Y is for YELLOW

When I think of the colour YELLOW, I think of spring and summer and sunshine and all the beautiful flowers that bloom to brighten our days.  It's like waking up, stretching and yawning, to a new year of visual pleasures. 

"Yellow evokes the shine of the sun and is found throughout nature and the man-made world as a color that commands attention. This highly visible hue is found on everything from bumblebees to school buses, traffic signs to highlighters. Misbehaving soccer players are shown yellow as a warning, and Tour de France racers know the man in yellow is the rider to beat."  (from "Life in Color: Yellow" National Geographic)   

Yellow is also a very difficult colour to photograph because you have to have the exposure and saturation right.  I'm still using my auto focus so I have to tweak a lot of my yellow photos in Photoshop and even then, they don't look quite right.  But I'm learning all the time.

Before you take a look at the slideshow of my "yellow" photos, don't forget to give a loud yippee to the youthful Mrs. Nesbitt (creator of ABCW) and the yummy Roger (our administrator). And don't forget, too, that we're always yearning for new contributors to ABC Wednesdays so tell all your friends to check us out!  Now, on with the show and don't forget to turn up your sound to the music of "Walking On Sunshine."

X is for eXcellence in photography

Since the letter X is not used much at the beginning of words in the English language, I've decided to cheat a bit and use the "eX" prefix for this post.  Upon reviewing my photos that I've submitted to "Red Bubble," I realize that the camera Lorne gave me for Christmas this past year (Canon EOS Rebel T4i) has really helped me to fine tune my skills.  So with that in mind (and not to toot my own horn because I still have a loooong way to go before becoming excellent), I thought I'd show you some of the photos that have been either featured or have been winners in some of the challenges that individual groups offer.  All the photos that I've chosen have been featured in one or more groups and if they won a "challenge" in any of the groups I'm in, I have indicated that.

I also had one piece of writing featured and if you'd like to read it, just click here.  Called "A Simple Seed," it's about how I ran into a former student at the local grocery store and how the conversation led me to believe I had had an impact on her life. 

But before viewing the slideshow, we must remember to give expansive thanks to the extremely lovely Mrs. Nesbitt (creator of ABC Wednesday) and to the exciting and exquisite Roger who currently is her executive administrator.  Of course we must not forget the extraordinary team at ABCW who expend and exhaust themselves by visiting each and every participant to give exhuberant comments on their posts.

W is for WALKING in the WOODS

One of my favourite places to walk is in Ladner Harbour Park.  Depending on how long you have, you could spend 20 minutes or several hours here.  For a brisk walk, stay on the main trail and go all the way to the end and back in less than 30 minutes!  If you really want to explore, then take the tiny, narrow off-trails (as long as you don't mind bending under branches or brushing them and bushes aside) and you'll discover boundless beauty!  I live in what is considered a "village," although there is quite a large population here.  However, just a quick 5-minute drive from home is this wonderful paradise with trees that must be hundreds of years old, lots of wild flowers and birds like robins, sparrows, woodpeckers, eagles, and owls.  One morning, I even spotted a Great Horned Owl.  Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me because I could have captured a great shot - it just calmly looked down at me from its perch and slowly blinked!

This week, I decided to take you all on a walk through the woods.  Some spots can be a bit spooky, but don't worry.  Stick with me and I'll get you safely through.  It will be worth it.  Tegan enjoyed coming with me but was pretty worn out from the walk.

But before the show, we must thank the warmhearted and whimsical Mrs. Nesbitt, the creator of ABCW, and the wacky yet winsome Roger, our current administrator.  We welcome all newcomers at any time, but do let your friends know about ABC Wednesday in case they want to start in on our new round coming up soon! Now, on with the show!  Don't forget to turn up your sound - it's worth it because the music creates ambience.

V is for VIEWS & VILLAGE

Since I did Vancouver for the ABCW home page, I thought I'd just show you a few of my favourite photos of places I've been in the world.  Of course, I've included a few from my own village, too!  I wanted to show you more shots of France and Italy, but I didn't have a very good camera when I was there (not a digital) so you'll have to make do with one shot of Giverny (in the rain) and one of Portovenere along the Cinque Terre in Italy.  The slideshow is set to the music "Epic Journey."

Very great thanks to the vivacious Mrs. Nesbitt, the creator of ABC Wednesday, and to the virtuous Roger, our administrator.  Also, thanks to the valiant team of helpers who visit all the posts to give valuable feedback to our contributors.

U is for UNDER

 In English, the word "under" is used as a preposition and has several meanings.  It could mean "in a lower level," "less than," "below the surface of," "as a subject of," or figuratively "in the face of; in response to (some attacking force).

Since it was the first word I thought of when I was considering what to do for our U week, I went through my photos to see what I could find that related to the word under.  I found quite a few and put together my weekly slideshow set to the music "Almost Paradise."  Please enjoy, but before you do, let's remember the unequalled Mrs. Nesbitt for creating ABC Wednesday and the ubiquitous Roger for all he does by administering the site.  Also, remember the united team that does its utmost to visit everyone each week.  Now turn up your sound and enjoy the show.