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Weekly Photo Challenge: My 2012 in Pictures

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For those who don’t blog with WordPress and may not know, the Daily Post offers a Weekly Photo Challenge.  Each week, the Daily Post provides a theme for creative inspiration and the blogger is supposed to take photographs based on the interpretation of the theme.

The theme for this week?

Pick the best pictures from your 2012 and have those pictures tell everyone about your year.

I wonder if this Challenge was as hard for other bloggers as it was for me.  At first I was intrigued, then overwhelmed and finally resigned … resigned to the fact that I would never be able to narrow a year’s worth of pictures down to a few.

This exercise helped me to remember what a great year it has been and just how fortunate I am.  Fortunate to have amazing friends and family, and to live surrounded by beauty!  No doubt there have been challenges and some heartache, but the positives won the day (er … year).

I decided to share my year in two ways … life and beauty through photography and then life and beauty through family and friends.  A few of the pictures were taken with my Blackberry (yes, I still use a Blackberry).  You’ll be able to tell the difference.

Life and Beauty – Photography

Claytor Lake, Pulaski County, Virginia

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The Booker T Washington National Monument, Franklin County, Virginia

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The Ride of Silence, Radford, Virginia  http://www.rideofsilence.org/main.php

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The New River, Radford, Virginia

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The New River Valley Fair, Pulaski County, Virginia

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Fall and The Virginia Tech Hokies

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Labor Day and rain in Floyd County, Virginia

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The Scarritt Bennett Center, Nashville, Tennessee (from the 2012 Solo Bike Ride)

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Shooting Creek Road, Franklin County, Virginia

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Somewhere in North Carolina

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Along the New River in Pulaski County, Virginia

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Foggy Morning, Radford, Virginia

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The Home of John and Mabel Ringling, Sarasota, Florida

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Just another lovely field in Montgomery County, Virginia

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A train trestle over The New River, Pulaski County, Virginia

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Life and Beauty – Family and Friends

Andrew’s Farewell Party before his move to Charleston, SC (in Blacksburg, Virginia)

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Mothers Day / Fathers Day with the best parents EVER (Williamsburg, Virginia)

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Sisters Celebrating 50 (Roanoke, Virginia)

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The Annual GOA Gathering (Bath, North Carolina)

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Hanging with the SoHos! (Dublin, Virginia)

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Gathering with the BGs in Grayson County, Virginia

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The annual Road Trip with Ruth to see the Hokies (Chapel Hill, North Carolina)

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Mumford and Sons Concert (Bristol, Tennessee)

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Some of my favorite Biker Chicks (Elkin, North Carolina)

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Bikers riding for a good cause (Draper, Virginia)

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“Divas” raising money for another good cause (Radford, Virginia)

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Time on the farm with Bill

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And time on the bike with some of my favorite guys (Philpott Dam, Bassett, Virginia)

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I’m always ready with the camera while riding,

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whether at the beginning of a trip with my good friend, Tim,

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Or during the pouring rain on my annual solo bike ride (somewhere between Nashville and Knoxville)

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And best yet, reconnecting with lifelong friends (not a quality picture but a quality friendship) Richmond, Virginia

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So there you have it … how lucky am I?

Onward to 2013

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What Others See When I’m Shooting

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By now you know that I pull over to the side of the ride all the time on the way to work.  This morning, I was attracted by the sun barely peeking through the clouds and just had to stop.  As I was walking back to the truck, I saw what others see as I am pulled over.

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Yeah … I’m silly today!

Have a good one and GO HOKIES!!!

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A Perspective on Weather

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After spending an absolutely wonderful Christmas holiday with my parents and son, it was time to head on back to Radford.

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While it was pouring the rain in Williamsburg, the weather along the route home was much worse.  The normally busy post Christmas travel day was made worse because of freezing rain, sleet and snow and a mess was created on the highway.  Multiple accidents (thankfully none that looked serious), 20 to 40 mph average speeds and poor visibility turned the typically 4 hour trip into a 6 hour challenge.

I’d made up my mind before I started the drive to take my time (very hard for this lead foot driver) and keep a positive attitude. While the weather caused difficult travel conditions, I found that it also provided opportunity for fun and challenging photography. Well … maybe standing outside in the freezing temps wasn’t exactly FUN but it was definitely challenging!

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I’m sure that the folks at the rest areas (I stopped at every one) wondered who the crazy woman with the camera was. My feet got wet as I tromped around in the slushy snow and it was nice to get back into the heated truck.

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The wind, snow and clouds made the mountains disappear and reappear, and I was glad that for once I was rolling along at 5 mph.  How often are we able to really look at the scenes along the road as we fly by at 70 mph?

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Shooting macro was difficult as the wind kept blowing me and the branches, too.

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So while the weather caused an unexpected adventure, I was fortunate enough to avoid problems along the way, and because of that, truly was able to see the beauty.

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Shadows on a Barn

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It would be so easy to look at these pictures and think “sure, that’s a nice barn” and then move on to the next blog post.  I get it!   We’re all looking for interesting content and wonderful pictures and this post doesn’t necessarily fill the bill.  Then I realized that while I had stopped to photograph the barn, the interest was in the shadows.

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When you look at these pictures, is your eye drawn to the red barn?

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Or is it the shadows that you find interesting?

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Go back and look again … let me know!

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Selu Conservancy: Colors on a Misty, Cloudy Day

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Selu Conservancy, a 380 acre tract of land along The Little River, serves as a retreat center,  and an outdoor classroom and science lab for Radford University.  I’ve been to Selu several times over the years for business meetings, government retreats, special events, weddings and a memorial service.  This day I came for the Fine Art & Crafts Holiday Market.

The day was rainy and cloudy, and as I pulled out my camera, one of the other patrons commented that there really wasn’t much to photograph because of the “dreary day”.  I of course disagreed and only wish I had the ability to capture the beauty!  Photographic opportunities are endless at Selu …  today I offer just a glimpse into all that the Conservancy offers.

The Selu property houses The Barn (a research and science center), The Observatory (which resembles a silo) and an “authentic replica” of a 1930s homestead.

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The mist and clouds made for striations of color against the mountains.

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The grayish blue day provided a perfect backdrop for the silhouettes of the trees.

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Jeff Armistead, the Director of Selu, and I, spent several minutes on the deck of the Retreat Center trying to photograph the multiple levels of color on display before us.  I’m not sure that I was able to do justice to the view, but I sure enjoyed trying!

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To Bare or Not To Bare

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I drive past this field most mornings on the way to work.

I’ve been watching and waiting for the day when 1) I had the time and 2) when the sun was shining, in order to catch the one tree, of the many that ring that field, that has held on to it’s leaves.    The orange leaves catch the light beautifully.  I love the shadow being thrown from the hay bale and the barely visible moisture steaming from it.

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It wasn’t until today though that I noticed the dramatic difference between that tree and another nearby.

One bare … one still leaf covered.

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Reflections – Your Suggestions Please!

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Upon arriving home each evening, I hit the switch to turn on the tree lights and am struck by the simple beauty of  lights reflected in the window.

So, of course I reach for the camera … and I’ve taken 25 fairly awful pictures.

I’m told I have a decent eye … so why can’t I capture the image that I visualize?

Any suggestions for this rookie photographer?

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Foggy Morning in Radford

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You may remember me saying that I often head out the door in the morning without a clue as to the weather or the temperature.  This morning, when driving to accomplish the mundane task of getting the oil changed in the truck, I was fortunate to witness the beauty of a foggy morning.  By the time I got home an hour later, I had stopped twice to shoot the silhouette of trees and once, the beautiful view shed that Radford offers.

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