Sometimes too much rain can actually help with photo opportunities and this shot is an example of that. There is a walking path that goes right beside these maples but thanks to heavy rain, the creek which is to the right was high and runoff was collecting in several low areas. The water provided a good reflection and the sunset contributed as well. I was wearing muck boots which are about a foot high and after I finished shooting I was walking on the path in about 8 inches of water when I must have ventured off the trail and found myself with water cascading into my boots.

This is not the first time I snapped a shot of this quaint home and it’s probably not the last either. This was the best angle to catch the fall foliage so even though I wish more of the house was showing , I still felt this was a good angle.

This scene was shot at a local farm stand and I kept putting off stopping to ask if I could do a shot, but when I noticed their inventory was getting low I felt it was now or never. I asked the owners and they said sure, so other than having to deal with the drivers hat blowing off, it was a fun shot to do. The shadow on the wall was thanks to my flash and I also positioned my flash to put a shadow of the driver there but as you can see in the bottom image it looked more like a snowman on the wall so I decided the top one was more fall like. I really liked the way I added light to the entrance area to give some balance on the left.

Most of those who visit my website know I have been battling depression for a while and this year has been particularly hard on me because of numerous things that currently rest on my shoulders and it all feels like a huge anchor dragging me down. I have days where I wonder if the way I feel will become intense enough to where I will just decide I’ve had enough and call it a day?  The mind is a very powerful thing and some days I feel absolutely worthless and think I have not done a single thing that amounts to anything in my life and why bother and then several hours later it seems to relent and I am glad I did not let it get the best of me. For whatever reason a lot of artistic types fight very similar battles to mine and those who have departed strike very close to my heart and I completely understand their decisions. I know I am not alone with these problems and realize many are much worse, so life goes on.

I have no idea why I feel the need to share some of this stuff but this post today reminds me that one of the things that brings me great satisfaction is my photography and being creative but that passion is being overwhelmed by these struggles. The above photo was taken back in July and I now finally found the enthusiasm to share it here so that gives you an idea of where I am at.

The shot was one I saw earlier this particular day when the light was terrible so all I could think about was would the owner let me into the yard to shoot it that evening?  I was completely surprised that the owner was very receptive to letting me take this and offered to turn porch lights on and even dimmed them to the perfect level for me. This log cabin sits right by a creek and is a great place to sit and sip lemonade on hot summer evening or perhaps hot chocolate as we head into fall.

This shot pretty much sums up how I feel these days, fairly frequent bombardment of very dark thinking and I rarely have the enthusiasm to go out shooting these days. Wish I could share more images like before but most days I feel like staying to myself. No one really understands this and just thinks your some eccentric nut job because you avoid interaction quite a bit. At least night-time gives me a break while I am sleeping.

This beautiful wishing well is a new addition to Historic Poole Forge near Churchtown ,Pa.  The wishing well was a concept that executive director Dawn Ekdahl had for quite some time as a way for the many photographers who visit here to donate a little extra change to help keep the place looking great. Doing a project of this caliber takes money and talent and thanks to a generous donation from a local family, it came to fruition. The Ansbach family provided the financial support and dedicated a plaque which reads, In memory of a great lady. Janet Tobias Ansbach. A loyal wife, mother, and a great friend. One crucial part of this was finding a great stone mason and the result speaks of his talent. How someone can fit so many odd-shaped stones into a circle that is so tight and perfect is incredible. A local machinist and steel smith named Mike Malamon created all the inside mechanics to keep the water flowing as well.

I just happened to be rounding a corner when this little scene unfolded before me. Amish around here have been making these painted wooden flowers in a variety of hues, and I was lucky enough to get mom restocking the supply while her young daughter looks like she is ready to bloom as well and give walking a try.

I was in the area last year where this home is located and there was a painted bicycle with flower baskets in the front yard that caught my eye . I knocked and was greeted by a very nice lady who said I could gladly photograph the bike. I commented on the nice porch she had and she said she had plans to paint everything in the coming year. Well fast forward to a week ago and I drive by to see that it has in fact been painted and is full of flowers as well. I knocked again and was told I could gladly shoot the front, so I came back that evening and did this shot. One nice touch is the porch lanterns use tea lights and they actually come on with a hand-held remote. I love the color choice utilizing the greens and purples and the complimentary pink petunias. My theory is the lady who owns this place uses her landscaping and decorating ideas as a way to relax and counter the exhilarating work she does as a wing walker? Thats just my theory but after watching her perform on YouTube at air shows, it’s not for the faint of heart and very few people are able to perform on top of a plane wing as she does. I would need a lot of gardening to de-stress from such an occupation.

Clouds billow above this local farm as the sweet corn grows higher and higher.

This local funeral home always does a very classy display celebrating the 4th of July. It is so tastefully done that I just had to capture it.

Oh how I wish we had a little of this right now. Today is forecast for 98 degrees and crazy humidity. On the upside, my friend from Vietnam says this is cool weather where he is from. These are Mennonite men clearing snow for the Sunday service.

This is a restaurant in the small town of Lititz, Pa called the Tomato Pie Cafe and I actually was shooting a different shot across the street in the rain. I finished the shot I was after and as I turned to head to my truck I noticed the usually busy street was practically bare.I rushed to get set up and the one lone car that was parked to the left of the tree pulled away and I knew everything was coming together. It was pouring the entire time and although my camera had an umbrella protecting it, I was not so lucky as my second umbrella broke as I tried to open it, so I had to run around in the rain using my flash to light the trees which gave nice reflections on the road. I got drenched but it was worth it to get the final result.

Well my title is what the digital sign out front read, so I decided to add my lighting touch to a wonderful rainy sunset already in progress. When I was almost done shooting this, I was doing a few long exposures to get the color on the road and a car starts to pull in the empty space in front of my tripod and in the short 5 seconds he hesitated and decided to not pull all the way in the spot, some knucklehead slows down and rolls the window down to yell a bunch of wicked remarks at the guy and then I see its like a 65-year-old woman who was so worked up I thought she might blow a vein. I stuck up for the guy and told her to go take a chill pill.

I have a mental list of places I drive by and wonder if I could get a neat shot sometime and this home is one of them. It is always well maintained and the porch details are very nice. The good old days had real craftsmen who took pride in creating something and the scroll work on the porch is an example of that. Of course I picked a bad day to try this shot but I managed to have enough good frames to make it work. I tried out my new ladder setup to do this and it basically uses a long aluminum pole that slides through the top of the ladder and becomes a huge tripod. I do not have all the bugs worked out yet, and making sure the pole does not rotate is on my list. I started shooting and you can see what the clouds started looking like and long before the light was perfect, it started to rain. I held an umbrella over the camera but it still got drops on the lens, so I had to climb the ladder to wipe it off and that guarantees the camera will shift ever so slightly. So at that point I started shooting a new set and realized my tablet had changed the lens opening on its own, which has happened a few times before when it is raining and I have no idea how the wi-fi gets messed with but it is frustrating. So I start my third series with the settings fixed and thankfully it worked. The owner was very helpful with turning on lights which always helps to get my signature look. Oh and yes there was the occasional lightning bolt which is always great when you have a 16 foot aluminum pole and your camera on top. The second photo shows the setup I used to get this shot. I am considering getting a motorized head to put on top so I can move the camera for proper framing up or down and left to right all from the tablet on the ground.

This adorable home has always intrigued me because of its unique exterior and its placement in relation to other homes on the street. I decided to ask if I could capture a shot with all the flowers currently blooming and they said sure. After speaking with the owners I found out they love the beach and that is reflected in the exterior styling. The house is over a hundred years old and after a small tour I could see they put their heart and soul into the home. I actually had a few obstacles this night and choosing to do this on a night with 15 mph winds was not my best move, but the real problem I had was the depth between the foreground and house. First I started shooting by focusing on the house but then the flowers were not sharp, so I switched focus to more in the front which left the house questionable. I shot a ton of images lighting the bushes and what not but they would not register after I changed focus, so even though I had better shots, without the house sharp it would have not worked. The following evening was calm as could be and I wondered why I could not have waited 24 hours?  In my defense it was supposed to rain for two days and I worried the flowers would get beat.

Since this photography related I thought I would share a couple of shots of my latest vehicle. I had my last truck for 22 years so it was definitely time to get something newer. Obviously it is a Jeep Wrangler and I love it. Already used the winch to save someone stuck in the snow this winter and taking the roof off is a blast. The reflection shot was done at a car lot I passed and I noticed some of the cars there were reflecting in the puddle after heavy rains passed through, so I went home for my gear and did this photo. The funny thing was I took my muck boots along to stay dry and at first I pulled right in the middle of the small lake and stepped out into water that I thought was maybe 4 inches but it was at least a foot deep! I decided I wanted to see most of my wheels so I moved to the edge and the ripples were captured after I walked through the water. The other shots are at a train station after closing.

National Police Week was held recently and a local Police department contacted me about possibly doing a shot of their building? A local lighting company illuminated the station and it really looked nice, so I did these two images for them on a rainy evening which added some nice reflections. I lit the building and trees to add some extra pop and that brought the shot together. There was a vehicle parked in front while I did the first shot and thankfully it left and was quickly replaced with a patrol vehicle, so that was perfect timing for the second image. I also lit the bench on the porch which has the names of officers lost in the line of duty and I wanted to set it out front so you could read the names but it was chained to the concrete.

This is a home that I have passed many times over the years and I finally decided to stop and take a shot. I arrived before dusk and knocked on the door to ask if I could try a shot and while the lady who answered was not the owner, I knew who the owner was and we agreed he would probably not mind. I spent a good hour lighting this location and asked the woman if she would mind turning on some inside lights, and she gladly obliged. I really liked the picket fence and garden so it was a balancing act to get a little of the front and still highlight the garden, so this angle is what I finally settled on. After I was finished I went to thank her for her help and she asked what year I graduated? After telling her the year, she said we were in the same class and I finally recognized her and remembered her name which is a small miracle in itself. I hated school, was kind of a loner and could not wait to get out, so names do not always get recalled like I wish, especially almost 40 years later. Of course after you get out of school you wish you had applied yourself but I guess I was a late bloomer.

The following is an excerpt from a brochure for “The Hacker House c. 1814”:

The Hacker House existed in some form prior to the founding of the town of “New Ephrata” (Lincoln) in 1813 by John Reist. It could have been a one story log farm-house built in the late 1700’s.

In the year 1803, the road now called Route 322 was built from Downingtown to Harrisburg. We believe that influence of the city of Philadelphia manifested itself in about the year 1814 when the owner of the property may have enlarged the house and added the beautiful Federal style pedimented door case to the front entrance. It is rare to find a doorway of this style in northern Lancaster County. At the same time it is possible that an addition as large as the front of the present house was added to the east end and probably was used as a tavern or an addition to the existing house.

The house was extensively restored and upgraded. Starting on the exterior, all wood, vinyl, and aluminum siding were removed, except for the “L” shaped area in the back section. The structure was checked and improved where necessary. Insulation and sealers were used in the front portion of the house which is primarily a log structure. Insulation was installed between the studs of the rear section of the house which is a framed structure. Many years ago, the front windows and the front window of the west side were replaced with longer windows as was the style of that day. A second window on the west side was made into a door. All four openings were returned to their original style & size nine over six window sash. The front cornice was rebuilt to what was believed to be the original style which matches the saltbox house across the street. Overhangs which were added to houses in the early 1900s were removed and the original style trim installed. A good grade of cedar siding was purchased and primed on both sides before installation. A new rubber roof was installed on the flat add-on portion of the addition. The shutters were original to this house and had been stored in the barn for many years. We had them stripped, rebuilt, and rehung with old style hardware.

Reverse angle from my previous post.

This was the scene two days ago as wild weather blew through and then just before sunset the sun came out. I have not been going out much lately but as we left the grocery store, I said to my wife, this is going to get good, so I grabbed the gear and found a decent spot and watched it unfold.

This field of Mustard was in full bloom last week and made for a decent shot. I could do without the power lines but right now I have no energy to remove them.

Happened to notice this lovely carpet of fallen pink blossoms the other day and I stopped and snapped a quick shot. I was basically seeing what angle I wanted to shoot because I planned on coming back later in the evening with my tripod and gear. Turns out when I did return that evening,the owner had already mowed the yard and all the pink was gone, so I worked with the original shot instead.

Still not finding the desire to go out shooting these days and I certainly cannot remember a spring where I have had so little ambition to photograph the spring color?  This wonderful little friend of mine called depression has been gnawing at me the past two weeks again and has me in a very negative disposition concerning life in general.  For me personally, it is a very isolating condition and I would rather sit alone in a room and try to get past negative thoughts on my own than to hear someone say they are thinking about me, because deep down I do not really believe there are too many people who really truly care one iota about my battles and to be quite honest, why should they?  I am always amazed how I talk to some people who have incredible problems and they handle it with ease, but I struggle trying to just go day-to-day. Thank goodness I have not shot much lately, because every other post on here is me whining these days. On a positive note, this bicycle is part of a project I am working on and this is my first creation, which I was taking through my back yard and I decided to stop and take a shot with our flowering tree that was dropping pink blossoms. In the back are the arbor and shed details I made as well. The arbor has 12 foot 6×6 timbers and I still remember digging 4 ft holes and trying to lift the posts to drop them in the holes.

This storybook home has always appealed to me so I snapped a quick shot as I drove by recently after a nice snowstorm. From the red door to the slats on the walls,it reminds me of something from a fairy tale.

Another small snow storm covered Lancaster county this week, making it the second one in April. These Amish girls grabbed a big warm blue comforter to keep warm on their ride this chilly spring day.