Life: Through the Lens

We heard Al Gore talk again on the importance of taking care of the earth, and everything on it. Flipping through channels we saw him on Oprah tonight, a show we don't usually watch. She also interviewed those who think Gore's message is wrong. It still surprises me that someone thinks Gore is "wrong." Whether global warming happens slowly, or quickly, it's still happening. Does it matter the length of time it takes for icebergs to melt, or land to dry up? It's happening, so we should be able to start taking steps to slow it down, or turn the tide in the right direction, don't you think? Educating young people to become conservationists makes total sense. If children are taught from a young age to take care of the planet, we are that much further ahead in conserving our resources, and helping maintain the health of the planet for future generations. Photography is a perfect medium in which to work....helping young people "see" the world around t...

Cold winds blow, snow starts to spit, and we want to grab a book or magazine and huddle under a blanket by the fire. It's possible a camera could gather dust, unless we work to look for those photo ops. Sometimes it's a field trip with a youngster which gets the creative juices flowing again. One such opportunity arose just last week, when we gladly took on a baby sitting task - the 4-year old granddaughter. What a blast it was taking her to a children's science museum. Impressions 5 Museum, in Lansing, is designed to allow youngsters to touch every display. There's a room specifically for infants to 4-year olds, with other displays throughout the museum to teach older children about a variety of science concepts, from electricity to stars to the digestive system. We spent some time in the room for the littler visitors, but also enjoyed experimenting with all the other touchable displays, like the musical instruments, or the various mirror exhibits. Of course, it helps ...

It's always exciting to see our work hung on a wall, and in a place where a large number of people will see it. Such has been the case this last month at Gone Wired Cafe, in Lansing, MI. We attended the Opening Ceremony yesterday and once again looked at the variety of work hung by a number of mid-Michigan photographers. Most of the work is for sale, and a fundraiser is taking place to raise money for the Woldumar Nature Center - http://www.woldumar.org/ . You can adopt a photo to help this cause. All photographs will be on display through December 31 of this year, and our hope would be to attract attention to our work, as well as make a few sales. The deeper goal, of course, is to create an awareness of the need to protect our world, and garner interest in the greater good. Take photographs, yes; but more importantly, enjoy the wonders and beauty of our world.

Autumn is such a delightful season, full of color and energy. The cool mornings are now coating our Michigan fields and yards with a blanket of frost, which sparkles as the sun comes up. The sky on these mornings is clear. If you get up really early you can watch stars disappear, the moon glow and the sun brighten the morning sky with color. It's magic. Yes, it does mean winter is coming. We're working on keeping an upbeat attitude about the winter, knowing it means the earth and many living things are taking a break. The human population can either snuggle down under the fleece throw, put a log on the fire, and get caught up on reading and other indoor projects, or can enjoy the outdoor sports so popular in Michigan and other cold-weather locales. Skiing, sledding, ice skating, snow-shoeing, making snowmen....choose your winter activity. As far as photography, it's still early morning and late afternoon shooting, for the most part, and remembering to pay attention to all t...

It's that time of year. Though we love the freedom of movement wearing summer clothes offers, sweater-weather is our favorite time of year. The air is crisp and there seems to be more energy in the air. We tend to move more quickly and feel like "doing" things more than those lazy summer days. We've been planning our annual trek to Michigan's upper peninsula to enjoy the first full flash of autumn color. Of course, predicting when the optimum time is for our excursion is not an exact science. And we do have work schedules to work around. The first weekend we thought would work is not going to work....so we are already working on Plan B. Our 23rd wedding anniversary is coming up in a couple of weeks, which would seem like a great weekend to be away...but will the color cooperate and stay with us long enough? I am currently working on an article about the experience of participating in a photo workshop - which actually forces you to get up early for fabulous sunris...

Scenes from the Nick Adams stories, by Hemingway, depicted through "fish" art. We have finally completed viewing, and most of the editing, of the thousands of photographs we took on our western adventure this past summer. I say "past," as the calendar indicates we are now into fall! It's is amazing how quickly the seasons pass, and the countdown until Christmas can be heard. In reviewing our memories, it's interesting to see how the arts can be found in a variety of forms. We have noticed the last few years that painting "things" is becoming a big deal in many communities. In the upper peninsula of Michigan there are painted moose gracing the front lawns of many businesses, and in Holland, MI there are pigs. Yes, pigs. Michigan is celebrating Hemingway this year, and a Petosky artist has painted a fish, a recurring theme in his writing, with scenes from his Nick Adams stories (above). Art is alive and well throughout the country. In Jackson Hole, ...

I can't tell you how often I've heard people say that September 1st signals the end of summer. If you look at a calendar, this isn't true. And if you're outside on a day like today, in 90 degree heat, there is no way you could believe it was the end of summer. A week ago our granddaughter spent the day with us, and learned about the world of insects. We were on a crusade to find a monarch caterpillar for a kindergarten teacher I know. She lives in town and has a difficult time finding the caterpillars, which are a very important lesson in her classroom at the beginning of the year. So the granddaughter and I headed out. She was very excited at first, but then decided it was too hot, too far to walk, and not fun looking on the underside of all the milkweed leaves. If she saw a bug she jumped back with a screech. Well, this had to change, so I let her look through my close-up lens, a 100mm macro for my Canon 30D camera. All of a sudden the world opened up, and she thought...