADDED SOME ‘GRADUATED TINT’ TO THE SKY TO DARKEN IT DOWN A TAD AS WELL

The little Peachy Princess & I headed off to Goderich this morning on a few errands. Split a Turkey salad sandwich & headed down to the beach & harbor area for a short walk. Our weather has turned much cooler & there was a stiff chilling wind coming in off the lake.  As I type this tonight it is pouring rain.
 

I CORRECTED THE ORIGINAL TOP PHOTO BY FIRST ‘STRAIGHTENING’ THE HORIZON, ‘CROPPED’ BOTH BOTTOM & TOP, ADDED SOME ‘HIGHLIGHT’ & ‘SHARPENED’ THE PHOTO… THEN WENT TO WORK WITH MY ‘RETOUCH’ TOOL TO GET ALL THE DUST SPOTS OUT OF THE PHOTO.  LEFT ONE SPOT IN UNDER THE LAST GOOSE AT EXTREME RIGHT…ALSO USED THE ‘RETOUCH’ TOOL TO COMPLETELY TAKE OUT THE FOURTH & FIFTH GEESE WHO WERE BUNDLED TOGETHER
We are at a point in our 'loading of the Motorhome ' now where decisions have to be made. Available space is filling up fast, so looking at the 'stuff for Arizona' pile in the carport I knew today that everything we had hoped to take with us is not going to go. No way I was going to get my electric roto-tiller in anywhere. Dropped my 'south-west brochures to Congress' idea. Too much weight & space involved. Deciding whether to take some gardening tools like a shovel & rakes, or just buy new ones when we get there. And, certainly no room to fit my trusty wheelbarrow in anywhere. Decisions, decisions, but I'm sure we will get it all worked out just fine.
 

PHOTO ON TOP IS ORIGINAL & UNEDITED…WITH SAME PHOTO I ‘STRAIGHTENED’ THE HORIZON, ADDED ‘AUTO CONTRAST’ & ‘CROPPED’ A BUNCH OF UNNECESSARY SKY OUT.  ALSO ‘SHARPENED’ THE PHOTO A BIT

Kelly dug up some additional info on that house & property I had in Thursday's post. She found out there is an air of mystery & intrigue about it's recent past, and an explanation of why it has been sitting empty since August of 2009. First, this police report........

 
I DON’T USE MY ‘SATURATION’ BUTTON A LOT BUT I DID ON THIS PHOTO TO POP THE COLOR OUT OF THE GRAY BACKGROUND

$5.5 Million Drug Raid - BELGRAVE Date: 2009-08-31 09:10:59
By: OPP (Ontario Provincial Police)
(Belgrave, Ontario.) - On August 26, 2009 members of the Ontario Provincial Police Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau - Drug Enforcement Unit, Western Region Emergency Response Team, Western Region Canine Unit and Huron OPP Crime Unit were conducting a joint forces drug eradication program in the Huron County area.
As a result, an address located at 85043 Marnoch Line in the Municipality of North Huron was identified to have a large outdoor marihuana grow present. A search warrant was sought and executed on August 27, 2009. Police located cannabis marihuana plants worth an estimated street value of 5.5 million dollars. Police also seized items related to the production of cannabis marihuana from the residence.
Duc Hieu PHAM (43yrs) of North Huron, Cong Duc PHAM (76yrs) of North York and Tuong NGUYEN (33yrs) of Scarborough are charged with Production of Cannabis Marihuana and Possession of Cannabis Marihuana for the Purpose of Trafficking.
All three persons were held in police custody pending bail hearings on August 31, 2009 in the Ontario Court of Justice - Goderich, Ontario.

 

NO NEED TO HAVE ALL THAT SKY IN THE PHOTO SO ‘CROPPED’ MOST OF IT OUT… ADDED SOME ‘HIGHLIGHT’ TO GIVE THE CLOUDS & WHITECAPS A WHITER LOOK & ‘SHARPENED’ THE PHOTO …ALSO ADDED A TOUCH OF ‘FILL LIGHT’ TO ADD SOME DETAIL TO THE FOREGROUND

Kelly also found out by calling the nearby town of Wingham's District Clerk's Office today that the property is at this moment in the process of changing ownership. Clerk said she did not know if the house has been sold or is being defaulted back to a bank. When Kelly talked to the Realtor Thursday he seemed to be unaware of any sale & said he had been having trouble with the Toronto drug dealer who owned the property. It all seems to be in limbo right now..........

 

‘CROPPED’ A LOT OF SKY OUT OF THIS PHOTO & ADDED A BIT OF ‘SATURATION’ TO BRING THE COLOR OUT IN THE LEAVES

Angers me to no end to think low life drug peddlers in Toronto would come all the way out here into the peaceful countryside & buy up a beautiful 70 acre farm property to use for no other purpose than to grow, make, & peddle drugs. That explains the trash lying around & the obvious neglect to that property. If it was up to me I would have absolutely no mercy for those scum bag drug dealing #!!%(#:*#}*!! No doubt my photo of that cleared 10 acres in the post Thursday is where they were growing their marihuana .

 

THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF ‘CROPPING’… I ALSO ADDED SOME ‘AUTO CONTRAST’ & ‘SHARPENED’ THE PHOTO…HAD THERE BEEN SOME NICE BIG WHITE PUFFY CLOUDS AGAINST A BLUE SKY I MIGHT NOT HAVE CROPPED IT SO MUCH

Over the next few posts I am going to include more photo examples of what you can do with Picasa’s free photo editing program.  I know one can do far more with the Photoshop programs but if your looking for a photo program that’s easy to use & doesn’t cost anything, I whole heartedly recommend Picasa.

 

AN EXAMPLE OF PICASA’S ‘FOCAL B&W’…ONLY THE KAYAKER IS IN COLOR WHILE THE REST OF THE PHOTO IS BLACK & WHITE

 

COME ON DAD, GET OUT OF THAT CHAIR & LET’S GO JEEPIN………………….

GROANER'S CORNER:)) Osama Bin Laden was living with 3 wives in one compound and never left the house for 5 years. It is now believed that he called the US Navy Seals himself.

---------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS - .https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

CAN’T AFFORD IT…BUT WE WENT TO LOOK ANYWAY

TONIGHT’S PHOTOS ARE FROM A HOUSE & PROPERTY THAT CAUGHT OUR EYE, BUT NOT OUR POCKETBOOK…HOUSE & GROUNDS ARE IN NEED OF SOME TLC BUT ‘WOW’ WHAT A GREAT ENJOYABLE PROJECT FOR THE RIGHT PERSON

There are many nice days each year & then there are a lot of even nicer days. And then, a few times a year, there are those truly phenomenal good feeling days. Today, with warmer temperatures & a gentle breezes blowing banks of bilious clouds around, & our forests ablaze with Autumn colors, we had ourselves just a great drive through the countryside on the way to & back from visiting Uncle Harry in Mitchell, Ontario.

IMAGINE HAVING ALL THIS AS JUST A VERY SMALL PART OF ONE’S OWN VERY BIG BACK YARD….BEYOND THOSE TREES ALONG THE PROPERTY EDGE LIES THE MAITLAND RIVER…AND, YOU COULD EVEN GET AN RV EASILY BACK HERE:))

 

Kelly had done some sleuthing on a 70 acre piece of property we looked at a few days ago & found out nobody was living there. The property is financially waaaaaay beyond us but we swung around to have a closer look at it anyway on our way home. We love poking around & exploring new places. Also a good opportunity for us to get out & stretch our legs & let Pheebe excitedly race around checking out every nook, cranny, & Ground Hog hole. For us, the property was totally our cup of tea & the old sadly neglected house had a beckoning charm all it's own. It just needs a warm beating heart.  We walked all around oogling & awgling for about 40 minutes before getting our heads back on straight & realistically understanding, this place could not be ours:((  But awwww, the things dreams are made of……………….:))

ONE OF TWO PONDS NEAR THE HOUSE WITH CRYSTAL CLEAR SPRING FED WATER

 

JANNA had a Picasa question about the 'Graduated Tint’ button in Picasa. Glad she asked about that one because this is the button to use for your sky photos. If your photo has sky in it that looks a bit on the light side, one click of this button will darken & put a bit of detail into your clouds. Hit the button again & the sky darkens down again adding more detail to the clouds. You can darken down a pale blue sky to a deeper blue this way. This only affects the top third of your photo & does not darken the the whole photo. I use this button to give my skies a richer look because your camera does not always return you the color & light density you saw with your naked eye. A photo editing program enables a person to correct the cameras failure & restore a photo to the way your eye saw it in the first place.

PART OF THIS HOUSE IS AN ORIGINAL OLD LOG CABIN

 
While on the topic of Picasa & skies, here is another mainstay tool that will greatly improve some of your sky photos by simply 'eliminating' too much unnecessary sky. The 'Crop' button is one of the top 3 tools I use. Unless you have some spectacular cloud photos, I would suggest cropping all that blue out of your photo & draw the attention to your subject, not the big blue boring sky.  In the next few days I will pull together a few photos to better explain ‘Graduated Tint’ & the ‘Crop’ button.

NICE BARN/GARAGE/DRIVING SHED WITH A HARD TO SEE LARGE HIGH DOOR IN THE SHADOWS ON THE LEFT TO DRIVE A MOTORHOME IN

 

LOOKS LIKE THE FAR BUILDING HOUSED CHICKENS AT ONE TIME

 

HOUSE ALSO HAS A DRIVE-IN GARAGE/WORKSHOP AT THE BACK & LOOK AT THAT SUN ROOM….WOW:))

And, we welcome another new Blog Follower today.  MNSAILORGAL will be aboard when we roll out of Bayfield soon.  Thanks for dropping by Mnsailorgal:))

FOR US,  THIS IS THE TYPE OF PROPERTY DREAMS ARE MADE OF

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A man was telling his neighbor, "I just bought a new hearing aid. It cost me four thousand dollars, but it's state of the art. It's perfect." "Really," answered the neighbor. "What kind is it?" "Twelve thirty."

---------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS - .https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

SOME PHOTO & PICASA TIPS ON A GRAY RAINY DAY

IT IS THE TIME OF YEAR FOR WEIRD & WONDROUS THINGS GROWING IN OUR YARD & FLOWERBEDS

Just like some of this areas early Autumn leaves, our Pine tree needles have begun to fall.  It was a surprise for us 10 years ago when we first moved here to see so many pine needles covering the ground.  We just hadn’t thought of evergreen trees losing needles in the Fall.  In another week or so we will be walking on a silent carpet of Autumn Pine gold.

BACK YARD CAMPFIRE WITH A FEW PINE NEEDLES ALREADY ON THE GROUND 

In Mike's post over at PHANNIE & MAE I see he has himself a new Canon SX-40 camera which he is pretty happy with.  I had left a comment suggestion on Mike’s post about using fill in flash on his first people photo but after looking at the photo again a second time on our desktop computer I see the the photo didn’t actually need a fill in flash.  I had first looked at the photo earlier this morning sitting in my recliner with my laptop precariously perched on my lap.  This sometimes presents a problem, especially when looking at photos.  If the screen is tipped just a tad too much away from the user the photo appears too dark.  If screen is tilted just a tad to close to the user, a photo can appear too light.  I obviously had my screen tipped back just a touch too far when I looked at Mike’s photo the first time.  I’m sure other folks have noticed this problem with their laptop screens from time to time as well.  However, the tip I left for Mike is still valid………………. 

And, speaking of ‘happy,’ you had better check out another Mike’s post over at MIKE & PAT'S TRAVELS as Mike meets his twin Great Granddaughters for, I think, the first time:))

I have been using Picasa's photo editing program almost daily now for about 4 or 5 years so I do know my way around the program a wee bit & do have a couple tips regarding a couple of it's tools. First, the 'I'm Feeling Lucky' button is fine if you are new to Picasa. It will automatically grab you some quick results from your photos. Some good, some not so good. I see it as kind of a razzle-dazzle button to get you started & I made the mistake in the early days of always hitting that button to correct my photos. However, I have not used that button in years & I would strongly suggest you not get in the habit of hitting that button to automatically improve your photos. You can do a far better job of improving your photos manually after you experiment with all the other tools & get to know your way around the easy to learn program. One problem the 'I'm Feeling Lucky' button has is that it can put too much saturation into your colors. Maybe impressive at first, except it is quite often not the true realistic colors in the subject.  Yes, some times saturation can be used to bring out faded colors in some photos, but you just have to be careful not to overdo it & end up with artificial looking colors……………

AN EXAMPLE OF ‘FILL IN FLASH’ LIGHTING UP THE OVERHEAD BASSWOOD LEAVES

Second button I am very careful with & only use rarely now is the 'Saturation' button itself. Once again, easy to hit this button a lot & watch your colors 'pop' out. Problem is, they usually pop out way too much often leaving you with a yellow color caste to your photos. Yes, there is a slider bar to tone down the saturation but....... If & whenever I decide to use a file photo from about 4 years ago now I have to drag it back into Picasa & redo it because back in 2008 I was still locked into the bad habit of hitting that 'Saturation' button waaaaaaaay too often. Greens are artificially green, reds are blown out & fields of light green grass can turn out bright yellow in some cases.

PHEEBS & KELLY LOADING UP SOME CANNED GOODS TODAY…(SLIDE IS IN)

Now, having wrote the above paragraph with a few Picasa tips & opinions, let me be very clear about something. A few times in the past when I have written posts on how I think photos or blog posts can be improved, some folks have taken offense to that in thinking I was telling them how to do things.  Wrote a post awhile back called, JUST TRYING TO HELP & in that post I went on to offer some ideas, make folks aware of some pitfalls, & use myself as an example of mistakes made along the way.  I do have a little experience with photography, editing photos, & blog writing so felt comfortable writing that post.   One has to keep in mind that what I say here are only my opinions & they are not some kind of rules on how things should be done.  These are just thoughts on the way I do things, & why.  If a few of the tips help, great. If not, well, that’s life:))

 

  

PHOTO TIP:  MOST OF THESE MUSHROOM PICS WERE TAKEN WITH A SMALL PIECE OF KLEENEX DRAPED OVER THE CAMERA FLASH TO DIFFUSE THE FLASH & GIVE THE PHOTOS A SOFTER TOUCH OF LIGHT

Been a lot of buzz around lately about unhealthy dog food & treats, etc. Lots of INFO  about it on the internet. Kelly is very careful about what she buys in the way of dog food but decided to check our doggy treat supplies anyway. Ended up throwing out 'Dentley's Natural Flavor Rawhide Roles'. Although distributed from Phoenix Arizona....the product is made in China!! Also threw out American Kennel Club's 'Duck Jerky'. Although it says 'Pet Brands Inc.' Columbus, Ohio....it too is 'manufactured in China'. We have just heard too many negative things about food manufacturing in China, whether it be pet food or human food. We have consciously been trying to avoid products from China. Not easy, because our retail shelves are just loaded with the stuff.

 

 

THESE MUSHROOMS ARE GROWING IN A PATCH OF PERIWINKLE IN OUR SIDE YARD

Noticed in the November 2012 Canadian Consumer Magazine that the Nikon Coolpix S100 holds down the top spot for point & shoot digital cameras. In the DSLR top spot is Canon's EOS 60D. In between those two types of cameras are the models described as SLR-like. Panasonic's Lumix DMC-GH2 holds down the top spot here with the most number of points. I have no idea how these points are reached & there is quite a price range difference between some of these competing camera models.
   

  THIS SMALL EDIBLE ‘PUFFBALL’ IS WELL PAST IT’S PRIME TIME FOR EATING

Despite the gray rain soaked morning, Kelly did get quite a few food items loaded into the rig. I stayed in the shed & took the opportunity to paint some garden tool handles. With all the foliage around our place it's easier for me to find garden tools if they are brightly painted. Can't rely on my short term memory to tell me where I have left things anymore...................

Judging from the Magnolia flowers in our latest Blog Followers photo I’m thinking our latest Follower comes from just across the street.  Kelly has been helping neighbor MONICA with some computer problems the last couple days & I recognized the Magnolia flower photo as one of my own.  Monica has been keeping tabs on our blog for a couple years now.  Nice to see you on the Blog Followers list Monica:)) 

I LIKE SUMAC TREES SO WE HAVE LOTS OF THEM IN OUR YARD

GROANER'S CORNER:(( My first job was working in an orange juice factory, but I got canned...couldn't concentrate.  After that I tried to be a tailor, but I just wasn't suited for it...mainly because it was a so-so job.  Then I tried to be a chef -- figured it would add a little spice to my life, but I just didn't have the thyme.  I managed to get a good job working for a pool maintenance company, but the work was just too draining.  Then I worked in the woods as a lumberjack, but I just couldn't hack it, so they gave me the ax.
After that I worked in a blanket factory, but it folded.  Next was a job in a shoe factory; I tried but I just didn't fit in.  After many years of trying to find steady work I finally got a job as a historian until I realized there was no future in it.  My best job was being a musician, but eventually I found I wasn't noteworthy.  I became a professional fisherman, but discovered that I couldn't live on my net income.  My last job was working at Starbucks, but I quit because it was always the same old grind.................:))

---------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS - .https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

PHEEBS & I SPLIT A ROAST BEEF & LETTUCE SANDWICH

We didn't let a lite sprinkling of rain keep us from our morning walk. No wind & slightly warmer temps made for a pleasant trek in the forest. Caught a fleeting glimpse of two Deer on the trail ahead. Remained overcast for half the day & then turned into a full blown perfect sunny Autumn afternoon.
 

EVEN SAW SOME BEARS & HORSES IN RECENT TRAVELS
Pheebs & I did make a quick grocery run to Goderich for the usual few necessity's of life. Cranberry juice, Ginger Ale, Yogurt, Bananas, & Peanut Butter. Split us a roast beef sandwich with lettuce from the Deli. We were quick to pull the pickles out of it.

WONDER IF THESE RELAXING COWS ARE AWARE OF THE OMINOUS MUSHROOM CLOUD BEHIND THEM ARISING FROM AN ATOMIC BOMB BLAST A COUPLE DAYS AGO

 
Kelly was able to dig up some info on the green house & property photo in Monday's blog we like. Kind of a good new-bad news scenario. Good news is that yes, it can be bought:)) Bad news is that it comes with 70 acres of land for a whopping $459,000:(( End of green house story!!

And tonight we welcome a new Blog Follower.  MARTHA PEREZ, MARTHA BARRIERA joins us for our upcoming south-west travels. Welcome aboard Martha:))

And, thanks once again to readers for sending in the nice emails.  You are all an inspiration:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( And the Lord spoke to Noah: ''In six months I'm going to make it rain until the whole earth is covered with water and all the evil people are destroyed. But I want to save a few good people, and two of every kind of living thing on the planet. I am ordering you to build Me an Ark.''
And in a flash of lightning He delivered the specifications for an Ark.

''Okay," said Noah, trembling in fear and fumbling with the blueprints.

''Six months, and it starts to rain,'' thundered the Lord. ''You'd better have my Ark completed, or learn how to swim for a very long time.''
And six months passed. The skies began to cloud up and rain began to fall. The Lord saw that Noah was sitting in his front yard, weeping. And there was no Ark.
''Noah," shouted the Lord, "where is my Ark?'' A lightning bolt crashed into the ground next to Noah, for emphasis.
''Lord, please forgive me," begged Noah. "I did my best, but there were big problems. First I had to get a building permit for the Ark construction project, and your plans didn't meet code. So I had to hire an engineer to redraw the plans. Then I got into a big fight over whether or not the Ark needed a fire sprinkler system. My neighbors objected claiming I was violating zoning by building the Ark in my front yard, so I had to get a variance from the city planning commission.

Then I had a big problem getting enough wood for the Ark because there was a ban on cutting trees to save the spotted owl. Then the carpenters formed a union and went out on strike. I had to negotiate a settlement with the National Labor Relations Board before anyone would pick up a saw or a hammer. Now we got 16 carpenters going on the boat, and still no owls.

Then I started gathering up the animals, and got sued by an animal rights group. They objected to me taking only two of each kind. Just when I got the suit dismissed, EPA notified me that I couldn't complete the Ark without filing an environmental impact statement on your proposed flood.

Then the Army Corps of Engineers wanted a map of the proposed new flood plain. I sent them a globe. And the IRS has seized all my assets claiming I'm trying to avoid paying taxes by leaving the country, and I just got a notice from the state about owing some kind of use tax. I really don't think I can finish your Ark for at least another five years,'' Noah wailed.

The sky began to clear. The sun began to shine. A rainbow arched across the sky. Noah looked up and smiled.
''You mean you're not going to destroy the earth?'' Noah asked, hopefully.
''Wrong!'' thundered the Lord. ''But being Lord of the Universe has its advantages. I fully intend to smite the earth, but with something far worse than a flood. Something man invented himself.''
''What's that?'' asked Noah. There was a long pause, and then the Lord spoke:

''Government.''
---------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS - .https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com