Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park ~ Date/Time Captured: 04/20/2018 @ 18:42
Copyright 2018: RJWilner Photography

I had been scouting the Little River in the Tremont area of Great Smoky Mountain National Park on this evening for a project I've started recently and in hopes of finding some dogwoods in bloom. The latter with the thought I'd be back the next am to shoot should any worthwhile discoveries be uncovered.
But when I stumbled on this location that I somehow have not managed to spot in any of who knows how many previous visits to Tremont, the sun was *just* starting to slip below the tops of the treeline casting some long shadows down the river as well as backlighting the partially unfurled leaves on the trees closest to the river's bank....while letting those further removed from the river's edge to fall into deep shadow. With those partially unfurled leaves glistening in the sun's warmth announcing the arrival of spring and looking like ornaments hanging on a Christmas tree....in concert with a couple dogwoods all dressed up in their sunday-go-to-meeting best just made the scene for me. The heck with tomorrow morning I thought as I scrambled to retrieve the gear from the vehicle and set up before that wonderful light disappeared.

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park ~ Date/Time Captured: 04/20/2018 @ 07:44
Copyright 2018: RJWilnerPhotography

I had arrived at Clingmans Dome on this am just as the sun was peeking over the horizon to find probably the clearest skies I've ever encountered in all my trips to Great Smoky Mtn Nat'l Park. My original plan had been to catch sunrise from what I refer to as 'Photographers Row' by the main parking lot and then do some hiking of trails on the dome.
The hiking portion of the plan was abandoned rather quickly as I wimped out in the face of 32F temps with the dome's trademark windy conditions. And with the clear skies and less than typical haziness in the mountains that typically allows them to 'layer up' in a shot, I was beginning to fear this session might not produce anything in the way of 'keepers'.
I did fire off a number of shots in a southerly direction as the sun rose just high enough to start strafing the ridgetops in front of me with light. And it turned out there was one small valley with rather heavy fog sitting over it. So, I had hopes there might be some B&W ops in the bunch.
After a half hr or so of capturing several compositions in those conditions, the sun had risen high enough in the sky to put a damper on continuing, so I put the gear in the vehicle thinking I was done for this am. But as luck would have it, I decided to walk the length of the 'sidewalk' a couple times (I'm an old fart...I need the steps :) ). And as I'm doing so and heading basically east, I can see this one small valley way off in the distance that was rather brightly lit compared to the surrounding area and appeared rather fogbound....at least from the great distance from which I was viewing it. So, I dragged the camera out again and zoomed in (160mm, I think) , and fired off a number of shots. The spot I was focusing on had to have been just about where the sun had initially peeked over the horizon that am. Even as I was shooting, it was not terribly far above the top right side of this frame. The result of that shooting is what you see here. Made my morning!

Location: Jefferson County, MO          ~          Date/Time Captured: 02/15/2018 @ 17:38
Copyright 2018: RJWilner Photography

"What to do....what to do...
Take the stage and shine
Or remain in the shadows of my comfort zone
And watch as opportunity passes by.

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri ~ Date/Time Captured: 01/14/2018 @ 14:38
Copyright 2018: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO          ~          Date/Time Captured: 01/14/2018 @ 13:30
Copyright 2018: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: St. Louis, MO          ~          Date/Time Captured: 12/23/2017 @ 10:06
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

"He had bent to the will of others so commonly for so long he no longer knew how to stand up for himself."

Location: St. Louis, MO          ~          Date/Time Captured: 12/23/2017 @ 09:57
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

"She was just.....different."

Location: St. Louis, MO          ~          Date/Time Captured: 12/23/2017 @ 09:49
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

"The street was full of holiday revelers...all of whom seemed a little... 'tipsy'."

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2017 @ 11:24
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Our second shooting session of the morning, and the last of the trip found us at Benvoy Beach. Though still mostly overcast, there were more breaks in the cloud cover and much more texture in that blanket than when we'd left our first stop of the morning at Ballydowane . That cover was outstanding for long exposure shooting, and though it was now after 11a, the sun still managed to serve up a bit of it's warmth when the clouds left the sky virtually naked at the horizon for a brief period. 

Location: County Waterford, Ireland ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2017 @ 09:51
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

The last day of our trip to Ireland was a terrific one with 2 very productive morning sessions. Again I am amazed at how docile the sea was on this visit compared to our previous visit the evening prior to tropical storm Brian making a pass over Ireland. That calmness in the sea for this one allows the sea stacks to take center stage and even cast some subtle reflections on its surface.

Location: County Waterford          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2017 @ 09:32
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

"When she took an online personality test, it surprised nobody when the results revealed her to be 'The Great Compromiser'. She had always bent to the will of others and it had taken a toll on her."
 

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2017 @ 08:29
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Amazing the difference in the sea's wave action on this morning compared to our first visit here a couple evenings prior. During that previous evening visit, I could not possibly have shot from this location without being swept away by the sea. It was more than a little rowdy during that visit. M-u-c-h calmer during this session.

For a while during this 'sunrise' session, it appeared the cloud cover might break up enough that we'd have a shot (pun intended :) ) at some decent early am color. While that never quite materialized, it turned out to be a great morning for some long exposure captures. 

I had been working another, similar composition to the left of this one, and then started walking further to the right to check out other possibilities when I noticed the 'echo' possible with this one. Notice the BigRockOnLeftAndSmallerRockOnRight with the 'V' break between them. And then an 'echo' of that combination in the distance. And then toss in the wonderful way the clouds formed for the long exposure. Sometimes the eye finds something interesting and MoNat rewards with her own contribution.

Location: County Waterford, Ireland ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/21/2017 @ 17:20
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

A very unusual evening session at Kilfarrasy Beach. For most of the session, the cloud cover seemed darn near complete. Though the cover looked heavy, it must not have been very thick/dense as there was an extended period when that cloud cover took on a nicely warm evening color. And it acted not unlike a warm fill light on the sea as the sea took on some of that warmth as well. And every now & then, there would be occasional breaks in that cover that allowed for some interesting light…including the sun rays I managed to capture in this one.

Location: Garrarus Beach, Ireland          `          Date/Time Captured: 10/21/2017 @ 10:02
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Just returned from a trip to Ireland that incorporated a couple workshops led by the Light, Land and Sea team of John Dunne & Athena Carey . What a trip. Historic weather necessitated frequent re-shuffling of our shooting itinerary, but what a blast we all had.
This late morning session at Garrarus Beach on the 'Copper Coast' near Tramore saw some of the calmer seas we encountered on the trip. Even the typically dense cloud cover relented enough to allow the sun to peek through a bit while here. And for a very brief couple minutes, it managed more than a peek and shone a light on the sea surrounding this formation.

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2017 @ 11:19
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

One of the historical structures we visited on the trip to Ireland. Built in 1200.

Location: County Waterford ` Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2017 @ 08:32
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

One more from the utterly terrific sunrise session we had on Garrarus Beach on this morning. The light seemed to just keep getting better and better.

Location: County Waterford, Ireland ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2017 @ 08:17
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2017 @ 07:57
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Big splashy color sunrises & sunsets during the October trip to Ireland were rare. But when the sun did come out to play, it did put on its party clothes and strut its stuff.
This is the same sunrise session as the immediately preceding shot in this gallery....just 10 minutes later. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the colors in a sunrise (or sunset) scene can change so dramatically in a matter of a few minutes. 

Location: County Waterford          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2017 @ 07:47
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

The sun didn't put on it's party clothes often during our trip to Ireland, but when it did......

Even on this morning, when it not only dressed 'to the nines', waved rainbow colored pompoms, and set off a few fireworks, the show was a fairly short one. Within an hour after this shot was captured, that cloud bank off in the distance just above the horizon found it's way to our location and acted like blackout curtains on the sun. 

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/19/2017 @ 17:43
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

What a dichotomy is present in the sea. People build homes as close as possible. We flock to the beach(es) for summer vacation. Written words espousing the soothing effect the sea can have are found everywhere. At times, one might get the impression the sea is mankind's collective snuggle bunny.
But then there's its alter ego. It's dangerous. Don't commit to a healthy respect of those dangers, and it will swallow you up and spit you out like any piece of random seaweed found floating aimlessly on it's surface. 
At best, we should probably treat the sea as the romantic interest we might have for a member of the opposite sex who puts us in the dreaded 'friend zone'. And that's on a good day....when the temps are mild, the sun is bright, and the sea offers up it's gentle side.....like a puppy wanting it's belly scratched.
On the day this image was captured, there was no kindness to be found in the sea at all. Hurricane Ophelia had passed across Ireland a couple days prior and Tropical Storm Brian was headed it's way. One might have said the sea was downright bitchy on this evening, but that would have been understating things. On this day, she was a Great White....and a hungry one at that. 
The entrance on to Ballydowane Beach is a portal like scene with large sea stacks on either side and maybe 20 ft between them. I tentatively began to make my way between the stacks and towards the beach....gauging how close I might get and yet avoid the sea's reach...just to see what images might be captured from a 'dry' perch. But as luck would have it, I underestimated how far up the portal the sea might choose to reach, and wound up soaked to just shy of me man parts. Fortunately, the ambient temp in the area was in the mid-50's and the water must have been similar as I never felt cold...though squishy wet socks, shoes, & jeans were mildly uncomfortable.
  **Side note: Later in the trip, it was hypothesized by a member of the group that perhaps I had deliberately set myself up for the soaking as a guise to afford myself the opportunity to....ummmm...answer Mother Nature's call. Hah! I won't say who that member was, but her initials are......well, never mind. :) **
In the end, I wound up scaling a short, but somewhat steep hill to the outside of one of the portal stacks to capture this image. Even perched 30-40ft above the sea on this hillside lair, I had to trip the shutter a number of times to get this one as the sea spray was finding it's way to the front of the camera's lens.
What an evening. What an adventure. What a memory....from a very memorable trip.
 

Location: County Waterford, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/19/2017 @ 17:35
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

When I initially posted this image to the workshop's Facebook Group, Ted McGee added the quote below as a comment on the image. While I would in no way put my photography anywhere remotely close to the level of Billy Shakes' writing, it was an apt description of the conditions  we encountered on this evening. The sea was r-o-w-d-y. The Light Land & Sea team of instructors (John Dunne & Athena Carey) had been to this location numerous times in the past and both indicated they had never seen the sea so active.
 

"Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and caldron bubble.
Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the caldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt and toe of frog,
Wool of bat and tongue of dog,
Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,
Lizard's leg and howlet's wing,
For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and caldron bubble.
Cool it with a baboon's blood,
Then the charm is firm and good."
     - William Shakespeare

Location: Co Cork, Ireland ` Date/Time Captured: 10/18/2017 @ 14:57
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

In between workshops in Ireland, Tony Gouge and I wandered along the coastal areas of County Cork. Galley Head Lighthouse is on private ground, so we couldn't get 'up close & personal' to shoot it, but found this view from the road that passes by. And even the spot from which I captured this one was located on another piece of private property. Fortunately, the gent who owned this piece showed up wi...th a couple friends, or maybe more likely, business associates. That's a bit of a guess, but they walked out on to one corner of the property at the sea's edge and sorta appeared to be talking business. Their talk lasted about 10 minutes and as they made their way back up to the road and their vehicle, I walked over and asked permission to shoot from where they had been holding their discussion. The gentleman who owned the plot replied...'Sure, just one requirement.....don't fall in.' Got a chuckle out of that response and expressed my appreciation for his kindness.

I don't know the intended plans for this piece of property, but it was a roughly 3-4 acre cleared patch of ground sitting on the edge of a cliff overlooking this view. If it's buildable, can you imagine waking up to this view out the living room window each day?!?!

Oh, and a side note....yes, the sea is that green....a trait that seemed to be very common throughout our adventure.

Big fun!

Location: County Cork, Ireland ` Date/Time Captured: 10/18/2017 @ 13:15
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Shot from across the bay at the Baltimore Beacon

Location: County Cork ` Date/Time Captured: 10/18/2017 @ 12:35
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Location: County Cork, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/18/2017 @ 10:54
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

There are quite a number of these 'wedge tombs' (sometimes referred to as 'portal tombs' or 'dolmen') scattered across Ireland and estimated to have been constructed during the New Stone Age...roughly anywhere from 4000-2500 BC. This 'gallery' opening in this example is believed to have been deliberately aligned with Mizen Peak 8 miles away across Toormore Bay. I am always a bit amazed when seeing structures of this nature having been built so long ago if only for the engineering of maneuvering such massive 'stones' into position. I've read somewhere that even the angle at which the 'cap stone' sits was purposeful. 

For perspective,  I shot this as a 'long exposure' to promote the passage of time....yet, my 'long' exposure represents a miniscule sliver of the time this structure has existed. 

Location: County Cork, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/17/2017 @ 19:06
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

A second post from the great sunset we experienced this session. And for a little scale, notice the easily missed building (house?....I dunno) on the distant peninsula a little to the left of where the sun has receded.

Location: County Cork, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/17/2017 @ 18:21
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

The one and only 'ripsnorter' of a sunrise during our trip to Ireland occurred the day after Hurricane Ophelia made an appearance in Ireland.

Location: Killarney National Park, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/16/2017 @ 16:33
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Hurricane Ophelia had passed through Ireland early in the day this shot was captured and we had holed up in a hotel in Killarney to wait it out. By mid-afternoon, things had calmed down enough that we decided to venture out  to Killarney National Park to check out Torc Waterfall.
Though the hurricane didn't seem to be a significant rain event when we were at the hotel, it must have dumped a bunch somewhere as the falls was just r-o-a-r-i-n-g when we arrived. I've never seen such wild water flow at any falls of this same general size. There's actually a 'viewing platform' just off to camera left towards the top of this shot that provides a nice view of the main falls. But the spray coming off the falls at that platform was so heavy the few shots I captured from there all look like they have chicken pox with all the water spots that hit the lens. I chose to move downstream to this location after the falls makes a bit of a bend, and you can see the cloud of spray coming off the bottom of the main falls at the top of this shot. 
As was most every session on the trip, this was yet another very unique experience!

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/15/2017 @ 09:52
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

I rarely shoot 'panorama' images, but this view at Bray Head in County Kerry seemed tailor made for such an image as it contains a number of elements that say 'Ireland' to my memory....
   - The jagged rugged coastline was virtually a universal feature most everywhere we went.
   - Nearby, but off the mainland islands were fairly common.
   - The aqua-green sea color was present almost everywhere as well.
   - The vivid green pastures were a very common site.
   - And those green pastures were frequently segmented into a patchwork of generally rectangular shapes by rock 'fences'. Oh my, the rock fences....they were so common. (And though only barely seen in the full size verison of this shot, there are sheep roaming one of those pastures...the sheep being another common sight.)
   - And when the ground cover wasn't a bright green, it was common for it to be the browns seen here.
   - And the bald hills/mountains were so common. Those with significant tree cover were seldom found.

Side note...the 2 islands towards the right edge of the frame are the Skellig Islands....a little over 7 miles off the mainland. Skellig Michael was originally the location of a Gaelic Christian Monastery originating in the 6th century AD and remaining active as such through roughly through the 11th century. Wow.....how badly does one have to want to be isolated from 'the world' in the 6th century AD to move to a barely habitable rock 7 miles off the coast of anywhere. But of course, the western Ireland coast was so drastically overpopulated at that time, I get it (insert sarcastic eyeroll here).

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          `          Date/Tme Captured: 10/15/2017 @ 08:49
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

The sea was being rather raucous on this morning making for some robust wave action pounding the shoreline. 
 

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/15/2017 @ 07:55
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Location: Allaghee Beg (South), County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 18:37
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

A cloud covered 'sunset' session. But who cares. Even when fully blanketed in clouds, the Irish coastline is a treat to shoot....and just take in. I was constantly amazed by the almost never ending geological cul-de-sacs that make up it's coast. It's not surprising a couple locations have been used in the Star Wars movies....one of which, the Skellig Islands, are visible on the distant horizon in this one. Throw in the rock walled-in fields in the hill on the right, and barely noticeable fence line running along the ridge on the left for a sense of scale, and a rather simple composition has a fair amount 'going on'.

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 14:34
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

This was a location I didn't immediately warm up to. After an initial slow walk around/through the abbey structure itself and looking for compositions of it or grouped with some of the headstones, I was feeling a little lost in what to shoot. It wasn't until I was able to see it, or at least parts of the site, as part of the broader landscape that something clicked.

 

Location: County Kerry ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 14:11
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Another from Ballinskelligs Abbey that was established in the 12th century for monks coming back to mainland Ireland from Skellig Michael after numerous attacks from Vikings.

Though it took me a bit to figure out how to shoot this location, I’d love to go back. I suspect there are a multitude of other opportunities to be had here.

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 11:41
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

A location in County Kerry that seemed to be chock full of potential compositions, but for some reason I had trouble finding one I especially liked. This shot turned out to be one of two I like, and even this one is a bit of a 'rescue' shot as I'd originally shot it as a much broader view looking across a bay for which this was intended to be just the foreground. But once in the computer, I realized the 'story' of the shot was really just in the movement of the water in and around these foreground rock formations....resulting in this sort of 'pano crop' shot.

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 11:01
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: County Kerry, Ireland ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 10:26
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

This location, along with a couple others we visited in County Kerry, starts to get towards the western extremes of Ireland. And it was another location with myriad compositional possibilities. Though I missed the details, this channel was part of a significant lobster fishing operation. And I spent a fair amount of time trying to capture the best shot of the sea pounding and splashing over the ‘door’ to the channel.

Location: County Kerry ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 08:54
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Another session for which we arrived in time for sunrise….only to have cloud cover completely obscure any chance at capturing Mother Nature’s announcement of yet another new day. And yet…I think this session has proven to be my most productive of the trip.

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          ~          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 08:22
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

A sunrise session in County Kerry for which the sun decided to sleep in and hide under a blanket of clouds. 

Location: County Kerry, Ireland ~ Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 08:21
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Over the course of our trip to Ireland, I became more and more intrigued with scenes such as this one where a distant island/mountain just barely found it’s way into the composition through the surface atmosphere….often times fog, but occasionally cloud cover hanging so low it almost felt like we could reach up and touch its underbelly. To avoid having the distant peak in the gap between the foreground elements of this one not get lost in the shot, I opted to take the color down to something of a ‘minimalist’ nature.

Location: County Kerry ` Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 07:58
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Location: County Kerry, Ireland          `          Date/Time Captured: 10/14/2017 @ 07:44
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Another one from the recent trip to Ireland. This one is of Ballinskelligs Castle in County Kerry. We had arrived on site a fair bit prior to sunrise, and as I walked up the small rise between the parking lot and the beach, I immediately saw the long slinky sea creature slithering up to attack those on shore. :)

As you might surmise, the sun never did make an appearance on this particular morning. But the cloud cover varied enough during our session to provide a variety of conditions and I decided to make my own 'blue hour' treatment of this one.

Location: HaHa Tonka State Park, MO          `          Date/Time Captured: 09/01/2017 @ 10:25
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Echos Across Time.........

I'd had a trip to this MO state park on the ToDo list for some time and finally made the trip over the recent Labor Day weekend. Though it's a sizable park with numerous reasons to visit, it was the ruins of a large early 1900's built mansion styled after 16th century European castles that prompted my interest.

A rather stately mansion it must have been in it's prime that had, unfortunately, been destroyed by fire in 1942. And the fire like sensibility in the clouds gave me the sense of having captured an echo of what the scene may have looked like 75 years prior during the original destructive event.

Location: Jefferson County, MO          `          Date/Time Captured: 08/21/2017 @ 13:21
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Though I had originally thought I would go 'somewhere' for the big total eclipse event, as time drew closer to it occurring, the more evident it became that any place that was anywhere was likely to be overridden with viewers. Fortunately, my house happened to be in the path of totality. Not right on the center line, but close enough that I had a couple minutes of totality to work with. So, I stayed home and shot the event from my driveway. This 'diamond ring' style shot turned out to be all the rage, and I was fortunate to capture it as I was really unaware it would occur. This just happened to be one of those times where it paid off to be lucky rather than good. :)

Location: Jefferson County, MO          `          Date/Time Captured: 08/21/2017 @ 13:20
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

I've also posted my 'diamond ring' shot of the event. This one was captured at 13:20:24 (Central Time, USA) per my camera clock. Based on the time differential between my first totality capture and NASA's projected initiation of totality, I think my camera clock is off by roughly a couple minutes. If all that is accurate, this shot should be pretty close to maximum totality for my locale. There are a few of Bailey's Beads available for the viewing in this one.

And just for comparison, the previous 'diamond ring' shot was captured at 13:21:19...so just a little less than a minute later.

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 05/20/2017 @ 0735
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

"He was the Zen Master. People from all walks of life just naturally gravitated to him as his presence just seemed to suck all the negativity, stress, and anxiety out of a room. He was perfectly at home playing timed chess in the city park with the homeless, and equally comfortable sitting in a board room of a major corporation discussing quarterly earnings reports."

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 5/20/2017 @ 06:25
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

"People were always amazed when told they were brothers. One had leaned into life....hard. And life had leaned back with equal measure. The other.....they all called him The Zen Master. He was just...'cool'."

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 5/19/2017 @ 19:34
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 5/19/2017 @ 08:43
Copyright 2017: RJWilnerPhotography

"He'd led a hard life as a result of some of the choices he'd made along the away. And it showed. He had the appearance of one who was 40 going on 60."

Location: Tiptonville, TN          ~          Date/Time Captured: 05/19/2017 @ 05:53
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

""When the Dancing Fool entered the room, everyone knew it was time to PAR-TAY!"

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 05/19/2017 @ 06:31
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

This particular sunrise didn't initially look like it was going to be anything special. And in fact, I had semi-sorta thrown in the towel on my initial location thinking the light show for the morning was on the downhill slide. Fortunately, I had planned to stop at this location anyway as it was a very short walk from where I'd started. And wouldn't ya know....Mother Nature reminded me yet again it's almost always best to wait things out.
I do need to go back some time and isolate that little dancing fool of a tree in an LE shot.

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 5/19/2017 @ 06:08
Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 5/18/2017 @ 19:52
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

Location: Shaw Nature Reserve     ~     Date/Time Captured: 3/24/2017 @ 14:04
Copyright 2017: RJWilner Photography

"She shone brightest when the world around her was most turbulent."

Location: Shaw Nature Reserve     ~     Date/Time Captured: 03/24/2017 @ 13:35

Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

"The townsfolk were known to be a little protective of their young celebrity with the big personality."

Location: Shaw Nature Reserve     ~     Date/Time Captured: 03/24/2017 @ 13:08

Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

"His sermons had always been rather animated, but when he began wielding his walking stick overhead, people had come to expect the fire & brimstone to start in earnest."

Location: Jefferson County, MO     ~     Date/Time Captured: 01/02/2017 @ 16:34

Copyright 2017: RJ Wilner Photography

A 'lake fog' morning. One of those where the sky overhead was virtually cloudless with the sun shining brightly. But the lake created it's own atmosphere, and the fog bank it created was a thick one and took quite some time to start burning off substantially.

_____
Location: Jefferson County, Missouri   ~   Date/Time Captured: 11/06/2016 @ 07:24

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

What a terrific morning shooting on the lake. Temp was a brisk 39F, and the lake essentially created it's own fog bank.....a thick one at that. There were brief periods when the opposite shore could barely be seen, and then moments like this one where the fog thinned out just enough to reveal pieces of the land surrounding it. And just watching the fog ebb & flow through the scene was not unlike watching a river moving over a rocky bed.

Location: Jefferson County, MO

Date/Time Captured: 11/06/2016 @ 06:29 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park

Date/Time Captured: 8/10/2016 @ 20:00 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Edisto Island, SC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/10/2016 @ 07:19

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

"He was the proverbial Gloomy Gus. Even when basking in the light with oodles of rays of hope and windows of opportunity swirling about him, he could only see the dark underbelly of life."

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Location: Edisto Island, South Carolina     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/10/2016 @ 06:42

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Botany Bay, South Carolina          ~          Date/Time Captured: 08/10/16 @ 06:34
Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Edisto Island, South Carolina     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/10/2016 @ 06:31

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Folly Island, SC

Date/Time Captured: 08/09/2016 @ 08:19 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Folly Island, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/09/2016 @ 07:32

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Charleston, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/08/2016 @ 21:22

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Charleston, SC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/08/2016 @ 20:43

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Estimated to be approximately 700 yr old, Angel Oak is the largest tree east of the Mississippi.

Location: Johns Island, South Carolina     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/08/2016 @ 09:48

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography   

Morris Island Lighthouse from Folly Beach shortly after sunrise.

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Location: Folly Island, SC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/08/2016 @ 07:17

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Folly Island, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/08/2016 @ 06:54

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Folly Island, SC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/07/2016 @ 08:42

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Morris Island Lighthouse from Folly Beach at sunrise.

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Location: Folly Island, SC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/07/2016 @ 8/7/2016, 06:51

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Morris Island Lighthouse in a long exposure just after sunrise.

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Location: Folly Island, South Carolina   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/07/2016 @ 06:29

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Lake Moultrie, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2016 @ 20:11

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

"The war of words had subsided, but it was evident from their back-to-back posture that neither had let go of the hostility."

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Location: Botany Bay Plantation Wildlife Management Area, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2016 @ 07:38

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

"The quicksand of life had been hard on the entire family. Some had succumbed completely. Others seemed destined to do the same. Even the patriarch, the strongest of the clan, seemed to straddle the edge between finding solid ground and slipping into the darkness of despair."

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Location: Botany Bay Plantation Wildlife Managment Area, SC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2016 @ 07:27

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

"Son, you best get your head out of the clouds and start acting like a grown ass man. And clean up your damn room. I don't know how you live in that pigsty with all that clutter."

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Location: Edisto Island, South Carolina   ~   Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2016 @ 06:26

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO

Date/Time Captured: 07/08/2016 @ 20:38 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Japanese Garden in MO Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO

Date/Time Captured: 05/28/2016 @ 09:26 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Just returned from a weeklong photo excursion that incorporated a long weekend in the Outer Banks with some great shooters, and followed up with a quick solo pass through Great Smoky Mtn Nat'l Park. This image is from the latter and was the last capture of the trip.

After having made the 1.3mi hike up to the falls just as the sun was beginning to rise and capturing a few compositions, I hiked back down to the car. And as I loaded the gear in the car to begin the trek home, I experienced a couple conflicting emotions....

This trip was ending. There would be no more sand in the shoes...no more adapting our shooting plans to take advantage of whatever conditions Mother Nature decided to provide.....no more of the almost ritualistic go out & shoot then return to the rental and upload/preview the images captured in that session......followed by hilarious celebration of National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day. No more laughing incessantly at Brian Regan's comedy bit about visits to a hospital Emergency Room....no more Stack 'Em High breakfasts....no more shock at the site of a shattered Big Stopper and jacked up zoom lens resulting from MoNat deciding to huff & puff hard enough to blow the tripod over ***15 minutes into the very firt shooting session of the trip*** while at Nags Head Pier. No more glee at the ability to see the Milky Way **with the naked eye** for the first time in my 65+ yr. And no more enjoying the beauty of the North Carolina countryside on the drive from the OBX over to Great Smoky Mtn Nat'l Park with the Red Buds & Dogwoods in full bloom. Insert melancholy moment here.

And as quickly as the moment of melancholy had struck me, it was replaced by a big wide grin at my good fortune to have been part of such a fun filled adventure. As I closed the tailgate of the CRV and walked around to the driver's side, I'm sure the couple getting out of the car next to me wondered what the heck was up with this crazy old fart grinning from ear to ear. Sorry folks....you just don't know.

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Location: Laurel Falls, Great Smoky Mountain National Park   ~   Date/Time Captured: 04/06/2016 @ 07:56

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Sparks Lane, Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountain National Park

Date/Time Captured: 4/5/2016 @ 08:22 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Sparks Lane, Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountain National Park   ~   Date/Time Captured: 04/05/2016 @ 07:41

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

The sun rises between the 'legs' of Frisco Pier casting some wonderful shadows across the beach sand. This scene ended a terrific shooting session starting with some Milky Way captures over the pier followed by some 'blue hour' shooting and finished off with this. A truly memorable experience.

Location: Hatteras Island, North Carolina

Captured 04/04/2016 @ 07:02 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

The remains of Frisco Pier during 'blue hr' with the moon rising just above the pier's shed. Toss in the very earliest signs of the sun beginning to rise and it made for a magical morning.

Location: Outer Banks, NC

Date/Time Captured: 04/04/2016 @ 05:44 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

What a terrific Outer Banks trip this shooting session capped off. I had arrived on site at roughly 04:30a in hopes of capturing a trio of shots of this pier starting with a 'Milky Way' shot, a 'blue hour' shot, and one at sunrise. My first few astro captures, the Milky Way was almost laying horizontally over the pier. By the time I captured this one, it was turning to a more vertical orientation rather quickly. And when the moon began to rise, I felt fortunate to still have the Milky Way play a significant role in the composition. G-R-E-A-T session!

Location: Hatteras Island, NC

Date/Time Captured: 04/04/2016 @ 05:32 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jockey Ridge State Park, Outer Banks

Date/Time Captured: 04/03/2015 @ 19:36     -----     Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

The 'alien' landscape sensibility that dunes shots can create has always been an attraction for me. And this one at Jockey Ridge as the sun was beginning to sink towards the horizon does just that.

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Location: Jockey Ridge State Park, Outer Banks   ~   Date/Time Captured: 04/03/2016 @ 18:43

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Nags Head, Outer Banks, NC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 4/3/2016 @ 07:11

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Outer Banks, North Carolina   ~   Date/Time Captured: 04/02/2016 @ 19:20

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

After arriving in the Outer Banks 2 afternoons prior and experiencing almost complete overcast and/or rain right up until an hr before this shot, it was gracious of MoNat to decide to give us a break and provide some wonderful light for sunset on this evening.

Location: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Outer Banks, NC

Date/Time Captured: 04/02/2016 @ 18:45 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

Though our group was somewhat disheartened by the constant overcast and occasional rain/wind weather our first couple days on the Outer Banks, it turns out it was a blessing in disguise for long exposure B&W shots such as this. Though the cloud cover was thick, there was good 'texture' in them and their movement was such that "there woren't no grass growin' under their feet".

Location: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Outer Banks, NC

Date/Time Captured: 04/02/2016 @ 12:39 ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner  Photography

Location: Hatteras Island, North Carolina   ~   Date/Time Captured: 04/01/2016 @ 08:02

Copyright 2016: RJWilner Photography

Location: Hatteras Island, North Carolina

Date/Time Captured: 04/01/2016 @ 06:40a ----- Copyright 2016, RJ Wilner Photography

At the time of our trip, our group wasn't entirely sure of the purpose these concrete block formations...though there was some conjecture they served as some sort of erosion control (later confirmed).  I, however, am convinced it is some kind of marker beacon for incoming Klingon warships. :)
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Location: Nags Head, Outer Banks, NC   ~   Date/Time Captured: 03/31/2016 @ 16:49

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

A long exposure from one of my 2 favorite locations for shooting the lake community on which I reside.

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Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 01/31/2016 @ 07:14

Copyright 2016: RJ Wilner Photography

We had several unusually foggy mornings during this week, and fortunately for me, this one happened to occur on a day I was able to go out and shoot! Lake Tishomingo being a man-made residential community lake, there are limited locations where I can shoot without the 'hand of man' being a significant role player in a composition. And this location was new to me. In the past, there were 2 locations I always gravitated towards, and you will find other images  on this site taken from those. But it was good to find a new one...especially one that works so well for these early morning, sun breaking through the fog, shots.

I was especially enamored of the boat dock barely peeking out from the shoreline and capturing the sun rays finding their way through the tree tops.

Location: Jefferson County, MO

Date/Time Shot: 11/7/2015 @ 08:16     -----   Copyright 2015, RJ Wilner Photography

The Story: "It was a tightly knit community with a lot of secrets...some dark. In reality, there were no secrets because everyone knew everybody else's secrets.  And it caused a few seismic ripples in the community when one of it's younger, frailer,  members elected to forego the world of secrets and stepped boldly out into the light and declared.....'No More! No more secrets!"

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2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'The Secret Lives of Trees'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art -Landscape

- Honorable Mention: Nature - Trees

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Location: Reelfoot Lake, TN   ~   Date/Time Shot: 10/24/2015 @ 14:42

Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

"His life had been marred by significant tragedy, and only recently had he begun to show signs of being made whole again."

Location: Reelfoot Lake State Park, Tennessee     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2015 @ 09:14

Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

The Story: "They were a tight knit family who enjoyed their privacy and maintained a distance from the hubbub of the mainstream." 

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2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'The Secret Lives of Trees'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art -Landscape

- Honorable Mention: Nature - Trees
______
 

Location: Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee   ~   Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2015 @ 08:52  

Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Reelfoot Lake, TN

Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2015 @ 08:45     -----     Copyright 2015, RJ Wilner Photography

The Story: She was overheard saying...."I don't care if the neighbors are watching, Kiss Me you old fool!" 

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2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'The Secret Lives of Trees'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art -Landscape

- Honorable Mention: Nature - Trees
_____
 

Location: Reelfoot Lake, TN   ~   Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2015 @ 07:54

Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Alley Spring, MO

Date/Time Captured: 10/20/2015 @ 11:00a     ----- Copyright 2015, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park   ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/16/2015 @ 07:47

Copyright: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Manteo, North Carolina  ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/15/2015 @ 06:37
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/14/2016 @ 15:49
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina

Date/Time Captured: 07/14/2015 @ 05:08     ----- Copyright 2015, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cape Hatteras National Seashoure ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/13/2015 @ 06:10
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Outer Banks, NC ~ Date/Time Captured: 07/12/2015 @ 14:02
Copyright 2015: RJWilner Photography

Location: Corolla, North Carolina   ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/12/2015 @ 11:51
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Avalon Pier, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina  ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/11/2015 @ 06:10
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Avalon Pier, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina~   Date/Time Captured: 07/11/2015 @ 06:03
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina~   Date/Time Captured: 07/11/2015 @ 05:45
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/11/2015 @ 05:15
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina ~   Date/Time Captured:07/10/2015 @ 22:09
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Outer Banks, NC     ~     Date/Time Captured: 07/10/2015 @ 20:16

Copyright 2015: RJWilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park~   Date/Time Captured: 05/05/2015 @ 06:43
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park

Date/Time Captured: 05/05/2015 @ 05:16      ----------      Copyright 2015, RJ Wilner Photography     

Location: Cherokee, North Carolina~   Date/Time Captured: 05/04/2015 @ 15:20
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cherokee, North Carolina~   Date/Time Captured: 05/04/2015 @ 15:08
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Indian Creek Falls~   Date/Time Captured: 05/04/2015 @ 08:44
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park~   Date/Time Captured: 05/03/2015 @ 19:50
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Hyatt Lane, Cades Cove   ~   Date/Time Captured: 05/02/2015 @ 20:00
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Middle Prongh Trail, Great Smoky Mountain National Park~   Date/Time Captured: 05/01/2015 @ 08:34
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Middle Prongh Trail, Great Smoky Mountains National Park~   Date/Time Captured: 05/01/2015 @ 08:22
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Middle Prongh Trail, Great Smoky Mountain National Park ~   Date/Time Captured: 05/01/2015 @ 07:07
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: MIddle Prongh Trail, Great Smoky Mountain National Park~   Date/Time Captured: 05/01/2015 @ 06:51
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Johnsons Shut-Ins State Park ~ Date/Time Captured: 01/17/2015 @ 08:53
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: State Highway 21, Jefferson County, MO~   Date/Time Captured: 01/10/2015 @ 09:04
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri ~   Date/Time Captured: 11/09/2014 @ 06:29
Copyright 2015: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: St. Louis, Missouri  ~   Date/Time Captured: 09/20/2014 @ 07:36
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Ft. Lauderdale, FL     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2014 @ 16:25

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Ft. Lauderdale, FL     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/06/2009 @ 06:31

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park  ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/17/2014 @ 19:44
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Townsend, Tennessee     ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/17/2014 @ 05:21

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountains National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/16/2014 @ 190:01

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Tremont, Great Smoky Mountains National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/16/2014 @ 11:30

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

From a recent trip to Great Smoky Mountain National Park, and one of my favorite areas in the park, Tremont.

Given it was getting a little later in the morning, I was anticipating this visit to Tremont to be more of a scouting session than a shooting session, but when I happened to notice a bit of fog hanging over the river, I had to stop and fire off a few captures. Can’t help but love the lush greens found in the Tremont area this time of year!

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Location: Tremont   ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/16/2014 @ 09:55
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park  ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/16/2014 @ 08:20
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

I had been shooting some flaming azaleas a ways up the trail from here and thought my shooting was likely done for the evening, so started hiking back towards the parking lot. As I reached the juncture in the trail to head down towards the parking lot, the sky just flamed.....much more brilliantly than the azaleas by that name had done. After scrambling around a bit to find a good composition, I finally settled on this. And with captures in camera, I just sat down in the grass, and for the next 10-15 minutes, just enjoyed the rest of MoNat's show.

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Location: Carvers Gap, Tennessee   ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/14/2014 @ 20:08
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Carvers Gap, Tennessee   ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/14/2014 @ 06:12
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Carvers Gap, Tennessee   ~   Date/Time Captured: 06/13/2014 @ 18:55
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cloudland Trail, Carvers Gap, Tennessee    ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/13/2014 @ 17:44
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

This one was shot fairly early in the am when I had made my way down to our lakefront to hopefully catch a sunrise image to share with the ‘Photo Day Around the World – 2014′ event on Google+. When sunrise turned out to be a bust that am, I started walking around the lakefront, and spotted this rock with it’s ‘head’ barely out of the water. And almost kept on walking until I noticed all that stringy algae like ‘stuff’ clinging to it’s underwater parts and just dancing with the water’s movement.

Not a classically ‘pretty’ picture, I guess……a bit more of a Frank Zappa “I’m The Slime” type sensibility to it. :)

Update 01/18/2015 – Visited my mother today and was showing her my ‘2014 Favorites’ images, and when we got to this one, she thought it belonged in a horror movie. Got a big charge out of that comment!

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Location: Jefferson County, MO     ~     Date/Time Shot: 05/31/2014, 06:27 AM

Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Johnsons Shut-Ins State Park, Misssouri  ~   Date/Time Captured: 03/08/2014 @ 09:32
Copyright 2014: RJ Wilner Photography

I drive past this scene on my way to, and from, work. It's right at the intersection of Old Hwy 21 & Tishomingo Rd. And for some reason, it momentarily captures my attention each time I pass through the intersection. It's great when the oaks that dominate the area break out in their spring greens, and it causes me to slow down and peer through the tree cover on those thick foggy mornings. But the best time is the fall when the oaks start turning color. This year was especially good for the latter as it seemed like there was just a sea of bright oranges and yellows. 

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Location: Hillsboro, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 11/03/2013 @ 08:36

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

The Alfred Reagan Place can be found along Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Location: Great Smoky Mountains National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/25/2013 @ 10:37

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/25/2013 @ 08:42

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/25/2013 @ 12:46

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Tremont, Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2013 @ 11:40

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/24/2013 @ 10:57
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/23/2013 @ 09:22

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park    ~     Date/Time Captured: 10/23/2013 @ 08:18
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park   ~   Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2013 @ 08:38
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park  ~   Date/Time Captured: 10/22/2013 @ 07:16
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri ~   Date/Time Captured: 09/30/2013 @ 16:11
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Park Hills, Missouri   ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/27/2013 @ 15:03
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 07/13/2013 @ 06:58
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 05/17/2013 @ 15:34
Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO

Date/Time Captured: 03/02/2/13 @ 07:45     -----     Copyright 2013, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO ~ Date/Time Captured: 02/02/2013 @ 09:43

Copyright 2013: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO ~ Date/Time Captured: 02/2/2013 @ 09:32

Copyright: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/20/2012 @ 07:30

Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/18/2012 @ 13:01
Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Great Smoky Mountain National Park    ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/16/2012 @ 09:45
Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

As a general rule of thumb, photographers tend to look to the west at sunset for Mother Nature's color show as the sun sinks toward the horizon, and to the east at sunrise. But occasionally, going against the 'norm' and looking in the opposite direction for either event can provide some interesting color as well. And so it was on this am when I wandered down to this west facing scene at sunrise. I'd shot from this dock a gazillion times, and have been fortunate to make some nice images captured at both sunset & sunrise. But it's not always that, even at sunset, there will be as much drama in the sky as there was on this particular am at sunrise. Mother Nature was in an especially giving mood this am!

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Location: Jefferson County, Missouri    ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/15/2012 @ 05:31
Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

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2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'Abstracts in Ice'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art - Abstract
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Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 02/12/2012 @ 11:42
Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

_____

2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'Abstracts in Ice'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art - Abstract
_____

Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 02/12/2012 @ 10:24
Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

_____

2016 IPA ~International Photography Awards ~ 

Entered as one of a 3 part series entitled 'Abstracts in Ice'

- Honorable Mention: Fine Art - Abstract

_____

Location: Jefferson County, MO   ~   Date/Time Captured: 02/12/2012 @ 10:08

Copyright 2012: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 12/10/2011 @ 07:56
Copyright 2011: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO     ~     Date/Time Captured: 01/10/2010 @ 17:17

Copyright 2010: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri   ~     Date/Time Captured: 07/02/2011 @ 05:36
Copyright 2011: RJ Wilner Photography

- Always good to hit the lakefront at sunrise.   Check.

- Great to find some sunrise color in this westward looking view. Check.

- Good to find the lake surface almost perfectly still reflecting the sunrise colors. Check.

- Bonus to have a little mist rising off the the lake. Check.

When all those hoped for elements are present when I find my way to our lakefront at sunrise, more often than not it will lead to a nice capture or two. I started this session at my favorite dock approx 100 yds to the right of this scene just as official sunrise was starting to strut it's stuff. And got a couple 'ok' shots. But the cloud cover was just kinda 'meh', and the color started off a little bland. So, I started moseying along the sea wall on the lakefront....more just to kill a little time in hopes the color might improve rather than looking for other possible ops. But when I made it over to the 'beach' area and spotted these roses spread along the water's edge, I just planted the tripod in the pea gravel and waited hopefully. And fortunately for me, MoNat was feeling cooperative this am as she painted some terrific cloud cover across the sky. And as I've learned from many sunrises spent on the lakefront, she's often partial to supplying the best light & color just as the sunlight starts to skim the treetops along the shores of the lake.

Now....., if only I knew what prompted someone to leave the roses at the water's edge. Early June, I would think school graduations would have already passed in these parts. No major lake sponsored events had transpired the last day or two. Perhaps a special occasion for one individual....or maybe a couple.(?) Perhaps a promise was made.(?) Perhaps a proposal was made and accepted.(?) Perhaps some not so silver-tongued guy was seeking forgiveness for some unknown transgression he made with his lady.(?)

I'll never know the answer. But pondering the possibilities made the find a special morning for this 'tog.

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Location: Jefferson County, Missouri    ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/07/2010 @ 07:04
Copyright 2010: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 09/19/2009 @ 07:06
Copyright 2009: RJ Wilner Photography

The peacefulness of sunrise is always a favorite shooting time on the lake. When a little mist can be found rising off the surface, so much the better. I can just sit here and go 'Ommmmm'. To arrive at one of my favorite locations to find a reminder of a young fisherman having recently spent some time on the dock made this a special morning as I pondered what caused him/her to run off and leave the pole behind. Perhaps he/she felt the same excitement over their catch as I felt with this capture.(??)

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Location: Lake Tishomingo     ~     Date/Time Captured: 08/01/2009 @ 06:10
Copyright 2009: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/22/2008 @ 06:31
Copyright 2008: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Lake Tishomingo     ~     Date/Time Captured: 02/09/2008 @ 16:34
Copyright 2008: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Lake Tishomingo    ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/06/2008 @ 021:07
Copyright 2008: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 01/20/2008 @ 10:37

Copyright 2008: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 11/03/2007 @ 17:14
Copyright 2007: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MIssouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 09/02/2007 @ 06:59

Copyright 2007: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MO     ~     Date/Time Captured: 02/03/2007 @ 08:25

Copyright 2007: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 01/20/2007 @ 08:33

Copyright 2007: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri    ~     Date/Time Captured: 12/10/2006 @ 15:40
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, Missouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 12/10/2006 @ 09:36
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MIssouri    ~     Date/Time Captured: 09/20/2006 @ 19:06
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

I had been visiting my parents on this day and hung around their place a little longer than I'd originally planned as a storm blew through the area. It was approaching sunset by the time I did leave and noticed the sky just beginning to show some interesting color. Being a heavy residential area, I had to quickly skim the mental rolliedex to come up with a location where I might shoot without a bunch of rooftops, utility poles, and.or power lines imposing their presence on a shot. And the only place that came quickly to mind was the campus like setting of one of the local hospitals with this scene being right along the entrance drive to the hospital grounds.

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Location: Belleville, Illinois    ~     Date/Time Captured: 07/29/2006 @ 20:32
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: San Francisco, CA ~ Date/Time Captured: 06/03/2006 @ 20:43
Copyright 2006, RJWilner Photography

A pano of the San Francisco skyline shot from my room in the Stamford Court Hotel.

I had purchased property on the lake the previous fall and was in the planning stages of building a house. Periodically, I would make occasional trips to the lake to meet with the builder to discuss plans. This was one of, if not the first, shots I made capturing an early morning lake created mist/fog on one of those trips.

Location: Lake Tishomingo     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/09/2006 @ 08:05

Copyright 2006, RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Jefferson County, MIssouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/22/2006 @ 06:14
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

This image holds a bit of a special place for me. I had purchased a piece of property on this little man made lake the previous fall with plans to build a new house. The ensuing winter was busy with making construction plans, finding a builder, etc. When spring rolled around, I made occasional trips out to the lake to meet with the builder and discuss our plans......and to start enjoying the photogenic nature of the lake. This one probably marks the earliest 'keeper' captured during that time frame.

Location: Arches National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/29/2005 @ 20:05
Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Canyonlands National Park ~ Date/Time Captured: 04/27/2005, 18:45

Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Canyonlands National Park      ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/26/2005 @ 14:53
Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Arches Naional Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/26/2005 @ 06:50
Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Arches National Park    ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/25/2005 @ 17:50
Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Arches National Park     ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/25/2005 @ 17:29
Copyright 2005: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Red Bud, Illinois    ~     Date/Time Captured: 06/02/2004 @ 18:40
Copyright 2006: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: Goblin Valley State Park, Utah    ~     Date/Time Captured: 04/17/2004 @ 19:38
Copyright 2004: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: St. Louis, Missiouri     ~     Date/Time Captured: 09/28/2003 @ 09:41
Copyright 2003: RJ Wilner Photography

Location: St. Louis, MO ~ Date/Time Captured: 03/16/2003 @ 07:39
Copyright 2003: RJWilner Photography

An image captured with my 2nd digital camera…a Minolta D7Hi…a 4.7mp ‘point & shoot’ device. One of the few early attempts @ b&w I actually liked from those early days.
And though I hadn’t looked at this one in a couple yr before rediscovering it a couple evenings ago, I was immediately transported back to that morning….a little chill in the densely foggy morning, walking around the park for some time shooting various subjects, finding this scene and almost missing the shot because I wasn’t expecting the couple to come jogging across the bridge.

Location: White Sands National Monument, New Mexico ~ Date/Time Captured: 09/07/2002 @ 09:21

Copyright 2002: RJ Wilner Photography