Throwback Thursday View - 31 January 2019 Edition

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Today's throwback is from January 31, 2015 at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square Pennsylvania. And just like right now it was during Orchid Extravaganza. Of course there's always lots of variety of flowers at Longwood all year round and today we take a look back at some of them. And I hope to get back there soon to do some more shooting. Please be sure to Click Here to see my original post. Also I would like to throw in a teaser of sorts. Coming up real soon I will be doing some very special posts. Some of you may know already but I don't want to give away too much right now. Please stay tuned.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Wednesday View - 30 January 2019 Edition

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Today for a quick post I am sharing a couple more snow shots from yesterday afternoon. As you can see we didn't get a whole lot but to make up for it we are having some of the coldest temperatures in decades. 

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Tuesday View - 29 January 2019 Edition

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Just like many of you in the same region as me I saw a pretty significant change in the weather today. The morning was chilly as Winter ought to be but it warmed to the low 40's. Then by the end of the day the temperature dropped and snow started to fall. And now we are supposed to get some record low temps. For today's photo here is a shot of one of our garden decorations that I recorded after work.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Monday View - 28 January 2019 Edition

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Yesterday I shared our newly sprouting hyacinth and also mentioned that our amaryllis is coming out of dormancy. In fact it seems to be getting taller every day. And as promised here it is. Stay tuned for more as it grows over the next several weeks. If you haven't seen it before you will be surprised.

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Yes I know that window needs cleaning.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Sunday View - 27 January 2019 Edition

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We have a good number of houseplants. In fact I've shared them here many times. Now something I've learned over the years is that when it comes to bulb plants is to never give up on them. Sometimes they don't grow for quite a while but then one day start to grow again. This just happened with our hyacinth. It's been well over a year of nothing but a dormant bulb (actually two bulbs) and a dirt filled pot then one day last week I saw green. That green got bigger a few days later and I have since refreshed the soil and it's really taking off now. Today I would like to share our hyacinth with you and in the coming days and weeks update you on it's progress. I did something like this a few years ago with our amaryllis, which by the way also just sprouted up again after many months of dormancy.

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Stay tuned for our amaryllis.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Saturday View - 26 January 2019 Edition

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Today was one of two Saturdays a year that I had to work. Working on Saturday isn't my favorite thing in the world but I can't complain. I always feel very fortunate to have a Monday through Friday job because in today's world a lot of people do not. But all that being said I didn't have a lot of time to get out and shoot so for today's photo I am sharing a squirrel from last weekend.

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A little soft but I like it.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Friday View - 25 January 2019 Edition

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Friday is here once again and that means it's time for another Schnitzel picture. This week we see him hanging out under the dining room table where he enjoyed an after dinner chew.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Throwback Thursday View - 24 January 2019 Edition

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Today's throwback takes us to January 24, 2015 at Valley Forge National Park. One of my favorite places to shoot. The weather that day was a little colder than today. And it's a good thing because it rained heavy here all day and if the temperature was about 20° colder we would have gotten about a foot or so of snow.

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This is just inside the main entrance. Please Click Here to see my original post that has a few more photos from that day.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Wednesday View - 23 January 2019 Edition

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Today was a very busy one my friends. Both at work and after. So time sort of got away from me. As such I am posting a quick snapshot. I shot this along a back road in Lancaster County a couple weeks ago. Except this time we didn't run into any horse and buggies. 

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Tuesday View - 22 January 2019 Edition

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Today I was up early as usual for work and going about my regular business and as I was outside filling the feeders and keeping an eye on Schnitzel as he went about his business I looked up at a spectacularly clear sky and a nice view of the Moon. So against my better judgement I grabbed my camera and tripod and shot off a few frames. Now it may not have been as cold as yesterday but it was still cold. About 12° F in fact. But hey it was better than 7° F, right? So for today's photo I am sharing the Moon.

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And here is Part 3 of Sunday's Cafe video as promised. Make sure you watch 'till the end.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Monday View - 21 January 2019 Edition

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Today I am continuing with yesterday's photos shot at the Cafe. Oh how much warmer it was yesterday. A perfect day to be outside shooting. Today I wouldn't even think about spending time outside with my camera. So here is one of yesterday's squirrels enjoying a peanut. He and the other local squirrels spent most of the day bulking up and today they are staying inside of their dens keeping warm.

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And here is Part 2 of yesterday's video which of course is best viewed at full screen in 1080p.

And that will do it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Sunday View - 20 January 2019 Edition

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Today was a strange one around here. Weather-wise at least. Last night when we went to bed it was snowing and sleeting and there was probably an inch on the ground. Not much but it was there. And it was very cold. About 25° F I believe. When I woke up this morning it was about 37° F and there was barely any sign of snow. It was wet though. It warmed up a bit more throughout the day and got very windy. This dried up the pavement and road surfaces and now it's cold and dry. Emphasis on cold. It's going down to around 7° F tonight with a high of about 15° F tomorrow. But enough of the weather forecast. You're here (I hope) for a photo right? Well being that it was warm this morning I got to spend a little time in the Cafe to watch the squirrels and birds and oddly enough had my camera in hand. I shot about 500 frames too which gave me a lot to work with including the shot I am sharing with you today. I'll give you a hint, it's a squirrel.

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A little soft for my liking but I love the scene.

Also, once again I set up the GoPro at the same feeders as yesterday but this time there was a lot more action. So much so that I split one long video into three small ones. Here is Part 1.

As always this should be viewed full screen at 1080p.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Saturday View - 19 January 2019 Edition

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Today was one of those very rare Saturdays for us because we spent the day at home. There was just so much to do to clean up after the holidays. I am happy to say though that things are pretty much done. In addition to cleaning inside I also spent some time outside cleaning the yard (aka The Cafe). And speaking of the Cafe I must say that it was a rather slow day. We did have a good number of birds and squirrels but not as many as usual. At least according to how much was eaten out of the feeders. I thought the weather was the reason but have since discovered there were two other reasons. One was a hawk spying over the yard for a while and second one of the local stray cats was sitting nearby watching the birds. But everything cleared up and business went back to normal. And that is when I shot today's photo.

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In addition to doing some shooting with my camera today I also did a little video work. I set up my GoPro near a couple of the feeders for about 45 minutes or so and came away with a whopping 50 seconds of usable material. I told you it was a slow day. But what I got is pretty good so I am sharing it with you. Please remember to view it full screen and at 1080p for best quality.

And that will do it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Friday View - 18 January 2018 Edition

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I shot this week's Friday Schnitzel picture this afternoon after work while he was playing with one of his favorite toys.  And amazingly he cooperated. I guess he's getting used to the camera.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Throwback Thursday View - 17 January 2019 Edition

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Today's throwback is from January 17, 2015 and was shot in Lancaster County Pennsylvania. Funny thing is we were just out there last Saturday. And I'm glad we went when we did because the weather this weekend is questionable. Here is today's photo.

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Be sure to Click Here to see my original post.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Wednesday View - 16 January 2019 Edition

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Today I am sharing one more snow closeup from the weekend. And speaking of snow it looks as if the big storm people have been talking about for this upcoming weekend may not amount to much. But then again you never know. Either way I hope to get out and do some shooting. Please enjoy today's photo.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Tuesday View - 15 January 2019 Edition

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Today's photo is yet another snow pic from this past weekend. Tomorrow's probably will be too. So let's get right to it. This is one of our holly trees. We have two and I must say they are rather large. We used to have three but as much as I hate to cut a tree down we had to because it was literally right up on the house. The remaining two are doing very well though. Here is today's picture.

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And just to show you how big these trees are I have included this shot. They are almost as big as our 65 year old weeping willow.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Monday View - 14 January 2019 Edition

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I shot a lot of snow closeups yesterday. About three hundred or so actually. So today I am sharing another with you. With this goofy weather we are having this Winter it could very well be the last of the snow until next year. Although we are supposed to get some in a few days. I have my doubts. Anyway please have a look and enjoy. If you like please feel free to leave me a message.

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If you get a chance please visit my website. You can get there by Clicking Here. It's a work in progress but there is still some stuff to see. And don't forget to leave me some feedback using the Contact link.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Sunday View - 13 January 2019 Edition

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The first snow of the year and only the second of the season fell on us last night and today and really did not amount to much. At least around here. And I'm not complaining one bit. What the snow did do however was give me a great opportunity to do a little shooting at the Cafe. AKA our yard. But instead of concentrating on big wide views of snow covered lawns and trees I went the other direction and got up close and personal. With little wind and a lot of light I was able to grab some nice shots. In my opinion at least. And for today's photo I would like to share this with you.

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This is in our front yard and to tell the truth I don't know what it is. It's getting a little tall for my liking and I'll have to prune it but I guess I should find out what it is so I can do so at the right time of year.

I have a lot more to show you but for today I am stopping right here. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Saturday View - 12 January 2019 Edition

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Today Kim and I decided to take a drive out to Lancaster County to visit a couple shops. An antique mall and a holiday shop in particular. And of course we bought more Christmas decorations for next year. After shopping we headed to Morgantown to eat and on the way we ran into this Amish traffic jam.  

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Friday View - 11 January 2019 Edition

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I shot today's Friday Schnitzel picture as soon as I got home from work today. He was still in his "excited to see you mode" and kind of looks disheveled. And as usual he was looking for treats, of course. He's calmed down now until dinner when he enters "begging mode".

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Throwback Thursday View - 10 January 2019 Edition

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Today's throwback is from January 9, 2015 and the subject is another throwback. I've actually done this before not too long ago. The post is from January 2015 but the photo is from March of 2000. And it was shot on film. The place of course is Chinatown in San Francisco California. As I say in my original post I only had two days there which is just not enough time to see a lot but at least the trip was kind of free. Click Here to read all about it.

Speaking of film I have a few projects and retro reviews on the horizon that I think you will enjoy. And I will also be making some updates to my website. If you haven't seen it yet you can check it out Right Here. It is a work in progress but I feel really good about it. It's a place for me to show some of my more in depth work. For today's photo though take a look at this.

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And that about does it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Wednesday View - 9 January 2019 Edition

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For most of the photos that I share here there is probably a few dozen or more RAW images that I never see the light of day. Sometimes a lot more. I never even really look at them for the most part. I do however save them. I have thousands of images sitting on hard drives and backed up online. Now since I didn't have anything in particular to share with you today I decided to peruse some of these forgotten shots and see if there was something I liked enough to post. As it turns out there is quite a bit I really like. And for today's photo I chose this one.

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This is from May of 2016 at I believe Longwood Gardens. I don't know where else I would have been able to shoot fully bloomed flowers that time of year. Kind of makes me wish Spring would hurry up.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Tuesday View - 8 January 2019 Edition

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When I got home from work this evening I really didn't know what I was going to share today. I haven't had a lot of time to get out and shoot thanks mostly to the weather and of course the fact that when I get home it's already dark. Though I will say that there is a little bit more light now that the days are getting longer. So I thought about it a bit and remembered that I have been meaning to show you one of our plants and have just gotten around to it. So for today's photo I would like to share this cactus with you. We've had it for a year or so now and it has already grown out of it's original pot and before long I will be moving it to a yet larger one.

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Actually it's not that the flowering cactus is getting too big itself. The one next to it is growing very quickly. So I either separate them or get a larger pot.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Monday View - 7 January 2019 Edition

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Today's photo is pretty much the same as yesterday's except it was shot about an hour earlier. I really wanted to capture the sunset but my timing was a bit off. But at least it's a good location and I'll be able to try again.

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This is straight out of my camera (phone) with no editing

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

 

Sunday View - 6 January 2019 Edition

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Today was one of those busy Sundays that I intended to take a little time and shoot for a bit. Well it didn't work out that way. We had many errands to run and some work around the house to do so I didn't have much camera time. I did however take a few minutes on our drive home from the supermarket this evening to grab a few frames of the night sky with my camera phone. This is pretty much right out of camera though I did try to reduce the graininess a little in Photoshop. I love the silhouette effect.

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Not bad for a camera phone huh?

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Saturday View - 5 January 2019 Edition

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I have mentioned on more than one occasion that I have a difficult time getting a good picture of Schnitzel because for some reason he seems to be camera shy. Well apparently one of our cats Smidgen is too. But I did manage to get one good shot today.  And here it is for today's photo.

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

 

Friday View - 4 January 2019 Edition

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Good evening my friends. It's Friday at last and you know what that means, right? It's time for a Friday Schnitzel pic! As you may know Schnitzel is not very fond of cameras but he does seem to at least be trying to cooperate with me. It only took me a half dozen tries to get tonight's shot. Of course bribing him with a treat helped a lot. 

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Throwback Thursday View - 3 January 2019 Edition

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Today we take a look back to January 3, 2015 and one of Pennsylvania's many covered bridges. This one is a few miles from Shady Maple in East Earl Township at Poole Forge. Poole Forge is the site of a former pig iron furnace. To read about it please be sure to Click Here to see my original post.

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As you can see in the photo it was a rather rainy day when we visited so Poole Forge is on the list of places we would like to visit again. You know, when the weather is a bit more friendly.

Now for the unveiling.

As you know I post a photo here everyday. Sometimes it's artistic but more and more I tend to share something from my day. And over the past several months I have been posting a lot of snapshots. But I still want a place for my more serious work. Someplace that isn't overshadowed by the snapshots and the "Hey, look where we went today" pictures. So I created a website. Now please understand that this is just a beginning. There is still a lot of work to be done. But I really like the way it's turning out. And I think you will too. So if you would please have a look and let me know what you think. There is even a handy contact form if yu don't want to leave a public message. Here is the website:

Exploration Photography

Have a look around and if you like what you see please feel free to share it. That would be awesome!

And that will do it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Wednesday View - 2 January 2019 Edition

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This past weekend trip to Longwood Gardens was mainly for their Christmas exhibit, "A Longwood Christmas". It's an event that we try to go to every year and it's simply amazing. You really should see it if you ever have the chance. But whenever I visit the Gardens I am always drawn to the flowers. After all they are the main attraction year round. And that's the cool thing. Year round. I can visit any day of the year and see flowers at full bloom. Inside the Conservatory of course. The  Conservatory is warm and offers the perfect environment for the many species of flowers Longwood has to offer. Flowers like the one featured in today's photo.

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Anyone who knows me knows that I love to shoot orchids. In fact I have a few at home. Unfortunately they are not currently at bloom but should be soon. And when they are I will be sure to share them here.

As for the "unveiling", I am in a holding pattern of sorts. It should be fixed by tonight but these things take time and are completely out of my control. When you see you'll understand.

So that's going to it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Tuesday View - January 1, 2019 Edition

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Happy New Year my friends!

It's a new year and I have some new projects in the works. In fact I am almost ready to share one of them with you. Maybe even tomorrow. I'm doing some fine tuning and have some people helping me with testing but I think it's almost ready. Stay tuned! Those of you who do know what I'm talking about please keep it under wraps until it's unveiling. Thanks!

Today I find it fitting to start off the year with one of my favorite and most popular subjects. I am of course talking about a squirrel. On Sunday I shot more than 400 frames of squirrels and to be honest I can only come up with a very small handful of what I would call useful images. I was toying around with the camera settings and used AUTO ISO (Film Speed) instead of manually setting it and most of the frames are too grainy for my liking. I think this one is pretty good though.

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In addition to the new projects I am also making a few changes to this blog. I am still striving to post on a daily basis and will do so for as long as possible. I'm kind of stubborn like that! But to streamline things a bit I am making two main changes. First unless someone asks I am not sharing each images EXIF data. To be honest I think there's only a few out there who are truly interested in what camera and settings I used produce a picture. And second instead of showing the previous days photo in each post I am simply re-sharing it via Twitter and Facebook. I already do this with my mobile updates which have become more and more frequent anyway. So all in all nothing major. I am also going to be doing more robust posts. Kind of like in the early days when I first started out. And of course I will be doing some house cleaning and fixing things here and there.

So that's about it. I think the minor changes will be offset by tomorrow's (hopefully) unveiling.

That's all for now. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...