Monday, October 31, 2016

AUTUMN...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” 
― Albert Camus

Sunday, October 30, 2016

RISE...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“If we learn nothing else from this tragedy, we learn that life is short and there is no time for hate.”

Sandy Dahl, wife of Flight 93 pilot Jason Dahl, in Shanksville, Pa.

Saturday, October 29, 2016

VESSELS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

"Being on a boat that's moving through the water, it's so clear. Everything falls into place in terms of what's important and what's not." 
- James Taylor
1y

PURPLE...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


“I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it. People think pleasing God is all God cares about. But any fool living in the world can see it always trying to please us back.” 
― Alice Walker (Shug Avery to Celie in 'The Color Purple')

RIVERS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

Who hears the rippling of rivers will not utterly despair of anything. 
- Henry David Thoreau

BOOKENDS...

SUNRISE AND SUNSET
Ken took these two shots on the same day on the same road
(L) Going East in the AM
(R) Going West in the PM


“There's a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they're absolutely free. Don't miss so many of them.” 
- Jo Walton


FEEDBACK...


"Incredible. 

This has to be the sweetest, most beautiful group of words that I've read in a very long time. I'm in awe of the way that you two bow (Namaste) to the divine spirit and gifting within each other. I love the honor and adoration you both so genuinely have for one another. It's a powerful thing to witness. 

Ken's photos are completely captivating and soul stirring.,.and only Jim could frame his photography so eloquently.

...and with such heart.

- DS

SCARLET...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“I hear the question upon your lips: What is it to be a colour? Colour is the touch of the eye, music to the deaf, a word out of the darkness. Because I’ve listened to souls whispering – like the susurrus of the wind – from book to book and object to object for tens or thousands of years, allow me to say that my touch resembles the touch of angels. Part of me, the serious half, calls out to your vision while the mirthful half soars through the air with your glances. I’m so fortunate to be red! I’m fiery. I’m strong. I know men take notice of me and that I cannot be resisted. I do not conceal myself: For me, delicacy manifests itself neither in weakness nor in subtlety, but through determination and will. So, I draw attention to myself. I’m not afraid of other colours, shadows, crowds or even of loneliness. How wonderful it is to cover a surface that awaits me with my own victorious being! Wherever I’m spread, I see eyes shine, passions increase, eyebrows rise and heartbeats quicken. Behold how wonderful it is to live! Behold how wonderful to see. I am everywhere. Life begins with and returns to me. Have faith in what I tell you.” 
― Orhan Pamuk

FALLS...

Photos by Ken Marhshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“There is a waterfall in every dream. Cool and crystal clear, it falls gently on the sleeper, cleansing the mind and soothing the soul.” 
― Virginia Alison

Friday, October 28, 2016

NOCTURNE...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.” 
― Sarah Williams

FAUNA...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That's the problem.” 
― A.A. Milne

CATHEDRALS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

"People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.” 
― Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

AZURE...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Of the colors, blue and green have the greatest emotional range. Sad reds and melancholy yellows are difficult to turn up. Among the ancient elements, blue occurs everywhere: in ice and water, in the flame as purely as in the flower, overhead and inside caves, covering fruit and oozing out of clay. Although green enlivens the earth and mixes in the ocean, and we find it, copperish, in fire; green air, green skies, are rare. Gray and brown are widely distributed, but there are no joyful swatches of either, or any of exuberant black, sullen pink, or acquiescent orange. Blue is therefore most suitable as the color of interior life. Whether slick light sharp high bright thin quick sour new and cool or low deep sweet dark soft slow smooth heavy old and warm: blue moves easily among them all, and all profoundly qualify our states of feeling.” 
― William H. Gass

COUNTRY...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

"I guess my feet know where they want me to go...walking on a country road..."
 - James Taylor

SEA II...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


“My soul is full of longing for the secret of the sea, and the heart of the great ocean sends a thrilling pulse through me.” 
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Thursday, October 27, 2016

SEASONS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

"Each moment of the year has its own beauty." 
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

FLORA...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“The earth laughs in flowers.” 
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

ATLANTA...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“A city isn’t so unlike a person. They both have the marks to show they have many stories to tell. They see many faces. They tear things down and make new again.” 
― Rasmenia Massoud

SPECTRUM...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.” 
― Rabindranath Tagore

KEN'S PHOTOS...

Photo by Howard Blount
It takes a lot of time to sort through so many hundreds of Ken Marshall's beautiful pics and organize them into these collages, but I enjoy doing it because I think that seeing them put together in this way really makes a powerful visual statement...


Only a beautiful soul like Ken can capture beautiful images like this, and his eye for color really produces a cathartic and healing effect for his viewers, I think...he's not a professional photographer, and he takes all of these with his iPhone, but it's obvious to everyone who sees his photography that he definitely has a gift to arrest these speculator images in an artful way that speaks to the viewer on a very deep level...what he is able to do with what he has to work with is quite special, and I truly believe that it's not the technology of the camera that sets them apart...I know I'm biased, but I honestly think the beauty in the shots comes from the beauty of his kind heart...


I initially started putting his photos into collages because some of them are a little grainy when they're enlarged, and look more hi-def when they're small, but once I started doing it, I realized that the themes of the collages are what makes such a unique impression...I want to be a good steward of his amazing work, which is why I search for the right quote to go with each one...



Fort Mountain Park

The pics also bring me a lot of personal joy because every single one of them represents a wonderful memory of some awesome place that we've seen together...many people have suggested putting these into book form, and this blog is sort of a first step toward that...


There may be chaos and negativity all around, but these scenes serve to remind us all that it still really is a beautiful world...

Enjoy!


                   Jim Swilley

  
Lookout Mountain, TN

GRANDEUR...

Photos of the Grand Canyon by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Life wants you to touch, taste and see the grandeur of the world's unfathomable variety.” 
― Bryant McGill

FIRMAMENT...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


"When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator." 
- Mahatma Gandhi

FOUNTAINS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


“Build universal fountains for others; let people benefit from those fountains long after you are gone!” 
― Mehmet Murat Ildan

DESIGN...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


“Let design inspire your soul.” 

― Samadara Ginige

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

BRIDGES...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

"We build too many walls and not enough bridges." 
- Isaac Newton

ROADS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Sometimes the most scenic roads in life are the detours you didn't mean to take.” 
― Angela N. Blount

Monday, October 24, 2016

SUNSETS...

Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“Sunsets, like childhood, are viewed with wonder not just because they are beautiful but because they are fleeting.” 
― Richard Paul Evans

SEA...

Key West, FLA
Photo by Ken Marshall

“I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea - whether it is to sail or to watch it - we are going back from whence we came.

[Remarks at the Dinner for the America's Cup Crews, September 14 1962]” 
― John F. Kennedy

MORNING...

Sunrise on Hilton Head Island, SC
Photos by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley

“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive—to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love—then make that day count!” 

― Steve Maraboli

REFLECTION...

Photographs by Ken Marshall
Collage by Jim Swilley


"What are the best times to reflect on the course of your life? Whenever you are near water, such as the ocean, a quiet pond, or a small stream. Bodies of water, particularly if they are moving, help to stimulate your creative thought process.

Similarly, if you are near a fireplace or even a candle, while the flames tend to have a calming effect, they also help you to reflect on what is really important and what you want to be doing more often. The brilliant, quiet stillness of a candle flame can have an anxiety-reducing effect on your entire being. 


Believe it or not,you can actually choose to feel comfortable about how you spend your time. Philosophically speaking, up to this minute in your life, you did indeed have enough time to accomplish everything you accomplished. And that's been quite a lot. When you choose to feel comfortable about how you spend your time, it immediately helps to reduce anxiety. 

You can also choose to feel good about your accomplishments. To bemoan the fact that you have only accomplished so much by such and such an age is to remain in a perpetual state of discontent. Feel good about what you have accomplished and look forward to what you will accomplish, and you will have a greater sense of control of the time in your life."

- Jeff Davidson

SUNRISE...

“There's always a story. It's all stories, really. The sun coming up every day is a story. Everything's got a story in it. Change the story, change the world.” 
― Terry Pratchett