Hanging Rock and Hathaway Preserve at Ross Run in Lagro, Indiana

A friend and I decided to go on a photo shoot in Lagro, Indiana, not far from Wabash. I never expected to go on a hike that day but we did.  I was not sorry that we went even if it was hot and the bugs thought that we were dinner. 

The first place that we visited was hanging rock. It is located in Lagro and it was lovely to look at from below. I was afraid to climb up to the top because I feared falling and killing myself or ruining my camera, or both. I should have worn hiking boots that day.  

The view of the water was still just as lovely from below and I tried to imagine myself in a boat drifting lazily down stream. You know, there is a peace that comes over you when you are in nature.  Even if we could hear someone mowing their lawn not far away the peace was still there. Sometimes, I feel that way when I am in the garden and my hands are in the dirt. It is like a calm that comes over you and rests with your soul for a bit. 

I love stones. Whenever I am somewhere I look for one to bring back home as a memento of the trip. Sand and shells I bring back with me too.  My dad used to carry a stone in his pocket all of the time.  It could be that I got my love for them from him.  

The next place we went was Hathaway Preserve at Ross Run, about a mile or two from Hanging Rock. It is a place filled with a couple of water falls and surrounding woods and cliffs to look down from.  

We started out in a path and then went back into the woods onto a trail that went two miles around. Because the water wasn't high we were able to walk in the stream in some places. 

The colors of the stones were intense greens and blues that caught my eye as we looked for things to photograph. The deeper we went into the woods there were surprising things that we found. 

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Mushrooms were all over the place and looked sort of like a fairy garden. I expected to see a gnome at any moment or a little fairy fluttering around.

Next, we came upon a log with what appeared to be shells attached to it. I touched them and they were smooth just like a shell. I have no idea what it was or how it got there. You have no idea how badly I wanted a sample of this to bring home. But I respected the sign asking to take nothing and leave nothing. It was hard though. 

A light ray highlighted a insect eaten leaf. It was still strangely beautiful as it stood out from the rest of the vegetation.  

We saw this sight near the end of our hike. It is layered stones. I wondered how this happened as we climbed into the spring to take a closer look. How long did it take for this giant layer of stone to accumulate or is it man made?

 It was a beautiful day to be out and about enjoying the places that I should make more effort in visiting.  Yes it was a bit beyond my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed it. 

Silhouettes

The sunsets have been incredible this past week. Last night while driving to see a couple of friends who live in the country, I noticed how beautiful the barren trees looked against the glowing sky. 

The temperatures have been fluctuating from high to low all winter. Last night it was warm enough for a bonfire. We huddled around the fire with our blankets wrapped around us and chatted away. The brightness of the stars that hung in the heavens shown down upon us. Our gaze went upwards in amazement at the beauty of it all.  

Not all beauty is lost in winter.  Sometimes we have to look a little harder for it or maybe not. 

A new lens, ice skating, and horses

A few weeks ago, I invested in a new lens.  It was quite expensive, actually cost twice as much as my camera, but purchased it for half the amount of retail and it was still more expensive than my camera.  It is an "L" series, which is more along the professional line for Canon. I went to the ice skating rink and played around with the settings on the camera.  

I captured some lovely pictures such as the one above that I called Concentration or the one below of a man with lovely blue eyes.  

Then there is the beauty with her hair in a bun wondering why I was taking a picture of her. (below)

But today I went to the country to do a little shopping and on the way back home I stopped at an Amish farm and took pictures of the horses.

The beauty of a horse is hard to surpass.  All of my life I have admired these beautiful creatures.

Their strength is daunting to a weakling like me. 

Then there is the kiss that made me laugh.  The horses stood there cuddling for a long time.  

To me it is capturing these special moments that makes life seem tender and sweet. I think this lens is a keeper because I didn't have to work so hard to get lovely pictures. 

Reflections in Water

This is a reflection of a tree in the river. Not long ago a photographer recommended taking pictures of puddles of water.  Strangely, I hadn't thought of doing that. Sometimes the images are just beautiful. 

Spreading your Branches

The fall has come into its full color and I love it.  Yesterday, I went to Spencerville to photograph the scenery, especially the covered bridge and had a wonderful time looking around.  

This past week, I decided to finally name my photography business Batch Blues Photography. The problem I had was naming the business. Every name I thought of was already taken. One day at work I was entering information into the computer from some correspondence that we received and looked at the page and there it was, my epiphany, written in black and white. I studied the two words for a few minutes, Batch:Blues. I rolled it over and over in my mind, then I wrote the two words down. Immediately, I knew that was the name for my business. The process has been slow but I will be adding a Facebook page shortly. 

Lately all that I think about is getting the next shot and want to start sharing with you my pictures.  I still want to share recipes and stories as well, but really focus on my passion of photography. 

Sometimes we have to spread our branches and show the world our true colors.