07-17-13 Aspen Stand

This blog has be AWOL much of the summer but I guess I have been, too. As of the 17th of July I think I have been home for a little more than 10 days since the third week of May. I have also had little access to wifi. So that's my excuse.

But given that I am only two days away from the start of the July Black Hills Photo Adventure, I'm thinking I need to post something - especially of the Black Hills

So here's my selection: a grove of aspen trees that has appeared before in this blog. But, as I've said many times, I like to return to places I've photographed before largely because they are magnets to my eye and camera but also because I feel I am a little wiser: I see better, I understand my equipment better and I am better at processing images in my digital dark room.

Ansel Adams never talked about "taking" a photo. He said that he "made photos." I like that and now that I know the art and craft of photography better, I would say the same thing: true photographers make pictures.

07-08-13 Into the Light

My brother in law Scott took my son Brian and me to the Ingersoll Mine, not too far from Keystone, SD. I'm not exactly comfortable prowling around in mine shafts and photographically is not a great location - there's no light to speak of except for beam of a flash light.

But here Scott and Brian precede me out of the mine and I happened to have my camera ready.

07-07-13 A Sacred Moment

Our grand daughter, Glenyce Jane, was baptized today in front of many friends and family at St. Joseph's Cathedral in Rapid City, South Dakota. I must say that though I am no doubt a bit biased, it was a beautiful ceremony. And since I have designated myself the Official Photographer of Key Events in the Life of Glenyce Jane Shephard, I took many photos. But the one you see here is a favorite of many. See more here.

07-06-13 Two Bridges (HDR)

I was back along Iron Creek scouting locations for the upcoming Black Hills Photo Adventure when I saw these two trees forming an interesting sort of "bridge" across the creek. Of course, neither was make for transportation but they were made for the photographer.

07-05-13 Glenyce Times Two

This is the doting great mother and namesake of our new grand daughter, Glenyce Jane. And GJ is worth doting over. :-)

06-25-13 My Little Friend

To call this 3" long lizard a "friend"'is a bit of a stretch since I only saw him once and during our short photo session he acted like he wasn't there - I think he thought he blended in so well with his surroundings that I couldn't see him.

This little guy was one of the many residents at the Estate Linholm, the beautiful B&B Deb and I are staying at while visiting St. John.

We leave for home this afternoon and as much as I like the Islands, I can't wait to be back in South Dakota.

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

06-23-13 Room With A View

To be specific this is a photo taken from the balcony of room 106 at the Miller Manor in Charlotte Amalie on the island of St. Thomas. The view is looking east over the East Gregorie Channel and includes the June full moon, which was spectacular.

I was working on an HDR sequence and I really didn't get what I wanted but I guess I'll take this one. There were clouds moving across the moon and because these exposures ranged up to 30 seconds, it was hard to get the moon in its full glory.

This is one of those shots, by the way, that I figured was a once-in-a-lifetime shot. It's not at all likely that I'll be in room 106 at the Miller Manor when a full moon rises over Charlotte Amalie ever again. Though I'd be happy to go back to the Miller Manor.

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

06-21-13 The Friends We Make Along the Way

For many travel is about meeting people and making friends. Surprising as it sounds I am not all that gregarious so travel for me is more about seeing and introspection. But sometimes we can't help finding new friends, such as Luna.

Luna lives at the Miller Manor, where we stayed in Charlotte Amalie on the US Virgin Island of St. Thomas. Just a puppy, Luna is brash, friendly and eager to play. In fact if you can read the look here, she's saying, "Throw the ball! Come on! Throw the ball!"

Check out more of my Virgin Islands photos here here

06-20-13 Through A Rain Covered Hatch

As forecast, the clear skies of yesterday gave way to significant rain and wind today. We spent the whole day inside the boat, though that gave us time to read, watch movies, and take a break from the hard work of vacationing in the BVI.

I decided to try to caption the rainy weather and I got several, though I like this one taken looking up through one of the ceiling mounted hatches. I would guess that only a sailor would know what we're looking at so I will help those who find this a bit too abstract: it's the mast, the two sets of spreaders, and the BVI ensign (the red blur).

As I write this, it's still raining. But as Annie said, "Tomorrow's only a day away."

(By the way, if you look closely enough, you will see the mast and spreaders perfectly focused, though a little twisted, in several of the drops.)