Sure the wheel ranks right up in there as far as inventions go, but how far would that get you without an axle?
I photographed this sunrise scene a few weeks ago when temperatures dropped to around 10 degrees. The white frost on the tree is referred to as hoar-frost and its very hard to predict when it will appear.Bitter cold is one factor,but I have seen it brutally cold and no sign of it. I lit the tree with flash to help show it off in the pre-dawn darkness. A little info on hoarfrost from the net
Hoar frost (also called radiation frost or hoarfrost or pruina) refers to the white ice crystals, loosely deposited on the ground or exposed objects, that form on cold clear nights when heat is lost into the open sky causing objects to become colder than the surrounding air. A related effect is flood frost or frost pocket[2]which occurs when air-cooled by ground-level radiation losses travels downhill to form pockets of very cold air in depressions, valleys, and hollows. Hoar frost can form in these areas even when the air temperature a few feet above ground is well above freezing. Nonetheless the frost itself will be at or below the freezing temperature of water.
Hoar frost may have different names depending on where it forms. For example, air hoar is a deposit of hoar-frost on objects above the surface, such as tree branches, plant stems, wires; surface hoar is formed by fernlike ice crystals directly deposited on snow, ice or already frozen surfaces; crevasse hoar consists of crystals that form in glacial crevasses where water vapour can accumulate under calm weather conditions;depth hoar refers to cup-shaped, faceted crystals formed within dry snow, beneath the surface.
Sometimes you just have no explanation for things you see and this redneck snowplow is one such instance. Perhaps someone has too much free time or just figured they would beautify their front porch with a homemade plow made of cardboard. Whatever the reason, it certainly makes you do a double take as you drive down main street in this local town.
Here is a grab shot along the highway yesterday.Nothing special but the enormous load dwarfing the tractor-trailer caught my attention. I can only imagine what the drivers nerves are like as he transports this monstrosity in the rain and worries about someone pulling out in front of him. Stopping on a dime would not be an option.
For the past year or so I have posted new images each day and want to thank the more than three hundred followers that have been kind enough to join my photo blog in that time. To be honest, I have come to the realization that I am spending too much time taking photos and trying to keep my blog current, so things will be more sporadic from this point. The fact that I have close to 62,000 views in a year is great,but I am getting the feeling that it really does not mean a hill of beans to anyone what I do here,so consequently I will be doing random photo posts as opportunities arise.Right now life in general seems to be closing in on me,so simplifying things is my goal. The old washed up boat pretty much reflects how I feel right now. Maybe I will heed my daughter’s request and start taking my Happy Pills that have been sitting unused in the medicine cabinet for the last year. Catch you all later
This is a somewhat humorous post featuring a home in my area that goes a little crazy with inflatables at Christmas. These are full of air morning and night and there are more than 50 of these flanking the entire length of his property and possibly the neighbors. I can’t imagine the cost of all of them or what the electric bill is to run all the air pumps,but it certainly is a treat for youngsters who get to see the spectacle.night time is special when they are illuminated. Right below my photo is a you tube link to a video I made from one end to the other,so enjoy.
This scene features a lovely farm-house that I have admired for years,and it has always been landscaped and decorated so nicely during the summer months. My Christmas eve included a family get together, and a brief snowstorm earlier in the evening had everything coated in a heavy layer of snow. As we drove home,my mind raced to think of places that I might capture that night and I could only hope someone would be home and allow me to try. All the lights were on here as I drove by at 10pm,so I stopped and knocked and the owners were more than happy to let me do my thing. This scene was actually more attractive than what I captured,but several things complicated the shot. The greatest problem I had was a dusk to dawn light on a barn that cast the most sickly green color temperature over everything,and despite shooting raw and having the ability to adjust color temperature to the file,the green cast throws everything else off as you correct it.Anyway,I added some flash to gain control over the green but it was a persistent issue nonetheless. Another issue was the fact I was shooting after dark,so contrast was terrible,and If I get another chance,I will shoot at the preferred time at dusk,so I get detail in the sky and things are much more balanced.The family dog also came meandering through the snow after I had four frames shot,and thankfully I had the pristine snow captured already. I was glad I went out this night because most of the snow had melted or blown off by morning.
Fall is my favorite time of the year,and even though this years spectacle of color seems a bit lackluster,one can still find pockets of beauty if you look a bit. Despite the fact that I traveled thirteen hundred miles this month to see foliage,this scene was among my favorites and it was less than ten miles from home. If anyone wants suggestions on shooting foliage,I would say mix it up and try some tight shots like this using a telephoto to compress the scene and keep sky out of the shot. It wont be long till old man winter starts to blow and just between you and me,I hope its one of the snowiest and coldest winters.I just got four new snow tires on the truck and I am itching to get out and explore.
Once again I was trying my light painting technique in the old feed mill. This time I was photographing what I think is called a pelletizer, which makes feed pellets and the two images show the machine in a closed, and then open position.The bottom photo shows the machines main part,which has a series of holes that form the hardened pellets. The room was very warm so I assume some heat process is involved as well. To do the two images,I first completed the scene with it closed and then simply opened the door for the next part of the shoot. Then I brought that image on top of the first and blended them.
This is a little different from the type of image I usually post,but something about all these cows spread all over the hillside caught my attention. My wife knows when I go out shooting,I might be out till the cows come home, which if you have never heard that phrase before,it basically means, for a long but indefinite time.
This image features a rainbow that happened during a recent storm. I parked at this spot to shoot the farm as the storm was ending because I knew the sun was going to come out and light up the barn.I shot for about twenty minutes,packed up and headed down the road,and of course the rainbow then makes an appearance. I turn around, fly up the road as the rainbow starts to lose its color and set up again to capture this fading spectacle. I guess it appears to be almost a double rainbow,but folks a few miles away tell me they saw it as the most amazing rainbow they had seen in quite some time. I guess it all depends on your location. Below is an excerpt from the Bible about rainbows.
2 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.
The painted lady butterfly has always been one of my favorites, but I do not see as many of them as I did years ago. This one was the only one I saw all day last week, and while it’s not my best shot,it’s the most recent. Anyone interested in doing this type of shot should do their best to get the head sharp. This shot is barely acceptable, as he was turning away from me while I was focusing. If the wings are sharp and not the head,forget it. Its like doing a portrait of a person and having their hair sharp and not their eyes. Little things like that make or break a shot.
This past week I came across a group of car enthusiasts that were touring the countryside throughout Lancaster county. The group spent five days navigating the scenic back roads and also spent time visiting several county sites of interest. The group included owners of what are known as E-M-F cars, which are early 1900 vehicles built by Byron Everitt, William Metzger, and Walter Flanders. This image is the result of some planning, and a dash of luck, which I will explain.
I got the itinerary for the day from the organizer and decided on a spot to shoot them as they drove by. I took a few images at the location I picked and then decided I was going to get ahead of the group for a second attempt. The second spot included a covered bridge, but as I got to the road, it was closed for repaving,so I tried to find another road to access the planned route. Thankfully one lane was still open,and it allowed me to get this image of the cars coming through the bridge and a buggy waiting his turn as well. This image would have been all but impossible if the road were not closed to traffic for the road work. Usually cars file down this road one after another, but I actually set up my tripod on the road and shot a series as they all came through the bridge. These cars are full of character and draw a crowd wherever they go. If you want to learn more about them, check out E-M-F Company on the net. I may post another shot or two in the coming weeks.