The sunset was pretty between rain storms along the river. We could not get the best angle because the fence kept you back about 30 feet from the fragile cliff.
Foggy Hunter /
We camped for a night at Skidaway State Park in Georgia. In the morning before we left heading south we took a 1.7 mile trail in the marsh under a dense layer of fog. At one point because of all the rain we were in water about 6 inches across deep across the trail and that lead to damp socks! In a tree about 75 yards away we spotted this Osprey. The fog was so thick it was difficult to see him. Still the silent morning would be broken when he finally spotted some breakfast in the murky water below.
Fort Frederica /
Oglethrope established this fort and town south of Savannah about 50 miles to protect the main colony from the Spanish. At its peak it had a garrison of 200 soldiers and more than 500 residents. All that is left are foundations and this crenelated magazine. The cannon for the fort were in bastions to both sides of this structure facing the water. The outpost worked as planned. Tthe Spanish attacked in 1742 and were defeated a mile or two south of the main fort in a surprise ambush. They never returned.
It is interesting to see what remains after neglect, hurricanes and fires of what was once a critical place in the defense of the experiment Oglethrope established. The evidence of the Wesleys who came with him has endured better in this area of Georgia than the town and fort of Frederica. This was not a new national park site for us but the first time I photographed it.
Still The One /
(you're still the one)
You're still the one I run to
The one that I belong to
You're still the one I want for life
(you're still the one)
You're still the one that I love
The only one I dream of
You're still the one I kiss good night.
Happy Valentines Day - Year of 50!
Fort Pulaski - National Park Service #280 for TLT /
Just a bit east of Savanah, GA on an island in the river is Fort Pulaski, a 3rd defense fort. It commanded the approach to Savanah from the ocean and was built in the early 1800’s. State of the art for its day. Then in April of. 1862 the Union unlimbered several new type cannon on Tybee Island about a mile away from the fort and they started to shell the fort. 30 hours lager the garrison surrendered. The new cannon with rifled barrels breached the fort at two places and the magazine was almost exposed. These scars are from the short battle that rendered most of the brick defenses moot.
Just a Quick Update on Another Activity (2 photos) /
I finished these four in early January. The Blue Moose went to Georgia where he has enjoyed both rainy nights and a great family who lets him listen to jazz and feeds him excellent cookies. The Formal Dress Penguin is in central Florida living well in a freezer and being taken care of expertly by ex-Sea World folks. The Swim Suit Moose is now living in rural Washington state and loving his young keeper. The NCSU Snowman is yet to be delivered. Then with arthritis flaring up a bit no carving took place for about three weeks but that has eased and I just finished the Leprechaun. He will stay here as I keep the mistakes of the first one at home! Started on a second just before we left. More projects on the way as I try to do a few people-based characters. All of these carvings start with a 1” x 1” X 3” block of wood.
May 8, 1971 /
We left the Comus Inn just a bit south of Frederick, MD in our 1971 orange Super Beetle for a honeymoon that began in Williamsburg, Virginia. On Wednesday we left in our Toyota pulling the travel trailer for Florida to celebrate our 50th anniversary. But you say it is still February. Right but this event could not be scheduled at another time, so we will have more than one celebration and that is ok with me.
Cactus Wren /
Another processing of an older photograph this one for the first time. I shot this Cactus Wren along the California coast, about 300 yards from the ocean atop a slight cliff. I was looking for the path down to the beach when this bird hopped up out of the scrub less than 10 feet away and began to sing. It was a neat moment.
Yes it is. /
So I shot this image at Disney Animal Kingdom. It was underwater and the glass was thick with a green tint. The animal was 50 feet away. For the longest time I couldn’t get this to look anything close to a natural color but recently with newer software I was able to coax this out of the RAW file and it is not too bad. Anyway, it was a great memory from a day in that park.
Graffiti /
I came across this work about two blocks from the old Federal Building in lower Manhattan.
Flat Plane Photography .7 /
At the end of this week long series is the photo that started it all. I found myself on a path that was simply covered in these bright red maybe maple leaves and they were just beautiful. It was a cool moment when everything appeared to be red above, under and beside me.
“Worship the Lord in all his holy splendor. Let all the earth tremble before him. Tell all the nations, “The Lord reigns! The world stands firm and cannot be shaken. He will judge all peoples fairly.” Psalm 96: 9,10 NLT
Flat Plane Photography .6 /
This shot is from a hike in Acadia National Park. CJH and I did one of if not the last peak that we had not done. It was Pemetic Mountain a 1250 foot peak and the hike was along the eastern side of Jordan Pond. In Acadia the south slopes of the mountains are more gradual and easier to climb than the northern approaches. I knew this. But after we ascended to the top from the south, a longer climb, I suggested that we go back off the northern side toward Bubble Pond. In a short while, we were on a very steep climb with lots of loose rock and scrubby trees and branches. It was a chore. About 3/4 down there was a large flat rocky spot that was covered with low grasses and the bright red leaves of wild blueberry bushes poking out. I made a great show of taking this photo. What I really was doing was getting a rest. We - obviously - made it down and took the long way back to the car. Lesson: South slope to ascend, South slope to descend. Got it.
Flat Plane Photography .5 /
Since I seem to be on a wine theme as well it appears like a good time to use this shot of a wine wall in a shop on Main Street in Chincoteague, Virginia. I went in looking, as the sign said on the front, for a cup of coffee. That seemed more than sketchy once I saw the actual choice. But you walked in past a whole walk of wine and the lady was much more enthused by them than the coffee she was supposed to be featuring. Turns out she was a wine buyer at one time for Whole Foods. She was one of the leaders in the pony auction each July and had all the names and photos of all the wild ponies. So, while no coffee I did find out the names of the six ponies I had photographed earlier.
Flat Plane Photography .4 /
This is the one photo in this series I did not just stumble across. I planned this one. First step was using our 130 year old Tarentum Glass, Thousand-eye goblet. Then I filled it with a red wine and took a close up of the side reflecting the light of our Christmas tree through the whole piece. Tarentum Glass came from the area of Pittsburgh near where we lived and was collected by my Aunt Carrie who was an authority on that type of glass. The construction is such that looking into the glass produces scores of reflections and those reflections have smaller ones and so forth, thus the name, Thousand Eye. Each of the glass circles are about 3/16 in diameter and concave on the inside. After the photo was taken I edited it, straightened the sides and adjusted the brightness.
Flat Plane Photography .3 /
It was a busy morning, not that I remember it. Actually we stopped in a winery in the Shenandoah Valley and this bin of discards from the sampling tent caught my eye. More depth to this than most of the others in this series but I still think it qualifies. Especially since I made this all up anyway.
Flat Plane Photography .2 /
This is likely a more traditional idea when discussing a photo with less dimension or depth than usually found. But this is very small. It is of moss and lichen found on a granite rock wall in Tennessee and most of the foliage is under an inch high. Of course, because of today’s date I can show this every day for years:)
Special Extra Post /
It is time. Sadly. No other possession has provided so much joy. The 2002 MINI is now for sale. I ordered it on the first day they were available for sale in the US. To be able to do that you had to have put down a $500 refundable deposit months before they went on sale. So when the post card arrived (included with the car among many other promotional gifts from MINI) it was off for a test drive. One quick drive was sufficient and the order was made. It would be several weeks before it arrived from Oxford but it turned out to be one of the first 100 SO MINIs in the US.
I drove this car across Virginia countless times working for the VEF and visiting churches. It was in NC, Tennessee, Maryland, Pennsylvania and more. I loved picking an interesting road, like Rt 40 or 42, 231 out of Madison, the Blue Ridge Parkway, 58 across the bottom of Virginia or 13 up the Eastern Shore. One of my best memories is taking my grandson, Kellen, six years ago, to the Vintage Gran Prix in Pittsburgh where MINI was the marque of the year and we got to do drive the course and a lot of events plus charting a course from Williamsburg to Pittsburgh on secondary roads and byways. Route 30 from Breezewood has always been a special drive.
I took it for a last weekend adventure to Chincoteague in early December, it is still great fun and a great car.
Flat Plane Photography .1 /
I have no idea if that is a real name or an accurate name or just weird but this is my attempt to shoot something different. I have been looking for these opportunities for a bit and just collecting them in a folder. So welcome to the first week of something very different for me. I find these pleasing and would be quite interested in your perspective. The subjects vary but they are not flat like a painting on a canvas but are confined to a small space generally of an inch or maybe three in depth. One is a bit more and some less. They also fill the frame so that is all you get.
Today’s is dinner or a part of dinner cooking on our flat, Forge cast iron griddle.
Safety /
We were on a hike in the Great Smoky Mountains on a trail we had not tried before. It skirted a river at several places and then we came to a crossing where instead of the ordinary bridge there was a very thick steel I-beam that spanned the gap. It was clearly over what used to be a wider bridge. We learned that the bridge often washed away because it needed support underneath and the spring floods would batter it and finally it would weaken and fall. This one has no understructure and it sits above the rushing water. Safety in a strong narrow path.
“The Lord supported me. He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me. The Lord rewarded me for doing right; he restored me because of my innocence.” 2 Samuel 2:19b-23 NLT
Custis-Lee Mansion /
Or so it was known for years, now it is the more bland Arlington House, a striking home that commands an amazing view of Washington, DC. Owned by Lee through his marriage to a descendant of Martha Custis Washington, the Lees lived here from 1831 to the start of the Civil War and Lee never returned. The government turned the grounds into what is now Arlington National Cemetery. In this photo you see both the front of the house and the Kennedy Graves with the eternal flame.
