Our First “Real” Snow

Photograph taken on Tuesday, January 06, 2015 by Henry
Our First 'Real' Snow

Our First “Real” Snow

We had our first “real” snow today. That is, it’s snowed already this winter, once quite hard, but we had actual accumulation this time, more than just a dusting that melted as it hit hard surfaces. This time it was about 20°F so it accumulated to about three inches. Not exactly a blizzard, but real snow. This photo was taken from our upstairs window just before I left for work. I got as far as the exit to our neighborhood. The car in front of me spun out going up a short hill. Then the main road was wall to wall cars and I decided I didn’t want to sit in my car for an hour and a half for a 20 minute commute. So, I worked from home, which is thankfully an option.

The snow stopped later and the sun came out, although it was never above freezing today. I like snow and found it quite beautiful out. Naturally I took more pictures but I think this one, of it coming down, symbolizes the day more than snow on leaves in the sun.

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Winter Sunset

Photograph taken on Monday, January 05, 2015 by Henry
Winter Sunset

Winter Sunset

It was nearly 70°F yesterday but as we were driving home from Richmond it began to rain. By the time we got home (about 9:30 p.m.) it was below 50°F. This morning it was not much above freezing most of the day and by the evening it was fairly cold. On the way home I found a good spot for taking sunset pictures. I’ll need to plan on coming home that way when a sunset is in the offing. This is a panorama of five images stitched together quickly (and not necessarily expertly, but they look pretty good). I got a few individual images with a line of geese flying across, as well, but I decided I like the panorama best.

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Dorothy Back to Richmond

Photograph taken on Sunday, January 04, 2015 by Henry
Dorothy

Dorothy

It’s been a nice two weeks with Dorothy but she had to return to Richmond today. Before driving her down we hung out with some new friends who are friends of friends of Dorothy’s. I brought my camera and took quite a few pictures but thought I’d share this one of Dorothy instead of any of our new friends. I suspect there will be more opportunities for sharing pictures of the others in the future.

I like this picture. It’s Dorothy between laughing and being thoughtful about something. There’s a slight grin, which is always the sign something is going on, but she’s being subtle about it. There’s something on her mind and there may be a joke coming.

Or maybe she’s about to burp. You never really can tell with Dorothy.

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Plaid Flannel

Photograph taken on Saturday, January 03, 2015 by Henry
Plaid Flannel

Plaid Flannel

I don’t wear plaid as much as I used to. I’m not entirely sure why. I think part of the reason is that the best plaid is flannel plaid and the it isn’t often cold enough for flannel. It gets cold enough outside, but when I’m going to work, I’m in an office where I cannot control the temperature and it’s almost never too cold for a light, summer-weight shirt in my office. At home it’s cooler but even there, I’m not usually in need of an extra layer. If I’m going to be outside in the winter for any length of time, I can wear flannel, but even then, it’s usually easier to throw on a sweater than to change shirts for a simple walk outside. This plaid happens to be on Dorothy, who spent the day in Philadelphia with Kendra. She’s wearing it as a jacket, the top layer of about three, which works well. I should buy flannel shirts that are too large, so they can be worn this way.

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Stef and Austin

Photograph taken on Friday, January 02, 2015 by Henry
Austin and Stephanie

Austin and Stephanie

I guess I know I’ve been working with youth a while when they start getting married. I guess is hasn’t really been that long, Stephanie was a graduating high school senior when I helped with my first youth trip at Rock Creek Church. But this isn’t really about me, it’s about her. After all, she was married today.

Stephanie met Austin in her first year at college and it was pretty clear pretty quickly that the were pretty well taken with each other. Knowing Stephanie, I couldn’t really blame Austin, and getting to know him a bit over the intervening time has convinced me he’s a pretty decent chap, as well. They are obviously in love and seem to be very well suited to each other. As everyone expected, Stephanie was a beautiful bride and we had a lovely time, seeing her and visiting with friends.

Here’s to Austin and Stephanie. May you love each other more and more, every day of your lives.

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Dorothy, Cathy, Jonathan, and Amy

Photograph taken on Thursday, January 01, 2015 by Henry
Dorothy, Cathy, Jonathan, and Amy

Dorothy, Cathy, Jonathan, and Amy

I’ve completed four years of living photographically. Well, as many of you know, I took pictures before I began my Project 365 in 2011, but since then I have managed to take at least one picture every day. Here’s to one more year.

We had some very good friends over today to ring in the new year with a very relaxed meal of fondue (both meat and cheese). The food was fine but the company was beyond compare. First and foremost were our friends, Amy and her older son, Jonathan. Thank you both for coming and brightening our day.

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Happy New Year!

Photograph taken on Wednesday, December 31, 2014 by Henry
Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

We were a bit tired from our trip downtown today but we went to two New Year’s Eve parties this evening. Naturally we could only be at one of them at the stroke of midnight.

We started the evening at my mom’s and stayed there until about 10:00 p.m. Then we went to the Rock Creek party at Stuart and Donna’s house. This photo was taken about four seconds before midnight, the last photo I took in 2014. Happy New Year, everyone!

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Main Reading Room, Library of Congress

Photograph taken on Wednesday, December 31, 2014 by Henry
Main Reading Room, Library of Congress

Main Reading Room, Library of Congress

Here’s a second photo from the day Dorothy, Karlee, and I spent in D.C. After the National Archives and the National Gallery of Art we walked around the south end of the U.S. Capitol building to the Library of Congress. So many of the governmental buildings in Washington are built in earlier neoclassical style, the Library of Congress stands out as something a bit different. The main (Thomas Jefferson) building was constructed in the Beaux Arts style, a later form of neoclassicism, from July 8, 1888, to May 15, 1894.

The Library of Congress was another place Dorothy had never been and I think she was glad we went today. The main reading room is under the dome at the center of the building and it is quite impressive. Access to the interior of the room is restricted to those doing research, with the exception of a viewing area up a flight of steps on the west side of the room. That is where this photograph was taken and it does a pretty good job of showing you the extent of the room. Somewhat surprisingly, after seeing a copy of Magna Carta from 1297 in the National Archives, we saw a second, one of the four originals from 1215, in the Library of Congress. It is here in celebration of its 800th anniversary in 2015.

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Dorothy and Karlee At The Capitol

Photograph taken on Wednesday, December 31, 2014 by Henry
Dorothy and Karlee At The U.S. Capitol

Dorothy and Karlee At The U.S. Capitol

As mentioned in yesterday’s post, Karlee came over and today I took Dorothy and her downtown for our annual museum trip. We parked near the National Archives and because neither of them had been there before, we went in (after a brief stop for coffee). In addition to the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, we saw a copy of Magna Carta from 1297.

From the Archives we went to the National Gallery of Art, one of my favorite places in Washington. We enjoyed sculpture and paintings from various periods and of various styles, stopping for a while in the rotunda, which Dorothy describes as her favorite room in the United States. It somehow manages to be grand and at the same time human-sized.

We left the art museum and headed around the U.S. Capitol building, stopping for this picture of Dorothy and Karlee in front of the Capitol Reflecting Pool and the Capitol Building, the dome of which is being renovated through the end of 2015 (and into the next on the interior).

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Karlee Visits

Photograph taken on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 by Henry
Dorothy, Karlee, and Cathy

Dorothy, Karlee, and Cathy

The year we first met Karlee, I took Dorothy and her downtown over Christmas break. We went ice skating on the Mall and went to a few museums. It hasn’t been as regular as her coming to the beach with us but we’ve taken Christmas-break trips downtown a bunch of times since then. She came this afternoon to spend the night here and we have an outing planned for tomorrow (which I’ll get to in tomorrow’s post). Here she is with Dorothy and Cathy. As you can see, we are always totally serious when Karlee comes to visit.

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Clouds

Photograph taken on Monday, December 29, 2014 by Henry
Clouds

Clouds

It was a beautiful, if cool, day today and this was the view out our kitchen door at about 4:30 p.m. Not bad. Sometimes I wish we lived somewhere a bit less built up, somewhere a bit more natural and scenic. But there is plenty of beauty where we live and it’s important to be on the lookout for it. Sometimes it hits you when you least expect it. In this case, I happened to mention to Dorothy that I hadn’t taken any pictures yet. She said, “you should look out the back door, then” (or something to that effect). Yep, worth it.

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Four Years Of Photos

Photograph taken on Sunday, December 28, 2014 by Henry
Rock Creek Worship Team

Rock Creek Worship Team

Since Wednesday, December 29, 2010, I have taken at least one photograph every day. That means I’ve completed four years doing that. I started posting them on Facebook on January 1, 2011 and then started this blog at the beginning of 2012, but the last three days of 2010 have pictures, as well. I really need to go back and add those pictures to this site so they are all together, but whether they are here or not, they exist. That’s 1,461 consecutive days of taking pictures. I don’t have any inclination to stop and I hope enough people enjoy them that it’s worth my time to continue.

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On A Park Bench

Photograph taken on Saturday, December 27, 2014 by Henry
Cathy On A Park Bench

Cathy On A Park Bench

Cathy and I went for a walk in the park early this afternoon. It was cool out but not cold and it was nice to be outside. The park, surrounding Lake Frank, had two parking lots connected by roads but the roads have been closed off for quite a few years (if they were ever open, I don’t really know). At the western parking lot, which is up a long hill from the lake, there are benches that are nearly at ground level. That’s where this picture was taken. I don’t think they were originally so low to the ground but it isn’t clear if they have sunk or if the ground has been piled up under them. Either way, they deserve to be used once in a while.

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Macro Flash

Photograph taken on Friday, December 26, 2014 by Henry
Macro Flash

Macro Flash

One of the things I asked for this year for Christmas was a small bracket that holds two flash heads out to the right and left of the camera. I also asked for a flash that will go in one of those two sides and which my camera can fire wirelessly. With this attached to my camera, I will have an easier time getting good lighting on small things when I’m focused very close. With the normal flash on top of my camrea, if I’m too close and if I don’t add an extra reflective surface, the lower portion of the photo is quite dark. With this new rig, it’s not a problem, as you can see in this closeup image of a thistle seed head that’s on our kitchen table. Those of you who are not fans of my insect close-ups may not appreciate this, but I’m chuffed.

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A Very Christmasy Christmas

Photograph taken on Thursday, December 25, 2014 by Henry
A Very Christmasy Christmas

A Very Christmasy Christmas

As usual for Christmas day, we had Christmas activities in three phases today and in four stages. We started at our house, opening (or emptying) stockings. Then we went to Cathy’s mom’s house, where this picture was taken. We went from there to my mom’s house where we spent the afternoon with my family. Finally, back to our house where we opened presents from and to each other. All in all, a very nice day.

I often post pictures of family on Thanksgiving and Christmas but decided I’d go with atmosphere this time. So, just the tree in the living room, presents waiting around it to be unwrapped, and the large nativity scene on the table, with the morning light streaming in through the window behind it. You can get this from the photograph, of course, but the smell of bacon, which we enjoyed with pancakes, eggs, sausage, and coffee, adds considerably to the ambiance.

Happy Christmas to all and God bless us, everyone!

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Christmas Eve

Photograph taken on Wednesday, December 24, 2014 by Henry
Christmas Eve by Candlelight

Christmas Eve by Candlelight

Our church’s Christmas Eve service is one of the highlights of every year for me. I enjoy seeing friends, but of course I see most of these same people every week. Somehow, though, at Christmas Eve, I see things in a different light. Sometimes that’s the light of candles. Each year the service ends singing Silent Night while holding lit candles. Every year I take pictures and I always enjoy them, as well. Taking pictures by candlelight is a bit hit or miss. This was taken at 1/15 second at f/3.2 with the ISO set to 1600. To everyone who was there, thanks for putting up with me and my camera. I love you all.

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Foggy Day

Photograph taken on Tuesday, December 23, 2014 by Henry
Foggy Day

Foggy Day

It was very atmospheric today in the sense of the second definition in Webster’s, “having, marked by, or contributing aesthetic or emotional atmosphere; also : marked by an emphasis on impression or tone.” Basically, it was foggy all day. After yesterday’s rain it was fairly welcome. This is the view out my office window, which for a suburban office building, is actually pretty nice. Today it was soft and gray.

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Christmas Lights

Photograph taken on Monday, December 22, 2014 by Henry
Christmas Lights

Christmas Lights

I know this is a bit cliché but I do like out of focus Christmas lights, at least in small quantities. I try not to take pictures like this more than once a year but, well, here’s this year’s version. I find it interesting how small movement of the camera between images makes such a big difference in the resulting image. It has to do with some lights being behind branches that small movements reveal. Also, the interaction between adjacent lights change a bit.

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Fire

Photograph taken on Sunday, December 21, 2014 by Henry
Fire

Fire

I’ve had fires a few times so far this winter. Today I burned some of the wood from the fig tree outside mom’s kitchen. It died back pretty severely last winter so there was a small pile of wood in the driveway from that. It burned quite well. I took a bunch of pictures of fire, which is one of those things that often looks so much better in reality than in a 1/30th second slice (in this case). Still, I like this image.

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Crape Myrtle Seed Pods

Photograph taken on Saturday, December 20, 2014 by Henry
Crape Myrtle Seed Pods

Crape Myrtle Seed Pods

It feels wintery today and I went out to take some pictures of ice on a small pond at a park nearby. I also saw a few small crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) trees and took a few pictures of them, as well. I like the little, empty seed pods. The exfoliating bark is also very nice, but those pictures were less interesting, I think. We don’t have any crape myrtle in our yard and I think with the size yard we have, it’s not something we’re going to have, but they make a nice show, with beautiful blooms but also with nice fall color and the peeling bark in the winter.

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