Gulf Coast | Day Two

Day two dawned and my friends and I were up and out by 7:30 to continue our exploration. The haze and humidity of yesterday seemed to be gone, clearer skies in its place but the sun was out now and it was hot. Thankfully there was a breeze all day and it saved it from being unbearable. The plan today was to head East towards Pascaguola, MS, thinking to see what the beaches in that area looked like. I'm happy to report that they are much cleaner than here in Biloxi/Gulfport but it may have been due to the fact that clean up crews were out again in full force and seemed to have been there for hours before us. They walk in a straight line, side by side, down the beach, scanning for the oil as they go. Overall this beach felt more like a private beach area as the houses lining the street across from the beach are much bigger, nicer, with lots of land, big expansive porches and long driveways. Admittedly one thing I was finding hard to do was taking pictures of the cleanup crew in a more up close and personal way. It felt intrusive and my fellow photogs and I didn't know how they would react. We didn't have to worry in the end as they didn't seem to mind or are maybe being told not to react and ignore photographers.

After spending the morning here and finding again both the ugly of the cleanup along with the beauty of the beaches, we decided to explore inland and take in a tour of a bayou area in Louisiana. It was worth the trip, my friends and I enjoyed it immensely. The bayou and swamp are beautiful and didn't look at all like I pictured. But most importantly I'm happy to report I did see a gator, he was small and not too scary looking. My two friends and I and one other person were on a small flat bottom boat that the captain could zip us through fast or slow down and get in close to view the details of the trees, water lilies and wildlife. We saw Cranes of all kind, sliding turtles, and a host of other wildlife. Our guide was really good, a native of the area he showed us the signs that still linger of Hurricane Katrina like the shrimping boat that was on its side at the edge of the water. It had been flung there like a toy from 30 miles away during Katrina and it wasn't the only one. We saw at least four to five boats of various sizes that had come from other parts of Louisiana strewn around the area. Our captain told us it took them 2 years to clean up from Katrina in this area.

As day two came to a close, I was happy we took the bayou tour so we could see another part of the area that is so important to its survival. Fortunately the oil will not impact this section if it stays in the water, however, it will be a completely different story if a Hurricane makes it this way again. The wind from that type of storm could potentially bring the oil inland. 

After seeing the bayou, my sincere hope is this Hurricane season is quiet and that the cleanup efforts continue.

Final day tomorrow here in Mississippi and then home to New England by late Sunday night.

Gulf Coast | Day One

I'm in the deep South and I'm in Mississippi. Quite honestly it's not a place I thought I would ever visit for any length of time. I can't say why exactly, it's probably because I thought "too hot", "too humid". And after my first day, both are true. But to my surprise, I've learned that I like it here. Don't get me wrong, I like it enough to visit, but not to live. Right now a Boston Winter isn't looking so bad, trust me! However, there is a beauty here in the Mississippi and Louisiana that I've seen so far, a friendliness to the people that is genuine and an ease of getting around that is nice, especially compared to the hustle and flow of Boston and it's endless traffic.


So coming here under the guise of photographing what I could see of the oil spill was the main reason for the visit but today I saw more. For an area of the country still dealing with the after effects of Hurricane Katrina, feeling the pinch then maybe more deeply of this down economy and now the oil spill, I expected a deep sadness but see instead a community coming together to fix it how they can and an area with strong holiday visitor traffic, which while I'm sure is light overall is better than I expected it to be. I even saw individuals swimming in what is obviously impacted waters of the Gulf and while I personally would not feel comfortable swimming in such water, it's their choice and they made it. Maybe to enjoy this piece of their world and ride it through like they have so many other times, other disasters before. I can only guess.


So what did I see? I can feel the questions from afar. The pictures below highlight what I've initially seen. The tar balls as they call them, look honestly, just have to say it, like light brown dog poo or in some cases, as you'll see in one picture, light brown rocks. The water in one section of beach here in Gulfport has a brownish cast and if you look into it you see what appear to be rocks, but are actually the tar balls. 

As I rode with my two photo friends - Rebecca and Denise - we saw the volunteers, being paid by BP to help in the beach cleanup, up and down these beaches. They use rakes and shovels to clean the oil off the beach and bag it into trash bags. Buses dot the beach parking areas, they shuttle the volunteers back and forth from their temporary housing, paid for as part of their work here along with $18 dollars an hour. I can't imagine doing this job in the heat and humidity here, oppressive doesn't begin to describe it. I had the luxury of shooting my photos and then sitting in an air conditioned car to cool off. Working the beaches all day to clean them has to be exhausting.

Again though, as I moved through my day and drove a coastal road West towards New Orleans, I marveled at how much is still beautiful here and how rich in tradition and scenery it is. Stopping at a small town along the way - Bay St. Louis - we explored a small section of the town where wrought iron fences enclose quaint gardens, where a small cemetery sits next to a duplex and the local coffee shop.

For lunch we reached New Orleans, parked and walked part of the French Quarter until we found a place to eat. From there we wandered the streets a bit though I admit the heat got too much for us so we made our way back to the car, planning to return for drinks Saturday night. Along the way we did find street musicians who set the mood perfectly for New Orleans.


All in all, a good first day, we are all exhausted and ready for a good night's sleep to be ready for tomorrow and day two in the Gulf Coast. 


P.S. The final shot here is of a cemetery in New Orleans that we stopped to take quick pictures of through the gate as it was closed. Hoping to get more before we leave.

In my own backyard

I have the benefit of living with someone who creates wonderful gardens giving me plenty of photo opportunities throughout the Spring, Summer and even Fall. In the Spring I shot the pictures here and now with Summer finally here, more opportunities are coming both with the flowers, plants and also the birds.

The gardens attract a great variety of birds and I try to entice them with bird baths and food. So far I've seen a mating pair of Cardinals, along with a juvenile male cardinal, Robins (of course) who enjoy the bird baths in particular, the usual brown chickadees, a pair of Nuthatches and Red Headed Woodpeckers. They are quite vocal--all of them--and it's interesting to see the pecking order (pun intended) of who gets to the feeders first, who gives way when others come by. Sometimes the larger birds vacate when the small birds come by as they tend to travel in packs or as I call them--bird gangs. It makes for an entertaining time, coffee in hand, watching the back and forth. Pictures of some of my visitors will be coming as soon as I can get them used to me sitting close to them to take their pics.

Ultimately too, attracting the birds makes my indoor cats a bit crazy, which is also fun to watch. I think my black and white female, Mitzy, is going to have a kitty coronary one day she gets so excited.

One Rainy Sunday

When your alarm goes off at 7:10am on a Sunday morning, you want to hit that snooze button - hard. I was going to Blithewolde Mansion in Bristol, RI with my photography group and after a long, busy work week and a busy Saturday I really did not want to get out of bed. Especially too hearing the light patter of rain on the window, getting up and out to the rainy cold did not seem appealing at all. But I got up. Showered, dressed, quick breakfast, grabbed my pre-packed camera bag and tripod and out the door. Fortified with a large DD's coffee and my Tom Tom leading the way, I drove in the rain South to Bristol.

Amazingly by the time I arrived, along with several of my group, the rain had stopped. It was overcast and cool but the sun was trying to come out. Immediately everyone began shooting. The Spring flowers were all in bloom,

daffodils, tulips, and purple hyacinths. Within moments I could see that most of the group was on the ground, shooting closeups, finding the details in the flowers. I found one spot that I got hyper focused on. The rain had left large rain drops behind in the cups of the green leaves of plant that has yet to flower. I could have literally been there for hours, I had to force myself to walk away. I'm including one of my favorite shots of those leaves here.

After about two hours the group had explored Blithewolde fully or we were just tired and hungry. Probably the latter. In the end we all couldn't stop marveling at how nice the day ended up. The day reminded me of the old adage used around New England a lot -- "If you don't like the weather here, wait a minute". Today proved that so right.

Back to School

If you are like me, I'll bet you are walking around going... is it really almost April? The new year started off very fast and furious for me, work, work and yeah, some more work. Oh right and some business travel to California, Texas and Seattle. But then along with all of that one very bright spot. I'm a student again taking photography classes at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). The beauty of where I live is being so close to some of the country's premiere colleges - RISD being one of them. They have a Certificate Program for Digital Photography that I learned about and with a few quick clicks of the mouse - viola I'm a student again.

Bottom line, I'm really liking it so far. I've taken one full class and I'm in the middle of my second one. In the course of beginning the program I also made the leap from PC to MAC - woot! I still appreciate my PC and all it can do, but once you go MAC - you don't go back. I got the MAC right before Christmas and then proceeded to spend my entire holiday vacation bonding with my new technology. It's a forever love, I can just feel it.

Currently the class I'm taking is "Photography: An Introduction" and it's brought me back to some basics with photography. Realizing that shooting pictures without a bit of a plan can be frustrating but the converse is that it might take 100 shots to find 2 that are good or what you envisioned. That sometimes your fellow students will inspire you to stretch yourself and some are well - how do I say - "interesting". We'll not go there for now.

The best part of the experience to date has been finding a smaller group of photographers within RISD that I've had a chance to get to know. They are in various stages of the certificate program and have given me great insight into their experiences with the instructors and I feel the beginning of some real friendships forming. Their photography is inspiring and I feel like knowing them and seeing their work will push me to where I can find my own vision and confidence in what comes through the camera.