New England winter

Winter photography is challenging to say the least, especially during a snowstorm, but it is always worth it. The snow covers every horizontal surface to bring out new patterns and lines that are otherwise hidden during the rest of the year.

We pass this nearly 300 year-old barn on our way to Woodbury several times a week all year, and in winter it is especially beautiful. But to capture the full beauty of the snow, we have to shoot while it's still falling. Yes, that often means getting soaked in the process, but it's so worth it.

Sheer beauty

Ok, enough of the fish heads, and back to our weekend shoot with Sarah. We came back to the studio turned on the lights and the fan and just kept shooting. We moved a soft box close to her face to soften the light, a reflector below and lit the black (yes black) seamless background with a blue gelled strobe to give a deep rich cobalt blue color.

Sunday, we put her on the bus to go back to school. It was her first time modeling, and we hope she'll be back to do it again, soon.

Raw ingredients

Before the turn of the century (that was only ten years ago), I went to Robins Bay Jamaica with an American doctor with a heart for one of the most poverty stricken areas in the country. We were the only guests at a local "resort" where our hostess prepared dinner for us promptly at 5:00 p.m. each day, no exceptions!

John, the ever committed and most dedicated doctor, would often stop for a house call or two after our day was over, making us late for dinner on more than one occasion. Unfortunately, we were at the mercy of our hostess for dinner no matter how late we were.

Sometimes we would be a half hour or an hour late, and we would have to eat whatever she cooked at room temperature, which was usually tolerable. But two nights, we arrived after 8:00 p.m. Not only was our dinner gone, but she added insult to injury by serving us cold fish-head soup. It was a milky color, and there were mysterious morsels of meat buried below the surface which I'm sure John could identify, but very graciously did not. We just kept convincing each other that all we had to do was not think about what it was and just keep swallowing. We did okay until they eyeballs floated to the surface. Suddenly, we were full and finished for the night. It wasn't til I went to Thailand a few years later that I saw the raw ingredients in the morning market waiting for someone else's soup.

Location, location

I know, it sounds like a real estate promo, but for us it's reality. The location for this shoot was the second floor of C.L. Adams Hardware in Woodbury, CT. It was about as authentic as one could get because it hasn't changed in probably a hundred or more years. But the best part was the willingness of Sarah, our beautiful weekend guest, to model for us over and over again, wherever we were. It was great fun.

In its time

Snow can make anything beautiful, even barbed wire. There is nothing like barbed wire to send a very strong message, about boundaries. But snow adds softness and beauty to the otherwise cruel steel barbs. It presents a new look to an otherwise formidable barrier. Even the rugged and rough hewn posts are capped with soft white snow.

While some look at this very philosophically and wonder what else is the snow covering and whether or not crossing through is worth the risk getting snagged on a barb without first knowing what's on the other side. However, we recall King Solomon's words in Ecclesiastes 3:11, "He has made everything beautiful in its time." Perhaps it's time to appreciate what He has made beautiful for us rather than thinking of the "barbs" in our life.

The art critic

We spent yesterday at the wonderfully confusing Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. We really needed a bag of bread crumbs to find our way back to the main entrance at the end of the day. We just kept wandering deeper and deeper into the museum until we had no idea where we were. (Maybe that's why they don't allow people to bring in food.) We finally turned our exhibit map upside down, and it seemed to make a lot more sense.

But, as we wandered and pondered, I began to photograph the people. They represented every age, size, ethnicity, and culture, but above all, they were there for the same reason, to thoroughly enjoy the experience. As I watched this lady, she passionately read every description of every painting in the room. I guess she reminded me of Norman Rockwell's, The Art Critic, that he painted for the April 16, 1955, cover of Saturday Evening Post. I just wonder if Van Gogh would have painted any differently had he known he was going to be under the critical eye of such a regal patron of the arts.

Can you handle it?

How many times have you asked someone, "Can you handle it?" It could be a daunting task, an emotional experience, beyond the limit of our physical or mental faculties, or perhaps a "tongue-in-cheek" expression for the way something is verbally or visually expressed.

We expect many first time visitors to our blog during the next few days and many more return visitors. Much of what we say is said in a "Can you handle it" manner. Whether it's a person, an event, a situation or just something that caught our eye in a new way, we like to put a little different spin on it and hope you can handle it.

So whether you join in and become a follower or just bookmark our blog, we hope that as you page through it, you will see how we think and that it will bring a few minutes of respite, and maybe even a chuckle, to your day.

NASCAR is back!

There's nothing like the excitement of a race, especially NASCAR, and today is the first Sprint Cup race of the 2010 season. It's the Daytona 500, the "Super Bowl" event of the year. Yes, I know, the biggest event for all the other major seasonal sports--football, baseball, hockey, basketball--is at the end of the year, but not NASCAR. Every track has its own uniqueness, but Daytona is just plain big.

I had the privilege to shoot from the hot pits during opening weekend in 2002. What a thrill to drive past all the spectator parking and be waived by security into the tunnel, under the stands and up into the infield to media parking. I looked around and it was like a moonscape. I was surrounded by the legendary 2.5 mile Daytona International Speedway.

What a rush. It was an experience that I will never forget. Now, I watch from the stands when I can and from the living room when I can't. The track doesn't matter. It's the thrill of the race that counts along with the race for the chase and finally the championship. Will Jimmie Johnson take the championship for a record fifth season in a row or will it be Junior's turn, or perhaps Tony Stewart? Obviously we have our favorites, how about you?

Thinking warm thoughts

It's coming. This past weekend, the mid-Atlantic states were hit with record snowfalls. As we tuned into the Internet weather services, they were predicting snowfalls in feet rather than inches. That's scary, especially when Virginia, Delaware and the District of Columbia all seem to share one plow.

But tomorrow, it's supposed to be our turn for a big Nor'easter. Along with the wind and cold, snow accumulation guesses range from six to 20 inches, depending on where you are in the state. We are thinking warm thoughts as we hunker down with plenty of firewood, a roast chicken in the oven while there is still electricity, and a lot of extra water. I called the snowplow guy and told him not to even show up until it's over as we aren't planning to get out tomorrow. Schools and businesses are already closed in anticipation of the "big one."

It's great news for us as we have been waiting for the "big-one" all winter so we can update our snow images. Which reminds me, I have to put out the snow props.

Rooftops and walls

No matter where you are in the world, you can't help but wonder what's behind, below, or inside urban rooftops and walls. Like people, they come in all shapes, colors, styles, and ages and each has a purpose. There are churches offering a place of respite and an opportunity to worship and cleanse ones soul. Apartment buildings with their eye-like windows looking back as we wonder who's inside and what they are like. What's at the bottom of the quiet chimneys, especially on such a cold day when we would expect to see smoke. If only we weren't behind the brick wall, maybe the answers would be obvious, but then so would we.

So, where in the world are we?

"Lookout" or "look out"

Here is our hawkish friend who sits behind the studio everyday on the lookout for a dinner to pass below his perch. Apparently, we're part of his hunting territory. We have plenty of mighty meaty mice in the woods that we would much rather he snag for family takeout--his family, that is--than catch in my traps before they get into the house. It's just one of those great balances in nature and it's also a good reason not to have an outdoor cat.