Project 365

Project 365 d-222

2010-09-29T22:49:00.001-07:00

Content and image coming.

Project 365 d-221

2010-09-29T22:48:00.005-07:00

Content and image coming.

Project 365 d-220

2010-09-29T22:48:00.003-07:00

Content and image coming.

Project 365 d-219

2010-09-29T22:48:00.001-07:00

Content and image coming.

Project 365 d-218

2010-09-29T22:47:00.001-07:00

Content coming.

Status Update.

2010-09-29T22:44:00.000-07:00

OK here is the deal............I am still photographing each day but having a baby has really, and I mean really put a damper on this photo project of mine. Plus I have endured two broken lenses and my 50D broke as well. All my gear has been fixed and I'm going strong. Isabella Grace is now hear and she is filling our lives with Joy. She is absolutely beautiful as her name implies, and I cannot imagine life without her now. Getting this far behind was not my intention, and I had considered just stopping this blog altogether, but I am very stubborn, and on I must go till the end. If anyone is still checking in just hold tight as I climb this big hill and get current. I am currently on d-273 in real time and Lord willing I will be all caught up by the end of October. Say a prayer that I will have the strength and the time to do so. To God be the glory.

Status Update

2010-08-25T20:55:00.000-07:00

Well my little girl was just born on Monday at 4:21 p.m. and we are now home from the hospital trying to adjust to having a baby again. Project 365 is sort of my last priority for a while, but I am still photographing each and every day. At the beginning of September I will be taking ten days off to get some work done which includes bringing Project 365 up to date. Oh by the way, her name is Isabella and she is beautiful.

Status Update

2010-08-16T23:00:00.000-07:00

Hello to all that are following along with me. I am managing to keep my head above water these days, but I just haven't had the time to get Project 365 updated and current. I am still slugging away with a photo every day without fail. Our baby girl will be arriving some time next week and all the preparations for her arrival have taken priority. Stay tuned and thanks for following along.

Project 365 d-217

2010-08-10T15:44:00.003-07:00

Experimenting with a laser.

Project 365 d-216

2010-08-10T15:44:00.001-07:00

Hold on to your hats..........Content and and many more images coming.

Project 365 d-215

2010-08-10T14:06:00.001-07:00

     As I awoke the next day, I kept thinking about what I had seen the day before. In my mind were the vivid scenes of all those aged tombstones leaning against the trees waiting to be planted in the earth again. Of course finding out information about my family was also filling my mind. There was no reason for me to feel sad, but part of me still did knowing that just as suddenly as I discovered information about my family; just as suddenly had the trail gone cold. It bothered me to know that it would most likely have to stay cold for a long while since I don't have the time to dabble in genealogy right now. It would just have to remain a mystery until my life circumstances changed, or maybe till one day I can find out on a face to face basis. Anyway, there was another photo to be harvested today, and I knew exactly where to find it.

   As soon as my wife got home from work that evening; I immediately sought her company for a trip to the other cemetery Chris had told me about. The one that was hard to get to. As it turns out, he wasn't kidding in the least bit. My wife readily agreed and off we went in search of the hard to get to cemetery. At first we drove right by the entrance and kept going down a country road till we came to a stop sign. We had gone to far and turned around. As we did, I called my brother in hopes of getting some more directions. He half scolded me and said in a stern voice, "I told you it was down a narrow lane between two houses. He was still grumbling at me when we approached the lane that we had just driven by. "I think I've found it", I told him. "Now drive through the corn field a ways and you will see it" he said. "Got it, thanks bro", I said and we ended the call. As we proceeded down the lane between the two houses; I was quite sure that at any minute somebody would be running out of either house with a baseball bat screaming at me to get out of their field. Nothing like this happened and we slowly drove forward allowing the field to swallow us up in hopes of coming out safe on the other side.

   My wife and I just looked at each other as the corn was groping at the mirrors on either side of the vehicle. The terrain was hilly filled with big puddles of standing water leaving very little choice but to drive through them. The last thing I wanted to do was to get stuck in a place like this with a pregnant wife. After driving for about a minute I asked her if we should stop and back our way out. She just looked at me the way wives often look at husbands when stupid ideas tumble out of their word factories and past their lips. She followed up the look with sage advice, "We have come this far and you cannot back all the way out of this field", she chided. My feeling could best be described as being a little scared, and I was annoyed that I felt that way. It was a mixture of feeling like we had been chewed, swallowed and were now on our way to the stomach to be digested. Just ahead I could see that the corn rows were widening to each side and thankfully we approaching a clearing. The path we were on went up and to the right through a large stand of trees on either side. It didn't feel like being swallowed this time as I could see the entrance to the cemetery. Very slowly we approached the fenced gate, stopped, turned off the engine and stared. My wife informed me that she was not going out with me and that she would stay comfortably in the vehicle. Reaching behind me into the back seat; I grabbed my gear, opened the door and stepped out on the soft grass.

   If a horse and buggy had pulled up at that point; I would not have been surprised. The place looked like it was frozen from that period and just placed here by some benevolent being. My senses were tingling in anticipation of what I would find on the other side of that fence. My hand reached for the cool metal latch and I pushed the gate open to step inside. Up ahead about fifty yards a huge Owl winged off from some unknown perch into the trees that surrounded the cemetery. My heart was in my throat as I marveled at all of the old limestone monuments all sitting perfectly in place watching over the departed. It was clear that this man Chris had restored this place and it gave me hope to think of the cemetery I had visited the day before would one day look like this too. My camera was on my tripod and I began to walk around composing shots. There was a towering Oak tree in the middle with a white bench sitting under it and it became today's photo. The tree was at least one hundred years old by eying its girth. What a wonderful place for such a stoic old Oak tree to be still growing and watching over everything. Although, I had not seen this place before; I remembered Chris telling me about the transformation this place had taken. It was simply beautiful to behold, and I was glad to be there with my camera to witness the finished product. With the light beginning to drain from the sky; I closed up my tripod and headed back toward the entrance. Stopping just before I passed back through the gate; I ventured a glance back over my shoulder for another look. "Timeless, just timeless", I said out loud and headed toward the vehicle. My wife had fallen asleep and I let her be. As I drove back out I said to myself, "There is a photo project here amongst these old stones and someday, Lord willing, I will be back to start telling its story with my lens".

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-214

2010-08-10T13:44:00.001-07:00

     Coming back from the in-laws this weekend I received a phone call from my brother. He proceeded to tell me that he had made an interesting find in a newly discovered cemetery. It seems that a very old cemetery near his home had been brought to his attention and it was in the process of being restored. It seems that there is a local man donating his time to restore some of the old cemeteries around. He explained to me that he went exploring there and found a tombstone with my last name on it from the mid 1800's. We have the same mother but different fathers, so that is why it was not his last name too. It is also important to point out that my bro has quite the nose for finding old and interesting things. Some are worth money and some things are valuable for the knowledge they bring. My brother is usually not very chatty when talking on the phone unless he's excited about something, and today was just one of those days. "There is also a Civil War soldier buried there too", he continued excitedly. My brother proceeded to explain to me how to get to the cemetery, and encouraged me to go get some photos as soon I could. "I'm off the next two days, so I will get over on one of my days off", I assured him and we ended the call. "What was that all about", asked my wife? "Seems my bro has found a bit of family history and wanted to let me know", I told her. "Well, it sounds like it must be something special for him to call and talk for so long, and I intend to find out tomorrow", I said.

     The rest of the trip home I kept thinking about getting to that cemetery, and hoping that there would be photo opportunities. It was hard for me to sleep as I tried to imagine what lay waiting for me on this hallowed ground. Old cemeteries are special to me for the history that they hold and for the images I have been able to harvest from them. Sleep finally smothered out my spinning mind and I slept deeply. The next day, I went about my business like any other day off. Lots of photo editing and writing. I didn't have to supervise my girls because they were staying with my wife's parents. My wife and I decided to go find the cemetery after she got home from work, and I was ready and waiting for her as she pulled into the drive. I pleaded with her to hurry, so there would still be some good light left. My father had stopped by and decided to tag along as well. Soon we were on the road and following the directions my brother had given me. We ended up on a winding gravel road that sent waves of white, chalky dust rolling into the corn fields as we drove. Up ahead we could see a small entrance that looked like the one my brother had told me about. Turning in cautiously we saw the cemetery sitting up on top of a hill, but it didn't look safe to drive up due to the grading work that had recently been done. We parked the car and walked the steep hill up to where the cemetery started. There were a multitude of headstones that were leaning against various trees as there were with out a place to mark a grave. Over time, they had been knocked down my trampling livestock, or careless humans all the while the earth was determined to claim this sacred place and pull all references down into its depths.

     In spite of the disarray, it was quite beautiful to see all of that history skillfully carved out by skilled hands onto the cold stone markers. Peace washed over me as the setting sun bathed the landscape in glowing orange waves of light and the shadows danced at the approach of evening. Immediately we set out to find the special headstone with our family name on it. First, I found the head stone of the Civil war soldier that my brother had spoken about and this is the image that I used for today. Party because I want to honor the fallen from our country's wars, but also so I can stay super secret. My hope was that it would be one of them that was in the proper place. Not long into the search, I spied a headstone that had fallen backwards out of its base and was resting on the soft grass. Walking around to stand in front of it; I saw my surname etched out with perfection in marble laying before me. It was good to see that the head stone was not far from where it should be, and I knew I was standing near departed family. Her name was Charity and she was the wife of John who had my last name. She died on August 6th, 1867 at the young age of twenty four and we found her only four days from what would be here one hundred forty-third birthday. My father and I decided to lift up the stone and place it back into its base, so that it would be easier for me to photograph. Plus, I felt better seeing it standing erect where it was supposed to be. I was able to get some good shots of it, and I tried to make something artful out of the experience. Suddenly a white truck turned into the entrance and began to drive slowly over the bumpy ground right up to where we were all standing. Nobody spoke, but I was thinking to myself, "Great, we are going to be arrested for trespassing". Instead out of the truck came a kind and determined man walking over to us. He spoke as he came near. "Beautiful isn't it", he said. "Whew", I thought to myself and replied, "It sure is". He introduced himself as Chris and I stuck out my hand as I told him mine, my father's, and my wives. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, he graciously began to share some information that he had about this cemetery and some other he had already completed. This was the man my brother was telling me about. For the short time we were there it was clear that he had his work cut out for him in attempting to restore this special place to what it once was years ago. He was off to a good start, and I hoped to have time upon it's completion to return and get my lens around it.

     At some point I told him that my brother had informed about this place and how he had found a tombstone with my family name on it. Upon mentioning my brother he immediately knew of him. My brother is well known in these parts, actually he is well known all over, and for good reason. He is quite like something out of a story book, a man's man with a love for life, family, and the great outdoors. I'm quite happy to have an older brother like him, and he is one of my hero's. Anyway, the conversation turned to my family name and Chris began to explain to me that Charity was the grand-daughter of Charity Sortore who was also buried there as well. That didn't seem exciting until he told me when she was alive during the Revolutionary war, and how long she lived. Charity Sortore was born in Hopewell, NJ on May 20th, 1762 and lived to be ninety four years old. She was married to Hendrick (Henry) Sortore who fought in the war of independence and is buried in Friendship, NY. There is a picture of his tombstone online by cutting and pasting this link at the end of this blog into your browser. Here I was standing in this sacred place taking to a stranger about family I never knew I had, and there was a connection back to the birth of our country. Obviously, I understood that some of my relatives would have been around even farther back than the war for independence, but to suddenly learn their names and to be standing practically on the place where they were laid to rest was exciting. Chris proceeded to tell me that he had information from a genealogist that told of Charity Sorter talking about hearing George Washington's cannons at the battle of Princeton, and that his army camped in her father Nathanael Stout's field. All I could think was "WOW". I imagined the look on my oldest daughters face when I told her about this as she dearly loves history. Charity and Henry's youngest son Nathanael had a daughter named her charity after his mother. Charity then married John from my family and this is where our two families get tied into a genealogical knot. My mind was churning just trying to process all of this and wondering why Charity died so young, did John and Charity have any children and what happened to my John after she died. It felt like a good mystery, and I was so glad that I had made time to come and visit this place.

      The light was nearly gone when Chris and I exchanged phone numbers. He told me that he would see if he could find any more information about Charity and John and get back to me. He also encouraged me to visit another cemetery that he had already restored, but warned me it was hard to get to. We thanked him and walked back down the hill toward the car to leave. As I closed my door and waited for my passengers to board; I looked back up that hill and scanned the now silhouetted head stones once more. Funny how things can look different with just a bit more information. It still looked beautiful, but now a little sad as all of the unanswered questions bounced around in my mind. We drove back out of the small entrance and out once again onto the chalky gravel filled road. We decided to head into town to get some gas, and something to drink. Just as well pulled into the gas station my phone began to ring. "Hello this is Scott", I said. "Hey Scott, it's Chris and I have some information for you", he explained. "Really, already you found something out", I queried him. He proceeded to tell me that he looked through the information given to him by the genealogist, and read off what she had written for Charity the wife of John. "The broken tombstone of Charity Sortore lies near that of her grandmother Charity Stout Sortore. We wonder what happened to her young husband and any children they may have had". He promised to make some copies of and bring them by my home. "Thanks so much for your taking the time to relay that information to me", I told him. I offered my services as a photographer for free should he ever have need to show of his restoration works. We said goodbye and ended the call. Still a mystery I thought as the last of Chris' words still rang in my ears as we drove home. Genealogy was something that I had never been that interested in, but now a curiosity was growing inside my mind. I needed to know more. Not just about John and Charity, but all of the other faceless people who rest in the ground below a cold stone marker with scant details about their lives. Was a new idea for a photo project brewing in my mind? Perhaps, but for now the only thing I have time to pursue is a good nights sleep and pray for a full memory card tomorrow.

link: http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM9HA0_Henry_Sortore_Sortore_Cemetery_Friendship_NY

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-213

2010-08-10T13:23:00.001-07:00

One more day of photographic glory spent with my wife and family at her parents. This afternoon we traveled just out of town to a county park for some fun. I had been to this park many times and harvested many photos from it, but I cannot remember ever seeing so many wildflowers and butterflies before. They were simply everywhere! Lots of little ones that never seemed to want to hold still, but spent their entire day taunting me with acrobatics just of the reach of my lens. Still, there were plenty of Monarchs to get my lens on and this particular flower must have been extra loaded with nectar because they kept coming back to it again and again. At times there were three or more at once landing on this purple flower in a feeding frenzy. Try as I may; I was unable to get them all in a good composition or freeze them in flight. So I just concentrated on capturing this one, and he was more than accommodating to me and my lens. The sun was in a near perfect position in relation to this feasting Monarch and it was a treat to have it all to myself.

Even though I had success in capturing this beautiful creature; I wished that I could have stayed there all day and just filled memory card after memory card. It was so full life buzzing and winging its way around the spectacular prairie filled with flowers, and one day was just not enough. Sadly, it won't be till next year till I can return to try again. Not because I don't want to go back to the my in-law's you understand, but the next time we visit these flowers will be gone with the approach of Fall. Hopefully next season will find me with my first photo book completed and working on one with looser time constraints. Never the less, I will be back to this wonderful little town where the most beautiful thing I've ever photographed kisses me every night as I close my eyes and whispers "I love you" in my ear.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-212

2010-08-10T12:34:00.001-07:00

     Headed out of town with my wife to spend the weekend at her parents today, and I was anticipating some quality time to photograph. A lot of my early photographic exploration came from spending time here. There are many fantastic things to photograph especially when you are learning to be proficient with your camera. The weekend I got my first digital camera we headed there and that was sort of the unofficial start of my love for photography. Later that summer is when I really started my official journey into the art of photography near the Mississippi River and my life had been turned upside down since then. A good upside down that is. I just couldn't get over how great it was to document your life with just a click of the shutter. No waiting to see what you had created, but instant gratification. I would be remiss if I didn't say that there is still a place for film and all of the disciplines it teaches in the world of photography. Upon returning to college for my degree it was one of the classed that I cherished. Watching your composition come to life before you as it sloshes around in the developer. Hopefully some day I will be able to spend some time pursuing film photography as well as digital.

   Once we got into town and unloaded, I got the green light from my CEO to hit the road and photograph. Within minutes I was roaring down the road with the windows open to let in the fresh country air. By the time on my watch I knew the sun would be setting soon, so I wasted no time in getting right to it. Immediately I drove to the water; I'm a Pieces remember? There is a really cool damn where the water glides so gracefully over the falls and down into swirling pools covered with mocha like foam. It is not uncommon to see fisherman standing out in the middle of the water like they were standing in a parking lot. Tonight was no exception and there were three of them wetting a line. Still, all my attention at the water was spent on the rushing water and the abstract reflections of the sky and riverbank on the other side of the damn. There was too much to photograph and not enough daylight to do it in. I really wanted to try another location before all the light was gone, so I loaded my my gear and headed back out of town.

     When I got to the other location; I realized it was too dark to photograph, so I just turned around and headed back into town. As I drove in, the sun was now gone but it's footprints were still brushed across the darkening sky. As I drove, I saw this silhouetted windmill near a fueling station that looked amazing against the glowing horizon, so I pulled over to set up my tripod and camera. The road was completely deserted, and I drank in the isolated feeling I had. Over the next five minutes I took many exposures of this scene, and they just glowed on my LCD. One lone star could be seen up above me as night began to draw it's blanket about the sky. It felt good to be out of town and even greater to be out of town with my camera. No disrespect to my in law's you understand. Tonight I'm really glad that I'm a photographer in the middle of a time consuming project, or I might have missed the remains of this day painted out before my eyes.

Happy Shooting.

Status Update.

2010-08-02T23:10:00.000-07:00

Still photographing everyday, but just really busy getting ready for the new little one who will be here in a couple of weeks. My guess is that she will arrive on d-234 of Project 365. Wonder what I can photograph on that day? Interesting find today at a hidden cemetery where some of my ancestors are laid to rest. There is a connection back to the Revolutionary War from a young lady who is buried there. More details to come as well as more photos and writing.

Project 365 d-211

2010-07-30T22:12:00.001-07:00

Just outside the entrance to the place I work is a beautifully aged curb and I make eye contact with it everyday I'm at work. Often I will stop and just study it before heading inside the building, or when I am leaving it. On many occasions I have stood over this peeling, mustard colored curb and photographed. It has been the start of some really good conversations as people who are coming and going ask me what I'm doing. That's usually a challenge to quickly explain what I see and by the time I get to the why they have that "I'm so sorry I asked" look in there eyes. On occasion, I have attracted and conversed with those who appreciate the process and my attempt to extract art from such a seemingly strange place. Conversation when I am photographing can be very distracting, but I have learned that I usually cannot photograph in a public place without being chatted up by curious souls. Thankfully, I have managed to strike a balance between the two by not staying too long in one place if I can help it. Clearly some subject need more time and exploration, but I'm learning that my first reaction to my subjects are often the purest and the best. Sort of like when you were a kid and everyone on your block plays a game together and it was just the best time. Try as you may the magic of that day can really never be duplicated or relived no matter how hard you tried.

Mostly I have come away disappointed from the results of my sessions. Still, I have enjoyed gazing down upon this surface as if it was a map. Maybe because I enjoy the study of Western Civilizations that it appeals to me, and I imagine and old world map complete with territories and bodies of water. There would be more colors of course it it were; however, I let my imagination run free. Plus, I feel strongly that there is art here, and I'm fascinated by the way art appears on the surfaces we all walk on day in and out. In fact, some of the best photographs I have created have been from simply looking down at the ground. Amazing things dwell beneath our feet and between the steps we take to make our lives complete. Each coming and going takes us near unvisited galleries that long for a passing glance. The mysterious, the decaying, life's flotsam and jetsam all waiting, and hoping for a chance. If your gaze should find them they may fill your heart to overflowing, and with time and healing you'll be better for the knowing.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-210

2010-07-30T22:11:00.007-07:00

This is the kind of image that I love to make. Black and white, land and water mixing together under a cloud filled sky. On my lunch break tonight, I headed out as I often do to harvest some images. As I pulled up near the river, I found the water was covering the road. As soon as I stepped out of my vehicle, I saw this and Pavlov's bell began ringing. I get jittery and nervous as I hurry to capture it before it gets away. My fear is that the light will suddenly change and the small window of time will be lost forever. The scene looked surreal to me like it was the marriage of two worlds for the purpose of photography. It wasn't until later that night in my studio that I got to fully appreciate what I had captured that day. The image just came alive before me as I sat alone in my darkened studying my days work. Not unlike a puzzle the image was part mystery to behold. Even though I knew its secret it still threatened to trick my eyes as I stared at it.

There are times when I just know that I know there is magic within the frame. Today was one of those days, and it just fills me with a deep satisfaction knowing that this image would have perished had I not started Project 365. It was there to one degree to another days before I saw it and would probably be there a few days after today, but I picked it when it was ripe. One of my mentors agreed with me that it looked like "Uelsmann" and I do love his work even though I was not trying to emulate him. Can one simply get lost in one days work? If only this image were a portal into a world unbound by the constraints of time where natural light could be moved about at will like furniture being moved across a room. Another one of my mentors once told me that "Artists move from Oasis to Oasis on their journeys, and to make sure to stop and drink deeply because you never know when the next one is coming". He was right, and today I am drinking my fill while praying to God that there are more Oasis' like this one not far down the road.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-209

2010-07-30T22:11:00.005-07:00

Out driving near sunset this evening and discovered a new part to a familiar park. Quite simply, I had just never bothered to take this road as I assumed it was just another way to access the lake. Assumptions are very powerful and in this case they had robbed me of seeing two beautiful fields full of wild flowers. I'm quite sure that during the day they would be filled with butterflies, bees and all kinds of wild life. With the sun now slipping below the trees this arrangement of purple flowers caught my eye. It's called "Rough Blazing Star" and is a native flower to this state. The light had faded just enough that I decided to use a little flash to chase away some shadows that were starting to appear. When I have a chance, I will go back there and fill some memory cards with more of the wonderful wildflowers that God so graciously planted for you and me.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-208

2010-07-30T22:11:00.001-07:00

Black Eyed Susan are very plentiful around my home and they are home to many creatures. It has been a joy to photograph many of the travelers who stop by for a drink of nectar, to rest their wings, or just to admire the beauty for themselves. Today a new visitor could be found amongst the bright yellow petals. After living here for a year, I thought I had seen nearly all there was to see in the way of wildlife, but staring down at this sleepy, green little intruder I could see that I hadn't. There sat a tree frog sunning himself like a tourist in a tropical climate. He seemed completely uninterested in me though he did keep his eye closest to me open just a bit.

Not knowing how long he would stay in this mood, I hurried to get my long lens and tripod. Setting up about six feet away; I began taking many photos of him. His throat moved quickly in and out, and all the while he kept that eye open just a bit. At one point I braved reaching in to move a stem and still he didn't move. I filled up one memory card and was going to grab another one when his eye came fully open. His posture changed and he repositioned his suction grip on the flower. I'm not sure if I did something to scare him, but he looked ready to leap. No sooner had that thought entered my mind when he suddenly leaped up on to the side of the house. It was an amazing leap for something that was so small and just sat there pondering his next jump. When I leaned in for a closer look he bounded even higher up on the house to safety. I would do the same thing if a scary giant came toward me too. Assuming I had incredible leaping prowess that is. Suction cups on my hands and feet would do nicely too. Can you imagine the photos I could take with those abilities? Turning back to get my gear, I ventured a backward glance and discovered that he was gone. Where to I couldn't tell you, but maybe he can fly as well. What a great and unexpected photo session I had though. Hopefully he will be back to sun bathe among the Black Eyed Susan again. Forgive me in advance for the frog pun.

Hoppy Shooting.

Project 365 d-207

2010-07-26T20:54:00.001-07:00

     When I came home tonight, I headed toward the pool to check the condition of the water and clean out any debris that had accumulated. As soon as I got near the edge, I spotted a dragon fly floating on top of the water. It seemed this poor little soul had drowned and my heart sank to imagine this majestic insect meeting its end this way. Leaning over the side, I cupped my hands together and scooped out the lifeless flier and gently set it down on the side of the pool. I just stood there and studied it. This is normally not very easy to do as they zoom about like teenagers who are out for their first spin after getting their license. First drive without their parents that is. Sadly, my rescue had been in vain and this little guy would never take to the skies again.

     This will be a good photo opportunity I thought to myself and headed into my studio to get my camera. When I came back over to the side of the pool I could see that he was not there. He had been knocked off the side by a gust of wind and was not sticking to the outside of the pool. A dark shadow formed to his left side like an unfinished police chalk outline. "Perhaps there is a bit of art amidst this tragedy", I thought to myself as I began photographing him. It was hard to see exactly how the shots were turning out because of the glare from the late afternoon sun on my LCD. Many times when I am photographing; I am just doing so based on a feeling. A feeling that something special may reveal itself by further exploration of a subject. Often it bears fruit while other times it just becomes an important part of a bigger process. Sort of like practicing to see the minutia that's all around us everyday.

     As I rocked forward on my heels for a closer shot, I thought I saw a wing twitch. "Was it still alive", I wondered? Then another twitch and this time the it was the other wing. "IT'S ALIVE, I shouted! In the whole big scheme of things; I realize it's just one dragon fly, but I couldn't help feeling happy that it hadn't died. Maybe dragon flies only live for a few months out of the year, or maybe they fly south for the winter; I don't know. Still, I do know that with a little drying off this bug eyed, buzzed would soon be racing through the sky again. With and outstretched finger I touched its legs and it grabbed on. It was very wobbly at first and it looked like he would fall off at any minute. Gently I began to blow drying waves of air across its body hoping that it would help dry him off. I could see his legs making adjustments against the force of my homemade wind, and he was starting to move his front two legs around. Raising my hand with the winged aircraft standing firmly on the narrow runway; I began to photograph him. It was difficult trying to adjust the camera with only one hand free, but I managed to get three shots off. Just as the shutter clicked for the third time a gentle breeze washed across my hand and set him to flight. Just like that he was lifted up into the air and gone. I just stood there for a moment thinking about all that had just happened. My rescue wasn't in vain after all, and I smiled to think of him once again soaring above with his comrades on this lazy summer day. Maybe before the leaves start to signal fall is on the way; one dragon fly will buzz by a little closer than all the others do. Perhaps it will be the same little guy and his fly bye will be his way of saying thanks for the rescue.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-206

2010-07-26T20:53:00.007-07:00

Running very late this afternoon, and I had to hurry off to my daughter's softball game. My wife and family had already gone ahead of me, so I was left to make the trip alone. It was the kind of sunny day where white, cotton candy clouds dare you to worry as they float across a peaceful blue sky hoping to put your mind at ease. My mind wasn't at ease though and no blue sky nor any amount of chipper clouds plastered across it seemed able to put me at peace. In fact, I was downright annoyed with life as I hurried down the familiar road. It feels like I'm on a wild ride that I cannot get a break from. Every time I try to exit toward the comfort of stable ground it begins, churning, spinning, and tosses me back into my seat again. It is mostly of my own making I suppose. Somehow I have learned to allow "Stress Monkeys" to climb aboard my once straight posture while they cling to and poke me with their dirty, little worrisome fingers. They howl as they pound on my back and scream into my ear. Each one demanding that I examine their petitions over and over again until my stomach boils; and I feel like a giant is carrying me around with my head lodged between his thumb and forefinger.

Something on the side of the road caught my eye, but by the time I could look it was already past me. Looking back out the through the window, I could see a rolling pasture full of lazy cows chewing on juicy grass. "That looks really peaceful", I said to myself as I pulled over and stopped. "Well you don't have a photo of the day yet", I thought. As I began to turn around and head back for a closer look at the pasture; I could hear the "Stress Monkeys" began to wail, and demand that I continue on. I had to go stand in front of those lazy cows because I suspected there was more than just a photograph to be gleaned from doing so. As soon as I stood parallel to them, it struck me at just how peaceful everything seemed, and I wanted to capture that feeling. Not necessarily for a daily photo, but also I needed to witness something simple. Through my viewfinder the grazers were just standing there content to be under that sky with a mouth full of green blades and firm ground under their hooves. While I wasn't envious of the content of their lunch; I did wish that I could be that content. As I snapped a photo it hit me. The reason that I was now standing still at this very moment was because I had disobeyed the "Stress Monkeys" and decided to stop. "STOP", I shouted at the top of my lungs! "Scott just give yourself permission to stop and graze like these damn beasts do", I screamed into the air. I have forgotten how to relax. To disconnect, disengage, and disembark from the un-essentials in life, so that I can better connect, engage, and embark in the essentials of life. What I needed was to chew my cud under a crystal blue sky blanketed with cotton, candy clouds just like those barbeque bound bovines! For the moment, the "Stress Monkeys" were gone as now wielded my cud chewing talisman before them. Looking down at my watch as I drove on to the game; I knew I was going to be a little late, but also a little wiser.

Happy chewing.

Project 365 d-205

2010-07-26T20:53:00.005-07:00

Headed out after work to the build site for my parents new home. My hope had been to get inside to look around and perhaps find a photo waiting to be harvested. As it turns out, everything was locked up tight except for the back door that I could see was open through the front window. "Ill just go around to the back and get in that way", I thought. So around the side of the garage I went toward the back of the house. About ten steps into my ill advised journey; I saw that my shoes were starting to sink into the mud. Not really bad, but enough that I considered turning around. Being too smart for my own good; I kept right on going. All I had to do was just step light and take my time and the mud would be vanquished. A few more steps, and I would be at the back corner of the garage a victory would be mine. Looking down at my feet; I noticed that it now appeared as if I was wearing big, brown snow shoes. "You've come this far, so don't turn back now", I chided myself. Two more steps and I came to a stop directly at the back corner of the garage. "What a mess you moron", I scolded myself. Still, like a General returning to formerly surrendered ground; I continued forward with a single step toward the door. What happened next should have been filmed to seventies "disco" music, and it would make for a great instructional video for wives to order their husbands from cable TV. Perhaps it would help make us men understand that when our wives call us geniuses, they don't really mean it. As my right foot slid sideways it sank into the brown, soggy mess while my left foot slid backwards. All the while my swinging arms made me look like a six foot windmill with blades missing. KC and the Sunshine Band comes to mind. "That's the way, uh huh, uh huh I like it, uh huh, uh huh"!

At this point, I just wanted to keep from falling into the muck and it's worth mentioning that all of my camera gear is around my neck and shoulders while my legs were scissored apart. My pride and my clothes could stand the garden house while my gear could not. Summing strength from muscles that were thought lost after mankind stopped chasing free range chickens to feed their cave clans; I began to use my arms as skillfully as a tightrope walker above a life stealing canyon. Slowly at fist, but with determination I willed my legs back toward each other with the aid of my balancing limbs and into a firm stance. As a proud warrior, I straddled the vanquished mud, as I flicked off some of its flesh from my right foot. Turing back around, I traveled back toward safety within the footprints of the fool who had gone before me. A ridiculous laugh came over me as I looked down at my feet encased in gooey mud. It occurred to me that even if I had made the door; I would have tracked this slop all through the house. So now what? It didn't take long to answer that as I noticed a fore lorn cement mixer staring at me. On top of it was all of this wonderful history just waiting to be photographed. In an instant my genius was at work again and I began to climb on it for a shot from above. Across the street, my parents new neighbors were surely watching me trying to decide if they should call the Police or an Ambulance. I had to get above it or there would be not shot. There wasn't a ladder in sight, so climb it I did. From the top looking down it was even more beautiful than I thought. The faded paint, the oxidation, and the remnants of cement all forming a fine-art piece. It was a worthy exploration even though my footing only allowed me a few shots. It was enough for today, and it was time for this genius to hit the road, and then the hose.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-204

2010-07-26T20:53:00.003-07:00

Today this storm seemed to come out of nowhere and smack us in the face. Within minutes of leaving home to go to work the sky opened up and poured swimming pools of water over any who dared to be outside. Usually I am not one to pull over, but this storm sent me to the side of the road as it was just nearly impossible to see. My lovely wife had just finished a doctors appointment and thankfully she was not out in it. Reaching her on my cell; I told her to stay put and it wasn't safe. The rain let up enough after a few minutes to allow me safely back on the road, but it wasn't long before huge bolts of lighting began to light up the darkened sky. They seemed to be hitting really close and a couple of them made me talk like a sailor for a minute as I was talking to my wife. Beyond being scared out of my mind, I really wanted to photograph the lightning as I had never done so successfully before. When I pulled into the parking lot it was still raining hard enough that I delayed getting out. Rolling down my window as low as I could; I set up for a bulb exposure and waited. Basically that means that the shutter stays open till I let go of the button. Try as I may, I could not seem to time it correctly. Every time I would let go then it would lightning. So I just went to a long exposure and decided to play a guessing game. Randomly pointing toward where the lightning had been I clicked the shutter and waited. Bam!!! I got one and screamed like a banshee in celebration of my first lightning photo. Reviewing the shot told me that I had moved and it was not right. Undeterred, I kept trying until a few minutes later I scored again as I pointed my camera at the sky. This time I didn't move, and I considered it a keeper worthy of a daily photo. It is dark and gloomy with an unintended vehicle driving through my frame, but I like the way it looks and it is what it is.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-203

2010-07-26T20:53:00.001-07:00

Another light study at work as my schedule would not allow me the time to farm during the day. It's not a complaint, though I do wish I had more time in picking my daily subjects. At some point in the future when Project 365 is published; I will be exploring light painting/ lights studies singularly. It has such potential for the creation of abstract art, or non representational art. As a project unto itself, I will have the flexibility to explore this broad subject without the constraints of a daily time limit. The time limit I have been living under has been good for me thought and it has helped me to be more disciplined in my shooting. This shot is a result of waving the camera in front of empty shelving with a long exposure while waiting to leave work. While there is no particular meaning to it; I do love the bold red color, the diagonal lines, and the life force the emanates from it.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-202

2010-07-26T20:52:00.003-07:00

     Tonight I had to head into town for a quick trip to the store. One thing I have learned about living in the country is that you really have to plan ahead when shopping. It seems like we are always running out of something when nobodies in town. Still, all I need to do is survey my land, listen the sounds of the birds, and smell the flowers to make these small grocery runs seem trivial. My oldest road with me for some company and I also brought my camera because I still hadn't photographed yet. Plus, I hoped this would be a good chance for her to see me actually creating for Project 365. At times, I don't think she fully grasps what I'm doing, so my hope is that seeing the process would make it more real for her. She has some artistic talent that hasn't seemed to go in any specific direction, and I want to make sure she gets a spoonful of everything off the menu.

     After a short trip inside the store, we headed outside to load the groceries and leave. The sky is beautiful this time of night as Twilight spreads out is vast, translucent blanket as darkness' opening act. It occurred to me that it was a good time for a light study, and I would let her pick out the subjects. After explaining to her what we were going to do, she excitedly started pointing out subjects to me as we drove out of the parking lot. "Look at that Daddy", she'd squeal! Turning the camera around for her to see the light painting on the LCD screen just made her shout out more targets even quicker. "What about that", she said? "Oh, look over there, Dad", she demanded! In the rear view mirror; I could see her eyes sparkle and her amazing smile lit by the glow of the magic come to life on the screen before her. She continued to play spotter for me until all the lights faded as we left the bright city behind us. It feels like I'm the luckiest father on the face of the Earth to have shared these moments with my daughter.

     In my mind, I hoped for a solid image to use for today's photo, but I wouldn't trade a million good photos for what we experienced tonight. Father and daughter making art together after grocery shopping. How cool is that? Among the many things I'm trying to teach her is that Art is everywhere all the time. Sometimes it's ripe and ready to be harvested, while other times it needs to be cultivated, or mixed together with other elements for a killer Art dish. Tonight with her help there is a good photo meal to share. Secretly, I want her to be an image farmer like me, but most of I hope that she will always have a hunger for Art. For as surely as food sustains the body; Art sustains the soul.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-201

2010-07-26T20:52:00.001-07:00

What a spectacular sunset tonight. It seems that I'm still surprised by what happens when the sun really goes down. Seeing it I think "Oh yea, that's what happens just a bit after the sun disappears from the sky". Thankfully the sun and sky were gracious enough to put on such a show this evening as my time was short. At my daughters softball game with all the light gone; I gratefully pointed my camera at the sky and feasted. There were some distractions near the bottom and I couldn't get the full force of what I was seeing, but I'm happy with what I was able to get. Just a thought about how awesome God is, till the end of time there will never be another sunset just like this one. This one was chosen as today's for reasons I cannot pretend to know, but I'm thankful for the eyes to witness. Thank you God for this design from your heart poured out into the heavens filled with your precious art. From a palette that is overflowing, created with love that is ever growing, your brush paints "I love you across the canvas sky". So I frame and hang it in the halls of my soul, studying your work, to emulate you is my goal. May I bring you honor with each frame that I take, glory to you and your Son with each photo I make. Though my name may never be featured in lights, may my intentions be pure with heaven in sight. Amen.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-200

2010-07-26T20:51:00.003-07:00

At a softball game tonight out of town and I managed to sneak off to squeeze off a few frames. It had been raining earlier, but cleared enough to get out my camera and head down the road. At first, a crop duster had caught my attention, and I got out my long lens to try and catch him. As it turns out, he was too fast for me and my fumbling through my gear. Still, down the road it appeared that he was working an area of the field that I could follow him to. So, taking my youngest with me we headed down the road to explore and hopefully get closer to that plane for a daily photograph.

The unfamiliar, dusty road we took lead us right by the fair grounds and I turned into the driveway of a seemingly abandoned old house. Suddenly, the crop duster lost my interest as I got out to get a better look at the house. Off to the right were two small buildings at the edge of a field. The clouds were huge and helped create a very dramatic sky over the field. Tucked away in the far right corner was the smallest hint of a rainbow and I quickly pointed it out to my daughter. "Ohhhhhhh", she said. Her response was near what I expected. "Too bad I wasn't down here earlier", I thought. "It may have been much bigger just a little while ago", I said to myself. Still, it's there now and I got moving on setting up my tripod before it slipped away entirely. It doesn't show up that well in this photo, but over all it still adds to it. What can you do? This project has taught me that you never know what you will see, and you don't always see everything in its entirety. Being ready is the key. Always be looking for magic and anticipate it if you can. Today I was just fortunate to catch a glimpse of God's covenant in the sky, and part of a rainbow is better than none at all right?

Happy Shooting.

Status Update.

2010-07-26T20:51:00.001-07:00

Well tomorrow is day 200 of Project 365, and I have a wide range of feelings about what I've created thus far. Many images I still look at in disbelief, and wonder if I really created them. On the other hand, there are a hand full of images that tempted me to stop Project 365 all together. Truly, I agonized over them feeling like I had missed the mark, and I wanted to quit. Thankfully, I can say I'm glad I didn't give in and kept it going. As day 200 stares me in the face; I can look at the this project in its entirety with a sense of satisfaction that can only be supplanted by capturing day 365. So, with one hundred and sixty-six days left I give myself a B+ for what I have created so far. Thanks for following along.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-199

2010-07-26T20:50:00.005-07:00

     I know my father was feeling the same way this photo makes me feel when looking at it. Off balance and out of control. The poor fellow had a roof with three layers of shingles on it and it was contributing to a cracking foundation due to all the weight. My suspicion was that my dad yearned to be able to be up there tackling this issue himself and not having to count on anyone for help. He is a problem solver, a jack of all trades, and his armory of tools is a testament to this. Still, all of this could not make up for the number of years that shown now in his face and hands. The slight angle which his shoulders tilt toward the ground as if the very Earth was attempting to pull him down and claim this task-warrior. How it must feel to only be a spectator of a game that he so loved and secretly wonders if he can still play. My dad has always been in love with the process of working. Not so much for the competed task, but knowing that completed tasks lead to the start of others. He has lived his life in that dimension and his conversation is never far from musing about how he did this, or how he did that. Sweetly, even his mannerisms reveal swiftly moving arms and hands that could just as well be swinging hammers, or grasping tools in the throws of a hectic project. After no call backs from a few roofing contractors and one that acted like a used car salesman he was ready to just do it himself. Disgusted he said, "I'll just do it a little at a time and if it takes a while then it takes a while"! Who was I to tell him no? That would be on par to commanding the wind not to blow. Fortunately, his neighbor's brother works for a roofing company and suggested my dad talk to him about doing the job. Reluctantly, as if one more chance for home improvement glory was about to slip away, he decided to let him tackle the job. They agreed on a price, set a date to start and soon that day came. So it was that the Master allowed a stranger to walk where he shouldn't and do what he couldn't.

     The sun was artistically placed in a blue sky with clouds that seemed content to wander in streaks rather than gather together en mass. As I pulled into his driveway; I could already see the angst registering across his face as his swinging arms gestured to any empty roof. It was a cross between playing air drums and air band conductor, but this was no time to let a smile sneak across my face. "He said he would be back at one o'clock. It's well after that now, and I haven't heard from him", he huffed. I just let him talk, and jam on the drums. As the solo continued amidst declarations of "If you want something done, you have got to do it yourself"; I noticed the black, shingle-less roof contrasted against the blue sky. Sensing an opportunity to photograph and excuse myself from the concert; I slipped in a question. "Do you want me to photograph what he has done so far", I queried? The swinging arms stopped. "You could", he replied, invisible tools still at the ready. Without hesitation, I grabbed my gear and began photographing the roof against the sky. After a few frames, I began to tilt the camera and loved the way it looked. Suddenly, it occurred to me that this is similar to how he must be feeling right now. Out of control, off balance, and in unfamiliar territory. After about twenty frames the roofer returned to start where he had left off, and I put my camera away. My dad seemed to be relieved that he had returned, but fixed his attention to the every move of the man on his roof.

     It was sad that I couldn't share what I noticed with him. The juxtaposition of the unfinished roof against a perfect sky, as well as that of placing his trust in a process he couldn't control. He wouldn't understand and I fear he might think I was poking fun of him if I dared to share this with him. I just stood there for a while watching him watching the roofer work where he wished he could be. "I love you Pops", I told him breaking the silence. "I love you too, son", he replied still looking up at his roof. I patted him on the shoulder and told him I had to get going. With that we exchanged goodbyes; I loaded my gear and left for home. As I drove home, I thought how hard it was to see this proud man so full of anxiety and longing for his boots to be the ones walking across that precious surface. His hands to be laying the protective shingles after a perfect measurement, and the shock-like fix of the air nailer traveling up his arm into his brain. He is studied in the art of home improvement and he deserves respect for his body bares the lessons he has learned and the projects he has tamed. Gnarled hands, leathery skin, and a sinewy can do Irish frame. He is a Master, but more importantly he is my dad.

Project 365 d-198

2010-07-26T20:50:00.003-07:00

Thought I felt a 70's magazine/movie feel to this shot. A warm, slightly muddy photo complete with sun spots, but missing the Hippies. After a nice long conversation with my artist-sister, she told me it looked more like an album cover. She is right, and I should have thought of that. After all, being the youngest child and old enough to snoop; I'm sure I did plenty of that through her things, including records albums during the seventies. If you were to ask her; I'm sure she would remember one particular thing. More vivid though was our fathers reaction when I sought his help in identifying it. What a coincidence that this photo is of a weed. I'll let you figure what the connection is on that one. Don't worry she never joined a Reggae band.

Happy Seventies.

Project 365 d-197

2010-07-26T20:50:00.001-07:00

The Red Admiral was back patrolling in my yard and flower beds again today. Caught him refreshing himself on this Cone flower in the early afternoon. As I said before, they are erratic and I only got off three shots before he filled his tank and was gone. As I looked out toward the ravine in my yard; I could see more of them fluttering around aimlessly. If it were up to me; I could have spent the whole day in pursuit of these docile fliers, but I had to go to work. Photographing butterflies hasn't paid any bills yet, but I will always be photographing till the day I die money or no money.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-196

2010-07-26T20:49:00.001-07:00

Tonight as I waited to leave the building from work; I was again pointing my camera up at the ceiling trying to paint with light. This is a technique that has become very interesting to me, and I'm trying to improve my skills and excel at it. After all, light is everywhere so arguably it is the most available subject. Admittedly, I am a sucker for black and white photography, so the desire to pursue this kind of study is very strong. There is something eerily calm to me about this composition. Not scary but cold and mysterious as if a light wand is being passed over you in an attempt to scan you. Not to take advantage of you, but out of a desire to learn that is birthed out of a quest for knowledge. There is implied movement in the diagonals and the black, negative space creates tension with the cool light. Perhaps it's just a blurry ceiling light above me, but all the artistic babble sounds way better eh?

Happy Shooting.

Status Update

2010-07-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

Still working on Project 365 and today was day 200! Most of my time beyond photographing has been spent trying to get current with each day's writing. Have patience with me as I try to catch up.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-195

2010-07-14T21:44:00.001-07:00

It was another hot day today, and the sweat just poured off of me as I snooped around in my back yard. My shift at work didn't end until evening, so I was hoping to fill today's quota with something close by. As it turns out, this Red Admiral was more than willing to help me out. It seems to be quite erratic and creeping up on it proved to be harder than I expected. Each time I would get close, and just as I would raise my lens it wold flutter off just a few feet away. This went on for some time before I got wise to the process. Eventually, I figured out that I should approach it with my lens pointed out instead of down. The sun had just slipped below the trees, so I had to use some flash to brighten it up. My preference is to avoid on camera flash; however, my good flash was in my studio and of no use presently. Thankfully, the flash didn't spook him and I was able to take a few photographs before he departed again, but this time into the trees. While I won't apologize for the quantity of butterfly I have photographed; I have not been seeking them out. As any good photographer knows, "You photograph what you can when you can". So I salute you Mr. Red Admiral sir, and thanks for a few fluttering moments of your time to help my project along.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-194

2010-07-14T20:38:00.003-07:00

     It was very hot all day today and I was not looking forward to photographing much less anything else. The humidity wrapped you in a sticky quilt, and threatened to suffocate you in its sweaty embrace. Not really a good day for softball game, but my oldest had one out of town, so on the road me and family went. As it turned out, it was a good drive because I had not been so far on this road in quite some time. It felt good to see the old, familiar landscape again and it brought me back to to where I was in my life the last time it had rolled by my window. There wasn't much that was new to behold, but in a way it really was new. Now I was viewing all of this as a photographer. A photographer who desperately wanted to gather it all into my frame for a long and thoughtful study. The gentle, rolling fields of corn with rows that fell like dominoes as we sped by. A small backwater being stalked by a silent, White Egret under a mostly cloudless, summer sky. A landscape dotted with stoic trees that seemed to be keeping watch over the Earth as it dipped, climbed, and sprinted in all directions. It all seemed alive and waiting to be photographed. Wanting to be photographed. Maybe there would be a good find out there, and I should look forward to photographing after all. I was just going to have to wait till the game was over to find out.

     The game went by rather quickly which was a good thing considering the unforgiving sun in the nearly cloudless sky. We had sat there on the hard aluminum seats cooking like hot dogs on a rotisserie while these girls tromped around in the dust playing softball. After all the handshakes and pats on the back were exchanged, we gathered up our things and headed back toward home. The drive back home was equally amazing, but this time I sat in the passenger seat to take it all in. Just a few miles down the road there was a huge, old tree on the right side of the road that looked like it would be a good silhouette. As we drew near, I asked my wife to slow down so I could get a better feel for it. I wasn't sure if it was the right subject till we had gotten about twenty feet past it. This tree was now lit from the the front and just looked amazing. My wife must have been able to tell what I was thinking because she asked me if I wanted to stop. "Yes", I said! Grabbing my gear bag from the floor board; I headed out the door into the heat. It still had a sting to it, but it didn't matter now as I was on a mission. This tree was no longer living, but still stood proudly along the road. If for nothing else than for birds to find respite among its leafless branches. It was an old tree; and I found myself wondering what had taken its life, why it hadn't been taken down, and what had it seen in it's life, "Perhaps life and death from its vantage point", I thought. "How many Brides and Grooms driving happily by, and how many racing ambulances carrying injured souls about to depart from this world", I wandered silently. "Maybe it was there before the road", I mused. Silently, I just stood there in awe of it hoping to do justice to it with my lens and knowing that I would never know the answers to those questions. After climbing back in to the car and driving away; I looked back at it until it grew small and finally disappeared from view. I was sad but thankful for what I had seen and captured that day. "What a good find on such a hot and steamy day", I thought to myself as I reached over to turn up the air conditioning.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-193

2010-07-12T18:18:00.001-07:00

Rain drops began to fall softly from the gray, laden clouds above me. Like little skydivers they leapt from their perches swirling down to crash themselves into the thirsty Earth. We had just set up a new swimming pool the day before, and the floating rings were still sitting lazily on the surface wishing for somebody to fill their center and take them for a spin. As I was walking from my home to my studio; I noticed how well the rings contrasted against the color of the waters surface, and the way water drops were building upon the rings surface. Quickly, I retrieved my camera from the studio and walked toward the pool. There were tiny, little splashes hitting the waters surface which created a symphony of circular, watery, ribbons that expanded and rushed away from their point of impact. The drops tapped against the colorful tubes in a percussion like rhythm the way a confident drummer works out a new beat upon the skins. Of the two rings in the water, a yellow one stood out the most against the blue pool and shimmering water. Hundreds of little drops clung to the tubes surface seemingly to have a bit of fun before sliding down to become one with their comrades in the depths below. Tilting the camera slightly, I photographed the tension between the colorful surfaces. My desire was to create a strong line starting on the left side and wrapping around to the left. About twenty frames into my session, it began to rain harder, and I had to wrap it up because my camera was getting wet. For the most part, I'm happy with this composition, but it is a subject that may be worth more exploration in the days ahead. Next time with an umbrella over me.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-192

2010-07-11T21:15:00.002-07:00

Try as I might, I could not get a shot of this beauty with its head outside of these Star Gazers. I was shooting from up on top of my deck looking down at it. It was completely uninterested in me as it feasted on sweet nectar. Its outer wing was covered in Pollen to be carried off when it was ready to taste another flower. There are many butterflies around my home, yet it seems that too often I am unprepared to photograph them. Hopefully that will change as I am in the process of creating a huge Butterfly/Humming Bird garden near the back part of my property. Wild flowers are starting to come up when I checked today and I anticipate that soon they will be blooming. It is a long term project as I have to add a bird bath, stepping stones, a Zen bench, and more plants. When it's all finished, I hope to have an oasis for winged beauties of many different varieties stopping by for some refreshments and a good photo. I love living in the country and you couldn't pay me in a truck load of gold to have to move back to the city. I am truly at home here in my wooded paradise with all that slithers, crawls, creeps, flies, and trots through my slice of Heaven.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-191

2010-07-11T21:15:00.000-07:00

In my up and coming studio there is a small window on the side where I will eventually be photographing clients. Right now there is a white backdrop hanging up and covering the window. Many times I have been struck by the way the late afternoon sun hits it and causing sort of a frame to appear. The window has paint specks on it and it adds something to it by making it look old. Today I began to wonder what it would look like to have a person stand outside to create a nice silhouette. As it turns out, my father was there and I asked for his help. He agreed to help me and went outside to stand by the window.

Due to the height of the window; I was unable to see him. So, I grabbed my step ladder and set beneath the window and asked him to climb up a couple of steps till he was in front of the window. When I got back inside, I saw that he was in the perfect position and my intuition about a silhouette was confirmed. Not sure what his reaction would be, I asked him to slump down his shoulders and stick make his chin more prominent. He complied with my request, and I delighted at how the silhouette changed. Without thinking, I said, "Dad, can you please stick out your tongue?" Without saying a word, he flicked it out, and I nearly fell over laughing at how funny he looked. Knowing that I had the picture I needed; I beckoned him back inside and out of the hot sun. I was still smiling as he walked back in as he was wiping sweat from his brow. "Thanks Pops!", I said, trying not to laugh. He just looked at me and smirked not wanting to admit that he had fun being my gueinea pig. It turned out to be more funny than anything else, but I was glad to have tried this idea out. As serious as my Father is, it was good to have this whimsical image of him acting like a goof.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-190

2010-07-11T21:14:00.001-07:00

Walking around at work tonight on my break taking long exposures, this little beauty jumped onto my memory card. I have been really interested in light studies lately thanks to the musings of an Photography Professor. This image was worked on in Photo Shop, but the structure and core of it was already there. I just ran with it feeling my way through as I went. Letting it fill my senses and with each subtle change directing me down a path that felt right. My goal is to not allow post processing to be more important than photographing itself. To use the tools that I have to compliment the process that I am so addicted to. A marriage of process and refinement to birth something wonderful into existence. Visual nutrition for my starving mind to chew on while I try to understand what I am seeing and feeling. I am finding myself more and more everyday as I push farther into this endeavor; and I am starting to get a better idea of what I will see standing on the other shore when I draw my boat in at the conclusion.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-189

2010-07-08T20:59:00.001-07:00

Worked a night shift today, so I used the long drive home to work on some light studies. This is one of my favorite ways to photograph because it is such a mystery as to what you will come up with. I just held my camera on long exposure out the window as I am driving. You really have to be careful to keep your eyes on the road and just let your camera do its thing. At times your camera doesn't have enough light to focus on and that can be frustrating as your ears strain to hear the shutter click and release. Someday I can imagine doing a book project on bizarre light studies. There are so many different subjects to be explored with long exposures, and I can hardly wait to start farming them. "One project at a time." I tell myself as I think about all the ideas starting to pile up before I even finish the first one.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-188

2010-07-07T19:33:00.001-07:00

Found another beautiful Lilly today and decided to make a go at it. Actually the color version turned out pretty well as I made sure to just my tripod due to low light. Still, when I tried the b&w conversion it just looked so succulent and glamorous that I had dropped the color in favor of the b&w. Time was slipping away from me, so I had to work quicker than I had liked. The lack of time as it relates to my daily deadlines is one thing I will not miss outside of this project. Yes it has made me a better photographer, but it has also kept my stomach in knots as well as sending my hairline to nearly behind my ears. Oh wait, that comes from being a parent.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-187

2010-07-06T21:22:00.001-07:00

From a distance I could see my children had been busy with chalk mixed with some water. Words of lecture about cleaning up messes were already formed and rolling off the assembly line in preparation for launching as I approached their mess. When I got to the area where they had been playing, the words were ready to fly, but they were the wrong words. They didn't need a lecture. They needed a praise for being kids and creating such a magic scene. I just stood there nearly drooling over the all the wonderful marks painted out on the cement canvas. "This is just amazing!" I chided myself at the thought of me lecturing them over this. "Isn't Art supposed to be fun?", I asked already knowing the answer. They had all the answers, and all I had were stern words about cleaning up messes. Right in front of me were precious footprint tracings, and girly- swirls of pastel chalk drawn by innocent, yet genius hands. It was spectacular to see all this clever design laying before me now, and I hurried to get my camera spitting out the unnecessary words as I went.

My surprise at finding art just then unnerved me. It was not supposed to jump out at me when I was fully prepared to deliver a fine lecture. It's a proven fact that lectures should not be wasted. Just ask my Father and he will tell you it's true. As I photographed, I could hear my two little artists inside the house watching TV and acting like girls their ages do. They were completely unaware of how tongue tied I was upon seeing their masterpieces. That is so pure. They created all of this not wanting to please somebody else, but out of a simple need to create. It didn't matter what others thought; they just drew with clear minds and hearts. When they were done they just walked away leaving their creation to sit there for anyone who wished to look. What a lesson for me scribbled in sidewalk chalk on the front porch of my home. Create because I need to, share because I want to, and through both become young again. "Thanks girls for the wonderful art, but more importantly for the reminder to create what I like, and not what I think others want to see."

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-186

2010-07-05T22:40:00.001-07:00

     A really busy day found me without a photo as the evening hours approached. To say the least, I have many irons in the fire and today was just one of those days where my juggling could have used an extra hand. Perhaps on last item to juggle would also work. Thankfully I had two wonderful, and willing little helpers to assist me in finding an image. At about 9:30 p.m.; I knew that I would have to try and create something in the studio with some mood lighting. I wasn't sure what I was going to do, but I was trusting that something would present itself like it usually does. After retrieving a work light from my workshop; I set it on the floor and began to try and direct some light at a chair to see what kind of silhouette it would create. Standing right behind me and peppering me with questions were my two assistants. "Can I sit in the chair Papa" my oldest begged? "Me too, me too" protested my youngest! "You will both have a chance to be in the shot", I reassured them as best as I could. Should I expect anything less from them? They want to create non stop and they see all of this as not only an excuse to stay up late, but to work on an Art project too.

     Starting with my oldest first, I asked her to sit in the chair and turn sideways. My goal was to get a definitive side profile of her and to show some of her personality. It was mildly frustrating as the little starlet kept wanting to turn her head and stare at her projected shadow upon the backdrop. "Sweetheart, please look straight ahead", I told her repeatedly. Shot after shot was taken, and I still wasn't getting what I wanted. Finally she shifted in the chair by bringing her knees up and resting her elbow on the arm rest and putting her hand against her head. "Just like that" I shouted! "Don't move honey, stay just like that" , I implored her. Well to all of you that parents, you might as well say "Go ahead and move all you want". Fortunately, I released the shutter quick enough that I captured the gestalt of her silhouette before she started squirming. Confirming the image on the LCD allowed a wave of relief to wash over me as my Midnight deadline was fast approaching. This made me a little more relaxed as I let my youngest take a swing at sitting in the chair.

     She sat there just as determined as she could to be just like her big Sis. Trying to act older than she was, straightening her back, and raising he chin up as looked of into an imaginary ring of Paparazzi photographers. These comical looks kept crossing her face as she tried to emulate all that she had ever seen on TV of those so-called fabulous, fashion minded Diva's. That sort of thing was not going to show up in her silhouette; however, I wanted her moment in the spotlight to be special, so I just played my part. "You're beautiful", I told her. "Hold that pose", I encouraged. "Perfect", I said! "You're going to be a star", I promised her. It was the best cheesy photographer jargon that I could think of. She didn't seem to mind and just soaked it all up. In the end, my oldest had a more distinct silhouette, and I went with her image. Surprisingly, my youngest took it it stride and seemed happy to have just been a part of what I was doing. Looking at my watch; I saw the little hand was between twelve and one, and hurried them off to bed. "Thanks a bunch for your help girls" I said as they were tucked into bed. Heading back out to the studio, I was happy about the whole experience. Glad that I was able to combine Project 365 and spending time with them. It occurred to me that I had helped nurture this love of creating in them, and it made me happy to know that they were trying to be like me. No matter how this project turns out in the end; they will always be my greatest works of art.

Happy Shooting.

Happy Forth of July!

2010-07-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a fun and safe 4th! Just got home from an awesome baseball game and fantastic fireworks. I'm quite sure that I got some great images, and I will share one for today's image as soon as I look them over. Thanks to Ann who works for the River Bandits, for a nice conversation after the fireworks were over. God Bless America.

Project 365 d-185

2010-07-04T10:21:00.003-07:00

     Spent the whole evening with my family sitting in the first row of our local Semi-Pro baseball team. We got tickets to attend for the game and fireworks after the game. What a feast for a photographer to be so close to the field and the minutia that goes on during a baseball game. Not just the easy stuff like outfielders sprinting to catch determined balls from becoming a home run, but it's much more than that. I am watching for that telling look on a players face after a spectacular catch. The adjustment of a sacred Crucifix that was just caressed before it's tucked behind their jersey again. Players interacting with the crowd and just being themselves as they live out their dreams on that grass field. Usually, I can count on the stares of those sitting around me as they watch the tall man with the big lens. Often their stares lead to questions. "Are you shooting for the paper", they query? "That sure is a big lens you have there" they say. "Getting any good shots" they ask? It would be a lie to say that this doesn't make me feel a little good when they fire the question canon. Mostly, I just try to go unnoticed, so I can search for the happenings within the happenings.

   With long lens in hand; I sat there trying to decide what to concentrate on. The light was fading quickly now, so I chose to photograph light and movement. The challenge was to keep in understandable enough so that the sport would be recognized. It was really dark now, and I hoped that I could hide some of the digital noise within the motion blur. Close to where I was sitting was the bullpen overflowing with eager pitchers who all seemed to throw extra hard trying to prove they deserve to get the nod. Switching to my medium zoom; I was able to get some really good shots of them warming up. Taking a quick peek at my LCD confirmed that the noise was being controlled by the blur. The starting pitcher was pulled, and I only watched the first relief pitcher as he trotted out to the mound. Sadly, he was pulled as a fly ball landed on the wrong side of the outfield fence. As the next relief pitcher got the nod, I followed him with my lens the whole way to the mound and today's image is the result of that. I turned the camera slightly to put it off balance and to try and divide the filed in half diagonally. It is a good motion blur which allows the viewer to understand the subject, but is more interesting than a crystal clear, frozen moment. I'm glad that I followed him to the mound as he was the last pitcher to go into the game.

     They made the announcement that the fireworks were going to start, so I got into position for the coming light show. Really I was too close to the action to get it all in with my medium zoom, so I moved up the steps to the very top to get a wider shot. Standing up there was an employee who was stopping people from moving too far toward the outfield where they were lighting them off. It wasn't until the final explosion in the sky of Patriotic light started to fade that she approached me. "Are you doing this as hobby, or is this your job", she asked? "Well its a hobby that has turned into a job" I explained to her. She graciously listened to me as I explained to her all about my project and gave her the site address. We also talked about her photography, and I encouraged her to keep shooting with whatever she had available to her. It was a quality conversation, and I appreciated her interest in what I was doing. I felt good about all of the nights activities, the smells, the sights, and the sounds of America's past time right before my eyes. It was quality time spent with family among like minded people, who were there to eat hot dogs, nachos, and watch Baseball. Thank you to all of you that have blessed this great nation with your military service. For spending countless hours away from the people you love in harms way, so that we can be with ours in safety. Thank you that while you wander around strange parts of the world watching with a gun; I can wander around strange parts of my world watching with a lens. God Bless you and God save America.

Happy Forth of July.

Project 365 d-184

2010-07-04T10:21:00.001-07:00

     The night before the forth of July and my home was full of family and friends in a pre-celebration of our Nations Independence. It was a time of great food and great fellowship. The weather was good and I was looking forward to some firework antics when it got dark. Tucked away in my basement were a big stash of fire crackers from years past. Living in the city made it a little hard to use them, but this year I live in the country. After grabbing a large bag; I stuffed it full and headed back upstairs to get busy with my plans.

   My nephew was sitting at the table when I came outside. He is at the perfect mischievous age for fire crackers, and I planned to let him share in the fun as well. First, I casually walked over to the blazing fire pretending to inspect it. As I stood there gazing into the flames; I slyly slid my hand into my pocket and pulled a big pack of boomers. After taking a quick look around to make sure nobody was watching; I tossed the pack into the fire and quickly stepped away. Smirking as I went back toward the tables, it sounded like somebody was opening up with a machine gun, and all the ladies shrieked at the sound. I couldn't help but chuckle at them for their reaction. What a child I am sometimes. My Nephew's eyes were as big as semi tires and the look on his faced probably mirrored mine. He was trying to ask me about the fire crackers as I sat down next to him. I didn't answer him, but instead reached in my pocket for a handful of booming goodies, and secretly handed them to him under the table. Whispering to him I said, "Don't use them all at once and be careful"! He nodded with excitement and snuck off toward the glowing fire. It wasn't more than a minute before a series off loud popping sounds caused most to raise slightly out of their seats as their faces contorted slightly at being startled. All I could do was smile and act surprised as I worked on making another Deviled egg disappear.

   Surprisingly, nobody said anything to either one of us, and seemed to take it all in stride. After all, it was only one day away from the explosion holiday and this kind of thing was to be expected. With this in mind; I asked my nephew to be my photo assistant and he gladly agreed. Getting my tripod and setting it close to the fire; I entrusted him with the remaining fire crackers. "Throw one at a time into the fire when I tell you", I instructed him. He just nodded and stood ready for my command. My camera was set to a long exposure as I told him to toss the first one. More popping and banging, but this time I was documenting the violence among the hot coals. My experimentation included panning, zooming, panning while zooming and just tilting the camera. Each time my expert assistant either faithfully tossed the package right where they needed to go, or poked at them with a stick to get them into the flames. He especially seemed to enjoy the ladder rather than the former. It took many more packages to get the right look for the photo I wanted, but it was a fun photo shoot. After perusing the many images; I chose this one for the implied movement, and deep black surrounding the glowing lines. Yet again I believe the personality of the flames has come out, and I imagine I will continue to re-visit fire in the days ahead to continue my exploration. For now, it is time to put my camera away and get back to making those Deviled eggs disappear. I fear that by tomorrow it may well be my stomach that is exploding as well as the fireworks.

Happy Shooting.

I have reached the half way point.

2010-07-03T00:03:00.000-07:00

I have now completed the first half of Project 365!!! Although I still have writing to catch up on; I am up to date though d-183 which is the half way mark. Thanks to my family, and all of you that have encouraged me, followed along with me, and voiced your support in so many ways. Special thanks to my bro Jordie who commanded me not to quit. It is good to have friends. It is great to be half way done. Lord, please grant me the strength to finish well; To finish strong and thank you for walking with me on this journey.

Happy Half Way Point!

Project 365 d-183

2010-07-02T13:20:00.001-07:00

   As I headed into work this afternoon for a night shift, I knew that I wold most likely be photographing at night. Working at night makes for a challenge with Project 365 because I'm usually so tired after my shift. Plus, I wanted to try something different if it were possible within the place I had to be. When I took my lunch break; I took my camera with thinking that something interesting might present itself. As it turns out, I ate my lunch without anything interesting coming my way, so I headed back inside to finish my night.

   The rest of the night seemed to go by very quickly, and soon I was gathering my things to head home. There is always a few minutes of down time at the front of the store before the employees punch out and leave the building. While we were all standing there; I took out my camera and began taking shots of the ceiling lights with long exposures. Moving to the left, and to the right, twisting, and turning as I slashed at the air with my camera. "What are you taking pictures of", asked one of my co-workers? "Just taking long exposures of the lights for a bit of light painting", I explained. I just got this look that seemed to say "Oh, that's nice". It makes me want to try and explain myself, and I hate when I feel that way. Ultimately, there will always be those who will be unimpressed, unmoved, and uninterested in what I'm doing. Still, I know that there will be enough who do care, and are interested in my work. Really I guess you could say I need them both. I'm trying to create something out of nothing in spare moments that seem to have no use. My goal is to prove that art is everywhere all the time like succulent, ripe fruit hanging from a tree waiting to be picked. Needing to be picked and needing the farmers to harvest them. That's it! I'm an "Image Farmer and the images I photograph are my crops. That really resonates with me as it seems an apt way to describe what I am doing. It suddenly made the whole concept of what I was doing more simple. More special. I was a Farmer and it was time to harvest.

   We all punched out and headed out the door to our cars. As usual we all walk slow and make small talk as we head into the parking lot. Tonight I decided to keep my camera out and farm while we walked out. Holding my camera near my chest; I snapped many frames as we all walked. At one point, I turned back toward the building to interact with one of my co-workers, and I squeezed off a shot. It seemed like we were just walking out to our cars, yet we were really walking into a grand Orchard full of delicious fruit ready to be picked and then devoured. I must admit to feeling a bit of power wash over me at the thought that I realized this and they didn't. Right in their midst I was harvesting art and salivating at how good it was going to taste. Even if I told them to look at the trees and see what is there; I doubt that most of them could see it. They are not farmers, and while I don't feel superior because of this; I feel more alive and connected to my surroundings. They need me; conversely, I need to provide visual nutrition for them. As I set in my car before leaving; I glanced at what I had reaped, and I saw I had harvested a good crop. I smiled as I pulled out of the Orchard and wandered how many were still out there that even I hadn't seen. In time I suppose new ones will sprout up before me, and I will be ready. After all, I am an Image Farmer in the Land of Mundane.

Happy Farming.

Project 365 d-182

2010-07-02T13:19:00.007-07:00

Clowning around with this paper mache head my daughter made at camp in my garage. From the moment I saw it; I thought it sort of had a life force to it. So, today while she was back at camp; I snuck into her room and grabbed the head for a little photo time. Since I had no way to hold it, or support it; I had to resort to holding it with an outstretched arm as I photographed. It was a little challenging to say the least, but I had fun doing so. In my garage there are two big windows that let a lot of natural light in. Even though you cannot see the window my goal was to make the clown head appear to be gazing outside. Also, I tried holding it so you could see the window, but it became a distraction. Without the window worked better because it allowed the background to fall off into black. When my daughter got home from camp; I showed this to her and she got a big smile across her face. She immediately started asking me if she could photograph it too. "Maybe", I told her. "I simply cannot allow you to copy my project dear", I informer her. She just stood there giving me a look that said, "Daaaaad, don't be dumb"! After all, why should she settle for a photo of this when she clearly has access to photograph an even bigger clown anytime she wants. I'll let you figure out just who that is.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-181

2010-07-02T13:19:00.005-07:00

Went driving this evening after a softball game looking for a photograph. Driving down dusty, old country roads is nothing new to me; however, this one just about rattled my teeth loose from my mouth. There was a thick, dusty cloud trailing behind me that looked like a mix of smoke and fog. It made much of the green landscaped look sickly from the chalky coat it deposited on the leaves and grass. Near the small town that I live in there is a nice little place to snow ski. It really seems strange to have something like this in such a small place, but it is a fantastic place to cut some powder without having to take the time or expense to drive out of town to a big name place. With this in mind, I headed there in hopes that seeing it during this time of year would produce some photos.

As I got near, it wasn't the ski park that caught my eye, but this cool barn on the other side of the gravel road. It just sat there tucked back behind the strangling brush content to wither away. There was a big black and orange sign that read "No Tresspassing", so I stayed on the road. I dearly wanted to get up closer to it to see what secrets it had to share. The challenge was that the barn was just a little too obscured for a good shot. Still, as I look at it now there seems to be a mystery to this image. Maybe it's not such a bad thing for it to be partially hidden as it makes me wonder all the more what it would look like up close. Not knowing who owns it makes it hard to gain permission for a closer look. Sometimes you have to get what you can get and be content that another opportunity may present itself for a re-shoot. Today, I was just happy to have a decent image to notch into my camera case and set my sights on tomorrow.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-180

2010-07-02T13:19:00.003-07:00

     For about a year now, I have been remodeling the home we moved into last summer. Part of this involved tearing out an old furnace, taking down a drop ceiling and other things that left me with metal junk pile. Well today I finally took the time to do something with this junk pile. So, I loaded borrowed my Dad's truck, loaded up all the junk, and headed to the scrap yard. Sitting on the seat next to me was my camera of course as I knew there would most likely be great stuff to photograph. Whether or not I would be allowed to wander around the grounds was another thing, and I didn't get my hopes up. On many different occasions I had driven by this scrap yard and saw the wonderful piles of art just waiting to be photographed. I kept saying to myself, "One of these day's I'm gonna ask for permission to photograph there". The days just seem to keep rolling by when I would drive by with the same result, it would disappear in my mirror as I drove on by. Today was different though. Project 365 was in full swing and demanded that I take action, As I pulled the truck onto the big scale; I decided to do just that.

   A young lady sitting high above me behind dust covered glass waived me on through. Pulling off the scale, I headed into the lot and toward a gentlemen who was directing people and vehicles. He told me to go straight ahead and turn to the right. "Down just a little ways from there you can dump your scrap", he advised. The yard was buzzing with activity. It was like a mini city with trucks coming and going all while big machines were busy moving, and processing the scrap. As I turned right just as the yard foremen told me; I saw the pile where the scrap was dumped in order to be placed into bigger piles elsewhere. I saw a Chinese man walking around inspecting the various piles and he was carrying a chunk of steel in his hands. It seemed to me that he had been hunting with success, and hoped the same thing was in store for me as well. There were other "Scrapers" there too throwing their salvaged metal into the same pile I was now throwing mine. It occurred to me that this might be a way of life for some people, and they were making a living by scrapping. That made me smile, and I envied them for doing what they loved, and doing it by their rules. Maybe my photography project was similar though any payoff for me wouldn't come till I had emptied my load of photos three hundred and sixty five times. Still , there was a kinship I believe amongst free spirits who see value where other only see junk. Seems like a good photo project to follow "Scrappers" around on their salvage quests. Tucking that away for next years schedule among the many others that I'm dreaming about.

   As I heaved the scrap from the truck bed, I was amazed at the beauty that was all around me. It was like being on an Island of Randomness where the seeming chaos of twisted metal stimulated the mind of those able to recognize its worth. I felt alive here among these cast-aways, and I longed to tell their story. The last piece of scrap left my hands and twisted, and tumbled through the air before it fell into the ever growing pile. The sound it should have made when it hit the pile was swallowed up by the symphony of the yard. Climbing back into the cab, I headed back out and toward the scale. The same young lady waived to me again that it was OK to proceed off the scale and to the parking lot. After I parked, I walked toward the steps that would take me up to where the young lady was. To the place where I would find out if I could photograph where days before I had only witnessed from the highway. The office was small and looked like what I imagined it would look like. Functional and plain with no need to impress anyone that came through the door with fancy offices. There was no need because the young ladies that were behind those time worn counters were all the decoration it needed. They smiled and were gracious as I the scrapping virgin stood before them not knowing what I was supposed to do. After getting my information, a young lady reached into a drawer and handed me nearly fifty dollars. It was plain to see why truck after truck had been coming through the lot. It was a nice little payday, but I was hoping for a bigger pay day.

   With nothing to loose, I bravely explained Project 365 to her and asked if I could wander around and photograph. "Sure", she said without hesitation. "Whew", I thought to myself as I thanked her and proceeded out the door to get my gear from the truck. After I grabbed my photo bag, I walked back toward the lot and was surprised to see that same sweet lady standing at the bottom of the steps I had just come down. "I really have been photographing everyday since the beginning of the year", I told her as I fidgeted with my camera. She didn't seem suspicious, but just curious to why somebody would find this lot full of junk so appealing. "There is just a lot of art to be found in there", I explained as she stood there patiently. She nodded her head and I thanked her again as I proceeded into the yard. There was the same foreman standing there and I spoke to him as I past. "This place is beautiful and there is a lot of photo opportunities", I said. "Yes and there is some good money too", he said smiling as I walked by. Walking down the path I had taken in the truck; I could now see a huge, and hungry beast grabbing bits of metal from the pile I had helped make. It lurched forward then dropped down with precision to bite the pile with its mechanical jowls. Then it rose again as if to look around to be wary of other predators who might try and steel its meal. Once it was satisfied its prey was safe it lifted up with a heaping mouth full toward the other side of the pile. It did this repeatedly, and I began tracking it with my lens hoping to capture the animal as it fed. Some sort of a silver washer had stuck to the side of the beasts head and it looked like a huge eye staring back at me. The afternoon sky was perfectly blue with big fluffy clouds looking down upon this primal moment, and I fired again and again as it swept down to feed from the metal carcus.

   After getting my fill of the yellow monster; I walked around the rest of the yard and saw many wonderful things and took many photographs. It was overwhelming with so many subjects all around me, and it became difficult to keep from hurrying as something else was always catching my eye. It was getting late and I decided to head back to the office and say thanks one more time. Up the steps and into the office I went. The same sweet lady was back behind her deck doing her work. "Thanks again", I said. She nodded as she went about her business. "If you want to follow along with my project, here is the address", and I spoke it out loud. She asked one of the other wonderful young ladies to pull it up on her PC as she moved toward her desk. The both seemed interested and the second young lady asked how you get to the rest of the photos. I stepped around her desk and showed her where to click and she scrolled through the images. The lady who had paid me held out a piece of paper to me and invited me to a motorcycle show that was coming up. "I would love to go, and will do so if I can", I told her. "Well you should be able to see the image from today fairly soon", I said walking toward the door. "Hopefully, I will get invited back again", I queried as I walked toward the door. "You might", she replied. "Thanks and have a nice day", I said and walked out the door. Walking down the steps and toward my truck; I remembered the Chinese man who was carrying around a piece of steel. He had been hunting like me and he had scored a steel trophy. As I thought about what I had just photographed and the nice people I had interacted with; I knew that I had some trophies from my hunt as well.

Happy Scrapping.

Project 365 d-179

2010-07-02T13:19:00.001-07:00

Headed down to the water late this afternoon in search of an image. There is this long stretch of highway that runs right by a huge lake near a forest preserve. I love to go there because there is sort of a waterfall as the water from the lake drains into a spillway under a bridge and is swiftly carried down the other side toward the river. You cannot park close by, so it is a little bit of a walk to get there. The walk felt good and there were a lot of interesting things to look at along the way. Plus, once you get close to the water occasionally there are Egrets fishing that are unable to see, or hear you coming. If you are careful the rush of the falling water masks your approach enough for some close up photography. Today there was only a single bird waiting for me. Not a fishing bird, but a pecking, hopping bird gorging itself on bugs completely unconcerned with me.

As I drew near the bridge, I saw this bird tight-rope walking on the edge of the falls pecking at insects as it hopped along. It would do a little dance down the whole length of the cement spillway and then fly off. About five minutes after it flew away it came back and repeated the entire process again, and again. Unexpectedly, it came back not toward the spillway, but it flew toward the barbed wire fence on the side. Two shots were all that I got and this was one of them. It looked surreal when I peaked at the image on my LCD. It was like the bird was some sort of messenger, or providing a sign. Frozen just before it landed, a little soft, but it's a good exposure that seems like something out of a dream.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-178

2010-07-02T13:18:00.001-07:00

   Today was sort of a somber day for me and my family. My wife's father had brain surgery two days ago to put a stint in to allow for the proper blood flow. He had a stroke this Summer and had not been doing well. After running more tests they discovered blockages on both sides of his brain, but could only repair one side. According to his Doctor, it was a miracle that he hadn't either had a massive stroke, or just died. The good Lord was looking out for him and there is no other way to explain it. He came through surgery and was re-cooperating in the hospital about an hour away from us. Ever since my Grandmother died; I have loathed even being near hospitals. Part of me wanted to just stay home, but I had to go and see my Pops and give him a hard time like I always do. He likes to tell me that I'm his favorite Son in law. It is worth mentioning that I am his only Son in law. He is a stubborn ole Irish man who passed his stubbornness down to my lovely wife, and now my children are infected too.

   So off to the hospital we went to pay him a visit. The trip up there was good because my wife offered to drive, and I photographed the entire way up there. We have a sun roof in our car and today there were the most amazing clouds to photograph. Upon arriving, I could feel my stomach start to churn as I anticipated the hospital smell. It makes me want to run as fast as I can into a big open area where the walls can't close in on me and siphon my life away. This hospital was a bit different in that it was filled with wonderful art hanging on the hallway walls. Everything from photography to, pastels, water color, and installation art. We wound our way down long hallways toward the elevator. My wife and daughters stepped in first and I lagged behind a bit feeling claustrophobic. After an uneasy moment; I stepped in too and she pressed the number of his floor, and the door to this metal box slid shut. My heart was in my throat as I was not looking forward to seeing him in a hospital bed. Plus, I knew that I would probably see other sick people too. Many of them would have no visitors and that lonely thought was nearly unbearable to me.

     Finally, the cold steel door opened and me and my emotions spilled out first into the hallway. Immediately, I was treated with a stellar view out two enormous windows looking down to the world below. Instantly, I felt better knowing that I would have good subject matter for today's image. Plus it just felt good to be bathed in bright light and look beyond the confines of the stuffy hospital with nice art. We made our way down another hallway toward his room. I was purposely flooding my mind with random thoughts to keep my thinking off what I was feeling. Then we arrived at his door, and I swallowed hard as we walked in. He was laying back in bed and my wife's mom was sitting by his side. My uneasiness left me as soon as I made eye contact with him. Laying there was a man who obviously had been through a lot, but I could see life was still strong in his eyes. Immediately I started in on him. "How you feeling Pops", I asked? "Not to bad, but I'm having some trouble seeing", he replied. "Well don't worry; I'm just as beautiful as I was the last time you saw me", I joked. He gave me a wry smile and said, "I don't know about that". It was good to be jousting with the big stern Irish man that I nervously asked for his daughters hand many years ago.

   After some good conversation, I excused myself to go photograph for a while. Heading back to the elevators I realized that there was a cafe on the roof. So that's where I headed in hopes of getting an Eagle eye view of the city. Unfortunately, the cafe had four thousand miles of safety rail and it made photographing very difficult. Back I went toward that big window to try and capture something interesting. From where I stood, there was a cool helicopter on the roof, but the lights from inside the hospital reflected and they were in my frame. Looking down at the court yard I saw this interesting shadow and design of the tile sort of framing in the tables and flower pots. The light was harsh so I assumed it would be a good black and white image. After shooting a few more things, I headed back to join my family. We all sat around and had some good conversation, and I told Pops to make sure and listen to his Doctors, so we could go to Ireland next year. "Gonna have to", he said. "Well you better because you have a grand daughter on the way", I reminded him. It was getting late and knew that Pops needed some rest, so we decided to head home. We all said our goodbyes and walked out of his room. It turned out to be a good experience even though I still hate hospitals, but I'm thankful that they are their and for the people who helped my Pops in his time of need. Mostly, I want to say thank you Lord for seeing Pops through this, and please hold him in the palm of your hand in the days ahead.

Happy Shooting.

Status Update

2010-06-29T13:03:00.000-07:00

Continuing to work on writing and selecting images for missing days. Had a great experience with today's image at a local scrap metal yard. Super nice people let me wander around and fill up my memory card. Thanks for allowing me in for a look around. More to come.

Project 365 d-177

2010-06-26T20:04:00.000-07:00

Another busy day today, but thankfully this onion lover was not quick enough to evade me and my camera as he inspected my garden. My father was at my home today working on a project like he nearly always is. He is a big help and I would be lost without him. His health has greatly improved since all of the drama from this Spring, and I am relieved to see him doing so well. One of the nice things about living in the country is having a garden. Plus, my Father really loves salads and it is almost worth having just because of this. I had not planted any onions yet as I had just been too busy. I told him that if he saw any when he was out and about to buy some and we could plant them. So, he did exactly that and showed up with two big big bags full of onion sets, and about two weeks ago he planted them. Now he just had to wait for the green stems to poke up through the soil toward the sky. He checked them everyday for signs of life and today was the payoff.

They grew quickly and I could tell he was getting anxious to harvest them. Today as he was preparing to leave; I suggested we go check to see if they were ready to pull up. My camera was hanging around my neck as we walked over to the garden. As he bent down to inspect the tall green onions; I began shooting some frames. I continued to photograph after he wrestled a few free from their dirt prisons. He held them in his rough and calloused fingers for a closer inspection. He seemed to be unaware that I was capturing what was happening with my camera, and kept his attention on his salad building materials. "They look good", I said. My father looked up at me and smiled. "Yes, they are the perfect size", he said excitedly. It was one of the shortest photo shoots of this project, but it was one of the most special. Seeing my Father's joy over a handful of green onions filled my heart with joy and this was my big payoff.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-176

2010-06-26T20:03:00.001-07:00

Really one of those days that I just wanted to spit. Really spit. I was pressed for time all day and was not feeling that well to boot. It didn't help that I had to work a night shift, and I was not looking forward to trying to do a night shoot. When my shift ended; I was quite sure the only thing I would feel like doing was going home to bed. When I took my lunch break, I stepped outside the store with my camera hoping to spare myself from a photo shoot after dark. It was late in the day and the shadows started to lean in the fading light. I wandered around the parking lot looking for anything that might serve as a daily image. If I didn't find anything; I knew I could still go out after work too. There was this trash can sitting next to a column with a high contrast shadow next to it. "What the heck", I thought to myself, and took a few frames of it. Actually, I was OK with the way it turned out. It made a decent black and white image that was interesting enough. Plus it saved me from being out late after work, so I could work on my beauty sleep. Not one of my favorites, but still a worthy addition to Project 365.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-175

2010-06-26T20:02:00.003-07:00

Most of the day today I spent burning dead tree limbs that had fallen into my ravine. It was a good day for this type of clean up as I mold my property into a photographic paradise. Lately, I have been spending as much time in my yard as possible. It has been such a wet summer and I have much to do to get my property ready for opening my portrait studio next Spring. I started a fire in my fire pit as the wood was piling up quickly. Even during the Summer; I enjoy a good camp fire, and my backyard feels like a campsite anyway. Thankfully it is not full of campers and I get it all to myself to enjoy.

There was so much old timber to burn that as evening approached the flames were still working on their meal. Fire is really cool to photograph as well, and tonight I sat happily there on a stump with my camera watching the flames do their dance. Each time I clicked the shutter; I wondered if that frame would be the one. I continued to offer wood to the hungry flames in hopes that it would honor my desire for a photograph showing me the personality of the fire. It had been almost an hour since I sat down to photograph, and I had taken many shots. With the hour getting late; I headed to my studio to see what I had. After loading the images and making contact sheets; I began to view them in hopes of finding the perfect one. Then my eyes stumbled on this one and it seemed that my wish had come true. Staring at it I swear that there was a fiery creature staring back at me. A razor toothed, steely eyed, monster sprinting through the frame. I laughed out loud with delight as I continued to admire my little creature born of the flame. I had hoped to see the personality of the fire and it had delivered just that. I will have to revisit the fire again before Project 365 as I suspect this little ambassador has friends to introduce me to.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-174

2010-06-26T20:02:00.001-07:00

     What a bitter sweet day I experienced today. My wife and I went to her Doctor to have an ultrasound to check on the baby's health. Once again, it was storming and drenching everything in a soggy mess. The Doctors visit went smooth and the baby was doing really well, so our mood was light as we left the office. We stood under two black umbrellas as the rain poured down in the morning gloom. From anothers perspective, we may have looked like spies meeting in an unlikely place to trade secrets. We were just exited parents for the third time albeit a little scared at the thought of starting all over with diapers and bottles again. With a goodbye kiss we entered separate vehicles and headed out into our days. I just kept thinking about that unknown, un-met little life all safe inside of her mother. It was like a birthday present you cannot open till long after your birthday is past. For as long as I could, I watched my wife in the car ahead until she turned in another direction and faded from sight.

   As I headed back toward home my mind was full of chatter from many different thoughts all trying to be heard at once. Worries, hopes, prayers, and fears all stuck in a crowded elevator unable to figure out what floor each should be on. As my eyes scanned the horizon as they always do; I noticed that extremely scary, storm clouds were gathering for a potential strike. It would seem that a heavy rain would start at any moment, but nothing more than little dots on my windshield was all that accumulated. Maybe it was saving up it's ammo for later. I would find out that afternoon that my premintion was correct, and I nearly lost all of my Project 365 files.

   Nearing my home, I noticed a train sitting on the track with lots of graffiti on it. The rain has stopped and the skies had cleared enough for some decent light to photograph. I pulled over, grabbed my camera and walked toward the train. Photographing graffiti is something that I enjoy, and today was no exception. It can be overwhelming trying to find the right angle when looking at such a broad subject. The key is taking your time and being willing to experiment in order to get the best composition. Sometimes you find frames within a bigger picture, and some times you go with the obvious big picture. Confident that I had a little of both; I packed up and headed home.

   By the time I got home the sky was starting to look threatening again, and it wasn't long till the trees began to sway as strong winds began to blow. I was standing outside recording HD video of the crazy cloud formations above when the storm let loose. My father and my daughters were inside of the house and I met my dad peeking out the door at all the activity just as I was rushing to the front door. "Get in the basement!", I screamed as loud as I could. They all scrambled down the steps toward safety while I stood just outside the door not wanting to miss anything good. The wind howled as lightning cracked over grumbling thunder. The rain fell like a huge waterfall causing the gutters to spill over and water gathered in a large pool around my driveway. For about twenty minutes the storm raged on. The lights flickered many times and then the power went out just as my wife was coming home

Project 365 d-173

2010-06-26T20:01:00.001-07:00

It was really overcast today with some rain and gloom hanging in the air. It was not possible for me to leave to photograph as I was watching my children. So, as I often do; I try and use what's available to me around my home. Planted some time ago are many flower beds with a lot of Black Eyed Susan. They are a spunky, daisy like flower with a black eye in the center that is ringed by yellow petals. The lighting was just not right for a color photograph, so I decided to go black and white. There was a slight breeze that made the flowers rock gently back and forth. Leaning against a wooden railing, I set a longer exposure and began to photograph the gentle swaying motion of the flowers. My hope was to get a painterly look to them that would convert well to black and white. My time to photograph was cut short as the rain opened up upon me and chased me inside. To me, this image looks like a drawing in chalk on a black board that hasn't been completely erased. Just another day that proves again, I never quite know what will come my way for a photograph. Most of the time I'm glad it works this way because it keeps me hungry and in a hunting mode.

Happy Shooting.

Status Update

2010-06-25T23:26:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let you know that Project 365 has not ceased. It is alive and well. Life has just been coming at me hard lately, and I haven't had the time to write, or edit. It has been extremely challenging to say the least just to photograph everyday. As the halfway point draweth nigh; My goal is to be totally caught up with editing, posting as well as writing. So for whoever is watching this; thank you for following along, and please bear with me. More to come soon.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-172

2010-06-21T20:28:00.001-07:00

Storms moved in very quickly tonight as me and my family sat in the bleachers for another softball game. An innocent and friendly cloud filled sky began to turn ominous and dark. Deep growling thunder echoed across the changing sky like hunger pains in some wild animal. Soon wiry, white bolts of lightning could be seen just off to the North of the field and they decided to call the game. My camera was hanging around my neck as I watched the sky with interest hoping to witness some magic up above.

The many spectators scrambled to gather their things, and their children before the storm opened up. Once I knew that family was safe in the car; I continued to watch this particular cloud pattern. It seemed to me that I was seeing some sort of life form sitting on a throne of clouds directing the coming event. With a long outstretched arm or staff it was seemingly in charge of the weather that was on it's way. While the rest of the sky was turning very dark this particular area stayed mostly blue with lighter clouds. It was an a amazing sight to behold and this photo pales in comparison to what my eyes had witnessed. Large rain drops began to smack the ground and bounce off my back, and I knew it was time to go. Looking up one last time just as I got to my car; I saw that the Storm God had been swallowed up by what he had wrought. Though I was disappointed that the game had been canceled; I was glad that I had been able to photograph this spectacle in the sky.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-171

2010-06-20T21:02:00.001-07:00

     Covered from head to toe in dirt and sweat; I stood as straight as I could, and looked with a smile at what my hands had accomplished. My whole body ached starting with my toes and the pain rolled like Tsunami waves all the way up to the back of my neck. It hurt to blink, to breath, to think. Still, the landscape at the front of my home had been bent a little more toward submission. My will was being done though slowly and painfully. It has been so wet that many days have slipped by without even the turn of a shovel. Today was mostly sunny with the kind of clouds that make for great sunsets. It felt good to be in this kind of pain knowing that my sweat was traded for something worthwhile. Something that made me feel good to look at, and would bring joy to others as well.

     There was a new pain that I began feeling upon the realization that the day was almost gone and I had nothing to show for my project. The cupboard was bare, and I loathed the idea of having to go out tonight to photograph. My tired old bones wanted a shower and a soft bed knowing that sleep would immediately pounce on me once I was drowned among the soft sheets. The searing and gnawing feeling was in my stomach and the only way I knew to ease it was to get my camera. Funny how just holding it in my hands makes me feel better. That soft molded grip easily accommodates my hand and it becomes an extension of me. An extension of my soul, so that I may farm images with my eye.

     The sky behind me was exploding as I walked back from my studio toward the front of my home. It was ablaze behind the silhouetted trees determined to stay alive as long as it could, but accepting that its death was necessary to bring about this explosion of color. "Thank you God," I quietly said as I stood alone in my driveway. "Not only for sparing me from having to leave my home tonight to photograph, but mostly because even in the final moments of this given day you are still at work." For this is not all just some benign process set in motion by an aloof God. It is the work of an Artist that is never without his brush. A loving Creator who could just as well order our days and be done, but instead insists on working late in hopes that we will notice. "I noticed Lord." I whispered with a quivering lip. My senses tingled as I pointed my camera toward his sky and squeezed the shutter many times. I never heard him say "You're welcome." and I didn't need too. It was written across the sky.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-170

2010-06-19T22:17:00.001-07:00

Sitting there with all my family tonight at my daughters softball game with my camera in hand. Mostly because I wanted to photograph her, but also keenly aware that images sometimes jump out at you like pesky siblings hiding in a dark closet. Burn out was what I was really feeling as I sat there robotically cheering her and her team on. The half way point of Project 365 was getting close, and I wandered if it was just a good idea to stop then. Then I could lick my wounds and do something with the good images that didn't exist before this project. After all, six months of photographing everyday was a great accomplishment, but then I should have called it Project 182.5. Plus, what about all those people who were following along? What would they think? Maybe it shouldn't matter what anyone would think, all they had to do was visually follow along. All that I knew was that I was tired and wanted desperately to quit for fear that the pressure would rob me of the desire to photograph outside of this project. "Way to go girls!", I shouted from my stupor as the thought of what I dearly love being the very thing that could destroy the thing I love. I shuttered at the possibility as all of this was rolling around in my mind.

Have you ever been driving down the road and suddenly realize you didn't remember the last mile or so? Like you suddenly snapped out of a deep trance, but knew that you were just mentally operating on two unique levels of conscience. This was how I felt when suddenly I saw the silhouetted participants cast in deep, dark shadows on the concession stand wall. They had been there more or less since then the game started and only changed with each batter. The condiments were sitting on the window ledge and helped unite these two worlds coming together. This alternate reality hiding right in front of me just waiting to be discovered. It was the kind of image that I was looking for. It was the kind of image I needed. Deep relief is what I was feeling as I knew that I didn't have to go hunting for an image. My mood was now light as I relished in meeting another day's deadline, and my soul was now full. It was time to fill something else too. A trip to the concession stand for a reward. Pushing back the thought that another day was only a few hours away; I sat back and enjoyed a hot dog. "Wraay ta gu gulls!", I mumbled. It was the best I could do with a mouth full of hot dog.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-169

2010-06-18T13:58:00.001-07:00

More storms roaring through today, and I had just enough time to photograph before the down poor started. Got out my HD Flip to take some video too, and it was just eerie and cool at the same time. These type of clouds just change so fast that I'm always a little frustrated that I cannot capture them quickly enough. One of these days, I hope to capture some lightning mixed in with these angry clouds too. Note to self: Don't stand barefoot in a big puddle of water while holding onto a tall metal tripod.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-168

2010-06-18T13:57:00.007-07:00

If only I could detach this huge metal door and hang it on my wall. Albeit, it would take strong nails to hold it, but it is just a fabulous piece of art. What's even more amazing is the place that it can be found. Unless you have heard me talk about it you will never guess what it is. Like many of the subjects I have captured for this project, this was one I had wanted to photograph for a while, but not had the opportunity. Today I got the chance to swing open this door, set up my tripod and fire away. What I really needed was a set of lights to photograph it properly, but that was not possible. There were many different images to be harvested from this hinged, and faded metal, but I had to settle for broader image. All of the randomness are like little stories just laying upon the cool and smooth surface. Time and use like an Artistic hand slowly shaping and pushing this piece toward completion. A hidden treasure tucked away only for sensitive eyes to discover if they happen by when its on display.

It makes me want to paint and to draw again. To make marks on paper and push charcoal, and oil pastel across the page in an attempt at creating Art on an a lifeless sheet. This is the type of found object that makes me well up inside with passion for capturing and creating. It is scary to me to think of all the art that is out there languishing in some hidden place hoping to be discovered by an admiring eye. Though I am less pleased with the way that this image turned out; I am happy to have made an attempt at photographing it. Plus, it has allowed me to share it with you as well. My hope is that you will recognize the value that I see too. By the way, I think I will let the knowledge of what this image is remain a mystery. Who knows, maybe some day I will be able to afford to buy it and hang it on my studio wall. With a strong set of nails of course.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-167

2010-06-18T13:57:00.005-07:00

Today was a good example of what you will find if you go just a bit farther down the road. This was near a place where I often fuel up, and nearly every time I do; I find my neck straining to look down this long road. Today I gave into my impulse and turned right away from the path home. A big smile crossed my face as I got to the end of the road and beheld this really pretty scene. The sky was perfect set above the green grass on these gentle rolling hills. Needing an easy day of photographing; I photographed with ease at such a simple subject. My medium zoom lens would not allow it all to fit into one shot, so this is the marriage of two images into one. Nice and clean, bright, blue and green. Looking at this image now I have to remind myself that a sprawling city sat just out of the frame on three sides. Like happening on a doorway that suddenly leads you out into fresh air, amongst blooming flowers, cool grass and cheerful skies. Take time to look for these doorways around you and walk through them, or at least look through them as often as you can.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-166

2010-06-18T13:57:00.001-07:00

     Went back to a familiar place late this afternoon to explore it more fully. At first I was alone, and I relished the sounds of nature as it sang quite unconcerned about me. Squadrons of buzzing Dragonfly raced to and fro with impressive maneuvers and perfect landings. Not sure what I was going to photograph; I just stood there with my camera ready trying to sense a mood. Off to my right, the bank was filled with fat, and poky thistle. Tall and lanky plants swaying in the slight breeze each adorned with a soft purple crown. Out in the distance, the muddy river slid by swiftly as the wooded banks looked on with out interest. The crystal blue sky was filled with cumulus white that tore apart like cotton as they were stretched across the heavens.

   A new sound broke across my ears awaking me from the trance I had fallen. Up roared a small, purple truck with loud music pouring through the open windows. Coming to a stop, out jumped a shirtless young man with sun glasses on. "So much for the peace and quiet.", I grumbled to myself. Not wanting to stare; I turned back around and pretended to be interested in a Dragonfly idling near the waters edge. Just as I turned back around for another peek; I saw the young man pull a large bow and arrow from the bed of his truck. Only there was a strong connected to the arrow and then back to a spool on the bow. "At least he is a bow-fisherman." I thought. I was relieved and thought, "He won't just be sitting there, but he'll go out in the water and away from me." We exchange pleasantries as he passed me and started to wade into the murky waters. It was then that I realized he may be providing some photographic opportunities, and suddenly I was so thankful that he was there.

   Silently out into the water he stole, crouched over like he was carrying a heavy burden. Each footstep quietly breaking the surface, but churning up the chocolate, earthen, river bottom. His direction suddenly changed back toward a now visible shape hovering in the shallows. Intuitively he placed the arrow against the guide as he approached his target. He stopped and the arch in his back disappeared as he stood erect. The once straight bow string was now being pulled back in order to launch his tethered missile. Just before he let his arrow fly; I realized I fallen asleep as this story unfolded, and I was not ready to photograph. As quick as I could, I changed my shutter speed and f-stop and began to peer through the viewfinder as he fired. The surface of the water explodes as the arrow appeared to hit its mark. The arrow stuck up at an angle and moved around like it was being stirred my an invisible hand. My shutter continued to click as the fish pulled ans struggled to be free of this strange dart embedded it its flesh. Just when I thought the fish was going to jump up out of the water for my prize shot, the arrow fell over flat. With a giant swirl of its tail, the fish quickly vanished toward deeper water.

     I'm not sure who was more upset, the young man for loosing his fish, or me for loosing my money shot. A yellow flash caught the corner of my eye as I watched the young man solemnly reel in his empty arrow. Looking back down the thistle covered shoreline; I spied the yellow visitor. He was perched atop of the thistle and was gorging himself on seeds unaware that I was watching him through my long glass. Forgetting the sorrows of the empty handed fisherman; I began to creep closer to the Finch as it feasted. The wet and sloppy shoreline slurped in each of my steps, and I had to use my tripod legs as a crutch to keep me from sliding into the water. Thankfully, the Finch was up higher, and my approach was screened my the thistle. Several times en route to a closer spot; I stopped to take some frames for fear that he would take to flight before I got to the desired distance. It was a challenge trying to photograph on a slippery hillside, and I stomped each step into the cool sucking mud to shore up my stance. About the third time I stopped to photograph, my height must have broken above the thistle, I could tell the Gold Finch now say me. His demeanor changed and he crouched ever so slightly in preparation for his escape. Just as I brought my glass to bear on him once more, he jumped from his perch and was gone. It occurred to me that I was not only the one who had one get away while fishing. Still, unlike the bow-fisherman; I had a creel of about twelve images though each of us could shared the grief of a Prize that got away. Isn't that what fishing is all about though? The process is as important, or perhaps more important than the fish you hold with two hands to show your buddies or the flawless Giclee hanging on a cash buyers wall. Though I prefer to hold up prize fish and prize images; I never belittle the process for which I cast a line or cast a frame. After all, I suspect it is the process that I am in love with. Please don't tell my photographs this.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-165

2010-06-14T22:03:00.003-07:00

Beset my ominous clouds, I once again turned my attention, and my lens upward. It seems the rain, and gloom pursue relentlessly these days, and the Sun is too often hidden. My fascination with the sky grows with each frame I take, and today was no exception. The temperature had suddenly turned cool, and the rush of air pushed its way through causing the boughs to sway and dance in its wake. Part of the time I was photographing, and part of the time I was simply looking up at the great movie playing out on the silver and black sky.

These kind of skies leave me a little sad as the fierce actors quickly play their part and then are gone. They leave me trying to remember what they looked like and what they had to say. Was there a message, or some instruction up there to be seen in any of the fleeting faces that often catch my eye. This quiet place I go as the dark skies roll by are filled with melancholy rooms. They house many memories, some rooms are painful, and I dare not linger long, but they are too instructive to discard. While others are good, but are not in need of the sun to bring a smile. Like secret eddies they churn below the surface desperately grasping at my ankles, hoping to pull me down. Down to where my thoughts, hopes and fears become my brothers and we embrace, at the reuniting of our minds. Both are cherished for they are the building blocks of who I am. Forever joined together in this tower of flesh and bone, muscle, heart, mind and soul. Thank you God for the storms.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-164

2010-06-14T22:03:00.001-07:00

Just wandering around today hoping to make a new discovery. This was a transplant from our old home when we moved last year. It was late coming up this year and I attribute that to the soil having more clay in our new location. This yellow Coreopsis just recently started to get wonderful blooms on it, and I noticed it while heading toward one of my flower beds. It was overcast today and the normally yellow brilliance of the blooms was not a little flat. Crouching down for a closer shot; I decided that black and white would be good, and I'm happy with my choice.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-163

2010-06-14T22:02:00.007-07:00

The sun was threatening to drop below the tress surrounding my house today. My big landscape project at the front of my home had robbed me of most of my daylight, and I had yet to photograph. Tired, sore and very dirty; I slipped of my work gloves and leaned my shovel against the tree. To go driving around looking for something random was the last thing I wanted to do with the light failing. So I do what I have done many times before. Walk around and will myself to find something worthy of putting my lens on it. It was then that I remembered an old C02 tank that was left at our home. Earlier in the day, I had carried it up from the basement out near my up and coming studio. The valve knob was slightly bent over and it looked unsafe. Of course when dealing with something that is unsafe and could explode, what is the proper thing to do? That's right! You open the valve to make sure it won't explode. Keep in mind that I was standing as far away as I could while turning the knob. In case you are wondering, it didn't explode.

Throughout the afternoon, it had been sitting there slowly releasing it's contents. That was most likely not wise either as ice had started to from form the condensation. After retrieving my camera from the studio, I paid it a visit in hope of finding some photographic quality to spare my aching bones from a bigger search for a daily photo. Lifting it was quite easy now as its gas had all escaped. With just enough sun light still pouring in from over the trees; I carried it to a spot in my driveway for our session. There were labels on it that had become soaked and were just really a mess. They didn't strike me as something that I wanted to work with. Still, I was determined to extract something of value from this sweaty, and worn old tank. You have to be careful sometimes when photographing objects with words in them as the viewer is sure to read them. Perhaps not a big deal if that is your intent. It was not necessarily mine; however, I was not bothered either way. The narrowness of the tank presented a challenge of not being able to pull back too far due to the risk of the background creeping in. Something about this shot just appealed to me and even had I the time or inclination to move on to something else; I may not have done so. It seemed like the remains of an old Billboard not fully removed. In tilting my camera, I think it helps create a bit of mystery as to the meaning of those few words. Black and white helped solidify this feeling more than in color. This tank is now on its way to becoming something new courtesy of a metal scrap yard. Who knows where it will end up? Perhaps it will become building material, or a Navy ship. From the posture of my worn out shovel leaning against the tree; I know just what I hope it becomes.

Happy Shooting/Gardening.

Project 365 d-162

2010-06-14T22:02:00.005-07:00

     What a great feeling it was to come home after a long day to my little slice of paradise. The grass is so green and lush, and it feels like millions of tiny massaging cushions when you walk bare foot. The pull on me to walk into my backyard was strong as I exited my vehicle and walked toward the house. Setting down the mail, and my camera gear; I walked slowly toward the back of my house for a look around. I never know what I will find visiting my sprawling, park-like backyard. That is one of the best things about living where I do. The unexpected things and creatures that seem to wander through make this photographer very happy.

     As I was headed toward the back part of the yard; I spied a slithering viper hurrying toward the ravine. Without thinking, I lunged forward to try and catch this wiggly little snake. Try as I might, he/she didn't want to be caught and the first few grabs produced only air. Just before it got beyond my reach; I grabbed one last time and just caught the edge of its tail. With all of its strength it coiled its muscles and shot up toward me for a bite. Thankfully, this snake was not that big, and I was easily able to avoid its strike. Hurriedly, I ran back to get my camera to see if I could document this moment. To say the least, it was quite a task to try and hold him/her up and photograph while is gyrated back and forth. My hope was to capture one with its tongue out, but it wasn't to be. Changing my grip from its tail to behind its head; I thought to myself, "What would the girls think of my little friend?". Walking toward the house; I knew I was about to find out.

   Into the house I went with my long and wiggly friend just out of site on my left side. At the breakfast bar sat my two little Angels eating snakes and watching TV. My Niece was also standing there too and by the size of her eyes; I could see that what I was carrying had registered with her. Bringing up my little friend so that it's tail rested lightly on my youngest daughter's shoulder. My Niece bit her tongue, and just stood there squirming in place. My daughters didn't even notice as their gaze was held fast by the power of Disney. Clearing my throat to get their attention, my youngest finally looked up and when her eyes found the dangling viper she let out a delightful shriek! This snapped my other daughter out of her trance and she followed up with her own screeching protest. All the while, my Niece still stood there with eyes the size of Oranges, but now with a wry smile crossing her tan face. No sooner than the screaming had stopped the oohing and awing started. You would have thought it was a Cat. My daughters took their turn putting out their timid hands for a quick feel of the snake. Each time their hands darted back as deep, rolling giggles escaped from their smiling lips.

     Walking back outside to let my friend go; I held it so our eyes met. "Thank you for being such a wonderful subject for me today.", I hissed in the best snake I could muster. Out flicked the red and black tongue to taste my words and ponder their meaning. Waving its tail quickly back and forth was the only response I got. As I set it upon the soft green grass and stood back, it quickly stitched itself into the grass and then disappear into the landscape.

Project 365 d-161

2010-06-14T22:02:00.003-07:00

It rained really hard today. Giant pools filled my yard and small rapids formed as the water rushed toward the drain. Under the security of my dry front porch roof; I just watched it all happen like a movie. The sound of falling water filled my ears, and I never grow tired of listening to it. Time seems to slow, and its music springs up from below to grab hold of my worries, my cares, and slowly drown them it its symphony. I felt my self feeling a little sad as the heavy downpour slowed to a trickle, and the pools drained. I watched it all like a kid watching a parade, determined to stay until the last float had passed me by.

Rising from my chair; I headed stepped from the protection of the porch with my camera and umbrella to see what the rain had left behind. There was still enough water near the drain that it covered my feet, and I relished in the feeling of being barefoot in the Luke warm water. At some point, I looked up to make sure that the umbrella was covering my camera, so that I could start to photograph. It was then that I noticed the countless drops resting happily above me just waiting for me to notice. A smile grew wide over my face as I pointed the camera up and began to photograph. The drops looked beautiful against the vertical lines of the umbrella, and I just snapped away. It seems impossible to predict just when I will find myself in a moment where I sense what I'm supposed to photograph. It's times like these when all this makes sense and the critics inside my head are muzzled, even if it's only for one day.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-160

2010-06-14T22:02:00.001-07:00

Spied this ole red beauty on the way back from another softball game tonight. This barn had been on my list to photograph for over a year now, and tonight it came to fruition. As we cruised back into the city where it was located; I was thankful that the Sun was just about in the perfect position in the sky. Walking up a hill toward this proud structure; I began to try and do justice to what I was seeing. My wide angle might have worked better, but I didn't have it with me. The late day sun was really saturating the red, peeling paint, and the flaking white trim contrasted well against it. The roof was in need of some repair, but the dis-repair helped add to the feeling of the photograph. As time allows, I plan to return to photograph this barn again. In different seasons, and at different times of the day to make sure it is well documented. Actually, while I was working toward my Art degree; I had designed the outside jacket of a barn photo book. That seems to be the first time where I felt I wanted to pursue making Fine Art Books. It has stuck with me and was part of the motivation behind my current endeavor. Lord knows I probably don't need another photo book project idea to worry about right now; however, there may be a barn book somewhere in me too.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-159

2010-06-08T11:09:00.001-07:00

It was a shame that I could not get any closer to this barn set in this stand of trees. It was something that I had seen the day before in trying to find which field my daughter was supposed to play at. There wasn't much room to pull of the road, but I did the best I could. It would have required me to walk way out into that field to get closer, and I wasn't willing to do that. My fear was that some of the crops would get stepped on and the land owner/farmer may not take kindly to that. Once again, stormy weather was rolling through our area and it looked like rain would be falling soon. You can see the sun's rays boring holes through the storm clouds, but they were just determined to keep out as much light as possible. What else can I do, but just move on to the next day, and the next image.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-158

2010-06-08T11:08:00.003-07:00

     Went on a wild goose chase these evening trying to get my youngest to her softball game. On the way there; I spied many interesting things that would make great subject matter for today's photo. It was a road that I had not been down in a very long time, and I was excited at the thought of fresh photo opportunities. When my Father, my daughter and me pulled into the parking lot next to the diamond, we found it pull of boys. There weren't any girls to be found. "They must have made a mistake on the schedule." , I said out loud. My little athlete began to whimper and was getting anxious about being late. "I don't want to be the last one there Daddy!" , she protested. "We'll figure it out sweetheart, not to worry." , I reassured her. I began to make phone calls to try and determine what was going on. but was unable to reach anyone that could tell me for sure where her game really was. Not wanting to sit there much longer, we decided to go back the way we came and check the only other places we thought it might be.

   The sky began to look like angry and brooding as we drove. Just as we got to the next town; I saw this wonderful silo standing erect against the gray late afternoon sky. When we figured out where the game was I knew that I would be back to get up close and photograph it. With a quick stop at the next ball diamond, we discovered it wasn't there either, so back on the road we went. There was only one more place that it could be, and I hoped it would soon be settled as I needed to get to that silo before it was too late. Pulling into the last little town, I was relieved to see familiar uniforms moving around the on the field. As we came to a stop in the parking lot my daughter bolted from her seat toward her team-mates with her gear in tow. I explained to my Father that I needed to photograph for about a half hour. He said OK, and headed for the bleachers to watch the game.

   As fast as I could go, I willed myself to get back to that silo and photograph it with the moody sky above it. It was my turn to bolt from the vehicle and I did just that. It looked even more amazing up close and I immediately began to photograph it. It could just have well have been a remnant of a Medieval castle still standing after many battles. Though scarred, and broken it was still determined to stand against in spite all that had been thrown against it. This was a moment to cherish. It was quiet, and I could feel that secret place inside of my soul that gets its nourishment from art filling up. Just being there in front of the right subject at the right time is a priceless feeling. I took some courage and strength from this tower. After all, I was still standing too. A bit broken, with some scars, but still standing none the less. As for the many days of photographing left to complete my project; I will remember this silo, and I will continue to stand till the end.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-157

2010-06-08T11:08:00.001-07:00

Time was in short supply again today, but thankfully I can usually count on the sky and trees when I get into a jam. Not only do I seem to have a thing for the water; I am finding that the sky and trees are an important part of who I am as well. It's like two different canvases together with each day being a completely new painting of the sky while the changes in the trees are rendered more slowly. Each day God paints the sky with his delicate hand and today his passion for life can be found in the swirling, white clouds brushed against a crystal blue sky amidst the fading orange. All the while the trees strain to see his work as it changes moment by moment knowing that soon he will begin a new work in them too. I hope you take some time soon to empty your mind, open you heart and look with anticipation toward the sky. Look near the tops of the wooden sentinels to see what masterpieces may be found there. There is a great art gallery in the sky for all who care to look, and the more you look the more you will start to see.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-156

2010-06-05T18:09:00.000-07:00

My daughter had her school friend birthday party today, and the air was full ff the screeching, loud, and giddy- chatter of girls! My father was there too, but was wisely staying out near the vegetable garden. Meanwhile, I was busy filming the whole event on my HD Flip camera. Suddenly the chorus of silly noise seemed to flow in unison, and the change made me take note of the reason. All of they young ladies were pointing at my Father who had dared to enter the garage where the party was taking place. He stood there not knowing what they were all pointing at. Only when one of the young ladies blurted out, "You have a butterfly on you!". He half smiled as he looked the best he could over his shoulder to see for himself. Indeed there was a beautiful butterfly perched just below the top of his shoulder. They squealed with joy at the dis-believing look on his face. My Father slowly reached out an extended finger to see if it would crawl into his hand. Just as he dis this the butterfly lit, and landed on the wall above the entry door.

It was time for me to get involved.Putting down the flip; I got my camera and long lens to try and turn this moment into a photo. Slowly, I walked up to the butterfly and stuck out my hand in hope to do what my Father had not. It accepted my hand and seemed to limp onto my finger. It was at that point I suspected that it might be sick or injured. Walking out the entry door; I carried the delicate creature to the closest flower bed, and transferred it to some waiting flowers. It just sat there fanning it's wings back and forth. One wing seemed to jitter out of sync with the other. Backing up then crouching down on my knees; I began to photograph. It felt like it was a scheduled appointment with a willing subject, and I squeezed off many frames from different angles. At any moment, I expected him/her to fly away and for the session to end. It only ended when my memory card read full. Whatever was wrong with it; I was sure there wasn't anything I could do about it. Maybe a little video would be nice too, so I headed in to get my flip. Upon returning to the flower hospital my friend was gone. I scanned the air hoping to see that it had indeed flown off and was going to be OK. It was nowhere to be found and the video was not to be. Maybe I will see him/her again before it turns cold, but God only knows. Still, I was thankful for the special experience that fluttered into my day, and onto my memory card.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-155

2010-06-04T12:34:00.003-07:00

     The pull for me to drive just a bit out of my comfort zone was nearly overwhelming today. Over and over; I kept hearing, "Just head out on the road, and go a little farther than you have already gone!" What about all of the, "Be content where you are stuff?", I asked. This could be God telling me to go a little farther? Or, it could be my own selfish desire to explore what I suspect is on the other side of the fence. What ever the real reason; I grabbed my gear and headed out quite sure that something was out there.

   Very purposefully, I went down as many unfamiliar roads as I could. My goal was to get lost, but stay close to home. Realistically, this project would not be financially possible if I were to just drive anywhere and everywhere. Honestly, it is hard enough just going where I need to go as it is. Still, today I just felt a strong urging to go where I had never been before. A small voice that just encouraged me to go explore. When I feel this way it can be exciting as I know it usually results in good photo opportunities. This is what Project 365 is all about. Finding things that can be photographed to share with a visually starved world. It is for me too, for the faithfulness of being true to what God has gifted me with. In hopes of being a better steward as well as a better photographer and person.

     The dust rolled behind me in wakes as I drove cautiously down a narrow and dusty country road. My eyes were straining back and forth looking for something to catch my eye. That something to say, "Here I am, the thing that you were itching to come out and find!" Just at the bottom of a big hill; I saw what I had been looking for. This lonely sign being slowly digested by the landscape. It seemed so strange that nobody had cleared away the grass around it. It was a gift that they had not. The crystal blue sky, the fluffy white clouds, the tall green grass seemed so picturesque. How odd for this metal weed to be coexisting amongst these natural things. Yet there was a coexistence to it. In fact there was a harmony to it as they seemed to be at ease with one another. As I stood there in the hot sun, sweat rolled down the back of my neck, but I felt really alive. Not wanting to look away for fear that my return gaze would find that this was a dream. It seems that God was trying to show me that not only should I be content where I am, but be obedient in where he wants me to go. Today it was down a country road, and I'm thankful that I went a little farther.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-154

2010-06-04T12:34:00.001-07:00

Back near the wooded part of my property where the ravine meets the open yard; I found these wonderful little flowers. They were tucked back just into the tree line, and I only saw them because a sliver of afternoon sun was showering down upon them. The seem like wild flowers, but I cannot be sure. The are lovely to say the least, and I was glad to be in their presence with my camera. There have been more days of this project that have been taken up by flowers than I would have imagined. Part of this is due to lack of time, but there has still been a discovery to it as well. Maybe I am seeing things differently now and have a greater appreciation of the things God has planted to fill our hearts. Things that I had nothing to do with, but have noticed as they fill my vision with their beauty.

At times, I have despaired that I am unable to venture very far in the hopes of filling the daily photographic quota. Still, it is days like this that make me think I am learning to be more aware to my surroundings. That doesn't mean that I would not enjoy venturing far and wide with unlimited amounts of time, but it feels so good to be accomplishing so much in a small area. I hope that extrapolates out to mean that venturing out into a wider area would make my portfolio scream. Perhaps this is where I am supposed to be. God put me in this place to notice the things in this area, and I shouldn't be worried about what I suppose it out there just beyond my reach. Maybe it is that way for all of us? We were put here for a reason that makes perfect sense to God, but somehow in our straining to see what's just down in the next valley; we fail to realize what we have. It is a good thing to be content. Yet I have much to learn about that yoke. Part of me still yearns for what I do not have in the hopes it will fulfill me. Real fulfillment comes from wanting what you have, not what you think you need. Only God knows what we truly need and today he gave me these purple flowers. Thank you God; It is enough for me.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-153

2010-06-04T12:27:00.003-07:00

     What a really super day I had today. First, I didn't have to work and second; I got to join my youngest on a trip to the local Zoo with her school class. Plus, I knew that there would be photographic opportunities galore, and that was a good feeling to not have to worry about subject matter for the day. In the back of my mind, I was thinking about Giraffe's as there was supposed to be a new baby there. Although I had photographed at the Zoo before; I had been involved in a photo project, so this was more special.

     Riding on a big yellow school bus was something I had not done for a long time, and I know I must have looked silly all stuffed into that little seat. My daughter sat in the seat just across the aisle from me and she kept looking over at me and smiling. I'm sure it was a big thrill seeing her big ole Dad riding along for a day at the Zoo when many children were without their parents. When we pulled into the Zoo; I was not sure if I was more excited to get off the bus, or get into the Zoo. Maybe I looked like a Giraffe getting off that bus as I could feel the little ones staring at me. A smile crept over my face as I stepped down to the wonderful, roomy, concrete.

   We all gathered in line to await the green light to head in. Suddenly, I felt a tiny hand slip up inside mine as she pressed against me. A rush of pride and love washed over me as I squeezed her hand kissed her head. What a blessing to be at the Zoo with my little one and to be allowed in with such a big camera too. The printed out schedule said we were starting with the Giraffes first, and I was glad because the light was really good then. Off we went to go see the Fast Walking Camel Leopards. As we got close; I could see the little one standing out in the open, but as the cries of the excited children reached it's ears; It bucked like a horse and sort of galloped back inside. We met up with a guide that explained they currently had two young Giraffe's and this was the curious one. As we were standing there listening to her talk about how magnificent these animals were, this little one poked out it's head for a closer look. Not very far at first, then ever so gradually until it was out far enough to photograph. Thank God for my big zoom as I was able to get in close for a shot. Just as I started shooting, this little Giraffe started licking its lips, and made a perfect shot for a perfect day.

   Many more photos were taken that day, and many precious moments were shared between Father and Daughter. As we headed back to the school on the big, bumpy, yellow bus; I shared some of the photos with the other children. There wide eyed expressions made me smile as they viewed many of the Zoo's wild creatures up close. My daughter watched this with pride, and I noticed her enjoying every minute of it. I went to the Zoo that day hoping to spend some quality time with my daughter and get a good photograph. What I got was a full soul as well as memory card. What more can you ask for?

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-152

2010-06-04T12:27:00.001-07:00

Still finding nice discoveries in my yard as we did not live here this time last year. These Day Lillie's exploded up around our big White Birch tree in our front yard. I had no stopped to try and figure out what they were, but tonight they just took my breath away. How did I miss them blooming; I cannot tell you, but miss them I did. I went into my studio, grabbed my long lens and set about to capture them.

Kneeling down, I began to photograph them at many different focal lengths and F-stops. The light was not that great and I should have used a tripod, but I didn't want to take the time. Taking deep breaths and releasing the shutter as I exhaled to ensure the image stabilization did not have to work extra hard. There were distracting things that I tried to avoid as best I could, and finally settled on this composition. The way the green blades were moving up diagonally to the left and placing the flower near the top looked good through my viewfinder. My main concern was being hand held without enough light. As it turns out, I must have done OK with my breathing as it is acceptably sharp, and the DOF is good too. Who knows what else I may be discovering in the days ahead around my yard and in my life. Good things I hope, photograph-able things to boot.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-151

2010-06-04T12:26:00.001-07:00

     Spent most of the day working outside in my yard. Trying with all my might to bend the landscape to my will. It seems like everything I accomplish by the light of day gets secretly done as I slumber each night. The weeds are never ending, and grow with ease while desirable things seem so temperamental. It's all in my head I'm sure and having land is worth all of the weeds life can ever dump on me or my lawn.

     All day as I worked, it was in the back of my mind that I hadn't photographed yet. This always bothers me, and I never feel secure until first image is written to the memory card. When this happens I catch myself saying, "Well at least I have one thing for the day." The sun was starting to sink lower in the sky, and I knew that unless I wanted to night photograph I would have to go hunting soon. Hurriedly I put away all my gardening tools, parked the tractor and cart, grabbed my gear and headed out. As I drove, I asked myself a familiar question, "Where are you going to go?" I always answer the same way, "I'll know when I get there."

      As I drove, I remembered an storage yard where construction equipment is kept. "That's where I'm going." I said relieved to myself. It was a place I had admired from the road many times before, but the light was never right, or I had already photographed for the day. Today all of the pieces were in place to pay this place a visit. Pulling into a little parking area; I grabbed my gear and headed around to the side to start my exploration. Rusting and decaying metal with peeling paint were everywhere, and I felt like a kid in a candy store. Simply, I couldn't decide what to photograph first. Places like this require multiple visits and adequate time to fully explore the depths of the potential art for harvesting. This was weighing on my mind as I scrambled around trying to get everything and getting nothing. Having a wealth of subject can be maddening if you don't have enough time to work with them. To say the least; I was nervous that I was going to blow it.

   There was this very long piece of rusting iron with a metal bar leaning against it that caught my eye. The blue sky above it created a really nice contrast between it and the orange rust. Plus, all in front of the metal were weeds. I had to laugh at the thought they had set up camp here too. It was nice not to have to pull them and they added something to the shot. Stepping back, I began to photograph in landscape in hope of creating something special. There was a solitary wispy, white cloud slowly floating by and I decided to let it be part of the composition. It worked and I am pleased with the results, and thankful to have earned another day's work. I'm quite sure that tomorrow will bring about the same question, "Where are you going to?", and remembering to have enough faith to reply, "I'll know when I get there."

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-150

2010-05-30T21:47:00.001-07:00

     Called by the water again today, only tonight I found a new place to fill my memory card. Many times I had seen the road that led to this area in the winter, but the road was always closed. Tonight I noticed it as I was out hunting for a photo. I turned and followed a long road that eventually emptied out into a huge campsite. This area was wonderful and just teeming with activity. After all, it was a holiday weekend and many campers were there settling in for a night of campfires, wild tales, and some good laughs. Seeing the water off to the left; I quickly turned and headed in that direction as my gills flapped wildly with excitement. Pieces, remember? Stopping in the parking lot; I hopped out of my vehicle, and fished out my gear. You're laughing don't deny it. At the waters edge I placed my tripod with my faithful camera on top and waited for some action on the water.

      In the distance I could hear the sounds of approaching boats, and a big smile stretched across my face in anticipation of what I would catch. Roaring up the river was a red boat pulling a tuber behind it. Just as I was about to strike, the tuber fell off and the boat had to circle around to reel him back in. Right behind them were a school of boats swiftly moving toward me. Last fish pun I promise. Each one trying to out do the other, and sending spray toward the sky. Swinging my long lens around; I fired off many frames like a door gunner on helicopter as my subjects raced by me. Soon there were more boats approaching, but as I prepared to photograph them; I noticed the way the sun was dancing across the wakes the boats had left behind. The action I had been seeking on the water was not what I thought it was.

     In that moment, I knew this was what I was hoping for even though I didn't seek it out. It just happened right before me, and I just photographed. The sun danced for me across the water in rolling copper, orange and gold color separated by deep blackness. The sound of the boats went unheard as I stood there and took frame after frame of this jittery light show stretching form shore to shore. The hair on the back of my neck was standing and I felt really alive. For I realized that amongst all of those people; I was perhaps the only one who truly appreciated what was happening. These moments to me are part of what stitched my world together. Knowing that God was up there being an artist in hopes that somebody would notice. I noticed. God you are the author of all things wonderful. You stretch out your finger and paint upon the water. Your goodness and mercy are reflected in the rippling brush strokes from your artistic hands. The waves, like paper obey your commands and tell the story of your love for us. I am alive God, and I thank you for drawing me to this spot. To this moment and to your art show. To this unexpected action on the water.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-149

2010-05-30T21:18:00.001-07:00

     Wow. What else can I say? Once again a shortage of time left me scrambling to photograph today. Out of twenty photographs the last two were just unexpected. In fact, as I was taking them; I thought, "Why are you photographing this?" It just goes to show you that you never know what you will find when you photograph each day. As I travel deeper each day into this year long project; I still suffer from a lack of faith. Yet nearly everyday I find something that works. Not always jump off the page, but something to take the place for that moment and carry me on to the next day.

     It had only been five minutes since I veered into this recreation area in hopes of catching a water skier being pulled by a fast moving boat, or some other exciting thing. There were some boaters in the water, but nobody on skies. The sunset was well beyond the magic point, and I had nothing to show for my efforts thus far. The mosquitoes were hovering hungrily around me and swooping at me in waves. I have been doing this long enough to know when it's not happening and to just move on. As I approached my idling vehicle as I walked back from the a boat ram; I was just struck by my tail lights. Big deal right? That nagging inner voice told me to photograph, and I have learned to listen to it. So I did just that. Two frames and each with a little different angle.

   Does it look like a tail light? Does that really matter? It could be anything you want it to be. That is the great thing about photos like this. If you look long enough it could be the glaring, evil eyes of a robot. Maybe an illuminated number eight? To me it's all about the darkness trying to swallow up the glowing red. Seeing it come to life on my screen just renewed my faith in this project. Believing that tomorrow will produce another image, and I will make it till the end. That sounds good. God, thank you for my daily image, and may you grant me another image tomorrow, and everyday after till the end, Amen.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-148

2010-05-29T22:05:00.000-07:00

     Tonight me and my family celebrated the birthday of my oldest daughter. She is growing up so fast that she seems to change right before my eyes. She is so much like me. So full of silliness, so full of mischief, and full of a desire to create beautiful things. As another candle is placed upon her cake; I wonder if I truly appreciate her. Do I take full advantage of the opportunities to visit with her? To sit quietly in her presence and bathe in the multi-colored wonder that is uniquely her. The way one does with a sunset. I don't like what my heart is telling me.

     Tonight as I broke away from the party in search of a photo; I had no idea what I would find. As I rambled down a dusty and unfamiliar country road; I decided to try to catch the sunset. Those of you who have spent much time either viewing, or photographing sunsets know that the real magic happens once the sun is gone. In the distance I could see the sun threatening to disappear below the horizon. My foot pressed harder upon the gas. A good vantage point was what I needed to assure that my capture would be successful. This gravel road eventually emptied out onto a paved road. One that I had traveled down before. The river was just ahead, and in my mind I was trying to remember if there was a big enough clearing for me to photograph. The sun pulled had pulled up its pastel blanket and was gone just as the river came into view. Relief washed over me as I pulled over to setup. Although I knew I had time to get set; I fumbled with my gear like a Freshman clumsily gropes for his combination just before the bell. The sky was full of amazing light. It wrapped everything in its quiet embrace and looked down lovingly upon the now silhouetted trees.

   I stood in the fading light with my camera securely on my tripod. A solitary car came sailing by, and I wondered if they were aware of what was happening. It took little time to compose what I had hoping for. Standing there I whispered aloud to myself, "Why hasn't this been a part of your life?". No answers came. This happens everyday in some fashion, though not always this way. "Yet the potential is there and you have neglected taking your seat to witness the magic!", my conscience scolded me. It suddenly occurred to me that witnessing this sunset reminded me of the sunsets I was missing at home. The ones that happen everyday in and around my home. The ones that are uniquely my daughters. My eyes moistened at the corners as I put away my gear. Sadly, I wonder how many times I have just grunted, "Uh huh" when she excitedly tries to show me her latest this, that, or the other thing. Like sand pouring through my fingers these moments are numbered; and I dare not guess how many grains have already fallen un-cherished to the floor. When I grumble at her for not acting more grown up; the sand leaps out of my cupped hands. Calling out her name gruffly as I point to the clutter that is most assuredly hers; the sand drains between my fingers, spilling to the floor. For the times when no words leave my lips, yet daggers fly from a deadly, glaring tower; the sand bounces into a deserted corner never to be seen again.

   Soon all things were whizzing by me in a blur as I sped toward my eleven year old sunset. She was there shining and wrapped in all of her glowing colors waiting for the candles on her cake to be lit. As fire leapt from the match to each candle; we all broke into Happy Birthday. Only I sang a little louder and more off key in hopes that she would smile at me. In hopes that she would know that I was in awe of her. She made her wish and blew them all out. What she wished for I'll never know, but my wish I will share. I wish to remember that everyday there is a sunset in my home. To hold that gushing sand tightly in my hands in hopes to preserve precious moments that I have been blessed with. To give her a break and let some things stay hidden under the rug. To watch her show and not try to direct it. Most of all, to just let her shine like she was meant to and bask in her glow. Happy Birthday Sunshine. I love you.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-147

2010-05-29T21:50:00.001-07:00

I only had minutes to shoot before not only the light was gone, but an evening full of activities had to be attended to. After a very long and hectic day; I walked out on to my deck and let out a big sigh. My ears were filled with the melodic sounds of the winged, musical community belting out their bedtime tunes before night closed in. It is so peaceful behind my home as huge Oak, Hickory, and Maple trees lock in all the wonderful sounds of nature. My life has been blessed by having the opportunity to live here. Really it is like a mini national park, and I call it my own.

Soon the bubbling song of William Wren broke above all of the other music and filled my ears with his magic voice. He had landed on his second favorite place to perch. An old curtain rod broke in half and stuck in the ground among the Black Eyes Susan. My camera and long lens was just inside the house, so I quickly retreated inside to get it. Knowing that the light was nearly gone; I decided to try and get a silhouette of him. This was the result and I slid the temperature down some for the blue look. Today is a day that I could have easily just walked away from this as I feel like I'm going to crack. Just trying to take a different approach to capturing this little bird.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-146

2010-05-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

Tonight's activities took me to a town that I had not been to in a long while. As I traveled down some dusty old, back country roads with my family to a softball game; I was reminded of times when I was younger traveling those roads to my cousins house. It was a nice feeling driving on this familiar, but forgotten stretch of winding road. It was even more surreal as we all pulled into this quiet little town and witnessed all that had changed over the years. My father, youngest daughter and wife all watched the game while enjoying some hot dogs and pop. Sadly, I didn't recognize anyone there and if anyone recognized me; I was unaware of it. The game ended with a loss to my daughter's team and we packed up and headed back out of town. As we drove back down those country roads the sky was on fire in a spectacular show of color. I pulled over to the side of the road and got out my gear to give a sunset a try. At that point, I was not really in the best place to photograph, but I was afraid to move as the light fades so quickly at that time of the day. It would just have to be good enough I thought, and continued to take frames of the settling sun. Soon heavy rain drops began to plop down on me, so I had to stop and pack up my gear to get out of the rain.

For some reason, I kept my camera up front with me and as we drove I took peeks at the captured images. They looked ok, and I was hopeful that I had gotten a good daily image. Not far into the journey home; I noticed how the light was still working on the horizon and new colors had joined in the dance. With my father sitting next to me; I began to photograph the horizon as I drove. He just sat there without saying one word, but I could imagine what he was thinking. "That's a good way to get into an accident!", I could hear him muttering inside his mind. Eventually, we had to turn another direction putting the colors on my left, and it was not easy to photograph. Convinced I had enough; I put on the lens cap and called it a day. Back in my Super Secret Basement Photo Lab I began scanning through the images and came upon this one. I loved it immediately, and after a little bit of this and that magic, it became today's image. Maybe it has a slight water color feel to it. Never the less; I love the way it makes me felt to be driving on those roads again.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-145

2010-05-25T17:28:00.001-07:00

     The morning was full of sunshine with not even a hint of foul weather. There were clouds in the sky, but they were kindly and not full of mischief. It is my day off, and I have big plans today to really sink my teeth into this project. In my mind; I imagined myself hunting and finding the perfect image all with the reassuring sun at my back. What a relief it would be to have today's image out of the way, so I could have my whole evening to relax and catch up on some writing. With my plan planted firmly in mind and my kids out the door on their way to school; I decided a couple hours of extra sleep were in order. Crawling into my comfortable bed; I was asleep at once.

   Suddenly, I woke with a start as the sound of furniture being moved across an angry sky filled my ears. Lighting flashed like strobes followed by more furniture being pushed roughly around. So much for my plans that earlier seemed to hold such promise. Well it looks like I won't be having that date with my easy chair and holding hands with my black remote tonight. From the sound of things, it seemed that I would either be photographing inside, or I would be photographing inside. "Not to worry." I reassured myself. What do you do when life hands you lemons? I don't like lemons, so maybe I would just throw them back at life. Really, I knew that just like all the other difficult days of this project an image would present itself before the day was done.

   Soon there came something that sounded like a gigantic bag of hard candy was being poured out onto the ground. Rising to my feet and pulling back the blinds I beheld the source of this sound. Life was definitely throwing me something and it wasn't lemons. Out of my bedroom I hurried to the front door and quickly opened it. The noise was deafening as thousands of balls of hail fell from the sky and bounced all around me. They were not huge mind you, but I wasn't about to try and catch any on my tongue either. At that point my photographic instincts kicked in. I rushed to get my camera in anticipation of the lemonade I was soon to be enjoying. Walking bravely under the security of my covered porch; I began photographing the chaos the storm was delivering. In my mind I imagined an abstract image of rain and hail falling violently on the pavement. It was not to be as it all abruptly the hail stopped and the rain turned to a drizzle.

     A little disappointed, I headed back inside to grab my umbrella to shield my camera from any rouge rain drops seeking to damage my camera. Half moping, half pouting; I wandered around my driveway hoping to find something to photograph. Soon even the tap dance of the drizzle on my umbrella stopped and I lay it down and gave it a spin in disgust. My eyes opened wide as it spun before me like a monochromatic top and came to a rest leaning to one side. Voila! My lemonade was now right before me and I began to take long slow drinks through my viewfinder as I spun around my rain shield. Being sure to hold the handle up to the left hand corner; I dragged the shutter to blur the action and drank glass after glass until I was satisfied. Heading back inside, my faith was once again refreshed. Thank you God for the storm. Thank you God for the lemons. What are you doing with your lemons?

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-144

2010-05-24T21:32:00.001-07:00

     Sometimes in life things are not what they seem to be. This image is a good example of that. One might imagine that any minute hands are going to began breaking through the Earth hoping to pull hungry monsters from their graves. It's a good thing since there was a softball game going on just down the hill and my youngest would never let me hear the end of it if starving monsters chased her away from her turn at bat.

     Seriously, I am hyper sensitive to the mood of my photographs either because I see that a certain feel is there, or can be created with some work. When I wandered away from my daughter's game in search of a daily image; I saw the moon hanging just above the horizon and looking down upon this cemetery. Right away I knew I wanted a silhouette which would create a somber mood. As usual, I tried many different exposures to be sure that I would find something to my liking once the selection process started. Like many other days; I'm never quite sure what I will get until I get to my lab.

   Back at my super secret basement photo lab; I turned off the lights and began to look for a winner. This image just worked for me. It was already underexposed and was full of lovely, dark shadows that just helped tell the story. Of course I juiced it up a little with my super secret processing to make it complete. Now that I think about it, how would this image look if I had asked somebody to stand up there in a distorted stance between those headstones with an outstretched hand? I cannot see myself asking a stranger to do it, so maybe my wife will volunteer the next time the moon comes around. Wait, maybe I should go up there and have her photograph? Sounds like it could be made to look really scary. Good idea for another day when I'm no longer photographing for this project. I'm only on day 144 out of 365 and that's what's really scary.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-143

2010-05-23T20:54:00.000-07:00

     Who hasn't seen colorful Hummingbirds before? Completely frozen in mid-flight right as they are about to flick out that nectar seeker and fill up. Whether they are hovering just beside a beautiful, and sweet flower, or working over a feeder; they are spectacular to behold. I would be remiss if I did not admit to thus far failing to capture any of these little buzzers in the aforementioned way. Still, they are plentiful near my home, and I can imagine eventually to have a keeper of one or many of them.

     Today the light was nearly gone by the time I donned my photo hat and went hunting for my daily image. While snooping around in one of my many flower beds; I kept hearing the rapid beatings of their wings as they went to and fro. This was nothing new for me to hear this, but today was unique in that instead of looking at them from the height of my deck; I was now able to look up at them instead. Immediately I laid down in the soft green grass and at first just watched the little air show. In and out the swooped from the feeder only to return time and time again for another drink. I didn't really care for the way the feeder looked, but I just loved the silhouette of these little fliers against an ever darkening sky.

     After a short while of viewing their hyper active feeding; I raised my camera and began to photograph. Try as I may, I could never photograph one up and above the feeder. My goal at that point was just to capture a dark silhouette of one zooming in to the feeder. Finally, I was able to freeze one just before he/she got too close to the feeder. Overall, I am satisfied with the way this looks as it provides an uncommon view of these little wonders buzzing around. Plus, now I am more determined than ever to capture one in full and splendid color to add to my photo collection. Hoping that will created a buzz for my portfolio.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-142

2010-05-23T20:53:00.001-07:00

     Just a little bit of the magic that can be captured walking around the fair. At first, I was concentrating on all of the big, easy to see things. The Ferris wheel, the spinning rides, and anything else that stood high above the crowd. This is all fine, but I wondered if there wasn't a better way to capture some of the minutia going on. The bright and exciting colors dancing before our eyes, or the anticipation of what bounty could be harvested from a perfect throw at the ring toss. So I began to hold my camera at chest level, zoomed all the way out, and set my shutter for a longer exposure. Quite simply; I began to walk around and just click the shutter making sure that I kept moving, or my subject was moving. While I don't remember taking this shot, it jumped off the screen at me when I began to search for today's image. This was exactly the felling I was looking to capture at the Fair.

   Isn't this much of what a fair is all about? The chance to be a kid again and lay down a few bucks and bring home a prize. It's about being one of the special ones who walk around toting their loot while others look on wishing they had the aim, or skill to do the same. This young man was standing there looking up at all the wonderful things that could be his. Was he in the process of picking something out because he had won? I'm not sure, but either way he understands what it means to possess such wealth at the fair. I'll venture a guess that he was a winner and was going around to the big stuff just like we would do it it were us. To the things that he may have trouble carrying, but make all the others gawk enviously as they walk by.

     Maybe we all could drop some of the big things we carry around that have nothing to do with being a winner at all. The endless cycles of worry, and strain from the baggage we all lug around each day that is usually of our own making. Just let it drop. Don't worry nobody will steal it, for they have baggage of their own to haul around. In fact, don't just drop it, kick it to the side and go to the fair. Whatever that may be for you. Go fishing, ride your bike, go to a movie, call an old friend, or even just say hello to the one who designed the greatest fair of all. Go do it and live for a while. For when you return, the loot that you carry will not be tucked under your arm, but stretched comfortably across your face:)

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-141

2010-05-23T10:29:00.000-07:00

Look closely at the lines and you will find all is not what it appears to be. Ok, ok I admit it! I simply love water and the reflections that they bestow upon the viewer. A rainy day does more that water the thirsty landscape, it provides portals all over for those willing to peer into them. When I see things like this, it makes me appreciate what is real even more. It helps me imagine seeing things from a different perspective. Seeing things from somebody else's perspective can often lead to a better understanding of how others see the world. I realize it's just the reflection of a power line in a puddle of water in a long ditch, but it does not exist except for the rain. Don't just drive or walk by things like this, but stop if only for a moment and look. Better yet, stop and see what is there. Maybe it will just look upside down to you, but perhaps you will see that you are the one that is upside down.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-140

2010-05-22T23:03:00.000-07:00

This is my little House Wren who loves to perch on my Hummingbird feeder post. I will call him William Wren as this seems like a proper name for such a fellow. William sits upon this perch every chance he gets to belt out his song again and again. His song is beautiful and fills the air nearly everyday with a love for life. In the distance you can hear his kind returning his song with one of their own. The area surrounding my home is like a concert hall filled with musicians only a loving Creator could design. All these winged music makers fill my soul to over flowing, and my only gift in return is to feed them and attend their concerts.

It's strange what life in the city does to you with all of the harsh, and hurried noises infecting your ears. Clanging, banging, scraping, shaking ugly sounds that rattle your bones and make you retreat inside your home. In the country, there is a sweet symphony that devours those ugly sounds if they dare come near. Chirping, whistling, satisfying, wonderful melodic sounds that nourish you mind, as you breath deeply leaving your worries behind. Each note part of His Opus created for our ears and serves as a reminder that just as he cares for these downy feathered creations; He will care for us as well. Tweet, tweet.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-139

2010-05-22T23:02:00.001-07:00

     Tonight was good example of things not going as planned. After an exhausting day and all daylight gone; I decided to head back into the city for an image. Simply, I just wanted to go to sleep and not take another photograph for this project much less anything else. Still, that nagging little voice inside said, "Get up and go and do it now!" Up and out the door with my gear I went looking from side to side as I went hoping that a subject would quickly present itself. Much to my dismay, nothing was coming easily, and as I drove I began to mutter. I was feeling angry that this was taking me from my comfortable home. Taking me from my wife and my children. All for who knows what. The darkness of night was not just outside, but it was inside the car too. Not evil, but just a tired and hopeless feeling that would not go away. Even rolling down the windows would not chase it away. I turned up the radio and resolved to bring another image into the world before midnight.

     Soon I was in the city limits, and searching for a place to photograph. Downtown there is a high parking garage with decent views of parts of the city. Up the many flights of stairs I went quite sure that the woman in the parking garage who saw me thought I was a terrorist. Still, on I went to the top to set up my tripod and stare once again through the viewfinder at the world. Today's subject is the first thing that I photographed, but I didn't think it was anything special upon first viewing it. Setting my tripod as close to the edge as possible; I began taking long exposures of an old library under a street light while cars passed by. Traffic was sparse so I moved to the other side of the building where traffic seemed heavier. Indeed, there were many vehicles of all types cruising by that created good material for dragging the shutter. Most of my frames from tonight were of this, and I fully expected to produce today's image from that sequence.

     Upon entering my super secret basement photo lab; I was not satisfied with them. So, I turned back to where I started and was surprised at what I found. This was the first thing that grabbed my attention, and I didn't take it seriously. One might wonder how many times that happens in life when we look for something better. Often we end up right back at the start and wonder why we ever looked elsewhere. Tonight reminded me that I need to be more aware of my instincts as they are often right on the money.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-138

2010-05-22T23:01:00.001-07:00

About an hour was all I had today to go wander off in search of my photographic prey. I cannot deny that I'm drawn to water and bridges, and I don't apologize for it. I just feel pulled there. Today I revisited a favorite bridge of mine, but went searching beneath it for any secrets it would reveal. Right away I looked up and noticed these Pigeons that kept flying around near the top of the bridge. Plus, the Sun was desperately trying to burn its way through the cloud cover, and seemed to be interested in what I was doing.

As I set up my tripod there was a single bird resting on a ledge above. I wanted to capture it in flight with the late day sky and Sun looking on. No sooner had I thought that, then the Pigeon took flight. I snapped two frames of it and this one was today's pick. It looks surreal to me, and I like the way it makes me feel. One could imagine what it must feel like to observe from so far up and in a moments notice to open your wings to the summoning of the wind. To float effortlessly above the chaos and glide to where your soul takes you.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-137

2010-05-17T22:15:00.000-07:00

I found myself with only twenty minutes of time to photograph on my break from work today. I headed behind the store to a wetlands area in hopes of finding something before the light was all gone. I hate being rushed, but at times in this project it has been unavoidable. Walking down a small slope to the water; I noticed these amazing big green weeds. They were still lit nicely from the front as the sun threatened to drop behind a building surrendering it's post to the stars. Quickly, I stood behind them and started to photograph. The weed/plant was illuminated very well, but I was having a hard time getting a good composition due to things crowding into my scene. I shot as long as I could and just hoped for the best.

Upon entering my super secret basement photo lab after work; I was disappointed at how the color version looked. It just didn't look like what I saw earlier that evening. I hate this type of feeling as I aim to hit home runs every time I take a photo. Still, the show must go on, so I began some work with filters and a black and white conversion. Mostly I am pleased with the way it turned out. Much had to be cropped to get a full frame, but it seems to be a good addition to project. Might be worthy of being framed and hanging on somebody's wall. Let's start the bidding at one million dollars eh?

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-136

2010-05-16T21:46:00.001-07:00

     Have you ever seen something that was just amazing, but your couldn't figure out how to get your mind around it properly? Well if you have, then you can appreciate the dilemma I faced in viewing today's image. It was at first glance that I recognized an abstract quality to this piece of plywood. It was from an old work bench in the garage of our new home. Though it seemed ready to be torn down; I couldn't bring myself to do it. I kept thinking that I wanted to photograph it in a studio under lights one day. Standing on a ladder and leaning over it I had even tried to capture what I was seeing last summer, but to no avail. There were so many little unique mysteries locked into the surface. Colors and shapes of many different projects over the years were etched upon its surface. Each section with a story that I will never know and can only guess as to how it came to be.

     So today I began to tear down the bench thinking I was content to let it go and just remember what I saw. As I took this big piece off; I found myself setting it off the side separate from the other bits and pieces. There was a roaring fire outside that I had started in anticipation of this event. It had already hungrily devoured the fallen tree branches that I had started it with and needed to be fed again. After all the bench was torn down, there were two piles. One for the burn pile and my lovely abstract plywood. Out the door with the scraps to the fire I went. The flames leaped at the offering of fresh food and hissed and snapped in excitement. What to do with the plywood. "Should I save it, or just let it go?” I asked myself. "Well, it could be months before you have time to mess with it!” I thought. "Just one more try and then I will let it go.” I declared. Retrieving my camera; I propped it up outside for another try and began to photograph. Many exposures later; I realized that I still could not grasp all of the happenings that were on the surface. "Into the fire it goes!” I decided. It had to be this way. Simply, I didn't have the room to store it, or the time to worry about how I failed to capture its essence.

     As I laid it on the glowing fire; I felt a bit sad to see it consumed by smoke and flame. Just before the flames swallowed it completely; I took one final look and tucked the memory away. Except for this photo, ashes all that remain now of this abstract plywood. Maybe there is a lesson here and maybe not; I'm just glad that I saw what I did and took a chance on making art out of it. Day's like this help keep me in the process, and on the journey to the next Oasis to drink my fill. Thanks Mr. Murray for your wise counsel.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-135

2010-05-15T21:39:00.001-07:00

What is it about tires that makes them such a common thing to find scattered throughout the landscape? Is it really expensive to have them recycled? Are there a lack of places to take them? Whatever the reason, it just seems so sad to find them randomly piled all over the sides of roads, in the waterways, and where ever else they roll too. It seems as if there should be a special fine beyond littering for whoever it caught doing this. Here's an idea. If you are caught dumping tires then I propose you should be strapped into a farm tractor tire and rolled down a big hill and into a snake infested bog. You would get to have a life vest of course. If you survive the roll, and the snakes, then we should paint the tires on your vehicle bright green at your expense. You know, green like the way the environment should be. I know it's really clever. Why stop there? You should be made to retrieve two tires for everyone you were caught disposing of and then made to dispose of them at your expense. An automatic fine of one thousand dollars and green tires on your vehicle for a year. Oh and one last thing; I strongly suggest a big bumper sticker that says, "Don't be a Jack-Ass, recycle your tires!" Let that roll around in your mind for a while.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-134

2010-05-14T22:31:00.001-07:00

     For a while today it felt as though I was in a jungle. Upon traversing down a steep bank toward the back water of the river ( I'm a Pieces by the way); I encountered two huge snakes. Now I have seen big snakes before, but viewing them over a buttery bowl of popcorn as they sliver on the screen if much different than seeing them swim twenty five feet from me. As I stood precariously on that hillside, a yellow and black spotted viper cruised away form the shoreline in toward the open water. Relieved that it was moving away, it suddenly turned back toward the shore a little farther down. My camera was on auto and I was firing away at this half slithering, half swimming creature in amazement. Finally it came back ashore too close for my comfort and slowly wiggled its way into the thick green grass.

   Thinking rationally, I decided that it was most likely not going to bother me and was more afraid of me. So, on I went a little closer to the water trying to photograph a submerged barrel for another super secret photo project. Something moved among the bright green moss just on the shoreline to my left. In slithered another BIG Snake! This one was brown with black spots and it just floated there on top of the moss as if studying me. I could feel my heart beat in my throat as I watched this viper watch me. Of course I was again taking photos and looked down momentarily to gauge my footing and upon looking back up, it was gone. All I saw was the parted green moss that has suddenly moved back together. That was enough of that, and I moved back up the hill toward safety.

   On higher and safe ground, I noticed a butterfly fluttering in an out of the tall grass. With a quick change back to manual; I started to photograph this more pleasant subject and it became today's image. Funny thing is, I had just been thinking to myself that I would like to secure a grant to clean the rubbish out of this back water area. After seeing those two big snakes; I'm not sure that I am the right person for that job.

Happy Shooting.

Project 365 d-133

2010-05-14T22:16:00.000-07:00

All these little parts were important in their coming together to make something work. In this case, it was a computer hard-disc drive. At my request, my Father kindly tore it apart into little pieces so that I could dispose of it a little bit at a time. He brought the disassembled drive to me in a brown paper bag. Thinking that there may be a photography some where in there; I took the pieces outside where the light was good. Upon laying them out on the cement it was apparent to me that each piece was beautiful each in its on way. Still, I was unable to den, as I spied the the separate parts through my viewfinder, that they may well look better closer together. With a few quick maneuvers; I arranged them together in a way that seemed flattering. As I studied the arrangements, it became clear that indeed they were all better together. Not to take anything away from the the visual quality of the individual pieces, but they just worked better together like the way their designer intended.

It is not unlike this with people too. We were never designed to be alone, but to gather together in fellowship in our lives. Some people do better than others at being along. At denying their natural desire to be near someone and share their hurts, or successes with them. I should know because I have craved solitude since I can remember. Looking down at my photographic experiment reminded me that this was not a blessing and that my attitude toward being on my own little island has cost me. Precious moments with my children were lost. Quiet conversations left unspoken with my wife. Seldom feeling the ache of sore knees after rising from prayer with God. God meant us to be together. To share and love each other, to hold each others tears in our hands, and listen to the stories that make us who we are. I am on an island of my own making, but I am making plans to leave that island soon to come home. To scoop up my little ones, to take my wife's hand and reconnect our souls. Most of all, to worship God like he deserves to be worshiped. Yes, God made all good things and each individual work is beautiful. However, when we gather together there is a power that the gates of hell cannot prevail against. Are you on an island?

Happy Shooting.