Where the Ghosts Live....

This picture is my strange result for the Photo Art Friday challenge.  I started with the same photo I used in my last post: 

There were a couple of suggestions - 1) Do something in black and white, and 2) use the "gradient map" feature in Photoshop.  I ended up doing some of both.  It was the first time I'd used the gradient map, and I love the results that you can achieve with it.  Obviously, I cropped a lot from my original photo before I worked on it.  I decided not to go totally black and white because I like the effect of letting a little color remain in the image.  The result I got made me think of a haunted house - definitely a hangout for the ghosts!

Whispers of the Past

Mouse over to see original photo

Today's assignment in Beyond Layers was to work with the word "whisper."  That meant coming up with something soft and delicate - not my usual type of work!  Kim also provided two new textures for us to work with. 

This photo was taken in Beaufort, North Carolina.  At one time this building was a school/academy.  I think it's a private home now.  My original photo was way too intense in color, so I used Kim's "flourish" texture twice and "the veil" texture once.  I did a lens flare layer, based on Kim's instructions, and adjusted "levels" to get the dreamy/hazy atmosphere.  On most layers, I erased the layer where it covered the flowers so that I could keep most of the color in the flowers.  Here's the original photo:

Beaufort, North Carolina

Seagrass is a gift shop on Front Street in Beaufort.  A selection of my notecards are for sale in this shop.  The owner was interested in local photos, and I provided plenty from Atlantic Beach and Morehead City, but had only one from Beaufort.  Since that's the location of the shop, the owner asked me if I would do some notecards with Beaufort scenes. 

I spent a morning in Beaufort before Hurricane Irene came through, and took about 200 photos.  These are ten of my favorites.  This first one is kind of obvious - Clawson's Restaurant!

The Crystal Coast Lady - a local tour boat.  I played with the photos in Photoshop. 

Another shot of shops on Front Street.

The General Store - marvelous stop for ice cream!

Colorful kayaks.  That's the Crystal Coast Lady in the background.



One of the power boats moored at the town dock.  There weren't very many boats in the marina, what with Irene being on her way.



Some permanent residents at the town dock.

A wind vane at the top of a building called the Carteret Academy.

And, lastly, some yard decor that caught my eye.

G is for Grace

This photograph was taken at The Old Burying Ground in Beaufort, North Carolina.  I found the following interesting information on their website:
The Old Burying Ground has dozens of graves with interesting stories. One grave, according to legend, contains an English sailor who was buried upright so that he could eternally salute his king. Another grave marker bears this inscription:

The form that fills this silent grave,
once tossed on ocean's rolling wave,
but in a port securely fast
he's dropped his anchor here at last.

I liked that bit about "dropping your anchor."

This is another view of the statue to show what it looked like before I Photoshopped it.

My Zentangle of the letter G.

The quote I used:  Grace isn't a little prayer you chant before receiving a meal.  It's a way to live.  (Jacqueline Winspear)



And, lastly, the page spread.

Sponge Boats

Before (Photos altered with Photoshop's Sponge Filter and Hue/Saturation)


After

Before

After (my favorite of these three)

Before

After

These photos were taken in Beaufort, North Carolina.

A Walk in Beaufort

Yesterday I was in our neighboring town of Beaufort to visit an outdoor Arts & Crafts show. I came home with a small piece of pottery, and a print, from a couple of artists I know. I also wandered around town with my camera. Here are my favorite shots from the day.
Two scenes from the Beaufort Old Burying Ground:














A statue from the Old Burying Ground, and a rocking chair on a front porch:















My favorite flower shots of the day:











And, lastly, some picturesque shrimp trawlers at a local dock: