First Congregational Church, Rockport, MA

First Congregational Church, Rockport, MA

As soon as we parked in Rockport, less than a 1/2 block away, we spotted this typical New England Church on School St and churches are one of my favorite subjects to photograph.

When I used to work for the Manchester Herald, one of my jobs was to photograph the churches in their coverage area for the Sunday Newspaper. Since then, I've always been interested in photographing churches. I love the old churches with steeples and the old Gothic churches the best. I guess it's because I am from New England and that's what I'm used to seeing.

This one was organized in 1755 by Rev. Ebenezer Cleaveland and ten members. The cornerstone of the present building was laid in 1803. The church was dedicated in 1804, and Rev. David Jewett was its first pastor.

Sunset in a Rockport Cove

The End of a Perfect Day

One of the last stops in Rockport, was at this little cove. We were on the way out of the town center, when we came upon this place. Had it not been for a few teens practicing their yoga on this beach, we may have never have spotted it. There was also a couple snorkelers just coming out of the water. I'm assuming they must've been a couple of the girls' boyfriends.

It was definitely the end of a perfect day. I love how the the sun was starting to set through the trees.

Pigoen Cove, Rockport, MA

Pigeon Cove

From a distance and from street view, these buildings appear to be built right into the rocks. Of course, at a closer spot, it is apparent that they are not. Either way, I liked the lighting; it seemed the late day sun added just enough of a warm glow to make this view stand out.

Dahlia Bud

Back side of Dahlia Bud

This photo was shot two days before it came in as a full bloom. I like the colors of the backside and the freshness and firmness of the bud. There are about 20 different types or species of Dahlia. This particular species when in full bloom are deep pink in color, like the outer petals around the edges, and round like a pom-pom. They are stunning flowers.

This image was captured at my son and daughter-in-law's home in South Windsor, CT.

Let me know in the comments what you think of it.

Luna Hibiscus Seed Pod

It had just stopped raining, and I just had to go out and shoot something. So, my son and I went looking at their pretty much spent Fall garden. I was looking for water drops to shoot to try to capture the garden in a water drop. That's one thing I've never been able to accomplish. It just never works out well for me. I finally did it, but that's not the photo I decided to post tonight. It'll show up in a later post, so if you want to see it, you'll have to check my blog out often so you don't miss it.

These Luna Hibiscus seed pods were just begging to be photographed. The water drops on the leaves, and that deep purple color with the light green pods just captured my eye. It helped that the lighting was perfect for this kind of shot as well.

I hope you like it as much as I do. Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Post Office, Plainfield, CT

These are one of the photos from the post card project my son and I did the other day.

It's funny that we were able to find these, since neither of us know this area very well. This particular one was hard to find and just as we gave up, I noticed it.

We were sitting at a red light and I said, "maybe we should concentrate on the house next door. Look at that bay window. There can't be many bay windows on the side of the house, they're usually in the front of the house". Just as I said that, I looked up and said, "that's it! Right in front of us". Sure enough, that was the old post office. The owners added a second floor, but the posts for the fence are still there. We were so excited to be able to cross another one off our list. Check out the post card below.

The picture on the post card was made in 1898. Not too much difference other than the second floor and the tree on the right.

To get a better view with more detail, just click on the photos.

Eastern Tent Caterpillar Moth

The Eastern Tent Caterpillar Moth is in the Lasiocampidae family and it's Scientific name is: Malacosoma americanum.

This moth was on the window that leads to the deck at my daughter's house in Brooklyn, CT. It was great because I was able to photograph him from the back, then the front, and then a macro of his face. How lucky is that? You just don't get this lucky when photographing nature--especially bugs and butterflies.

I love photographing bugs, butterflies, and moths. Their faces are so interesting. Just check out the closeup here. He reminds me of ZZ Top with the dark eyes that look like he's wearing sunglasses and the long beard. What do you all think?

Kennebunport Inn

Since I've been getting behind in my editing, I'm posting this one from my vacation to Maine with my son and daughter-in-law last June.

This is the famous Kennebunkport Inn. It has been a landmark since 1899. It was once a tea merchant's mansion and has the distinction of being listed as one of the Travel Channel's "Maine's Best Escapes".

The Kennebunkport Inn is located in Dock Square, Kennebunkport's shopping district and the only hotel/inn there and well worth checking out if you're going to be in the area.

Church Steeple, Springfield, MA

I'm still trying to get caught up on my editing. This was taken in Springfield, MA while on my vacation to CT and NY in January.

I like the post-card feel to this image and how the church steeple is obscured by the bare tree. New England is known for it's amazing old churches. They have been seen on calendars, book covers and probably been photographed more in New England than in most of the United States.

Even though I'm primarily a nature photographer, I also love to photograph old architecture. There isn't much of it in Florida, since it was settled around the turn of the century (1900's). The really old, beautiful architecture can be found throughout New England--especially in Massachusettes and CT. This old church is no exception.

I would have liked to photograph the entire steeple, but I photographed it from a moving car and I was too close for the lens I had on my camera. I plan to go back there again and try to better this capture.

Dodge Ram

This was taken during my trip to Springfield, MA in January. My son and I were walking through the parking garage to get a different vantage point on Springfield's beautiful, old architecture, and we spotted this at the same time.

It's been many years since we've seen hood ornaments on cars and trucks and I miss them. I'm not sure why the car manufacturers suddenly thought we didn't need them anymore. I think they gave a car a classy look.

I included the rust on this old truck because it further shows its age. The rust is also a sign of the brutal New England winter weather. In Florida, one rarely sees rust on cars; yet in New England, it's the norm. The snow and salt really takes its toll on vehicles up north.

It would be OK if you could wash the car everytime you drive it in snow, but that's pretty impractical since the cold would freeze the water then there would be a worse problem. The locks would freeze, you'd have to scrape the windows again and the ice would promote further rusting. Besides, it snows too often. The car would need to be washed every day.