On the mountain.

  Well it's been quite a while since I've been here and there has been so much going on. We all made it threw the new year without any problems and I see that I was able to get some pictures posted back in December. I really haven't taken a lot since then but have take a few. If you are one of the people that follow this post I am sorry that it's been so long.

  The winter here has been just rainy and cold. Outside has just been wet, cold, windy and muddy out. we did manage to get one ice over and a couple times it snowed but melted within a couple hours. So no great snow pictures either. Well I can't blame it all on the weather to be honest with you. Even when the sun was out and the temp was above 45 degrees I stayed at the house indoors.

  We got out a couple time and that is where the title comes from. My son and I had looked at a couple of pieces of property after the first of the year and finally picked out one that we are happy with. Our intension was a little land for hunting and camping. One lot was 80 acres and all hillside. It took us a good 2 1/2 hours to get there and it was rough to walk and had been logged within the past 8 years or so. Because of that there wasn't a good canopy from the trees which gave way to a heavy undergrowth. We finally found a smaller 43 acres and were pretty happy with that area and now can go whenever we want. My daughter is already planning out some summer camping there and I am hoping to get up and catch some photos of the wildlife there. For those of you following my flicker site you have seen some of that area and for those who haven't I'll put a couple up here for you to get a idea of how pretty it is there at this time of the year. Enjoy these photos and please view the rest of them from my link on the right.

Seasonal Lights

It's that time of year again when the lights go up all around town. I get out and take a different view of the lights then most people do. When you visit the photos posted on my photos you will see what happens when I twist my brain. Twisting my camera while taking those photos of the lights is just as crazy. So for my December post I'll share some of those for you and if you enjoy these, please follow the link to my Flickr page and get a view of some others. The abstract once are made by using a slow shutter speed and putting a little motion to the camera. Try some up and down, circular motion or even a little zig zag. Take a look and maybe they will get you thinking about reaching out and being more creative. Enjoy the photos and please get out and experiment some.

Fall is here.

Fall has hit and the weather is showing it. This is one of my favorite times of year with the cooler weather and the spectacular colors of the foliage. I was able to get away and take a trip up to the Great Smoky Mountains. On this trip we didn't actually go into the national park, but rather in Gatlinburg along the edge of the park. Gatlinburg Tennessee is considered the gateway to the Smoky's and if you have never been there I highly recommend you visit there when you're in east Tennessee. Though the many years that I have lived here I never get tired of visiting there. The place has changed so much in the years but you can still walk the streets and visit the many shops or watch fresh taffy being pulled or pick up some one of a kind wood carvings. Take a ride on a ski lift chair or take the tram all the way to Ober Gatlinburg where you can enjoy the ice skating rink or visit the bear exhibit outside. As always I'll give you a few photos of Gatlinburg and you can see those and many more on the flickr site by clicking on the link to the right under my photos.

Was Great

San Diego was great while I was there. I was able to spend lots of time with my family and do some great things with them. Kayaking in the bay and at the Imperial dam, going to the car museum, botanical garden and zoo. I got to take my mom out for her birthday along with my brothers. It's so hard to explain how great it was but it was and now I'm back to Knoxville. Was able to get lots of good photos while there and met a lot of people along the way. As normal I posted some pix on the flickr page for you all to enjoy, but here are a couple for a preview.

San Diego's Sea World fireworks.

Have been visiting family in San Diego and managed to get down to Mission bay to view the fireworks from Sea World. I'm making this post a little different then the past by adding a video of the fireworks instead of the usual photos. So this one is short and I want to let you get right to the video. Just click on the attached youtube link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp7SYwqCku4

Car shows

  I made it to another car show today and posted 55 of them on Flickr, you can get there by clicking on My Photos on the right side of the page. As always I will post just a couple of them on my post. This year has offered a lot of car shows and I enjoyed going to each and every one of them. Cars are another one of my passions (second to photography). I think of automobiles as art within themselves. When you meet the owners of the cars, you car see the love they have for their cars. These people have years of work put into their cars. When you go to most shows you will always find a couple of cars for sale. When you talk to them, they will usually tell you that they had so much enjoyment building it that they want to start on another. Just like art, you can buy them if the price is right. Now that is what I call a true passion for cars. As you can tell by the post. (I would love to build one for myself. So before I bore you all, here is a few of the cars from today.

This is only four of the cars, and as I mentioned there are fifty five of them posted. I recommend you view them, not just for the cars but for the variety of photography styles used. For those of you that have a passion for photography, you should take a look and even get some ideas for your next shoot.

Counting down

  Well it's about four more weeks and I'll be out on the west coast again, and I am getting more excited every day as it gets closer. You would think that it isn't that big of a deal since I grew up there and I've been going back out there every year for at least a month at a time. But it is still so nice to spend time with my Mom and Brothers out there, of course it also gives me a chance to take some good photographs in another location other then east Tennessee. Don't get me wrong, there is so many different things that go on out here, I'll never run out things and places to take photos. Being in California for only a month at a time, there will always be something new to shot. Last year I managed to get many Christmas light and decoration shots. this August and September there will be all new opportunities. That's what you can look forward to seeing on this post in a couple of weeks. For now here are a couple photos that have recently been taken.

Don't forget to go to the flicker site and see many more new photos that have been recently added.