When Sunny and I go for a walk, I usually let him determine the route. Most days he heads for his favorite park. On this walk I got down at his eye level to take a picture with my iPhone. This is one of my two most favorite photos for this date.
When I saw this flag comping down the street, I knew what I needed to do. My experience as a newspaper photographer taught me to look for unusual angles and to be bold enough to get in the right spot.
May is the time of year to photograph birds feeding their young. A pair of cardinals built a nest in a bush right by our front porch. This mail ;anded on the porch with food in his mouth, looked at me, and then went inside the bush to the nest to feed his young. This is one of my two most favorite photos for May 25.
John Weese, one of my photo buddies, called to tell me Robin’s were nesting in a tree in his front yard. We were able to watch the whole nesting process, right through the appearance and feeding of the babies. I was fortunate enough to catch a moment with both parents at the nest as one of them fed the babies. This is my favorite photo for May 24.
A bee was busy in one of our flower gardens so I pulled my iPhone out of my pocket and started taking pictures. Catching a sharp closeup of a busy bee with an iPhone is a hit or miss proposition. I got a total of five images before the bee flew away and only one of them was sharp. This is my favorite photo for May 23.
Danielle and I were creating portraits in my studio for both of our portfolios. In this image I was going for a classic look with minimal contrast. As you can see from the catchlights in her eyes, I used two studio lights aimed at her face. The main light was up and to camera left and the fill light, which was only dialed down a bit, was up and to camera right. A third studio light is behind her and high to the right, putting a highlight on her hair. This is my favorite images for this date, and one of my all time favorite portraits. I made display prints of this image in several sizes from wallet size up to 16×20 inches.
Hallie and I were creating portraits and this is one of our favorites. To get this subtle reflection, Hallie is on top of a grand piano. We went with a non-traditional pose. This is one of my two most favorite photos for this date.
I am reading to my very young grandson Terran. I love the look on his face. This is my favorite photo for this date.
Our daughter-in-law, Jennifer, and our grandsons Andrew and Ryan at Tae Kwon Do. This is my favorite photo for May 18.
At the end of a photography workshop we were on an afternoon and evening field trip near Glenn Michigan. This is my favorite photo for this date.
My photography workshop was out for an afternoon and evening field trip and we ended the day at Holland State Park. Jupiter (upper center) and Venus (lower and to the right) were shining brightly in the western sky. It was a beautiful evening. This is my favorite photo for May 16.
We were visiting on the campus of Graceland University. I decided to do a casual portrait of our oldest son Jim and his fiancée, Jennifer. Their wedding was 6 weeks away. This is one of my most favorite photos for this date.
The Vietnam Women’s Memorial, Washington D.C.
U.S. Flags at Sunset, Rose Hill Cemetery, Lamoni, Iowa
From Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, March 4, 1865.
Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Washington D.C. Click for a larger version.
Richard Duane Klug (the name just above the rose) was born January 26, 1946. He died in Darlac Province, Vietnam, November 14, 1967 at the age of 21. He is one of over 58,000 American soldiers that died in Vietnam, and one of over 1.1 million American soldiers that have died in all American wars (almost half of them in the Civil War). It is with a profound sense of gratitude that I reflect on the lives of those who “gave the last full measure of devotion” on behalf of their country.
Every years in May, thousands of tulips bloom around the public library in Portage Michigan. I was there to make the most of it. This is my favorite image for May 14.
May is wildflower heaven in southwest Michigan, and I had several places I would go in search of photos. Trillium Ravine Nature Preserve is one of them.
I was given a photographic assignment: Take casual, unstaged portraits of people at church for a video to be created at a later date.
I have been photographing Erin (and her sisters) since she was about two years old. If you have been following this series, she should look familiar.
It was a beautiful evening on the State of Michigan’s “Sunset Coast”. At cities and towns all along Lake Michigan, people gather for sunset. I was shooting the sunset when I spotted this boat. I clicked the shutter as the mast cut across the sun. I couldn’t wait to get my slides back from the photo lab. This is my favorite photo for May 9 and one of my all time favorite sunset photos.
I was walking our dog and spotted this marble. I decided to see how close my iPhone could focus and chose to create this with the marble and my camera on the ground. I don’t know exactly why, but I really like this photo.
I was visiting a friend in the Orlanda area. Knowing I loved photography, he took me to the Environmental Studies Center, Spring Hammock Preserve, Seminole County, Florida.
I was watching a movie of a presentation by Dewitt Jones, and in the course of his presentation he talks about photographing dandelion puffballs. He finally lays down on the ground and shoots a puffball backlit by the sun.
Should you buy one of those smart USB photo sticks/thumb drives to back up your photos and free up space on your computer?
No! Absolutely not! How would you feel if a device copied half of the photos on your computer, deleted them from your computer while it was backing them up, and then failed and lost your photos?
Another photographer and I were at White Sands National Monument at sunset. We were getting ready to leave when we spotted several Claret Cup cacti. It was long after sunset and our exposures were about 30 seconds long. When we got our slides back we were blown away by the color. The blossoms glowed with an almost electric red. Don’t put your camera away after the sun goes down.
Sorry, no favorite photo for this date. An this isn’t the only date in May that I did not take a single, solitary memorable photo.
There is nothing quite like working with a beautiful model. I like working on stairs in soft light. This is one of my two most favorite images for this date.
A look at my “favorite photos” folder for May 1 tells me May 1 has been a great day for photography. I have picked three most favorite photos for this date.
It was my happy privilege Thursday might to do a photography workshop for a local girl scout troop. The girls were alert, eager, fun, bright, and very attentive.