After leaving the world of stock photography several years ago, I have somewhat lost track of what kind of money if any, can be garnered from it. Before I left, the change to digital photography had already made earning substantial money of any sort, much less likely if not impossible. Everybody has a camera with them 24/7, and some make good pictures. I had already switched 90% of photography for money to teaching in the field workshops and presenting slide shows. I enjoyed both and found them satisfying, but I asked myself, how long will photography enthusiasts pay money to learn from others? The answer is it still goes on but if you are going to teach workshops, the only “real” money is from taking people to great locations where they can find the wildlife, landscapes, or cultures that they want to experience. I would certainly think that the past few “Covid” years has made surviving as a traveling teacher, difficult if not impossible.

Hopefully……………………long-live the professional photographer.

Today’s images were taken from my oldest hard drive. They weren’t even raw files, but big ole jpegs.

There’s nothing that viewers (through my experience) seem to enjoy seeing more, than images of “little critters” be they birds, mammals or even reptiles such or frogs.

If memory serves me (about a 50/50 chance), I captured this image of a cute little Barn Swallow on the old long gone boardwalk railing on the edge of Wolf Lake at Bong State recreation Area in Wisconsin.  Getting down (or up) to eye level is always one good way to make endearing wildlife images.

We are currently in the season of ice and frost. The only thing better than braving the freezing cold to crawl around and make images of such, is sitting in a warm house and looking at the pictures.

Blue skies can make for blue ice. This was made at the edge of a building. While it is clear what thus subject is, it fits my classification as a “semi abstract”.

Frost close-up and plant stem, created……………………well, somewhere. I am lucky to have found the hard drive much less remember where each image was created.

A thistle sort of plant with you guessed it, frost.

Silhouettes can be produced all year and somewhere, some place, I created this one of a plant. Maybe at dusk but more likely at dawn.

I loved photographing old buildings and when they were surrounded by flower gardens, so much the better.

When photographing architecture I often began with the entire building and then moved in making images one step at a time. A little more detail and texture can be nice.

Let us finish our image portion of today’s post with one of my favorite birds, the Brown Thrasher. I came across very few over the years so when this one called me in to make pictures, I said yes. Really, trust me, that‘s what happened!

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Those of you who know me or have read this blog for any amount of time, know that I am a supporter of gun rights. Lest we reach the point where only the criminals are allowed to have guns.

I own a gun but had not shot a single bullet through it in several years. Guns that aren’t used and gun owners who never shoot them, can be a dangerous combination.  So finally I went to a local shooting range to “pop off” a few so to speak.

I was thrilled to know that the gun that wasn’t being used, and the old ammo that was sitting in a box (and in the gun magazine) all worked fine. No un-exploding bullets or misfiring weapon.

Unfortunately while the gun and fire power were sharp, the shooter (me) was rather dim and dull witted.

Sloppy physical handling of this semi automatic hand gun by me, as I squeezed  off shots, caused the empty shells to often get caught inside the gun rather than eject. That isn’t dangerous but I mean, I try to act like I know what I am doing. A twenty something young man who worked there was near and he saved the day. I was in a sense moving the gun before the shell was ejecting. He rattled off five blazing fast shots without a mishap. I felt at first like I was a “gun virgin” and then like I was an old man. I did get back in the swing of things and was able to successfully fire three to five shots at a time as fast as I could squeeze, while getting each of them within a few inches or less of one another.

The reason for all of this is neither to complain that I am getting old or to brag about my shooting. More people have guns today than any other time in American history. Some guns are used to rob and kill, and some to protect others from the robbers and the killers. The last reason is to get some enjoyment from what can be a fun and reasonably safe activity at a shooting range

Don’t just stash the gun away hoping that the worst won’t occur, when you may need it some day to protect yourself, others, or your belongings. Keep yourself sharp and your weapon in working order. Hopefully that gun will always simply provide you with a casual and fun pastime. Either way, caution and repetitive practice will allow you to be the master of your own domain.

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We are all condemned to eternal death by the original sin of Adam, but will receive no condemnation and can be blessed with eternal life by the precious Blood of Christ.

Have a great day,
Wayne