Graceland choir members fill the stage at the Shaw Family Auditorium.
Combine an excellent selection of musical numbers with beautiful performances and you have the recipe for a musical Christmas feast. The Graceland University choirs and orchestra, under the skilled direction of Sara Blessing and Jack Ergo, did themselves proud Friday night at the Shaw Family Auditorium in Lamoni, Iowa. The evening was filled with beautiful musical renditions.
Cougar, Wildlife Prairie Park, Illinois, December 9, 1995.
My favorite photo for today’s date happens to be one of my all time favorite images. The intensity in the face makes this photo. It was a bitter cold morning with a windchill of -40 degrees. I was in my heaviest winter clothes and I still got chilly in the brisk wind..
Anoush Anou, Columbus Ohio. December 6, 2016.
This is my favorite photo for December 6. I was working with Anoush Anou, a professional model from New Zealand who has relocated to Ohio.
Graham Parsons and the Go Rounds. The Strutt. Kalamazoo Michigan. Dec 4, 2009.
I was in Kalamazoo for a fashion show followed by a series of local bands in concert. This photo of Graham Parson and the Go Rounds ended up being my favorite photo of the evening, and one of only two favorite photos for this date in my “favorite photos” folder.
Terran, Iowa. December 1, 2018.
Our grandson Terran at three weeks old. My favorite photo for December 1.
Favorite Photos, November. Click for a larger version.
Here are my favorite photos for the month of October. The story behind this “favorite photos by date” project is here.
Cadence, Columbus, Ohio. November 30, 2007.
This photo has special memories for me, which is why it is my favorite photo for today’s date. It is one of my all time favorite portraits.
I have a collage of nature and landscape images headlining the home page at JimDoty.com. It gives the impression I am primarily a nature photographer. I decided I also needed a portrait collage that would say “Yes! I do portraits!” This is what I came up with. Each one of these images has a story.
Bryce Canyon
Winter provides some wonderful photo opportunities in our national parks. So if you haven’t gone into hibernation for the winter, here are the best national parks to go photograph this winter, grouped by state from the west to the east. There are a few bonus locations thrown in too. At the end I give you my “best of the best” list.
Family portrait, Ohio. November 28, 2014.
Yep, my favorite photo for today’s date is another family portrait, taken four years ago. It is the time of year families get together and do pictures.
Bryce Canyon After An Overnight Snowstorm
Cold and snow can cause a lot of damage to your camera gear. Something as simple as taking pictures outside and then bringing your camera inside your house or car can cause hidden damage that won’t show up until days or weeks later. The simple steps in this article could save you hundreds of dollars in repair bills.
Sarah Ellis, Window Blind Shadows, Columbus, Ohio. November 27, 2007
This is my favorite photo for November 27. Sara Ellis and I were working together to create images for our portfolios. This is not only one of my favorite images from our photo session, it is one of my all time favorite portraits. The light and shadows were created by sunlight shining through a window blind.
Orion’s Belt and Sword Scabbard and the Orion Nebula
There is a whole world of things to photograph after the sun goes down. Cityscapes at twilight and after dark. Landscapes in the late evening light. Thunderstorms. Fireworks. And then of course, there is astrophotography. The simple stuff is simple to do (once you have learned how to do them) and all you need are a camera, lens, and tripod. For some astrophotography you will need specialized but not very expensive equipment like the $300 sky tracker used for the photo above. The challenging stuff is hard, complicated, and expensive to do if you want the kind of eye popping photos that you see in Astronomy and Sky and Telescope magazines (you should subscribe to one or the other or both if this is your thing). No matter what you want to do, the books below will get you started. And if you just like to look at the night sky, I recommend some books for that too.
Terran, Iowa. November 26, 2016.
My grandson Terran was sitting at the dining room table. Nice and warm late afternoon sunlight was streaming in a window and every once in a while his face was in the light. I liked the light and grabbed a camera. Every time the light looked nice on his face I clicked the shutter. At one point he turned his face toward the light to say something to someone. Click. This is my favorite photo for November 26.
Granite Ledges and Otter Cliff, Acadia National Park, Maine
Your camera falls down a mountainside and off a cliff. An unexpected wave drenches your valuable photo gear in salt water. Your photo backpack is stolen from your home, motel room, or trunk of your car. To add insult to injury, you learn your homeowner’s insurance will not replace the value of your damaged or stolen gear.
Ashly Elliott (left) and Daryn Nowlin (right) sing “Here Right Now” from “Ghost the Musical”.
This guest article also appeared in the November 21, 2018 edition of the Lamoni Chronicle.
Jared, Portage, Michigan. November 24, 2001.
My favorite photo for today’s date is a portrait I did of our son Jared from several years ago. This is one of my favorite family portraits. Our children claim they have some of the most photographically documented childhoods on the planet, so as adults they are a bit camera shy. But every once in a while they will take time for a portrait.
Family Portrait, Iowa, November 23, 2018.
For this first time in almost two years our children and grandchildren were together in one place, so I did a family portrait this morning. This is my favorite photo for today’s date.
Las Vegas Strip, Nevada. November 22, 1998.
We were on the Las Vegas Strip at night and I wanted a photo of long streaking car lights. I set my tripod up on a pedestrian bridge.
Dr. Yim plays Eric Satie’s “Vexations” a total of 840 times.
In a remarkable feat of human dedication and endurance, Graceland University’s Dr. Chee Weng Yim did a non-stop piano performance that lasted 27 hours and 22 minutes.
“Watch me!” Columbus, Ohio. November 21, 2008.
My favorite photo for November 21 is this cute little pixie.
Elephant Rock, Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada. Friday, Nov 20, 1998.
There is only one photo in my “favorite photos” folder for November 20, but it is one of my all time favorite images.
Rachel, Columbus, Ohio. November 19, 2004.
All of the photos for November 19 in my “favorite photos” folder are from the same photo shoot. It was hard to pick out THE favorite photo for today’s date. I finally went with this B&W image.
Ryan and Andrew. November 18, 2007
Two of our grandsons. One of them is waking up. This is my favorite photo for this date.
Nicole Fry dances to “Dream”
It was my happy privilege this evening to photograph a Variety Show for an article in the local newspaper. The show was put on by the “Enactus” program at Graceland University. This photos from the show is my favorite image for today’s date.
Dr Yim plays Eric Satie’s “Vexations” a total of 840 times. Lamoni, Iowa. November 13, 2018.
My favorite photo for this date was created at a rather remarkable and rare event. Dr. Yim, who teaches at Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa, did a performance of legendary avant garde composer Eric Satie’s “Vexations”. He played it 840 times which took 27 hours and 22 minutes.
Andrew, Eagle Scout Court of Honor, Keller, Texas. November 12, 2017.
My favorite photo for November 12 is our grandson Andrew receiving his Eagle Scout award.
Lightning, east of Lubbock, Texas. November 11, 1988.
The southwestern U.S. has some wonderful thunderstorms with well defined storm fronts. You can determine the direction of the storm front, set up a few miles away from where the front will pass by you, prefocus the lens, and lock open my shutter and wait for a lightning strike. This is my favorite lightning bolt from this particular storm.
Lela Rae, Michigan. Nov 8, 2007.
This was an easy choice. I was working with Lela Rae to create images for her portfolio. This is one of our favorite photos from our collaboration.
