Um....Yeah....I think I'm still alive.

I know, I know. You don't write anything for 2 years and everyone thinks you've died or something.  The truth is I've just been very busy, and have not spent much time on the computer.  I'm back now, not that that means anything, and I'm going to upload a few new pictures.  I've been from Chicago to San Antonio in the last two years, so there is plenty to share.

This is from the Alamo in San Antonio.

This is the Haunted Emily Morgan Hotel in San Antonio.

New pictures

I've reluctantly given up!  I'm moving into the digital age!  I'm planning to buy a new camera soon in an attempt to keep myself in a hobby.  Here are a few pictures I've taken recently.  I decided i would show you that i can take color pictures too.  I mostly prefer B&W but color does have it positives as well.

Yes, this house really is leaning, and yes there really is a sand storm.

Study this one for a minute and decide if it's really what you think it is.

And out of neglect and decay comes new life!

This is one of those things that you see when you're not really looking!

I have come to several realizations in the last few months.  The first being that starting a new job means you have less time for hobbies than you did before.  The second being that very few stores here sell 35mm film.  The third is that even fewer store develop said 35mm film. Even stores that recently contained one-hour photo shops, now no longer possess the machines.  Oh, well....  Since the last time I have written I have started a new job, we have traveled to Quitaque and toured Caprock Canyon state park.  As well as had a few at home adventures.  My job has progressed to a point now that more free time should be available.  The current plan is to write every  two weeks, or at lease once a month.  I have also recently visited some art shows and festivals, and this has only re-enforced the idea in my mind that anyone who is willing to take the time to take photos can be considered a photographer and that any photographer can be considered an artist.(The pictures don't really even need to be good, or in focus for some people out there.)  So now on to what I hope you have returned for..... more sample of my recent work.



Has anyone out there read C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia?
My family actually spotted this lamp post standing in the corner of a courtyard and it needed to be photographed.

It seems that in the last few years everyone has been concerned about drinking water.  Most of us have potable tap water, and every store has an abundance of bottled water.  I guess if worse came to worse we could always go back to windmills and water wagons.

And finally my new favorite ADVENTURER EXTRAORDINAIRE.  The boy with many fears, and a willingness to cry at them all.  My son on a train that cleverly looks like it is moving because the wind is blowing so strongly.  Okay it isn't fair for me to say he cries at all of his fears.  He didn't cry during this picture, but he did earlier in the day's events.

Time Slips Away

When I decided to have a blog, I thought "Oh, this will be easy, just a few minutes every couple of days, no worries."  Yeah, Right!  As it now sits, I've been away from my hobby, and my blog for five weeks.  How does it become a chore to have a hobby?  Well, anyway, I'm here now.

The last time we went out, our little troup traveled to Palo Duro Canyon State park, in Canyon, Texas.  It is a beautifly barren, and rustic setting with much historical significance.  The canyon was home to Apache, Commanche,and Kiowa tribes/clans.  Also Charles Goodnight began the JA ranch in the canyon.  Pictures of the canyon will be coming soon. 

In the mean time here are some other scenic photos

This lovely landscape is of a farm in Wisconsin.  Its located somewhere between La Crosse and Black River Falls.  We found it hard to drive the speed limit there, for the beauty of our surroundings.

This equally beautiful patch of God's creation is thousands of mile away in northern Texas.  Well it's as far north as you can go in one aspect.  This area of land is north of Mulberry, Texas along the Red River.  And Speaking of rivers...... 

That Brings us back to Black River Falls, Wisconsin.  This amazing countryside, with its lush greenery, rippling strams and rivers, and rolling hills, is quite honestly some of the most beautiful contry I have ever experiance. (Next to the German/Austrian Alps.)  If you ever have the oportunity to travel up that way be sure to stop by and learn the history behind WCYC (Wisconsin Christian Youth Camp).  Yes that is a foot bridge in the background.

New Hardware

Today I recieved new hardware in the mail.  Well... I say new.  It's a 1975 model SRT 201 Minolta camera.  It has a 53mm standard lens, but also in the package was a 230mm telephoto zoom lens.  The items may seem a little thread bare, old and outdated, but this is the kind of equipment I learned on.  This is the stuff memories are captured with.  Oh.... I can't wait for the weekend to go and try it all.  Anyone interested in real photography,  Not Digital, should check into an older 35mm SLR MANUAL camera.  In my very muchly not professional opinion, the Minolta SR series cameras were some of the best ever built.  There are others a beginner photographer might look into that are just as sound and reliable.  The Pintax K series and  the Ricoh KR series were good cameras, or for an updated model you can look into the Quantaray RZ series. 

With the right equipment you can hopefully take photos similar to this one, taken of the Smokey Mountains in eastern Tennesse.

There's always something to be said about the light.  Many people think this photo is ruined by the sun-spots, but I think they're what make the whole image come together.

Then there's this photo from the Texas-Oklahoma border, the Red River.  There are no sun spots but the glistening water was almost too much.. Oh, but the depth that it creates with the rich shadows.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not a great photographer, but sometimes you get lucky, and there are those times when you think a picture is trash until you look at it a time or two more.  (If you're lucky enough to have access to a dark room, you can also play with your frame size/shape, and your exposure on the developing side of things.)

Windmills have a new image and meaning these days but this one in West Texas (region not town) has found a way into my heart.  It lies in the heart of one of my favorite back drops,                                 The National Ranching Heritage Center.

The photo oportunities there are never ending.

Well enjoy your week, and never miss an oportunity to take a picture.

Okay...Okay...I'll Appologize....Sort of

I'm sure if there is anyone reading this they are thinking,"How can you say people are difficult to deal with and want to be a photographer?"  Well the truth is I really value my alone time.  Some of my favorite and best photos were taken when I was alone in the glorious world God created for us.  Now, that said, I will appologize for my earlier generalized comment.  I do enjoy working with people, to an extent, and I love taking pictures of my wife and children. (I can not call them kids for they often remind me that they are not young goats.)  The hardest people to work with I feel are often your own children.  They often don't fell that you're being serious with them, or they just decide they're not going to do as you ask them.  LOL.  God never tests us beyond what we can bear.  I love my children, and they often make me feel that God has a quirky sense of humor.  So enough rambiling, tonight I've decided to focus (ha) on my little ones.

Here is a picture of the boy.  He has his mother's ......... well its a long list so lets just say he's my beautiful boy.  So much like his mother it is amazing, and wonderful.

The oldest is my girl, and I mean "My Girl" in several ways. She truly appreciates some good alone time with nature and her thoughts.  She's sneaky as all get out.  Oh, and that grin, you just know there's more going on than what anyone around is aware.  She is so much like I was/am.

Then there's the little one.  We're not real sure where this one came from.  She definately looks like her sister and brother did when they were younger, however she doesn't exactly have any of my, or my wife's features.  She has dveloped her own strong personality, and it too doesn't reflect either of us.  She is stubborn as a mule, so maybe she did get a trait from one of us.  I'll let you guess who.

In the Begining......Well 25 Years Later

I've never really had a hobby, however I've never been without a camera. So.... not long ago I was discussing hobbies with my wife and we decided that photography would now be my "Hobby". Hobby is such a starnge word. Shouldn't it mean a child Hobbit? Oh, well, I digress.

Here we are aproximately 25 years after I first began destroying rolls of film (mainly by opening cameras to see how they worked), and I'm going to try making a go of this. I began my interst in picture taking with a dime store 110mm focus free camera. Since then I have progressed up to several newer and more advanced models. To be quite honest though, the simple camera I had back in High school and college was my most favorite. It was a fully manual 35mm SLR. Of course it had bells and whistles, such as a detachable flash and internal light meter. I could do anything with that camera. My current camera is designed to be idiot proof, which plainly means it limits my artistic flair. No more intentionally over exposing a slide to capture extra detail, or using lower light settings to capture falling rain. If the light's not right it flashes for me. Sigh, oh well. So on to the point of all of this nonsence. Here are a few examples of my work.

First we'll start out in Corpus Christy , TX. This photo was taken from the bay looking back into the harbor. Oil tankers galore. 110mm 1990

Next we'll move on to some of the artistic flair I spoke of with my favorite camera.  35mm 1996

Some photographs just make you fell good, and this is one of my favorites.  It doesn"t hurt that this was one of my best friends in high school.

Its strange but I prefer shooting landscapes and non living objects.  People are difficult to work with sometimes.  LOL. As if I could go without....

...My wife.  This photo was taken on a rainy day in July of 2002 (35mm).  We were in San Antonio, TX.  This is the back end of the famed river walk, the part without resturants and hotels.  Why do rainy days make such good pictures? I apollogize for the grainyness.  I was scanning in an old print I had found.  Well I'm off to find more of my old material to share.  Also be looking for my newer material arriving soon.