Travel and looking for new things to Photograph

Well I did something weird for me! I am taking time off to travel a little and the wife is going with! I don’t know why but it always seems like our schedules conflict for us to get away together, not counting one day short trips or trips where we are helping people move!!! I am talking about 4 days, just for fun time together away!

So the plan was to leave on a weekday and drive up to my nephew and niece’s house in WI. They live in a picture postcard location in the rolling hills in Central WI. Even better my nephew scouts good photo locations for me on his bike rides. Last time he took me to some excellent spots. He had all new ones plus a couple surprise opportunities. Just on his property there are bluffs and trails, a big sweeping valley and a beautiful forest. just waiting for a camera. I was able to get up early and sit on his porch and get shots at the hummingbirds on his feeders while having my morning coffee, Dutch Coffee strong and black and boy is it good! We stayed there a couple days and boy was it just what we needed.

Then our next stop was in Madison on the way to see my other Nephew and his wife. We found a beautiful botanical garden! It was just off the road on our way. The outdoor garden is free to enter and we only had about an hour there. I will be back, it was beautiful. When we got to my nephews we only had a short time with them and went out to dinner with them at a beautiful ___ on a lake. I didn’t take my camera! I should have! After that it was time to head home. It was one of the best trips the wife and I have taken in years! Hope to do it again soon.

If you enjoy my work please like/follow my Face Book and Instagram

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer

Unexpected Opportunities in Photography Sales and Networking.

I love it when an Opportunity to sell your work and get it out to be seen happens. Recently I was contacted by one of the organizations I am involved in, USVAA, and they were wanting a couple images to use for Social Media posts for the 4th of July. I didn’t have much in my portfolio that fit the holiday so I knew I would have to go find the images! It was a little hard since not a lot of 4th of July decorations were up yet. I went to my peers at Little Egypt Art Association and asked for good ideas and locations and as always they came through.

So I grabbed the camera and went and got the photos. Keith at USVAA like 2 of the 4 I sent him, and now my work is getting seen by more people. All this happened because I went looking for groups and organizations that I can get involved in and network with.

Moral of this story is be involved! The more people who know what you do, and like you because you have built a relationship with them, will open doors. Work with people who also love and appreciate the Arts. Last when presented with that opportunity jump at the chance!!!

Until Next time

The Redleg Photographer!

A Weekend of Black and White Photography in St Louis.

I had the opportunity to do a Photo Trek in St Louis. The focus on this trip was Black and White photography. I have not done lots of black and white photography.

The trek was only a 2 day event. The first day consisted of taking photographs at 4 locations; Bellefontaine Cemetery, Faust Park Historic Village, the Laumeier Sculpture and Abbey at the St Louis Priory. All where great locations my favorite was Bellefontaine, with all the unique mausoleums, headstones, obelisks and a couple of nice size ponds with a garden an a very lovely stream with waterfalls in it. If you are looking for a good location for interesting photography this is a good location.

As for the rest Faust Park is very beautiful and it has several historic buildings. I can see taking my grandkids here. Next was Laumeier Sculpture Park. This was not my first trip here. I love the sculptures here, go, take a picnic and enjoy. The Abby was a short stop for us. I wonder what else was hidden around there.

The second day was supposed to be more photos but the weather didn’t cooperate so we just buckled down for some photo editing with our coordinator. He gave us 2 different workflows to use and several tips and tools.

This was a very informative and fun trip. I have more to learn but look forward to doing just that.

Enjoy the photos. If you want any info on any of the locations we went to please contact me. Even more important if you want a copy of any of these or my other photos they are for sale. Just contact me.

Fox Hunting in Southern Illinois with a Canon…… (camera).

Someone I work with told me they had a family of foxes. They said I could come out and see if I could get a photo or 2. I jumped at the chance.

I first had to come up with a way to not scare them off. I needed a blind. Lucky for me my brothers Mark and Dennis are both hunters and said yes I could borrow a pop-up blind if I needed it. I was out an brother Dennis’s house trying to get some bird shots last weekend and grabbed a blind. Then after work one day I put up the blind so the foxes could get used to seeing it.

Now it is the 7th of May and I head out to try my luck. I got in the blind about 15 minutes before sunrise. I set up my camp chair, put my camera on a Monopod sat down and proceeded to wait. Oh and the chair sunk into the mud!

I sat for an hour and had promised the wife I would be back around 7:30 am, we had the Grandkids all night. I was getting ready to pull the plug an I saw a red fox tail disappearing into a creek bed. I missed it. So I waited and heard the fox calling out. (Ask me I know what the fox says. Very different than the song). Again I wait and about to give up and up pops the fox.

I was able to get these shots

I am very pleased with the first attempt!! These are my first every photos of a fox in the wild. Looking forward to more!

Until next time.

The Redleg Photographer

Back from Florida Birding Trail trip, Photos and Info.

I returned back from my photo trek (or Group Shoot as my photo club calls it) a few days ago. This was a week long trip to Florida to just immerse in photography! Wow It was a great trip and here is how it went.

First Day was a travel day and we left out early and stopped in Macon, GA. We had time after checking into the hotel so we went exploring. We found down town and interesting building and history. While we were looking around at Mercer University we were told how close the Allman Brother’s Big House was and we had to go check it out. Worth the stop. If you are in Macon and a fan of old Rock n Roll go check out this place!

We (Kris Killman and I) arrived early for our link up day with the rest of the group. Since it was early we being who we are grabbed our cameras. From that point on pretty much we either had a camera in our hands, were downloading photos, getting a quick meal in and looking for a Mojito. We toured Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge and surrounding areas, Viera Wetlands , St Augustine and the Alligator Farm located there. The underlined names are links to those areas.

The days were packed with lots of wonderful and beautiful things to photograph. We got to meet many great residents and tourist to include a few other photographers.

In all it was a wonderful trip. I have more photos from the trip in this gallery Florida Birding Trek

Road Trip to Florida for Wildlife and Nature Photography and anything else we see!

I am days away for leaving for Florida to take flora and fauna picture! I get to spend most of a week there.

The time I spend down there should be the easy part. The hard part is the preparation for the trip. Space is limited and I have others riding with me. So how much of my gear do I bring. OK the 2 camera bodies (Canon 6D Mark II and Canon 7D Mark II) and my 2 favorite lenses (Sigma 24-70mm Art and the Sigma 60-600 Sport) are a must. The tripod is a must and at least one flash. But do I bring my other Lens? Do I bring additional flashes and stands in case I want to do off camera flash? Some other stuff is pretty small so no problem to bring like remote triggers and macro rings. Extra batteries and chargers are a must. The laptop, backup storage, and extra memory cards are also in the plan.

Next there is the other stuff, like sun screen, allergy meds, spare contacts and glasses. Then there is snacks for the road, proper cloths.

So once I have all this put together what is next….. it is the wait and the anticipation. This I am not good at, I want to go NOW! Unfortunately I still have a day job and can’t just pick up and go. So say a prayer for my co-workers having to put up with me!

No pictures or images in this post. I will be saving them for the website and the next blog post. I hope to have some good ones for you.

Until next time!

The Redleg Photographer

The day after my Birthday, and my favorite past time! Wildlife Photography!

Today is March 20th the day after my birthday, they wife stayed at my son’s house with the Grandkids since he had Military Drill. So for my own little present to myself and went out to see if there were any animals out moving. So I headed out around 7am to one of my favorite local places to find wildlife. Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge https://www.fws.gov/refuge/crab-orchard .

Crab Orchard is one of the best locations in Southern Illinois to find wildlife. It has lots of good waterfowl, song birds, owls, eagles, even some beaver and so much more. This morning it rewarded me with Turkey, Song Birds, and Owl and so much more.

If you would like to check it out and want a guide, contact me I would be happy to show you around.

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer

Veteran Artists, Promoting and Encouraging Them.

Since my recent association with USVAA, I have been searching out Veteran Artists and organizations that support them and like what I am seeing.

There are pockets of groups here and there around the country and social organizations and I would like to talk a bit about CAVARTS.org out of CO, they have created a social platform where veteran artist can show their work, and interact, posting and chatting with other Artist. CAVARTS also does online workshops and groups to socialize and teach. They are about a year old and as I found out last night they have about 3100 members and they are diverse with musicians, painters sculptors, leather workers, photographers poets and writers and are open to almost any of the Arts you can think of.

Here is how they describe themselves;

“Learn. Connect. Grow. CAVARTS, an initiative of Challenge America with support from the HeartStrings Foundation, brings Veteran artists and art enthusiasts of all backgrounds and skills together to build a national arts community. Veterans join the community to share their artwork, learn from one another, and heal through the power of music, writing, visual arts, and more.” 

Visit www.CAVARTS.org to learn more and request to join!

They are growing quickly it seems, and who knows what CAVARTS will morph into, but I am enjoying being able to interreact with other artists who are also Vets. If you are a Veteran and an Artist I would join CAVARTS. Nice to interact with like minded people.

Until next time.

The Redleg Photographer

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer

Photography, Military Veterans and Something new!

So some new things have happened. I am proud of the time I served, I also love my Photography. I have been using my cameras as therapy for a long time. Being able to look through a viewfinder and find something beautiful in the world has gone a long way in overpowering some of the ugly things I have seen while in uniform. So on a whim, I started looking for other ways that my photography and my military worlds could intersect.

The truth of the matter is most of us who have been deployed have seen things we cannot un-see, or that will haunt us, maybe till the end of our days. Of the many ways to deal with those memories, mine has become Photography. I started looking for ways to expand that and went looking for a Veterans group that have turned to the Arts and I found USVAA (United States Veterans Artists Alliance). I searched the pages of their website and I like what they are wanting to achieve. While searching the site I found their Colleagues section for Photography and thought, “I wonder if I could join them as one of their Colleague’s'“.

I reached out to the group and asked what it would take to be a “Colleague”. Keith contacted me and we set up a video chat interview and I was accepted, now have a look at this https://usvaa.org/photography/ . Not very far down the list you will see my name and Bio. I am excited to be one of their Colleagues. I hope I can contribute and expand their mission. If you look at my web page now you will see in the footer USVAA’s Logo which is a link to their page. I would encourage you to go check them out and see how we can support our Veterans in the Arts.

My goals have expanded More to come.

Until next time.

The Redleg Photographer

My favorite Barn in winter!

If you have spent any time on my website or social media you will have seen my favorite barn! This barn is a Icon if the Fager family and we are proud to see it sport our family name on it face.

A Bit of history, this is my uncles Victor’s barn on his family farm here in Jackson County, Illinois. He kept and would feed livestock from this barn. I have put up hay in this barn. I have built hay forts and played in the barn. There were barn dances and family reunions held there. I don’t think there is a single cousin from my generation that does not have fond memories of that barn.

I have photographed this barn a lot, I mean a lot!! Barns like these are starting to fall to the ravages of time and disappear. That is why I like photos of old barns, it is a way to preserve that history and hold on to those memories.

So I hope you enjoy these latest photos of the “Fager” Barn (see the 2 below).

If you know of a picture worthy barn you want a print of let me know I will come capture your memories for you.

Until next time.

The Redleg Photographer

Trying something NEW! HS Senior photos.

So a friend of mine, from 3 hours north of here, called me and asked if I knew of anyone near SIU Campus who did High School Senior photos. His daughter wanted to do them someplace none of her friends and peers would likely be doing them. He knows I am a photographer. He also knows I focus on wildlife, nature and landscape. So I told him I could put him in touch with a couple people who do good work. His reaction was less than enthusiastic. So against my better judgement I said “or I could give it a shot” and he said that would be great!!! So I was going to have to learn how to do a this young ladies photos and worry about doing them justice!

First thing I did was look at a lot of Senior Photos, the locations the poses, the lighting etc.… And I do mean a lot. Second, I read and read and read tips and suggestions on how to take them. Third, I contacted “dad” and had his daughter send me photos of poses and locations she liked. Fourth, I scouted locations and asked people who worked on SIU Campus where they thought I could find similar locations.

Then I set the date and started to worry. As we got close to the day, they had something come up and we had to reschedule. So I started the process all over again, leaving out step 3, but all the rest in full measure. Then I prepped my gear, making sure everything was together and all the batteries were charged and spares were available.

The day came. I had good weather, good light, a very lovely model with a beautiful natural smile and a lot of faked confidence! I went at it like I knew what I was doing! I used a lot of the tips on how to get the model comfortable and relaxed. Then we started taking pictures. As I would look at the photos I would always make a positive comment about how good the model looked, such as “ooooh I like that one,” “nice,” “that is a keeper,” etc. The only thing that I would say that was not in that realm was, ‘let me get a couple more of that pose. '“

After the first few photos, the false confidence turned into real confidence. I started showing the young lady and her parents the photos as I took them (always showing what I thought were the best ones). That continued to build the confidence of both myself and the model! Best of all I came away with many great shots in my opinion. Plus the young lady has several she really likes!

So for my first run at Senior Photos it was a good experience. I would do this again because I had fun! If you need any of the info I used to get ready in more detail let me know. I still have a lot to learn but I would be happy to share what I learned if it would help you! For a few more examples of the pretty lady in the photo, head over to my gallery named people,

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer

Faces of Heroes! Southern Illinois Honor Flight Sept 2021.

It took me a bit to get around to posting this one. This holds great meaning and brings on strong feelings. I was very honored and blessed to be invited to come and see this welcome home of our Heroes. I took great pride in their stories and legacies. See I am a Retired Solder myself and to be marked among this men and women as a comrade. I was caught in the excitement of the event. I had a friend from work who’s father was on the flight and many of us from work went to show our support and welcome him and all the others home. It was a very humbling and inspiring evening.

So why did it take me so long to work on this? It brings up feelings about last year when my Father a WWII Vet and my Oldest Brother a Vietnam Vet whom we both lost last year. I see these service men and their family’s around them and I am jealous. I miss being in my father and brother’s presence and listening to the stories.

So if you have one of these Service Members in your family or as a close friend cherish the time, enjoy the history of their experience while you can. You never know when you will turn around and they will be gone.

But my dad and brother would chastise me for letting my personal feelings keep me from honoring our Heroes. I present you a few of the Faces of Heroes!!!

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer.

Photos of Something New! The Touch of Nature Bike Trails and it Catalyst Mountain Bike Races

Well if you know me I am always looking for something new to photograph. Well I found something!!! My day job is at SIU Credit Union and they recently helped sponsor Touch of Nature Environmental Center’s Mountain Bike trails. Well I used to Mountain Bike and thought it would be fun to go see what they are doing and what was going to be available. Let me tell you first, they have the trails open and there are about 10 miles of them of various lengths and difficulties, with 20 more miles planned. If you have not checked it out you should! Second while I was there checking it out I saw a sign for a Bike Race. I copied down the dates and put it on my calendar if I could keep that weekend open I was going. Well I completely forgot about it until the morning of 18 Sept when my reminder on my calendar popped up with the title. I thought what the heck I didn’t have plans grab the cameras and go! I had a lot of fun trying to catch the best shots and I even caught a few. I found out that I didn’t need my 60-600 Bigma on the trails and that it is a lot of extra weight to carry when you don’t end up using it. I found out I need to expand my depth of field a bit and boost my shutter speed a bit. (Which is challenging when it is cloudy out and your in the woods). Last Bug repellent is a good idea!!! In spite of all of that I did get several good shots! The next time I go, and there will be a next time 19-21 November I am told I will be better prepared and maybe just maybe get even more good shots.

Until next time!

The Redleg Photographer

New Computer, my Son, the 2 littlest Grandkids and Pyramid Park

If you read the last Blog you know I had a catastrophic failure in my previous computer I used for editing. Big shout to Carbondale Computer Repair ( http://carbondalecomputerrepair.com/ ) for swapping out my ram and SSD Hard drive into a new system and getting me up an running again. They helped make a bad situation a little easier. Thank you

So on to Pyramid State Park, my son and grandkids. Since I could actually edit photos I really wanted to go take some yesterday. I called my son and asked if anyone wanted to go to Pyramid State Park with me. They said they did so I went to pick them up and off we went. First off Pyramid State Park is beautiful and unique. It has been built on reclaimed strip mines. The southern area of it is all the cuts that have filled with water with the mounds that nature have taken over and made green at lush again. The roads are winding and narrow. There are horse trails/paths that crisscross the area (those need to be explored at a future date) We were there just after midday so there were not lots of animals out moving but just the location was worth the trip. Then let move on to the north area. It has had a more modern reclamation done, it has less sharp hills and spread out more the pond and lakes are a bit larger. The roads are wider and straighter and more locations to camp, picnic and fish. This would be a great place to Bike, and Kayak to. I hope to do so some time in the near future.

As for the photos the only wildlife we saw were turtles, a hawk we couldn’t get a lens on and a few butterflies. Where were there at the wrong time of day. I need to go back late in the evening or early in morning. We did get some go photos, some by me, some by my son and some by the grandkids! I love when my grandkids want to take pictures too. My son enjoyed it also. We had a great time taking photos together!!! I hope they will go again sometime soon.

If you have a activity that you love (me Photography) and your family is willing to share it with you, it makes for a great day out. cherish it, build those memories and enjoy. Blessed!!!

Until next time!

The Redleg Photographer.

The Second Struggle….More annoying than the first. DEAD Photo Editing Computer!!

So a few months back I talked about the struggle of running out of Hard Drive Space. I complained a bit but all in all it was an easy fix and I had listened to mentors and peers about always keeping a back up of files. But this one I may complain more! When I started wanting to up my game, shoot in Raw and edit photos with Photoshop and other lovely programs I realized that my computer system was greatly lacking in power and memory. So I spent several day researching and decided to get a computer (laptop for about $2600) just for Photo Editing that could more than handle the task, with 32MB memory and a i7 processor with lots of speed. It was more than capable and since I had exceeded the min requirements by quite a bit I was looking forward to several years of use from this system!!!

Jump ahead to now 16 months later. In the middle of an edit the screen goes black!!! (I don’t even get a blue screen of death straight to black) So I go to the first few lines of every IT support flow chart. “Did you try turning it off and back on?” Did you check to see if it was plugged in?”. I did and still no love. It did make a lovely 7 beep sound and I could see it had power because the keyboard would light up. So I got out my phone and googled the Beeps, evidently that is a “Beep Code” for a BIOS fail during start up. I did the next logical choice I check the warranty!!! 12 Months it had expired 4 months earlier!!!

@#$@ #@#% $^$* &^&* excuse my language.

The website of the manufacturer is not the most user friendly and I was unable to find the help I was needing so I found a local repair service and had them take a look! After a couple days they gave me the diagnosis….. Motherboard!!! About $1300 so half the price of the system.

@#$@ #@#% $^$* &^&* excuse my language again!

So I am still waiting for the “Manufacturer” to get back to me. In the mean time the Service Facility “Carbondale Computer Repair” (I highly recommend them by the way, http://carbondalecomputerrepair.com/) had a new system only slightly slower and they are able to move my RAM and Hard Drive to this system meaning I will not have to reload anything!!! If the “Manufacturer” makes me a deal on a new system I might have 2 if not, I am not likely to recommend them or give them my money for a bit. The last computer company that I had do this to me, I didn’t purchase anything from them for more than 15+ years and I purchase computer equipment almost every year.

In any case lucky for me I have redundant back ups of files. With luck I may have a redundant back up of systems soon too. If you need a system worked on in my area I would look at having it done at the place I mentioned above.

My best advise is still redundant back ups!!!!!

Until next time!

The Redleg Photographer

A Sunrise or Sunset, always a one of a kind photo.

On a recent trip home from visiting my daughter, I had to stop and grab this image. It is a sunset that God graced us with and I got this just south of Scott Airforce Base. Sunrise and Sunset photos are some of my favorites because each one is unique. You will be the only one with that photo unless there is someone standing right next to you using the same settings at the same time. With this one there was no one within a mile of me, so this one is all mine and I am grateful. So if it is close to sunrise and/or sunset and you are following me, don’t be surprised when I pull off the road and jump out with the camera, God may have been painting again. If that is the case I will need to get that picture.

Until next time1

The Redleg Photographer

Merging Natures Art with Digital Art

My son put me on to a very large spider web one very early morning this summer. He likes when I take photos of geometric and artistic shapes in nature and then filter them with colors. I have a photo of weeds in water that looks a lot like a stain glass windows. It is a special photo for me and him. He sees it as God in nature and these photos are the glass we see it through. His idea is that we should find a good spider web and do something similar. This one is because of him, enjoy the colors and the lines. I hope you enjoy the beauty I see in this.

Sorry for the long gap again. Life has been in the way and I will not bore you with it. Thanks for sticking around.

Until next time,

The Redleg Photographer

Pretty Flowers and Hummingbirds

Got to go to one of my favorite fields in Southern Illinois. The Zinnia Field and Rendleman’s Orchard. It was an overcast day with a little sun here and there. I had about an hour and a half window to shoot do to more serious rain coming. I didn’t see as many hummingbirds as my last trip but with the weather coming in they might have been settling in. But in the short amount of time I was able to get some photos I liked. The one I am showing here is a Ruby Throated Humming bird. He decided to perch on one of the flowers and take a rest. I was surprised because he sat there so long it gave me time to get several good photos. So on my last post I talked about missing the shot, this time Ruby made it where I couldn’t miss. Everyday is an adventure when I get out with the camera. I always see something beautiful even if I don’t get the photo. But more fun when I do.

I was shooting with my 7d Mark II and my Sigma 60-600mm, ISO 1600, f5.6, 1/3000 shutter.

When the Photo does not go as planned!

So the title is kind of self explanatory an the title photo is a good example. I was stalking this Hawk on the back side of Herrin Park, and I was getting some great photos of him perched. But I wanted an action shot and was slowly moving up near his perch to see if he would fly. Well he did! The first time I had brought the camera down so I could see where I was stepping and missed it completely. He flew a few trees down and perched again. So one more try (I didn’t want to do more than 2 and stress the bird). I moved slower and kept the camera up and ready so I thought. A car came by on the road next to me so I glanced away. You see what happened next. It is kind of neat to see how long their legs are.

But with thing like this you should learn from them! My mentor said you need to widen your shot when they are ready to fly ,which I didn’t do, so you see hawk legs!!! I need to be more patient and move even slower and not let outside things distract to much. You need to be able to enjoy your mistakes and share them with others. Last just keep trying and improving.

Sorry I have not posted in a while, life got complicated. It is still complicated, but I need to remember why I like this so much. It calms me, and makes me look at the beauty around us. Then just get out and do it, even if the world says take the day and rest since you had a rough week. I always feel better when I do.

Until next time

The Redleg Photographer

Colors in the Sky above Carbondale’s SIU Campus

One evening close to sunset, which is after 8pm this time of year, I decided I liked the look of the clouds and thought I should try and get a sunset picture. So I grabbed my newly acquired Canon 6d Mark II and went looking for a good spot. The trouble with Carbondale you don’t have many views where there is enough room to get a good skyline for a sunset. You get power lines and poles. You get trees and buildings too close so all you see is bits of sky, to where you would see that it is a good sunset if all this stuff wasn’t in the way. So I pulled up my app called Photo Time @phototime_app, this is a great too to get all your golden hour, set/rise and blue hour times. I especially like the map, it shows you the direction you should be looking for that day to line up the sun for the shot. They have been adding features too, so check them out! No I am not getting paid to promote them I just enjoy their app. Any way, I picked the the Carbondale Reservoir up on the dam near the spillway to see if that would be a good spot. As I walked in it seemed like it would be promising, I said hello to a local out fishing. Then I got set up for the shot right on time since I knew from my Photo Time app when sunset was. The location is a winner I think, and the sunset over the water gave me a beautiful reflection of all the color in the sky.

If you like this or any of my other photos in my gallery and want a print contact me they are for sale. Basic print costs are listed on the pricing page. Better yet if you have something you want a Keepsake picture of that is special to you like the Barn on the main page was for some of my family (and me), will come and try to capture the image you want.

Until next time.

The Redleg Photographer