Virginia

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My brother lives next to a forest. With the sky gray and gloomy, I focused on the green of the shrubs and trees. The leaves showed only the slightest hint of the coming fall color.I took this photo from my brother's front porch. We had seen deer several times in his "back yard." As they sauntered past his house and deeper into the forest, I moved to the front of the house and willed them to pass through an opening in the trees. I processed this in PS Elements to accentuate the fawn and eliminate some of the graininess.

With a slight break in the weather, Mike and I accompanied
my niece, Ashley to her riding lesson.The muddy grounds forced her to ride inside

where I could not get any good photos,
but the horses in the stable were cooperative.
Click on this image to enlarge it,

look closely in the eye and you will see...ME!Ashley and I drove to Virginia Commonwealth University
to visit with her sister Allison.
Allison & I strolled through the Hollywood Cemetery
and found President James Monroe,
who is buried in the large, black edifice in the back.

There was a time when I had long, brown hair.

Washington D.C.

The rain from Kansas followed me to Virginia. Where was the sun? blue sky? On a warm, wet, humid day my brother and I set out for the American History Museum in D.C. Rain was not going to keep us at home.

I was desperate to get a shot of an iconic symbol of D.C. and shot this through the window of the car. I wanted to prove I had been there.

"There's no place like home."

"There's no place like home."

I watched a few minutes of the new "Charlie's Angles" TV show. I don't think any of them will replace Farah at the Smithsonian.

Kansas in September

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I was in Kansas to visit my aunt who grew up in the small farming town of Troy. The harvest was in full swing with only stubble left in many of the corn fields. These photos were taken in Belmont, a once thriving town
that has dwindled down to a few farms and a cemetery... which was behind me when I took these sunflower photos.

This sliver along the horizon was the only sun I saw in 4 days.

Not all of Kansas is covered in corn and soybeans. In Wathena, where my grandmother grew up, I found a road that paralleled the Missouri River and this first sign of autumn.

There's no place like home, but my next destination was
Virginia to see my brother and nieces.

September Full Moon

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Even though my obsession to photograph every full moon is long past, I still enjoy anticipating it and watching it rise. Well, I am not going to do that without a camera in hand (actually on a tripod). This month, 10 members of the photography club joined me along a country road in San Martin to catch the rise.

A lunatic I am and glad to be.

Point Lobos Redux

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What better place to spend my birthday than at Point Lobos, a state reserve just south of Carmel? This was my fourth visit and I'm sure I will return many more times. Cypress Grove Trail loops through one of only two naturally growing Cypress stands remaining on Earth. The outermost trees grow out of the cracks and crevices in the granite rocks and must withstand strong winds and constant salt spray.

The orange on many of the trees (and rocks) is carotene pigmented green algae, which does not harm the trees.

This spread of ice plant seemed to be growing right out of the rock.

I specifically looked for branches trimmed with this
delicate, lace-like moss.

Weston Beach has more photographic opportunities than any single place in the park. On my visit in May, I concentrated on tide pools. This time I stayed with a wider view to capture the naturally saturated green and orange and blue.

The southern section of the park that includes the picturesque trail to China Cove was closed, so I walked out to Sea Lion Point and was pleasantly surprised by the seaside garden of flowers still in bloom.

Another birthday and
another exceptional day on the Northern California coast
More images from this day are on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/suebrazelton/

My 20 year old niece, Allison and her boyfriend Matty flew out from Virginia for a visit. The California sun has always been a draw for Allison, even though on most summer visits, the beach sun is shrouded by fog. But her weather timing was good this year. The sun was out in Santa Cruz and at Coyote Lake.

After staying a few days with me, I drove to them to San Francisco. First stop was Treasure Island to view the cityscape.

Then Chinatown for lunch

and checking out the stores

By the time we arrived at Ghirardelli Square, the sun had disappeared, but we were pretty much done for the day anyway.

They stayed over for another day of touring the City.

Pray for Me, Ms. Mantis

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Look who showed up in my backyard. I must admit that I was not the one who spotted her. She was kind enough to land on a flower in a pot on a stand on my deck, so she was almost eye level. I only had to fasten my camera to the tripod and attach the macro lens, and I was ready to shoot.

I was told that this is a female. I don't know how to tell, but she looks lovely on a bed of petals.

By adding 3 extension tubes, I was able to move in close enough to see the details of her UFO shaped head and tiny dot eyes. I left her soaking up some sun.

Seen any critters lately in your backyard?