15 May 2014

Watching the sky


Time for some "blue," May's ROY G BIV photo challenge color. I had hoped that the Arno would have changed to blue by now, but green was still the predominant hue when I last walked cross the river a few days ago. (You will find a couple of shots of the water later in the post, though they were taken earlier in the year.)

We have been waking up to the most beautiful, deep blue skies——the kind that make you grateful to be alive——so yesterday I decided to photograph the phases of the sky as the day progressed. Not a cloud could be seen when I awoke, but before the church bells had even chimed noon, fluffy white shapes began to invade the vast blueness. All in all, there was quite a bit of action in the sky, saving this post from being a series of homogenous blue swatches.

I've organized those I've chosen (from a selection of nearly 100!) according to either contrasts or similarities.

The first pair of images (above) shows the sky as I watched my daughter leave in the morning (left), and a blush of pink at the end of a tunnel clouds at sunset (right).


*


Below is a mid-morning blue & a late-afternoon blue (when the sky was almost colorless in proximity to the sun).



*


Fluffy white clouds that became gray as the afternoon went on...



*


A cloud surrounded by sky, and another one lost in a sea of gray...



*


Left: Trip planning along the Atlantic. Right: The pattern of clouds in this shot reminded me of the eastern seaboard of the United States. (The four- by three-foot map of the US that we bought last year has been on the kitchen wall until recently; as the school year screeches toward summer, it has become an interactive "tablecloth," for more hands-on planning.)




Sunshine trying to poke a hole in the clouds at 16:40, then painting the sky pink & violet just before calling it a day at 20:43...




Sunset-time, seen through one of our windows, as well as on the river (another day)...




Through the large arch of the Uffizi that overlooks the Arno is a slice of sky reflecting on the water. It reminded me of the map-view of a lake (and the building's mottled reflection makes me think of terrain shown on a map)...



*


Some twilight photos would have been the perfect way to end this post, but a veil of clouds hid the usual gradations of deep blue (the shades of blue that I love) before making way for the full moon a bit later. I don't have much success with nighttime photos, so it's probably best left in our imaginations!


 

*



The ROY G BIV photo challenge was started by artists Jennifer Coyne Qudeen
Julie Booth. Each month is devoted to a different color of the rainbow—red,
orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo & violet. All are welcome to join in
the search; June's color will be INDIGO. (Guidelines are here.)


14 comments:

  1. What a fascinating post, I love the moods of your sky photos - such variation in (primarily) 12 hours time. So interesting, too, comparing to the map. (And the fact that we all live under the same Moon).
    -sus

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad you enjoyed the post, Sus...it's always fun to see where the ROY challenge takes me - and others. I haven't checked to see everyone else's yet, but am looking forward to it!
      - Lisa

      Delete
  2. Hi Lisa- What an awesome idea...to spend the day looking up! It caught my breath to see the blue "swatches" and all the ever-changing moments in the sky. Thanks, as usual, for a thought-provoking and eye-catching post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I definitely enjoyed recording the changes in the sky over the course of a day. I think if I do it again I will choose the same vantage point for every photo - the sky can look so different even from one window to another/where you aim the camera in relationship to the location of the sun.
      Thanks again for the motivation to participate in ROY G BIV...

      Delete
  3. Water and sky - my two favorite photographic subjects, as they are endlessly changing and always beautiful. Your exquisite photos do tehm justice, and I also like your pairings with the maps. But that last one is truly breathtaking!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So true about water & sky! I'm so happy to live in a place with a river - it just seems to hold the city together, and I love the experience of crossing from one side to the other. Going to the river also gives one the chance to remember how big the sky really is, and to see the horizon - something that can be hard in the middle of a dense city with narrow streets!
      - Lisa

      Delete
  4. Spectacular photos! The mix of clouds, water only push me outside to see what I can see. I agree with Sharmon ... your last photo is breathtaking!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Mary Ann - I'm glad you enjoyed this stop on the "blue" blog hop! And yes, the view from Ponte Vecchio that last night before flying to Australia was like a "don't forget me" from Florence - so magical. I love the "columns" of light that reflect in the river at night, and the deepness of the blues...
      - Lisa

      Delete
  5. A day's diary of the sky - what a lovely way to capture blue. And that last photo is just wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "A day's diary of the sky" - I like that! Thank you, Margaret. Funny how well the timing worked out too - today we were back to mostly gray skies...I don't remember seeing any blue!
      - Lisa

      Delete
  6. My daughter Eva and I admired your water ripples but the photo of Sydney took our breath away. so lovely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks to both you & your daughter for stopping by for a look, Jill! Funny about the last photo - I had just come across it recently and thought to slip in it at the end, almost as an afterthought, yet it seems to be the one that readers are noticing most. (Btw, sorry if my explanation wasn't very clear, but it's also of the Arno - I had taken it the night before we left Florence to go to Sydney...though the water - everywhere you look there - was also stunning!)
      - Lisa

      Delete
  7. Anonymous28 May, 2014

    what a beautiful collection of sky and blue!!
    I've been dreaming indigo now for a while
    preparing to dip into an indigo summer

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello, Elizabeth, and thanks for stopping by. We should send everyone your way next month, to see your summer indigo - that's the ROY G BIV color for June. I'm looking forward to visiting to see what delights you have been up to...
      - Lisa

      Delete

Thank you for joining in on the dialogue; I appreciate your comments!
{Sorry about enabling word recognition, but I'm hoping it will alleviate the spam.}

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...