May 12 of 12

Persisting with the slightly late theme. 

May 12th snuck up on me.  It was a stormy night by the time I became aware of the date, with tornado warnings being issued all around.  Riley, as is his norm, was beside himself, a pitiful 95 pounds of quivering scaredy-dog (or whatever the canine equivalent of a scaredy-cat is).  Bridget had bundled Riley in his thunderjacket, and was keeping him company in the basement.  This became the dominant theme for the night.

Despite the arrival of the tornado season and more frequent storms, Riley's primary storm handler remained/remains in good spirits.

Improv is as improv does.  My favorite cookbooks!

Bananas that passing their prime.

A reminder of good times and good friends inTexas.

A bit of refrigerator art.

That's it for this month!  Here's hoping Riley survives the spring rains and tornadoes, and June brings some fun things to photograph!

April 12 of 12

A wee bit late.  April 12, 2010 found me in New Orleans attending a convention.  I scurried around after the day's meetings, and this is what I found...

A radical implementation of air conditioning for the building in the foreground...

The birthplace of Jazz

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Home of the Super Bowl Champion Saints!!

Fine Dining and Fine Music!

7:51 PM at St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square

Voodoo Shops and Haunted History Tours

A cute friend in the window while exploring New Orleans

A reminder of Teak and Riley, the labs at home.

Back to Jackson Square after Cafe au lait and beignets at Cafe du Monde

Interesting folks out and about near Canal Street

A bit of music to end the evening!

March 12 of 12!  Twenty-three years ago today my first child was born.  No camera in hand on that day.  Today, however, camera in tow, I decided to photograph my 12 of 12 at the University of Tulsa, where the C-USA Women's Basketball Championship game was being played.  Tulane led from beginning to end, and the Green Wave went home champions.

Half time popcorn

Clear the way, I'm coming through!!

A good time was had by all!

Some people had to work!

A picture of concentration.

A fiery response...

UAB pushing it up the court.

Tossing a souvenir t-shirt!

Treating the physical pain.

Treating the emotional pain.

To the victors go the spoils!

My friend and fellow photographer, Louis Besses IV

That's it for this month's 12 of 12.  I decided to focus more on the people side, which, for me, is often every bit as interesting as what's going on on the court when the clock is running.  I'll probably post a few more action shots on Facebook or at my website.  Have a great month!

February 12 of 12

Initial plans to join a group for a photography tour of Tulsa I stayed a bit late at work on Friday early afternoon.  The sun was out, however, so Bridget and I set forth toward Keystone Dam, along the Arkansas River west of Tulsa, in search of eagles.  We were rewarded with eagles and trains.  Here are this month's 12 of 12.

Although we saw an eagle en route, our best sighting of the day was along the railroad tracks on the south side of the Arkansas.  Low and behold, our eagle stayed put while three trains came by, stopped, and took turns utilizing the right of way, while I photographed away.

Our cooperative eagle started out a bit obscured by the barren branches.  Initial photos were taken with a Canon 40D and a Canon L 100-400 zoom.

I continued to photgraph from the south side of the tracks.  Not wishing to inconvenience us, or limit our opportunities, 'our' eagle obliged by jumping to a more open viewing area.

Satisfied with his new vantage point, he settled in for an afternoon of preening and watching trains.  I switched to a Canon 5D Mark II for the remainder of the shoot, curious how it would fare with its full frame sensor, but reduced effective focal length vs. the APS-C crop sensor.

As the trains came along one by one, and stopped in front of us, we found holes in their armor, and I continued to photograph the eagle across the way.

The new perch provided a perfect vantage point for our eagle to survey the train activity, and, when he chose, to keep an eye on activity on the river.

The trains were long and diverse, with an interesting variety of cars and containers.

Although all of the preening activity at times left our regal model looking a bit disheveled, he remained a majestic figure nevertheless.

At one point another eagle came flying up river from the east, and "our" eagle had quite a conversation with him/her as the new eagle flew by and continued up river to the west..

As twilight approached, our eagle began to lose interest in the train activity, and turned his attention toward the river.

As dusk approached, we left our eagle to his business, and headed toward home.

All that was left to round out a successful impromptu outing to replace the missed landmark gathering was a stop at Chandler Park to enjoy Tulsa's skyline at early twilight.

Til next month, Ciao and God Bless.

January 12 on 12 -- It begins....

January 12 -- My first blog entry (ever), and my first12 on 12.  Worked all day, so my photographic opportunities this 12th pretty much involved artificial ambient light at home after dark.  My tool.  A new (to me) Canon 35 mm f/1.4L lens, secured from a friend that arrived today.  I shot primarily at close range, and for the most part at a wide open aperture and relatively high ISO  So let's get started...

Wow... Now that is a small depth of field at f/1.4.  An elephant paperweight from Mattress Mac.  All it took was a large furniture purchase.  Mattress Mac is a Houston Institution.  "Gallery Furniture will save you money," was Mac's enthusiastic proclamation on late night TV when I first moved to Houston in 1988.  Mac has since become very successful.

A handmade mug by our talented friend Sharon Gaskill (YaYa!)

A Gerber Daisy gracing our kitchen's island.

Alas, a clock commemorating Bridget's retirement.  It says it all...  Except for the fact that Bridget is in fact a very busy gal!

Any surprise here?  A Polar Bear!  A bit smaller aperture (f/3.5, woohoo!)

Puffins!!!  Memories of Iceland, and, in particular, a birthday dinner in 2001!

Lladro to the rescue.  I have no interest in anything else Lladro, but, their bears!!!  Now that's the ticket!

Granddad's watch, and, in the background, Uncle Armi's book.

Product of Chile....B's hand

Ready for action! 

Set for combat.

An inauspicious beginning, but there are my twelve, and I've learned some things about my new lens!!  Signing off, over and out.  'Til next month.