Etsy Handmade Wonder

This holiday season, support local and independent artists, designers and crafters!

Please have a look at all of the wonderful handmade creations in these Etsy Treasury collections in which Michele Ford Photo has been selectively included. While you're browsing, we hope you'll find something that makes a great holiday gift for that someone special on your list :) Etsy is a terrific online site for buying and selling handmade art. Enjoy...

Treasury 1.

Stay Warm By The Fire.

Fire Up Your Life!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cf96080ec858eefaef50947/stay-warm-by-the-fire

A warm thanks to NerdyDog for curating this firey collection of art and for including this photo, Autumn Fire 8x12 Fine Art Photograph Metallic Print:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/59378511/autumn-fire-8x12-fine-art-photograph?ref=tre-4cf96080ec858eefaef50947-14

Treasury 2.

Black cats with golden eyes (sometimes shut)

Artwork with black cats (one white) and golden eyes:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cf7af42ebd96d916af8490c/black-cats-with-golden-eyes-sometimes

A big thanks to PrettyFloor for curating this Etsy Treasury collection and including my photo,

Fine Art Photography Curious Black Kitten 12x18 Large Print:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/63111329/fine-art-photography-curious-black?ref=tre-4cf7af42ebd96d916af8490c-10

Some might ask what's all this about a treasury?....

Etsy says "Treasury is an ever-changing, member-curated
shopping gallery comprised of lists of items."

Visit Etsy for more great finds: http://www.etsy.com/

Happy Holiday Shopping from Michele Ford Photo,

Michele

"Enjoy the beauty in everything!"

A Stroll on the Beach of New Jersey

Sometimes it's nice to take time off from everything else and go for a stroll along the beach.

This day was cold and windy... The snow fences stood firmly in place along the boardwalk, just waiting... The plants had lost their summertime life and were shivering in the wind.

Fragmented shells and rocks scattered themselves about on the shores, left behind by the tides that so quickly change. Every now and then a beautiful piece of sea-glass; a brilliant green sparkled like an emerald in the sand.

The seagulls were resting on the beach, most unwilling to be pulled in every which direction by the wind's relentless fury. Until I passed by...

I watched in amazement as they took off in their order, one by one or two by two, flying above into the air over the chilly sea.

So if you can't make it down to the beach today, why not take a walk through my shop on Etsy and bring home one or two beautiful high-quality fine art prints instead. All photographs are professionally printed and ship within one business day. Have your frame ready :)

http://www.etsy.com/shop/micheleford

The Ride to the Fruity Forest

Fall in New Jersey is such a beautiful time of the year. As I was taking some pictures in the woods, my nephew suggested we go for a bike ride to take pictures of the pretty trees around the neighborhood.
So off we went! He was on his three-wheeler with his camera and I was on my mountain bike with mine. He peddled and peddled and peddled and I had to keep peddling backwards :)
He'd say when it was a pretty tree that we needed to stop and take pictures. Ok, he'd tell me we were stopping most of the times. He learned as I nearly ran into him a few times and so did I!
The trees were absolutely popping with color out there. It might have been the best day of the Fall for it. I kept thinking too bad the sky wasn't bright blue, but hey - that's how it was that day.
Some of the trees situated together just looked like paintings, the colors were so perfect. My nephew's mom and dad also love trees and photography, so he has a very good eye for what is pretty!
This was one of the times he stopped short - or was that me? Anyway, he's checking his shot and making sure he got the picture he wanted. I think this was also about the time his battery started to die...
This tree was just on fire - it was so pretty as so many that lined the streets were! At some points, we stopped the bikes more than we rode them.
Sometimes it was a bit shaky taking pictures with handling the bike and watching the boy so some of these are a little out of focus. Like this one of my bike's tire, but it was just part of what was going on so I thought I'd share them too. Not every picture comes out perfect!
It was getting dark and the boy was getting tired, but he insisted we continue down this street. He wouldn't tell me why, just that we had to keep going...
So he peddled and peddled and huffed and puffed, while he kept asking me, "Why do you keep peddling backwards, Aunt Michele?" and at the end of the street here it is:

"The Fruity Forest"

I was amazed when I saw this. I am not sure if he knew that's where we were going, or if that's just where we wound up, but wow! what a sight this was to see! I am so excited about how pretty this is that I have just added this print to my Etsy shop! http://www.etsy.com/listing/60237422/fruity-forest-9x12-metallic-fine-art

"Enjoy the beauty in everything!"

**** UPDATE ****

November 2, 2010 ....

I'm pleased to announce The Fruity Forest SOLD in my Etsy shop. No worries!! I've re-listed it.

You can purchase it here:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/60380398/the-fruity-forest-9x12-metallic-fine-art

A Walk in the Woods & Cameras

Nature's beauty was stunning as I got out in the woods with my cameras the other day... The weather was beautiful and the colors of the fall foliage were spectacular!

While I was roaming around the woods, I started thinking about photography and some of the cameras I've had over the years... I have been taking pictures digitally since 1999 when I got my first digital camera. It was a Sony MVC-FD91, with only 0.8 mega pixels and it took the pictures directly on to a floppy disk. I also noticed the reds, greens, yellows, oranges and brown colors of all of the trees. I kept thinking to myself, "whoever painted these colors was spot on"!
My newest camera, which I just got a few months back and am still learning a bit about, is a Sony DSLR A350, with 14.2 mega pixels. The pictures in this post were taken with this camera.
My other favorite camera is my Sony DSC-W300, with 13.6 megapixels. It's a simple automatic camera with some manual settings and a very good lens and sweet macro capabilities. I've been shooting with this camera since 2008. It's very small so I always have it with me on the go!
Of course, I always have my cell phone camera with me too - my pockets get loaded! If I get too excited about how pretty it is, I'll usually upload a picture to my Facebook page while I'm on the shoot... I'm a bit of a nut when it comes to taking pictures, I guess ;)

I'll be posting more pictures of this shoot from my other camera soon. Thanks for coming by to have a look! Take a moment to leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you!

Keep having a great day & "Enjoy the beauty in everything"!

A Halloween Treasury on Etsy...

A week before Halloween and all through our shops....

Have a look at all of the lovely handmade creations listed here:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cc5d035f7e56d91519c32a2/a-week-before-halloween-and-all-through

Thank you to Olivesmiles for this nice collection.

Wicked Witch Treasury Collection on Etsy

Michele Ford Photo is listed in a new Treasury collection on Etsy!

Have a look at all of the lovely handmade creations listed here:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cc076eb12b58eefeba86677/wicked-witch

Thank you to feelingartsy for this nice collection.

Please visit feelingartsy's Etsy shop here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/feelingartsy

The Roses Are In My Etsy Shop

Nice Dreams

Dark Dreams

Sweet Dreams

The Original Dream

Using a little bit of magic in Photoshop, I've transformed these roses into various themes.

Film Noir with dark and muted colors, Sepia with brown tones with a tinge of red, Dream with shady white and soft shadows, and Original, with, you guessed it - no effects used. These sets are offered in my shop on Etsy. http://www.etsy.com/shop/micheleford

These photos are offered in sets of 4 as shown in the different themes. Don't want a whole set or want a mix and match? No problem, just send me a message on Etsy for a custom order. I'll set something up especially for you!

Have a great day and don't forget to stop and smell the roses :)