Seen on this morning's walk, more natural beauty

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Right after 7 a.m. this morning, I pulled on a long-sleeved T-shirt, some pants, socks and my Crocs, then finished off with a fleece vest which I zipped up to my neck--it's cool today, 50 degrees and a bit of a breeze while I was out. I crossed the street and headed for the parking lot behind Albertina Kerr, a large level space, empty this early which means I can make loops or crisscross it easily. In a parking strip on the paved lot behind Albertina Kerr, I found this blooming peony.



The different petal edges on each blossom fascinate me.



I'm glad that I took a photo at a perspective which shows you the back of Albertina Kerr. I took these photos with my iPhone 5 beneath overcast skies.



An amazing red rhododendron blooms in the southwest corner of the parking lot, right where there's a short sloping driveway out onto NE Flanders.



These two rhodies provide privacy for the entrances to this duplex on NE Flanders.

Reds

See the various reds I saw, across from the bus stop at NW 21st and Everett. The rhododendrons caught my eye first, then almost instantly I saw the rest of the reds, picked up the camera that hung around my neck and snapped the photo last Tuesday. This was with the new lens I had to buy on Saturday, a Quantaray 18-200. You see, on Friday night after I left 3 Doors Down Cafe, I got off the 20 on Sandy and went to Voodoo Doughnuts to get one for dessert. Naturally, I wanted to take photos--that's when I discovered that the lens that came with my camera, my everyday lens that I've used and used and used was all used up. Surprisingly, I did not panic. I live in a big city, I thought. Surely I can find another lens that fits the Nikon D50, one that will focus for me. Lo and behold, I only had to go to two stores and I found the new one which, thankfully, I could actually afford.

Do you notice any difference in the quality of the photo?

ABC Wednesday - R is for Return of the Rhododendrons

One more R for red ...



If you're of a mind to, please go to Mrs. Nesbitt's Place for loads of other ABC Wednesday blogs! Look at the list of links per Mr. Linky.

January, 2008, Theme Day: Best Photo of the Year

For what seemed like an inordinately long time, these rhododendron buds stood guard at our building's front door, reminding me for all the world of a photo of those terracotta soldiers from the tomb of China's first emperor, Shi Huangdi.

I took this photo months before I became aware of the City Daily Photo Blog community. For that reason, I decided to look through the many photos I had taken prior to September 1, 2007, searching for a photo I particularly wanted to share with you. So today I begin what I plan to be my first full calendar year as a CDPBer, with this photo that I took on March 4, 2007.

I'm not sure that I can truly convey how satisfying, exciting and supportive I find the CDPB community to be for me, so I'll just say, "Thank you, from my heart."

You'll have a blast looking at all of these photos of the year, 2007:

Paris, France - London, England - Hyde, UK - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Grenoble, France - Stockholm, Sweden - Riga, Latvia - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Manila, Philippines - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Weston (FL), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - New Orleans (LA), USA - Wichita (KS), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - San Francisco (CA), USA - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Greenville (SC), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Mainz, Germany - Melbourne, Australia - Portland (OR), USA - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Toulouse, France - Naples (FL), USA - Jakarta, Indonesia - Brussels, Belgium - Stayton (OR), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Toruń, Poland - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Budapest, Hungary - Baziège, France - Nashville (TN), USA - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Chicago (IL), USA - Prescott (AZ), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Nottingham, UK - Moscow, Russia - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Evry, France - Trujillo, Peru - Arlington (VA), USA - Denpasar, Indonesia - American Fork (UT), USA - Seattle (WA), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Coral Gables (FL), USA - Montpellier, France - Joplin (MO), USA - Pilisvörösvár, Hungary - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Boston (MA), USA - Torun, Poland - New York City (NY), USA - Dunedin (FL), USA - Quincy (MA), USA - Stavanger, Norway - Chateaubriant, France - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Jackson (MS), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Port Elizabeth, South Africa - Budapest, Hungary - Austin (TX), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - Cypress (TX), USA - Bicheno, Australia - Wrocław, Poland - Brookville (OH), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - Cheltenham, UK - Wellington, New Zealand - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Mumbai (Maharashtra), India - London, UK - Haninge, Sweden - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Arradon, France - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Orlando (FL), USA - Mumbai, India - Terrell (TX), USA - Bogor, Indonesia - Delta (CO), USA - Radonvilliers, France - Saigon, Vietnam - San Diego (CA), USA - Adelaide (SA), Australia - Belgrade, Serbia - Auckland, New Zealand - Seguin (TX), USA - Inverness (IL), USA - Oslo, Norway - Singapore, Singapore - Las Vegas (NV), USA - New York City (NY), USA - Anderson (SC), USA - Torino, Italy - Susanville (CA), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Sharon (CT), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Memphis (Tennessee), USA