October equates not only to FALL bu the time of year that we see the most pumpkins and gourds. The familiar orange shapes can be found in the fields, on fenceposts,  doorsteps, and in the windows.  Last year we were in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine where pumpkins resided everywhere and were decorated to the hilt.  Seeing them gave me that warm feeling.  You know what I am talking about;  the kind of feeling that reminds you of comfort food like  mashed potatoes and gravy, or the smell of hot apple pie with cinnamon. Oh my taste buds are going overtime.   Lucky us, a pumpkin fix is always close by because we can drive over Highway 92 to Half Moon Bay, the California pumpkin paradise.   Do you remember as a kid running through a pumpkin patch trying to pick the perfect one to carve?  Oh, the thrill of that!  So many to choose from and then that special moment of finding just the RIGHT one! Nowadays we watch the newer generation of grandkids experiencing the same joy. Pumpkins continue to bring out the child in us allowing us just to be silly and decorate their faces to suit our moods. 

In addition, what a treasure of textures gourds and pumpkin have.  How fun it is to take pictures of all of the interesting varieties as well as those finished characters, “the pumpkin wanna be’s”. Bumps, lines and squirrelly faces can lend themselves nicely to applying as a texture mask in photography.  A quick way of doing this is to save your background photo and then drag and drop your ‘texture’ onto the main photo.    Use the opacity slider or add a filter mask to  tweak the shot or ‘’paint’’ in the focus.  I may have many layers before the final outcome.  It totally depends on the desired outcome. There are some great tutorials on layering on You tube as well as on creative cloud. I also find it interesting to try out the different filters that photoshop offers! 

I think one of the most fun shot I ever got was in Arkansas where the Country bumpkin resided!”  He was definitely a classic! Then in Vermont there was the homey bucket of white pumpkins sitting in the perfect country setting.  You can go on and on.  Some interesting facts: As gourds and pumpkins belong to the same family, they do not differ much. A gourd is mainly used as a vessel or a container at home. Or you can see them at Aegis Gallery in Saratoga i  gracing the wall in as cats and scarey faces.  Gourds are also used as musical instruments such as drums and stringed instruments. When comparing the two, gourds are mostly ornamental in type.  Unlike gourds, they are edible and can be eaten when ripe.  Which is good to know because if all else fails and the pictures bomb out you can make Pumpkin pie! Yum!!  Enjoy the season )

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