Cloud Pictures & A Song

A couple of years back, I had this weird preoccupation with taking pictures of clouds from my deck.

I think it all started with an approaching storm, and me noticing that the clouds were strange and foreboding (I guess).

From there, I grabbed my camera every time I stepped out on the deck, and I saw some interesting things in the sky.

These photos were all taken during the same summer season.

Did you ever, as a kid, lay on the grass and look at the clouds? I did. I used to think that the cloud formations depicted the saints and the Virgin Mary, revealing themselves in the sky. Yes, I always did have a vivid imagination.

Maybe I wasn't so far off. Who knows? Maybe we should pay better attention, like we did when we were kids.

When I thought back to those warm summer days as a kid, lying in the grass, staring up at the sky, I wrote:

Saw God in the clouds
On a warm summer's day
Laid in the grass
Let the time tick away
Nothin' much goin'
Just a child who was free
To ponder the heavens
'Neath a cottonwood tree

Here is my "cloud" song. Take a look at the pictures below, as you listen. Yes, the recording isn't that good; it was one of the first times I ever recorded a song. But it has an innocence to it, I guess.

THE COTTONWOOD TREE

More Photos

I thought I'd post some more of my favorite photos tonight.

There's no rhyme or reason to the ones I've chosen. They're just some that I like. They are all scenes from Minnesota, however.

A couple of notes:

I'm really sick and tired of hearing, "Your camera takes really good pictures."

No, my camera doesn't take any better pictures than any other camera.

I take good pictures. Because I work at it.

Ever look at someone's vacation photos? Where the subject is so far off in the distance that it could be anyone? It could be a clam. It could be a person. Hard to tell.

What the hell is wrong with people? Zoom in! Or bring your camera up closer to the person! It seems really rudimentary to me.

A couple of other notes:

Frame your shot correctly. Think about how your picture will look.

Everyone can take a picture of a national monument. Try, if you will, to find another angle. PLEASE!

It's not against the law to kneel down while taking a picture, or to move off to the side, or to experiment with natural light and shadows.

Try to remove ugly stuff from the frame before you snap away. If you take a picture of beautiful scenery, and there's a telephone pole in your picture, the thing people will notice is the telephone pole. It's human nature.

Take more than one shot of the same scene - from different angles and heights. Film is relatively cheap - or, if you're using digital, well, batteries are relatively cheap, too. When I shoot a roll of film, my motto is, if I get one good picture out of the whole roll, then it's a success!

Saying, "Your camera takes really good pictures" is like saying, "Your word processor writes really good lyrics."

Photography is much like songwriting. You have to look at things from a different perspective.

So, herewith, are some of my preferred photos. I guess I could have zoomed out about 500 yards when I took these, but I don't think they would have had the same effect.

Luckily, I have a good CAMERA.

MOSSY FOX FOREST

FALL ON THE TRACKS

COUNTRY CHURCH

NIGHT FALLS ON SUPERIOR

FALL ON CAMELOT

FALL LEAVES

COUNTRY CHURCH AND SHADOWS

AUTUMN ON SUPERIOR

MY MONET

SAILBOAT

Vacation Pictures

We just returned from our mini-2008 vacation to the North Shore of Lake Superior. I had the pleasure of sitting on my patio on the shore of the big lake, and just snapping away.

Here are a few of my favorites.

SUNRISE ON LAKE SUPERIOR

PINK SKY MOON

TWO HARBORS LIGHTHOUSE

COUNTRY CHURCH

SUNRISE THROUGH THE TREES

It only took me about 4 1/2 rolls of film to come up with five good pictures. (I actually have a few more, but you know how boring it is to see other people's vacation photos.)

Digital photography has its place, but I still prefer good old-fashioned film. I think, if I were to use my digital camera, I'd be so busy reviewing the pictures, and prematurely deleting the ones I'm not happy with, that I'd miss out on the "big picture", so to speak. Plus, a big part of the fun is the anticipation of waiting for the pictures to come back from the processor.

This post has nothing to do with music, but I guess one could be inspired enough by them to write a good song.