My online journal sharing interests in photography, nature, coffee life, journaling, fountain pens, bicycling, spirituality and asking deep questions.
I spent some time just looking out across the lake last night, watching this fisherman catch a couple of small mouth bass and I took in the scene. He says he comes here and fishes this area only, about a 50 foot stretch. If the fishings good his wife understands when he comes home at sunrise with a smile on his face.
I drove to Loveland to meet my sister for Sunday morning coffee and one of her special hugs. Sure needed the hug as my dashboard said it was 8 degrees. As I drove by Lake Loveland I was pleasantly surprised to see fog sitting above the lake. With the geese huddled up along the edge of the open water and the sun just coming up, I had to stop, take it all in and pull out my camera. This was not going to be a drive-by morning! Even though it was only 8 degrees I’m glad I stopped. And, when I got to the coffee shop my sisters hug was even more precious to me. Just after I got back in the car and started to drive away the geese lifted off. That would have been an awesome image. Next time.
I’m now in Phoenix visiting my parents. I headed out for some morning sunrise photos and froze out there. I was not expecting the weather to be this cold. It was 27 degrees yesterday morning and about 33 this morning. May have to go back to Colorado to get warm. But, I am enjoying time with my family. This image was taken a couple yeras ago at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal near Denver. Have a super day.
Chambers Lake is a 254 acre lake used for supplying water to eastern Colorado and offering plenty of recreation for the fisherman. It is known for its cutthroat and rainbow trout, Kokanee, Mackinaw and Splake. I visited the lake on the short camping trip last week and almost camped at the lake. It may have been quieter since the lake is locate off the highway. While on an early morning drive looking for aspens I noticed this couple fishing along the shoreline. Loved the colors and feel of this scene so stopped to take a half dozen shots. Wonder if they caught anything. I’m also posting another aspen shot. Found these aspens about two miles from where I took the image of the lake.
I had planned on sleeping in but the internal body clock went off around 4:15 am. Tossed and turned then decided to grab the camera and see what the morning sunrise would offer. The nature areas within the city provide some wonderful opportunities for quiet and wonder as the day begins. I headed for the Cattail Chorus Ponds as it’s been a while since visiting the area. A smile came across my face as a meadowlark greeted me when I stepped out of the car. As I walked to the ponds I could feel my pants getting wet from the morning dew. The last time I was out there was about four years ago so there was a lot more growth along the banks than expected. Never the less, I found a rock to sit on along the bank and take it all in. I waited and I smiled.
This is an HDR experiment. The image was taken with my D300 and a Tamron 17-50 mm f2.8 lens. The metered exposure was at 17 mm f16 @ 1/60. It is a series of nine (9) images exposed at 1 stop, then processed in HDR Efex Pro. I chose Full Scene Compression preset and lowered the tone compression then adjusted exposure and contrast/tone in Lightroom. I would like you to let me know what you like and don’t like about the image.
Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean. John Muir
It was not a good day. They happen, ya know. Sometime in the morning I felt this restlessness rising within me. I lost my anger on a couple of trivial things, calling inanimate things names, as if they could hear and understand. My focus was all over the place. I walked into the kitchen for something and could not remember why I went there (still can’t). These are signals for me that my spirit and soul are in need of more time in nature. So, with a sunny and warm day I made my way to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR. I knew a long walk was the needed therapy. I had just read a post by Dave Showalter whoincluded an image of one of the approximately 50 eagles that have been seen at the refuge. No eagles were spotted but it was just what I needed. John Muir looked to nature as a temple, a place where he encountered his Creator. So, I guess I needed to wash my spirit with a walk in nature.
“My goal as a person and, consequently, as a photographer, is to witness, participate in, and hopefully share the delicate beauty of wilderness – those moments in time when nature and spirit transcend the make-believe world of politics, economics, religious squabbles, fleeting fashion, mass “entertainment,” and other means of wasting the precious gift of thought and inspiration we are each endowed with.” – Guy Tal
I just observed a young boy, maybe 6 years old, walk into this coffee shop with his eyes glued to a smart phone or game boy? He never looked up. Unfortunately, he had been sucked into that small box with its dings, dongs, chimes, bells and whistles, blasting away to kill as many opponents as quickly as his nimble fingers could move. It was obvious he was no longer “witnessing or participating” in the world around him. His mother sat passively beside him with no attempt or chance of a conversation and I’m not sure she even wanted any of that. I wondered what that conversation would be like. Could he even have a conversation with her? Does he have, or will he ever have, the precious gift of thought and inspiration? Just watch our children, and unfortunately many adults, as they walk through life looking down at their handheld devices. Addicted?
Anyway, I wanted to share the above quote from Guy Tal. His words so resonate with my heart and soul in this misguided world. If you have a chance to visit his website and blog, I highly recommend it. He’s a very good photographer and very much in touch with the world around him. I enjoy his little quips called, “Just saying.”