No Trespassing?

Wolkenburg castle

Two days ago I had an epiphany. I realized that for the last weeks I had been falling back into my old behavior of being an observer instead of an doer. Since I've decided at the beginning of the year that I want to live an active life, I wasn't exactly amused by this observation (pun intended).

So when I got an e-mail by my club yesterday morning, asking for last minute help with todays big scale event in Dresden, I jumped at the chance. During this event I will not only be the event photographer but also teach the attendees (from some CCIs and business promoting organizations) about Lomography and creativity (hence todays picture).

Lomography was my restart in photography, without my Lomo Fisheye camera there wouldn't be this blog or San's Visual Art. Lomography to me means sheer creativity.

What means creativity to you?

Architectural Lines and Shadows

Withered Wood

Good Morning. Life is currently really nice. Lovely Sunshine, the temperatures are rising, the outlooks for my careers (engineering and art) are becoming better by the day. Life is grand. Love it.

I really wish you to feel this positive and amused too.

Leading the way

No, I didn't row them up. They just lay there when I walked down this path and I found it hilarious so I took the picture.

It's Friday and the weather is horrible. So I will go on with my Spring cleaning. Therefore I've decided to use up and throw out stuff from my pantry. I love teas, so I own quite a lot of them. This goes so far, that when I was flat-sharing I was forbidden to buy any new teas until I used some of mine up. ;-) As my current tea collection is threatening to take over a whole shelf, I've decided to use them up before I buy some new tea.

I will throw out quite a lot of my spices too, because the glasses are just collecting dust and I haven't used them in years. Which means they will have lost there taste anyway. And I won't become like some people, who have spices in their pantry that are more then ten years past their expiry-date.
Leipzig is awesome in so far that there is a spice shop in the city which sells all kinds of loose spices. So I will try out new spices over the next few months.

Do you Spring clean?

Post 700 - Reaching the End of the Tunnel

This is Wolkenburg, Saxony, on a very sunny April day in 2011. Life can be magical if we let it be and recognize it.

A new week has started, giving us tons of possibilities.

For me the new week starts out with another watercolor class tonight. We will paint still lifes tonight. When our teacher (not Andreas) told us so last week I wasn't very keen on it, but I've changed my mind. After all I'm attending this class to broaden my knowledge and abilities, if I shut down every time I'm supposed to try something new, I won't evolve as an artist or person. Not a happy prospect.
So, tonight I'm going to buy tulips right before class, because I really wanted a tulip bouquet for months. I even bought a beautiful green vase a few months back, the poor thing is still waiting for its first bouquet. Me painting tulips, what a surprise.

What have you planned for this week? Are you trying new stuff.

Classic Entrance and a little of mood shopping

This is the formidable entrance to the church of the little Saxonian town Wolkenburg.

Yesterday I had a really frustrating day, so to boost my mood I went to my local artists supply and got myself a nice little gift. A COPIC Multiliner 0.1 and a square sketchbook.

I have been lusting after this kind of pen for 2 years now. I've had come across them for the first time in my Manga phase. Then last year I've had them in my shopping basket time and again, and time and again I put them back on the shelf. Yesterday was the big day. It took me a while to decide the size, but I think 0.1 is just perfect for me at this moment, I can buy smaller later on.

The sketchbook was due to the fact that I want to do a certain project and for this I need a square sketchbook with real bookbinding. All my other sketchbooks are ring bound and not squares. I admit I have a crush on square paper. DIN A sizes are just too normal and remind me to much of writing paper. By now I have as much square paper pads as I have DIN A papers. And I really prefer to draw on squares.

Left side binding paper brilliant white, right side drawing paper.

And I prefer paper that is not brilliant white. Drawing paper for schoolkids is always this extreme white. No wonder I never liked arts class at school. The brilliant white of copypaper hurts the eyes, well, my eyes at least. And copy paper or school drawing paper is lacking structure. Seriously, it's no fun at all.

But I've got tons of funstuff now, so I'm going to use it.

Have a great day.

Stylish Company

I'm in very stylish company in this picture. It's actually the shadow of a statue in the castle park of Wolkenburg. Oh, I like this picture soooo much. :-)

Today is another Offline-Sunday (no computer, no phone, no watch) for me and I direly need it. In the last 2 days the Breaking Weeks seemed to accelerate or climax. With this came a realization that...changes things quite a bit for me.

Thursday brought something to a very welcomed finish that I had been working on, on and off, for 4 months. So next week there'll be some changes around here.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Otherworldly

A double exposure. The striations are from the scan of the positive, I think they give this picture a very special edge. At first I was annoyed when I saw this jpg, but now... It is really funny but I really like trick photographies much better than the normal ones.

Since it is December 1st, I've opened the first door to my christmas calendar. I've found a drum. What did you find?

Perspective

I'm currently changing my perspectives quite a lot. For instance I never used a personal budget to reach my goals, but since yesterday I'm working on my 2012 budget. Yesterday I drew up the rough draft and today I'm tweaking it so that it fits my goals for 2012. This way I'll know if I'm on track to my goals or if I lost orientation. Do you draw up a yearly budget?

Circles

Fresh green! *happy sigh* In Leipzig fresh green has become quite scarce, in fact green in general has become scarce. But it's the cirlces that I really like about this picture.

Today, I went to another event of my club "Kreatives Leipzig e.V". We've had a tax consultant answering our questions. It was really interesting and his answers will help us all a lot. I tell you it is soooo helpful to have joined this club. I just love it.

House instead of creative work

When I left the dentist yesterday at 11:30 AM, I was in no mood to go to the Designers'Open. So I just went to my favourite Starbucks and had a Double Chocolate Muffin and a Chocolate Mocha for Breakfast. Yes, the dentist had given me the okay to eat and thanks to the pain killer I was reasonably well. So I waited until the shops opened, bought some pain killers specifically for my toothproblem and some black photo boards to be the background when I take new pictures of my new and old artwork. After that I did take a stroll through the park near the monument of the battle of the nations and then walked home over Leipzigs Southern Graveyard, which is amazing and calm and relaxing and beautiful. After that I did some of the housework that I hadn't had the energy for during the last weeks and then I finished the scarf for my friend and watched dvds.

What did you do on your Sunday?

It's in the details, isn't it?

In architecture and in life. This doorhandle belongs to the castle gate of castle Wolkenburg. For my life I found out that swing is best as the musical background for my artistic work, doesn't matter if it's photography, drawing, knitting (christmas is coming ;)* or other creative work. I do it best with some swing, I've created a playlist containing Tony Bennett, Robbie Williams, Michael Bublé, Michael Andrew & Swingerhead, Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers and Frank Sinatra. This music has style and the kind of humor I like.

I wish you all a magical weekend.

* The groan you heard were my old friends "Oh no, she's knitting, that means even more scarves for christmas. Gee, I don't have space for the new one."**
** Good thing they don't read this blog.

Or we walk along the old train tracks

Suspension Bridge from a different point of view

I just found out that there is the possibility of becoming a shareholder to a cinema-gallery-bar in Leipzig. I just love the thought of it. I love movies and I want to exhibit my lomography, soooo....

And the risk is relatively low....

Back on the track

Yesterday I've been to my first Iyengar yoga class and surprisingly I liked it (had plain Hatha yoga a few years back and I disliked it very much). So next Tuesday evening I'm back and train my poor muscles. I will do some of the stuff at home too. Because the stretching feels just too good to not do it.

Perfect light and architecture combined in Lomography

The church in Wolkenburg again. I just love what the fisheye did to the column. 

Enjoy your weekend. You definitely deserved it.

Independence Day in dry sheets

And I'm out of the tunnel. Whoop-di-doo....

This is not only the Independence Day of the USA, but also my very own Independence Day today. It is my first day on my new job*. Yes, the contract is signed and therefore the job is "in dry sheets."

The handrail could be my alter ego, not fitting in from all angles. The columns however, no edges, standing in a group, beige**, can't tell one from the other without seeing it's surroundings.

Have a great new week and month everyone.

* Funny detail: it was application number 99 that became my new job! Hilarious.

** Did I mention that I hate beige and nude colors (camel and so on) in general?! The fact that the shops are full of them now is getting majorly on my nerves. There are wonderfully cut skirts and dresses*** out there, but in beige or grey or camel? Ugh. I seriously don't want to blend in with the background, looking like withered grass or faded black. No thanks.

*** I saw a dream of a dress by Boss yesterday, but in grey for 250€?! No thanks, for that kind of money I want colors, strong colors. Which reminds me of Marco Polo. Remember that I wanted to buy polo-shirts at their shop? Well turns out this years polo-shirts shouldn't be worn out in the sun, because apparently the colour would fade. It said so on the sticker on the garment. Well, I don't know about you, but I always thought polo-shirts are to be worn outside in the sun in summer!?! I wonder where the Marco Polo designers think we are wearing these shirts. In the winter on the north pole? So now I don't have polo-shirts. But since it has only 12°C/53°F in Leipzig at this very moment, I don't care.

Wolkenburgs graveyard trees

Ha, I really like this first picture, it is so artsy!

Aren't they totally fascinating? I'm currently photographically obsessed with tree bark and its patterns.


Today I'm going to buy a new pair of earphones, since I put one earpiece into my tea yesterday.... Yep, not that smart. Well, they were already on the brink of falling apart, so this made the buy only more urgent.

Enjoy your weekend.

Taking the train is even greener now

Took this pic at the trainstation of Wolkenburg. As you can see nature is taking back this space. From what it looks like, the last train has left the station a decade ago. Don't know when exactly though. Well, at least it's good for taking pictures now. XD

Today, I get my hair cut, after four months since the last cut, it is high time.

Wolkenburgs sky without clouds