From 2005 - Ultralight

This is one of my brother's two ultralights, though he wasn't the pilot at this particular time...

From 2005 - Dragonfly Landing

There were two brothers that always were there at these meets. They brought a couple of ultralights, called dragonflies, used to tow the hang gliders up to about 3000' above ground level. During slow times they took passengers up for rides that cost 30 bucks a pop. (Not in the one you see here, but in a two-seater version)

I decided one day to pay for a ride. It had been a long time since I'd flown anything, so decided to go just for the thrill of being at one with the sky again...and believe me, in these little guys there was nothing, not even a little cabin, between you and the sky.

Almost as soon as we gained a little altitude I remembered why I quit flying as a teenager - it's boring up there! There is almost no sensation of movement since the ground is so far down, especially in the slow-movers such as Cessnas and Dragonflies. So we're up there tooling around a little and I decide to make it interesting by scudding a nearby cumulus cloud. We rose to cloud base level where it got bumpy and interesting for a short while, then it was time to head back down.

The way these brothers flew close to the ground wasn't boring at all. They were excellent pilots, and engaged in a little fun risk-taking on the way down, occasionally chasing buzzards or skimming treetops. It was pure fun, and a joy to see them having such a good time doing something they love...especially if you were along for the ride!

From 2005 - Sunrise Paraglider

Now I will begin posting favorites from 2005, at a rate of two or three per week.

This was taken at a Leakey, Texas hang glider fly-in. I have always loved aviation, and for a couple of years went with my brother to this event.

This is the first picture in which I used Photoshop to paste an object layer. In reality the paraglider was not even there, though the two pictures were snapped at just about the same on a sunrise walk.

From 2004 - Girl in Tube

I initially tried to center this posting, and make it extend all the way across the 700 pixels of the entry limits, but found again that whenever it was resized by editing the html a good bit of the quality was lost. Sure would like to learn how to manipulate the size while retaining the quality of the capture. Guess I would have to do another kind of web page instead of this freebie, but will be happy with what is possible for now.

The series you see here represents not one, but two "Eureka!" moments in Photoshop adjustments. The girl in this tube, taken at the Houston Zoo's prairie dog exhibit, was too dark, so she was selected out, made into a layer of her own, and lightened...the first time I'd done such a thing.

Don't know why, but while there I stared tinkering around with the color adjustment dialogue box. The original background must have been made into a layer and selected at the time, because to my astonishment the tube changed color while the girl remained the same! It was totally an accident - very serendipitous - but once discovered a whole new world was opened. The result is the series above, a printout of which was posted in my cubicle for a long time.

From 2004 - Disney Warriors

Taken at Disney, this was rotated, and the color was saturated a bit, but otherwise is untouched. The location is where they do the Raiders of the Lost Ark thing at MGM (now Hollywood) Studios.

This is the place where we came upon the only real criticism of the Disney experience that could be found. At the commissary, where everybody goes to eat, every single seat was set up to force you to look at a television set, blaring 30-second promotions of ABC's upcoming fall shows. With titles like "Wife Swap", "Desperate Housewives", and the like, I asked myself, "Don't these people know there are little children in this place? Isn't this park designed to attract young children? And now the hungry ones, being a captive audience, are forced to view the sexual innuendo that saturates these promotions!" (Even though Wife Swap is not about sex, the title clearly was designed to attract adult viewers with the innuendo.) Call me a prude, a religious nut, a right-wing conservative, or whatever, but that got me a little aggravated.

Thought about writing a letter to the company, but never got around to it...

From 2004 - Texas Flag

One of my Mexican friends the other day asked why this is called the Lone Star State (using the Spanish word). It was his first visit to the U.S., and his first immersion into the culture of this country, so had lots of questions.

Being from Texas certainly is a source of pride for any responsible citizen, and I felt a twinge of that pride as I answered his questions. This is such a unique state, with such a rich history. San Antonio, the epicenter of much of that history, is where this picture was taken.

From 2004 - Wimberley Outpost

For years this picture was posted in the cubicle at work. It was there in case I wanted to escape the big city for a few moments during the day.

The scene is just outside of Wimberley, Texas, and embodies the rustic perseverance that characterizes the culture in that part of the state.

From 2004 - Longwood Butterfly

Another one taken at Longwood.

From 2004 - Guadalupe Waterfall

The exposure is not the best, but I kept this one as a favorite of 2004 because of the moment. We were on the upper Guadalupe, and I insisted that my brother, Allan, take a picture next to the waterfall. He and his girlfriend paddled over there, but it was very difficult to hold position because of the water pouring in. Nevertheless, I took my time, asking them to move here and there for a better shot. Think I even chuckled inside watching them struggle to maneuver at the beck of my commands.

However, I must have forgotten the surest rule of life, which is "What goes around comes around." It wasn't long at all before that bit of sadistic pleasure at their expense came back around to me in a big, big way.
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We have a nephew named Tony, from Taiwan. Tony didn't have much of a life there, doing nothing but study, work and help around the house. So when he came to the U.S. to visit, I felt it was my duty to teach him to have fun. No better place than my brother Allan's place in Wimberley - Allan is an adventuring risk taker that has a persuasive way of bringing other people into his world.

It was decided after our arrival to go canoeing in the upper Guadalupe. Upriver it had rained heavily the night before, so the water was fast and swollen. After a few hiccups in getting started, we headed off down the river; Allan and his girlfriend led the way with Tony and I following in their wake; Tony was in the front of our canoe generally keeping his paddle out of the water while I did the work from the stern.

The going was fairly smooth, with a few small rapids made a little more interesting by the previous day's weather. Allan would lead the way, acting as our guide in avoiding boulders and the faster portion of the rapids. Pretty soon after taking the picture in today's posting, he shouted a warning back to us that a rapid was ahead that was a little worse...easily a class II with a little extra boost due to the rains. We agreed to stay right behind him on the inside of the bend, as the river at that point took a turn to the left.

Right about that time we heard a fellow on the shore, walking and shouting, "King, King!!" Allan asked, and he told us that he'd lost track of his dog.

In a few moments the rapid was in sight. We heard the roar of the water gradually rise as it sloshed violently around the boulders, especially in the middle of the river and along the outside edge where it moved fastest. I'd determined not to lose Allan, following in his wake as closely as safely possible. Tony was on strict orders to leave his paddle out of the water.

Then, incredibly, we saw a dog in the water - undoubtedly King was trying to fight his way through the current toward his master's voice. He was on the inside where the water was slowest, so made some progress upstream. Allan shouted a warning to avoid the dog because he might try to board.

Sure enough, King headed for Allan's canoe. Allan deftly avoided him with a few paddle strokes and, having been unsuccessful with him, King headed straight for us. I thought, "Oh my gosh, surely he won't try to board our canoe..." Allan's maneuver distracted me, and we were already out of his wake, toward the middle of the river with the ever-faster moving water just as the rapid was beginning.

With the faster water King was losing progress, so he had no choice but to board our canoe. When he got close enough to try I knew it was either him or us, so pushed him away with my paddle. That move caused the back of the canoe to slide sideways, positioning our craft perpendicular to the current while at the same time causing us to swing further to the outside curve of the bend of the river. A double whammy!

By now we were traveling fast, with the swiftest part of the current in a position that made it impossible to maneuver. After the few seconds it took to deal with King, I looked up just in time to see Tony get whacked in the head by a willow branch hanging from the opposite shore (of where we should have been). That's when I got the bright idea to grab one of the branches and hang on for dear life, using my feet on the gunwale to maneuver the front of the canoe in aligning us parallel to the current.

At first it seemed possible that my plan would work, but after an interminable five seconds or so the water proved too strong for my legs, and over we went! The canoe capsized, dumping me, Tony and all of its contents into the water. There was no choice now but to ride it out. Tony could not swim, but was wearing a life jacket and could be seen bobbing through the rapid. I stayed with the overturned canoe and rode it out, dodging rocks and boulders until the worst was over. My first thought was about the camera, my Fujifilm FinePix 3800, which had been hastily packed into its bag, which itself was tied to the gunwale. My heart sank, knowing that my friend was done for, and that it would take some explaining to the wife as to why I now needed to buy another one.

We bobbed along with the current until the rapid spit us out into calmer waters. Tony was about 50 feet ahead of me, just drifting along. I began to shout reassurances to him that everything would be all right, and all he needed to do was move to the shore. After a quarter mile or so he made his way to a clearing and slogged onto the mud. I followed him, and together we hauled the canoe onto the bank, leaving it upside down to drain, but not before untying the camera container. I opened the outer (supossedly waterproof) bag, then the camera bag itself, and found water sloshing around inside on the bottom. The camera would turn on, but the screen was goners. My heart sank again. Just to go through the motions of doing everything I knew was possible, I took the batteries out, opened the door where the chip was plugged in, removed the chip, and left it out to dry.

Right about this time Tony looked at me and said, "Uncle Jim, now I am sure that I had an adventure!" This would have struck me as hilarious were it not for the death of my friend.

An what was Allan doing? He'd stopped ashore midway through the inside bend and laughed at us, but not before jumping in to save King the dog.

We decided to eat lunch there, so ate and rested a bit before re-embarking in calmer waters. I packed the camera back into its case and bag. The rest of the trip was uneventful.

In the car I reopened the camera and left it on the dash to dry as much as possible, with the slim hope that something was salvageable. Guess it worked, because upon arrival at the house my father in law put fresh batteries in and it turned on, snapping pictures that had not deteriorated at all in quality. I didn't find out until much later that the it would no longer focus in video mode, but what a small price to pay. From that moment Fuji won a very loyal customer.

From 2004 - Otter Escape

This one speaks for itself...taken during the sea lion show at Sea World.

From 2004 - Longwood Orchids

Orchids from Longwood...little people, arms outstretched, singing in unison.

From 2004 - Lakeside Villa

This was taken from the Disney ferry that was carrying us to one of its five parks. Virtually untouched, it looks like a panorama but is not...just a portion cropped in from the top and bottom.

Whenever someone asks us advice about how to do Disney, we always recommend staying at one of the park's resorts. Lodging in one of the myriad hotels on the fringes of the property, which are generally cheaper, simply does not compare with the experience and convenience of even the less expensive of Disney's accommodations.

From 2004 - Seagull Sentry

This was the first picture that taught me the advantage of shooting something through a tinted window, which acts as a filter. In post capture I used the white dropper tool in Levels to bring back the color, which retained the filtering effect (as can be seen in the glass blocks) while making the colors more true.

The picture was taken at Moody Gardens in Galveston. They've done a good job of creating this whole new world in a relatively small space. Lots of good photos came from that shoot, including the waterfall picture in the posting of July 9.

From 2004 - Neiko Asleep

Upon seeing Neiko asleep as you see her here, I could not resist taking this picture. The light was a little low, so a tripod was set up on the bed, one leg of which had to be photoshopped out of the lower left corner. This was taken when Neiko was still a kitten.

From 2004 - Cavern Steps

This was taken over in Central Texas; the steps lead down to a cavern of some sort. Really appeals to my taste for rustic, rural settings.