The Lens-Artists Photo Challenge this week is to show up to five images you consider to be your ‘best ever.’ Today I’m presenting some of my best.

Some of my best layered photos

I took the first picture in my backyard. One day, I found an interesting arrowhead ten feet from my bedroom. It was sticking out of the sand. For this picture, I posed it on one of my Western Juniper trees. I love their colorful, layered bark.

I took the arrowhead to an Archaeology Roadshow event this summer, and the archaeologists were pretty excited to see it. They estimated that it’s at least 10,000 years old. Wow!

My next image is of the Red Canyon Scenic Overlook in Wyoming. You can look at ratings on a map, but you might not always agree with them. This site, 24 miles south of Lander, deserves its 4.9 star rating.

When I took this photo, there was drama in the layers of sky and on the land. In the sky, a parade of clouds gathered along the horizon. Color and texture fill the landscape. The red soil contrasted nicely with the spring green grass. Yellow wildflowers blanketed the hills on the left side of the picture.

The next image shows a ceramic vase called Yōki (Leaf Vessel) that I saw at the Portland Art Museum. This piece, created by Inaba Chikako, was inspired by lotus leaves waving in the wind. The vase portrays the action of leaves curling inward and unfurling outward. Though it may appear simple and monochromatic, the curving, encircling layers have a complex structure.

It’s always a challenge to take pictures of items in glass cases. I spent a lot of time editing out the reflections.

Some of my bird images

The next picture also happens to be in Portland, Oregon. I took this photograph of a Great Blue Heron at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden.

It was pouring rain, and maybe that somehow covered my presence. As I stood on the pathway, this bird walked right up to me, an arm’s length away. I froze in place. Then it turned and walked a few feet away to a nearby pond. It was a magical experience!

The next image is of a bird of a different kind. This is the famed Spruce Goose. It’s on display at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. The Spruce Goose, aka H-4 Hercules or Flying Boat, has a wingspan of 320 feet 11 inches and a length of 218 feet 8 inches. It is massive. Though it only flew for 26 seconds, it will forever be remembered in history.

I’m sharing this image in black and white to emphasize the curving lines of the aircraft and the straight lines of the supporting beams, the window frames, and the shadows. I included the old airline seats set up beneath the Spruce Goose since I thought they added a whimsical touch.

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my best photos. Limiting this post to only five pictures was extremely difficult.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Best ever images

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