2. Photography

Project RuSu 365

Not always so successful or interesting, & not always daily, though certainly a reflection of our daily lives - more like pick of the day. Our goal - to share our world and improve our skills. Thanks to all the members of the SmugMug Daily Community for your support and input. Feel free to leave feedback by clicking on 'Add Comment' below. We look forward to hearing your thoughts. The photo of the day will always be in first position. Thank you for looking. - Rustem Safronov & Susan Gilman a.k.a. RuSu. This gallery was started on October 26, 2010.

Henri Cartier-Bresson said, "Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.", so bear with us...
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First berries of the season from Krasnodar in southern Russia (6.3.2012)<br /> <br /> I'd bought some yesterday at the weekend market and they were so good we went back together today to get some more. The head of the market spotted me shooting & came over asking me why, what for, etc. After explaining it was a just a hobby he not only allowed me to shoot, but presented us with a gift of strawberries, cherries, pears, grapes, cukes & tomatoes. Rustem said, "See, you complain a lot about Russia, but look at the advantages you have being a cute, funny foreigner". Not so sure about cute or funny, but once in a blue moon these small acts of kindness & generosity make Russia special.
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First berries of the season from Krasnodar in southern Russia (6.3.2012)

I'd bought some yesterday at the weekend market and they were so good we went back together today to get some more. The head of the market spotted me shooting & came over asking me why, what for, etc. After explaining it was a just a hobby he not only allowed me to shoot, but presented us with a gift of strawberries, cherries, pears, grapes, cukes & tomatoes. Rustem said, "See, you complain a lot about Russia, but look at the advantages you have being a cute, funny foreigner". Not so sure about cute or funny, but once in a blue moon these small acts of kindness & generosity make Russia special.

strawberriesberriesKrasnodar strawberriesклубникаягодыrusurusu photography

  • Tatar children dancing at their national festival known as Sabantuy in the town of Arsk. (Tatarstan, Russia). (6.13.2012)<br /> <br /> The festival of Sabantuy is currently a candidate for UNESCO's List of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
  • Qol Sherif Mosque inside the Kazan Kremlin. (6.12.2012)<br /> <br /> The original mosque was built in 1552. This mosque was completed in 2005 to commemorate the city's millennium anniversary. (Republic of Tatarstan, Russia)<br /> <br /> A Rustem shot from his most recent trip, processed by me. Kazan's actually one of a handful of places in Russia I have yet to visit but would like to - It's the land of the "Golden Hordes", the Tatars.
  • Qol Sherif Mosque inside the Kazan Kremlin. (Original color version) (6.12.2012)<br /> <br /> The original mosque was built in 1552. This mosque was completed in 2005 to commemorate the city's millennium anniversary. (Republic of Tatarstan, Russia)
  • First rose of the season. (6.11.2012)<br /> <br /> The skies have finally cleared with only a few drops left. We've had so much rain we're overgrown with vegetation & few flowers except for this pretty little rose. Still waiting on the lilies.
  • Idyllic camping days.
  • After the party? (6.9.2012)
  • Portrait in paella. (6.8.2012)<br /> <br /> Nothing special, nothing new, but thought you might get a kick out of seeing this portrait in paella from when we happened upon a paella festival in Spain.
  • Birches through a fence. (6.7.2012)
  • Plum tomatoes in the rain. (6.6.2012)
  • Flags against umbrellas & sky. (6.4.2012)
  • First berries of the season from Krasnodar in southern Russia (6.3.2012)<br /> <br /> I'd bought some yesterday at the weekend market and they were so good we went back together today to get some more. The head of the market spotted me shooting & came over asking me why, what for, etc. After explaining it was a just a hobby he not only allowed me to shoot, but presented us with a gift of strawberries, cherries, pears, grapes, cukes & tomatoes. Rustem said, "See, you complain a lot about Russia, but look at the advantages you have being a cute, funny foreigner". Not so sure about cute or funny, but once in a blue moon these small acts of kindness & generosity make Russia special.
  • At the supermarket. (6.1.2012)<br /> <br /> I don't know why, but a lot of supermarkets here are on two levels or on a basement level, hence the moving ramps. The carts have special wheels so they don't slide backwards [usually].
  • Red Lupine from our garden. (05.2012)
  • Wheels. (5.30.2012)
  • Gushing waters at the Sayano-Shushenskaya dam, the 6th largest dam in the world on the Yenisei River in Siberia. From the archives. (5.28.2012)<br /> <br /> Have a safe & enjoyable Memorial Day.
  • Flowers from an angel. (5.27.2012)<br /> <br /> From the May 9th Victory Day holiday. This man was a B-25 Mitchell mid-range bomber pilot.
  • Making pelmeni. (5.25.2012)<br /> <br /> Originally from Siberia, pelmeni's the Russian equivalent of ravioli - a little meat-filled dumpling that's boiled & served with butter & sour cream. It's widely eaten throughout the country & sold frozen in the supermarkets. Some, like this woman, still make it from scratch.<br /> <br /> This shot somewhat epitomizes [to me] how our perceptions are deeply influenced by our cultural reference points. Rustem sees this as a typical village woman making a tasty Russian delicacy. Admittedly, I'm not a fan of pelmeni - something about the meat & spices combination doesn't appeal to me. That aside, when I look at this, all I can think of is yuck, as my eyes are drawn to those short, dirty fingernails engaged in food prep and, to a lesser extent, their disparity with the imitation pearls.<br /> <br /> Thanks for you comments yesterday.
  • Getting an early start on summer. (5.24.2012)<br /> <br /> Hmmm... seems to me this may be one of the 1st 'in the water' shots of the season, except for Barr's but then he's in Hawaii. How's that, my friends? The past week we've had extraordinarily high temps and, though I can assure you the water temps haven't risen, most Russians just can't resist. <br /> <br /> This is Rustem's cousin, Albina, whom he visited on his most recent business trip. She's hoping to make her 1st trip to the big city to celebrate her 12th birthday when school finishes next month so you'll probably see more of her. Temp's back down to 60 today.
  • Black cat. (5.23.2012)
  • Dress uniform & trumpet. (5.22.2012)<br /> <br /> Thanks for all your generous comments yesterday. Again, I was surprised this AM to see our shot in the top spot. There were so many fabulous & interesting images - lots of impressive eclipse shots & 2 superb studio portraits by Paul & Hillary with beautiful lighting & detail, and much more beautiful women. I guess, like anything else, it's oft times the emotional connection rather than perfection that gives the slight edge (no offense intended). Of course, the truly great photographers have both - something we can aspire to.<br /> <br /> Have a good one!

  • Pixel Footprints

    on June 10, 2012

    Very nice shot. Like the way it fills the frame!!!

  • Hershy

    on June 5, 2012

    Look good enough to eat!

  • Gene Hyder

    on June 4, 2012

    Excellent shot and story. Never saw an icicle shot. The market shot was 2 days in a row,

  • Howard's Photography

    on June 3, 2012

    WOW, these look luscious, beautiful shot...would like to reach through the screen and get a handful!

    Thanks for your comments regarding tomatoes...will definitely give the hybrids a try next year! Also, you're right...my shot today IS a rock LOL! I've corrected my post, I do have a cork bark shot somewhere, I'll try and find it.

    Sorry about your shot today. What is just as strange, I don't see your icicle shot at all, your escalator shot is the one preceding your strawberries. I had a similar issue with my most popular gallery. I turned off the thumbs feature for a day or so and then turned thumbs back on except in the Dailies (according to SM, thumbs have been disabled in the Daily Community). Doing so really messed up my most popular gallery. The funny thing is, my most popular shots based on comments anyway, no longer show as the most popular. In fact, a couple of them aren't even in the most popular gallery...Makes me wonder if the problem isn't somehow with SM. I contacted SM but the issue persists...oh well...

  • RuSu

    on June 3, 2012

    One hour ago this photo was in 4th position - now it's disappeared totally.

  • fotoeffects

    on June 3, 2012

    Beautifully captured strawberries, which I think are quite difficult to capture well!

  • dalystock

    on June 3, 2012

    Enjoy... always enjoy the stories along with your images, please continue!

  • grahamhamilton

    on June 3, 2012

    Nice shot - great story

  • fotomom

    on June 3, 2012

    Those berries look soooooooooo good! Good thing there is a berry farm a 1/2 mile from the house:-) Excellent full frame presentation!

  • Alexander & Natalie

    on June 3, 2012

    I almost can smell them.

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