We attended a party in honor of the 2nd birthday of my grand niece Evie DeGeest a few days ago. I wasn't going to take photos because most of these events are very well photographed. But I couldn't resist. Alicia, Evie's mom, is a designer by bent and trade and DeGeest birthday parties are always brilliantly planned and certainly photogenic.
Maybe it's because of the birth of our grand daughter, Glenyce Jane, but these days I seem to look at the children in our family differently. "Wonder" and "awe" are two words that come to mind to describe how I feel when I study the face and eyes of a child like Evie.
I wonder about the gathering of all the forces that shape the person that Evie is becoming. And I wonder what she is thinking and what the world looks like through her eyes. And isn't it awesome that what begins as a microscopic fusion of DNA ends up becoming a wonderfully complex bundle of cells, thoughts and inclinations like beautiful Evie?
Canon 5DIII 1/80s f/2.8 ISO500 168mm
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Just above the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha, Nebraska, is a display of two Union Pacific freight train engines. This photo is one small detail of the older Engine #4023, which was a massive steam engine. As I walked around the engine, I was struck by all of the moving parts that comprise a steam engine, especially the mechanisms that transferred steam to power that turned the massive wheels.
This photo of a Hawaiian gecko is the third in a row in this blog that come from my 2006 collection. Like so many other photos of mine, it had been abandoned and exists only because I'm not good at throwing things away.
I'll bet you didn't know that a common characteristic of the four species of venemous snakes* in the US is that they all have "elliptical eye slits, aka "cat's eyes." The important thing, then, is that if you encounter a snake, you need to look it in the eyes to determine if it is deadly or not. If you stare in to a snake's eyes and see that they look more like a human's eyes, then he/she** is your friend.
Each year I donate a photo to the 
The phrase "changing of the guard" can be metaphorical but at the Prague Castle in the Czech Republic it is literal. But the event is also a tourist attraction. Deb and I just happened to be arriving at the Castle when the three men seen here were marching to their post. Their baby blue uniforms are traditional but not particularly "normal" when it comes to military garb. Maybe the intent is to make the opponent feel happy and non-violent.
My blog has been dominated by monotones lately so I decided it was time to brighten things up a bit. These leaves were found in a small park below the state capitol building in Salt Lake City Utah.
I haven't quite exhausted my small collection of exterior details of the Codington County Court House. But I think I'll hold at three for now. Maybe I'll make a triptych. . .
I spent 10 minutes looking for worthy details surrounding the door of the Codington County Court House. They weren't hard to find.
This is a photo of some of the excellent architectural detail work surrounding the south door of the Codington County Court House in Watertown, South Dakota. While our LATI photo students were photographing interior details, I stepped out to get these details, knowing that the strong, angular morning light would help dramatize them.