Janie Rose Brooksby is one year old today. 7-25

Sunday was Janie Rose's first birthday. Normally, this would call for a big celebration at home, but the air-conditioning went out this weekend turning the place into an oven. Mom opted to delay the party until after the repair man does his work. So, Janie Rose and her family hung out with Grandma, Grandpa and uncle for most of Sunday afternoon.

Janie does not walk by herself yet, but she is determined to be ready when that time comes. She had Grandma and Grandpa holding her hand as she jogged circles between the living room and the kitchen. When I finally broke away, I grabbed the camera in several futile attempts to record the event. This was the best although I had to crop Grandma out so we could get a good look at the girl.

Future star?

Spent the day with an old friend yesterday. She has three adopted grandsons who live with her. Two of the boys are pursuing careers in the acting community. The youngest leaves today to confront the Hollywood experience. I wish him well.

New Jersey and Retired

I have finally retired from teaching. On the last official work day I was in New Jersey photographing a wedding for the cousin of my daughter-in-law Nikki. Here is an example.

If you would like to see more: http://rustytripod.smugmug.com/


I definitely enjoyed the weather, the food, and the people in New Jersey. Returning was not an easy thing to do, but I had not choice since I had to clean 16 years worth o teaching materials from my classroom.

The classroom is empty now but our spare bedroom is a mess. Slowly, I am making progress.

Now, if I could just schedule another wedding shoot.....

Ross's Wedding

I shot at another wedding this weekend. As a guest, the best I could do was perform as an "Uncle Bob". The venue photographer put us into the bar while she did the group shots. I missed out on those.

No one moved around to photograph the wedding ceremony. I politely remained in my seat and did the best I could from that viewpoint. It was a late Arizona afternoon with harsh light.

Overly warm colors ruled the dining area. My white balance was all over the place. It was my first attempt with the Canon 580 EX. Challenging.

After processing the images, I was greatly disappointed in the work. Too many shots seem the same as other events. (I guess I have my own style...boring.) Still, there is plenty of room to grow. I can only hope things go better when I assist at the wedding in New Jersey next week.

Wedding Shoot

I hope to shoot more weddings when I retire. Slowly, I am beginning to recognize how hard it is to work alone.

I photographed a beautiful couple yesterday. They had far more energy than I.

Two more shoots are coming up in the near future. Certainly, I need more practice and more stamina. Retiring from the day job is bound to help that somewhat.

Lorraine's birthday

Lorraine is a senior citizen just shy of Medicare and Social Security. Today is her birthday. Yesterday, Anna and John took us to the Phoenix Zoo for their gift. Of course, it is a two edged sword, have fun and babysit at the same time. Nevertheless, Lorraine and I left with some beautiful photographs of the grandchildren.

I don't care much for the zoo, but the grandchildren are a different thing altogether.

Spring Break

Nowadays, we do not travel much. When we do, we seldom go south. Lorraine agreed to go to San Xavier del Bac and Bisbee because she did not want me to spend the money to fly to San Diego for a couple of days. (Tightwad!)

Initially, the plan was to spend the night in Sierra Vista in order to allow enough time to see Bisbee. However, Bisbee is more interesting if you have money to spend. We did not have it, and there was nothing we needed anyway. We just found it easier to drive home and end our 15 hour day in our own beds.

If I had gone alone, I certainly could have knocked around all of the places with my camera a little longer. Instead, I was rushed and ended up not real pleased with my results. Nevertheless, getting out of town for a few hours and working myself to exhaustion in the process were satisfying.