Here’s a shot of my breakfast at one of my favorite places, G Cafe in Branford. The goat cheese and spinach omelet with toasted fitness bread is very yummy.
Shot with my new ultra-wide lens, which is turning out to be a fun piece of equipment.
Canon 5D Mark II, EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM
ISO 500
f/4.5
1/50 sec
This house, built in 1760, is located on Main Street of our little town of Clinton. Unfortunately it’s in terrible shape and I always hope, when I pass it, that someone will take pity and restore it to its former splendor.
Canon 5D Mark II, EF 16-35mm f/4 USM
ISO 100
f/6.3
1/500 sec
Caught these two while I was on my way back from New York and waiting for my connecting train at New Haven’s Union Station.
Canon G12
ISO 1000
f/3.5
1/25 sec
Shot during a visit to Chicago a while back:
Canon 7D, EF 12-22mm
ISO 100
f/5.6
1/100 sec
Found these barns near Bradley International Airport in Connecticut:
Actually I found this one in a barn in an abandoned mining town in Montana.
Canon 7D, 15-85mm
ISO 2500
f/5.6
1/10 sec
A brief stop in Vermont’s capital afforded me an opportunity to snap a few views of downtown. Click on any picture to see them in slideshow format.
Captured this in Guilford, CT:
Canon G12
ISO 2000
f/2.8
0.8 sec
Driving through Montana I am always fascinated by the wide open spaces, probably because there aren’t many in Connecticut. The bottom one is of the battlefield of the Little Bighorn, site of Custer’s Last Stand.
Captured this rollercoaster ride at Six Flags in Massachusetts.
Canon Powershot G10
ISO 100
f/5.0
1/10 sec
I loved this ominous sky. It never did rain:
Caught at the New York Public Library. ‘Nuff said.
Who knew that the top of the Empire State Building was designed to be an anchor for giant blimps, or dirigibles?
However, it was tried only a few times, and when the Hindenburg burst into flames six years after the construction of the Empire State Building, dirigible traffic dwindled and the true purpose of the docking mast became obvious – it made the building the tallest building in the world at the time, beating the Chrysler Building. (Claiming that title was considered poor form – how refreshing, considering the incessant striving for superlatives these days!).
I like the juxtaposition of old and new in New York. Here is the beaux-art facade of Grand Central Terminal from 1913 in front of the MetLife Building, built 50 years later in the International Style.
By the way, the statue is called ‘Transportation’, weighs 1500 tons, is 48 feet (16m) high, took 7 years to build, and the Tiffany clock has a diameter of 13 feet (4m)!
This lonely tree is in the marshland behind our house.
Found this water tower on a building in midtown New York. I like how this antiquated structure was framed by the modern building behind it.
Yesterday our dear little Sprucie, a 9-year-old German Shepherd and retired guide dog who was with us only 15 months, passed away rather suddenly. I will miss her tail thumping against furniture to express her happiness, the sound of her trotting to the door to see who’s there, the long walks we took together along the beach, and her dopey smile. Here are the last pictures of her. I love you, Spruce!
A black&white shot of our little town’s harbor in the winter.
Dear Readers,
Thank your for reading, visiting, or following my blog, which is a great source of satisfaction, creativity, and expression for me. The folks at WordPress.com sent me some encouraging stats as part of their annual blog report:
Here’s an excerpt from the full report:
The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 22,000 times in 2015. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 8 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Click here to see the complete report.
Happy New Year everyone, see you in 2016!
Watching the news about various political campaigns around the world I am reminded how I loathe people who speak in absolutes. I know they believe that their words are more powerful if accompanied by ‘always’, ‘everyone’, or ‘never’, and to those too tired to think for themselves this type of speech has great appeal. Black and white. Right and wrong. Don’t think, just follow. But to those who still have the strength to question, those who yearn for and practice free will, to them these absolutes ring hollow, and thus these absolutes negate the credibility of even the tiny kernel of truth that they may contain. How can anyone claim to know everything, which is the only circumstance under which one could truthfully use words like ‘everywhere’ or ‘nobody’? I know that life, history and the universe is not black and white, but a rainbow of possibilities, truths, and perspectives. Unfortunately, many people are just too tired, lazy or incapable of parsing the multitude of opinions to establish their own, and instead they follow those who yell the loudest and who use the seductive vocabulary of absolutes, of demagoguery, of fear. Because fear is easier to ignite than hope, and motivates people faster than love. Yet love, of all things, is what deserves more attention, as it is the only thing that can provide peace, harmony, and happiness. So this holiday, let’s not focus on absolutes but on nuances, not on differences but on shared origins, not on fear but on love.
I spotted this take on the classic 40’s roadside billboards from Burma Shave right here in Connecticut. Well done, whoever did this, and happy holidays!
To learn more about this iconic advertising campaign, check out the wikipedia page.
Canon 5D Mark II, EF 70-200mm
ISO 400
f/8.0
1/100 sec
No, this is not some strange world out of the Star Wars saga. I captured this picture of Meteor Crater while flying over Arizona.
A visit to the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix provides some great opportunities for black&white shots. Click on any pic to view them in full-screen slide show format.
iphone, Hipstamatic
ISO: 32
1/580 sec
f/2.2
lens: John S
Film: BlackKeys B+W
This one is located just south of downtown Hartford:
I passed this old factory in Bristol that looked abandoned and decided to explore it, only to find out that it houses a variety of small artsy businesses:
Canon 7D, 28-70mm EFL f/2.8
Well, not so much a shoot as just a few shots of my son. But I liked how glamorous this one turned out when adjusted to black&white.
Canon Mark II, EFL 24-70mm
ISO 100
f/2.8
1/2000 sec
adjusted in Lightroom and Color Efex
Captured in Clinton Harbor:
Walking through the Vermont woods, I was struck by the beautiful birch tree bark everywhere. Click on any picture to see them as full screen slideshow.
Canon 5D Mark II, EFL 24-70mm f/2.8
Caught in Vermont, after the leaves were gone.
Canon 5D Mark II, EFL 70-200mm f/2.8
ISO 2000
f/5.6
1/640 sec
Found this old battered and slightly crumpled Airstream trailer on a vacant lot in Vermont. What places this thing must have seen!
iPhone, Hipstamatic
Spotted near Stowe, VT:
Canon 5D Mark II, EFL 24-70mm f/2.8
ISO 200
f/4.5
1/640 sec
Found these leaves frozen in a pond in the Vermont woods:
Canon 5D MarkII, EFL 24-70mm f/2.8
ISO 400
f/5.0
1/160 sec
Just one week later, all the leaves were gone. Good bye foliage, welcome stick season!
And happy Thanksgiving, everybody! 
iPhone. Edited with Snapseed
Found this abandoned dock in the marshlands of Clinton, CT:
Canon 5d Mark II, 24-70mm lens
ISO 100
f/2.8
1/2000 sec
adjusted in Analog Color Efex 2
No need for further description:
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-70mm lens
ISO 100
f/2.8
1/2000 sec
This heron was stalking his prey during a beautiful sunset in our local marina:
Canon 7D, EF 24-70mm f/2.8L
ISO 100
f/7.1
1/400 sec
I pass this bridge every day, but with the fall foliage at peak, I finally decided to stop and take a few pictures.
Canon 5D Mark II
ISO 100
f/11
1/80 sec
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-70mm lens
ISO 100
f/5.0
1/125 sec
This is when beautiful fall turns into a lot of work:
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-70mm lens
ISO 100
f/2.8
1/800 sec
Sunrise in early November in Connecticut.
iPhone, edited with Snapseed.
On a recent trip to Yellowstone, my son and I saw just about every major animal except moose: Bison, elk, coyote, bear (with bear cub), wolves. Here are a few shots I liked:
Canon 7D, 70-200mm f/2.8
ISO 640
f/10
1/100 sec
Shot these two near Bristol, CT:
Hundreds of acres of forest in Yellowstone Park were destroyed in massive fires in 1988, requiring over 9,000 firefighters and affecting almost 800,000 acres of forest (bigger than Rhode Island). The remnants of that destruction can still be seen:
Canon 7D, 10-24mm
ISO 400
f/20
1/160 sec
This friendly ranger greeted us as we entered Yellowstone National Park on a recent visit to Montana.
Canon 7D, EF 24-70mm f/2.8L
ISO 200
f/5.6
1/60 sec
adjusted in Silver Efex Pro 2
The J.H.Sessions factory building in Bristol, CT, caught my eye as I was driving by. Couldn’t get to the abandoned inside, but the outside provided plenty of photo opportunities. Click on any pic to see them in slideshow format:
This 13-point elk buck was watching over a herd of elk in Yellowstone National Park. I was fortunate enough to sneak up for 2 close-ups without being noticed (well, the second picture he’s looking right at me, so who am I kidding?).
Canon 7D, EF70-200mm f/2.8 with 2x converter
ISO 400
f/5.6
1/400 sec
Loved the texture on this old barn, near the Montana State University campus:
Canon 7D, EFS 24mm f/2.8
ISO 100
f/5.6
1/160 sec
Captured these folks on a recent stroll along Main Street in Bozeman, MT.
This scenic little town is in southern Montana, close to the North entrance of Yellowstone Park.
Snapshots For Sore Eyes 
