close-ups, photoshop & extravagance

I recently discovered the magic that is all wrapped up in a package called Photoshop CS4. Hello, new obsession. Editing photos now goes way beyond converting to black-and-white or cropping into a square instead of a rectangle. I do realize that the program has been around for ages and has been mastered by countless numbers of people and photographers, but as a newbie, I am finding great joy in watching my images take on new shapes, forms, colors and interpretations. I can turn the simple into the abstract, the abstract into just plain weird. Click on the image to blow it up if you need to... I hope you think it's as fun as I do. | much love, sara

This gerbera daisy was a table centerpiece at a restaurant we visited for my dad's birthday. Sometimes all you need is a close-up view to turn the plain into extravagant:
Another close-up, with a quote that is a recent favorite of myself and Craig. From the book The Power of Intention, by Dr. Wayne Dyer:
I was walking through a park in the middle of downtown Appleton when I saw this little guy. A small patch of flowers had been planted next to a chain link fence. The best part about searching for extravagance is that you sometimes find it in the most unexpected places:
The power of Photoshop ... I took this picture of my Grandpa Roggenbauer at a picnic this spring. I completely underexposed it; it turned out much too dark and I thought I had missed a great opportunity. But I messed around with it a little in the editing program and it turned out to be a pretty unique image. You have to stare at it a second to figure out what you're looking at, but I happen to love it. What do you think?