One of the blessings of my current job is the fact that I get to travel to Israel on a somewhat regular basis. The flight time is horrible, and I am there to work, but even so the trip provides me an opportunity to take some absolutely beautiful pictures along the way.
Photography is a hobby I picked up a few years back. I’ve only posted an extremely small number of sample shots I’ve taken over the years, and haven’t taken many pictures over the last few years so haven’t posted any lately. That, dear reader, is about to change. I have ordered a new camera that should arrive next week. I am excited – here is what I ordered:
I am excited, and also a little sad – you see it will arrive over the weekend, but I will be out of the country when it gets here. That means I have to wait until I return home.
I hope to post some new great shots soon, so be on lookout!
Working for a company where I have to periodically visit places like Vail, Colorado, is so taxing. A rough life, this definitely is.
Please enjoy.
Sometimes a quiet morning alone in a park is just the ticket. And what better way to relax than spending “me” time with a few friendly ducks.
Enjoy.
There are many religions around the world, including many that are little known, such as Baha’i. The Gardens in Haifa are some of the most beautiful in the world, and dedicated to the Baha’i faith. Open to the public, these gardens serve to remind us that peace and tranquility can be found in the outside world, and within ourselves.
I hope you enjoy these photos from my visit there in 2012.
To learn more about the Baha’i Gardens please click here.
Sometimes, a quick getaway is just the thing we all need. Sadly, at least for me, those getaways are sometimes too infrequent. Even so, we can still take a mini-vacation by exploring our imaginations. With that in mind, here are some pictures to help spur your imagination as we near the end of the week. With any luck, these might just help you power through Friday so you can relax, explore, or otherwise have small adventure for the weekend.
These photos were taken with an iPhone at sunset, on the Mediterranean Sea in Tel Aviv, Israel. Please enjoy.
Growing up, my parents were two of the best people around. They got married when they were 15 and 17; they were 16 and 18 when my sister was born; they were 21 and 23 when I was born. They were great parents to my sister and me. They taught us right from wrong, and they helped lead us to become the people we are today. They were still married, still mushy, and still went on dates until my father passed away at the too young age of 45.
I remember as a child when I first began wearing glasses. I was holding my mother’s hand as I walked, and I looked down to my feet. I noticed that my feet were a lot closer to my face than normal, which caused me to think I had magically shrunk. My family members have held my hand, literally and figuratively, for as long as I can remember.
Today is the 15th anniversary of my father’s passing. I’d like to share one of the the most important lessons my father taught me as child:
Play Golf.
My father was the most intelligent person I have known. He taught me how to play golf. This lesson has been one of the most important lessons I have ever learned. This may sound like an irrational thought, but I have fully considered this. Through golf, my father and I became friends. Spending time on the golf course allowed me to know the man I have called Dad. From golf, I learned the value of “family”.
As I remember Dad today, I remember the fun he had in life. I remember his stories, his adventures. I remember how he and Mom met. I remember the speeding tickets and the police officers asking to see what was under the hood. I remember watching the Braves with him. I remember rooting for Dale Earnheardt and Dad rooting for Jeff Gordon.
I remember Dad.
I love and miss you Dad. We think of you every day, and know you are looking at us from Heaven, encouraging us, laughing with us, and crying for us. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being Dad.
Anyone feel like playing 9 holes?
Ever since I began delving into photography as a hobby, I’ve been most attracted to taking shots of nature. I find great pleasure in finding out-of-the-way locales like this one:
The really amazing fact about this – I wasn’t in the middle of a park; I wasn’t in the middle of the country. This is a picture of the West Fork Trinity River in the very heart of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. I love finding places like this, even in the heart of a sprawling urban environment: places totally devoid of signs of civilizations – no power lines, no roads, no airplanes in the sky.
As I continued learning more about photography, I absolutely fell in love with back & white shots as well. There is a timeless quality that taking a B&W shot adds – and this quality adds quite a bit of serenity to the scene laid out in front of you:
I think I like photography as much as I do, not just for the art I can create, and the fact that I can share the results with others, but also because I can find unique vistas like this. I can travel to places I’ve never been hidden just past places I frequent, and still find something new. Finding places like this is like winning a scavenger hunt that Mother Nature set before you.
I hope you enjoy looking at these as much as I enjoyed finding them, and sharing them.
As a child, I loved toys. As a red blooded American adult man, I love toys. This is likely because I never actually grew up. (You’ve got nothing on me, Mr Pan.)
You see the problem here? I haven’t managed to grow wings (yet), so one would think I had found an alternative method to flying that doesn’t involve gripping the armrests in an airplane until my hand imprints are permanently etched for all mankind to see. I’m a sad panda, for I haven’t found this alternative yet.
UNTIL TODAY!
I have come to the inescapable conclusion that I must have my own personal high-flying doohickey right this moment, sleep be damned. Why is this such a cool doodad? Watch the video in the link below and you’ll have a better idea, let me tell you.
(Note: donations accepted if you would like to help out a poor Texan in desperate need of a new toy.)
As an amateur photographer, I like to take pictures and find myself wondering what the best angle should be. I’m limited though, to options like eye-level (I’m not tall) or lower then eye-level (did I mention I’m not tall?) or possibly climbing-dangerously-high-on-that-bench-over-there-and-climbing-on-the-fence-behind-it-eye-level.
Behold and imagine, then, what aerial photography could do for me. Watch the aforementioned amazing video linked below and wonder as I have what joys this would bring to us all.
In seriousness, this is pretty dang cool, and I want one. Don’t make me stamp my feet and throw a temper tantrum…
For more coolness, check out this here link.
I’m not a true car guy. I can’t take a car apart and reassemble it on the roof of the school. I’m lucky to know where the gas and oil go. But that doesn’t mean I don’t see the beauty in these machines. In 2010, Uncle Eugene and I went to a car show at the local park. Here are a couple of pictures I took that day.
I have more pictures of this day of course that I may post later, including one where a car owner pays tribute to Odie (yes – the Odie of Garfield fame).
the dingo was here 