French Quarter Horse Post

You see these horse posts all over the French Quarter. This one was right up my alley with lots of flecks of primary colors. I guess these are left overs from the good old days when we would hitch our rides to the post.

California Pacific Coast Highway

Don't make a wrong turn here. Lovely view of the ocean along California Highway 1. They have lots of scenic turnoffs like this one and the road really does hug the coast. Beautiful drive. Have to do it one time if you can. This shot is a portion of the trip between San Francisco and LA, which is supposed to be the best part of the trip. Really need a day and a half to cover the territory. The road constantly twists and turns and you get the feeling in spots that you are in a car commercial. Fun times.

Unusual view of Chicago Skyline

You don't see shots very often from the near south side of downtown. The only way to get the shot is from a hotel room right by McCormick Place. A friend of mine was staying there and I got this shot when I went to pick him up. Nice view of one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Chicago View from the Pier

Always a great place to take pictures, Chicago's Navy Pier offers lots of photographic possibilities. Here is a shot of John Hancock with lots of primary colors. Enjoy.

Naperville Winter Walk

Since I am on a winter theme during mid-summer, I thought I would throw one last winter scene out there. This is a small stream that I pass every time when I take Eloise out for a walk near my home. When I walk there this time of the year, I am attacked by all manner of bugs and such. A storm came through last week and knocked quite a lot of trees and branches down. Anyway, it will be only 6 short months or so and we will see this scene again. Going to be a hot one today, so enjoy....

Winter Wonderland -- Boulder, Colorado

Got such a mixed reaction for putting up winter shots in mid-summer, so I thought I would do it again. :) This one was taken while in my suit heading back to my hotel in Toronto after a day of meetings earlier this year in January. Actually it was one of those nicer winter days, where by winter standards, it wasn't too cold.

Winter's Last Gasp-- Chicago

When I took this shot last March, I said to myself that I would have to post it in June when the temperature is blasting. So, here is a last shot of winter, viewed from mid-summer.

Eiffel in Paris

Was there back in 2006 and was lucky to get this shot with no other tourists around. Rare to get that lucky. Saw a story on Discovery Channel about the battle to build the Eiffel Tower, which had many Parisians against the project. Once completed, it was of course, a big hit and a beautiful addition to the skyline.

Up -- New York City

Sometimes to get away from the standard tourist shots you have look up to get a different perspective. This shot was taken in New York City on the stairs inside the Apple store next to the FAO Schwarz toy store. What an amazing store. So packed with shoppers you have to wonder what happened to the recession. They have a great glass stairwell leading down to the below street level store. Neat shot.

New York City St. Patrick Cathedral

This shot was taken with my little Lumix point-and-shoot after walking out of a meeting in a New York skyscraper. Got a beautiful view of St. Patrick's right across the street. Hard to get this view from street level. What wonderful attention to detail in this neo-Gothic church.

Dramatic Sky on I-55

You never know what the elements are going to throw at you and not long after this shot, they threw everything they could at us while driving on I-57 from Nashville last week. Howling cross winds (which make a camper a bear to drive), worries about a tornado, blinding rain--you name it. Almost had to pull over, but it lightened up just in time. Still, we survived and got this beautiful sunset shot to boot. Oh--another warning--never drive a camper with 8, 19 year old girls unless the air conditioner works in the back of the camper. The girls were troopers, but the week without air conditioning at the Bonnaroo Music Festival was not fun.

Chicago Montrose Harbor

Another of my favorite cities--Chicago at sunrise. So calm on this particular morning. I think I would like to own one of these boats, but probably just for a week or so. Mostly, the boat ends up owning you!!!

The Dumo of Florence

This shot takes me back to one of my favorite place in all the world: Florence. This is a shot of the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, otherwise know as the Duomo of Florence. The interesting thing with this structure is that they didn't know how to finish the dome. Eventually, an engineer, Filippo Brunelleschi, figured out how to do it. It took over 140 years from 1296 to 1436 before the cathedral was finished. Anyway, this building dominates the skyline of Florence.

Venice Beach View

Colorful shot of the beach items for sale on Venice Beach. Weird strange scene on the beach with muscle men working out, tourists, strange homeless people, skaters and old types like me. Close by were some outdoor racquetball courts, but there were no players on the courts the day I was there. Oh, well. I looked for color instead.

New York Street Scene

You don't always have to have a fancy camera to take a good shot. Saw this colorful window scene while between meetings in New York City and took a shot with my Iphone camera. Not bad for a phone camera. Never really see that many people wearing hats like these but there must be some out there who do.

The Seals of Monterey Bay

Stood about 10 feet from this group of Harbor Seals hanging off of the pier in Monterey Bay. Loud, noisy bunch. They were just laying on their backs with a fin up in the air, almost as if they were giving a wave. I can still hear their calls even though it has been a couple of years from when I took this shot. Strange.

Bird Houses -- Monterey California

I stayed at a bed and breakfast while traveling for work in Monterey, California. Neat place. Right outside the door to my room were these colorful birdhouses. Took what I call a "throw-away" shot and I liked it so much that I used it in my photo show. A "throw-away" shot is a shot that you really don't know why you are taking it, but since it is digital, you shrug your shoulders and take the picture anyway. This shot worked great in a group of shots that all had strong red and blue elements to them. So, while as a stand alone picture it is ok, in a group of other shots that were dominated with the same colors, it made a strong impression. Now, I take a lot more "throw-away" shots. You never know when that shot becomes part of a theme.

San Francisco China Town at Night

The Southwest Airline banners kinda ruin the shot, but it does fit in my view of Chinatown in San Francisco: A bit of Chinese/American culture and lots of commerce. So, I guess it is in keeping with the area.

Ming Temple Tunnel in Green

Love this shot although it is not technically perfect. It was just a throw away shot that I took while walking through a tunnel in the Ming Temple where all the Chinese emperors are buried. Liked the way the colors turned out, although I wish I would have stopped to get the focus better. Also, from a techincal standpoint, trying to get the light from outside the tunnel not to blow out would have been nice. However, given all that, I kinda like this shot. Hope you do as well.

Naples Florida Beach Sunset

This was taken via IPhone so no fancy camera here. Went for a run after work on a beach near Naples Florida and saw this beautiful sunset. Whenever you see a sun set over water, watch for the "green spot" right as the sun dips under the horizon. I have seen it a couple of times and once it was so green--it was the greenest thing I ever saw in nature. It was like a brilliant green jewel. Just amazing. I think it happens just as a shot of sunlight just breaks over or maybe a bit through the water. It could also be the result of the light bending and changing color. I don't know how it works but it was amazing sight.

Shoes in Toronto -- A Mystery

This shot represents a real mystery. I was in Toronto in January for several days. Every time I passed this doorway near my hotel--in a very well traveled area near a major mall in downtown Toronto, sat these shoes neatly sitting on the doorstep. Why were they there? Why didn't they walk away? Was the door an unmarked shoe repair shop? I don't know and the mystery will have to remain unsolved...so sad.

University of Illinios Flyer Post

In honor of my nephew Joe Jr's improbable graduation from the University of Illinois and getting a job right out of college in this recession, I thought I would post the Flyer Post from the Quad...and what the heck, a second shot of the Quad itself. All the good old days. I bet Joe Jr. misses the school already.

Halone Blow Hole -- Hawaii

My racquetball buddy got me on a Hawaiian theme. Found this shot that I took at Halone Beach of a Hawaiian blowhole which I forgot I had taken. Pretty amazing to see the waves come in and then water shoot out seconds later. Halone Beach is famous for where they shot the beach kissing scene in the movie, From Here to Eternity. Unfortunately, I was traveling without Cheryl so I had no one to kiss....

Makapu'u Bay Hawaii

Have to put up two shots today--the second in honor of a friend of mine, Scott Fauque, who will be heading to Hawaii for the first time in celebration of a wedding anniversary. Scott will be visiting the north side of the Oahu, which I thought on my last visit was just amazing and very much less of a tourist trap than the over-hyped and crowded Waikiki Beach. I had forgotton about this picture unti he mentioned his upcoming trip. This is a shot from a scenic overlook at Makapu'u Bay on the north side of the island. What a gorgeous beach. The small islands in the bay are probably from the last active volcano on Oahu. Have a great time, Scott.

Moon Set over Chicago's Ferris Wheel

Chicago has done an excellent job with the lakefront, taking Navy Pier and making it a must see tourist destination. The Ferris Wheel is a great place to see the city skyline.

Big Ben -- Westminster Palace London

This is a classic tourist shot of one of the most recognizably British icons in London. Wish I had something better to show!!! This building is the largest four-faced chiming clock in the world and is over 150 years old. The tower is part of Westminster Palace. The architect, Augustus Pugin, went mad just after finishing his design for the Clock Tower. It is hard to get a sense of size from the picture, but a man can stand on the 4 o'clock symbol and his head would barely rise above 3 o'clock. I will put up two pictures today as I really like the tight cropped shot as well:

Colosseum at Dusk

Wish I can go back and get this shot again. The Colosseum is truly one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. The shot has beautiful colors but I would like to reframe it and sharpen a bit. Oh well, can't have everything. Hard to square the beauty of the architecture with what happened inside. Still, quite an achievement to construct such an amazing building that has stood, partially, the test of time.