Althouse: Arboretum.

April 15, 2023

Arboretum.

24 comments:

gilbar said...: Washington State To Allow Children to Be Legally Taken From Parents If They Don’t Consent to Gender Transition
Remember they olden days? Back when they 'claimed' that they WEREN'T going to take kids from parents?; 4/15/23, 2:47 PM
Scott Patton said...: For some reason, whenever I read the word that is the title of this post, it gets rendered inside of my head as if Jim Croce is singing it to the tune of "Operator".; 4/15/23, 2:53 PM
FullMoon said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/15/23, 2:58 PM
Old and slow said...: I've never commented on one of your photos before, but these? Good lord these are great!; 4/15/23, 3:11 PM
Mike of Snoqualmie said...: I see that the trees are still waiting to put out their spring blooms. Same here. The cherry trees are in bloom, but the maples and alders are not. They're just bare trunks and branches. Very depressing. Will spring never arrive?; 4/15/23, 4:04 PM
Owen said...: Pictures such as I have never seen before. Which means both "strange; arresting" and "hors categorie." They're amazing. How do you do it?

No! Don't tell us. It's your art.; 4/15/23, 5:13 PM
pacwest said...: @gilbar
I saw that. The article was disturbing, but surely the law can't be that cut and dried. I would assume they would risk loosing half their population if the law is as the article presented. I know I would be moving to a new state in short order if that was the case.; 4/15/23, 5:48 PM
Sydney said...: Did you use a special lens for the first photo?; 4/15/23, 5:54 PM
Mike of Snoqualmie said...: That Washington law is that severe. The progressives want control over the children.; 4/15/23, 6:22 PM
Dave Begley said...: I found out that there was a drag queen story hour this AM in Omaha. In the pictures, I saw kids that looked to be 8-5 years old.; 4/15/23, 6:48 PM
Mom said...: That first photo is extraordinary. Tree, blossom, light, shadow, all perfectly still -- and yet, the shot is full of motion, change, life. Wow!; 4/15/23, 6:59 PM
rcocean said...: Biden's speech to the Irish Parliment ranged from embarrassing to boring. What drove him to do it?

Next stop Israel, complete with some wailing at the wailing wall and a speech where Joe tells us he taught the Jewish Students Talmudic law and fought in the 6 days war.; 4/15/23, 7:07 PM
rcocean said...: Arboretum? No.

Arborceum

Nice photos.; 4/15/23, 7:10 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "Did you use a special lens for the first photo?"

It's just my iPhone 14 Pro

The info the phone recorded is: "back triple camera 2.22mm f/2.2"

So which lens of the triple camera was used? I think it must be the .5X Ultra Wide.; 4/15/23, 7:24 PM
Ann Althouse said...: The other thing that made these pictures interesting is the length of the shadows. I would have guessed that it was quite late in the day and close to sunset, but my phone tells me that is incorrect. It was 2:47 pm.

So one tip I would offer is just to pay attention to the light and shade — whatever happens to be going on, including the shadows on the ground.

The flowers are very distracting. You go at this time a year to see these very showy flowers on the trees (here, a type of magnolia), so you can fixate on getting the big masses of flowers that delight you in person. But that's often not what looks best in the photograph. Here including the shadow and the branches gave the photo more drama and structure.

In the second photo, the flowering tree was behind me and I was looking out over the bare trees and noticed that the shadows were fantastic. It would be easy to think those trees were losers and would only become important in a week or so when they bloom.

I'm not doing anything technical with the phone. I am just looking for things to photograph, framing shots, zooming in or out, and clicking. That's enough work. I'm trying to have an aesthetic experience in real time (for my own pleasure and spiritual enrichment). Getting home and seeing what I got is a mixed bag of surprises and disappointments. Going through the photos, selecting the ones to blog, and making a post — that too is just an artistic/spiritual ritual that I do for my own benefit. Just like all the blogging, it's something I do for myself, with the excitement of being seeable.

It's a nice bonus that there are people who appreciate some of what I'm letting be seen.; 4/15/23, 7:37 PM
Breezy said...: Such lovely photographs. It’s amazing in the second that there is such a strict line along the top of the tree shadow!; 4/15/23, 7:57 PM
gilbar said...: pacwest said...
@gilbar
I saw that. The article was disturbing, but surely the law can't be that cut and dried. I would assume they would risk loosing half their population if the law is as the article presented. I know I would be moving to a new state in short order if that was the case

apparently, the kid has to run away, 1st..
The Old law, apparently said, that they HAD TO notify the folks that they had them..
But, The New law, apparently says: NOT if they're 'scared the folks won't let them self-harm'; 4/15/23, 8:36 PM
TickTock said...: Wondering in what deep way your wonderful talent for design influences your approach to the law.; 4/16/23, 2:21 AM
farmgirl said...: Shadow play. It’s very cool.; 4/16/23, 3:34 AM
tim in vermont said...: “ Washington is also unable to consistently abide by the values that it trumpets. This disconnect creates the risk that other states might decide that the U.S.-led order is fundamentally illegitimate.”

Or even its own citizens.

Interesting read on the strategic asset that US hypocrisy has been and how that is the real damage caused by these leaks.

I don’t think that this would have been published if it didn’t contain an obvious lie at the end that things are improving under Biden, when the most recent leak shows Biden is as flagrant a liar as we have seen in office.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2013-10-15/end-hypocrisy; 4/16/23, 7:16 AM
Rusty said...: Morton Arboretum charges $17.00. $15.00 for seniors.
Does Madisons charge admission?; 4/16/23, 7:42 AM
stlcdr said...: I like that bottom one with the shadowy tendrils. One might wonder can tendrils be used during the day? Such a shadowy word, only at night.; 4/16/23, 8:45 AM
Jim at said...: but surely the law can't be that cut and dried.

It is. And Inslee will sign it.

It will lead to bloodshed when the state fucks with the wrong person and kidnaps his/her kids. Count on it.; 4/16/23, 6:02 PM
PMD said...: Rusty, Madison charges nothing, and there’s usually no more than another car or two in the first parking lot you come to. It’s a great arboretum, year round. And covered with wild turkeys.; 4/16/23, 6:23 PM