Moon and Venus setting

Got a great early morning shot of the Moon and Venus setting in the west over the beach near San Diego. Had a conference near there and got up early for a run. Was too dark, so took some shots instead.

Naperville Balloon Fest

Posted some of these earlier but still have a few more that I like. Won't see any balloons in the sky anytime soon. About 20 degrees today.

San Francisco China Town at Night

Love the colors in the "magic hour" just after the sun sets before it gets too dark. Also helps to be in a magic place, in this case, Chinatown in San Fransisco. Found some color and shot it.

Daisy Chain

The first real cold snap of the season is coming, so I thought I would grab one of the warmer shots in my portfolio. This is one of my favorites and is a great reminder that summer is surely coming.

Nap Time -- Beijing China

A young man decided to take a nap and use some colored stone as a pillow bed. Actually, looks kinda comfortable but it was the color that attracted my eye. Had to have this shot for my collection.

Grant Park Chicago

Already miss the warm weather. Fun June shot of Michigan Avenue high rises and wildflower beds from Grant Park.

Alcatraz Island

Got a great view of the island from near Fisherman's Wharf. Can't help thinking that it is not a long swim, but the San Francisco Bay has one of the biggest tides of any area in the world. The Bay rises and falls about 5-6 feet, four times a day. You start swimming in the Bay and you end up in the Pacific Ocean.

Fisherman San Francisco Bay

Caught this nice shot of a local fisherman, setting up his line one of the wharfs in San Francisco Bay. Went to take pictures of Alcatraz, but this turned out to be the much more interesting shot.

Paradise Found--Nassau, Bahama

Last summer we were able to take a cruise to the Bahamas and got a chance to visit Paradise. That is, we got to walk around the Atlantis resort on Paradise Island. What an amazing resort. Every feature is over the top. This shot is from part of the lobby, where you can see the aquarium. Have to stay there some day. The casino, the pools, the restaurants and bars. Wow. What a place.

New York City--backside view

Not your most familar angle of New York City so I thought it made an interesting shot. This was taken in the 30th street area past 9th avenue, not too far from the convention center. Wonderful fall day to walk in the city.

Fireworks at US Cellular Field

Handheld IPhone shot so not the best quality, but caught a nice set of fireworks after one of last years Chicago White Sox games. Always a fun time at beautiful US Cellular Field. Just a few months away from spring training...

New York Library at Night

I was walking down towards the Empire State Building hoping to get some night shots from the balcony, but go clouded out. On the way back, caught this nighttime display projected on to the New York City Library building. I liked the colors, so of course, I took the shot. Not bad without a tripod. Because of the open shutter, I also got a bit of movement of the cabs which worked out kinda cool, I thought.

Chicago Theater Symbol

This is a famous sign from the Chicago Theater and it appears in many other places in and around Chicago. By the way, the "Y" symbol in the center stands for the Chicago River where it forks north and south and runs down toward the lake.

Wrigley Building and Trump Tower

Actually, the first building in the shot is the Equitable Building, where I had an office during my first job just out of grad school. Wonderful location on Michigan Avenue just north of the Chicago River. Always lots of tourists around giving the area a very active feel. Miss those days.

Red Lion Inn, Stockbridge, Mass

After the kids got old enough for us to travel a bit on our own, Cheryl and I hit the regional theater circuit to see the Stockbridge Theater Festival and stayed at one of our favorite places to visit, The Red Lion Inn, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Stockbridge is a wonderful small town up in the Berkshires. This hotel is the subject of a famous painting by a equally famous Stockbridge resident, Norman Rockwell. There is a art museum there with all of his Saturday Evening Post covers and other art work by this iconic artist. We have visited there a couple of times and can't wait to go again. One of my favorite pictures of Cheryl and me was taken there.

Okie-Tex Star Party

I realized looking through my portfolio that I didn't post any shots from my astronomy travel. Back in 2006 a buddy and I drove to a "star party" near the Oklahoma/Texas border. We were joined there by about 300 other astronomy geeks who got together in one of the darkest places in the United States. There are no towns, no lights, houses for miles and miles and miles. You get a completely dark sky in those locations, great for astronomy. Anyway, this is from a shot over the bluff looking down on some of the camp site. Fun trip, although that year every tent got blown away by the remnants of a hurricane that came up from the gulf. My camp site is down there in the center of the shot. I had a camper that year so we stayed warm and dry and got great views of the summer skies. Can't wait to go back there again someday.

Ok, that was a little scary, although true climbers would not be nervous at all. Getting up there was a bit of a climb, but you got a great view of Table Mountain and the bluffs around this beautiful region of Oklahoma.

Miami Beach Street Scene

Nice little area in Miami Beach with lots of restaurants and bars. Miami Beach away from the main tourist area is still a collection of small art deco hotels and strip clubs. It is a strange mix of the old and new.

Miami Beach from the Air

Grabbed a quick shot while departing Miami this week. Got lucky in the timing of my visit as I got to see the Bears play for a victory at Sun Life Stadium. Anyway, interesting and sad to see from the air that no spot of land below is left undeveloped.

Miami Beach Cigar Shop

Got out of the hotel late for dinner this past week and walked along the shops in Miami Beach. Got drawn to this colorful shot like a moth to a flame. Don't like the Hookah, but they make a nice colorful shot.

Jeff Beck at Bonnaroo, near Nashville

Got to go to Bonnaroo with Stephanie this past summer. Brought her and 7 of her friends. Although I was supposed to drive them in and get lost, I had a blast listening to all of the bands. Hope to go back in 2011. Bonnaroo is a week long music festival in central Tennessee in a farm field a couple of hours from Nashville. Very hot and if it rains, a big pile of mud but a great opportunity to see old bands and new. This is a shot of Jeff Beck who put on a heck of a show. Lots of fun.

Strange Address -- Seattle

Wandering around earlier in the year and came across this strange address in Seattle near the Public Market area. Thought it was a Harry Potter-esque kinda thing. Anyway, struck my fancy....

Grassy Knoll -- Dealey Plaza, Dallas

Strange shot of a very effecting place. There are somewhat semi-homeless people hanging around giving "authorized" tours of the area. Kinda creepy that they have an "x" on the street where the shot occurred. Tough to see, but it is right in the center of this shot. You think you don't want to do take a tour, but it turns out, the tour guides are pretty knowledgeable about the area and what happened in 1963. The thing you notice right away is how close everything is and how unlikely anyone could be on the "grassy knoll" where I was standing when I took this picture and be unnoticed.

Colored Lights

Happened to take this shot in Beijing but it could have been anywhere. Just a string of colorful lights at night and a shutter set to open as I moved the camera to create this interesting effect. Nothing fancy, but fits the theme of looking for color in the world.....

Beautiful Details Beijing Summer Palace

Any house that the Emperor occupied had designations on the corner of the building representing what that building was for. These made for interesting and colorful shots.

Tourist Boats at the Summer Palace

These wonderful boats take the tourists who visit the Summer Palace near Beijing out for a ride in this man-made lake that was original created for the Empress Dowager in the mid-1800's. Beijing is an extremely hot place in the summer and the breezes off of this lake were wonderful to feel. I love how the trees in the background can be seen to be swaying in the wind. So happy that I had a chance to take Stephi there in 2009.

New York Police--sponsored by Yahoo

Apparently, the New York Police are now sponsored by Yahoo. Seriously, it is interesting how many people take a picture of this police station in the center of Times Square. It is a bit of a tourist icon of New York.

Washington DC Street Scene

Took this shot of some colorful buildings in Washington DC near DuPont Circle. Nice area of shops and restaurants not too far from the White House and mall area. Great place to visit.

Baltimore Bookstore

I am a sucker for bookstores. I like the chains. I like the independents. I like the online options. This is why I have something like 50 books purchased but unread up on my bookshelf. Whenever we have time between meetings on the road, I usually end up killing time in a book store and ending up with another book on the shelf. I try to read them but I can't keep up. Anyway, I especially like when they put a bookstore in an old power plant like they did in Baltimore. Wonderful use of an old space.

William at Halloween

This blog is supposed to be about places that I have traveled for work and play. However, I have to post at least one shot of William. He is a tough subject to shoot as he has this knack for blinking just as I push the shutter release. Anyway, there is nothing like the smile of a two year old.

Universal Studios At Night

Shot overlooking the night scene in Universal Studios. Had a great time there celebrating Gary Bell's 50th birthday.

Hogsmeade

Once you get past the crowds in Universal Studios Florida, you are in the town of Hogsmeade, the place where Harry Potter and friends go to get away from school. Great representation of the movie in this village. Universal spared no expense giving us a chance to visit places that Harry Potter has frequented. Now, if we can only play some real Quidditch on flying brooms....

Unversal Studios, Florida

Iconic shot from the riverboat on the way to Universal Studios from our hotel this summer. Strange place to visit, since right now, it is all about Harry Potter. The lines just to get into that area stretch around the park. Hour long lines this summer just to get into some of the shops that sell Harry Potter wands and other items made famous in the movies. The rest of the park, Loony Tunes, Jurassic Park, etc. are just about empty. Haven't been to Disney in some time, but I still favor Disney World over Universal. Older kids and teens, probably disagree. Enjoyed our visit, nonetheless.

Stained Glass Window -- Puerto Rico

Did a tour of Old San Juan when I was there earlier this year and saw this beautiful stained glass window in a government building. Caught the view at just the right time of the evening when the colors were just about perfect. Timing is everything.

Up (again) -- New York City

Always something looking up in New York City. This is a shot on the west side of 7th Avenue (I think) not far from Times Square. Always need to look up while walking in the city. Of course, don't do that while crossing New York City streets.

Big D -- Minneapolis

Don't know if this big "D" stands for "Dumb" or if this splash of color fits the theme of this blog. This shot was taken inside an abandoned mill along the Mississippi River just outside downtown Minneapolis and is now part of a museum complex celebrating the mill era that made Minneapolis the capital for milling in the United States back in the 1800's.

Naperville Water Sculpture

Amazing how many people that I met around the country have visited Naperville or have friends or family living here. It is a great place to live and raise a family. Nice water sculptures too.

Just color

Saw this shot and had to get it. Just for fun. If you must know, it is cable of some sort at a construction site.

Wayzata Bay, Minnesoata

Wayzata is a suburban community near Minneapolis. This town has a beautiful bay right adjacent to the downtown area. Our morning meeting gave a few minutes to take a shot just as the sun was rising. Morning colors are always so interesting. Wayzata is an Indian name for the Sioux god of the north who blows cold wind out of his mouth. While it can be very cold here, this day was a beautiful late fall day with temps in the 70's. The god must of been sleeping, but he will be up soon....

Moon Rise Over Lake Pepin

Got off the highway to see if I could find some interesting shots on the way to Minneapolis and saw this view on the bank of Lake Pepin, a natural lake formed by the Mississippi River. Fall colors are just past peak up north, but got lucky with a nice calm view of the lake.

We are SPARTA --- Wisconsin

Apparently, Sparta, Wisconsin is the "Bicycling Capital of America". I never knew that. When I thought of doing this blog, this is the type of "Americana" shot that I thought I would be posting on a regular basis. Turns out, these are pretty boring shots, but I had to post one or two, just for show. Sparta, Wisconsin is up near La Crosse on the way to Minneapolis if you get off the main highway. Getting off of the main highway is exactly what I needed to do to survive all of this travel. So, now we all know that Sparta is the bicycling capital of the US. How do they get that title? Was it voted on? Just curious.

Moon Rise over the Golden Gate--Version 2

A little later in the night as compared to a previous shot posted earlier showed a just-passed full moon rising over the Golden Gate. I hooked up by accident with a "moon walk" group going out to a lighthouse looking back towards the city. Fortune sometimes works better than planning.

Shanghi TV Tower

A dominate part of the Shanghi skyline is the Shanghi TV Tower which is also gives great viewing platform for the city.

The Renaissance started here

This is one panel from the door to the Baptistery across the courtyard from the Duomo Cathedral in Florence. There is always a crowd of people around this door and you might walk by and say, "well it is a pretty door in bronze, by why all the fuss?" The "fuss" is that is could be said that the Renaissance started here, in the competition to produce these panels of this door as the artists of the time discovered perspective as wonderfully displayed by Ghiberti, a contemporary of Michelangelo. Prior to the Renaissance, artists would depict objects within their paintings or carvings further back in the distance by placing them up higher in the frame. That is why pre-renaissance art work looks strange to us. We are looking for perspective and everything is located within one plane. The Renaissance and the discovery of perspective kick started a revolution in art and in thought that continues on to this day. Interesting how art sparked science and it all started with the competition to carve these frames, which Michelangelo later called the "Gates of Paradise".

Alaskan Fall Colors

I thought when I took this shot a few weeks ago that I just missed the peak color season as there were no reds in view. However, I was later told by a local that the trees don't show red in Alaska. Yellow and green is all you get, which is just fine by me as this scene is hard to top. Wonderful views with my back to the Turnagain Sound just outside of Anchorage.

Bug in Florida Brush

When is a Volkswagon Beetle an RV? When an RV owns a Bug. This car was on the property of RV, Robin Van Arsdol, a painter of some renown who we visited while we were in Florida last year. RV is famous for his street art graffiti and is know as one of the catalysts of the New York City street art movement of the Eighties and has come to be an American staple in the European art world. We met him near Orlando where he lives with his family. Stephanie really enjoyed her visit. It was one of the highlights of our trip.