Groundhog Gala

The 2011 Groundhog Gala was held at Route 46 in Sanford this year. Along with vintage cars and a swinging band, there were Rockabilly guys and Pin-Up girls. I've been to a lot of car shows (for a girl who's not a car enthusiast) and this is one of my favorites. It's the people that make it interesting for me - their commitment to this 50's-inspired counter culture.



Ignorance = Bliss





Hot Rod Walt and the Psycho DeVilles

 

Mt. Dora's Bookstore Facade

Mount Dora is one of my favorite hidden gems in Central Florida. It's so quaint and artsy and everywhere you go, there's something really cool that catches your eye.

I have been in love with this storefront facade since I first saw it. It's one of those pieces of art that just endears itself to you. At first glance it looks real, but upon closer inspection you realize it's actually sculpture. Sculpture on the entire facade of what used to be the Dickens-Reeds bookstore/coffeehouse on Fifth Avenue. Apparently the couple that owned the bookstore commissioned an artist to create it in the late 1990's. It's so cool, something you really should see for yourself.

I did some online searching and discovered that the artist was sculptor Thomas Merrell. He worked with a mortar and bonding compound, creating bas-relief scenes that become a part of the building. From what I've gathered, he employed the help of four young area artists to create the hundreds of individual elements that make up four panels, each 10 feet tall and 7 feet wide. Each panel contains a gothic-arch window opening, surrounded by busts of famous writers, and shelves containing objects such as a telephone or a globe and LOTS of books. 

''When you put something up that everyone can share, that's humanity. Art shouldn't be kept in museums. It should be out in the public where people can see it. It should be considered a part of daily life.''  ~ sculptor Thomas Merrell

Words

Project 52 - week 6: Words

Words are all around us...
I didn't realize when I took this shot just how many times the word 'you' showed up. But I like that there's this hidden self-motivation message in there. It's simple wisdom, really. All inspiration and motivation starts with YOU.

My muse(s)

Well, 2011 hasn't been the easiest year so far. Between surgery, strep, and other viruses, my little trio of a family hasn't been feeling that well. But much like marriage vows, we keep on loving each other through sickness and stress. Because life can't always be happy-go-lucky.

Project 52's theme for week 5 was "Muse". Everyone has a different definition of what inspires them. I've got two things that inspire me constantly. Even when they're under the weather...

Orlando Amtrack Station

I posted earlier this week about participating in Project 52. That shot was taken at the Orlando Amtrack Station. I  thought I would feel a sense of relief in posting it. Like, well now, I'll just check that off my list. But instead, I felt oddly guilty. I felt like that image didn't really do this railroad station justice.

I have a soft spot for history - places, people, memories. I feel sentimental about buildings that have been around before I even existed. I always try to imagine how they must have looked back in their heyday. It makes me sad to see places that were once so integral to people's lives now stand isolated and neglected.

So I have a few more images of this 85 year old building I want to share. I guess, in my mind, it's my way preserving the memory and honoring the history of this place.

"You have to know the past to understand the present."

Carl Sagan

Project 52: Shades of Gray 3/52

Last year I saw a lot of great photos from photographers who were participating in '365' projects. Their goal was to take and share a new photo each day for a year. I love the idea, but talk about overwhelming. Seriously, where do they find the time? Every day?!? The only consistent thing I've done every day for a year is wake up.

Then a few weeks ago I stumbled across Project 52. The same idea, but with one photo a week. I thought, Perfect! That's what I already do (or try to).

MCP Project 52: One Photo a Week – It’s a way to encourage creativity, make photography fun, and provide a challenge without actual pressure. Participants will share their art work and images weekly while inspiring each other.

The thing I like about this one is that you can be as creative or as simple as you want. You can follow their theme each week, or do your own thing. Ahhhh. Few rules and no pressure - right up my alley.

So I'm starting with week 3 - the theme is shades of gray.

We went to the Orlando Amtrack Station for the first time this weekend. It's a very old building (1920's) done in Spanish Mission style. Not too many people are riding Amtrack these days and it very much looks like a place that time forgot. But something about it's isolation makes me want to board a train there. Maybe in a few years, if the planned SunRail every gets up and running, this place will be bustling once more. Anyway, the shot below is of one of the old, curved, wooden benches in the waiting area.

The Seasons of Lake Greenwood

A little over a year ago I took my first HDR photo of Lake Greenwood in winter. My friend Ryan introduced me to the process through some of his awesome photographs. For those of you who don't know, HDR (or High Dynamic Range) is a method where you take multiple exposures of the same photo and merge them together to create an image with intensely exaggerated luminance. The process is pretty cool. It's a little complicated for me since I don't have a fancy pants camera with auto exposure bracketing built in! But I really like the effect it gives.

Anyway, after I did the first one I thought it would be a nice experiment to document the changing seasons reflected in Lake Greenwood's landscape. So every few months I went back to this lake and tried to set up the same shot. This is the compilation of those four shoots. Visually, I like the cooler seasons better than the warmer ones. But overall I'm happy with the finished piece. If nothing else, it proves that we do in fact have seasons here in Florida!