Marie at 1 Write Way

Lens-Artists Challenge #279 – Magical

For this week’s Lens-Artists Challenge, Ann-Christine encourages us to find the magical in our lives: According to Wikipedia, Magical can mean: ”…beautiful or delightful in a way that seems removed from everyday life.” She notes there may be other meanings, as you might guess with my selection of photos. Some photos are magical in their whimsy. Others are flat representations of awe-inspiring moments. One is a calm before the storm. They are all magical to me.

The Total Lunar Eclipse, or Blood Moon rising on Election Day 2022.

While not an award-winning photo of a Total Lunar Eclipse, I still feel a thrill when I see this photo, taken as it was with my (then) iPhone 8 Plus and a pair of binoculars. The moon is a force of magic and wonder, messing with the tides on our planet and in our bodies.

My iPhone was almost flat on the ground in order to get this photo.

Fungi always makes me think of fairies and folklore, and these pleated inkcaps entice me to image myself an inch tall running through a land where the mushrooms are as tall as redwoods.

The space between. Shot taken from airplane window on our return to Tallahassee from visiting family in New York, 2022.

I think of this photo as the calm before the storm, a magical space where, for a little while, my world was cushioned by soft clouds and endless blue. We were on our way back home after visiting my sister and family in New York. I didn’t know, at this peaceful moment, that the trip would be the last time I’d see my sister alive.

The horrible thistle is magical to me.

Anyone who has been following my blog for any length of time must know that I love the thistle. I know it’s called a “horrible thistle” because of the thick, sharp spines along the edges of its leaves. So, one looks but doesn’t touch. It’s still magical to me.

Yellow cat superimposed over a bayou scene and a rocky trail.
If we live here long enough, Raji might get to enjoy a blue bayou right outside our door.

Finally, a little magical whimsy: a photo of Raji superimposed on a photo taken at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge. To stretch the idea of magic a little further, this kitty is himself magical. Although he still prefers not to be picked up, he is tolerating it more and has even developed a habit of curling up next to me on the loveseat when I’m reading, within arm’s reach of frequent pets and head scratches.

Now, what is Magical to you? Anything–people, places, and things, memories and feelings–are fair game. If you want to join in, please link to Ann-Christine’s original post and use the Lens-Artists tag so we can find you in the reader.

Marie A Bailey

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51 responses to “Lens-Artists Challenge #279 – Magical”

  3. I enjoyed all of your magical photos, particularly the thisle. For magical, I’ll go with untouched newly-fallen snow. To go along with it, look up at a street light at night when it’s snowing. The flakes glint like chips of mica.

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  5. The magical things, for me, are so fleeting, so fragile I can’t take a photo.    Waking one morning from a dream where rainbows were flashing all around me and thinking I really want a crystal to hang in window. Stopped at an estate sale. I would have really liked this lady. Found a little tree statue with a crystal but it didn’t seem right. Sale agent directed me to the garage where I found a whole box of crystals from different chandaliers, they gave me enough for all the windows for $2. When I hung the one I saw in the dream in the west facing window and gave it a spin… rainbows flashed all around me and I felt intensely joyful.  when I saw a mom I knew from caring for her twins in NICU in a store and she only had one now surviving .I asked to hold this child that my hands cared for from the minute she was born  and was greeted by a neck hug from this 4 mo old baby.   Taking my white pigeons to the farmers market to let people experience their own dove release experience and having one of my birds be so calm that it let children pet and hold him for 10 minutes before flying off. The light in the eyes of kids touching a live bird, watching it fly off was magic in their world that day. Giving magic, makes magic in my world.   I do love your photos.Cheryl

    After all that, she was surprised to find that she still knew the words to the song in her heart… and she began to sing along.

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    • Wow, thank you, Cheryl. Your memories would make wonderful photos but your words paint wonderful pictures. I can see the crystal in your window flashing rainbows, and the baby hugging your neck, and the children’s faces as the pigeons fly off. Thank you for sharing your stories!

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  7. I love all of your magical photos. All beautiful in their own magical way. I also have a big orange kitty. His name is Gus and he loves snuggles and being loved on. But our other inside kitty, Kitty Kitty, sounds just like yours. She is very aloof and independent.

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    • Ah, yes, indeed, Laura. The thistle is fascinating in that way. I still remember the first time I saw a “grove” of them at the refuge. I was gobsmacked. Some as tall as my shoulder, and, yes, that downy flower is a delight.

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  11. All of these images are absolutely magical, Marie! I love the pretending to be one-inch tall so the ‘shrooms are as big as redwoods!
    I have a few photos of mine that I deem magical too. Isn’t that wonderful that we can see the magic in things we capture with our lens? Lovely. Just lovely.

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  12. Raji is a beauty, and you have sent us some magic here! I too love mushrooms, especially the tiny ones, and captured from below. Your thistle image is truly magical – and the fact that such a beauty is not to be touched…

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  14. Marie, I’m someone who also likes thistles, so I enjoyed yours. The photo where you got the camera down low was lovely as was the one from the plane. I’m sorry about your sister. The last one made me laugh, which is always fun.

    janet

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  15. A marvelous and creative post Marie. How on earth did you use binoculars and an iPhone 8 to get that excellent moonshot?! That’s magical indeed. Loved your thistle, one of my favorites as well. And your peaceful sky is lovely, if sad based on the loss of your sister. My condolences. Thanks so much for joining us this week!

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    • Thank you, Tina! I’d been missing the photo challenges. They are such fun :-) The binoculars were a fancy pair that my husband uses for stargazing. He had them set up on a tripod and I “just” needed to put my iphone against the viewer. There was a lot of trial and error getting that shot :-)

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  17. I agree. I love the thistle too even though it is untouchable. I love the tenderness in your thoughts regarding your sister. A magical sky indeed. And I agree, the fungi is an invite for fairies and folklore. Creative and magical post, Marie.

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  21. I love your photos, particularly the moon. I have some non-award-winning photos of a lunar eclipse taken with a far better camera than I have now and I think your photo surpass them. The framing is magical in itself.

    Books are magical to me. I’ve been a reader since I was very small and books in their many forms have always been magical to me. No matter what, with books I am never alone.

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    • Thank you, Zazzy! I feel very fortunate with the lunar photos, especially since I couldn’t really see what I was doing ;-) And you are so right: books are magical. With books, we have the world at our fingertips.

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