Photo Challenge for November ~ Trees

It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts,

as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanation from old trees, that so

 wonderfully changes and renews the spirit.

~ Robert Louis Stevenson ~

An ancient African tree, the late afternoon stopping off perch for the huge Marabou storks.

Zimbabwe, Africa ~ July 2012

The beautiful palms reflected in the pool at a house where we stayed.

Kona, Hawaii ~ February 2012

The tall, tall Ponderosa pines of northern California.

Lassen Volcanic National Park ~ July 2013

Trees at sunset - the Drakensberg Mountains in the distance.

Mala Mala Private Game Reserve, South Africa ~ July 2012

Do go visit Donna's blog HERE for this month's fun challenge and to view beautiful trees in all their glory.

Personal Photo Challenge July - Portraits

For this month's challenge I looked back through my many of photos of women and girls 

around the world. 

I love to photograph faces of people who are different, striking, not necessarily pretty and perfect in 

what we Westerners may perceive as classic beauty, more interesting in their skin tones,
hair texture, cultural ornamentation etc.

These are the portraits I've chosen ~ strong females of varied ages, living their very
different lives in different countries.

An Indian woman of a certain age, weaving baskets for a living in a tiny river
village near Cochin, Kerala.

Taken with my Canon 7D SLR during my 2012 visit.  A little definition added via PicMonkey
to define her gorgeous pewter colored hair.

OK, cheating a bit here - couldn't decide which beautifully coiffed girl to feature, so you get to view them both. Obviously the braiding is done by family members of the village - no professional beauty salons here!
Also, this sweet girl is not holding anything electronic - just a stick of gum which we were handing out.
We did take small solar calculators to share which the kids loved.

This village in Zambia holds huge memories for me. Visited on my first safari trip to Africa in 2010, I fell in love with the children - see my post HERE where I shared my feelings - and the huge difference in their lives compared to the typical American child's upbringing and education was quite an eye-opener for me.

At the same village school in Zambia, Africa - a young girl carries an even younger boy on her 

back, as is custom, to assist them in getting around the dusty dirt trails weaving through the 

village. Most children here did not wear shoes.

Photos taken with my Olympus SP-590UZ - edited with PicMonkey.

I love to photograph my granddaughter Jasmin and we often play around with our cameras. 

Even when she pulls faces, to me she looks lovely. Don't forget now I'm the Grandma and perhaps 

a wee bit prejudiced. 

This was taken in my dining room (2013) and I like the background with the Santo.

Camera, my Nikon Coolpix S6400 set on Portrait - can't fault this little point and shoot -
and a little funky editing in PicMonkey.

Be sure to visit Donna at her A Personal Photo Challenge blog where hopefully despite July
being a busy month, there will be many participants in this always fun challenge.
Wishing Donna speedy recovery from her surgery earlier this week - we love you Donna.