I ♥ Chico! (and photos of Chico)

Just discovered another Facebook photo site, Chico Illustrated, featuring "over a decade of photos capturing the colorful charm and tranquility that each season brings to this lovely town and beautiful Bidwell Park." I never tire of seeing photos of our beautiful Northern California Shangri-La.  (Bidwell Mansion photo above by Aimee Proel, originator of Chico Illustrated.)

Bidwell Park Arts is another Facebook site with great local photos.  Says photographer John Peters, "I wanted to give the nature of Bidwell Park its own voice through this 3 yr, 15,000 shot photographic study. To celebrate its wonders and hopefully inspire a renewed thoughtfulness in regards to it's future stewardship." Check out the "VodPod" video of some of John's wonderful photography as well.  (Sunset in Bidwell Park photo above by John Peters.)
 


Cruising around Chico a few years, ago, daughter-in-law Eva and I did a little "Chico Photo Shoot" of our own.  Click here and then hit "View Album" to view some of Chico's buildings, homes, murals etc.  Enjoy!

Fun with Picasa

Photography has always been a fun hobby for me, and digital cameras (I have a Sony) and software programs like Picasa (a free download from Google) make it all the more interesting. I noticed the first bloom on my newly-planted Passionflower yesterday and took a few moments to capture the image. Had fun experimenting with Picasa later in the evening. Son Gabe taught me the basics of Adobe Photoshop, but Picasa seems more user friendly (although also more limited) and is FREE! Hope you enjoy the results! Check out the ChicoLaura website at www.ChicoLaura.com

Springtime in Chico!

What is lovelier than Chico in springtime? Well known as one of the best almond- (or "amin," as in "salmon," as the locals pronounce it) growing areas in the world, Chico and the surrounding agricultural areas are virtually bursting with white and pink blossoms. In addition to the nut trees, we're being treated to flowering displays by Bradford (ornamental) pears, ornamental cherry trees, and various bulb beauties. (My mom and dad's neighbors probably wondered what the heck I was doing stretched out flat on my belly on their front lawn when I was photographing these gorgeous daffodils!)