Photos from the Gorge - Summer 2009

Well, it's been forever since I've posted anything but I think it's time to get back into the swing of displaying some photos. I recently received a Canon 50D as a graduation present so I'll be posting some shots I've taken with that.

These photos are from a recent camping trip to the Red River Gorge. I took them with my little point and shoot camera though because I was too nervous to bring along my new toy.

The first three photos are long exposures taken up on Half Moon Rock at night not too long after the sun went down. I like them because the long exposure made the moon look like the sun. The next few are of Creation Falls near Rock Bridge where we went swimming. I didn't have a tripod so we placed a flat rock on a fallen tree over the water (that made me nervous) which is why they aren't exactly straight. Enjoy.

Skipping large rocks

Lindsey and I took a trip up to the family farm where I spent a ridiculous amount of time skipping rocks in the stream. I was very pleased with my ability to skip rocks that seem "unskippable" so I had Lindsey take some video of my abilities. Unfortunately, I didn't do as well on camera as I had been doing beforehand but you should get the idea.

Apple Picking

Lindsey and I took a trip to Boyd's Orchard in Versailles, KY on Saturday for some good ole' fashion apple picking and cider drinking. We were surprised and elated to find that there was also a petting zoo with goats, pigs, horses, sheep, and turkeys. On our way out, I stopped to photograph a thoroughbred who decided to urinate for my picture which we both found hilarious.

New River Gorge

I went whitewater rafting on the Upper Gauley this past weekend and though I didn't take any photos while rafting, we did visit the overlook at the New River Gorge visitor center where you get a pretty spectacular view of both the river and the bridge which just happens to be the world's longest spanning steel arch bridge. Anyway, I took a couple of shots from the overlook so here they are.

More Adventure Race Photos

Random Photos

I haven't posted anything for a while so here are just a few random photos I've taken over the years.

Cumberland Gap

Last week, my girlfriend and I did a little bit of backpacking and camping in the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park on the border between Kentucky and Virginia. The weather was perfect, the park was beautiful, and the trails were straight up. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

As you can see, the crickets were huge, the deer were friendly, and the skinks were docile.

I lose.

When I told my mom about my encounter with the praying mantis and the photo I had posted on my blog, she responded by saying it couldn't be cooler than her praying mantis photo. She was correct.

More wedding photos

I'm pretty sure that's an alien

I found this baby praying mantis in my house and I just had to take some photos of him. I couldn't believe how calm he was just sitting on my hand and at times I could swear he was looking me right in the eyes.

Canon EOS 40D / f5.6 / 1/160

Colin does a wedding

This is a shot from my first wedding which was this past weekend.

Canon EOS 40D / f5.6 / 1/80

Emotions, Lindsey and Colin style

My girlfriend and I, who just so happen to be awesome at making faces, decided to make our own version of those emotion-of-the-day refrigerator magnets. This is the result of our hard work.

If you are interested in having a magnet of your own, please contact me and we can discuss a price. The dimensions of the magnets are 8.25" x 10.75" and include a magnetic "selector" for designating the emotion of the day.

Just playing around in the garden

I found these little guys in my mom's flower garden last weekend while shooting around with a new camera on a boring day. It looks a lot cooler when enlarged.

Canon EOS 40D

Harlan and the end of my blog drought

My sincerest apologies to Kristen Simpson for not having posted anything in a while but I have a good reason. I was on a trip to Harlan, Ky where I participated in a house-building project with COAP. While I spent most of my time bent over, pulling nails from a scalding hot roof, it was a very rewarding experience which I was fortunate enough to share with some wonderful people including my girlfriend. I'm thankful for the rare opportunity to make a difference (albeit small) in the world. I am all too often pained by the thought that I am doing nothing to improve the world around me and while I bitch, complain, and even attempt to open other people's eyes to the problems in the world, I usually feel as though I should be doing more. But more on that later.

The photo above is of the view from our "mountaintop" cabin in Harlan shortly after it rained. I'm sure Kristen will correct me if I'm wrong but I believe the mountain with the tower on top is Black Mountain, the highest in Kentucky.

Canon Powershot A630 / f4.0 / 1/400

Red River Gorge with fog

I took this a while back at the Red River Gorge with my old Pentax SP500.

Butterflies en masse

While waiting for hours during an adventure race in West Virginia, I found hundreds of butterflies on the beach of the river, presumably drinking water.

Not an original idea but something I wrote nonetheless

I believe (or would very much like to believe) that people are mostly good but it seems that those "mostly good" people are largely apathetic when it comes to, well, just about everything.

While people will almost always fight back or speak out against injustices done directly to them, almost everyone is reluctant to do so when the injustice is less direct or when it affects only others.

I am hardly religious but I am fairly certain that everything is connected, especially humans. While this looks to be true at the atomic and subatomic levels, it also seems to be true at the more practical and more easily recognizable macro level in that the actions (or inactions) of one person can affect another person, living creature, the planet, etc. which often ultimately sets off a far-reaching chain of events, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant.

It is also worth mentioning, of course, the more traditional religious and/or spiritual belief in interconnectedness. Though my own personal jury is still out on the idea, many others believe that we are all connected by some unseen spiritual force or higher power.

Regardless of the level or form, I think there is a certain element of sacredness in those connections that we can and should learn to recognize, respect, and utilize for the greater good. This is not an proposal I think most people would argue against.

Why then are we so afraid to do just that? Why do we shy away or ignore the things we know to be wrong instead of trying to correct them? If we all stood up for one another, even if only with our voices, I believe that many of our larger problems could be solved or prevented.

All too often we allow usurpers and criminals to feel like they can get away with anything, or worse, to think that what they are doing is right, simply by acting like we do not care enough to stop them.

I realize this is not an original idea nor a particularly eloquently written piece but it came to me as I was eating my lunch and reading about some horrible things that my leaders had done and I couldn't help wishing we could all treat each other well and stand up against those who don't. If we only we spoke up more often, we could set so many things right. People do awful things because they think no one is looking, no one cares, or no one will say anything.

Some horse names

1. War Criminal
2. Not on Steroids
3. First Also Last
4. Significant Difference
5. Side Effects May Include Awesomeness
6. Captain Beefhorse

A little design

This is some window art I did a few months ago for the EKU Cultural Center (don't ask me what they do because I don't really know).

Opa Locka?

Apparently, someone from Opa Locka, Florida has been reading my blog more than anyone else. As far as I know, I don't know anyone from that area. Reveal yourself!