Red Staircase

Red Staircase

This photo was taken in Rockport, MA in the Bearneck Skin area. I like the red staircase and the dappled light against the rough cedar shake shingles.

In the background, you can see part of the Rockport Inner Harbor.

Click on the photo to get a better look.

Granite Stone Gazebo

Granite Stone Gazebo

This gazebo was shown at a distance in a previous post. At that time, I promised a better look at this Gazebo.

This stone gazebo is a popular landmark in Rockport, MA. Unfortunately it is inaccessible to the public, but it is easy to get fairly closed to it. It is part of a private residence which overlooks the harbor and the Bearskin Neck shopping district in downtown Rockport. It sits out into Sandy Bay and the Breakwater, which I've also posted previously.

The gazebo is also a point of reference for artists and photographers (myself included).

Tobacco Barn

Tobacco Barn

One of Connecticut's chief industries used to be shade grown tobacco. It seemed as soon as you left the city, you could see miles and miles of tobacco fields.

Most kids started to work on tobacco as soon as they turned 14. It was the only time 14 year-olds could were legally allowed to work. Nearly all CT high school kids worked in the tobacco industry at one time or another. In the summer, they picked tobacco. Today, there is not enough demand to be profitable for farmers to continue to grow tobacco. These sheds are now few and far between.

I told my son that I thought it was tobacco drying season, which is why we went out to look for a tobacco farm. We finally found this one in Bolton near the horse farm pictured in a previous post. You can see the tobacco hanging inside the barn door.

It's strange, I grew up in tobacco growing country, now I live near Tampa where they roll cigars. It seems I can't get away from tobacco.

Dahlia

Dahlia

This was taken at my son and daughter-in-law's house in their back garden. They have many different gardens on their property, each with its own theme. Visiting them and walking around the yard is like walking around botanical gardens. This one was one of my favorites.

There are 42 species of Dahlias, along with many hybrids. This particular species is called, Dahlia (Dahlia rosea) because of its red color. Some are round, some flat, they come in different sizes, shapes and colors. They are native to Mexico and have been used as a source of food. Their hollow stems were used to make water pipes, and they've been used as medicine, specifically to treat Epilepsy.

I especially like this particular variety because of its pom-pom shape.

Sandy Bay, Rockport, MA

Rockport, MA Sandy Bay

Another image from my trip to Rockport; this one is looking across Sandy Bay. The Granite Stone Gazebo on the jetty is used for weddings and event photos. You can see some of the houses and lodgings in the background. I have a larger photo of the gazebo that I will post at a later time.

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.

Farming in Broad Brook, CT

Farming in Broad Brook, CT

After posting last night's shot of this tractor, my son let me know that this was not actually Bolton, CT. Since he was the one driving, and I was doing the shooting, I hadn't been paying attention to where we actually were. We were in Broad Brook, CT on East St. My apologies for any confusion and for my error.

As you can see by the dust this farmer is kicking up, he was going at a pretty good clip. I'm not sure what he's doing, but maybe one of my readers can tell me.

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.

Hint of Fall Color in New England

Bolton, CT

While I was on vacation in Connecticut, I realized I planned the date about 10 days too early to see the amazing foliage in New England. The weather was very good; only 1 rainy day in the 10 days I was there.

My son, Joey, and I took a day trip to Bolton. We were born and raised in CT, but we came upon this little pond in a park we'd never heard of. What a surprise! The leaves were just beginning to turn and it made for just a hint of color. There was a lot of vegetation on the pond, so we had to look for a fairly clear area when we spotted this tiny island in the pond. There were just a few reds and yellows to add a bit of color to this photo.

Let me know how you like this photo in the comments below.

The Vinoy Tower

I shot this image during the same meetup as the last photo I posted. Rather than showing the entire photo of The Renaissance Vinoy Hotel, I chose to show only the tower. People who have visited the area know this tower well, so there is no doubt where it was taken.

The beautiful cascading Bougainvilleas on the arbor was what initially attracted me to this site. It's the only place to find "Fall" color in this part of the country. I didn't want the scene to look tropical, but rather like the season. Hopefully, I've managed what I have envisioned. Fall in New England has always been my favorite time of year. From the photos my son sent me from CT the color this year was spectacular. It must be all the rain we've had all summer long.

This was made at around 10:00 am and the sun was pretty strong. I had to be careful of extreme contrasts while not blowing out the whites. I chose F11 to get plenty of Depth of Field (DOF) at 1/320th second because even though my lens is Image Stabilized (IS), I wanted to be sure there was no evident camera shake. I used Aperture Priority mode with pattern metering at ISO 200 and a 55mm focal length with my favorite walk-around lens, a Canon 55-250mm IS lens.

Friday Wedding

My friend and I shot a wedding last Friday evening and the worst thing that could happen happened to me.

The wedding was a very emotional one. During the vows, the groom totally lost it. He was sobbing and crying and everyone else in the church was also in tears. Well, being the photographer that I am, I just had to capture the emotion, so I rushed behind the altar where the choir sits and missed a stair. The mics were all on and all everyone in the church could hear was boom, bang, crash as I hit the floor with cameras flying everywhere. All of a sudden, the whole church, including the officiant, the groom and the bride, just cracked up laughing. I have never been so embarrassed!

Later during the reception the bride's mother actually thanked me saying it was the comic relief everyone needed, since the wedding was so somber. Leave it to me...

I did capture the emotion and I'll post the photo once I'm done editing all the photos. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this portrait of the beautiful bride.

In my opinion, no two people were more meant to be together than this couple.