Week 12 of 52 - March 2010

OK getting caught back up with the photos I took for week 12. On Sunday of that week I attended mass with my youngest and oldest sons at a CYO youth gathering for our Diocese. My boys play in the Lifeteen band at our church which provides the music at mass twice per month. Their group has been invited to play at the mass for this gathering two years in a row. There were about 600 kids in attendance plus a bunch of adults as well. A great experience for the boys and well worth the 1.5 hour one way drive. Always challenging pics for me with the crazy lights in gyms. I believe these are ISO 800 to 1250.

Here's some pics of the group and my boys!

My oldest on drums.


And my youngest on violin


And a couple of shots of the group

Week 11 of 52 - March 2010

Well trying to get caught up on the blog post! I shot these pics two weeks ago but had not had time to get them off the camera card and uploaded! These captures are all of work by a local artist / carver. He has done quite a bit of work throughout our state and region as well. His work is scattered throughout our town and is quite interesting. His favorite medium is our native limestone but he also works in wood as the one capture shows. The day was overcast and drizzle when I shot these. Hope you enjoy his work!





This carving has quite a bit of moss on it, my processing attempted to enhance this.





Hope to have my current week's post up more timely!

Week 10 of 52 - March 2010

This week brings some new and different signs of spring for me. One of the many enjoyable elements of spring is the return migration of birds especially waterfowl. This first picture is a somewhat unique capture for my area of a drake canvasback duck in the foreground with a drake redhead duck right behind it. Canvasbacks are still fairly uncommon in my area although conservation efforts have done wonders to restore their numbers. I always am amazed at their unique qualities from the shapes of their heads to the red eye of the canvasback and gold eye of the redhead.



The next two pictures involve one of my favorite spring activities; the spring turkey hunting season. From the pursuit of spring turkeys to their amazingly great taste on the table it is one of my favorite things to do. Every year I try to add a new turkey call or two and I had a couple arrive in the mail. Both are made by the same gentleman. The first is a box call hand-crafted of solid maple. The inlays are done by hand as well. This call really sings and the hard wood makes a loud high-pitched yelp; perfect for getting the attention of Kansas turkeys in our wide-open windy conditions. The second call is an owl hooter and does just that, replicates the hoot of an owl. Turkeys respond to these sounds which helps in locating them. These calls are crafted and tuned like a musical instrument and many of the top callmakers have one or two year waiting lists for their calls.

Wish me luck this spring, I wish I could have you over to enjoy the results. My favorite recipe for wild turkey is a cajun style that is served over rice and includes lots of spices, garlic, jalapenos, onions, bacon, and lots of butter! To quote the chef that shared it with me "don't get any on your forehead, your tongue will beat your brains out"! Hopefully I will have pics of this tasty treat come April / May!

Week 9 of 52 - March 2010

March arrived this week with typical early March weather. Rain/snow mix, clouds and windy. There are glimpses of spring around. I found this early blooming flower poking through the dried leaves in my backyard. The wind did not allow for a great shot but it is a glimpse of spring.



The rest of my post is of my almost 2 month old great nephew. My wife and I had the pleasure of watching him while his mom and dad took in a movie and dinner. He napped for a while and then woke up all smiles! Love the dimples on this little guy!

Week 8 of 52 - February 2010

This week's post is one of the main reasons I got interested in photography. I enjoy being outdoors and one of my favorite activities is hunting, specifically waterfowl hunting. I really enjoy studying the birds; the harvest is secondary to me. Photography allows me to extend the season. With spring approaching, birds are starting to migrate back from the south. I found this group of Canada geese about 5 minutes from my home loafing on a small farm pond. The day was a cloudy, overcast day with a dull grey sky. I did some editing of these in Lightroom 2 using presets from Presetopia.