All Day – Everyday
Father and son fishing from the boat launch at Spencer Lake, Ohio, on a warm summer evening.
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Cloudy Waters – July 18
Near sunset at Spencer Lake, Ohio, the clouds reflected strongly in the dark, still waters, like cream swirling in coffee. Except for the calls of a few insects and birds, all was quiet.
Trophy Shot – Approaching Storm
I watched weather radar for several hours yesterday as a line of storms approached our area; it looked interesting. The line had a strong arc to it offering the possibility of photogenic afternoon storm clouds. So I headed to the Lake Erie shoreline and a view off Bay Village, Ohio. The drive was an adventure in itself as I encountered strong winds and heavy rains. I worried the cold front had arrived early and I might be out of luck but, I remembered, there was an intense, crescent-shaped storm out ahead of the line — driving through I should encounter dryer weather and a shot at the “real deal.” And so it was! As I approached the lake, I saw curved lines in the clouds overhead … lines that corresponded to shapes I could see on weather radar. I couldn’t stop to photograph those and so continued to my observation post. Hurrying down to waters’ edge, I saw an expansive arc of clouds stretching from the southwest to the northeast and out over the lake. Not a sharply-defined line as I might have hoped for but dramatic, nonetheless. I had time for a few single shots and a couple of groupings to be assembled into a panorama and had to run again … I could see a curtain of rain moving in! As I drove home through sheets of rain I smiled; timing and luck were with me today and I had my trophy shot of the day! P.S. – That’s not a tornado!
The Long Stormy Arc
Thunderstorm Bearing Down, Sunday Evening
In the Wauseon, Ohio area this evening I sighted a large thunderstorm heading my way as I drove through farm countryside. The long stretches of road with no traffic and the openness of the fields gave me excellent opportunities to watch the storm as I tried to stay ahead of it! Alas, the storm was moving diagonally to my path and overtook me, pelting the car with wind and rain. It wasn’t me storm-chasing, the storm chased me!
Waxing Gibbous Moon – One Day from Full
Tonight’s Not-Quite-Full Moon. The Moon will reach its full phase in a little over 24 hours but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t big, bright, and beautiful tonight (May 2, 2015)! Phase in this photo is Waxing Gibbous with about 99% illumination … notice the shadowy edge along the bottom-left.
Kayak Couple
Spring is really just taking hold around here so at Hinckley Lake, in the Cleveland Metroparks, things were fairly quiet on this warm day. I did a walk around the lake shore as more to get out in the fresh air and sunshine as anything. Along the way I enjoyed views of fresh greenery popping up from the leaf litter in the woods, the calls of many birds, and regular encounters with the many people who were also out to enjoy the day. Puffy clouds floated across the sky, casting spotlights upon trees flushed with colorful buds and new leaves, and highlighting them against shadowed wooded backgrounds.
Common Water Snake
The natural surroundings may have been quiet but if examined close enough, there were things other than plants to catch one’s eye. I stopped for a while and watched the single Great Blue Heron on Hinckley Lake as it fished; from the distance I saw it catch a couple, too! I watched a Common Water Snake swimming in a wetland adjacent to the lake.
Spiny Softshell Turtle
I spied a Spiny Softshell Turtle (Apalone spinifera), my first in the wild, when it made a little move in shallow water. I shot a couple of photos of the turtle as it watched me, only its head above water. The softshells grow to be among the largest turtles in North America though this one looked to be more medium-sized.
Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher
On the walk back to the parking lot a beautiful little blue bird flitted from branch to branch in the trees and shrubs lining the path. I’d seen this bird (or another of its kind) in the general area before but hadn’t gotten a photo of it. Today I was a little quicker or the bird was a little slower, anyway I captured a few images of the little guy, one of which was good. Looks to be a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea). Delighted to have met! Back at the parking lot a man, just arriving, stopped and asked me if I got any good photos, saw any birds? I mentioned the heron but forgot the delightful gnatcatcher. Then again, it might have sounded a little too “birdwatcher-y.”
Yes, a fine day to get out and hike with a 20-pound camera pack on your back! It was really about the walk. Really!
Woman Moves In for a Close-Up using her Smartphone’s Camera
Visitors were amazed as they watched a large snapping turtle slowly make its way across the paved path at the Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve on Lake Erie. The turtle was likely a female on an egg-laying mission. The reptile, watched by several people every step of her way, eventually made it across the path, and into some low brush before tumbling, end-over-end, into an area of shallow water below. Shown here, an unidentified woman moves in for a close-up using her smartphone’s camera. I used a 200mm lens.
Crossing the Road
Sky Dancer
This breezy day, a Great Blue Heron approached its nest. Spreading its broad wings, the bird caught the air, hovered, and floated gently to a treetop landing – graceful as a dancer in the sky!
In Flight
Lake Erie on the Ides of March
Today we made a little exploratory tour along the south shore of Lake Erie between Bay Village and Vermilion. Most of the trip was pleasant enough but started out under gray, featureless skies. By the time we reached Vermilion, however, the clouds had mostly dissipated allowing warm and cheering sunshine to bathe us. On the lake, off Vermilion, the icy cover had begun to break up; gulls sat and screed on thin ice and open water. Winter is losing its grip on our lake and land and spring is coming on the wings of gulls.
Sample View of 2015 Calendar
Yesterday I completed photo selection and published my 2015 “Sights Seen” wall calendar but not without some difficulty.
On Lulu.com I went through the entire creation process, including updates to custom events, upload and placement of images, and review of proofs online. I saved and published the calendar using Lulu’s design studio app. Then I went to check the title and order… and the whole project was GONE! I could find no trace of the supposedly-uploaded images, no saved project, the only evidence of my use of the site was my updated events! Finding no way to immediately contact Support or Customer Service, I gave up. {Support later told me that I apparently deleted the project. The Lulu “studio” interface is danged confusing and hard to use, so maybe that’s what happened. Maybe.}
Moving on, I logged into my creator account at Zazzle.com. Their price for the same size photo calendar was twice that of Lulu! No thanks, too expensive already.
I did a quick search on Google for photo calendars and, oh yeah! I was reminded of my account at Vistaprint.com. So I logged in at Vistaprint, found their calendar template, uploaded my images, and placed my order. I was unable to insert custom events (like special birthdates, meteor showers, etc.), but couldn’t do that at Zazzle, either! I paid a bit more to upgrade to heavy, glossy stock hoping to get optimal repro quality for my pictures. We shall see!
I’m not sure how I’ll offer the finished calendars for sale, if they’re good enough, but they’re mostly promotional and gifts anyway!
PhotonStopper 