Florida 2014 Part 5

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Roanoker
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Florida 2014 Part 5

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It is the next day, 2/11/14. We saw an online ad that we could visit Universal Studios for $69 a person, so that was the destination for the day.

It took $16 and a long time in the long line of cars, but we finally worked our way to a parking spot, marked by this sign.
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We just got out of the car. I snapped this picture as we walked and walked to extricate ourselves from the parking garage.
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Making our way to the ticket office.
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It looks like we have entered the park. But no, we are still on the march for the ticket office.
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Still trekking to the ticket office. The bird is going the wrong way.
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Yeah, we're in the right place. Still no ticket office.
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Crossing over a river. Where is that ticket booth?
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Have we made it?
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Let's find out.
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Still looking for the ticket booth...
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We made it! We are now standing in a long line of people, waiting to get our tickets to enter Universal Studios. So I'll take pictures of flowers.
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Still waiting and snapping...
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Oh. The $69 ticket was available only online. If we want to visit one of the two parks, we'll have to shell out $90 for each of us. If we want to visit both parks, it will cost something like $130 per person. Let's see. We've already waited in a long car line, paid $16 to park, walked several miles to get to the freakin' ticket office, learned that it will cost more than we expected. What would you do? We didn't appreciate their tactics, so we said, "No, thanks" and walked the gazillion miles back to our car and left. Later, you'll see where we wound up for the day.
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Roanoker
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Re: Florida 2014 Part 5

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Since we left the place we had intended to spend the day (Universal Studios), we had to find a good destination. So we took to the
highway, and I snapped a few city shots.
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We decided to visit Wekiwa State Park. Starting off with a flower, of course.
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My son begins the hike.
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Nice lake. I did lighten up everything but the sky, as it was way too dark. And I cloned out a ridiculous trash dumpster. And a stupid little sign.
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Cute and pretty, teensy flower.
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This is actually a swimming hole.
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See the swimmer?
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Another view, with a bridge.
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Roanoker
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Re: Florida 2014 Part 5

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We are still visiting Wekiwa State Park. My son and I began a trek on the left side of the lake.
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Lots to see from the path.
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My son in MagicLand.
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Leaves, masquerading as a flower.
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I'm glad that wooden path was there.
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Interesting colors and textures associated with mundane subjects.
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Fronds screaming, "Look at me! Look at me!"
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Simply other-worldly.
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I frequently spotted this scene.
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This image started out as portrait-oriented. The right side is an enlarged portion of itself. Um, nice path through the trees.
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I could hear these little ones screaming at me. Crunch, crunch, click!
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Another fan, dancing.
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Re: Florida 2014 Part 5

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My son is embarking on the path on the left side of the lake.
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The fan fronds are waving at the sun, peeking through the trees.
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Not all the trees were palm-like.
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These plants seemed to be growing out of their burnt parents.
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Celebrating the simple.
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This portrait-oriented image was pasted on top of a portion of itself. I feathered the hard edges to a considerable extent and deleted
everything else.
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I like tall, skinny trees close together. The background is a 4:3 portion of the image. The frame is made up of 50% opacity of both
the background and the 3:2 image. If that makes any sense.
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There must have been a fire in the area, charring once-robust plants. Oddly, new growth emerges. Good for them!
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It's almost like life flowing out of death. Something to think about.
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Another one of those 50% frame things. I need to come up with something else.
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This is another oval on top of a very small portion of the image, with the oval mitigated by a feathered and deleted edge.
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This is another portrait-oriented image plopped on top of a portion of itself. I hid the left edge fairly well. Not so much on the right.
Got tired.
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Re: Florida 2014 Part 5

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I suppose you could try to guess what this is, but I'll tell you now. It is a close-up of a tree. I found the bark interesting.
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Well, it was just begging me to take its picture.
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Here it is again, even closer. I took some liberties with the background. And I chopped off the log.
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This is one of those portrait images that I pasted within a portion of itself. Same with the one above, too, with a few extra tricks.
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Just brown leaves with a silly treatment.
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Another close-up of a tree with interesting bark.
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These dead leaves seemed rather elegant.
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If you play with fire...
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Here is another portrait-oriented picture pasted within itself. I'm going to have to stop turning the camera sideways.
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A man was walking his dog in the forest. I asked him if I could take his picture. (This is the dog.)
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These things are so entreating.
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The portrait image is of the berry bush. It's mostly on the right side with a larger part of itself on the left. I did some fussy stuff.
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Re: Florida 2014 Part 5

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This is a closer view of some berries on the berry bush shown last. It’s almost like Christmas.
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If we’re going to show some fungus, it had better be pretty.
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Not so pretty fungus.
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I used a portion of the image for the background, but it was too busy. I used a filter called a “box blur” and liked the result. It made for a
nice, 3D effect. The small frame is simply the same part of the image, flipped 180º and a "Bevel and Emboss" Layer Style applied.
Since the framed image appeared to be floating in the air, it didn’t need a shadow, which I usually apply.
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Spanish moss over glass, I guess.
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It is the next day, 2/12/14, and we are flying back to Kansas City. I wonder what is outside the window. Clouds.
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I like this shot. Isn’t it pretty?
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Are we still on the same planet?
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Almost scary.
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Umm. I want to go back to Florida.
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At least, whatever is under the wing has some color. It inspired the skinny frame.
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Ah. A familiar freeway. Home at last. Guess what? After 40 weeks, we’re done with pictures from the 2014 Florida trip. Bye!
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