HIGHTOWN ©1980

A SILVER PRINT FROM THE JEFFERS' COLLECTION

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You are looking down at Hightown from Monterey Mountain. Villages are small and quaint in this NW corner of Virginia and when winter sets in it can be windy and very cold. This was such a day, and I had to hold the tripod down to keep the whole thing from blowing over.

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What you see here is a mirror image and I had a number of people ask me about this original at art exhibitions because they recognized the scene. "Something is wrong" they would say. "This photograph doesn't look right." And I would tell them that I reversed the negative because I preferred the mirror image to the original view. To make the story sound more realistic, I would say that this is what you see in your rear view mirror as you drove away from the scene. And this is true. I have flipped many negatives to improve the lead-in and overall composition.

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This is also a prime example of why I use snow as a means of covering up distractions. The image becomes an abstract in design. All of the bad stuff that you do not want to show up on the original image is buried under a foot of clean snow. And I make it a point to be on site before the snow is disturbed.

-To view a larger image left click on the original.

HIGHLAND LANE © 1979

VIRGINIA'S LITTLE SWITZERLAND

Highland Lane was made in the extreme northwest corner of Virginia following a snow storm.

Note the split rail fences on either side of the lane.

During the first few decades of the last century, the forests were thick with giant chestnut trees but a blight ravaged the forests and by the late nineteen thirties entire stands of this majestic tree had been wiped out. To this day, the only reminder of the American Chestnuts are a few old stumps and partially covered log shells which are randomly scattered along the wooded ridges of the Appalachians.

On one of my earlier posts, I used a knot hole from an old Chestnut log to frame a blood root--a harbinger of spring along the Appalachians. It was posted on July 3, 2009. It is a lovely example of a piece of aged American Chestnut.

Because of the straight grain and durability of the wood, this tree was commonly used by the early settlers for building log homes and outbuildings. The split rail fences you see here could easily be close to a hundred years old. The tree shown to the left is one of the many sugar maples which are quite common throughout Highland County.

To view a larger image left click on image above.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY ABSTRACT 1977

Nature's Abstract in fresh snow. Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

This was an S curve staring me in the face. I could not pass it by without exposing a couple of negatives.

To view larger image, click on weeds.

MR TURNER Turner's Mill ©1974

TURNER'S MILL 1974

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This is one of several old grist mills I documented during my early years as an artist. This one was located just west of Harrisonburg, Virginia in the Shenandoah Valley.

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Mr Turner was still actively operating the old mill at the time and I eventually lost track of him and his hobby. I checked with the local paper in that area several years ago to learn whether the mill was still there but no one could provide me with any information. I assume that it became history a few years following my visit.

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To view a larger image, left click on the image

RED CANYON ©2007

This magnificent red sandstone canyon is located about twenty miles south of Lander, WY.

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To view a larger image left click on the canyon. To see more images click on Older Posts below. And keep going because there are a lot of them.

OLD OIL CAN ON STOVE ©1971

INTERIOR OF AN OLD WATER MILL

This still life is exactly how I found it. The lighting from an old open window provided me with the exact lighting I required. It is still one of my favorite still lifes.

To view this image in a larger format, left click on the image.

FIRST TWO POINTS OF THE GAME circa 1988

First goal of the game.
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Radford University versus NC State.
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I have never considered myself to be a sports photographer, but I did capture a few decent images during my term at RU.

This was a big game and highly touted. Little RU taking on one of the top teams in the country. I won't say who won, but RU made the first score of the game and the crowd went wild. I had my camera set up on a tripod overlooking the arena and although I certainly did not expect what happened next, my finger pressed the shutter release real quick. I dislike motor drives, but I did make several rapid exposures and this is the one I liked best. Normally it is the first exposure that nails the image you anticipate. You will see more of this on my blog.
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This was the decisive moment and I was ready.

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