Standing Into Danger: Monarch Butterflies

Our fall has been lingering and lovely,

and I've been getting out and enjoying nature as much as I can.

Cottonwood Leaves in Autumn Sun

Along Piney Creek

October 27, 2026

Nature is a great antidote to the stress of an overloaded calendar

and too many pressing projects.

I love the fall colors, the plants and wildlife,

the bright rabbitbrush and migrating monarch butterflies.

Rabbitbrush and Monarch Butterfly

Along Piney Creek

October 6, 2026

Rabbitbrush and Monarch Butterfly

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 6, 2026

I'm always curious about what I'm seeing, and monarch butterflies have been struggling.

They passed through Aurora earlier this month

on their migration to their wintering grounds in Mexico.

Aurora city naturalist David Footle says larger numbers have been migrating this fall,

rebounding from a population decline in the past. Aurora TV

This is wonderful to learn.

Certainly we have lots of milkweed and rabbitbrush for them.

Yellow Rabbitbrush and White Milkweed

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 6, 2026

I have a friend Jon who is a prolific publisher of vlogs, and he uses AI extensively

in creating his videos, enhancing his photos, and providing music for the songs he writes.

And since Jon has been raving about what success he has had

using Chat GPT to enhance photos, I decided to check it out.

I experimented first with a photo of some mule deer I captured with my iPhone recently.

Here is the humdrum photo I took off my deck with my iPhone:

Mule Deer Grazing (Original)

Heritage Eagle Bend

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 23, 2026

Like I often do, I played with my photo in Apple Photos and tried to improve it:

Mule Deer Grazing (After Editing with Photos)

Heritage Eagle Bend

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 23, 2026

Hardly much of an improvement and not really a photo I would normally post on my blog.

So I learned how to upload it to CHAT GPT and see what it would do with the photo.

It even offered a title for its improved photo, Serene Deer Gathering on the Meadow:

Serene Deer Gathering on the Meadow (CHAT GPT Enhancement #1)

Heritage Eagle Bend

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 23, 2026

Definitely an improvement, but the photo has changed almost indiscernibly.

The mule deer on the left has its face subtly shifted to enhance its second eye.

Then CHAT GPT offered:

"Would you like to take it a step further?

I can also help you create:

- A sharper, more detailed version that brings out the deer’s fur and facial features.

- A closer crop that makes the four deer larger in the frame.

- A professional wildlife photograph look with richer natural colors and balanced lighting.

I'd recommend the sharper, more detailed version to make these beautiful mule deer stand out."

Well why not, since I'm exploring and learning?

Deer Resting and Grazing on Green Turf (CHAT GPT Enhancement #2)

Heritage Eagle Bend

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 23, 2026

Whoa! Definitely a much better photo than my original ~ lovely.

But do you see what has happened?

The left deer's face is now straight on, and it has been moved closer to the second deer,

and the right (fourth) deer has been moved closer to the third deer.

It's beautiful, but it's not real.

I want my photos to be real, to accurately capture what I see.

This really bothered and continues to bother me.

An Invitation to Play ~ I Still Love to Kick Through Leaves

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 27, 2026

After experimenting with the mule deer, I decided to enhance a flawed family photo.

I took it at my niece Natalie's wedding, and the lighting resulted in a disappointing photo:

Natalie with Her Parents and Grandfather

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

September 12, 2026

Wow! What a difference! Joyful Woodland Wedding Portrait.

CHAT GPT described this version as "Classic portrait version: Natural-looking colors and a traditional family-photograph feel."

Joyful Woodland Wedding Portrait (CHAT GPT Enhancement #4)

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

September 12, 2026

Chat GTP offered me several options, including one with the background muted.

It described this version as "Romantic version: Warmer, with a dreamy woodland background."

Joyful Wedding Family Portrait (CHAT GPT Enhancement #4)

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

September 12, 2026

What do you think, classic or romantic?

CHAT GPT also offered me some advice when it comes to family photos:

"Image generation can recreate a photograph rather than simply retouch it. Even when the result looks wonderful, small facial details, clothing features, or other elements may change. That's especially worth watching with treasured family photographs.

"Since this is a family keepsake, I’d recommend keeping your original photo alongside the enhanced versions. AI enhancement can occasionally subtly change small facial details, so the original is always worth preserving."

I'm thinking of the manipulated deer. 😂😂😂

Just for fun I thought I'd throw in a couple of photos from my childhood.

Natalie's parents, Bertie and Peter, now own my Grandmother MacDonald's property,

and Natalie and Jake's wedding took place in a very different space

from when I was a little girl.

The first photo is of me walking through the field behind Grammie's home

before it became the "woodland" it is today.

The apple trees in the background around Grammie's home are now gone,

and many tall trees have vanquished the flowers and grasses I walked through.

Me in My Ubiquitous Harness (I was a runner.)

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

Summer 1953

And, of course, I had to run it through CHAT GPT out of curiosity:

Vintage Toddler in a Wildflower Meadow.

Vintage Toddler in a Wildflower Meadow (CHAT GPT Enhancement #1)

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

Summer 1953

I like the nonvintage me. 😂 😂 😂

The last one I promise.

This photo shows my three sisters, Donnie holding Bertie (Natalie's mother) and Barb.

The apple tree behind them is only a memory,

but my grandfather's workshop still stands

reincarnated as Peter's workshop and Natalie and Sara's Hummingbird House.

Donnie (with Bertie) and Barbie

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

Summer 1960

CHAT GPT worked its magic.

Vintage Backyard Family Snapshot:

Donnie (with Bertie) and Barbie

Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

Summer 1960

Pretty sad reconstruction.

Their faces are subtly altered; well, not Barbie's.

Barbie doesn't look like Barbie at all, and her characteristic skeptical scowl,

which made the original funny, has been changed into a smile.

This is why you should always preserve the original photo!

😱 😱 😱

In my writing group, the Insecure Writer's Support Group,

we have frequently discussed the use of AI in writing.

This new and rapidly changing technology poses all kinds of ethical questions.

Where do you draw the lines in its use?

How do we know what is real and what isn't?

In writing? In photography? In art?

In business? In science? In politics?

Will AI usher us into an amazing future and help us solve our serious problems,

or will it lead to our extinction?

An original photo? An improved photo? Or a distortion of reality?

A cupcake baked from scratch? From a cupcake mix?

Bought from the deli, piled high with buttercream frosting,

and made from questionable or fake ingredients?

I guess we each make our choices,

but we should be intentional and clearly indicate where we draw the lines.

What are your thoughts?

Fall Continues to Linger

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, USA

October 27, 2026

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be

IWSG Day, Wednesday, November 4th, 2026 🤞

Confession: Actually I quite like deli cupcakes, especially if they're chocolate or red velvet topped with copious buttercream icing. 🧁🧁🧁

Standing Into Danger

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Friday, October 30, 2026

Playing with CHAT GPT as Fall Lingers

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