Photographing This and That

Webster Groves Sculpture Garden

One of the projects designed by SWT Design is the Sculpture Garden in Webster Groves. Located at the intersection of W. Kirkham and Gore Avenues, the once derelict area was transformed several years ago into a green oasis complete with multiple sculptures. A volunteer committee worked very hard with the City to develop a plan to light the garden, which culminated in a lighting ceremony Wednesday. Residents gathered to listened to a wonderful jazz group, chat and enjoy the treats offered by The Sweet Divine, winner of the Food Network's Cupcake Wars in 2012. Around 8:40 Mayor Gerry Welch threw the switch, and the area lit up to the applause of a delighted audience. It is such a lovely space!

lighting ceremony

Kirkwood Train Station

Saturday was the opening reception for the Women in Focus show entitled "Transportation". We were selected by the Kirkwood Arts Commission to have our exhibit hanging at the Kirkwood Train Station for the month of June. Built in 1893, the City of Kirkwood purchased the station from Amtrak in 2003 when the company decided it was no longer profitable to have a stop in that location. In a unique move, the City offered to staff the station with volunteers if Amtrak would continue to drop off and pick up passengers in Kirkwood. It has successfully operated as an Amtrak stop ever since. Because wall space is limited in the station, I only submitted one photo for the exhibit. Despite torrential downpours and some hail, we had a pretty nice turnout for the opening.

Rollin' on the River

Forest Park

Saturday evening we picked up some friends and went to Forest Park for the 40th annual Shakespeare in the Park Festival. This year's presentation was "Romeo & Juliet". The event is free, and you bring your own blankets and/or chairs and food and drinks. Or you can choose one of their reserved seats for a charge, and can also purchase food and drinks from their vendors. Due to the rain earlier in the day, the temperature had cooled down to the mid-70s and it was a pleasant evening to sit outside.

While Shakespeare is not my thing, "Romeo & Juliet" is one of his plays that I do enjoy. But of course they had to change it up. The costumes looked like clothing for the 60s - as in 1960, not 1660. And the dialogue just didn't have the same cadence as expected. All of the Shakespeare productions I have seen over the past several years have had the same dramatical editing done to them. I understand artistic license, but I will just say that I am not a fan. While the show was quite good, I found myself wondering, "Shakespeare's Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?"

Garden Parties

Last week was a little busy, from a social standpoint. On the 17th we attended Chefs in a Garden, an annual fundraiser that supports Gateway Greening. Chefs from numerous venues in the area are charged with preparing a dish utilizing locally grown produce. The offerings are always unique, to say the least. The Four Seasons Hotel does a great job of hosting the event. Plus we all got designer water on our way out.

Chefs in a Garden

Tuesday was the SWT Design Garden party to show off the completed renovation of our third building. Though it was over 90 degrees outside, the shade and a slight breeze made it bearable. There was a nice turnout, though I had to leave around 6:00 to get back to our house as I had 15 women coming over at 7:00.

The gal who started the Women in Focus photography group in St. Louis is moving to Las Vegas, so instead of our normal monthly meeting at the library, I had suggested having a going away party at our place. I had pretty much everything ready ahead of time. I just need to throw together the sangria I was making. I had just tied the balloons out front when the first guests arrived. Several people brought drinks or appetizers to share, so we had plenty of food and beverages. I had a cake made at Schnucks, and it turned out so cute! It was a bittersweet night as we will miss Tiffany very much. But we are excited to see what life brings her way in Nevada.

Women in Focus

Thursday I played pickleball in the morning, and then that evening I went to Forest Park for some pickleball drills. That was a lot of pickleball in one day, but I know I need to practice if I want to improve my game.

cover as approved

Sunday I had breakfast with a friend to first of all catch up, but also to review the galleys of her new book. I provided the photographs for it, including a design for the front cover. The publishing company made a minor modification to the cover, and we both thought it looked great. Diane approved the cover weeks ago, so imagine our surprise and disappointment when the galley had the wrong cover on it! We also have some concerns about how the designer laid out some pages in terms of how the text interacts with the photos, but they may or may not take our critique under advisement. They are the publisher, after all. Hopefully they will at least address a couple of the bigger issues. I am eager to see the book in print, although it will be in black and white so the photos don't shine as much. The ebook version will be in color though, so that's cool. It is a pretty big thrill to see my name listed on the cover!

Celebrating 65 Years of Marriage

Jim and I went to Charles City, Iowa for a wedding anniversary over the weekend, but first we attended the latest Women in Focus photography exhibit. Held at Third Degree Glass Factory, the opening coincided with their Third Fridays monthly event. Every third Friday of each month, Third Degree offers glassblowing demonstrations, food from local caterers or food trucks, live music, and a new exhibition in their east gallery. That is where the Women in Focus show entitled "Passion" is being displayed for a month.

Third Degree Glass Factory

The event opens at 6:00, and Jim and I arrived a little before that to find the parking lot already full and about 30 people waiting in line to get in. We were amazed! Having never attended Third Fridays before, we had no idea what to expect. The evening was quite fun, and the photos on display by our group are excellent and thought-provoking, as always.

Saturday morning we got up early to head up to Charles City where we had a big surprise in store for my husband's parents. They knew that the two of us were coming up to help them celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary, which happened to be February 18th. But they had no idea that our son and daughter-in-law were flying in from Washington, DC., or that our daughter would also be flying in from Los Angeles. These plans had been in the works since Thanksgiving, when the kids were able to arrange their flights into Minneapolis on the 18th arriving pretty close to the same time. They wanted to be able to rent one car and drive to Charles City together. With the flights settled, we only had to worry about the weather.

wedding day

When my in-laws were married, a snow storm kept some guests from being able to attend the wedding and reception. When the time came to plan their 50th anniversary party, they decided to have the celebration in April to avoid the possibility of snow. But guess what? It snowed that weekend in April. You just can't fool mother nature!

The weather gods were kind this time, and we had unseasonably warm weather. It was sunny and warm (for northern Iowa) on both Saturday and Sunday. We were even able to take some photos outdoors in the park on Sunday afternoon following Mass and a small dinner party at the local Chinese restaurant. Thank goodness for tripods and the timer on my camera.

family photos

All of us were able to stay in town until a little after noon on Tuesday, so there was plenty of time to catch up, play cards, puzzles and other games, and of course eat some amazing food. Our children rarely get the opportunity to see their grandparents as everyone lives so far away, so I am beyond grateful that things worked out for us to share this time together.

I have been fortunate to have Jerry and Lorraine Wolterman in my life for over 40 years. They are a constant source of inspiration to me, and have set a loving example of what marriage should look like to all who know them. There is no "in-law" after father and mother in either my mind or my heart with them. They raised Jim to be the man that I fell in love with, and I know that our own marriage is stronger for the example that they have set for both of us.

Fete de Glace

ice man

Yesterday was the annual Fete de Glace, or ice carving festival, in St. Charles, MO. Last year a friend and I went (you can read about my experience here), and this year five of us from my Women in Focus St. Louis photography group met at the event. Last year was quite warm, creating a problem for the sculptors with the melting ice. This year weather was not an issue. It was about 36 degrees when I arrived, outfitted in my long underwear and multiple layers of clothing. Though the sun was shining, a brisk breeze kept a chill in the air.

Our group met up at 10:00, with the actual festival beginning at 9:30. That was still early enough that we could see the prep work of the artists as they readied their blocks of ice for the competition. Each carver starts with a block of ice weighing approximately 260 pounds. It seemed as if there were fewer ice carvers this year, although there were a few who were just beginning to carve as I was leaving a little after 1:00. So perhaps they staggered the start times in an effort to give more visitors an opportunity to see a piece from start to finish.

The crowds are usually pretty light in the morning, so it was easy to get around and take pictures of the artists at work. We basically all headed off on our own for a little over an hour to get the shots we wanted. By that time we were pretty cold, so we went into one of the local restaurants to grab lunch. This is what happens when five photographers sit down to eat. Ha!

tools of the trade

Each time I am together with these women I am struck by what a unique group of individuals we are. I like our field trips where we have an opportunity to get to know each other a little better. We all may be looking at the same thing, but we each see things differently. In our own way. And that gets reflected in our photographs.

Following lunch we braced ourselves to once again face the cold, and headed back down the street to see what the artists had accomplished in our absence. The crowds were much larger, and tons of people had their dogs - large and small - with them as well. It was harder to get good photos without someone in the way. I checked out a few of the new artists just beginning their sculptures, and then took off for home. I think I was the last woman standing from our group at that point. Despite the chill in the air, it was a cool event to photograph. Bah!

ice sculptures

Full Super Moon Weekend

Last weekend was super busy. Friday night Jim and I grabbed dinner and then headed to the mall to return an item I had purchased online. Not only was the t-shirt a bit snug, you could see right through it. Not quite the look I was going for, trust me. Jim had a $20 off coupon at the same store, so between my return and his coupon he was able to snag a new pair of jeans for around twenty bucks. Nice!

on stage at the Muny

Saturday morning my friend picked me up at 10:00 and we went to the Garage Sale being held at the Muny in Forest Park. Props, sets, clothes, shoes - you name it were for sale. They were cleaning house for only the second time in their 97 year history. The sale was from 9-2, and I heard that people were standing in line at 5:30 a.m. We were not intending to purchase anything, but thought it would be a fun photo op. And it certainly was that and more. While standing on the stage looking out at all the seats, everything seemed a lot smaller than it does when you are sitting in the audience watching a performance. I always wanted to appear onstage at the Muny, and now I have. Cross that off the bucket list - haha. An older man started talking to us about how he had worked at the Muny for 40 years designing sets. Wow! I even ran into Katie's high school journalism teacher, and we had a nice chat. He had so many wonderful things to say about her even after all these years. I wish I had recorded it so that if she is ever feeling down she could listen to it. Proud momma moment, for sure.

Muny garage sale

From there we went to the Art Museum to have lunch at the Panorama Restaurant. Neither of us had eaten there before, and the food was good with an even better view of Forest Park. While the fall colors in the St. Louis area have been pretty lackluster, things were looking pretty in Forest Park that day.

Forest Park

After lunch we went to the Gretchen Brigham Gallery inside Union Ave. Christian Church for the opening reception of our latest Women in Focus photography show. The gallery space is beautiful, and although the reception was not that well attended, it is always fun to get together with these lovely ladies.

Women in Focus Inspiration show opening

Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery

Early Sunday morning I drug Jim out of the house to go to Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery to take pictures. I was thinking the graves would be decorated with flags, and it wasn't until we got there and saw none that I realized that would be Memorial Day as opposed to Veteran's Day. No matter, it is always a lovely, peaceful place for a drive and the deer are always accommodating. It was touching to see an older man sitting on a low chair next to a gravestone with a woman's name on it, despite the 31 degree weather. Was that his wife buried there? His daughter? We wanted to talk to him, but were hesitant to disturb his solitude.

deer in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery

That afternoon I went to the Holiday Walk in Webster Groves with a friend. It was a beautiful day, and lots of people were out. I was able to pick up a couple of Christmas gifts, so that felt pretty good. In the evening Jim and I saw Mothers & Sons in the Studio of the Repertory Theatre. It is a small venue, and the plays down there are always thought provoking. This was no exception. Came home to enjoy a Super Moon finish to a pretty super weekend.

Super Moon

Happy Independence Day, America!

graduation

One blog post in June - that is pathetic! I should have posted before now, but I had a great time with my sister shooters taking pictures of the graffiti wall downtown. I hadn't been down there since I photographed my great-niece for her high school graduation. It's hard to believe that was two years ago already.

They have really cleaned up the area near where the wall begins. That bike trail tax we all voted for sure does come in handy. You never know where it will pop up. At any rate, while the day was bright and a little warm, it was still fun to be out with like-minded women. A few of us went out for lunch after taking the pictures. Here are a few of my favorite photos from the day.

St. Louis graffiti wall

Last weekend we attended an open house for a presbyterian church in Kirkwood. The congregation took an old school building that is located in the historic area of Meramec Highlands and repurposed it as their church. Our interest in the renovation lies in the fact that the school had once been owned by St. Joseph Hospital to house their child care center. The center was open to non-employees of the hospital as well, and our son went there from 1987 until he began kindergarten in the fall of 1990. It was amazing to see the pictures of the mess the church started with when they bought the property, and the transformation into what it has become. It is truly a great re-use of an old school. It was fun for us to walk through the school and see the rooms our little guy once played in.

the new church in 2016

school party in 1990

A gal on the Facebook page of my community posted that she had more plums on her tree than she could possibly eat, so she offered them up to anyone who wanted some. I had never tried to make plum jam, and thought this would be the perfect time to try my hand at it. Not wanting to seem greedy since I needed quite a few to make a batch, I asked her if she wanted a jar of my finished product in exchange for the plums. She knew that I had also made some blackberry/raspberry jam recently, so she eagerly offered a trade for a jar of that instead. I'm thinking she was probably pretty tired of plum anything by that point. The exchange was made, and I had to wait a few days for the plums to ripen. Personally, I wasn't a fan of the flavor of these plums, so I was unsure what the jam would end up tasting like. At the end, I was pleasantly surprised. The plum jam has just the right combination of sweet-tart taste. However, plums are way more labor intense than any other fruit I have tried so far. I won't be rushing out to make more anytime soon. Having quite a few jam sessions (har, har!) under my belt now, it is a mystery to me how anyone makes money selling homemade jams and jellies at markets.

plum jam

 Tomorrow Jim's aunt, uncle and cousin are coming from Minnesota for a visit and to attend a Cardinals game. It will be fun to show them our little Americana town in all of its 4th of July finery. Happy 4th, everyone!

July 4th

Summer Time

pickleball

There has not been much going on in my life lately. I guess that is a good thing. Jim went to Washington, DC in May for a business trip, which was nice as he got to see Andy and Megan as well. I stayed here with the dog, and participated in a pickleball clinic. It took place over a three day time period at Lake Forest Country Club, which is quite a haul from my house. I met up with two other ladies I know at a convenient location, and we carpooled together. It was nice to have company on the long drive, and to rehash what we learned on the way home from each lesson. While I play pickleball for fun and fitness, I do want to be able to play the best game possible. There are some serious competitors at several of the locations in St. Louis, and I want to be able to hold my own. I might not ever be as good as them, but at least I hope not to embarrass myself. A guy from California came in to teach the clinic, and I have to say that I think my game has improved from keeping his tips in mind.

Harold

My true idol in pickleball, though, is Harold. Recently widowed, this 89 year old youngster lives in a nearby community with his granddaughter, who had moved in to help care for Harold's wife. He began playing pickleball a couple years ago when he could no longer continue with his golf and tennis games! I see him on the courts three times a week, though he may play elsewhere as well. He is incredibly sharp, a super-nice guy, and an inspiration to the rest of us.

We did make a trip up to Iowa for Memorial Day weekend to see my in-laws. I had not been up that way for awhile, though Jim and Katie made a quick visit there over Christmas while I was here waiting for Andy and Megan to arrive for the holidays. It was great to see everyone and catch up. A bonus was that my niece and her family from Dallas were also in Iowa that weekend. They were going to Marshalltown on Monday, so we drove a little out of our way as we headed home to St. Louis and met them for lunch. We had never seen their youngest child, Hazel, and she will be two this fall! I can't even express how wonderful it was to see the four of them. I so wish that we all lived closer.

family fun

This Saturday the Women in Focus photography group is meeting to shoot photos of the graffiti wall downtown. I took some graduation pictures of my great-niece there a couple summers ago, and it is definitely a cool place to go - when it isn't hotter than hades. A temperature in the 90s is predicted for Saturday. We aren't meeting until 10:00, which isn't the greatest time for shooting with the sun much less the temperature. You'd think photographers would know better - ha!

Mother's Day 2016

brother Joe, Mom & me in 1956

This Mother's Day weekend was packed with activities, which is a good thing because Mother's Day holds mixed emotions for me. I have always felt that this day was about MY mom - not me. Though she has been gone since 1989, it is still her day in my mind. I suppose it doesn't help that our kids live so far away, as does my mother-in-law. At any rate, Jim always goes out of his way to make the day special for me. Usually we spend it going to a picnic with my sister and her extended family, but they needed to have the gathering on Saturday this year, and I already had plans for that day. But I am getting ahead of myself.

Women in Focus St. Louis

On Friday night we had the opening for the new photography exhibit of the Women in Focus group. It is being held at the Webster Groves Public Library, which is convenient for me and the three other ladies in the group who live in Webster Groves. We had wine, water, cookies and candy at the opening, and it was pretty well attended. I entered two photos in the show, which has 27 pieces hanging. Two of the ladies have already sold pictures - awesome! The show will remain in place through June, the longest time period we have had for one of our shows to date.

Saturday morning was the Paint Webster event, and our group had been asked to be volunteer photographers again this year. Artists from all around the area come to enjoy the day painting outside, or plein air. It is fun to watch them, and talk about the techniques they are using. There might be four artists all painting the same thing, yet the results are entirely different. I was particularly excited to see all the children participating this year.

Paint Webster 2016

On Sunday, Jim and I headed to the Missouri Botanical Garden as soon as they opened. We knew it would be crowded, but there is nowhere I would rather be than at my favorite place in the world. Most of the people were hanging out in the front of the garden, no doubt waiting to enjoy the Mother's Day brunch. We had the rest of the garden pretty much to ourselves for the first couple of hours. By then we were ready to head out as it was getting hot.

Missouri Botanical Garden

From the garden we drove downtown to Washington Avenue, where we had lunch at Sugarfire Smoke House before going next door to the National Blues Museum. The museum has only been open since April of 2016, so I had not talked to anyone who has gone there. It is quite the place, and the exhibits and graphics are very well done. Though it was not crowded, it took us a couple of hours to see and experience everything. I'm so glad we went, though it is a bummer that they do not allow any photography inside except for the entry lobby and gift shop. They said it is for copyright reasons, but I am skeptical as many museums allow photos.

Both of the kids called that night, so that was the cherry on top of my wonderful ice cream sundae Mother's Day.

'Tis the Season

decorated mantle

The decorations are up, the Christmas cards are in the mail, and all of the presents have been purchased and wrapped, except for the ones that are still in transit from their various websites. I still need to clean the house, buy all the groceries and do my baking, but I am feeling pretty good about where I stand right now. Katie arrives late Friday night, and she and Jim are making an impromptu trip up to Iowa for a few days to see the grandparents. She has not been with them since her graduation in 2009, and she expressed a desire to go to Charles City. In the meantime, I will finish up things around here and meet Andy and Megan when they arrive on Sunday.

This week is packed with parties and dinner engagements, so I have a feeling time will fly by. The Women in Focus photography group had a party at the president's house. She requested that we each bring a 5x7 or 8x10 of one of our pictures in a plain envelope for a gift exchange. What a fun idea! I agonized over what photo to print as many of the women are extremely talented. I settled on an 8x10 of one of my butterfly photos because I figured that would appeal to anyone. It was taken in a cemetery in Louisville this summer. The lady who got it seemed to like it. The envelope I chose actually contained two 5x7 prints, representing the "Power" and "Light" signs that are etched into the old Union Electric building downtown along the north riverfront. It was fun to see all the pictures that people brought.

my picture 

interesting tree

Speaking of pictures, a friend called me up last Friday morning when the fog was as thick as pea soup and asked if I wanted to go shoot some photos at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Of course I said yes, and it was so odd because while there was a lot of fog on the way there, in the cemetery itself the fog was almost non-existent. The lighting was pretty moody, so I guess it was okay. I did find this tree to be very interesting, with its curly branches.

After we were done at the cemetery we grabbed some lunch at Crown Candy Kitchen. The line to get in was surprisingly short. I have never gotten seated so quickly there. Then my friend drove us to Wellston as there was an old trolley station that she thought I would enjoy seeing. Built around the turn of the century (I have seen 1901 and 1909 dates used), the Wellston Station must have been beautiful in its prime. It is in such disrepair that I doubt it could be saved at this point. What a shame!

Wellston Station

Shooting the Dead

Bellefontaine Cemetery

The Women in Focus group that I belong to met at the Bellefontaine Cemetery Sunday afternoon to take some photos. The cemetery was established in 1849 on what was then 138 acres in rural St. Louis County, fortuitously right before the great cholera epidemic that hit the city in June of that same year. It became the first rural cemetery west of the Mississippi River. Today the cemetery sits on 314 acres and is the final resting place for over 87,000 people, including many of the Who's Who of St. Louis history.

With its park-like setting, the cemetery hosts many events throughout the year, such as the Beer Baron Tour, where you can view the tombs and graves of the men who made St. Louis famous for its beer. You can sample some wares as well. On this particular Sunday there was a yoga class as well as a walking tour taking place on the grounds.

Seven of us showed up for this event, which isn't too bad for a busy fall weekend. The leaf colors have not been too dramatic so far this season, and since this is my favorite time of year I have been somewhat disappointed. But the cemetery quickly lifted my spirits. Ha! There was beautiful color on the trees, as well as some summer flowers that are taking advantage of our mild fall. We certainly enjoyed the nice weather as we walked around the cemetery taking photos and talking about the different stones we came upon. It is so nice to be affiliated with a group of like-minded women sharing our passion for photography.

Bellefontaine Cemetery

Bellefontaine Cemetery

Laboring Day

Women in Focus show

We had a very busy Labor Day weekend, beginning with the opening of the new Women in Focus photography exhibit on Friday night. I have three photos in the latest show, which is being held at Tavern of Fine Arts in St. Louis. Jim and I arrived around 5:15, needing to get there early as we had another commitment that night. There was already a nice crowd in place, so we grabbed a drink and walked around admiring the photos. Neither of us had been to the Tavern before, and it seems like a fun place to have dinner and then enjoy live music. We definitely want to go back when we have time to do that. The show will be up until the end of November, so perhaps we can make it before then.

Alpha Sigma Phi brothers

From the Tavern we headed back west to Kirkwood to the home of one of Jim's fraternity brothers. Several of the guys and their wives were in town for the holiday weekend, so they invited us to join them for a barbecue on Friday night. I was contributing a dessert, so I had to think of something I could make that would be okay in the trunk of my car for a couple of hours in 90 plus degree heat. I settled on making lemon bars, adding the dusting of powder sugar to the top once we got to our destination. There ended up being six of the fraternity brothers there (three of whom are brothers by blood as well, along with their younger sister who was also a Little Sister in the fraternity just like me and one of the other wives.) The fourteen of us enjoyed reminiscing about our time at Iowa State and some of the shenanigans that went on while we were there. It always amazes me that you can go 30 plus years without seeing classmates, whether college or high school, and still pick right back up where you left off. We had a great time!

On Saturday Jim's mom & dad along with his sister and her husband arrived from Iowa for the weekend to celebrate the occasion of his mom's 85th birthday (a few weeks early, but this is the only weekend that worked for everyone.) My other sister-in-law was also due to arrive from Kansas City, but unfortunately she became ill and was unable to make the drive. After church on Sunday, my sister and her husband and my niece came by to join us for dinner and cake. They all have known Jim's mom for over 30 years, so it was fun to have them celebrate with us. My mother-in-law's favorite cake is angel food, so I found a recipe where you add chopped maraschino cherries to the cake mix prior to baking. I just wanted to make the cake a little special. It rose nicely and looked beautiful when I took it out of the oven and flipped it over to cool while we were at church. When we returned home, it had flattened to half of its size! I have never had an angel food cake do that, so I don't know if the added cherries caused it or what. But of all the times for that to happen...The good news is that the cake was still tasty, and we all had a good laugh about it.

birthday cake

lighting the candles

After the house emptied on Monday morning, I cleaned up the kitchen from breakfast and then did the linens from five beds and all the towels. Labor Day brought much laboring for me. The Wolterman B & B turns over again on Thursday when my cousin and her husband arrive from Cincinnati for a wedding. They have never been here before, so I am eager to show them the house. After I get it all back in order...

Picture Perfect Weekend

After what felt like days of rain, it was nice to get some dry time in St. Louis this weekend. I played a couple hours of pickleball on Friday, and spent Saturday going through family photos for a relative who recently lost her mom. I scanned all of the photos I had of this lovely woman, and emailed them to her daughter. My photographs are the one area of my life in which I was uber-organized. Through the years I have taken all of our photos and neatly labeled and placed them in albums. And then what happened? The experts came out with the recommendation that all photos be removed from their albums and placed in acid-free storage boxes. Seriously? All the procrastinators who tossed their photos in boxes were ahead of me on this one. I have slowly begun to do this, starting with the oldest (and most problematic) albums first. Some of the photos are extremely stuck to the albums. I have purchased a small (and I mean small) stainless steel spatula to try and safely remove the pictures from the pages. The dental floss trick did not work, so this approach has been suggested by photographers. We shall see.

Sunday was so pretty in the morning that I high tailed it to the Missouri Botanical Garden, my happy place. In addition to all the beautiful flowers, the garden is in full swing with its second Chinese Lantern Festival. I learned from the last one in 2012 that it is a good idea to photograph all the lanterns during the day so that you can see what they are made of. When they are lit at night, it is really hard to tell. Afterwards I put the day and nighttime photos of each lantern side by side in a book, and I really like how it turned out. My husband and I are signed up to attend the photographers event at the festival on July 20th. From 7:30-10:30 that night, the attendance will be much more limited than on any other night. Plus we can bring our tripods in, which is not allowed at other times due to them being a tripping hazard in the dark. It should be great, and a number of my Women in Focus photography friends are coming that night as well.

Phoenix Reborn

Porcelain Elephants

Crane Paradise

Dandelions and Pandas

Lantern Way

At 5:30 on Sunday night the opening reception of "Stillness and Light", the second show of the Women in Focus photography group, was held at the art gallery located within the Webster Groves Christian Church. There was a pretty nice turnout, and once again I am in awe of the work that is produced by the women in this group. It is fun to see the diversity of photos that are taken, and to listen to the public's reaction to the shots. Radio63119 attended the event, and I was one of the people interviewed for an upcoming show. I am hoping at some point to be a guest on the station to discuss how to research the history of a home.

my three photos

inside the gallery