More long exposures today, but not at the jetty on Vilano Beach. This was again Boneyard Beach at Big Talbot Island SP.  For any who might be interested, these were f16 at one minute, and f11 for 30 seconds with a 10 stop neutral density filter and a Red 25A filter at ISO 12 (Ilford Delta 100 film).  I'm really liking this long exposure thing, but it's a challenge to choose the right subjects for the technique. 

These photographs represent my first successful attempt at long exposures...as much as two minutes using a ten stop neutral density filter plus a red 25A to enhance the sky a bit. I have been using my next to oldest camera for months now because it is completely manual having no batteries that would be depleted quickly.  The location is Vilano Beach which borders St. Augustine.

 

Big Talbot Island State Park is always a treat to visit with its fallen, sun bleached trees. The day was cool, the sky was gorgeous, and the tide was out making it ideal for photographs.  Here are three:

A long walk in a strong wind to photograph this favorite place!  

Here's another place I've often photographed, but, again, the light, the tide, the sandbar, and the clouds were different as they always seem to be. 

I've been exploring places I've been to before more deeply and discovering there's a great deal more to see. Here are several images from January 6th.

 I think I've finally fixed my ability to see your comments!  Thank you all who've offered them. Blogspot apparently changed the way that was done, and did not explain the changes so I am only just seeing them now after changing something as an experiment. So, please continue to offer whatever reactions occur to you to share whether positive, negative, or just informative.  I'll read them all and appreciate your time. Thanks!

I seem to return many times to the same places, so on the first day of 2022 I decided to explore at least some different parts of them.  Since moving here six years ago, the Timucuan Preserve area has been reopened with new trails to wander.  So, that's what I did even getting lost for a while which added several additional miles of hiking. Here are some photographs from that hike.

 

Here are some photographs from near where I lived in New York that are all about winter in ways that are never represented here in north Florida. These were taken between 2006 and 2010 I think. 

Yet another visit to Pumpkin Point on a cloudy, cool day in December. North Florida is what people sometimes think has typical Florida weather, but it's cooler and a bit less tropical than the southern part of the state which is the palm tree cliche perception. 

 

It's been quite a while since I first photographed the tabby walled slave cabins at Kingsley Plantation. Once again, I could not quash the overwhelming sadness I feel coming here...these ruins had been the homes of enslaved Africans brought to this country in chains to spend their long, exhausting days working in the fields for the benefit of their 'owners'...a term I consider abhorrent, but all too real!!  Here are four views of the cabin ruins and one of the ancient tree that must have been a gathering place for the community. 

In my post of December 3rd, I mentioned the Bach Goldberg Variations. Written for a contemporary keyboard instrument (probably a clavichord or harpsichord) they have been transcribed for string trio by Dmitri Sitkovetsky.  There are some really excellent performances of that arrangement on YouTube, but in recognition of a frequent visitor to this blog from Sydney, Australia, I've chosen an excellent performance by members of the Australia Piano Quartet who are from....Sydney! 😊 (I am, by the way, a conservatory trained professional cellist, not a professional photographer)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4ihxM4Pf-4&ab_channel=LOFTmusic

I've photographed and posted quite a few images from this place...Cedar Point.  My most recent visit was in late afternoon winter light with dead calm air and some wispy clouds...perfect!! ;)  

"Anyone can take pictures. What's difficult is thinking about them, organizing them, and trying to use them in some way so that some meaning can be construed out of them. That's really where the work of the artist begins."  Lewis Baltz

What I've quoted above is intriguing because I hadn't thought about the why of making photographs from that point of view..  I look for compositions all the time...images with or without a camera...and try to preserve what I've seen so I can continue to enjoy them and share with others either as prints or online. But, deriving or imposing meaning has never been a factor. I suppose it involves making the images fit into a project that can wear a title.  It's a challenge to be free of an imposed theme before making the photograph, but creative enough after the fact to find one if one is there. I have to think about what's quoted above some more to even fully understand it in its several dimensions. I'm familiar with some very well known photographers whose images strike me as quite weak, but because they've put them in a book with an organizing principle, they're celebrated. I have no such ambition, but I am going to pursue this notion anyway and see where it takes me. 

Bach's Goldberg Variations are brilliant, all in G major, organized and varied by tempo, but there is no meaning whatsoever; their storied soporific genesis is a lie. They're just deeply satisfying to listen to!  

Here are three images of NC waterfalls near High Point.  Two are of Dry Falls which would seem to be an incongruous name except the 'dry' part refers to one's ability to walk behind the waterfall without getting wet.

My last two posts have been in color...I used my phone and it was all so automatic I didn't have to do anything much. However, I shot eight rolls of monochrome film that I've finally finished developing, so the rest of what I post will be in my customary monochrome...slightly toned in sepia. These are from Nantahala National Forest which is incredibly beautiful. I'll not post all at once...just what I've scanned and worked on a bit in Photoshop Elements 11 thus far.

Here are two more from our stay in the mountains of North Carolina. These two and the one I posted on November 17th  are phone cam photographs.  Though I vastly prefer using my film cameras and monochrome film, for use on line, the phone cam seems perfect!

Every autumn, we spend at least a week in the mountains north of Florida.  The terrain gets really high and rugged going through Georgia to N. Carolina and Tennessee. Driving near the Nantahala Gorge, we saw this stunning scene that I photographed with my phone. Sadly, the 'mist' that contributed to its beauty was actually smoke from a forest fire, but it's been contained and no further damage is being done.

As visually attractive as many other places are, 'boneyard beach' at Big Talbot Island SP is also that with the added appeal of constant change. If I decide to wait a week to photograph something that interests me, it's likely to be different when I return.  Here are two from this week.