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posted by James on 01/27/12

First Morning Light

It isn’t every morning that the sky is scattered with gold-lined clouds broken by colorful rays of warm sunlight. I was at the Northwoods Conference Center in the Ottawa National Forest for almost an entire week and this was the only sunrise of it’s rank in splendor.

The hardest part of taking the picture was probably getting out of bed. It was late going to bed the night before and, being in the early autumn, the sunrise was relatively early. But when I woke up and saw the cloud formations in the sky before the sun rose, it was enough motivation to get me up and out the door.

The second hardest thing was enduring the mosquitos. I was surprised that there were so many out so early. But I guess time of day doesn’t matter to a mosquito, and perhaps the chest-high grass and stagnate pond a stones throw away were not much help either.

Another problem was the super high contrast between the bright sky and the dark foreground. I handled this by using a tripod to take two different pictures, one exposed for the sky, the other exposed for the foreground, and merged them together in Photoshop later.

Reaching a goal by overcoming obstacles one at a time is something we must do every day. Faint not, for though the outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. This is the message behind 1 of only 12 pictures used for Lenspiration’s 2012 Calendar.

Take advantage of the New Year Calendar Sell Out: for quantities of 10 or more, buy calendars at 75% OFF for $2.99 each, plus get FREE SHIPPING! Clearance available only while supplies last.

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posted by James on 01/25/12

Falls in the Forest

Of all the pictures in the 2012 Calendar, this one is my favorite! I had been on the lookout for an image like this for years, and yet I didn’t even see it when I first stumbled upon it.

It all started on May 22 of 2011 when I decided to take a break while driving solo along a 200 mile stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia. The name “Apple Orchard Falls” at one of the many scenic overlooks caught my attention, so I stopped, donned my camera backpack and headed down the 1.25 mile trail to the falls. It was easy going on the way in. It was downhill. ALL downhill. Yes, this was nice for now, but I told myself I had better leave twice as much time and energy for the trek back.

About 1 mile into the hike, I crossed a little bridge where I could hear running water off to my left. Through the trees, I could just make out a small waterfall crowning a pile of moss-covered rocks. But in interest of time, I passed it up in hopes of better shots further down the trail at the “real” falls. How picturesque could an unnamed waterfall be, anyway?

I found out that day that unmarked waterfalls can be very picturesque. Not that Apple Orchard Falls wasn’t nice, it’s just that it wasn’t picturesque, meaning it was difficult to capture it’s niceness. After trying for awhile, I finally gave up, knowing that I had run out of time and that there was a long, steep climb ahead of me.

As I passed the unmarked falls on my way back, I decided it wouldn’t hurt to spend a few minutes to give it a try with my camera. And as soon as I stepped off the trail, I wished I had spent my entire time there. The moss, the arrangement of rocks and the solid leaf canopy softening the harsh afternoon light were just perfect. Needless to say, I was extremely late getting to my destination that night, but I think it was worth the effort to get an image that would be chosen as 1 of only 12 pictures used for Lenspiration’s 2012 Calendar.

Take advantage of the New Year Calendar Sell Out: for quantities of 10 or more, buy calendars at 75% OFF for $2.99 each, plus get FREE SHIPPING! Clearance available only while supplies last.

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posted by James on 01/23/12

Life in the Desert

How long did it take for you to discover the little mammal in this picture? At first glance, it isn’t noticeable. And that’s a good thing. I love pictures that are deeper than one look and include little things that pop out each time it is viewed. When I took the picture, however, I didn’t necessarily intend for it to be that way. It just set itself up.

During a family vacation to the Southwest in 2006, we stopped briefly at this scenic spot in Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. There’s not much you can do photography-wise during a “brief stop”, especially at an easily-accessed and over-crowded iconic overlook late in the morning. But this didn’t mean that an opportunity couldn’t present itself, so I put the wide angle on the camera and headed out to see what I could see.

Bryce Canyon is an incredible place. Though definitely not as grand as Grand Canyon, it is geologically unique in it’s own way and is as colorful as it is diverse. As I stood awestruck, taking in the sweeping landscape spread out before me, this little ground squirrel came bouncing across the trail. I reckoned they weren’t too scared of people, seeing that there were so many people around at the time, but I watched it scurry up and onto this gnarled log to pose for a picture. It didn’t take me but a second to compose and take an initial shot, but I moved around and in a little closer to try to get a better angle while I could. I was glad I had my wide angle on: the singular combination of sweeping landscape and close-up focal point really helps to place the ground squirrel in it’s natural environment, where it’s supposed to be.

It’s not every day that a picture sets itself up for me without much effort on my part, so the extraordinariness of the situation was a factor in choosing this image as 1 of only 12 pictures used for Lenspiration’s 2012 Calendar.

Take advantage of the New Year Calendar Sell Out: for quantities of 10 or more, buy calendars at 75% OFF for $2.99 each, plus get FREE SHIPPING! Clearance available only while supplies last.

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posted by James on 01/21/12

Shadows of Approaching Evening

I find it ironic that flat, farmland states such as Indiana and Illinois boast parks that feature long, deep canyons carved in the otherwise bleak landscape. Whether at Turkey Run State Park in Indiana, Hocking Hills State Park in Ohio, or Starved Rock State Park in Illinois, I’ve observed straight trails going on the level in a field or forest come suddenly upon a sheer drop off into a canyon that plunges 50 feet down or more.

It was at just such a park where I took this image used for the month of June in the 2012 Calendar. After a time of hiking around in the twisting ravines of Starved Rock, I settled down for a meal in this large field close to the park entrance. The long, deep shadows impressed me as their long arms grew in synchronicity with the setting sun. Perhaps this seemingly unattractive place would yield a better reward than all those twisting canyons put together.

Treasure isn’t always where we expect to find it. There is that scatters, and yet increases; and there is that withholds more than is meet, but it tends to poverty (Proverbs 11:24). The ironic message of honor through submission softly interwoven in this image helps to give it’s rank as 1 among only 12 chosen for Lenspiration’s 2012 Calendar, now available for purchase online at Lenspiration.com.

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posted by James on 01/13/12

Looking Toward Heaven

Just about every flower is beautiful to look at, and for this reason are extremely common subjects for photographs. Hence, to capture a unique picture of a flower is not common, and not easy. That is what I was thinking when I pulled out the camera and walked down to Mom’s flower garden at our home in West Virginia. Flowers don’t last forever and I wanted to do some experimentation with these day lilies before something happened to them, like being “harvest” for display on the dining room table.

I’m never concerned about getting dirty when taking pictures. But as I lay on my back looking heavenward with the camera pressed against my face, I was grateful that it hadn’t rained too recently. Using the widest lens I had, I picked the most healthy looking bunch of flowers and circled them a few times before finding the perfect angle at which distractions were minimal, both bases of the flowers could be clearly seen, and the glaring, mid afternoon sun was completely covered by the foreground growth.

Many people have questioned me on the authenticity of the flowers, stating that they look plastic. While it is true that they do look fake, there is no question that they are as real as everything else God created. The surreal appearance is created by the sun shining directly through the partially transparent petals and leaves. Backlighting like this naturally increases vibrancy in a picture like nothing else, and was one of many reasons why I chose this picture to be 1 of only 12 pictures used in Lenspiration’s 2012 Calendar.

Take advantage of the New Year Calendar Sell Out: for quantities of 10 or more, buy calendars at 75% OFF for $2.99 each, plus get FREE SHIPPING! Clearance available only while supplies last.

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