06-24-13 Local Color

Deb and I are on the island of St. John for a couple of days and it turns out that our visit coincides with the annual street fair. The downtown area was open to pedestrian traffic only and was crowded with street vendors of all kinds.

I was trying to capture the spirit of the street fair when I saw this colorful gentleman, who was selling hand carved rattles and decorations. I was working on getting a good candid shot but when he saw me, he called me over a B&D agreeably posed for me. But in the end, it was when he wasn't looking directly at me that I got the photo I liked best.

His name, by the way is Delroy Anthony, and he is a life long resident of St. John.

Here's are a few examples of the many things he makes:

Check out more of my Virgin Islands photos here here

06-22-13 The First Mate at the Helm

Many would be surprised to hear that she handles subservience quite well - at least when I am Captain. Here she expertly steers us out of the Bitter End in the Virgin Islands.

Check out more of my Virgin Islands photos here here

06-14-13 Island Life

Yesterday morning, before Deb and I boarded the ferry to Tortola (BVI), we had some time to spend in Charlotte Amalie, the first stop on our Caribbean sailing adventure. Deb suggested that we hire a cab driver to tour the island but instead we got something better: Marge, one of the proprietor's of the Miller Manor B&B, where we stayed, took us on a personal walking tour, accompanied by her dog Sam.

At one point, when I was trying to find a way to photograph the Jewish cemetery, we encountered some locals, including this child, who initially gave me a forced smile but who then quickly ignored me. That's when I started taking photos. We only had a minute or two, but this is the best of the few I took.

There are a couple things I like about the photo. One of them is not the light. Some times you take what you get. But I do like two things: the fashionably dressed child, who wouldn't be out of place in most neighborhoods in the Western world. (Note the cool watch and plastic squirt gun.) But I also like the fact that there are two adults in this photo watching me take this picture. Both are clearly wary and maybe even a little suspicious. The child, of course, is oblivious. As a photographer, I like the child's attitude best. . . .

06-13-13 A Firm Grip

By Scott Shephard

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It is my wife's birthday today and we are observing it in the Virgin Islands, where are are going to be sailing for a week. But, of course, neither Deb nor I can stop thinking about Glenyce Jane, our new grand daughter, who is pictured here gripping her father's thumb.

As I look at this photo in the context of Deb's birthday I am wondering what Clint and Glenyce imagined about the future of their child, Debra. Would she be happy? Would she be healthy? And would she find success?

I would say that for Deb the answer is "yes" to all of the questions. And for Glenyce Jane, the expectations are the same. . .

06-06-13 The Indignity!

Glenyce Jane isn't even 12 hours old in this photo, which documents GJ's first serious bath. And serious is a good word for it - the health care worker, who was very good at what she did, didn't exactly treat our new grand daughter like fine china.

In this photo, GJ is getting her right arm pit scrubbed and I suspect that years from now, she will either be grateful for the documentation of such moments in her early life. Or she will be embarrassed. . . .

06-03-13 Really!

My Instagram followers will recognize this shot, which was published there yesterday. But my regular readers will know that redundancy is one of my hallmarks. So why not publish it here, as well?

The subject is, of course, our new grand daughter, Glenyce Jane S. The event was her first bath, being administered by a loving, efficient medical care expert, who did not pamper GJ.

I don't know know what kind of thought 10 hour old humans are capable of, but GJ's expression seems to be one of mild frustration mixed with resignation. She seems to be say, "If you really have to, I suppose. . . "

06-02-13 June Bug

Words fail to convey how I feel about the birth of our new grand daughter. But here she is, only three hours old. She's so new to this world that her parents (Brian and Katie) have yet to name her. But we like her nick name:"June Bug."

I suspect I will be posting a few more of this little girl from time to time. . .

05-13-13 The Graduates

With one exception, these 13 people receiving their diplomas from Lake Area Technical Institute president Deb Shephard, are graduates of the BSA Photo/Media program at LATI. It is the second group of graduates from the program I started two years ago and the last group at Lake Area that I will call "mine."

I can live with that. I think the program has made excellent progress in the last two years and it is being left in good hands.

05-11-13 Standing Out

By Scott Shephard

2013 05-11 Standing Out by Scott Shephard

Leave it to one of my photography students to apply a little artistic flair to what is otherwise a pretty monotonous sea of black. Actually, several of the Lake Area Technical Institute Photo/Media students added bling to their hats, though Elsa's ended up being the most well posed cap of all I photographed.

Canon 5DIII 1/250s f/2.8 ISO2500 200mm

Do you want to see the entire 2 hour and 15 minutes ceremony in 60 seconds? Hold on to you hat and watch:

This video condenses two hours into 60 seconds. It was shot in time lapse mode. There are just over 800 still frames that make up this time lapse video.

02-20-13 Chemistry (Reprise)

TS Eliot was wrong. Februrary, not April, is "the cruelest month." At least for me. Yes, the days are getting longer. Yes, the temperature ocassionally soars into the high 20s. But it is often in the heart of February that what I think is SAAD (seasonal affective disorder) hits me. And I lose my will to post new photos to this blog.So I'm posting old stuff. . . But, in the event that you haven't meticulously looked at all four years of my posts, you've probably never seen some of these. So maybe they're not old.

02-15-13 NSFW? (Reprise)

TS Eliot was wrong. Februrary, not April, is "the cruelest month." At least for me. Yes, the days are getting longer. Yes, the temperature ocassionally soars into the high 20s. But it is often in the heart of February that what I think is SAAD (seasonal affective disorder) hits me. And I lose my will to post new photos to this blog.So I'm posting old stuff. . . But, in the event that you haven't meticulously looked at all four years of my posts, you've probably never seen some of these. So maybe they're not old.

02-04-13 A Favorite of Mine

I like this photo so much I may have already posted it, though I'm guessing it is a color version. Though the colors are good in the original, there is something about this soft sepia version that I like. Of course, what makes this a good portrait is the subject, who is every bit as real, pleasant and happy as this photo implies.Incidentally, I write about this photo, as well as others, on my "Better Photography Blog." Just click here.Canon 5D 1/160s f/8.0 ISO100 67mm