A poem lovely as a tree

I think that I shall never see

A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest

Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,

And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in Summer wear

A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;

Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,

But only God can make a tree.

by Joyce Kilmer

Winter in Georgetown

It does not snow in Georgetown, Texas where we now live.  The temperature does go down to the 20s Fahrenheit.  

Pictured above is Poco, one of the two donkeys who live in Berry Springs Ranch, a few miles from us.  The other donkey (not pictured) is Amigo.  Not sure why they named the donkey that  because she is actually female.  Maybe she is transitioning.  Who knows.  

Berry Springs Park and Preserve is a park in and of Williamson County, Texas close to the city of Georgetown, Texas. The park is on farm land with many pecan and oak trees as well as the waters of Berry Springs that provide a lake for fishing with fresh water. 

There were still some pecan nuts on the ground that day.  Rose and Kamilah picked some.  They say that they had to be dried for two weeks before they can be eaten.  I'll keep you posted how they taste like.

Have a wonderful day.

Texas Longhorn

The Longhorn Bull outside on one of the buildings in San Antonio.  The Texas Longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its characteristic horns, which can extend to over 70 inches tip to tip for bulls, and up to 100 inches tip to tip for steers and exceptional cows. 

Much of where we visited in San Antonio were crowded tourist traps.  We ended up watching a movie one night because there really wasn't exciting to do.  It did allow me to capture some unusual images.

Hope your day is going well.

Gruene Coffee Haus

Gruene Historic District in the Blue Hour.  Located in New Braunfels, Hill Country Texas. Originally a farm land for growing cotton.  It's quite famous for their cotton gin.  I'm not much of a gin fan so I can't say if it's good.

The image was captured with the iPhone 11 pro using the ultra wide lens.  It is a composite of two images stitched together in Photoshop.   The coffee wasn't that great.  But the building makes a great photo subject.

Hope your day is going well.

Where's the Alamo?

The image is Downtown San Antonio, well know for The Alamo.  A fortress originally established in 1718 as Mission San Antonio de Valero.  It's hard to find from this perspective as several high rises now have surrounded the fortress.  Trust me, it's tuck somewhere.

The historic place in Texas where the battle between the Texans and the Mexicans took place.  President General Antonio López de Santa Anna wanted to reclaim the Alamo because the Texans were getting filfthy rich after they drove off the Native Indians.  Thanks to the invention six shooter.  Okay, maybe I'm being sarcastic.  Well to make the long story short, the Mexicans defeated the Texans at Alamo.  Hence, the saying, "Remember the Alamo!"

This Way

A real oldie.  Well not really.  Taken in 2012 when we went back to the Philippines for the death anniversary of Rose's mom.  Her mom's house is just a stone's throw away from the beach.  The water is murky so it's not attractive for swimming.

The guy on the left is a photographer who is instructing his models how to pose.  I was on my way back when I noticed the gorgeous sunset behind the silhouettes.  Shot with the EF70-200mm f/4L USM mounted on the Canon 5D at f4 and 1/200.

Things You Might Have Missed Last Year

Hope you are having a wonderful day.

Nothing but the Blues

My Dobro.  Used it a few times at our church.  Great tone but nearly impossible to amplify it.  Microphones somehow don't work for me.  Captured with the iPhone 11 pro using the Lightroom Mobile App.  The image was inverted in Photoshop for that bluesy art nouveau look.

Hope your day is going well.

Shrimp Asparagus Again

I'm pretty sure I've posted a similar image before but this one is new.  Shot with the new iPhone 11 pro.  Stir fried shrimp, asparagus, dried tomatoes, red pepper, and olive.  Easy.  Bon Appetit.

What's on Your Mind?

Bar in Skagway in Alaska.  Another image shot with the x100.  Rendered to appear like a Film Noir.  Grainy.  Blown out highlights on the background and on the woman's face.  Except for the rule of third, some of elements in the photo don't comply with the traditional rules of photography.  Not for the photo snobs.

Hope you are having a wonderful day.

What's in Your Mind? (iii)

A scene at one of the bars in Alaska.  Shot with the original x100 years ago and re-edited with a view to make the image appear to have been shot on film camera.  Low contrast.  Grainy.  Old school.

Hope your day is going well.

Here Comes the Sun

That one day the sun finally shined in Central Texas.  Still at Georgetown.  Rather quaint looking lazy warm atmosphere that makes one sing, "I got a peaceful easy feelin' ... And I know you won't let me down.. 'Cause I'm already standin' ... On the ground."  (Insert country guitar break here.)

Hope you are having a wonderful day.

Happy New 2020 Year

After a couple of glasses of wine this is how one sees things.  But I haven't had my wine yet so perhaps I was having an alcohol flashback - whatever that may be.

An oldie that I found in my files that I intended to process back then but never got to it.  Shot with Roses's Fujifilm x100.  The camera is the first generation of the x100s.  (I now own an x100F.)  Back then the sensor size was limited to 12 mp.  Still pretty useable.

I was able to get the motion blurs by setting the camera on the table across the couple and shooting on very slow aperture speed.  The couple had no idea that I was taking their photo.  We were at the top of the Seattle Tower.  The light streak on the background window is a result of the floor rotating very slowly.

Hope you're having a fabulous new year.