2_sammie
family_11_2007
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To all of you who have shared your thoughts & prayers for my beautiful girl.
I want to share the poem my sister wrote,
Sammie
They say it's better to have Loved & Lost
Than never to have loved at all
We're not so sure we believe in that
It all just feels so wrong
And yet we ask, What would have been
Without the loving years?
We'd missed a chance to know this gal
And all that we hold dear.
Her brilliant smile, those sparkling eyes,
Her questions one by one,
The laughter we still try to hear,
From somewhere up above.
We try to see the brighter side,
through tears and broken hearts,
We all hold dear the memories
And we know how hard she fought.
We feel one day we'll be enhanced
by the light she left behind.
Right now, we want her back-
The futures just too far.
Oh God above, we just can't see
The plan in all of this,
And so we lean on all You said
To keep Your promises...
Embrace our girl, and give her peace,
As we lay her down to rest,
And Thank You God from all of us,
For giving us the Best.

We Love You Sammie Forever

Some more photos from the day after our big snowfall. These were taken early in  the morning, it was heavily overcast making it difficult to capture sharp detail on a moving target, I played a bit in PS to enhance the contrast and sharpness. Any suggestions on better settings for my camera in these conditions or other enhancements from the ps program is always appreciated.
1 blue
2 blue
3 blue
4 blue
 5 blue
6 blue

8 inches of snow Friday,I had a chance to grab some shots
buck
buck 3
doe chat
youngster  

Ok I know these aren't top quality photos and many ask, if they aren't top quality why post them? Don't vote, i just wanted to share. I am simply because seeing a sight like this is really different. Driving along the back waters I saw these two on the ice enjoying the winter sun yesterday in perfect harmony. I thought perhaps one was injured due to thier close proximity and only took a couple of quick shots before making them aware of my presence and they took off. I would have called the rescue places if they showed signs of distress.I was happy to see both leave with no apparent injuries, now I wish I had taken more time to get better shots.enjoying the winter sun
aware of me
 running off

Through the glass inside the Shedd Aquarium, temps outside about 5 degrees with a brisk 15 MPH wind, they are crazy (and young)joggers Pastel colored sky over
frozen Lake Michigan and part of Chicagos Cityscape reflected in ice
I didn't get to the marinas as planned due to having to return home early.

I went out for a short time yesterday and walked a half mile circuit, and finally managed to capture an winter blue. He was down in a feeder stream surrounded by undergrowth. I hope it warms soon, he looks Cold and hungry
The thumb is almost another goal I have set, to capture a shot of a cardinal in a winter pine tree. He flew away before I got close enough.

if you have an itch, scratch it

Full moon

that didn't make it...
Macro-web drops
or portraits -Chicago fountain baby or Aliya

After spending time shooting the eagles the other day we rode further north to Galena, Illinois. The area is filled with Historic Houses we hope to go back next fall and try to capture its beauty more then. Along the way we also saw some critters, here is a Horse with his shaggy winter coat, and some wonderful farms. The downtown shopping area is filled with interesting architecture.

  3   Taken at Starved Rock early Febuary 2007.

Fulton, Illinois on the Mississippi River, across from Iowa. A friend from my Audubon society reported seeing 150-200 eagles present. Starved Rock is flooded out with the thaw and rains we had, when I checked earlier in the week there were no eagles present. So my sister and I drove here yesterday. I got to watch as the juveniles would challenge the older ones as they captured food and watch them as they soared Over water
This
lucky
guy had access to the area people are not allowed in, right over the action!! But I got some really nice shots of the eagles in the surrounding trees, profile shot
stare down
close up

I went out looking for some bucks today, no luck but I did have a close encounter with a curious little one...
50 mm 500 mm
both of these are uncropped. It was neat she stood and watched me for about 5 minutes before wandering back to her momma.
The thumbnail is tiny, she seems to be weathering the winter well despite her small size.

Duck dance

The  Kid

Yeterday the weather was SO wierd we hit 67 degrees in January, causing all the snow to melt plus it rained flooding the fields. I was driving and saw these guys way out in a field and at first thought they were snow geese. I stopped the truck and trudged through ankle deep mud for these shots. It was worth it. First time I have encountered this breed in this area. My ISO was set high to allow for more light so there is a bit of grain. I haven't quite figured out the new program I am using.
showing
 off
group shot
Taking off
Bye
Gratuitous Mute Swan shot