The more I use Instagram the more I am inspired to do crazy, wacked-out things. That’s the beauty of the immediate, streaming social photography movement. As a result, I’ve gone back to a few apps that I haven’t used in awhile, like Percolator, and am learning how to use them more effectively.

This is my friend Don’s drum, which he wrapped in a beautiful paisley fabric. I took it the other night as he and his band Sweet Leda were setting up for a gig. It’s a cool picture alone, but run through Percolator, it exudes a freaky, whimsical vibe befitting it’s looks. This shot of a bunch of colorful bracelets was also processed in Percolator. Again, the original was cool, but I love how the shapes are enhanced by the app.

It’s tough to sometimes capture a mood when taking pictures, especially if you’re a participant. Two weeks ago, I participated in a fundraiser put on by my local Cross Fit gym, called “Share the Pain” (and boy was I in pain the next few days). My friend Ally and I shared a WOD (Workout Of the Day) then, being the Cross Fit gym member, she had to do a second WOD. I got some shots of her preparing for her second workout, then added some TTV effects in TtV Camera, which I think give the shots a gritty, tough look.

Then there was this shot of Ally’s socks. No real post-processing needed for this shot!

HDR is another effect I’ve been using. It’s not appropriate for all subjects and, much like bokeh, can be easily overused, so I try to use it judiciously. For example, it’s completely ineffective to use it on metal objects. It may enhance the color or give it a weird look, but I really don’t think it’s worth using. HDR looks best to me in shots with lots of natural elements (trees, sky, water, people). That said, here are a few HDR shots from a recent night out at the Dirt Track races in Georgetown, DE.

While these are not my best HDR shots, I love how the inclusion of all levels of exposure brings out each individual person, along with details in the fence, bleachers and track.

The next two shots are collages I made with Frametastic. I was killing some time at work when this box of medicine vials caught my eye.

I liked the original, but took it up a notch in Frametastic.

The next collage was inspired by my fingernail polish. I took the kids to the boardwalk for an afternoon out and we all noticed how many things matched the color. I turned it into a photo game and this is the end result.

Here are a few random shots that I really like. They were processed in Camera+ and Vintique.

You never know what inspiration you’ll find when you look up. Here are two stand-outs.

These last two shots are macros of ordinary things. When it gets slow at work (which isn’t very often) I try to look around and get inspired, which can be tough at a hospital. Last night I just couldn’t find ANYTHING, until I started looking at my surroundings with a graphic, abstract frame of mind. Here’s a stack of stapled papers taken and processed in Camera+.

When I got home last night, I found tiny little pencils on the kitchen counter. My daughter Zoe had made them for her dolls to use by coloring toothpicks with markers. They were so realistic looking! This is how I captured them this morning with Camera+.

Kind of fitting considering it’s almost time for everyone to go back to school. Speaking of which, you’ll notice my posts have gotten a little sporadic. Unfortunately, that trend will probably continue as I go back to school next week to pursue a master’s degree in nursing. My family nurse practitioner program is a 3 1/2 year endeavor that will take a lot of my time and energy, which will leave me with less time to devote to my passions of photography and music. I will still be blogging but it may be on a less regular basis. Stick with me, though, because I’m never going to stop taking pictures. Thanks for your patience and understanding as well as all your feedback.