Sing Along

Friday night friends invited us to a Sound of Music sing along.
First, we would like to thank them for a good time. It was an excellent family event.
The movie was shown as part of the McGinn Group client appreciation party on a large outdoor movie screen.
Second, I was able to get some nice images of the site where the movie was shown.
The site was the Patapsco Female Institute in Howard County. A short drive from our house in Eldersburg.
I have always wanted to check out the ruins. Being there at sunset was perfect for my camera.
We got a chance to explore the ruins before the movie, which children and adults took advantage of. I took the time to snap some images and did again after the movie started.
The ruins sit on a hill overlooking the Patapsco River Valley in Ellicott City. The school was founded in 1837 and was a finishing school for young woman for 50 years.
It is said the Greek Revival ruins are haunted by a ghost, a woman, Annie Van Derlot died while attending the school.
We didn't see a ghost, but maybe she was enjoying the movie like the rest of us.

Fireworks

For those that have been reading my blog know I like to shoot fireworks. I went a distance to shoot fireworks last week.
I thought I was done shooting fireworks until next year. But there was the Magic Kingdom and Epcot Center.
It was raining at the Magic Kingdom, but the show must go on. It was an oh and ah show.
I knew the Magic Castle was the focus of the fireworks. As we walked through the park during the day, I kept this image in mind.
I figured folks would turn out early for the show and they did. A lot earlier than I thought.
The spot I scouted was in front of the statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse. There was a crowd, but I found the spot I was looking for without people in between the statue and me.
I didn't use a tripod for the images. I didn't want to carry it all day and I figured the fireworks would be bright. So my images are hand held.
I was happy with the results, but would like to shoot them a few more times and from different locations.

Epcot

We visited three of the four parks at Walt Disney World while in Florida.
The third park we visited was Epcot Center. It was late in the afternoon which was great for the camera.
The part I liked best were the countries. It made you feel like you were visiting each one.
I like to shoot early morning and late afternoon. I love that magic hour before the sun disappears for the day and I wasn't disappointed this day.
We spent some time in the United Kingdom, as Shirley has some English heritage. I shot a few images there before we moved on.
The sun was dropping as we came to France. I shot a still life that looked straight out of Paris.
I took a few more images as we headed toward Germany and dinner.
I shot a nice image of a clock and a statue at Germany along with a setting sun image that could have been along the Rhine River.
We had a wonderful meal in a beer hall setting for Oktoberfest.
We both have German background. The food reminded me of food my grandmother used to make.
It was almost dark when we left Germany. I snapped a nice image of Mexico before the fireworks and light show started.
We stayed late at Epcot as it was open until midnight. I was able to get another keeper aiming my wide angle upward at the icon of Epcot, Spaceship Earth.
I am hungry for German food again as I write this, but I believe next time I will try the fish and chips in England.

Animals

One of the days at Walt Disney World we met up with family at Animal Kingdom.
This is one park where you need your camera and if possible a longer lens.
It doesn't take long to see animals as you can see them entering the park. You
also have to keep your eyes open and look around as there is wildlife everywhere.
The young man in the group likes dinosaurs, so we headed there. I believe he is three years old, but knew the names of all the dinosaurs. That part of the park was neat and there was even an old Coke cooler in the gift shop, of course stocked with Coke.
Next was a walk through Africa which offered more animals along with the feeling one was on the African continent. The heat and humidity also made you feel like you were there.
We took the trip on the safari ride while in Africa, which was the highlight of the day. I highly recommend the ride for anyone visiting the park.
We saw all the animals but the lions. We even have problems seeing the king of the jungle when we attend the Maryland Zoo. Anyways it was a great ride for a photographer and it was fun to see how the kids enjoyed it.
There seemed to be animals around every corner. A few of my images can be seen here.
I will definitely stop by Animal Kingdom on my next visit to Walt Disney World.

Nature

We stayed at one of the Disney sites during our trip to Disney World.
I was taking pictures of nature as we were checking in. There had been a shower and water droplets were on the flowers and plants.
Fort Wildness was great. We parked at the cabin and didn't drive again until we left for Jacksonville, three days later.
The bus picked us up and took us to the dock for the ferry that dropped us at the front gate of the Magic Kingdom.
I like the outdoors, so the cabin was perfect. As a photographer the area was picture perfect.
The campgrounds were laid out around trees and water. There was Spanish Moss hanging from the trees.
I was able to shoot nature as soon as we got unpacked. The frogs in the area had a concert going. A walk around the drive brought me to a spot that offered a few images. First to catch my eye were the frogs. I thought I was looking for one or two frogs like at home, there were hundreds.
Next I pointed my camera at a lizard that was watching me work.
The plants in the water got my attention next.
There were birds everywhere and the crane-type white birds liked the lizards that seemed to be everywhere.
I checked out the spot the next three morning, but nothing topped the first day.

Vacation

Well, the past week was fun.
I took my first vacation in a long while and made my first trip to Florida at the same time.
The first part of the week in the Sunshine state was spent at Disney World. It's fun to see the attraction through the eyes of children.
I am not much on rides so the grandchildren kept me busy with my camera.
How busy? I am glad you asked. Between Disney World and a family reunion I took over 13,000 images. Yes, you read that right. I gave my Nikon quite a workout.
I will share a few of my shoots from the Magic Kingdom. We also took in Animal Kingdom and Epcot which I will explore in future entries.
I visited Disneyland in the 1960's. So there were a few items I wanted to see. Mainly the Magic Castle, fireworks and "It's A Small World". I also saw small world at the 1964 World's Fair in New York. It is possible that Shirley and I rode the same bus back then.
There were many photographs to take, no matter what time of day. Disney World is one place you definitely have to take a camera, so the memories can last forever.