Some of My Artist's Favorites #2

When you photograph people for a living eventually you will create an image during the session that becomes your favorite.  It's that moment when everything clicks between you and your subject and you've captured what you envisioned prior to the session.  I have taken thousands of images of people over the years and in this posting I felt like sharing a few of what I've classified as my "Artist's Favorites".  I hope that you like them too.

Enjoy!

[Click on image to enlarge and start a slideshow. Use L/R arrows to navigate]

Pulitzer Prize and 89 Books Later

In 2012 when I purchased my NOOK reader, one of the first books that I read was Moby Dick (a classic).  Boring!  It was at the conclusion of that novel that I got the inspiration to read every novel listed in the Pulitzer Prize Fiction category.  I was under the impression that surely I would be reading the "best of the best" in fictional literature entertainment.

July 5, 2016 I proudly finished ready every novel listed on that list dating back to 1918 up to the present day winner.  It has been one long journey especially when I ran into the problem that some of the books were out of print and not so easily available.  Over the years though I've kept detail records of the task such as:  There are 89 winners, in 1980 non-winning finalists started being listed, I've read over 37,866 pages on NOOK and printed pages, and I spent $1,090.20 purchasing the entire collection. 

                         

I also kept record of how enjoyable each novel was to read.  I graded the enjoyment of reading on a personal scale from 1-5.  Here's a list of my findings:  5 stars = 25, 4 stars = 19, 3 stars = 10, 2 stars = 16, and 1 star = 19.  To be candid on numerous occasions I could not understand why a particular book was chosen the winner because there were some that were, well...  These were the books that I suffered through reading and prayed that the next novel on the list would redeem the time I spent reading a boring one.

Was it worth spending four years and countless hours of reading?  From every standpoint, beside achieving my goal, the answer is "yes".  Over the years I've read some scintillating prose that informed, educated, and delighted me.  Now all I have to do to stay current is to read each year's winner although some years there is no winner.  Speaking of winner, I just discovered that the 2016 winner is in print.

Enjoy!

Great Smokey Mountain Scenes

If you are not afraid of heights and you love the splendor of nature and have a sense of wonder at God's creation, then taking a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains is a must for your "bucket list".  I can now say that I've been there and seen it.  Oh yeah, the drive is not for the faint-hearted, but every twist and turn of the highway (and let's not forget the inclines and steep grades) is all part of the adventure.  If you like the smell of hickory I also promise you that your nose won't be disappointed.  I think I'm still smelling hickory after being home for days now.

I wish I could say that I had a fantastic time on this 4-day trip, but I was sick as a dog the entire time.  In fact, I ended up in the doctor's office when I finally got home (a severe case of bronchitis...something I've never had or can remember ever having.  In my restless sleep I'm certain I cried out on occasion for a mountain man to come shoot me and take me out of my misery!).  

Therefore, there are NOT a lot of images that I was able to take.  The experience was worth every mile and minute though.  Maybe next time.

Enjoy!

Willie

Click on images to enter slideview mode

 

The Hill Gang

 Our travel agent gave us two pair of sunglasses to show 

off in so we had to give out a shout to her. Those puppies

                really shaded your eyes too!  Thanks, Ann.

I can see clearly now with my Trip Quest Travel sunglasses!

Water en route to the grist mill house.

 Butterflies were everywhere at the Mingus grist mill.

"Wild Bear" is real...the buffalo is "suspicious".

We didn't have time to visit the museum, but it looked very inviting and interesting from the exterior.  This was "real" Cherokee country.  Even the street signs were in the Cherokee's native tongue. 

Some NBA team ought to draft the guy 
behind me to play the post position.

I love creating panoramas.  The following are a few I made.

Mingus Mill.  The mill is a historic "Grist" mill built in 1886 that's still functional today.  It is turbine powered instead of using a large waterwheel.

A view from the hotel parking lot at sunset.

 The views from the mountaintops were breathtaking and the wind was comfortably chilly.

Camera:  Canon sx150
Post: Adobe Lightroom & CS3
Travel Agent:  Trip Quest Travel