Snow illuminated by tree lights

The snow keeps coming and hangs from the branches of the trees. It picks up the light from the holiday decorations creating a winter wonderland.

Wintery

Busy day at the birdfeeder

Circle of confusion

I never seem to get tired of making pictures like this. Put the lens way out of focus, point the camera at the Christmas lights, and the optical factor know as "circle of confusion" gives you these colorful results.

I remember taking photos like this with my first SLR way back in 1966.

Still looks good to me.

White Christmas

Well, we did get a bit of snow for Christmas Eve, and a bit more in the forecast for tonight and Christmas Day. It all seems a bit hollow in light of the tragedy that has struck so close to home (just a few miles from our home). When will we get out from under the influence of the NRA and take some positive steps in this complex issue? I am sure firefighters carrying loaded weapons into a fire does not make any more sense than armed volunteers patrolling our schools.

But enough of that... Merry Christmas!

Still no snow

Christmas is only a few days away and still no snow... but they tell us some is on the way.

Maybe a white Christmas after all.

We will see.

Picket Fence

Ontario lake shore

I am lucky to live only a few miles from Lake Ontario, one of the Great Lakes. But I do not often see the lake, other than the Bay, as I drive across the bridge. The shoreline this time of year can seem pretty desolate and cold.

Busy shoppers

Holiday shopping is in full swing and the malls are packed.

Tree and color

Trees... the ever popular subject of photos. Even when bare of their leaves, they are interesting subjects.

Color is another point of interest. I see red-green-blue, so I guess I have the bases covered. A bit of sunlight brings out the primaries. Reminds me of Kodachrome.

Patios

Santa and his helpers

Where's the snow?

Not that I am complaining, but usually when Christmas is only a few weeks away we have seen at least some snow cover, and sometimes more that just cover. Today the temperature reached almost 70F here but the warmth has already dissipated and will continue to retreat tonight.

This shot looks a little familiar to me. I have photographed the Irondequoit Creek as if flows through Ellison Park many times, but never from this bridge. The creek has a crazy path, zig-sagging though several counties before finally making it way to Irondequoit Bay, Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence, and finally the North Atlantic.

With the sun shining today it seemed like a photo was needed, and this is about all I could come up with.

Scene from a mall

Holiday shopping is in full force now. Time to do our part to jump-start the economy.

Crossing the canal... the other view

Crossing the canal

It occurs to me that I often shoot photos with traffic in blurred motion against the foreground and background that is static and sharp. I guess this is to create contrast, but I can tell you that this bridge was in motion too. When this truck hit the bridge deck it was like I was on a trampoline... well not quite, but it is surprising how much bounce there can be in what I assume is a structurally sound construction.

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful this year for the millions of turkeys that have made the ultimate sacrifice, that we might overeat.

Enjoy.

Preserve the quaint village of Pittsford

The village people are up in arms.

They want to preserve this cozy corner of their community. Obviously this presently is not the most beautiful spot in this upscale neighborhood, but the location has a lot of potential as it borders the Erie Canal.

Developers are proposing what may be a multi-million dollar development of high-end apartments, designed in the "Pittsford style". But a multi-family complex like this "doesn't fit the scale or character of the village" and most residents oppose it.

Admittedly the real issue is traffic congestion, which is already very bad, and will only get worse with the entrance to the proposed complex being adjacent to the canal bridge and the busiest section of Monroe Avenue.

Yet it seems like an upscale apartment complex might be an improvement over the current site (sight?).

North Park

Old time theaters like this one have tons more charm than the multiplexes that are the mainstay of most movie watchers. The architectural details admittedly are of another generation, and most are not very well preserved. In fact they can be a bit spooky inside in the dim light. Yet I enjoy them despite the ripped and lumpy seats as I think about the elegance and style of by-gone days.

The green building out back

Frost and frozen

On my drive though the park this morning I found frost on the grass and ice on the pond. Guess it is that time of year.

Let the sun shine in

So I complain of the drabness, and today the sun was bright, at least for a few hours.

The life of a cube worker. At least the layout of the building puts the offices in the middle so all can get a bit of sun. This time around, however, I am in a windowless office.

Not sure that I would have preferred a cube by the windows.

Drab exit

I have trouble motivating myself during the short drab days that are now, more or less, the norm. Not sure what the Exit sign has to do with it, but it does seem to add to the gloom of the season.

On a more positive note, I notice that this is my 400th posting in this blog. I never thought it would last this long.

Storybook cute

This house has always struck me as being too cute. It looks like it should be in Disneyland, but there is no denying it has a storybook quality.

Autumn view

Slow poke

We are now beyond the so called "peak" of autumn, but you can still find some trees holding on to their flame of color.

Crazy roofs

Hole in the clouds

We have not seen any direct sunlight this week thanks to Sandy. But even though we still have thick cloud cover I did see few holes, and a fleeting spot of bright light and blue sky.

Hopefully we will now return to normal, mostly cloudy, not constantly cloudy.

Vine covered

Tree reflections

Ellison park is often flooded during heavy rain weather, and after Sandy, indeed it has flooded again. You can see on the lower right side of the image the edge of the park road where it descends below the surface.

The two trees are reflected providing nearly perfect inverted images. I suppose it is not healthy for trees to be flooded like this, but it will not last long.

As a side note, I have succeeded in posting 19 pictures in the month of October, a record for me. Not sure why that is, and certainly no reason for celebration, but I like that I have been able to capture pictures in a nearly daily cadence.  Perhaps my standards have gotten lower... these last two posts are pretty gloomy, but we photograph what we find, and gloom and rain has the theme of the week.

Storm scene

Sandy was kinder to us than to our friends near the coast, but is is not over yet. A lull perhaps, as the remnants are still tracking toward us in Western New York. More rain no doubt, and high winds, but a kinder, gentler Sandy we hope.

Lost color

The golds and oranges of autumn do not last long once they are on the ground. Time and rain take their toll and soon we are left with browns and grays that have their own beauty, but none of the flash.

At least the geraniums are still looking healthy and even have a few modest blooms, but soon they too will retire, along with the season 

Layers of color

America's greatest camera company

This is the building where I work, but it now has nothing to do with cameras or photography. In fact I have not found one person who works here that is aware of the buildings history. It was constructed in 1957 for what has been said was the only great United States camera company.

Sure there were a lot of cameras built in the US of A, and some were pretty good, but most were simple snap-shot devices. The cameras built here were iconic and nearly universally used by the press and comercial photographers around the world. From the early 1900's to the mid 1970's they were the cameras that said "I am a serious photographer".

Of course by the time most of us were getting into photography (even us old timers) this brand was on the downward slope and, although effort was made, they were not successful in advancing the technology in a way that retained the market. New offerings from Germany and later Japan left them in the dust.

If you have not guessed by now the company name was Graflex. The Speed Graphic, and its progeny, were THE cameras of their era.

Most people think of Eastman Kodak when they think about photography and Rochester NY, but there were over a dozen camera, film, and optical companies in the city during the early part of the century. Kodak did own Graflex for a few years, but for the most part they were separate entities.

When Graflex moved into this building 50 years ago they surely did not know that their name would be nearly forgotten, yet their building would live on.

Leaf carpet

There is no question that the autumnal coloring of trees is a sight to be enjoyed, but what is sometimes also spectacular is the resulting carpeting of the turf around the trunk. When you consider the volume of the tree limb ball you realize that once it is compressed to the essentially flat surface below, the layer of leaves can become more dense than the tree ever was. And that results in a thick carpet, assuming there is not a lot of wind or an enthusiastic homeowner with rake in hand.

Pole number 2

If you take a close look (as always, click to make bigger) you can see that the pole has been marked as #2.  It is pretty small, and pretty high, and pretty hard to see... but there must be a reason for the identification.

Perhaps to help people remember what row they parked in, but there is really not that many rows.

Or maybe it is for maintenance purposes? "Joe, you need to replace the bulb on the north side of pole number 2."

My view

I am fortunate. This is what I see when I look our my back window. We are lucky to have trees for fresh green in the spring, shade in summer, snowy branches in the winter, and dreamy color in the autumn.

I may have posted a similar picture in the past, but each year I am still taken by the view and feel a need to capture the multi-color display.

Wrong way

Although not every tree turns bright colors, at this time of year where I live, it is difficult to avoid flaming canopies or splashes of color in any direction you happen to gaze.  Even if it is the wrong way.

Golden cloud

With the days getting shorter, the drive to work is less bright, especially on a cold and drizzly morning. However at times an unexpected vision can appear, sometimes almost as if by magic.

Pumpkin time

Ford truck

I get the feeling that this truck has seen a lot of hard work over the years.

Old stone barn

They don't make them like this anymore. Maybe they never did.

The construction looks like it would last a long time, and I guess this picture is the proof that it can... but good maintenance has contributed greatly I am sure.

Rain day

Poking around Hammondsport in the rain.

Funnel Cakes

Letchworth State Park annual craft show... part carnaval... part festival... part folk art sale.

Real autumn

Mark, this one's for you.

In the off chance that you see this, do not take it wrong.  I am not lampooning you, and not attempting to "do" you. There is a little gentle humor attempted here. I feel the need to explain this because some of my posts have been tung-in-cheek, but it appears that not everyone understands the jest and instead takes me at face value.

So back to the picture... this my take on the interplay of man and nature and how they can create the unexpected expression of what is real.  The end result can be interesting on several levels but of course that is not to say that my effort has obtained the objective.

Mushrooms

At least I think these are mushrooms. I did not put them on my salad because with a "fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus" you never know... or at least I never know.

How am I doing?

The fashion this season, in some circles, seems to be autumn photography with subtle inclusion of color and without pumped up saturation.

Hmmm... maybe still a little too bright?

Little red house

Or should I say, really red house.

Yes, this is the most saturated red imaginable, and the paint is even shinny. No saturation boost done in photo processing... and even a bit of vibrance reduced.

A cute house, but you really need to love red.

Pierce-Arrow

I today visited the Pierce-Arrow Museum in Buffalo NY and recommend it to anyone interested in history and early automobiles. I am not sure it is worth a long special trip, but if you are in the area an have an hour or two, it is definitely worth it.

The Pierce-Arrow was a very luxurious and prestigious automobile and the choice of the White House for many years. The car was build in Buffalo but production was halted during the depression.

The new section of the museum, that can be seen in the background, will soon contain a realization of a never built Frank Lloyd Wright design for a filling sation.  This will help generate interest in the instutuion which is badly needed.  During our visit only a very few patrons were in the building.