My SUMMER GARDEN

If all continues according to my plans, this will be my last summer in my current gardens.

What a journey it has been from the 6 acre working farm environment I found

to the charming and romantic gardens which I created here. This image was taken from

the same spot as the one above it several years later. More than 50 weddings have taken place in the

gardens. Garden groups came from far and wide.  So many  summer parties have been hosted in these gardens  and it

has served as a venue for many non profit and political events. Ultimately it became my portrait park with it’s many

beautiful vignettes against which to create interesting and beautiful portrait backgrounds.

The blind and the hearing impaired came to touch the large foliage, of the Pedicides (sp),

and  the soft fuzzy foliage of the  lambs ear, the prickles of the many specimen conifers.

There is the sweet fragrance of  honeysuckle and roses.The garden has been shown on HGTV’S

“The Good Life”.  Alas for me it is a work of art complete. People ask me how I can leave it.

It is actually not hard.  I evolved into an artist in this garden.  I am ready to move on.

So much of my time is now spent in front of a computer creating other forms of art which I love.

All is good.

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INTERVIEW by Rangefinder Radio

In the July issue of Rangefinder Magazine a body of my work was featured.  I  will post that link as soon as it is available.  The following interview was conducted by Scott Sheppard, producer of Rangefinder Radio,  as a supplement to the feature article.

Listen to interview:

http://www.rangefindermag.com/storage/articles/RFRadio_WinifredWhitfield.mp3

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This is one of the many lovely images featured

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SWEET LIGHT

As I exited the Bistro, one of my favorite restaurants in all the Northwest, I heard myself exclaim a WOW!

I was looking across at Liberty Bay. The sun was lowering, now, rapidly in the sky.  It had been raining but the sun came out to say it’s goodbye for the day and  what a spectacle it made.

I am so fortunate to live in one of the most beautiful areas of this country.

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Miracles

We normally think of Miracles as some amazing occurrence which we could never have anticipated.  The “Course in Miracles” defines a miracle as “a change in perception” and says  “Miracles are natural when they do not occur, something has gone wrong”.  On every level, regardless of how you define it, I would have to say that I have been experiencing “Miracle after Miracle.”  Thank you Universe!

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I Believe I Can Fly!

Hello World!

This is me more than 99 percent of the time. I am positive energetic, creative and believe the sky is the limit.

This does not mean that everything goes my way or that I do not have challenges – but rarely does it get me down and for not very long.  I pay attention to my thinking  and try to stay away from negative thinking, limited thinking and judgment.  These type of thoughts get us in trouble.  When one thing is out of my control, I direct my attention to things I can control and attempt to have positive impact there.  When the economy slowed and I had less business, I used it as a time to create my book. Hence I remained focused, optimistic and fully engaged with an activity that was important to me.

I also engage consciously in positive self talk – you know, that little voice we hear all day long giving us feedback. That voice can be trained. It can be trained to tell you  things you need to hear to move forward.  It can be trained to offset the negative voices which may be part of your past – which may be holding you back – really it can.  It is amazing how much I like to hear myself praise myself for doing really good work.  I can feel a what feels like a separate being within me just “glow”.  I like to feel that I am in charge of  how I feel and how my life goes.  If something is not working  no matter how hard you work at it – well, it just may be that you need to let it go and to move in a new direction.  Sometimes we just need patience.

This image was taken by Pete Snell from Victoria when  group of us were in Vegas for WPPI and went to the desert to a ghost town to do a shoot.  The environment was so beautiful and I had my fabric with me to use for the models so I complied when the guys told me they wanted to photograph me.  This is a fun image so I am glad I allowed it to be created.

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Winifred and the Upside-Down-Machine

Well, this is indeed pretty unusual – me posting image of myself being silly.  However, I think it exactly the thing to do – not to take ones self too seriously.

Today there was a grand opening of Big Five. So, after having my fingernails done, I went there with a friend to celebrate and of course to have great snacks.  as we moved through the store, we spotted what I will call the “upside down machine”.  I was ready to play.  I didn’t know how to work things so we called for assistance.  A very pleasant young man came over to us.  When I previously indicated my interest to another lady, she said to me, ” I will have to get someone to adjust your feet into the machine so you don’t slip down and break you neck. I was happy  to have his assistance.  He adjusted the machine for my height. I then properly installed my feet, placed my arms on the arm rest and went backward.

45 degrees backward felt really good. Vertical was not very interesting.  At one point I exclaimed my perfect position.  Everyone laughed – turns out I was laying flat.

They told me that I only needed a hammock!  However, we were able to get a few fun and funny shots. It was a fun event.

I wish Big Five great success and I thank them for allowing us to have such an enjoyable time.

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Image and Artistry Workshop

NEW YORK     |     SEATTLE     |     KITSAP COUNTY

Winifred Whitfield,  along with  Patrick Ciatto,  co instructor, conducted a  two day, hands on training session in  Seattle/ Poulsbo  area,  May 11th and 12th.  Day One included camera and lighting fundamentals taught by Patrick.  Day Two,  Winifred introduced Adobe Photoshop  camera raw work flow and creativity tools.  The day was sunny and warm and we had two beautiful women as models.  It was one of the most content rich photographic workshops  which has taken place  in the Seattle area.

DAY ONE

DAY TWO

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