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This just makes me happy to look at. I love the cute Washington DC row houses all around the city. These particular cuties were taken near the H Street corridor in the Northeast. It was taken at the end of an already long day but there was something about these houses that made me want to capture them. I just remember walking up and down this block three times in order to properly capture it.

My favorite is just scanning the image to see the repetition everywhere but then noticing all the little details that make each house it’s own. For example, all the rooftops look the same, but if you look closely, the very top “ornaments” are all different colors. All the architecture may look the same but then you see how the colors of the home give each one a certain personality.

So which one would you live in? I think I’m more of a dark red or blue person.

Hope you all have a great Monday and week ahead 🙂

My camera settings for this image is F7.1 at 1/320th sec and ISO 320 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom lens.

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When I think of spring flowers, I usually think of it as Magnolias, Cherry Blossoms and then Tulips. Magnolias are always the first sign of spring and Tulips are there to round out the end. However, somehow this year I totally missed the tulips!

I think these images were the only two images I captured this year.

The tulips a little closer up.

But hese were taken in Old Town Alexandria, right by the waterfront. I loved the way they were all lined up and the colors were beautiful. I was with my friend, Birch one afternoon just walking around and taking pics when we decided that crossing the street would probably get a cool view of the entire scene. The tulips, the house, and landscaping.

I really like this image in particular because of the dog. Yes, I’m a huge dog fan but the way that this dog is pulling on the leash totally reminds me of Frankie. LOL. Frankie is more of a ‘take time to smell the roses’ type of dog. Meaning he never wants to walk at a normal walking pace, he always wants to just take his time and sniff every single smell along the walk. This is exactly what this dog is doing and if you try to nudge him along to actually walk, he’ll resist just like what this dog is doing. It’s perfect that his person is taking a drink of coffee because he knows that he’ll be there for a while. LOL.

So in reality, walking Frankie is more like standing outside with Frankie.

My camera settings for this image is F4 at 1/3200 sec and ISO 400 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm.

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I did not take this image this past snow that we got. I took it a couple of years ago but still really, really enjoy it and figured why not post it? Theres something so peaceful and serene about it. I especially like looking at that platform in the middle of the water and envisioning so much summer fun happening there with floaties and belly flops. Definietly not winter fun. Or at least that’s not my idea of winter fun LOL.

As I was editing this image in Photoshop, I was wondering if I should leave that little bit of yellowish colored grass showing on the right hand of the image. It’s not the most attractive looking grass but in the end, I decided to leave it. Its only a small amount but I love how it shows that this is actually a color image and not black and white. It’s a little detail that could be distracting but I think it tells so much more of the story of what it’s actually like being at this lake.

I also love seeing all the curves in the lake and if you look closely enough, you’ll even see a house or two. This is taken at a neighborhood lake in McLean, Virginia but if you asked me, it looks like it was taken straight out of a movie like Frozen or something. I dunno, I just can’t keep my eyes off of it. I love it so much. I could totally see myself sitting on that grass and staring at this scene for hours. It’d be awesome if I could fly my drone here too. Ohh the possibilities.

My camera settings for this image is F6.3 at 1/160th of a second and ISO 250 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle.

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One of my favorite parts of the trip was taking our dog, Frankie on walks to different places in the city. This was taken on our second to last day. It was extra cloudy with a little bit of wind but so nice and comfortable to be outside. We made our way to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade but we parked our car just above it. What a cute little neighborhood. I’m sorry I don’t know the name but it looked just like the houses did in the Cosby Show. Wasn’t that based in Brooklyn too?

Anyways, it was Andrew and I’s goal to take pictures of Frankie with different landmarks behind him. So obviously, we had to take a picture of him with the Manhattan skyline in the back. He’s balancing on a bike share stand and looks thrilled, doesn’t he? HAHA He’s such a good boy but for some reason, he gets scared to jump off of things. Even when we’re home, he doesn’t like jumping off the couch or bed, so he has to be brought up onto furniture if he wants gets on it. That’s the only way he’s guaranteed a way down.He won’t jump up on his own. So we knew if we put him up on this bike stand, he would not jump. He’d just stand there for as long as we’d let him. LOL.

Whenever I look at this picture, I just smile. I’d love to take him on my trips. Don’t you think he’d look awesome next to the faces at Mount Rushmore. HAHAHA. Crazy dog mom? Maybe… But look at him. He loves it!

My settings for this image was F/5.6 at 1/320th of a second ISO 200. No tripod or anything. Just love.

Have a great weekend everyone! That week was short!

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I did it! I said I would and I did. I finally visited Dumbarton Oaks garden and parks. Also managed to get Andrew to come with me too! I don’t know how that happened because it was a super hot and humid day when we went. It was 90 degrees but felt like it was closer to 100 with all the humidity. By the end of the visit, my dress was completely stuck to my back from sweat.

T O T A L L Y  W O R T H  I T.

As soon as I walked in, I felt like I was in Paris again. The gardens was all so beautiful and lush. Every tree and bush was manicured so beautifully. There was something so incredible to see in every corner. Its hard to say which part was my favorite. Can say it all was my fav? I definietly know I want to go back soon and spend more time there. I was also thinking how pretty it would be when it’s all covered in snow. *heart eyes cat emoji*

Anyways, this is the first building you see once you walk in. It must be used as an event space or something like that because it was completely empty. It was so beautiful to me to see it like that because it made the plants and ivy stand out even more. The light from the “roof” was the thing that attracted me the most to this little corner, but I love that empty vase. It makes things look a lot less perfect which I really enjoy. The whole time we were walking through the garden I asked Andrew if we could get remarried in this space. Not sure how he felt about that considering we got married less than 5 years ago and I’m already planning our second wedding.

Whatevs. We’re doing it!

 

 

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Kenilworth aquatic gardens is definietly a hidden gem in the DC area. Every time I show my friends images from here they’re super surprised that I took this in DC AND in Anacostia of all places, which is exactly known as the safest area in DC. But I’m so glad summer flower season is here. They’re one of my favorites!