“What makes photography a strange invention is that the primary raw materials are light and time.” — John Berger
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
Sunday, 12/07/2025: Posted photo — Monument Valley, Arizona.
Navajo Nation’s Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park is in Arizona. The valley is made from sandstone monuments that tower at heights of 400 to 1,000 feet. This photo is from the road looking back into Monument Valley after rain.
We were on our way to national parks in the area and drove through a storm. I looked back into the valley hoping to get a photo of a rainbow over the valley and did not see one. We did not enter the Tribal Park since we did not have time to do so, and we could see many of the monuments from the road.
Monday, 12/08/2025: Posted photo — Patterns in the Snow.
As I left my car this morning on my way into the office, I liked how the sun was reflecting off the patterns in the snow. I also like the color of the snow.
The topic for one of my photo projects this week is nature. I do not know how many opportunities I will have this week to take nature photos due to the lack of sun during the week. I took this photo just in case I could not take a photo on Saturday due to weather.
Tuesday, 12/09/2025: Posted photo — Roses.
Information on the color of roses and their meanings. I have posted rose photos in the past and will do so in the future. I will be using this blog post as the basis of some of my comments.
Common rose colors and meanings:
Red: True love, romance, passion, desire. White: Innocence, purity, new beginnings, reverence, spirituality (great for weddings/funerals). Yellow: Friendship, joy, caring, remembrance (evolved from jealousy to platonic love). Pink: Admiration, elegance, gratitude, joy (lighter pinks for admiration, darker for thanks). Orange: Enthusiasm, desire, fascination, energy, excitement.
Wednesday, 12/10/2025: Posted photo — Abstract.
This is a fill in photo that I took this week. I wanted to try something artistic.
Aialik Glacier is in Kenai Fjords National Park and is in the Harding Icefield. You can find the Aialik Glacier a little over 15 miles from Seward and it is the largest glacier in Aialik Bay. Aialik Bay is in Kenai Fjords National Park.
We visited the glacier a few years ago as part of an Alaskan cruse.
Friday, 12/12/2025: Post photo — Star on Tree.
Here is a photo of the star that is on top of our tree. My brother-in-law made it for us.
Saturday, 12/13/2025: Post photo — Lights on our Tree.
Lights on our tree. Did a slight abstract photo.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Today everything exists to end in a photograph.” — Susan Sontag
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
This is a repost from four years ago. I have been busy looking through all the wedding photos that I took last weekend.
Sunday, 10/12/2025: Posted photo — Lakeside.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 400, f/7.1, 1/125 s, 32 mm.
Today we took the dock out of the water at the cottage. The water was cold when first going into it, and then it did not feel so bad. We need to go into the water to lift part of the dock off its foundation to bring it in. Many years ago, the tires on the bottle of the support legs on the dock fell off so we manually need to lift the dock out of the water.
Before the dock was removed, I went out on it to enjoy the foliage from out in the water. I took this photo shortly before the dock was removed from the water.
The day is always a fun filled day with family and friends.
Monday, 10/13/2025: Posted photo — Trees in the Sun.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/125 s, 50 mm.
This is the backside, or inlet side, of the falls at Round Meadow Pond. You have seen a few photos of the water flowing over the dam since that is one of my favorite spots to photograph. I took this photo because of the bright colors of the foliage, and I liked the way the light was reflecting off the trees.
Tuesday, 10/14/2025: Posted photo — More Foliage.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/160 s, 50 mm.
Not much to say about this photo. The foliage is starting to get to peak in this area, so I am taking as many foliage photos as I can.
One thing I can say about this photo, and my other foliage photos, is that they look very bright. The histogram looks good for these photos, but the photos look bright when viewing on some screens. It might be because I use calibrate monitors to edit my photos and the other monitors are not calibrated.
Time to do some research into this issue. Maybe I should get one or two of them printed to see how the colors come out.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/250 s, 72 mm.
I was going to post another foliage photos today but decided to post a photo of the morning dew. This photo was meant to show the dew and to break up my trend of foliage photos. Too much of a good thing is not always good.
I attempted to capture the light off the dew on the grass. Please leave a comment to let me know how well I captured the light and to give me some tips to improve.
Thursday, 10/16/2025: Posted photo — Lightning at Sea.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/5.6, 15 s, 48 mm.
15 second exposure looking out to see in Jacksonville Beach, FL a few years ago.
During a past vacation, my family rented a condominium on Jacksonville Beach. My wife has relatives that live in both Jacksonville Beach and Neptune Beach, so we travel to the area relatively often. Most of the time we rent a house or condo not on the beach.
A common occurrence in Florida is a storm out to sea at night. It is such a great sight to see the lightning in the distance. On this night, I decided to put my camera on my tripod, set the exposure time to 15 seconds, to capture the storm. After looking at the photos, my only regret was that I did not leave my shutter open for 30 seconds.
There will always be another trip back to the beach.
Here are a few camera settings for photographing daytime and nighttime lightning that I have picked up over the years:
Camera settings tips for photographing daytime lightning photos:
Set up camera on a sturdy tripod.
Turn off any image stabilization you might have. If image stabilization is on, the camera will think it is moving when the shutter engages, even though there is not camera movement.
Focus camera lens on infinity or on an object in the distance.
Set the aperture of the lens to f/16 or smaller. This will close the iris inside the lens, allowing a longer shutter speed to be used.
Set ISO to lowest it will go, for example use ISO 100.
Take a test exposure using the slowest shutter speed allowed to see if the image is exposed correctly and your focus is correct.
Set your camera on manual or bulb.
Use a remote timer/intervalometer to fire the shutter continuously.
Here is an example of a daytime lightning photo. This photo was handheld since the storm arrived quickly. For your information, we did not hike down into the Grand Canyon that day.
Camera settings for photographing night-time lightning
Set up camera on a sturdy tripod.
Turn off any image stabilization you might have. If image stabilization is on, the camera will think it is moving when the shutter engages, even though there is not camera movement.
Focus camera lens on infinity or on an object in the distance.
Set the aperture of the lens to a medium value, such as f/5.6 or f/8. This will allow a longer shutter speed by bringing in more light and improve image quality at the same time by allowing the use of a lower ISO value.
Set ISO to lowest it will go, for example set your is to ISO 100. You may have to increase your ISO to ISO 200–ISO 400 depending on the lighting in the area. I prefer my ISO set at ISO 100 for all my lightning shots.
Set your camera on manual or bulb.
Set the shutter speed to between 5 and 20 seconds. You can set it up to 30 seconds if you are in a dark area.
Take a test shot to see if the scene is exposed correctly, remembering that if a strike does happen in the field of view it could light up the scene considerably, depending on how big the strike looks in the photo.
Use a remote timer/intervalometer to fire the shutter continuously.
Friday, 10/17/2025: Post photo — Clouds.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 200, f/7.1, 1/1250 s, 37 mm.
Today I am posting a photo of a cloud. I took many photos today, but this one was the only one that I liked.
Saturday, 10/18/2025: Post photo — Aster.
Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/320 s, 106 mm.
I went to my mother’s house today to make sure everything was fine at the house. I also collected some of the wood from the tree that fell on her house about a year ago to bring home to burn. Earlier in the day, I took photos at Leominster State Forest. I went hiking at Leominster State Forest last night and went back today to get some more photos. I will be posting the photos I took in this blog for you to see what I did not post for my 365 project.
When I was at her house, I noticed a lot of asters. I also saw that there was an abundant number of bees flying around the asters. What a great photo opportunity. The aster flowers (Aster spp.) add color to the autumn landscape while offering beauty with little work when caring for asters.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per cameram meam.”
“If you see something that moves you, and then snap it, you keep a moment.” — Linda McCartney
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
Sunday, 09/14/2025: Posted photo — Rosebud.
A few weeks ago, I constructed a planter for some roses that I purchased. I purchased white roses and yellow roses. The white roses bloomed a couple of times since I purchased them and the yellow roses looked like they were not going to live.
When I planted them, I was hopeful that they both would take root. I took my time and fed them, watered them, and removed weeds to help them grow. The white roses bloomed in the bed again, bending under their own weight. I need to support the blooms the next time I see them start. The yellow roses are starting to have multiple blooms.
This is a photo of one of the rosebuds from the yellow plant. It looks like it will bloom this week. If it does, I will post a photo of it later this week.
I am starting to learn about growing roses. There is much to learn, and any advice will be greatly appreciated.
The bearded dragon is equipped with armor of spiny reptilian scales, which include a “beard” of spikes under its chin that puffs up depending on its mood. A Bearded Dragon represents change, rebirth, and renewal.
This bearded dragon is the pet of one of my brothers. We stopped at his house on the way to one of the two weddings we attended last weekend. One was in Naples NY, and one was in Westminster MA the next day.
Tuesday, 09/16/2025: Posted photo — Chinese Swan Goose.
Wild goose symbolizes loyalty, integrity, and love.
This goose was swimming at the Old Mill during the time of the second wedding we attended last weekend.
This is the centerpiece from the second wedding. The first wedding was more traditional, and the second one was less traditional. The first wedding had less traditional food, and the second wedding had more traditional food.
Both weddings were special in their own way. The first was for a friend, and the second was for my niece. Wishing them both many happy years.
Thursday, 09/18/2025: Posted photo — Jump Off Point.
Ontario County Park at Gannett Hill has a lookout point called Jump Off Point. There is an overlook at the point, but not much of a drop to jump off, just a steep hill.
We took a walk to look at the views before packing up our camping equipment and heading to the wedding we were going to photograph. This was the first of two weddings over the weekend.
This park is very well maintained and is growing. The campsite we had the first time we were there, and when my wife and son camped there a few years ago, is now occupied by the camp host. I can understand why he took that site, it was the best one in the park.
Friday, 09/19/2025: Post photo — Orntario St. Bridge.
This bridge is a hidden wonder. The newly married couple wanted to take photos on this bridge after the ceremony. The bridge had debris on it, so before we took photos, we purchased a broom and swept off the bridge. We later presented the broom as a wedding gift. The couple loved the idea that we gave them this broom that was part of their special day.
Saturday, 09/20/2025: Post photo — Milky Way.
Second attempt at a Milky Way photo using my cellphone. This one was better than the first one, but still not great. There still was light pollution in the area. I attempted to block the light, so this photo came out slightly better.
I will keep taking this photo in darker areas to get a good one.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
Bonus
Here is the photo of the rose in Sunday’s photo in bloom.
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per cameram meam.”
“Photography has nothing to do with cameras.” — Lucas Gentry
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
Sunday, 07/20/2025: Posted photo — Bed of Roses.
A few weeks ago, I posted a photo of the roses in our front yard waiting for a flower bed to be installed. This is the flower bed that I put in. It is not as raised as I would have liked, but the frame still allows me to protect the roses during the winter.
Once I am sure the roses are stable, I will design the protection for the harsh winter weather.
Horsetail Falls is a waterfall located on Horsetail Creek along the Columbia River Gorge in Multnomah County, Oregon. It is 224 feet tall and is just down the road from Multnomah Falls.
The bottom of this fall is a good swimming hole. There were many people cooling off under the falls. We did not go swimming since we arrived at our campsite and wanted to see both Multnomah Falls and Horsetail Falls.
Tuesday, 07/22/2025: Posted photo — Trying to Hide.
This group of Chicken of the Woods mushrooms was trying to hike in the burl of this tree. They are doing a good job blending in. Once the mushrooms age, and turn brown, you may not be able to spot them.
I am amazed sometimes about the time it must of took to carve words into rocks on the trails. This marking has the name of the trail on Wachusett Mountain.
There are many other graffiti carvings as you get to the summit. There were a few hotels on the mountain and the kids must have carved this into the rocks, just as in modern day kids use spray paint. Only that carving in the rock would have taken much longer to do.
Thursday, 07/24/2025: Posted photo — Echo Lake.
The primary difference between a pond and a lake is in their depth and the penetration of sunlight. Ponds are shallower, allowing the sunlight to reach the bottom, while lakes are deeper. A pond generally has a uniform temperature while the temperature profile for a lake is not uniform. There are no definitive definitions for the differences, just the general rule of thumb.
Echo Lake is not very deep. I can see the bottom while looking at it. It may be called a lake by those that named it because they did not know the difference. They did use this body of water in the winter months to cut out blocks of ice to be used in ice boxes before there was reliable refrigeration.
Friday, 07/25/2025: Post photo — Communication Towers.
Here is a photo of some communication towers on the summit of Wachusett Mountain.
I do not know if they are active or not. I have heard conflicting reports about their use and cannot find any information on their use. I should have gone to the building and looked for any signs. I have seen signs on the stone building next to them, but that was a few years ago.
As with most things, you see them many times and then you just see them. I have gone by these towers hundreds of times and can tell you many things about the building, but what is on signage.
Saturday, 07/26/2025: Post photo — Wind Energy.
This is a photo of one of the two wind turbines used by the Princeton Municipal Light Department and are located at the trailhead for the Stage Coach Trail on Wachusett Mountain.
Selected information on these turbines from the PMLD website: Each blade on the turbine is 125 feet long and weighs six tons. The blade tip speed is 204 mph with the turbine turning at 17-20 rpm. The annual energy output of the two turbines is 4,000,000 kWh’s. The wind speed needed to start producing energy is 7 mph. The cutout wind speed is 45 mph. In 2010, the turbines produced 6,001 MWh of power and in 2023 only produce 2762 MWh of power. I cannot find out any information regarding the reduced power output.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Photograph: a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art.” — Ambrose Bierce
Here are more photos from my adventures this summer.
Sunday, 07/13/2025: Posted photo — Columbine.
The Columbine was chosen as Colorado’s state flower because of its beauty, its representation of the state’s natural environment, and its symbolic significance. It was officially designated on April 4, 1899, following a vote by Colorado schoolchildren in 1891.
I saw many columbines of different colors during my hike today.
Monday, 07/14/2025: Posted photo — Madden Peak.
I finally conquered this 12K peak. The peak is 11,982 feet tall, close enough to call it a 12K peak. There were great views at the summit. I drank plenty of water and had snacks to avoid altitude sickness.
This was my second attempt at the summit. A few years ago, I was about 400 feet from the summit when it looked like a storm rolled in. That was a good choice to turn around since there was hail, thunder and lightning and heavy rain.
Tuesday, 07/15/2025: Posted photo — Road to Mesa Verde.
This is the road that leads into Mesa Verde National Park. I just liked all the switchbacks on the road.
Wednesday, 07/16/2025: Posted photo — Mesa.
This is the view of the Mesa in Mesa Verde National Park. My brother-in-law and I hiked to the edge of the mesa. My BIL works at the park.
It was a warm down hike after hiking on the 10K Via Ferrata and the 12K Madden Peak.
Shoshone Falls, known as the “Niagara of the West,” is a majestic waterfall on the Snake River in Idaho. This was a wonderful side trip on our way to camp near the Oregon Trail.
Friday, 07/18/2025: Post photo — Oregon Trail.
The Oregon Trail was a 2,170-mile (3,492 km) emigrant route to the Willamette Valley in Oregon, used by hundreds of thousands of American pioneers from 1841 to 1880. It stretched from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon. Tonight’s campsite was just off the Oregon Trail.
There was a visitor information center that featured some covered wagons. This is one of them.
Saturday, 07/19/2025: Post photo — Multnomah Falls OR.
Multnomah Falls is a waterfall located on Multnomah Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, east of Troutdale, between Corbett and Dodson, Oregon. According to Native American lore, Multnomah Falls was created to win the heart of a young princess who wanted a hidden place to bathe.
The upper falls is 542 feet tall and the lower falls is 69 feet tall.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Photographs open doors into the past, but they also allow a look into the future.” — Sally Mann
As I get back to work, I am putting some photos together from the first week of my vacation. I did not sit down every day and write about the photo. I will be setting time aside next week to do so.
Sunday, 07/06/2025: Posted photo — Framed.
Mount Rainier from the plane as I was going back home.
Monday, 07/07/2025: Posted photo — Trail Sign.
One of the trail signs in Buttermilk Falls State Park, Ithaca NY. This was on the Gorge Trail in the park.
This was not the first time I was at Gateway Arch. I was there a few years ago. It looked like the entrance to the Arch was moved from the first time I was there. I had more time today to explore the Arch and the area. I did not go into the Arch again.
Friday, 07/11/2025: Post photo — Busch Stadium.
I was looking forward to going to Busch Stadium. This is the site that the Red Sox broke the curse in 2004. Not the same stadium. This one was built in 2006. The ushers were asking us if we were rubbing in the World Series victory since we had Red Sox shirts on. They were just joking with us.
Saturday, 07/12/2025: Post photo — Bridal Veil Falls.
Bridal Veil Falls in Telluride CO. I passed these falls as I was going to the Via Ferrata trailhead. I did not do the entire Via Ferrata. I did the part where there was ground under my feet. I turned around before doing the section that was along the cliff face with only steel rungs to put your feet.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”
“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”
“Every one of us is, in the cosmic perspective, precious. If a human disagrees with you, let him live. In a hundred billion galaxies, you will not find another.” ― Carl Sagan, Cosmos
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
I had a medical procedure done this week, so I did not have any quality time to put together the post I wanted. What I am posting this week is what I wanted to post during the summer when I was exploring our country.
These are some astrological events that I have photographed over the years.
For reference, most of the time when there is a cosmic event in our area, there seems to be cloud cover, and I miss the event. These are events that I was able to capture.
Sunday, 05/18/2025: Posted photo — Baily’s Beads.
Date: April 8, 2024
Location: Houlton ME
This was the second total solar eclipse that I have seen and photographed. I learned from the first eclipse and feel this is a better photo than the first time. I will be posting a photo of the first total solar eclipse in the bonus section of this post.
This was the first astrological event of this year.
This is the second astrological event of this year.
The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, normally do not appear in my area. This was the second time this year that they appeared. The first time I just took out my cell phone and took photos so that I could practice settings. The next few nights, it was cloudy.
I was glad that they returned, and I obtained better photos. This is not as spectacular as some that I have seen since we have hills in the area.
This was the third event of the year. I took my camera to the summit of Wachusett Mountain to get this shot. The comet was moving away from us and was very faint. I am happy with this photograph.
This was the second comet that I have photographed and did not have the opportunity to so a lot of pre-planning for this shot since the idea of taking this photo was spontaneous.
Wednesday, 05/21/2025: Posted photo — Total Lunar Eclipse.
Date: January 24, 2019
Location: Westminster MA
I arose early one cold January night to take this series of photos. I wanted to capture the entire event. There is a location near our house that was open and sheltered, so I just set up camp there and took this series of photos.
If you look at the big crater, The South Pole-Aitken basin, you can see it swing from right to left.
Thursday, 05/22/2025: Posted photo — First Milky Way.
Date: July 11, 2019
Location: Canyonlands National Park, Needles Section
We were in a dark sky Nation Park, and I wanted to take a photo of the Milky Way for the first time. I had to wait until 2 am to take this photo. The moon set about 1:45 am and I wanted to attempt this photo with no moonlight.
Not bad for the first time.
Friday, 05/23/2025: Post photo — Two Lunar Eclipses.
Date: January 24, 2019, and March 14, 2025
Location: Westminster MA
I was not happy with the photos I took of the total lunar eclipse this year because of cloud cover. I wanted to put together another collage but decided to put the two eclipses side by side.
If you look closely, you can see the direction of the shadow in totality. The south pole in the first eclipse is bright and the north pole in this year’s eclipse is bright. This year’s eclipse came from the third quadrant to the first quadrant.
Saturday, 05/24/2025: Post photo — Comet NEOWISE.
Date: July 19, 2020
Location: Templeton MA
This was the first photo I took of a comet. I am very happy with the lighting and composition of this photo.
That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.
Bonus Photos
B1 — Total Solar Eclipse Houlton ME.
Date: April 8, 2024
Location: Houlton ME
Much improvement from the eclipse back in 2017.
If you want to know, I have a solar filter for my camera so that I do not burn out the sensors when taking photos of the sun when it is not in totality.
B2 — Total Solar Eclipse.
Date: August 8, 2017
Location: Maryville TN
This is the first total solar eclipse that I witnessed. I had my settings incorrect in this photo, so I was very happy to be able to see my second total eclipse and learn from my mistakes.
B3 — Bright Sky Milky Way.
Date: July 19, 2020
Location: Templeton MA
Just fooling around while taking photos of the Comet NEOWISE.
Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.
Looking for some new quotes to use. If you have any, please put them in the comments.
This week’s comments are small since I had to take an unexpected trip and did not bring my computer with my.
Sunday, 04/13/2025: Posted photo — Palm Sunday.
Palm Sunday recalls the story of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, greeted by people waving palm branches. It is a reminder to welcome Jesus into our hearts and to be willing to follow him.. In those days, only kings road on donkeys and their donkeys were not allowed to walk on the dirt, so the people put down palms.
Monday, 04/14/2025: Posted photo — Airplane.
I had to take a quick trip for work today. Did not know that I was traveling until mid afternoon. I jumped on a plane tonight and headed to my destination.
Tuesday, 04/15/2025: Posted photo — Chicago.
Part of my travel was a layover in Chicago. This is when I was leaving the airport and heading to my final destination.
I did drive by a sign for Churchill Downs on my way to a meeting. Since someone else was driving, I did not see the racetrack. I did see this horse and jockey at the airport on my way home.
Friday, 04/18/2025: Post photo — Good Friday.
This is the second holiest day of the year. It is the only day that there is no mass, just a service. Good Friday is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary.
When I was young and going to Catholic school, we would have day off from school so that we could reflect on our lives from noon to three o’clock in the afternoon.
I took a photo of this brick that was in our yard since it has the work “pray” on it. It seemed appropriate for today.
Saturday, 04/19/2025: Post photo — Daffodils.
Spring weather is here today. The daffodils started to bloom this week. We have a few groups of them in our yard.
Photo by Joseph Ciras 