Last April I attended an annual photo conference. At the trade show I purchased photo mats that have names cut out in them--in each letter you place a 4x6 image of that person. They're very cool! That was last April, a whole 8 months ago. The mats had the names of my grandchildren, and they were supposed to be their Christmas presents. Christmas, as in 4 days from now. Guess when I finally got around to taking the photos--yesterday! Hmm, didn't procrastinate too much.


Anyway, I could only get the three youngest over here, since the older three were in school. So the mats will be for their birthdays I guess. The session was a hoot, the kids were great and I got some great images. Here's a sampling: the girl with the football jersey is 3 1/2, the other girl is 2 1/2 and the boy will shortly be 4.

Christmas is almost here, hard to believe that the time is flying by so quickly. Wasn't it just a few weeks ago that it was summer...? After returning home from Ireland, it wasn't long before I was back in the routine of normal living. I started working on my Ireland scrapbook as soon as I could. It was difficult narrowing down the images to a manageable number for the scrapbook, but I finally did it. The book is done now, except for a touch here and there. Looking at it returns me immediately to that wonderful country. I feel like when people look at me, they're only seeing a figment of their imagination--that I'm really still in Ireland.

We've had several major events at church that have been a lot of fun. The latest one was the Community Carol-sing and Open House.

Invitations were sent out to various local churches and VBS families to join us. Our sister church in Schenectady joined us, not only in the pews, but with their choir and musicians. Interspersed with music were scripture readings about the birth of Jesus. It was truly a beautiful evening.

Following the Carol Sing, we all gathered in the Fellowship Hall for refreshments. Once again, Louise and the Hospitality Committee out-did themselves. It looked very festive and very beautiful, and the food was wonderful. The room was packed. It's so good to be able to share our blessing (beautiful church building, love of God, provisions in abundance) with anyone who cared to enter our building. God has truly blessed us, and we desire to bless others by sharing with others.

Well, our trip to Ireland is now a memory. We returned to the states on Oct. 19. We were all sad to leave, and we're already looking forward to our next trip.
We had great weather. It rained overnight two different nights, and only one day.

Our guide was wonderful. He has a real strong knowledge of Ireland and its history, and is just a deep well of trivia.


One very striking thing about the towns we visited, and I would think all of Ireland, is that even though the houses are mostly white or muted colors, the doorways and window sills are bright colors. Most windows showed lace curtains, and quite a few had flower boxes even though the flowers were not in full bloom since it was Oct.
















We visited several areas of the coast. Each was a little different, but all were beautiful.

Below is a local gathering periwinkles. While he methodically worked, his dog romped around in the surf and seemed to be having a grand time.

We visited many old abbeys, castles and graveyards. We thought that this location was the best one we had seen for taking our group photo. One of the ladies who was booked for the trip encountered some serious medical situation that prevented her from going with us. Someone took a photo of her, blew it up, and took her with us vicariously. You can see her sitting on Pat's shoulder in the front row.

In one of the towns we visited, this store had a display of "wellies" outside. Everyone in Ireland owns wellies because of all the wet weather they have. They come in all sizes, colors, and decorations.

The day that it rained, our guide, Olcan, took us to Galway City to do some street photography. Great fun. In spite of the rain, we all got some really good images. I was just fascinated by this barber shop.

This chap managed to get around in spite of the rain. With the high price of gas in Ireland, I was surprised that there weren't more bikers. Of course in the country there is no room to ride on the roads. Some of them are "boreens" = a road that is just wide enough for two in-calf-cows to pass each other in opposite directions. It's one of those situations where one car has to back up or go into a field.

The Irish people were so sweet and down to earth. They always smiled and they like Americans, so it's very easy to be there. However, as is the case almost everywhere, there are some folks who seem to exist outside the box. At one place we stopped, we encountered this group of locals. They didn't seem to mind having their pictures taken at all--even their back sides were fair game...

It seemed as though almost every alleyway had a scene like this. The Irish do seem to like their ale. Guiness is big there, and they even use it for medicinal purposes.

Well.... almost a month later, most of us are still trying to sort through the hundreds of images we each shot. I thank God constantly for the blessing of being able to take that trip, and for the memories it created. Hope you enjoyed the little tour.

Well, I've been home for a week now. It was great to see my family and friends, but my emotions about being here are very mixed. The weather has been awesome--the temperatures have been perfect. Because of all the rain we had earlier this summer, everything is still green and lush--a feast for the eyes. People are still mowing their grass and as I drive around, the scent of new mown grass is wonderful. However, winter is on the way, and in January and February, I'll be thinking a lot about Hawaii.







The day after I returned home, Sunday, we had a church picnic at the Rulison home. There were a lot of people there, it was a beautiful day, and it was great to see everyone in a casual atmosphere. We played some great volleyball--unfortunately there are no photos of it because I was playing and no one else was photographing.









One consolation is that in just about 4 weeks, some friends and I will be leaving for a 10 day trip to western Ireland. We're very excited, this trip has been planned for almost a year, and it's finally just about time to go... There are some concerns about taking our equipment on the plane, but after the experience of traveling to Hawaii, I don't think there'll be much trouble going the other way, as long as we adhere to the regulations.

Leah and I arrived in Oahu, Hawaii on Aug. 23, after 11 hours in the air and a 3 hour layover. The flight was very uneventful--leaving on time and arriving on time--what a great concept!
We got our rental car and headed to her apartment. How nice! It's a privately owned condo that is being rented to the college kids. Leah has 3 other roommates. There is one large bedroom that they all share and a bathroom upstairs, and a kitchen, bathroom, and huge living room that serves as living/dining/desk area, along with a lanai (deck) with huge sliding glass doors. One floor down, and visible from their hallway is a huge pool and a hot tub that they have access to. This is the view looking up from the pool area.


We drove around the island one day. It took about 2 hours of actual driving time. We stopped at the Dole Plantation and had pineapple soft ice-cream---yum. Then we continued up the coast--stopped at one of the beaches and saw sea turtles. We continued on to Wiamae Falls. It's located in a Nature Preserve.


It's nice, but not as spectacular as some of the falls at home. Then we went on to find another beach along the North Shore, and we just spent some time swimming and laying on the beach. It was beautiful!


The next day we went to the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.





Another day we spent a few hours at Waikiki Beach--this was much more crowded and commercial than the beaches at the North Shore. There was entertainment on the beach and the beach front was completely filled with hotels. Some people were attempting to surf, but the waves weren't very big.




One morning I went out early to photograph some street scenes. There are fountains and planters everywhere. This is just one example.


Tuesday we went to Diamond Head. We joined a tour group, and when we got there found out that we could have gone independently. But the tour was good. The guide gave us a lot of information about the islands and their formation, etc. Very interesting.




This is a view of Waikiki Beach from the top of
Diamond Head. The view is awesome. You can even see one or two of the other islands far off in the distance. (those hills are part of Oahu) One of the islands the guide mentioned is Molaki.

After staying at the top for about 15 minutes we began to descend. After a short walk, this is the view of Diamond Head Lighthouse that you see. It's really beautiful. I could have spent a lot more time there, but the path is very narrow and people are contstantly coming and going so there was no place to stand without being in the way, let alone set up a tripod.

Wednesday we pretty much sat around and did nothing--with no guilt, hooray. Around 3:30 the girls decided to go to a movie, so I packed the car and took off. Got lost but in the process found a great overlook. I tried to take some shots, but the wind was practically knocking me over. I even tried it with a tripod...


Then I found my way to the east side of the island which is very rocky--very beautiful. I was really looking for the second of the only two lighthouses on Oahu. In the process of stopping at various overlooks and beaches, I saw this rainbow. Rainbows are pretty common here, but it was great to see one when I had my camera in hand. By the time I found the lighthouse it was almost time for the road to close. I was only able to get a far away shot, but I was happy with everything else I got.

















Thursday, Leah and I went snorkeling at one of
the beaches on the North
Shore. It was really fun. Then we went to a beach and did some swimming and sunbathing.

Since this was my last trip to the North Shore past the Dole Plantation, we just had to stop for another pineapple ice cream.

In June, 2006, I attended a Mentorseries Photo Trek (sponsored by Popular Photography Magazine) in the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee.


We headquartered in Gatlinburg.
Each evening and morning we were transported
into the mountains to catch the sunrise and sunset, streams,
rock formations, and leftover homes and barns scattered throughout the hills.

It was very beautiful and there were multitudes of photo opportunities throughout the weekend. Our mentors were very helpful and ever-present to give advice and encouragement to all the trekkers. The sunsets weren't as spectacular as they could have been, but still awe inspiring and well worth the wait.

One morning I spent several hours walking around Gatlinburg in a shopping area called "The Village". It's a quaint little area of small shops, cobbled sidewalks, and many nooks & crannies to explore. I arrived around 6 a.m. and had the place practically to myself for about 2 hours.

If you might be interested in purchasing any of

these prints as fine art prints, contact me at

linda@empireone.net

Welcome to my blog. I am a professional photographer residing in upstate NY. In the past I have photographed weddings, sports teams, recitals, high school graduates, anniversary parties, family reunions, etc. As you can see, my main work has been with people, but I've always been especially drawn to babies and children. Although I still get breathless when photographing these beautiful young people, I find my interest growing in the area of scenic, nature and still-life photography.

I belong to the Schenectady Photographic Society and we recently conducted a field trip to the Statue of Liberty this spring. Most of the day was beautiful and sunny and it had been many years since I visited the Statue, so I was very excited to be there with my camera and my like-minded friends.



When I made this image of the Manhattan cityscape, it was a little hazy, but I think it made for a very emotive city portrait.









After visiting the Statue of Liberty for a while, we ferried over to Ellis Island. I don't remember ever being there, and it was a very moving experience to see the place where so many people entered our great country for so many years. Not only are there artifacts from the immigrants, but the walls were lined with photographs taken during those years, photographs of families weary, ill, fearful, and at the same time elated to finally be entering a free country that offered them a hope that wasn't available in their homeland.