Eye Push-Ups

The month of March flew by and now that we are into April the weather just seems to be getting better. I took a few pictures last month. Mostly just snapshots of random things and projects that I have been working on. These pics are from the Backdrop I made this week. I wanted a sunburst. My only wish is that the red would have remained that color. It dried to an orange color and I'm okay with how it came out.

 One of the great things about photography is that it does not have to be too serious. Only when I want to or see something that requires consideration do I engage.

This image of a budding tree is what caught my eye yesterday afternoon. It was late afternoon and I was just hanging out in the back yard and the light reflecting off of the limbs caught my eye.  How does it make you feel? 

Spring???

The snow had been hanging on. It just would not go away. Then we had about two weeks of above normal temps that melted most of it away.

With the nice weather I had the chance to work on was the left over wood from the tree the county cut down last fall. It was just a little more than a cord of wood.

Before

It has been several years since I have had the chance to use a chainsaw. A very useful tool indeed. I cut, moved and stacked the wood to dry so we can burn it next fall.

I had to get the wood off of the ground so it would not rot. So I used some old landscape timbers that had been used for a fence long ago. Now that it is stacked like this air can move freely around the wood allowing it to dry.

After

It is good to have this project out of the way. Some of the wood will have to be split and that can be done at a later time. 

Yesterday I was driving home from town on a route that I don't take everyday and saw this image. This corn is getting ready to be milled. Nice to be back in farm country.

Shantytown

I went out today and snapped a few images. With temperatures starting below zero, I headed out this morning to shoot some ice fishing shanties up in Wausau.

It was another hoary (heavy frost) morning. Even though this is a pretty busy county road. I try to stay on the backroads because there is better chance of seeing something that is picture worthy.

This image I had take the day before.  I drive by these horses all the time.  I have never owned horses. I can only imagine that it is a major responsibility to care for them especially on cold morning like this.

 
Ah! Shantytown. The image looks like something from the movie Grumpy Old Men. Ice fishing is something foreign to me.  At least for now. I went over and found fisherman just starting to begin fishing. He did not have a shanty.

The gentleman's name was Koua. I bent his ear about ice fishing. He gladly told me about how he did it. A lot of it was basic fishing information.  He uses ultra light equipment a depth finder, some luck and patience.

Winter Sunburst

This morning I went out to Schmeekle Reserve located in Stevens Point to take pictures. There were many cars and trucks in the parking lot at the visitor center. All off the people though were meeting inside the center. So I started down the trail to Lake Joanis. On the short walk I found myself alone with only prints from other people that have made the short hike recently.

Once I arrived at the lake, The sun was very bright and with the help of a filter I made this image. The tracks were fresh since the day before we had received a couple of inches of snow.  To venture out onto the lake is something that sounds absolutely crazy where I grew up.  I did. I have never done such a thing. I know people do it here all the time. On some lakes I have seen ice fishing shanties,cars, and trucks out on much bigger lakes in the area. Foolish some would say. I say, Alive!  Regardless, on this day a new experience.

Dark Ages

In a world of digital age. I need to try to get back to basics of a dying art form. Not a fancy darkroom but functional.

Kerosene

I went out this morning to get kerosene. After driving a mile or so I had to go back and get my camera.

I had seen this the day before but the difference today was that the sun was peeking through the clouds. Also moisture had found its way on the trees. I have seen pictures of trees like this flocked from Yellowstone National Park. The main difference from Yellowstone is the absence of deciduous trees.  

The Polonia Mission

Yesterday I got out to take a few pics driving the back roads of Portage and Waupaca counties. I like sunny days to take pictures but cloudy days can be just as good if not better.

We live in an interesting part of Wisconsin. Within Portage county we have flat farm land and rolling hills and to the north in Marathon county we have what some would call mountains but they are big hills to me. When the snow blows here it just blows with nothing to stop it but tree lines and ditches. Once the ditches fill with snow onto the road it blows.

Wisconsin is farm country and barns are plentiful. I have always loved barns they are great for landscapes. Barns also have character because no two are really alike. Barns in Wisconsin are also great for tourism. There are barn tours, countless calenders, and historical societies dedicated to preserving them.  When one catches my eye  I try to at least make a mental note of where it is so I can come back later to make images.


 I stopped in the village of Plolonia to take pictures of a barn that is on the property of Felician sisters. The place is now a school for about forty children but in the thirties was a orphanage for children.  I asked the caretaker if i could take a few pictures.

 I have been by this place several times since we have moved here but decided to not take pictures of until yesterday.  The fence and the barn are beautiful. The caretaker told me that no one has been in the barn since the early eighties. I would love the chance to get in there some day and see how the light shines from those glass block windows.