Merry Christmas

Things are looking up for 2021... we hope. Have a safe and happy holiday!

Hugs and kisses

Santa's hat

Actully I think Santa's hat is red, but this is still quite a well done light display.

St. Augustine Christmas lights

The St. Augustine historic downtown annually does a really nice job lighting up the holidays which brings the crowds to town. The Lightner museum is only one example. Of course things are a little different this year so I grabbed this shot with my iPhone from my car window while waiting for the traffic light.

Shrimp boats

Auto show 2020

Our community does a big car show each year and it seems people come from all around to enter and attend. I did a matrix photo similar to this a few years ago and decided to do it again. It becomes a design task as well as a photo task.

Another view

 An alternate view from my earlier post.

Egret and reflection

Skeleton Beach

Just north of Jacksonville, near where the St. Johns River flows to the ocean, is Big Talbot Island State Park. It offers hiking and great bird watching opportunities, and the skeleton beach (also known as Boneyard Beach) which has many dead and toppled trees on the sand.

Halloween Photoshop fun

When I shot these spooky looking tree silhouettes it was against a deep blue dusk sky, but I bumped up  the contrast and changed the tint to a Halloween orange. Still it seemed a big moon would be a nice addition so I added a photo from an earlier post. I then added a mask to put the moon behind the trees, added a bit of warm tint to make to make the moon fit the scene, and finally added a subtle glow to the edge. 

This is a deviation to my normal posts. I normally only post images without a lot of manipulation, but it is fun to do play in Photoshop sometimes.

Paint spots

Greenway

Our community has a number of trails that cut through the preserved natural areas of the town. We are lucky to have beautiful and safe places to bike or walk while separated from motor vehicle traffic.

Old vines

East Coast Railway Foreman’s House #93

Our local history museum includes a small collection of buildings from the early days of Jacksonville beach (Beaches Museum History Museum and Park). It also includes a 1911 steam locomotive and tender, station, a chapel and several other buildings. It is a pretty nice collection and interesting way to spend an hour or so. Details of some of the other building are below. 

Bird Island boardwalk

Bird Island is a small but worthy oasis nessessled behind the public library in Ponte Vedra. True to its name there are always a large number of birds in the trees and in the water as well as several species of turtles. The park also has a maze and paths though the verdant native plantings. 

Diagonals

Two chairs

Brick wall

Another bird

 

We planted a bird of paradise in our yard almost two years ago and only have had a few disappointing blossoms that never opened fully before wilting away. I am not sure if this blossom is full yet but it does look quite nice so I thought to grab a shot incase it is in fact at peak.

Bird and reflection

Great Blue Heron on a retention pond. These ponds are all over the place here in northern Florida. I guess if they were not, most of the land would be swamp. The birds seem to appreciate them.

Looking up, looking down

Careful... big brother is watching.

Stripes and door

Storm brewing over the ocean

And rain on the horizon as the seemingly tiny watercraft heads for mooring.

Mushroom forest

 

Although they might not appear tiny in this close-up, these little fungi popped up overnight in a planter on our patio. They do not last long but leave behind spores to propagate more of their kind. Have no idea of the species but they are fascinating little plants.

Lighter green

 

Waiting patiently

The store was in the process of reconfiguration and had pushed fixtures and this mannequin into a corner... and it seemed the mannequin was just waiting for his new assignment.

Crow gets lunch

Waterside

Which way did he go?

He went that-a-way!

Art and architecture

Another matrix combo from the same location as the last post. Lots of interesting angles and shapes.

Architecture in black & white

It seems to me that architecture often looks best in high contrast black & white.

Edge

Landscape in miniature. 

When you can't go to the barber for four months

Repurpose

As some shopping malls become unviable it often leads to decaying real estate, but sometimes it results in repurpose... and an excellent example of recycling.

Clouds

I have always been fascinated by clouds. The clouds in the Great Lakes area were not nearly as interesting with most days gray and overcast. Northern Florida is quite different. Sure we have overcast days, but generally we see much more blue and a great variety of puffy white mixed with dramatic contrast and shapes.

Porte cochere

A fancy word for a drive-up entryway, but fun to say.

The dark cloud over retail

Calla lily after the rain

Swimmer

Around back

I enjoy creating these matrix composites. It is a way to include many images, each of which may not be interesting by themselves, but together they form a puzzle like image with lots of details.

The photos were taken at an outdoor shopping center. It has been said (not sure by who) often the best pictures can be found around the back where there are trivial details not intended for the general public.

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Blue herron nest

Salt marsh

Tangle

Fascinating rhythm

The growth rings of natural wood degrade and weather in such a way as to create patterns that would be difficult to produce in any other way.

Expired but standing

Sometimes that is how I feel. :-)

Basket weave

Anhinga

This is an immature anhinga, a bird sometimes called a snakebird because when it swims its body is below the water line and only its long snake-like neck and head shows above water.

Half dead