sjfphotography: *fine art images *natural light portraits *greeting cards


Friday, December 30, 2016

sunrise at the boneyard
 
My favorite excursion in 2016 was a trip to Georgia's Golden Isles - St. Simon, Jekyll and Cumberland.  We watched the sunrise at Driftwood Beach, better known as the Boneyard. I hope 2017 brings equally exciting adventures.

Thursday, December 29, 2016

lookout mountain
 
From atop Lookout Mountain at Chattanooga, Tennessee one can see seven states on a clear day.  During 2016 I actually visited seven states -- including three of those states  viewed from Lookout Mountain.  There was Tennessee, of course; a great trip to St. Simon Island in Georgia and fall sightseeing in the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina.  There were work trips to Ogden, Utah and West Palm Beach, Florida.  Raton, New Mexico was the annual Memorial Day benchrest shooting match.  A long weekend was spent in San Francisco, California with Lou in January and I journeyed with Margaret to Toronto, Canada and used my passport!
 


Monday, December 12, 2016


"in tall cotton"
 
 The expression "in tall cotton" means "having it made" or "on easy street."  They stopped cotton stripping this weekend in order to take family photos in the cotton.  Great niece Ava was "in tall cotton."
 
Fortenberry Farms
Hale County, Texas
12.10.2016

Sunday, December 11, 2016

boll buggy and pivot
 
Fortenberry Farms
Hale County, Texas
12.10.2016

Saturday, December 10, 2016

harvest at sunset
 
Farmers don't quit at 5:00.  This crew may be stripping until midnight to get the cotton harvested.  The boll buggy, pulled by a tractor, follows the stripper, which dumps its load when full.  The boll buggy then transports the cotton to the module builder.  A completed module (on the left) contains 13-15 bales and a bale of cotton typically weighs about 500 pounds.  In case you didn't know, Texas is the leading cotton-producing state.
 
Fortenberry Farms
Hale County, Texas

Friday, December 9, 2016

auto abstract
 
Watermelon Festival
Plains, Texas
8.30.2014

Monday, December 5, 2016

greetings from the hughes boys
 
Alongside the interstate, near a small farming community, this Christmas display greeted passersby (who probably didn't make a U-turn and follow the access road to get closer!)  Other than "neat", I have no idea what this is -- 1930s truck, hay baler/spreader nor Hughes Boys had any hits.  Seasons Greetings from Swisher County (December 11, 2015)

Sunday, December 4, 2016

too wet to plow
 
Great gallery talk today by sculptor Garland Weeks.  He discussed his works like "To Wet to Plow" seen here.  The "Balance of Nature" series depicts life and death through bronze skulls and indigenous animals.  His emphasis on design and composition is also applicable to photographers.  See these sculptures by a native Texan, represented across nationwide, through February 12 at the Buddy Holly Center.
 
Buddy Holly Center
1801 Crickets Avenue
Lubbock, Texas


Friday, December 2, 2016

street art
 
Clematis Street in historic West Palm Beach is filled with trendy shops, restaurants and street art.  The group Street Art Revolution installed this mural, immortalizing five departed music greats - Prince, David Bowie, Kurt Cobain, Bob Marley and MCA of the Beastie Boys.  (I just happened to catch the maintenance man). There will be an unveiling with free beer on December 10.  Too bad my time in WPB was limited; there was a lot I didn't get to see, including Sandie, a lighted 35-foot Christmas tree made of sand.
 
West Palm Beach, Florida