Night Scene in Porto

Since my last visit, Porto has become quite a popular destination.  At night, some of the downtown streets are full of people walking around and looking for restaurants, music, and bars. And since my last visit, cameras have improved, so I was able to get this shot of a night scene.

Douro River from Ponto Dom Luis

It was cloudy as we walked across the top of the Dom Luis Bridge in Porto. The gray skies made the colors seem more intense. This is a view from the other side of the river (Vila Nova de Gaia). When I took this photo, I was amazed that I had just walked across the top of that beautiful bridge. I am still amazed, and glad that I have this photo to prove it.  

Backyards of Porto (View from the Dom Luis Bridge)

Just got back from a week in Portugal.  I took lots of photos as keepsakes, and some with art in mind (perhaps more watercolors of Portugal.)  One of the most spectacular things I did on this trip was to walk over the top of the Dom Luis Bridge.  This is one of the first pictures I took on the bridge, a view of the back yards on the Porto side.  I love all the purple morning glories. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition.

"Snowcapped Mountains" (Now on Artsy)

This is another one of my "Mountain Daydreams," images inspired by my home state of Colorado.  I have posted this painting here before, but am re-posting because it is now listed on Artsy (courtesy of Galatea Fine Arts). To see my other paintings on Artsy, follow this link: https://www.artsy.net/artist/randa-dubnick

"Yellow Aspen Maroon Bells" Heading to New Home

I have posted photos of this painting here before, but today I shipped this painting off to its new owner, in Georgia, so this is my one last look at it. This is acrylic used as watermedia, on aquabord, 16" x 20".  It is one of my "Mountain Daydreams," inspired by memories of my home state of Colorado. In this case, the memories are of the aspen trees turning and the Maroon Bells of Aspen, Colorado.

Composition with the Zakim Bridge

Last week we drove into Boston. Our destination was South Station, so we went over the Zakim Bridge. It is named for "Lenny" Zakim. Wikipedia describes him as "a Jewish-American religious and civil rights leader in Boston." He was a man who tried to build bridges between people, working against racism and antiSemitism.  I love the Zakim bridge, and try to take pictures of it whenever I can.  Tonight I cropped this image out of one of my photos.  If you know the Zakim Bridge, this is a recognizable image; if not, it works as an abstract composition. If you want to know more about Leonard P. Zakim, follow this link: https://thelennyzakimfund.org

Pale Pink Fuchsia Plant

Here's another photo from last week's trip to my favorite plant shop.  I took this photo in a greenhouse, which is why there is diffused light at the top of the photo. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition.

Two Kinds of Fuchsia Plants

I took this photo last week while visiting one of my favorite local plant shops.  This plant is called fuchsia, and I have found the name confusing because it is so close to fuschia,  the name of a color. But this plant is called fuchsia no matter what color the blossoms are.  In this case, you can see one plant with flowers in shades of pink, and another plant with blossoms in purple and hot pink, also known as fuschia.

Blue Shingles and Vines with White Flowers

We drove up 127 (along the coast) to Beverly Farms to see a lovely little yarn store in a little cottage.  I loved these flowering vines* against the blue shingles, so I took a picture.  Tonight I edited the original photo to get this composition.

*Mandevilla Bella. (I looked it up.) 

Sailboats in Rockport

Here's another picture from this week's trip to Rockport. I took the photo from Bearskin Neck, near "Motif Number One".  I love sailboats and it was nice to see them close up. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition.

Motif Number One: Rockport

We had visitors this week, and so I had a chance to do a little tourism.  One of our stops was Bearskin Neck in Rockport, Massachusetts.  Of course, I took a photo of "Motif Number One," the little red house that everyone photographs and paints. (According to Wiki-pedia, it is "the most often-painted building in America.") Tonight I edited the original photo to get a saturated red. And I also cropped the original to get this composition.

Daylilies at Cherry Hill Creamery (with Prisma filter)

Yesterday I posted a picture of daylilies (taken at Cherry Hill Creamery, great place for an ice cream run).  I played around with Prisma filters.  Here is one of the best results.

Daylilies at Cherry Hill Creamery

Today temperatures were in the 80s, one of the first few really warm days we have had, here north of Boston. Late in the day, I got a message that my new sunglasses were in at Costco so we took a ride to pick them up. On the way back, we stopped for ice cream at Cherry Hill Creamery.  Their ice cream is great, and so are their gardens, so I took some pictures.  When I got home, I used this photo to play  with on the Prisma app. I had fun, and discovered that it is possible to apply more than one filter to the same image! Tomorrow I hope to post some of the images I made.

Purple Salvia (with Prisma filter)

This image began as a photo that I took last week during a stroll along Lothrop street, near Independence park.  Today I decided to add a Prisma filter.  I liked the effect in general, but the leaves were yellow with this filter.  So I opened the image in Painter and adjusted the color.  I tried different ways to crop this image, but finally decided to go with the original quirky composition.

Beach Roses (with Prisma filter)

This image started with a photo taken during a walk in the neighborhood.  We saw these beach roses (aka Rosa Ragusa) and I took a picture.  The next day I added a really nice Prisma filter, and cropped the image to get this composition.