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Last 5-10-25 Cent Store

This store in Northville used to be a Woolworths.  When I was a kid there were Woolworth stores all over the east~~maybe in other parts of the country too, I'm not sure.

When I was a senior in high school, my first job was at a Woolworths which was within walking distance of my home in the Bronx.  Minimum wage was $1.25/hour.  I thought I was rich when I got my check.

This store boasts that it's the last 5-10-25 cent store in the country and it may well be.  It does good business and it's a destination spot for people who visit upstate NY.

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Victorian Stroll

This image is from a few years ago in Troy, NY.  The Victorian Stroll was (and maybe still is) a yearly event during the first weekend in December.  

There's nothing like that around where I live now, sigh.

My heart is grateful for: 

a trip I'll soon be taking with two friends

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Troy, NY Victorian Stroll

I made this image several years ago.  I love it.  The reenactors are always so happy to pose, and show off their skills in their Victorian clothes and attitudes.

Troy is one of the only towns in the area to hold their Stroll during daylight hours, so it's really appealing to families and photographers.  

I miss these events.

My thankful heart rejoices today for:

the sun has been shining all day

Some Time in Albany

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 A friend and I decided to go to downtown Albany to photograph the architecture at dusk.  It was supposed to be a nice day, but as we began the drive the rain started.  Even though we were a little discouraged, we were determined to keep going since we had cancelled the same fieldtrip last week because of the rain.

When we arrived it was still raining but the Egg sheltered us and in just a short while the rain stopped.   There's not much more of a story to this.  We photographed until it was almost dark and we were cold enough that it wasn't enjoyable any more.

I think the rain was a blessing in disguise because of the interesting shiny patterns left on the ground.  

Still some nice color on the trees in the background

Getting Ready

Not much time left...beginning to think about packing and shipping things back to NY. Sigh!

Posted at noon on Friday, March 27, 2009

PS, if it's any consolation to my fellow mvpers, in just 5 short days we will have completed 1/2 of the assignment of posting at least one photo a day for a year.

Congratulations to all of you!

Last week was the yearly summer Workshop for the Professional Photographers of NYS. It takes place at Hobart and William-Smith colleges at the northern end of Seneca Lake of the Finger Lakes. It's a beautiful location and campus. The school begins on Sunday afternoon and goes through Friday at noon.

The subject of the class I took this year is scenics and nature. We alternated classroom work with outdoor shooting. The weather was exceptionally fickle this year. It definitely fit the saying, "if you don't like the weather, wait a minute." The rain would be pouring down torrentially and 5 minutes later it would stop and 5 more minutes later the sun would be shining like it hadn't rained in three weeks.

We did manage to get outside quite a bit in spite of the weather. Our first early morning shoot was at a winery not too far from the school. There was a sweet flower garden as well as a grape arbor and an area of growing pears.

Another morning we drove down to Watkins Glen at the lower end of the lake. It was very cloudy and overcast, but the light was good, and it made for better shooting than if it had been sunny. With the sun, the contrast in the glen is too intense and it's difficult to get a well exposed image.

Another morning we went to a small commercial lily farm. The flowers were in practically peak condition--it was beautiful.

After dinner one evening we went to the town of Seneca Falls to shoot along the river. Across the river was a beautiful old building that had once been a mill. We drove over and had a blast photographing the building. I tried to find a way to get inside, but couldn't unless I had broken a door or window, and even if I had gotten in, I didn't have a flashlight to find my way around.

Not too far from the college campus there is a row of town houses. The fronts are painted different colors--we nicknamed the area Rainbow Row.

Another evening we went to a marina at the state park, also not too far from campus.

So it was altogether a great week in spite of the weather. The instructor was Tony Sweet and if you'd like to see some of his great work, go to his web site, tonysweet.com

Don't forget that you can leave comments for any of these blogs. I check back at least every other day.

Mahalo for looking and Aloha for now.