Rockville Bridge

Railroad bridge that spans the Susquehanna River near Harrisburg.

Faith's passage

Found this church by the Capital Building.

Golden Globes

I found myself attracted to these lights at the Capital Building in Harrisburg. This isn't the best angle, but if I remember correctly, part of the building was under construction so keeping the equipment out of the image was a challenge.

Golden Gang

Friends of mine asked me to take some photos of their 4 golden retrievers. While there is still snow on the ground they were hoping to get some images to use for 2010's christmas cards. Working with 4 dogs was a challenge and even though I know these dogs well, it was hard work. The dogs got bored after about an hour, so we're going to continue the shoot another day. But in the meantime, here's a sneak peek of sunday's session. Hannah is at the top, then Mason. T-Bird and Malachi joined in for a group shot.

Capital Dome

A few weeks ago I made a trip to Harrisburg hoping to find something to shoot along the Susquehanna River. It's been a few years since I've been to Harrisburg, so I visited some other sites including the capital building to see what else I could find.

Down the lane

From Valley Forge...

First light

Soldier's huts in Valley Forge early on a winter morning.

George

I first met George when he was about 4 months old. I've never met a bulldog who hasn't made me laugh out loud and George is no exception. He's still an innocent puppy, but he sure can be wild when he wants to be!

Church by the sea

One of several churches located in Boca Grande. Do the shadows add interest or do they distract from the image?

Boca Grande Lighthouse

Located at the tip of Gasparilla Island, the Boca Grande lighthouse was built in 1890 and is the oldest structure on the island. It remained in operation until 1966 when the Gasparilla Light, an automated lighthouse, took over guiding ships into the port. The Boca Grande lighthouse fell into ruins and in 1985 was rebuilt. Today it is a museum and the subject of many photographs and paintings.

Tropical gas

While the northeast was getting pounded with it's second snowstorm in less than a week, I've been in cold, but sunny south Florida. It hasn't turned out to be the warm break from the winter I had hoped it would be.

One afternoon, we headed over to Boca Grande to watch the sunset. It wasn't much of a show, and to top it off, the winds were blowing at about 20 miles per hour. I about froze walking around on the beach. Boca Grande is a quaint little town on Gasparilla Island. Stepping into Boca Grande is like stepping back into "old world florida". Here you will find no traffic lights, no high rises, no malls and the main mode of transportation to be bike or golf carts. The country store where the locals buy their groceries was built around 1941. At that time, gas was available for purchase. Today the pink gas pump is no longer in service, but serves as a reminder of what once was.

Breeze

It's wednesday which means it's pet photo day. Breeze is a 15 year old springer spaniel. She is deaf and lives for cookies. No matter what is in my hand, she's convinced it's something yummy. I had fun taking these images of her as she made all kinds of faces at me while patiently awaiting her reward.

Red, white and blue

Another scene from Big Valley in amish country.

Country Lane

Yesterday's storm dumped a whopping 15" inches of snow here in Happy Valley. Forecasters predicted we would get between 4 - 8", so we weren't too excited when news reports claimed this might be a record breaking snowstorm. Guess we had our share of the excitement afterall!

South of State College is a town called Belleville. It is largely an amish community. I've been here dozens of times hoping to find a great bargain at one of their many flea markets. After the storm cleared out I headed over to Big Valley and checked out one of the neighboring towns, Allensville. Here I found winter's glory at it's best.

Still waters

The Clinton County Courthouse along the Susquehanna River. The river was incredibly still on this very early morning a couple of weeks ago.

Tillie

Tillie is a rescue border collie mix. She's about a year old now and is always on the go. Like most border collies, she loves playing with her frisbee and wiffle balls. I was surprised I could get her to sit still long enough for me to snap some images of her. I just love her markings, she's such a pretty girl and sweet too!

Rustic woods

Looking down spring creek through one of the bridge's windows. Sadly the interior of the bridge has been vandalized.

Crossing spring creek

Located in Spring Creek park, my favorite park in State College, this bridge has a lot of meaning to me. Built in 1976 by the students of ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) of the Penn State University, the project was led by my father, the group's advisor. I was just a little tyke at the time, but my younger brother and I loved being doted on by the students.

I especially remember the day the bridge was brought out to the creek and placed on it's supports. With all kinds of equipment and a lot of fussing, it was a big day for everyone. I was carted out of there before the big moment, I believe my mother's exact words were "it's time to go to school honey." Unfortunately for me, kindergarten wasn't going to wait. Many photographers have photographed this scene over the years and through the seasons. Ironically, I never had a copy of this image, that is, until now.