Floridiana Gloriana

'Subtropical Noir' by Caleb | St. Petersburg | Creative Commons

Here's another richly colored, intricately textured photograph from Caleb's 'Subtropical Noir' collection of St. Petersburg scenes.  I am fascinated by the golden shimmer of the bricks.  The mortar appears to be made of gold.  The bricks vary in color from chocolate brown to maroon to burgundy.  You can see the slate blue of the sky reflected in the windows.  Really an amazing use of Florida's late afternoon light.

'St. Pete' by Caleb | To see other photographs in his Flickr photostream, click here | website:  calebism; subtropicalnoir.com | To see the full-sized version of this photograph, click here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it pursuant to a restricted Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use it without first consulting the terms of the applicable license.  The license can be viewed here.

'St. Pete' by Caleb | St. Petersburg | Creative Commons

More of Caleb's St. Petersburg magic with late afternoon light and color.  This is my favorite time to photograph in Florida:  the colors are so saturated and so intense in that slanting golden light.  I love the contrasting textures here:  the rough apricot-colored stucco with its red roof; the light on the trunk of the palm tree, and behind it all, the beautiful blue of the sky and those delicate silvery-grey clouds.  Very painterly, but do painters know about afternoon light and color?

'St. Pete' by Caleb |To see other photographs in his Flickr photostream, click here | website:  calebism; subtropicalnoir.com | To see the full-sized version of this photograph, click here
 

I do not own the rights to this photograph.  It is subject to a restricted Creative Commons license, permitting certain limited noncommercial uses.  Before using or downloading it, consult the terms of the applicable license.  You may view it here.

'Karin's Patio' by Ariel Ophelia | Gainesville | Creative Commons

This is so perfectly perfect Gainesville.  The porch surrounded by trees, the plants, the furniture covered in cool fabrics.  What elevates this photo from 'someone's porch' to 'the art of the porch' for me is the platinum and grey cover on the swing and the rainbow colors of the other, both adding that eclectic feel so characteristic of this university town.  "Gainesville is so lush," observes the photographer.  I just want to be on that porch with my book and my glass of wine.  "Is that a painting or a photo?" my husband asked.  "It looks like a painting."  It does.

Karin's Patio by Ariel Ophelia |  To see her other photos, click here | To see the full-sized version of this photograph at Flickr, click here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a restricted Creative Commons license.  Before saving or using it, consult the terms of the applicable license (shown here).

Horseshoe Beach | c. 1998

I love this photograph from Horseshoe Beach (in Dixie County) because of the strange clarity with which the white buildings stand out against the sea.  That was a trick of the light rather than anything I achieved myself.  It's a scanned photograph from out of my files. 

I can't explain the big boat being built alongside those buildings.  I don't know what it was or is for.  I think I might have gone back and that it might have been a restaurant----but I really don't know!  I suppose I could find out if I wanted to research it, but I prefer to let it remain a mystery.  So much has happened since then....  I remember loving the place and thinking I'd never forget that day.  Alas---I've forgotten it all except my resolution not to forget. 

'Boarded Blue Door & Windows' by TwoblueDay | Sanford | Creative Commons

Another brilliant piece by Florida photographer TwoblueDay.   This is also Florida.  There's art, or the potential, everywhere.   This is art.  It's also the side of a building somewhere in the charming Central Florida town of Sanford.

'Boarded Blue Door and Windows' by Twoblueday (Gerry) | To see his other photos (Flickr photostream), click here | website: Twoblueday | To see the full-sized version of this photograph at Flickr, click here.

I do not own the rights to this Creative Commons photograph, but am using it pursuant to a restricted Creative Commons license.  Do not save or use it without first consulting the terms of the license.  The license is shown here.

Gulf Coast Treasure Trove by Miz Shoes | Sarasota | Used by Permission

 "A week's worth of swag, from the Sarasota beach ," says this collector.  Man, I need to do a hunt for oceanside treasure.  I love this photograph even more because the disk on which the shells are shown seems to be floating in the air--note the foot and the green chair alongside it. 

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it by permission of the photographer (to whom all rights are reserved). Please write for permission before saving it or using it.

Photograph by Miz Shoes | click here to see her other photos | website: Girly Shoes.  | Click here to go to Flickr for the larger version

 

When I was a child back in the Sixties, my parents used to play a song on the old "record player" called "Pearly Shells."  My mom would sing along with it:  "Pearly Shells/by the waaaaa-ter!/How I love those little pearly shells!."  It was sort of corny, I guess, but I loved it.  I always think of that song when I look at shells, or photos of shells, but it's seldom quite so literally true as it is here.  Click on the larger version to see the subtle pearlescent shine of these tiny treasures up close!

"In the summer," says the photographer, "the coquinas are plentiful on the Gulf beaches. When the water recedes, they are visible for a moment, and then burrow into the sand. They are small, no more than an inch long, and all colors."

 

Photograph by Miz Shoes | click here to see her other photos | website: Girly Shoes.  | Click here to go to Flickr for the larger version

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it by permission of the photographer (to whom all rights are reserved). Please write for permission before saving it or using it.

Coffee on the Porch---Cape San Blas by Judy Baxter | Creative Commons

Is Cape San Blas Florida's "forgotten coast"?  This is a part of the state I don't know well at all, but would love to know better.  The beaches are gorgeous, like white sugar.

Judy Baxter writes:  "Our townhouse can be rented here: http://www.visitfloridabeaches.com/ BD 495 - 34.  Look:

 

"Having Coffee on Deck of Townhouse" -- Cape San Blas, Florida by Judy Baxter (Old Shoe Woman) | See other photographs here |  See larger image here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a restricted  Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this image without first consulting the terms of the license.  The license restrictions are shown here.

 

Looking Up and Over ---Townhouse ---Cape San Blas, Florida by Judy Baxter (Old Shoe Woman) | See other photographs here |  See larger image here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a restricted  Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this image without first consulting the terms of the license.  The license restrictions are shown here.

 

My Mug - Deck of Town House ---Cape San Blas, Florida by Judy Baxter (Old Shoe Woman) | See other photographs here |  See larger image here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a restricted  Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this image without first consulting the terms of the license.  The license restrictions are shown here.

Apalachicola, Florida by Judy Baxter | Creative Commons

Judy Baxter (Old Shoe Woman) has some of my favorite photographs of Western Florida on Flickr.  This is a part of the state I don't know that well---the Peninsula and the Panhandle are different worlds.   The Panhandle is Old Florida; even the light is different there.  Here are some of its beauties.  Here is a gorgeous photograph from "Florida's forgotten coast," in Apalachicola.

This photographer has an amazing feel for the fall of the light.  Look:

 

"Shrimp Boats --- Apalachicola, Florida" by Judy Baxter (Old Shoe Woman) | See other photographs here |  See larger image here

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a restricted  Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this image without first consulting the terms of the license.  The license restrictions are shown here.

Sarasota Sandcastle by Miz Shoes | Creative Commons

Inspired by this photograph, I just started a new category:  Florida sandcastles.

"Sarasota Sandcastle" by Miz Shoes (click here to see her other photos) |
Website:  Girly Shoes.

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this photograph without consulting the terms of the applicable license.  The license is here.

Happy Place by Miz Shoes | Sarasota, Florida | Creative Commons

I have been to gorgeous Sarasota only once.  I always meant to go back there, but somehow I never have.  If you lived in Florida, you would understand; with so many gorgeous places to see and photograph, and such an enormous state, it is very difficult to get to them.

These photographs from Miz Shoes of Girly Shoes do an amazing job of conveying that Sarasota feeling I recall so poignantly.  She knows art as well as photography and, as she says, understands the difference between looking and seeing.  And because she saw these things, you get to see them too.

  Her comment:  "Yes. That is a martini."  Please just look at the colors:  the way the clear blue of the water impinges on the pale violet of the sand.  The green glass and the yellow chair stand out brilliantly against these delicate pastels.   Just looking at it makes me happy.  I don't even need a martini (though I wouldn't say no).

"Happy Place" by Miz Shoes (click here to see her other photos) | website:  Girly Shoes.

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this photograph without consulting the terms of the applicable license.  The license is here.

"Approaching the Happy Place on Sarasota Beach" by  Miz Shoes (website:  Girly Shoes).  "That's the early morning light," she says.

I do not own the rights to this photograph, but am using it in compliance with a Creative Commons license.  Please do not save or use this photograph without consulting the terms of the applicable license.  The license is here.