Mama & Mickey

My wife's grandmother, "Mama" and one of her two cat's, "Mickey".

I've been building a selection of images to use in a calendar of her cats to give to her for Christmas this year... at her request. Monday we stopped in for a few minutes when I grabbed this image.

Mickey is around nine months old, believe it or not. Of course, he's a big male cat and Mama is a small woman. He is almost the size of my three year old cat, Mackenzie, though.

Me talking about cats on here. Hey, I love animals.

The Alpha and the Omega

An image that I made six years ago in my apartment. I found this clock in a home interior store at the mall one day on my lunch break. It's generic brand name of "alpha - omega" is what got me to purchase it. One of those serendipitous finds.


Revelation 22:13
"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."

Window Gazing

Mackenzie gazing out the back door window on a stormy, Memorial Day Monday afternoon.

This particular image was taken with a Nikon D80 with a 50mm fixed lens attached.

My favorite cat of all time just celebrated her 3rd birthday yesterday. She has it good.

Apartment Window Silhouette

I captured this image five years ago when I was a single bachelor living in an apartment in Lakeland, Florida. Though I was on the third floor, I had a tall palm tree outside my bedroom window that would always grow it’s branches out and create silhouettes with the glowing, morning sun. This was my view on many a morning as I prepared for work.

I lived in that apartment for seven years, it was a special season in my life full of blessings. I grew in many ways and became the man that my wife would meet in December of 2007.
 
My life has changed a lot since those days. I still pass by my old apartment complex on my way to work each morning. There have been a few times as I’ve passed by, that I’ve thanked God for the season that place represents in my life and that it ended well, culminating in me meeting and marrying Sandy.

Morning Light

I captured this image last Sunday morning while I was getting ready for church. I just liked what the light was doing on the wall after it came through the window. Seems to have a fluidity to it.

Of course, today is Thanksgiving. I hope everyone has an enjoyable one wherever you may be today. This week we had a special Thanksgiving service at church. Our pastor asked us to think of three things that we're thankful for right now and tell someone around us. The three that immediately came to my mind was my wife, my health and my family.

What three things are you most thankful for today?

Holding Time

Taken in Chicago in 2004 outside of Tiffany & Co. I'm not sure who the statue is supposed to be, but it looks like Christ holding time to me. Time is in His hands.

Boca Image

Another image from my archives this week. This one taken at the Boca Raton Resort and Club back in 2006.

Daytona

This was taken during our first year of marriage in a small, old motel room that we were given a free night’s stay in to attend a friend’s wedding in Daytona. After exploring with my camera outside, I came back in the room to find my wife’s perfume bottle illuminated by the morning light.

I’ve had this image for almost three years, but never liked it enough to post it here. But, every time I looked at it, I saw something that wouldn’t let me trash it. So, I messed with it some more this week and finally got it to where I was pleased enough to share it.

My wife and I were always impressed with the generosity of this nice, Indian family that opened their place of business to us for free that weekend. This image will always remind me of that.

Storm

Morning light on a waterlogged, storm drain manhole cover. I just liked the steel tread and text popping up out of the shallow pool of water.

Contrast, Shape & Light

While sitting at Books-A-Million with my wife the other day, I noticed how the light was coming across this empty, mid-morning café scene, creating contrast with the table tops and their edges. I took a couple frames of it and decided on this one.

La Niña

Some more Mackenzie love this week. I really need to get out and photograph some stuff. But, at least I have some more images of my beloved, furry creature to bestow to the world. She's actually sitting up on my desk as I'm typing this, just cleaning her paws and such. You know, "chillin'". Ok, she just looked lovingly over her sholder at me and meowed. How nice.

Well, that's enough for now. Until next Thursday.

"Mackenzie"

This is our “furry child,” Mackenzie the cat. She was born on May 30th, 2009 at Sandy's Aunt and Uncle's home. She was a member of a litter of three from a stray that was temporarily taken in while she gave birth and nursed her kittens. Mackenzie quickly became our favorite and came home with us as soon as she was weaned off of her mom.

Sandy and I are very glad that we’ve brought this little short haired tabby cat into our lives. You’ll definitely be seeing more of her on this blog in the future.

Jag Chrome

I took this photo back in 2006 during a shoot that I was doing for my company at a car dealership. I noticed this Jaguar on the lot and just had to create an image of this iconic emblem. Their sculpture has such fluidity to it.

...In other news, my wife Sandy, has just started a blog of her own. One of her passions in life is motivating and inspiring people. Please be sure to click Here and check her out! She has a lot of great things to share with you.

What It Felt Like To Fly

When I was 15, I reached the pinnacle of my jumping ability; I was now able to grab a 10 ft. Basketball goal. It wasn’t “dunking”, but it was the next best thing for this 5’-11” dude. I don’t think I could quite do it right now, but maybe if I got back in shape, I could reach those heights once again?

Above is one of my most favorite images that I’ve taken thus far in my life. It’s very iconic to me because of all the meaning that it represents. For all of my teenage years, I was in love with Basketball. It still holds a dear place in my heart, but those were the intense years. This image was taken at the start of that season of my life, when I was around 13 or 14 years old. As I looked at this image recently, I was inspired to write the following.

What It Felt Like To Fly
With speed, I approach the goal. In one continuous motion, my body prepares for take off as both feet take plant on the ground and my knees bend. Momentum is changing directions. As this happens, my arms swing upwards, thrusting me into the air like a rocket off a launch pad. I’m airborne. My body feels free for that moment. In a split second, my hand is at the rim, my head at the level of the netting. A place that once seemed so far away and unattainable is now within reach. The laws and rules in my own mind are broken.

I grab the rim with authority! The break-away spring action of the hoop gives way. I hang for a moment. As I let go, the rim snaps back into place and creates a thunderous sound that echoes throughout the gym, evidence of where I had just been.

My feet then return to solid earth, the place that is my world. But for a few split seconds, I had gravity defeated. It could not keep me from visiting the space where the hoop lives. Oh yes, the lofty hoop; It stood defeated as well! It no longer could stand in defiance of me, mocking my every attempt to reach it’s height...for I had reached it.

This is what it felt like to fly.

The Mysterious Shadow on the Barn

I captured this tree’s mysterious shadow while photographing with my cousin, Amy, a few weeks ago in Pennsylvania. She spotted the barn first as a photographic subject, then I spotted the shadow of the tree on the barn. She has a few images similar to this that she may post as well.

...Amy's friend, Sandy, has also posted some images of the barn that she has taken as well. Go give her post a look!

Shadow Play part 2

Another image from my archives. This is the first image to be posted twice on this Blog…but with a little twist…a little twist of lime.

I’ve talked about how shadows catch my “photographer’s eye” before, you can read more about that by clicking here, if you missed it. I got this image back out recently and did a selective color treatment to it. This photo was originally captured over a year ago at the Boca Raton Resort and Club in Boca Raton Florida.

What things catch your “photographer’s eye”?

The Traveler

I wonder how many places she’s seen? How many times she’s been rained on? How many sunsets on the open road she’s taken in?

How many car shows has she been on display at? How long does she now have to sit in the garage each week?

I wonder.

Chairs of O'Hare

This multitude of empty chairs caught my eye at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. Many seats to "wait" in.

The Magician

That’s what I’ve always called this shot. Ebenezer looks like a magician who’s reaching out to turn you into a rabbit. I could see the poster headline now. “Come be Dazzled and Amazed at Sites You Have Never Beheld!”

Eb has become one of my good friends over the past year and a half. He’s a fellow Bachelor, so often times we’ll grab a bite to eat together, sometimes taco bell, sometimes Pizza, sometimes who knows what else. Yes, we are definitely Bachelors as you can tell by our wonderful cuisine. We also usually take in a cool DVD. Of course this is all when he’s not spending time with his girl, Alexis.


...On a side note, check out a fun interview I did for "Luce" of the "HomeSchoolNerd" Blog.

Man of Mystery

From age 15 to 19, my best friend was Todd. We shared a lot of the growing pains of becoming men. We mainly shared laughter, which I often thought of as the foundation of our friendship, that and God. Me and Todd were always laughing at inside jokes or creating new ones.

I’m glad I had a friend like that to help get me through those, sometimes tough and awkward, teen years. Since then, life has taken us in different directions. I was blessed though to be the Best Man in his wedding in November of 2004. I got the call and flew up to Pennsylvania to be a part of his historical day. He now has two children, a boy and a girl.

One thing about it, Since our teens, Todd has become difficult to get in touch with. That’s why the title of this post is not only appropriate for the image, but also for him.

I captured this image in the middle of 1998. We were at my parents house. Back then, they had not built a deck yet, it was just one big drop off the back of their house. I seen Todd sitting down there with that hat on and saw “an image”. This is one of the early glimpses of my “eye” for photography.

A photo that I took a few years later reminds me of this image. It’s one of my friend Patricia that I took during a game of chess. Because of the positioning of her head, you can not see her face. I link the two images because they are both of people who have been good friends to me in my life. The image does not completely reveal their identity, but I know who they are.

I could tell you so many stories involving Todd. I’m glad he’s been a part of my history.