Throwback Thursday

We all have these photos … throwback photos! Don’t we just… so many. It’s described as ‘nostalgia-inducing pictures … from a different era of your life”.

This week (#TB Thursday). Thursday is filled with memories from The evergreen glasshouses from Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden in Helsinki.

The glasshouses’ biggest attraction is the Victoria cruziana (Santa Cruz water lily), which has survived the bombings of World War II and now dominates the luminous and tropical Waterlily Room. The lily pad can grow to have a diameter of over two meters, and it can carry the weight of an adult human. The giant water lily is an annual plant that has occasionally been able to survive the dark Finnish winter in the glasshouse. Often, though, the water lily withers as Christmas approaches, and the new seedling is planted around March in the bottom soil of the pond. (So no reason to worry if you can’t see the water lily, it hasn’t gone anywhere!)

These shots I captured back in 2017, maybe it’s time to visit again.

April 1st

It’s April and it still looks like winter, feels like winter even though next to a wall where the wind doesn’t blow you can feel the lovely warmth of the sun.

My grandson said to me, I will never forget the mountain next to your home 😀 ( it is a hill ) he always wants to climb it no matter what season it is. Today he conquered it with his father and grandpa

Up the hill I go
Follow me
Made it to the top

Such vibrant colors

Humaljärvi during a beautiful and sunny day is so vibrant in colors.

Well, sunny and a clear day. Now is a great to be ice fishing…

Happy New year !

I wish you all a very New year!

I will leave this year behind with some quotes I can relate to and someone has worded them better than I could.

Here are some winter scenery ro celebrate the holiday season.

“If you’re brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.” —Paulo Coehlo

“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.” —Carl Bard

Beautiful in Black and White 14

 

I took several winter wonderland photos last week, so I thought I’d try them as monochrome. Misty fields and snow-covered
roads with trees heavy with snow surrounding it. 
This is how they turned out.

It is nearly Christmas, and I hope that
these winter shots will help you to get into white Christmas spirit.

Snow covered lane

The way that light hits objects, I think, is one of the more important things that sculpture and photography share. – Rashid Johnson

 

 

Spruce trees by the side of the snowy road

Minimalist winter scenery

I have been away from my computer, and photos for a long weekend visiting my son and his family. So obviously I have missed a lot. Here are some more winter wonderland shots from last week

Pastel hues
Small shrubb in the field of snow

Wahat a calm view

Frosty trees at dusk

White trees

Somewhere in Kirkkonummi
Closer look at the scenery

I stopped several times to capture the beauty of the moment of lovely winter views with snow covered trees and hovering mist

Snow covered lane

I am just going to put this here, as I went out today to take winter photos, I need to go through them. This is the first ones I am going to post. At this moment the sun was still shining. This Lane/ road looked so lovely I ad to stop to photograph it. Hope you enjoy it too.

Snowy lane
Nature is beautiful

Snowy nature

It looks lovely for sure, blueish skies and white snow, with a a subtle mist hovering over the landscape.That is it nothing elso to say about these photos.

Snow coverd birch trees by the road

A subtle mist hovers over the landscape on these two shots

Sunny winter day

The joy of sunshine, the past weeks we have not been blessed with lots of sunlight, but today, of the glorious weather with snow coved trees, blue sky.

I stepped out and took shots to all four directions from or house, and it looked lovely everywhere,white powder snow, blue sky and even the temperature was not that bad -7C ( 23 F ) I am going to post a shot also when its not shining and it looks OK, but there is a difference. On this happy note I wish everyone reading this post a lovely weekend!

10 AM looking east towards the road
at 10 AM View to our south facing backyard
10 AM looking North, this is the view from my office

10AM facing west looking at the spruce and birch trees on a upward hill

AND WHAT A DIFFERECE A DAY MAKES

Independence Day

Today we celebrate our Independence Day in snowy surroundings! Lanterns give beautiful light to the darkness on my patio

Just before darkness

Lens-Artists Challenge #227 – Home Sweet Home

Tina wrote; On the other hand, there is much to love here in my own country. This week, let’s give that some extra thought. If a foreigner were to spend a week or a month traveling your home country with you, where would you take them? What sights would you tell them to be sure to see? Where have you found some of your own favorite images?

Tina from Travels and Trifles hosts this weeks Lens-Artists Challenge #227 – Home Sweet Home

I live in Beautiful Finland, coutry with four seasons. While I embrace Spring, summer and autumn and winter, I detest November, the greay month. So I will not be posting shots from that month.

Finland, or Suomi as we call it, this is my introduction to of it to you.

First few shots from Helsiki, were I would obviously take you

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland across Estonia to the south. Finland covers an area of 130,678 sq miles with a population of 5.6 million. 

Helsinki is the capital and largest city, forming a larger metropolitan area with the neighbouring cities of Espoo, Kauniainen, and Vantaa. Finland is one of the world’s northernmost countries. Of world capitals, only Reykjavík lies more to the north than Helsinki.

Finland’s climate varies from humid continental in the south to the boreal in the north. The land cover is primarily a boreal forestbiome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes.

First few shots from Helsiki, were I would obviously take you. There also several other cities I would take you too, Porvoo, Hanko, Tampere and Turku and also to Oulu. If I posted shots from them well, no one would look through my post.

Lakes are lovely at all seasons, so I would take to one or two of them

Forests, woods…have asrtong place in Finns hearts, a place walk and calm your nerves.

Pick berries and mushrooms as we have Everyman’s rights. Public access rights, or so-called everyman’s rights, refer to the right of everyone in Finland to enjoy outdoor pursuits regardless of who owns or occupies an area. You do not need the landowner’s permission, and there is no charge. However, you must not damage the environment or disturb others while exercising public access rights.

Posted for Tina’s Lens-Artists Challenge

Street Photography in Helsinki

The November streets look, well what they look like. This is what it looked liked on a November afternoon and and early evening (between 3pm -6pm) I haven’t taken the camera out since then. But I thought I would share some fresh photos today.

Some season lights were already adding light to the bleakness of this time of year. The boy looking at the display window while his parents were in line to get into the store was a nice pop of colors as was the Cartier window display with the reflecting lights from the street.

We had the first snow on Friday last week, so obviously these were taken prior to that. The snow will melt but for few days it will give us a little bit more light.

Views from around the Helsinki railway station, and Aleksanterinkatu.

Helsinki – Keskuskatu and the corner of Mannerheimtie

Colorful window display

Visiting Cafe’s

I have not been taking many photos lately, last weekend I made an exception as I went to Helsinki.

I was even too lazy to take my camera, just my mobile. Here are some street photographs. These are focused on cafe’s that all seemed to be full, we had to wait over 40 minutes to get our coffee 🙂 That time we spent people watching

My favorite image is the header.

Beautiful in Black and White 11

I have a soft spot for black and white photography, I was once again reminded about the importance of exposure, light. It is the key element in these photos.

Sunset in B&W is it’s own thing to capture once again it comes to the light, lowlight in this case. How it enhances the shapes and creates shadows.

Sunset in Naples Pier. Unfortunately it was destroyed in Hurricane Ian, but I have a memory.

Naples Pier, Florida
Sunset in Miami

The way that light hits objects, I think, is one of the more important things that sculpture and photography share. – Rashid Johnson

Key West sunset

Posted for Bren’s Mid-Week Monochrome and Leanne’s Monochrome Madness

Beautiful in Black and White 10

I have a soft spot for black and white photography, I was once again reminded about the importance of exposure, light. It is the key element in these photos.

“Available light is any damn light that is available!” ~ W. Eugene Smith

Above is so importat during these gray November days.

Older trees have so much character
Mist in the forest in autumn

The way that light hits objects, I think, is one of the more important things that sculpture and photography share. – Rashid Johnson

when all the leaves are gone

Beautiful in Black and White 11

Moving Up and down, I’ve also linked this to CBWC

Firefighter
using your feet to climb up the mountain

repairs

Escalator and lots of reflections

Beautiful in Black and White 7

Trees I’ve also linked this to CBWC, I had to do this again as I somehow deleted it and totally made a mess.

Bahia Honda Bridge and a tree trunk
Clouds and tree trunks

Inlet in Porkkala

Autumn tones at the Inlet in Porkkala
The colors continue to amaze me- autumn
zoomin in into the inlet

View from the rocks 2

Fall, Autumn, ruska, all words that are presented in this shot in my humble opinion. Porkkala, views there are so delightful.

Porkkala- Kirkkonummi -Finland

October’s colors

October colors

Autumn iis about letting go of summer and preparing for winter. Greens give way to dead stems and yellow drooping leaves. Darkness slowly takes over the time of light, but how beautiful it can be at the beginning of autumn🍂

yellows ang orange, in a misty setting
Looks so pretty!

on the road

What clouds, I loved the contrast of the dark clouds against the autumn color by the road as we drove in to the rain and finally to the otherside of it towards the raindow.

Autumn as seen from the highway

Beautiful in Black and White 7

The circus in black and white photos has it’s own kind of mood.

Horses at the circus
Globe of Death
Aerial Hoop
Outside the kids looked at this Martine van from Holland

Beautiful in Black and White 6

Beautiful seaside views from Inkoo. I’ve also linked this to CBWC

Seen from behind the tree
On a hill

Oh, A 🦌 Deer

Today, I saw this lovely deer ,from the window facing my backyard, posing on the hill. It would have been nice to go outside and take the photosthere, but it would have run away, if I’d gone and opened the door. So, I took these through the window, taking this to consideration they came out ok.

A deer standing on a hill

It stood there on the hill for a while, looked around and finally turning and walked away. Just to lay down and rest on the hill behind a fallen tree, so that only the ears were visible.

🦌 Deer

Lake Pikku-Kukkanen

We had an amazing weekend to capture, clouds and reflections.

These are taken at lake Pikku-Kukkanen (Small flower) I was able to capture beautiful reflections on the lake and there were two swans further away, so I really missed noth having my camera with me. In the first shot the exposure was low so the clouds came out really dark. I like the intensity of the atmosphere.

Reflectiond on Lake Pikku-Kukkanen in Nastola, Finland
Lake PIKKU-Kukkanen