Uncategorized – Page 7 – A Photo A Day (Squarespace)

03-16-16 Spring Has Sprung. . .

Spring has sprung, the grass has ris, I wonder . . . (read more)

By Scott Shephard

When Deb takes a photo of mine off the wall and puts it on the floor, it is her way of saying . . . . well, that she doesn’t want the picture on the wall.

She rarely does this and recently what she took down was my “Winter Triptych” which I’m sure she likes but which tends to remind us of something most South Dakotans want to forget: winter.

So I made what I am officially calling my “Spring/Summer Triptych.” It’s a creative title don’t you think? And for those wanting names for the flowers, from top to bottom, they are lily, crocus and flowering crab apple. I offer nothing fancy today; but I hope it is optimistic.

03-15-16 Too Cute!

She has me and several others wrapped around her little finger. . . (read more)

By Scott Shephard

I’ve never met grandparents who thought their grandchildren were anything but cute. And I’m one of them.

Irene Bernice has been plagued with ear problems that have kept her parents up most nights since she was born. And yet, during the day, and perhaps most importantly, when I’m around her, she is always charming. And cute. Of course!

Canon 5DIII 1/125s f/8.0 ISO200 102mm

03-14-16 The Caves at La Jolla

The birds certainly don’t mind the wind and rain. . . (read and see more)

By Scott Shephard

It was rainy, windy a deeply overcast when we parked our car at the overlook to the La Jolla caves. I thought twice about getting my camera out. Frankly, I’ve thought twice about getting my camera out at any time in 2016. Believe it or not, I’ve even thought about just quitting photography. But then what? The fact is that I’ve just gotten lazy. . .

But I did get the camera out and took a few photos. I’m glad I did. As I’ve taught my students, photography isn’t an accident; its a concious process. And it takes discipline, practice and dedication. Oh, and a good “digital darkroom” to help gray days look just a little brighter.

Canon 5DIII 1/125s f/8.0 ISO400 24mm

A few more from this beautiful area:

03-13-16 Self-Absorbed?

Why not try to get your face in most of the things you photograph? (read more)

By Scott Shephard

One of the nice things about people taking selfies in public places is that they are often oblivious that someone is taking a picture of them taking a picture. Am I a creeper? I don’t think so. I’m a photographer. 🙂

And here was the photography challenge on this occasion: How do I get a photo of a massive statue of a sailor kissing a nurse and somehow make it more interesting than all of the millions of other photos that have been taken in this place? (Which is on the San Diego waterfront, by the way.)

One answer is that I could have taken a selfie with the statue in the background. Since I’ve never been to this spot, it would have been truly unique. But I think a better answer to the challenge is what I ended up posting. And are people who take selfies self-absorbed? Maybe. Is it bad to be self-absorbed? I can opaquely answer that with a monumental selfie:

Deb and Scott strike a pose and generally obscure the monuments at Stone Henge. But they get a truly unique image in the process.

03-12-16 A Pretty Good View

By Scott Shephard

On our recent visit to southern California Deb and I drove over to Point Loma, a peninsula across the bay from San Diego. We went to see the famous tide pools on the western side but I ended up spending more time photographing the Rosecrans National Cemetery, which is located there, than I did anything else.

I have always been drawn to cemeteries as photographic subjects though I don’t often share the pictures I take there. Military cemeteries are especially compelling, in part because they are symbols of sacrifice and in part because of the symmetry, color and geometry that draw my eye.

Beyond all of this, though, the most striking thing to me about the Rosecrans National Cemetery is that it is full. After putting 110,000 soldiers to rest, this cemetery has no more vacancies. Maybe once the military cemeteries all fill up we could find less violent ways to resolve our differences. . . . ?

Canon 5DIII 1/750s f/11.0 ISO250 98mm

02-18-16 Trio

Thanks, Katie, for keeping this tradition going. . .

By Scott Shephard

How about a composite of three of my favorite people: Glenyce Jane, Deb DeGeest and Irene Bernice. All at around 6 months. All in the vintage dress that Deb wore 60 some years ago.

I wouldn’t have this photo if Katie hadn’t suggested that we needed to get a 6th month photo of Irene B, aka Ibby.

Canon 5DIII for two and Who Knows? for the one in the middle.

01-31-16 Winter Sports

There are a few good things about Minnesota snow. (Read More)

By Scott Shephard

People in warm climates sometimes ask why people live in cold places like Minnesota, where this photo was taken. There are many answers, most of which are convincing to someone like me. First, it’s home and that’s generally where family is. Second, if everyone moved to warm climates, place like Honolulu, San Diego and Cancun would be more crowded than they already are. Third, I am concerned that the cold weather apparel and tool industries would collapse. (China’s economy is already a bit unsettled!)

A less convincing reason is that we have snow and warm places don’t. Yesterday, when I was watching Brian and Glenyce sled down the hill at Minnesota State Fair Grounds, I was thinking that they can’t do that in Hawaii. And sometimes, when I walk on freshly fallen snow and hear the crunch under my shoes, I think that someone who has lived in southern California their whole lives has no idea of what they’re missing.

And the good thing about snow in the upper plains states is that it will melt away sooner or later. Maybe in May . . . .

Canon 5DIII 1/250s f/6.7 ISO200 102mm

01-28-16 Don’t Forget Glenyce Jane!

The equal time rule suggests that I should post one of Glenny J.

By Scott Shephard

If Glenyce Jane has looked at my photo blog recently, she might notice that the score for 2016 is sister Irene 2, Glenyce 0. That could lead to all kinds of things, including sibling rivalry. And I wouldn’t want to be party to that.

The problem was than on the day we were set up for the studio photos you’ve seen recently, Glenyce was not exactly cooperative. If I had been a better photographer, I’m sure that I could have done better than I did. But this photo works. It was my idea to bring in another “member” of the family. The Cabbage Patch doll was a willing and relaxed subject. Glenyce, on the other hand, wasn’t interested in my camera. She did smile once but not at me. That’s OK because sometimes it’s better if the subject is unaware of the camera.

Canon 5DIII 1/125s f/8.0 ISO100 58mm

Glenyce Jane

Sep 26, 2016

Blog, Family, people

Glenyce Jane Shephard, Irene Bernice Shephard, children, grandchildren, black and white, b&w