Saturday Night Lights

In the US football and marching bands go together. Why, I don't know. It probably has something to do with the idea of offering something for the fans to do during the half time break. Whatever the reason it's alright with me - espcially if the band is as good as the South Dakota State University marching band.Deb and I were invited guests of Watertown mayor Gary Williams and SDSU president David Chicoine. The band was great and so was the game. SDSU won their first game of the year with a last-minute touchdown.

Does A Bear Prowl In the Woods?

Of course they prowl. And they do other things as well. Here a mother bear and her cubs are watching tourists watch them.

Verdant Tropical Stream

A few years ago we were visiting our youngest son, Jon, on the Big Island in Hawaii. As is his nature, he took us to a place that wasn't exactly easy to get to but which was stunning in it beauty. It is called the Waipio Valley. This is a small creek that we encountered and I would have liked to have had much more time here. As it was, because we had two cars full of family members, I had about 5 minutes to photograph this spot. Maybe next time. . .

Electric

This is from one of my favorite spots in the Black Hills - Lakota Lake. I have taken other photos of backlit leaves here and I have found that getting to this spot just after the sun comes up gives me the best photo opportunities. In fall, oak leaves are not particularly striking. But with the right light they are much more interesting. Maybe that's true of anything we photograph.

Men Working

I was in Chicago looking for interesting photo opportunities when I found this scene. The yellow "men" are to keep people off the wet sidewalk but to me they look like they are supervising the worker in the background.

A Simple Flower

There were at least two dozen flowers in the bouquet my wife put out in our dining room, including the noble red rose. But I was attracted to the soft pastels of this orange relative of the common daisy. The light was diffused window light and, as you can see, I focused on the green "button" in the center.This flower is another simple thing that might have been ignored if not for the great macro lens I own.

Katie

Every once and a while I find a portrait I have taken that catches my eye. This is one. Katie was a great subject. She was relaxed and easy to work with. And the fact that she was pretty didn't hurt. When I shoot a subject like this, I think that if I don't get good photos, then I must not be a very good photographer.Canon 1DII 1/320s f/3.2 ISO320 70mm

Mummy Cases

This is the Egyptology area of the Neues Museum (New Museum) on what is called "Museum Island" in Berlin, Germany. It may look like the museum was empty when I took this but it was actually fairly crowded. I got lucky to have the room to myself for a moment or two.Canon 5D 1/40s f/1.2 ISO400 50mm

A Lion In Stone

This is another photo that has sat neglected in my collection of 60,000 photos. The photo was taken in Japan in the same vicinity as the tree root photo from yesterday, which I think is near the Golden Temple. But I don't know where I am. I suppose a more disciplined photographer would keep track of things like that.

Sinuous

I found these superficial tree roots somewhere in Japan a few years ago. I have passed over this photo many times when looking for interesting captures. But today I like it. . . .

Random?

Here is another green thing, this time from Mexico a few years ago. I think it is some kind of succulent decorative plant that grew at the resort we were staying at. The curved edge of the convex leaf caught my attention. Is there an evolutionary purpose for this design? Or is it eye candy for indolent tourists like me?

Puffin

I don't do much wild life photography, mainly because it seems to take too much patience. It also helps if you have a really big lens, and I don't.But sometimes I get lucky as in this photo. We were visiting our son Jon in Sitka, Alaska and he had taken us in the company boat to see the flora and fauna of a few nearby islands. We don't have puffins in South Dakota so I felt lucky to be close enough to a few to get some photos. I took 10 or so photos but this is my favorite because it does a good job of showing the flared wing tips and the excellent aerodynamics of neatly tucked legs and feet.