• clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  sunrises

    True Wisdom

    April 17, 2024

    Of course, a great deal of our onslaught on Mother Nature is not really lack of intelligence but a lack of compassion for future generations and the health of the planet: sheer selfish greed for short-term benefits to increase the wealth and power of individuals, corporations and governments. The rest is due to thoughtlessness, lack of education, and poverty. In other words, there seems to be a disconnect between our clever brain and our compassionate heart. True wisdom requires both thinking with our head and understanding with our heart.

    Jane Goodall, The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times

    A drive to Pineridge Natural Area this morning and a few minutes of computer crunching produced this panorama of 8 images (handheld I must add) over Dixon Reservoir. I missed a sky full of pink because I was late. But being late made no difference because being there for any part of sunrise with Mother Nature is the experience. Not only did I enjoy this view but the meadowlarks were in full concert in the open meadow. It was a wonderful way to start my day. I will meet my friend Mark for breakfast in about an hour. I resonate with Jane Goodall’s last line in this quote, “True wisdom requires both thinking with our head and understanding with our heart.” My comments on that statement could take another post or maybe a conversation with friends at the coffee shop. Have a wonderful Wednesday!

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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  panorama,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  sunrises,  Thomas Berry

    It’s Happening Now

    September 4, 2023

    The greatest of human discoveries in the future will be the discovery of human intimacy with all those other modes of being that live with us on this planet, inspire our art and literature, reveal that numinous world whence all things come into being, and with which we exchange the very substance of life.

    Thomas Berry

    A host of thoughts can run through my head while standing before this pre-dawn scene as I worked at capturing the image. This image is a panorama of 7 images using Lightroom Classic. I wanted the whole cloud bank in the image and my 16mm lens wasn’t wide enough so I decided to try a panorama. It works on this blog but not for printing purposes. When I came home and saw this panoramic image on my monitor my thoughts shifted from the craft of the image to the scene itself. It’s easy to look at this open field, even to the distant horizon, and see it as something separate from me. I’m here, it’s there. But that’s just not true. There is a multitude of ecosystems comprising this image and the world. Maybe that’s what makes this scene so appealing and beautiful to me. Because as Berry suggests there are other modes of being: birds of all sorts, insects, animals, the plants and of course, humans. For me the future of discovery Berry is talking about is happening now.

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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  Photography,  Pineridge Natural Area,  Software

    Pretty Darn Easy

    August 20, 2021

    Yesterday in memory of my mother I went to the Dairy Queen and ordered her favorite flavored blizzard, a Butterfinger Blizzard. I then drove to Pineridge Natural Area to journal. A light rain began falling followed by this full rainbow. I like how nature gives us these gifts. This is my first attempt at a panorama, three images – handheld, done in Lightroom Classic. Pretty darn easy.

    We had a nice refreshing rain during the night with lightning and thunder, making it much cooler this morning. It was 52 when I left the condo at 5:30 am. And, we had snow yesterday in RMNP. Have a great day!

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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  sunrises

    Wandering

    February 3, 2021

    “Yes: I am a dreamer. For a dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”

    Oscar Wilde

    Seem to be taking more predawn images because I am regularly waking early, my mind wandering, so I get up and begin the day. I slept well until about 4:00 am then half awake until I got out of bed. During these periods my mind becomes active with fantasizing and planning, rather than being in a dream state. May need a nap today. 😴Anyway, here is this mornings predawn from Pineridge Natural Area.

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