Autumn Reflections

Morgan County, WV

More of this below.

These pictures are from last month.

Yesterday in Leesburg

Black and White / Weekend Reflections / Floral Friday / #window

Shadow Shot: Tree

Today's post is a short one because I want to be sure I get to bed on time tonight. My dog has been waking me up at the crack of dawn, so I get tired. To add to that, I am trying to recover from a sinus infection so rest is important.

The blogger who hosts Shadow Shot Sunday has a beautiful autumn photo today. Check it out and then see more shadow photos at the linkup.

Shadows and Smoke

 Dickey Ridge, Shenandoah National Park 

These views are from the visitor center at Dickey Ridge. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen that view. It’s a short drive from Front Royal. At times, the 5-mike section of Skyline Drive from Front Royal to Dickey Ridge is the only part of the drive that’s open. It’s not as high in elevation as many parts of the drive, so it’s less likely to be covered with ice or impassable due to downed trees after a storm. 

I don’t know what that smoke was from. There may have been a controlled burn going on. 

Don't Stare at the Sun!

You may not want to stare at these pictures. I felt eyestrain just getting them ready to post! But I did a little experiment today with filters.

It's been years since I used filters on my camera because Photoshop and other programs take care of so many photography problems. I've had a set of graduated filters for a while and finally got an adapter to fit them on my camera. I took the first two pictures a few seconds apart but I turned the filter just to see what difference it made. It really changed the look of the sunbeams as it cut out some of the light.

That's not what it's for though. If you shoot with the dark section of the filter at the top, it will darken the sky a little bit. Since an automatic camera setting tries to average the light to a middle gray, blocking light from the sky allows the camera to let in more light on the lower section of the photo. Here we see a result, with the church showing up as white instead of just a shadowy wall or a silhouette. 

I probably won't use the filters a lot. My cell phone does so much more than any of my cameras did back when I was studying photography, and it does most of it with no effort on my part. Digital photography has made it possible for everyone to get good shots. 

The View from Conicville Church of Christ

This church in Shenandoah County has a fine view that I shared long ago but yesterday the light was so nice that I stopped and took pictures again.

“The most regretful people on earth are those who felt the call to creative work, who felt their own creative power restive and uprising, and gave to it neither power nor time.”  ― Mary Oliver

Photo of the Year 2022

City Daily Photo has a theme for the first of each month, and the theme for January 1st is always Photo of the Year. It isn’t easy choosing one so I made digital copies of images I thought were worthy and then clicked through them several times. I decided on this river scene because it is intriguing, the golden light is pretty, and the location is the Shenandoah River, which is one focus of my blog.

I’ll show you the runners up in collage form to save space.

The young woman is showing her child an exhibit of photos of endangered animals. The icy tree is a recent shot that I took while walking my dog.

A dramatic sky will often prompt me to take a picture.

The Love sign and the small garden are both at Seven Bends State Park. I work with a group that supports the park and I logged 101 volunteer hours in 2022. The park is still being developed but it is open for hiking, fishing, canoeing, and picnicking. There is a great play area for children near the Hollingsworth Road entrance.

The final four images show a hawk, Charlie and me, a unicorn, and a deer. Looking at these reminds me that I saw some wonderful things in the past year. 

Looking for that Holiday Magic

Lights Reflected in Mirror and on Side of Car, in B&W

The buildup to Christmas is exciting when you are a child or when you have young children. I don’t. I've been trying to get into the spirit of Christmas but it's been slow coming to me. I do like seeing the Christmas lights and decorations. When I find something that makes me smile, I just might take a picture of it.

Today my younger daughter Marie showed up, so that cheered me. There is nothing as nice as having loved ones around during the holidays.

Sunday Refection and Shadows

Here we see the Woodstock Presbyterian Church, which I have shown before in 2016. Next to it is another building which I believe they use as a community center.

I had a late start today because my left leg was hurting, possibly due to a reaction to medication. This has happened to me before.

I drove Charlie to the dog park. I let him ride in the front seat this time, in his new dog booster seat and attached to a doggy seat belt. My hope is to decrease his anxiety about riding in the car. He was still anxious and chewed on the new dog seat instead of the chew bone I gave him. 

He played hard in the park, running and jumping with a couple of other dogs. After a while he got out of his winter jacket somehow. I figured by that time he was probably warmed up from the exercise so it didn’t bother him that the temperature was very cold. He rested on the way home.

Zenny is visiting with his traveling parents.

 

Don’t Worry, the Scary Face is For Halloween

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil."

Which brings us to Shadow Shot Sunday.

That shot is a close-up view of a small shrub in front of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Staunton. The church is close to another Baptist church that I showed last week, and its history is interesting.

Soon after the Civil War, a group of former slaves held services in a white Baptist church. In 1868 they rented a log cabin, and erected a better building two years later. Membership grew to 150 people, so they built the current edifice and dedicated it in 1874.

According to an online history, "In every undertaking misunderstandings and differences arise. This happened in 1878 in Mount Zion. There arose a disagreement between the pastor and congregation which resulted in the resignation of Rev. Simpson. He and a large number of the members left and formed the Ebeneezer Baptist Church."

 

Inspiration, Moon, and Shadows

An Inspiring Idea Found on the Internet:

Moon: Since I took this with the cell phone, it blurred a little. I darkened the picture so that it looked passable.

Shadows and Barns: 

Barns / Shadow Shot Sunday

Thursday in Millwood

Yesterday I picked up Frank and drove to see Art at the Mill. Charlie rode along because he still has separation anxiety. He has been with me for a month now and we are trying to solve the problems he picked up at the breeding facility before it was shut down. I took Charlie for a walk while Frank was viewing the art show, and then he came out and sat with Charlie while I looked at the art.

The old grist mill is a delightful venue, especially when light is streaming in the windows. Originally we were going to go there last weekend but winds from Hurricane Ian took out the electricity.

Keys

 “Imagination is the only key to the future.” - Ida M. Tarbell

Finding a Rainbow

We have had plenty of hot days that hosted a late day storm. Right after the storm passes, there's a pretty good chance of seeing a rainbow. The other day I needed something at the store and waited for the storm to end before I ventured out. The sun was shining again, and it was the right condition for a rainbow. I caught a glimpse of one to the east and pulled off to a place where I could get a clear view of it.

There was a convenient parking lot behind the fitness center, and I could position myself with the sun on my back. Typically that’s the way you see a rainbow: Sun behind you, moisture in front of you. Sometimes I created one while washing the car.

This is actually a double rainbow but I don’t know if you can see the outer arch.

Shadows to Share

Blog hops, Linkups, Memes... there are various names for the many web pages where you can share your post on a particular theme. I'm sharing this one with Shadow Shot Sunday.

You may have to look twice to see that the lines on the ramp are shadows of the railing.