Thursday, March 28, 2024
cat photographsdaily photofoster catsHamlet

Daily Photo: Hamlet Reflecting

Hamlet reflecting.
Hamlet reflecting.

For being a former feral cat, Hamlet knows a heck of a lot about striking a beautiful pose. I wish I’d had my better camera, but I’m glad I had at least my cell phone to capture this lovely moment.

Here is his entire pose—look at that tail!

Hamlet reflecting and then some.
Hamlet reflecting and then some.

Photos from years past.

.

Wordless Wednesday: Tangled Bliss

Bella and Jelly Bean snuggling in the basket.
Bella and Jelly Bean snuggling in the basket.

We’ve passed a number of cool, cloudy, rainy days and warm sun fills the basement doorway. All Mewsette and Mimi want is OUT. I’ve been curtailing our out time for my own selfish purposes, or so they think, but I wasn’t going to get away with it today. Still, it was much later in the day when I saw the fawn that we actually did get to go outside for any length of time. I have photos from that event, but this morning was wonderful, and rich in memories of many other cats who spent time at the basement door.

Hamlet joined us. He is friendly nearly all the time now and loves when I scratch my fingers into that deep ruff he has grown, purring, blinking, kneading with both paws. I finally got a good photo of this.

Then in two different views we watched the girls at the door. I love the silhouette of Hamlet’s furs.

And he watches them for instruction.

It’s interesting to compare Hamlet’s fur from last year and this in the photos below. Some long-haired cats take two years to develop their full coat, and he certainly bulked it out.

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What other photos have I shared around this date?

Daily Photo: Whiskers

Mewsette's whiskers.
Mewsette’s whiskers.

Mewsette has the most amazing whiskers, especially when she’s relaxing in the big grapes box and the morning sun touches nearly all of them. Look at that thick, rich fur. Mewsette has fur like plush. Aren’t black cats amazingly beautiful?

. . . . . . .

From Facebook

I set up at a little Pet Day event in Slippery Rock today and came home with some photos of only one cat but several dogs plus horses and ponies! It was nice to be away for a few hours, and since I’m so rarely away I got a big multi-cat greeting when I came in the door.

. . . . . . .

Other Photos Posted On or Around This Date…

Daily Photo: Necessary Distractions, Kitty Belleh
black cat on back
A Sunshine belleh.

I’ve had a few long days at this desk and just as I’m nearing my breaking point with sitting in this chair, Mr. Sunshine provides the purr-fect antidote—he unrolls himself from his kitty ball posture and rolls over onto his back. This is not only pleasant to look at, but also an interactive display, because I get to touch the belleh.

If I moved too fast or petted him too vehemently, Sunshine would roll himself around my arm and bite and scratch me, but I know better and so does he. I need to relax, not work myself up more, so I slowly reach out and run my fingers through the thick longish fur on that belleh and I am rewarded with an invitation to keep it going. It’s the purr-fect antidote indeed, and though I need to stop and get some work done, I could still get another dose.

black cat on back
What to do with a Sunshine Belleh.

. . . . . . .

Premiere of Reality Show “Mousewatch” on Cat TV , 2013
black cat watching cabinet
“Don’t interrupt my show.”

Giuseppe has opened the cabinet door where mousies are known to visit and settles in for an evening program of “Mousewatch”.

This involved quietly being vigilant in one spot for hours punctuated by five or six seconds of extreme awareness.

Isn’t this what reality TV is all about?

Giuseppe really does open either both the cabinet doors or only one as you see here by standing up and pulling on the knobs at the top corners of the doors—often both at once, but in this case just one door will do; one of these days I’ll get a clear photo of him opening the doors, or even a video. Then he looks inside and listens, sometimes disappears inside to explore, then settles down outside the cabinet as you see here. He cannot be moved.

This cabinet is under the sink. The few cabinets I have in this kitchen are the old metal cabinets, and this sink cabinet is quite a production. The top sink area is one solid piece, which I like since it’s very easy to keep clean and automatically drains right into the sink. The bottom section is another story. From years of leaking faucets and drains there are patched rust holes here and there, and underneath that are patched holes in the old wood floor, which is where the mice come up from the basement—though I would swear up and down that I’d patched everything. Someday soon I’ll replace this thing, but my kitchen needs so much renovation, inlcuding replacing the entire floor, it’s probably still going to wait a while.

And I have to wonder about these mice. Are they being paid by the network to engage in high risk behaviors for the entertainment of feline audiences?

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Wordless Wednesday: I Think I’m Having a Flashback, 2013
black cat with wild eyes
“Too many ears behind me!” Just go back to sleep, Giuseppe, it’s just a mirror.

. . . . . . .

It’s Hot, 2012
black cat on top of table in front of window
Mr. Sunshine catches a breeze by the window.

Mr. Sunshine exposes himself to the neighborhood in an effort to catch a breeze on his belly by lying on his back with his legs spread. It’s classic Mr. Sunshine in the summer.

It’s a little hot here. We’ll get used to it.

 

. . . . . . .

Arrangement of Two Black Cats, 2011
two black cats
Arrangement of Two Black Cats

It is what it says.

I watch them all the time, of course, and sometimes, by their own random movements, they form the most wonderful compositions. A turn of the head, two shapes in the same space that complement each other, how their shapes catch the light, the glint of their eyes in inky fur, it’s part inspiration by feline, part abstract arrangement.

Mewsette and Mr. Sunshine are not looking at each other or touching each other, yet they are interacting and the space between them becomes as important as themselves. I watched the two move about on their own and shot several photos until this one had that positive-negative balance I was looking for.

That’s one of the reasons why I desaturated this one to appear black and white, and I also increased the contrast so the dense black shapes are the boldest elements in this image.

And aside from their wonderful personalities, that’s the wonderful thing about having all these black cats around the house, their shapes become patterns and elements in addition to being living beings. I am constantly visualizing feline-patterned things and soon enough I’m going to have to do something about all those ideas.


Art and Gifts featuring cats you know! Visit Portraits of Animals

AfterDinnerNap-Etsy

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Victoriana Cats Feline Greeting Cards from Portraits of Animals!

Victoriana Cats in dreamy semi-sepia tones
Victoriana Cats in dreamy semi-sepia tones

 

Though these photos may look antique and sepia-toned, they are neither. My cats are perfect models and knew to pose in the bright yellow morning sun in front of my round antique mirror and the narrow casement window with the lace curtain. I applied a few Photoshop filters to the original photos to make them consistent in tone and style. On the back is the story of the photo. Read more and purchase.



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From health and welfare to rescue and adoption stories, advocacy and art, factual articles and fictional stories, "The Creative Cat" offers both visual and verbal education and entertainment about cats for people who love cats, pets and animals of all species.

6 thoughts on “Daily Photo: Hamlet Reflecting

  • databbiesotrouttowne

    we thinkz cyber space just eated R commint

    Reply
    • No, you signed in as “anonymous” so you needed to be approved once before you’d automatically publish, but I caught ya!

      Reply
  • dood…eye am feral two.. but eye musta been in de wrong line; my tail isn’t that grate…prob ablee eye knead ta go two de… ree tail stor 😉 huh !!
    ♥♥♥

    mackerull boomer junior butter feeld

    Reply
    • Hamlet has the extra fancy model of tail. It’s bigger around than he is! I love it, especially now that he’s confident enough to walk around with it in the air.

      Reply
  • Now I know I have to start working in black-and-white mode on my ridiculous iPhone camera, since you’ve captured your black cats so wonderfully that way. I love Hamlet’s reflection.

    Reply
    • That’s too funny–it’s not black and white, just that my crappy Cellular One cell phone has the worst camera EVER and doesn’t know what to do with color. Hamlet is beautiful no matter what.

      One thing most cell phones have a problem with is contrast, and there is nothing more contrasty than a black cat against just about anything white or very light. If you can adjust the contrast balance, or the brightness of the photo, before you shoot, you can help to catch more detail on your kitties. This is different on all cameras, but it’s usually on center with two steps up and two steps down. When I photographed Hamlet in the tub the other day, that’s what I did to see some of the detail in his face at least. In this photo there was just enough light from the window, and then reflected off the mirror, but I still had to lighten it. Sometimes I just download and use Photoshop. 🙂

      Reply

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