time is running and still no plans

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now we are already one week into sofobomo 2009, and i still even have no idea of a theme. i am really greatful for that fuzzy month which offers a great deal of flexibility, so i am still very optimistic that i will be able to finish a book. problem is that i am bound for a new 10 day business mission to sri lanka one week from today, and afterwards for 2 weeks of holiday with the family. either period can bring or cannot bring sufficient occasion for shooting, but in both cases time for editing and compiling will be restricted to the two last weeks of the fuzzy month.

reason to be pessimistic? no, other then last year i am much more confident in my skills, both visually and technical, i have already a scribus framework for a book, so i will manage to accomplish the task and finish in time if not some completely unforseeable and unsurmountable obstacles turn up.

today's shot is from my commuting days in munich, a barber closing his shop for the evening, carefully having decorated the window with the flowers. i like the several subjects combining in time and space in this frame. and what looks quite straightforward still has 5 layers to select areas for darkening, sharpening and intensifying the colors.

this photo on flickr

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roof garden

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a colorful island in all the matt roofs was this small garden with the forsythia in full blossom. spending a morning or evening hour up here for sure is exhilarating when you have to live and work the whole day confined in a building.

happy easter to all of you, and colorful months like those tulips i found in the market.

this photo on flickr

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le dejeuner sur l'herbe, china style

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the world urban forum of the united nations in nanjing was also used by the chinese government as a platform for showcasing achievements in tourism and real estate development. one of the booths sported this forest of tree silhouettes which was consequentially used as a picnic arena for the local visitors.

the middle of the hall was filled with flower pots, scented osmanthus in this case, and only under close inspection it was - again - revealed that those were artificial plants. good optics, yet no substance.

this photo on flickr

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it's raining again

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ok, so what do you expect from april. but this weather definitely has its photographic merits, too.

technically i feel a bit suspended in mid-air at the moment. my favourite raw editor, lightzone is available for linux only as a time limited public beta at the moment. only 5 days left and still no official announcement from the company. i do enjoy the smoothness of this application so much that i am without hesitation willing to pay the full price for a license, in spite of the availability of other good raw converters. lightzone has such a tremendous ease of use and blatant similarity to wet darkroom techniques, that it became my favorite 'developer' in almost no time. so please, lightcrafts inc., go ahead with a linux version, either fully company supported-full price licensed or for (almost) free as a community support version.

this photo on flickr.

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facade in St. Wolfgang, austria

abundant flowers (pelargonium) on this facade of an old house in St. Wolfgang, austria.

this photo on flickr.

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anemonae and primroses

even before the last snowfall, anemonae and primroses came into blossom on the slope behind our house. so winter is gone now. definitely. we hope.

processed with bibble. both lightzone and bibble have their strengths, so it's good that I am not forced to decide, at least not for now.

processing of this pictures makes me more difficulties than I thought. ist it oversharpened now? otherwise I loose many details. so I will spend some more time with it.

this photo on flickr.

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