The Black Dog’s PhotoBlog

The Earth Laughs in Flowers
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

This will probably be my last flower post until next spring as many of my flowers in the garden are starting to fade.

These last few weeks of August the weather up here in Minnesota has been beautiful. Nice sunny days, gentle breezes and warm (not hot) temperatures. You can tell that summer is coming to an end and fall is just around the corner. Fall is my favorite time of year and I’m looking forward to the season change. I love all the changing colors, apples, hay rides and cool evenings. But winter and cold always follows for us Minnesotans. I really will miss the flower garden until next spring.

“Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers feed also the soul.” – The Koran

Do you ever wonder what photographers do in their spare time? I like to photograph simple ordinary tasks and objects. Like cleaning house or canning vegetables. Why do I do this? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s the experience or a way to play with and practice a new technique or accessory I just learned or bought. All the while, I accomplish a daily chore while exercising my vision.

I believe we all see things differently. In fact, I believe we see with our mind and not really our eyes. How else would you explain a person being blind and yet producing excellent, beautiful photographs? (Example: Flickr: Blind Photographers Group)

This also explains why one person looks at a photograph and finds much beauty while another person finds the same photograph dull and drab.

Using Ansel Adams as an example, I believe he seen many things in sharp focus. Take a look at some of his pictures. He visualized them this way in his mind and transferred that visualization to his photographs. While I see things with a very limited focus. My brother even commented when I was younger that I had “tunnel vision”. I think this shows in many of my photographs.

Bottom line I guess is that ordinary things can make beautiful photographs. It all depends who’s looking and what their mind is seeing.

May you from this day on run wild and free in a peaceful land of large fields and plenty of apple trees. A place where no fears can torment you and you’ll always feel safe. May you always have a toy to hold in your mouth and many other puppies to play with. May you finally rest and find that peace you’ve so desperately been searching for these past few years.

We’re sorry to have kept you longer than we should. It’s just that we didn’t want you to go so soon. We love you and will miss our special little wild one.

Every year this is one of my favorite sites. The reflection of the luminaries and vendor booths around the water after the sun goes down. I can’t leave until I see this.

A closer view of the luminaries at dark

Last night I attended the Cambridge, MN annual Relay for Life. These Relays occur all over the United States beginning in Tacoma, Washington back in 1985.

This morning I was trying to figure out what to write in my blog about this event and it turned out to be much harder than I thought it would. Now-a-days we all know someone who’s life has been touched by cancer. I could share with you my stories about the survivors I know and about the people I’ve lost but I think it would be better to let you reflect on your own stories or memories.

The man with the hat! Don’t you just love it?

This really gave us a chuckle. Hanging at one of the vendors stands, a “Redneck Wind Chime”.

I must send a special thanks to my husband’s aunt Marian for introducing us to these Relays 5 years ago and for her hard work and devotion to this cause. We have come a long way since 1985 in detecting and treating cancer but there is still a long way to go.

American Cancer Society, Relay for Life

Rush Point Store, Est. 1879. View an old photograph of this store here –>old photo of Rush Point Store or visit the store’s website here –>Rush Point Store Website

Just the beginning of August and already I’m busier that last month. I’m excited about the new month and the new developments for my business. Besides being a month away from the beginning of the school season and finding that many seniors haven’t yet had their portraits taken I also have a few projects this month which will take me out of the studio. This is very exciting for me. I began one of these projects on August 1st which is photographing a small township just north of Cambridge, MN called Nessel Township. It’s a very quite and peaceful place that consists mostly of agricultural land. I’d love for my photographs of this area to show others what beauty is contained here. I’ve decided to do this essay entirely in black and white using only my 17-35mm wide angle lense. My hope is that this will become a collection of work that I can build on for some years to come and maybe duplicate for some of the other small towns in Minnesota.

Designed in Simple Georgian Architecture, Calvary Lutheran Church, Est. 1870

West Rush Lake Shoreline