More sand ripples, Ponte Vedra Beach

Shadows and chair, PVIC

Low Winter light.

Beach walk

 I took a walk last Friday on a perfect beach. The temperature was about 68f (20c) and the light was either lovely low winter light or pearly due to thin clouds that came over. I converted some to look like Tmax 3200. Some I just made black and white and one was left in color due to the great hues in the shell.

 Seaweed necklace

 The moon from space.

 Wonderful colors

There was a brisk breeze and the small fronds on the right were vibrating really fast while the feather was still.

Palm frond and shadow, Roscoe

Beautiful light, yesterday.

Self portrait, utility pole, Nocatee

Trees, Nocatee 2

Trees, Nocatee

Sepia post, Ponte Vedra Beaqch/Jacksonville Beach border

This post is one of about 38, of various heights from six inches to six feet tall, that used to divide Duval County from St. John's County. There was fencing strung along them, the main purpose of which was to keep cattle from straying across the line. Or, so I'm told.

Sand patterns, PVB

Ball on wall, Ponte Vedra Beach

For those photography fans out there, this is my little attempt to make a picture like the old, high-contrast, Ralph Gibson photos of the 1970s.

Lunch

The other night I made chicken breasts sauteed and covered with a mushroom sauce with Brussels sprouts and black-eyed peas as sides. The leftovers made a splendid lunch.

Black X, Ponte Vedra Beach

This and the picture below were taken one day apart. I must have been looking down a lot.

Red X, Publix, Palm Valley

Palm and flowers, Ponte Vedra

Fences and shadows, Ponte Vedra Beach

The morning light in early winter is very low and clear. I love that almost everything throws an interesting shadow from now until March.

Tiki hut, Ponte Vedra Beach

I can set my Panasonic Lumixes to take pictures in the square format. My favorite cameras to shoot with for years were Rolleis, the 2.8F and the SL66. Both took 120 film and made square negatives (Like a Hasselblad, only better). I have missed "seeing" square pictures and now I can. This will be the first of many square pictures.

Magnolia and sawgrass, Nocatee.

I love magnolia leaves, excepting the ones that fall from my four trees here on Roscoe. They are so graphic and leathery.

Dancing pig, Solano and A1A, Ponte Vedra Beach

This is the mascot for a local B.B.Q restaurant. It's intriguing that places that sell meat always portray the source of the meat as happy. It's this way in Europe too, or at least France.

It was quite cold this day. I hope that the pig outfit was insulated.

Delia in harness, Roscoe

Delia made this set of reins and was pulling a wagon when I took this. I believe that the teamster driving the wagon (my wife) was accused of animal cruelty for her treatment of this horse.

Weeds, Nocatee

This is probably too small a file to see the amazing interlacing of stems and roots, but it looks like a Pollock painting when you stand over it.

Guana reserve

Weeds and Fall color, Nocatee

These colors will  slowly fade to tan over the next three months. Then green will be back.

Future developement, Nocatee

 These four pictures are at the site of a delayed development within Nocatee. All of the infrastructure is in, even the guardhouse and the electric service. All of it awaits the thawing of the economy.

Shadows, Nocatee

On another of my drives through this huge development.

Trees, median, Nocatee

We have a different kind of Winter light here in North Florida. It is low and on a slant, but is much warmer than northern Winter light. I have recently spent late afternoons in Nocatee, a huge planned development that straddles the county line between us and Jacksonville proper. As would be expected, the economic downturn had a huge effect on the sales and building of homes. This is just starting to change. The infrastructure, roads and landscaping were factored in and are done so there is a vast area covered with brand new roads, but no people. It is a little eerie on a December afternoon to be able to stand in the middle of a new four lane road and photograph the trees in the median with no worries about traffic. I saw two cars in an hour. The light was grand.