Honestly I have no idea if that setup is something early settlers used to build a roof on the ground and then raise up or if I am totally clueless.If anyone knows,let me know.

Winter is still holding on but a few days of mild weather produced a very foggy day recently. I was coming down this road and noticed the trees looked nice with the foggy layering and off in the distance I heard the buggy coming,even though I could not see him yet.All of a sudden he materialized in the mist and I managed to get this image with him in a good composition.Wish I had gotten lower to get his reflection in the puddle too but it was a very fleeting moment. If you would have seen how thick the fog was,you would think they were crazy for being on the road.We have had more buggy accidents in our area in the last year than I can remember for many years combined.Mostly distracted drivers but not always,and the poor horse always loses.

Todays post features an image that I envisioned in my mind and thanks to the owners of the property,I was allowed the opportunity to go for it. I had stopped here to get permission to shoot another image and as I drove up the lane, it became obvious to me that more photo possibilities existed. I had a box of luminaries at home and could envision them lining the lane leading to the house on this winter night.The owners thought it might be a cool shot and encouraged me to try it. I arrived an hour before sunset and started to place the luminaries and then started to light them. I brought two lighters from home that I tested before leaving and when I tried to use them at the location,they no longer worked? Thankfully I brought matches as well,but the thing that really amazed me was the owners were going away as I was trying the lighters, and they told me to just go in their house because there were several lighters in the kitchen I could use. I said I absolutely was not going to go in their house,especially since we just met that morning.The matches worked and thankfully I got the shot I had imagined. I think the luminaries provide a nice leading line for the eye to follow.

Imagine waiting at this train station for a ride to the next small town in the middle of winter.Countless travelers must have made this place a starting point for many adventures.

It seems every winter I try to find the right timing for a clear full moon night with lots of snow cover to shoot and it never comes together. Well this past week I got lucky enough to have everything align so I could try a few shots.This particular night started out cloudy but the weather channel predicted clear skies later that night so I headed out at 10pm to look around.I ended up at this location and of course got lost in shooting till my wife called at eleven to ask where I was, and I said I might be out a little bit yet and don’t wait up.The next time I looked at my watch it was one in the morning,so I felt it might be time to call it a night. The rippled snow had excellent texture and it was not too bitter,so I could concentrate on getting the shots. For me the full moon has proven to be a bit of a pain,literally,as I get migraines and I lost track a long time ago how many times the full moon triggered them.Sometimes I get the full-blown headache/visual problem and other times I just feel like I am in a fog,and for a while I thought it was my imagination till I started documenting them and reading that others have had similar effects.Thankfully this night proved to be just a great full moon experience.

A heavy coating of freezing rain coats everything in sight.

Late day sunlight casts long shadows across this small town cemetery that is situated on a hill above the town.

Even using a large umbrella proved a little frustrating trying to keep the camera dry in this heavy snowstorm.

This image was taken at the Landis Valley farm museum and includes several old structures on the grounds. The building on the right has a sign designating it as a fire station.

This farm scene included leading lines in the foreground and varying shades of clouds in the sky.

Our area got hit by a winter storm which had freezing rain for an extended period, and this image is one of several I captured the day after. As I was shooting this,trees in the neighborhood were snapping every now and then,but thankfully our large trees stayed in one piece.

This grand old tree sits near a creek and seems to reaching out to embrace the warmth of the morning sun. I hope I get more opportunities to photograph this old beauty.

The first light of dawn skims across this fallen cross in a local cemetery.

Light skims across this cemetery as dusk approaches.

Gingerbread characters enjoy a day along the italian coast.

This black and white rendition brings out the ruts in the snow from those who traveled this road before me.

Imagine waking up and sitting out at this table to drink your morning coffee. A creek flowing at the bottom of the hill and farms in the valley create a vista that just melts your cares away. Might be a little nippy on mornings like this,but maybe you could substitute hot chocolate for coffee. The owners claim they regularly see eagles,osprey and herons who fish the waters.

Freezing rain leaves an icy coating on top of the snow which creates this shimmering effect.

This serene scene is located along a dirt road that is part of a state wildlife preserve in our area. Both myself and a good friend were snapping a few photos during the last week of december here during this snowstorm and tragically about four days later two young men murdered a young woman less than a half mile from this spot. They knew her and for reasons unknown they not only repeatedly stabbed her but poured gas on her and burned her too. Then to top it off,they came back at a later date and burned her again to hide any evidence. A very strange incident happened when we were here,as we were packing up,a vehicle passes and we start up the road behind them and as we crest a hill,the one guy is out of the vehicle throwing a live rooster into the woods and then they take off. It was the most bazaar thing but since it was days before,we figured it had no relation to the crime.

This is another image from the sanctuary at St Luke’s Church. It highlights The Eagle lectern which was made by J. & R. Lamb of New York.  It is made of polished bronze and stands about six feet high from the pavement to the Eagle’s beak.  It rests on a heavy bluish marble cross at its feet, laid horizontally on the pavement. The bronze shaft rises from the middle of the cross and is rectangular with chamfered angles.  At the summit of the columns, the shaft swells into a large knop with four faces on which appear the four emblems of the Evangelists in raised medallions.  The cylindrical shaft above the knop is encircled by four angels, each above his own medallion, and holding scrolls bearing the names of the Evangelists.  The eagle stands about 20 inches in height and 2 1/2 feet across the back and wings.  On the extended wings of the eagle is the book rest to hold the Bible.  This lectern is the second largest in the country, the only larger one being in Trinity Episcopal Church, New York.

the following was supplied by the church historian concerning who actually donated this amazing piece to the church.

Many in Lebanon County know the Coleman family as the first family of Lebanon. Owners of the Cornwall Iron Mine, the largest iron ore deposit east of Minnesota and the nation’s primary source of iron in the early 19th century, since 1798, they also build iron furnaces in Cornwall, Colebrook, Lebanon, and other locations. William Coleman was one of the principle heirs in the first half of the 19th century. He married a Southern belle, Sue Ellen Habersham from Savannah, before the Civil War. They had 2 children before he died at a young age in 1861, Robert Habersham and Anne. Sue Ellen remained a dominant force at St. Luke’s and in Lebanon County for 30 years after William’s death (http://www.lebcounty.org/Womens_Commission/Documents/Womens_History/Coleman_Women_LCCWrev.pdf). William was the driving force behind the construction of Old St. Luke’s in 1862-3.

When Robert came of age, he and his sister (obviously with the encouragement of their mother) built the current church in 1879-1880 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Habersham_Coleman). The entire church is their memorial, although Anne also donated the angel mosaic on the south wall. The lectern was given in honor of William Coleman by his widow when the church was built.It apparently was modeled after the lectern in the previous building of St. Bartholomew’s Church in New York City, Mrs. Coleman’s church when she was at her New York residence, although eagle lecterns are common in Anglican and Episcopal churches). If you don’t know the tragic story of Robert and his first wife Lilly and his fall from eminence in the Panic of 1893, there are several books about it that make interesting reading

I walked out of the house yesterday morning to go get a fog shot and almost fell on my back on a frozen sidewalk. Turns out the area was covered in what was referred to as frozen fog. Supposedly a rare weather occurrence that included roads covered in black ice. I shot this image using my nitecor flashlight

A long abandoned church is now privately owned and this entrance made for an inviting shot.

A group of pines trees stands out against a darker barn in this winter landscape.

A brutally cold morning with temps around zero called for stoking the fire on this rural farm. Smoke rises from the chimney as day breaks across the landscape and chores get under way.