A Maple Tree in the Ivy

I went out to get the paper this morning and happened to glance to the right going down the driveway and saw this tiny Maple tree growing out of the ivy.  It was the contrast of the small and the large and the bright green and the dark green that made the tree stand out for me.  As I look at this now, I realize that one mistake that I made was that I never backed away just a bit and got more ivy and a smaller tree.  That might have improved this photograph just a bit.  Or maybe this is just fine.  Actually I should be able to do it again tomorrow morning and see if it looks better with more ivy around the maple.

 

An Engagement?

We went down to the Dunkin' beach this afternoon, just to go for a walk.  I had my camera with me with a long telephoto lens on it.  We saw this couple walking by along the walk dressed formally, toward "The Tree" and when they got there they set up a phone on a stand, and started doing either still photographs or videos of themselves.  They didn't appear to be part of a wedding.

I became fascinated with what they were doing and of course snapped a few photographs when I thought they were doing something interesting.

We sat down on a bench off to the right of the tree, and that's when I got this photograph.  She is clearly showing him her ring, and I am guessing this is the day they got engaged!  What a nice thing to see them taking photographs of themselves to have memories of their engagement day.

 

Tire Tracks

When we were at the beach yesterday not only did I photograph the boys and their mother, but after that as we walked back to the car, I was still looking for other photographs.  As I passed this sunbather, I was taken by the tire tracks in the sand!  Clearly the tire tracks were from some beach equipment, but it almost looks as if he was either run over or is going to be run over!  Just a silly thought of trying to make sense of this scene.  Hey, when you are desperate...  One thing I noticed afterwards is that the towel and blanket by him are blue like the water in the distance.  I think that helps the photograph in some way.

 

How To Take a Picture

So I am showing these photographs in reverse order.  "How to take a picture" works like this, at least today.  I saw a mother and father sitting on the rocks above the harbor.  Way over to their left their three boys were wading in the water.  They were too far apart to get them in one photograph.  So, looking at the photograph below, I concentrated on the boys as they waded out further in the water.  I took about 6 photographs, and it was all about the relationship between the boys and which way they were facing and how far apart they were.  So the photo below was the best one, with what I thought was the best arrangement.  Sort of how did the shapes arranged make the best photo.

So now we can go back to the first photograph.  Eventually the boys waded in far enough so that they were now closer to their mom in the same frame.  So I started shooting as they moved around, and their mom had her hand in her hair.  I guess I did about 6 photographs because everyone was changing places quickly.  So the first photograph is my favorite from both sets of images.

 

Blue & Blue & White

Tuesday is Dunkin' at the beach, as usual.  After sitting in the car with our coffee, tea and our donuts, we got out and walked a little.  We went up to a tree that I have photographed so many times, and sat on a bench that looked north.  Here is Kathy sitting on the bench.  You do recognize this tree, right?

Anyhow on this clear morning we had no idea what a beautiful view it was to the north with blue water, blue sky and a deck of clouds cutting through the photograph!  So that view was so striking that we have decided from now on to have our coffee and donuts while sitting on this bench!  If it's not raining, of course!  Please be sure and click on the first photograph to see it larger.  It is a stunning photograph!

 

Memorial Day, 2026 - Flags but no Parade

Unfortunately, it was raining early this morning, and was still sprinkling when the Sea Cliff Memorial Day Parade would have started at 9:00 AM.  So, sadly, no parade this year.  But they did put out the American flags on all the lamp posts.  By the time I drove up to Sea Cliff avenue thinking I would take a photograph like this, it was closer to 10:00 AM and the streets were almost dry.  I have discussed an article written by a Newsday writer back in 1985 where he talked of the Memorial Day parades he used to watch in his small town in Maine and when he went back, they no longer had a parade.  It made me realize that there were parades every year here in Sea Cliff on Memorial Day, and so I started attending them each year because of the importance of honoring those who sacrificed their lives in war. So I am sorry that the weather didn't cooperate this year.  But I wanted to make note of Memorial Day, in some way, in the blog.

 

Strange Shapes in the Dark

I woke up one morning, sleeping the the guest bedroom and Liz and Sarah's.  There were these strange dark shaped in the early light before dawn.  I knew what they were but they seemed so strange to me.  So I got out of bed, got my camera and got back in bed and took this photograph.  What you are seeing is my towel, hung on one post of the four-poster bed. In the middle of the photograph, bottom is a "cat tree" I think they are called.  There is a central stalk and then three sort of "baskets" with soft material in them where cats can sleep.  You see one completely and then the other has some stuff in it.  I just thought that this was such a different picture because of the strange shapes.