Path less taken

Living in the city, space is at a premium. What you do with that space, can add termendously to your quality of life. The owner of this house obviously wanted to be immersed in the smell and sight of a country garden from the moment they walked out of their house.

The photo may be a little decieving -- It appears the walkway is grown over. That's just because the camera angle obscures it. The walkway is there I assure you -- though it is encroached on a lot by leaning flowers.

While we are all enamoured of lushious, spacious gardens, I think a garden this size does as much if not more.... it keeps us close to nature, even on a short walk to the mailbox.

--steve buser

Storm, porches and growing up

Another of my favorite houses. I have a real love of porches. I have fond memories of the porch at our house when we grew up. It wasn't a covered porch or anything fancy. But it was a good launching point for my first attempts on a bicycle. Later it was alternatively a space ship, a pirate's galley, and a remote mountain top. It was the base for our kick-the-can games.

Those were the days before air-conditioning, when sitting on the porch while the house cooled was a family activity. It was a time for visiting with neighbors and making strong bonds.
I grew up in Wichita, Kansas -- so there were evening when you would sit on the porch and watch the threatening clouds swirl around -- holding out until the last minute -- when giant rain drops started hurling down and you had to get inside quickly. My memory was of how high those clouds were and how they ushered in that eerie glowing light.

This house is on my route home most nights. I have wanted to photograph it, but never got around to it --till one night, threatening clouds were swirling. They offered a great contrast for the new post-Katrina coat of white paint. It was so striking, I had to stop and shoot it. The camera couldn't capture it all -- that coolness that blows out of a rain cloud, the "smell" of approaching rain, and the sense of darkness during the day.

Are you a porch afficionado?

--steve buser

Sunset Peeking

We were riding along the I-10 last night with a giant thunderstorm developing just behind us. The outflow from that storm swept over us and out almost to the horizon. As the sun started setting it put on a incadescent display that was stuning. The cloud only left a small sliver on the horizon for the sunset to work in. And the contrast with the dark cloud made the turbulent sliver all the more startling. I shot this through the front windshield as the car was moving along.

A few miles down the road, the sliver became a battlefield of beauty with swirling clouds and the golden orb playing games with light rays. It was too much -- I had my wife, who was driving, pull over at the next exit and started taking pictures. The sunset was just barely visible from our car and I had to climb a little up the hill to shoot. Nothing to steady the camera in some dim light. I used all the tricks I knew.

I would have loved to have had a better set up. But a sunset like this doesn't wait. A teacher I had 35 years ago said that it was the photographer and not the camera that really mattered-- a good photographer could take and outstanding shot with any camera. He was right, but I think he missed an important subtlety. A good photographer COULD take an outstanding shot with any camera -- he just couldn't take EVERY outstanding shot -- with poor equipment he has to be more selective and more creative.

Still my inexpensive Kodak served me well. I have already been budgeting to replace it. Trying to decide the next camera.

But back to the story. I snapped shots for about 20 minutes. I could have kept going for about an hour before it got just too dark. But, out schedule would not allow. it Nonetheless, I need to share a couple more of those pictures.... maybe in a day or so.

It was one of those nights that just makes a sunset photographer restless to get back to his computer and see exactly what he captured. I felt like it had been one of those very special times -- a sunset to judge all others against. It is times like these that makes me realize how much fun and passion I have for this.... keep watching this week for more.

--steve buser