“Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.” - Thoreau

The solace that one finds when fishing a quiet spot on or near the water cannot be explained in so many words. It is an experience of nature where one finds their self at the top of the food chain getting the full effect of their surroundings. Regardless of the weather conditions, hot, cold, wet, dry, it is all part of the ever changing experience of life in the natural world. Most of us in the modern age are surrounded on a daily basis by the synthetic constructions of others working within buildings or very near them.  Getting out into the world and experiencing nature is like taking a deep breath of fresh air in more ways than one…

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: photo, photography, images, nature, outdoors, fishing, water, river, recreation

This Memorial Day, I tried a couple of barbeque sparerib tips passed on to me. The first tip was to remove the white membrane attached to the bottom side of the spareribs. The second tip was to apply a layer of mustard to the ribs to make the dry rub stick to the meat.  Each time I cook, something changes. I have opted to use some leftover Harry’s Pig Shop Sweet Onion Barbeque sauce with my imported Montana Bear Claw Hot Chipotle sauce and Original Sweet Baby Rays. I let the ribs smoke for about 2 hours and start painting the sides and rotating them on the grill. The other tip that I got wind of was applying apple juice on the ribs as they begin to get done. Let that cook in for a while and then place in foil, apply the apple juice again, close the foil and put back on the grill.  I used the indirect method of grilling. The method that I use is really a hybrid of smoking/grilling. I get the coals white hot while the wood chips soak in water. When the coals are ready, I drain the water off the chips, move the coals to one side, add the chips, replace the grill and put the meat on bottom side down. Depending on the temperature I turn the ribs several times during the time period, in this case about 2 hours. The sauce painting is how I finish them off. That way, the sauce is caramelized on the meat and it is really good.

Technorati Tags: barbeque, grilling, charcoal, spareribs, cooking, outdoors, holiday, recipe, preparation, meat, pork

I had more than a few people ask me about the recipe for my Rosemary, Apple, Garlic Roast Chicken.

It is basic, simple, and easy enough for a guy like me to fix. So here’s my rundown on how I prepared it (now mind you, this is the “man” version, so don’t be too critical):

• INGREDIENTS
• Small, whole frying hen - the bakers are tougher and not as tasty IMHO  (You may have a tribe to feed and in that case get a larger one by all means, if the pot is big enough put two in)
• Fresh rosemary - its not cheap, but it adds immeasurable to the flavor and frangrance (an important part of the whole deal)
• One large apple - I picked a MacIntosh, use whatever apple - they’re all good - I peeled mine, but I don’t think it is necessary - just wash, core, and quarter in that case
• One large garlic clove - or is that bunch?  You know the bulb thing…
• 2 large roasting potatoes - these are the BIGGIES
• A little cooking oil - preferable peanut or canola (use butter if you are French and drink a lot of red wine) I used peanut oil - don’t need much
• Garlic powder, salt, and pepper and whatever you like to sprinkle on Chicken

• PREP WORK
• Preheat oven to 425
• Locate a large roasting pot. We have a large oval cast iron, porcelain coated one. These retain heat very well and cook evenly over the thinner aluminum models. Bottom line: use what you have - it’s not rocket science.
• Wash the chicken well under cold water - just a good habit in my opinion
• Core and cut up the apple in quarters - I peeled mine, this step is up to you
• Peal the garlic cloves - I use a lot - do what you will - this is the most pain in the neck of the process (You don’t necessarily need to peel them - I like to eat them after their cooked)
• Pull out 3 or 4 rosemary branches
• Peel the potatoes unless you like the peels (they have most of the nutrients) and in that case, scrub them
• Slice them in halves, or in my case, they were so big I did one into lengthwise thirds

• DOING THE DEED
• Pour the small amount of oil in the bottom of the roasting pot
• Place the potatoes as a platform for the chicken
• Shake garlic powder, salt and pepper liberally in the chicken cavity, then lightly on the outside
• Drop the peeled garlic into the cavity, followed by the rosemary twigs and then S-T-U-F-F the apple quarters as much as you can. I only got 3 quarters in and had to eat the last one (darn it!)
• Place the chicken on the potato platform and put the remaining potatoes around the edges of the pot
• The oven should be preheated to, oh yeah, 425 degrees (man, that is HOT) - Keep an eye on it…oven temps vary, the size of the chicken varies, depends on the temp of the bird too..you know the deal…
• Put the pot on the rack that should be positioned about 1/3 of the way up (I should have told you that earlier, but hopefully, you are reading this through before trying it
• Cook at this temperature for 30-45 minutes, then turn the heat down to about 375 degrees
• Cook for another 30 minutes or so
• Take the lid off, turn the oven to high broil and watch it brown to your liking - Man, it smells SO GOOD at this stage of the game
• When it is browned to your liking, turn oven back to bake and set to 275 degrees (you should be about 20 minutes out from eating)
• Put the lid back on and place back into the oven.
• By now, you should be salivating as the aroma will seem near heavenly - Oh Yeah!
• Now, just add the veggies - salad, broccoli, asparagus, green beans, or whatever you have on hand that seems good (it’s ALL good, you know)
• ENJOY

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Chattahoochee National Forest in the North GA Mtns

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: fall, colors, autumn, photos, photography, north georgia, mountains, forest, national park, trails, hiking, tour, recreation, chattahoochee, steams, rivers, outdoors

It’s a pretty good clip from Athens, GA to the state of Maine, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.  The lobsters in Maine can’t be matched and the wild blueberry pies are the ultimate.  It’s a 20 hour drive and it can be done in a day and a half. We left Athens at 12 noon, drove to Danville, VA, spent the night and drove the next day to almost Portland, ME. On our return trip,  we left Belfast, ME at 4 a.m. and pulled back into to Danville, VA about 7 p.m. Te next day, we rode the Blue Ridge Parkway for about 25 miles, got onto I-77 and were pulling into our driveway at about 2:30 in the afternoon.  We logged near 2500 miles during the week. Here are a few photos taken during our visit:

 Hurricane Bill was skirting the east coast when we arrived at the Pemaquid Lighthouse.  The surf there was fabulously rough and rowdy. It was hot and humid when we arrived and there were lots of people there to ogle the massive waves that were pounding the rocky shoreline.

 

The next day the seas had all but calmed down with the exception of a few small crashing waves and they had nowhere near the energy of the day before.

 

 

This is a one room schoolhouse (from days gone by) located in Union Maine.  We visited the Union Agricultural Fair and Wild Blueberry Festival there just to get a taste of rural Maine.

 

The lakes in rural Maine are very beautiful. We ran into a fisherman with an Australina accent on the wayside.

You can’t always get the light that you want when taking photos on a roadtrip.  In addition, there is limited access to many of the landmarks. So, you do the best you can with the light that you have.

 

We got up early to get these shots of the Bass Harbor Lighthouse. This west side afforded very limited access this early in the morning. So we ventured to the rocks for some better shots.

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK

 

BAR HARBOR

 

 

 

 

This is the section of shoreline in Acadia National Park where 9 people were swept into the sea by a rogue wave when hurricane Bill passed the east coast. Everyone except a 7 year old girl were rescued.

 

 

 

 

 

The trail to the coastline in the nature preserve near Cutler, Maine

 

 

 

 

… and at the coast after a mile and a half hike, the only thing to see was a very foggy coastline….still gorgeous

West Quoddy Lighthouse, the most eastern point of the U.S. mainland

 

The West Quoddy Lighthouse remains foggy most of the time…

Further up the coast north of Lubec, Maine in New Brunswick, Canada is the East Quoddy Lighthouse which can only be accessed at low tide. We were too  late to go up and down the steep ladders to get a close view of it.

 

 

 

Franklin D. Roosevelt’s birthplace. This is his father’s summer “cottage”. This is also in New Brunswick just a few miles north of Lubec, Maine.

LUBEC, MAINE

 

 

 

 

Rockland Ferry to Vinalhaven Island

The harbor at Rockland, Maine

 

 

Vinalhaven Island, Maine

 

 

 

Quaint Homes on Vinalhaven Island. Clothes drying in the breeze. Electricity is at a premium on the island.

 

Downtown Vinalhaven

 

 

“LOBSTAHS ” Maine’s “cash” crop (besides wild blueberries)

 

 

 

 

 Sailing, sailing

 

 

 

 

Aaaaah, the sounds of the salty molecules formed into a wave created by the moon’s cycles. The seashore is an enigma to the mind and a tranquilizer to the soul.  Some suggest that we yearn for the place from whence we crawled out of eons ago as some sort of amphibian. Whether you subscribe to this thought or not, the sea beckons to all.  The salty aroma of the offshore breezes moving into the senses of the head and the tiny granules of sand moving between the toes is enough to take even the most jaded mental state off into oblvion and replace it with a certain sense of wonder.  The sounds of children laughing, the struts of young people showing off their youth, and the sweetness of stately older people shuffling along the side of the sea bring a sense of belonging to mass that is humanity. To all that experience that narrow strip that separates the land from the ocean, a permanent memory of the time spent there is indelibly marked upon ones mind.  Whether the lodgings are refined and elegant, or merely a weathered cottage in need of paint, the stay at the edge of the ocean seems to bring a certain sense of solace and contentment as the environment there brings everyone to a base state of existence.  People, for the most part, strip down to the bare essentials and become part of the natural world that is the beach.

 

OK, so this doesn’t have much to do with photography or digital imagery, but heh, we all have to eat!  Besides, Memorial Day is right around the corner and that holiday and grilling go hand-in-hand. Grilling is a real man thing and I like it.

Here is my BBQ pork rib routine:

1. First of all you need a charcoal smoker grill. I have a Weber classic. This is a must.
2. Place about 2-4 cups of mesquite wood chips into a container and fill with water covering the chips. I used an empty milk jug that has been cleaned out with a hole on the opposite side from the handle. Other woods chips will do, but mesquite has a unique, distinctive flavor.
3. Put in enough charcoal to make a single layer across the bottom of the grill.
4. Lat an electric starter element on top and pile the surrounding charcoal on top of it.
5. Plug the element in and wait 8-12 minutes.
6. Unplug the element and pull it out from the charcoal mound.
7. Let the element cool on a heat resistant surface before storing.
8. Re-mound the charcoal placing the ones that ae not hot on top of the ignited ones
9. Make sure your bottom vents are fully open
10. Wait until the charcoal is white. The time varies. If it is windy it will happen faster.
11. In the meantime, prepare the meat.
    1. If you have sausage seasoning, sprinkle a thin coating on both sides. Don’t overdo it. Otherwise, sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder, Nature Seasonings, or whatever your favorite seasoning may be (or whatever you have on hand).
    2. Lightly sprinkle cayenne pepper over both sides (more or less to taste). This can be omitted if you don’t want the “heat”.
12. When the charcoal is ready (all white) drain the water from the mesquite wood chips that have been soaking.
13. Spread the charcoal into one even layer
14. Make the top grill ready to put on the grill and quickly spread the wood chips over the top of the coals
15. Put the cooking grill on top and put the slab(s) of ribs, pork chops, pork steaks, or short ribs on and close the lid
16. Leave the vents on top open
17. Let this cook for 15 minutes
18. After 15 mintues, lift the life and very quickly flip the ribs and replace the lid
19. Repeat steps 17 and 18 until the ribs are done
20. Once the ribs are done begin painting them with your favorite sauce. I like to put 3-4 coats on. The wood chips should not flare up at this time and you can safely do the sauce painting with the lid off. If flareups occur, replace the smoker grill lid and close the top vents.

BBQ Sauce

There are literally thousands of types of BBQ sauce out there. All I can do it tell you what I like and that is Sweet Baby Ray’s where “The Sauce is the Boss!”  Here are the flavors offered (and no I have no vested interest, just a love for this sauce!):

• Sweet Baby Ray’s Original
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Hickory & Brown Sugar
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Hot ’N Spicy
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey Chipotle
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Sweet Vidalia Onion

No Sauce? No Sweat!

Here are various (some are obviously optional) ingredients that will make a good sauce. You’ll need to mix them to taste:

• Ketchup or Catsup (whichever you prefer)
• Brown sugar, white sugar, or corn syrup (in that order IMHO)
• Vinegar (use sparingly)
• Soy Sauce
• Lemon, Lime, or Orange Juice (preferable freshly squeezed)
• Mince garlic or garlic powder
• Pepper or cayenne pepper (give zip)
• Coca Cola (even a flat one will work for you)
• Watermelon juice (if it happens to be handy at the time)

Here are some of my thoughts on using the ingredients above.

You can make a “sweet and sour” sauce with the sugars, vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic.  Adding some citrus to this gives it an extra dimension added a little at a time. Adding the ketchup will obviously bring in back into the line of traditional sauce. Then, the soy sauce and even the vinegar become optional.  In a pinch, you could even use a small can of tomato sauce insted of ketchup. Coca-cola, ketchup, cayenne pepper and sugar to taste also make a good sauce.  If you use the sausage rub (which is very good even without any sauce), I suggest that you make (or use) a traditional tomato based BBQ sauce.

By the way, all of this will work with Chicken too!

[tags)bbq, grilling, sauces, cookout, charcoal, cooking, fire, smoker, smoking, pork, chicken, recipes[/tags]

I subscribe to several photography magazines and I look forward to them arriving in my mailbox each and every month.  I started wondering why I liked them so much.  It’s not that I seem to get that much out of them, at least consciously.  Today, I received a link via email to a poll being taken by Digital Photography School and was somewhat surprised by the results so far.  Only 21% took 2 or more magazines per month and 20% took one per month.  I would have expected more out of the photography community.  Of course, at this time, the economy is not conducive to extra expenses.  These magazines are one of the simple pleasure that I really have.  I don’t think that for the enjoyment that I get out of them that the cost is all that high.  I could skip several meals out per year and have the funds to subscribe.  I must also admit that occasionally I head down to Barnes and Noble Booksellers and sit and rifle through several different issues that I don’t subscribe to.

But why do I like them?  They have so many ads in them and some of the articles are not all that interesting.  The camera reviews are only mildly interesting, unless I am in the market, of course.  Then I realized that subconsciously, I have been drilling the tips and techniques into my brain while enjoying the great photos that are displayed in them.  In addition, since digital is now the mainstream, most of them have great post-processing tips.  Every once in a while, though, I read an article that sparks my imagination. I see an image or a technique that really magnetizes me and I want to check it out, expand on it, make it my own personal stretch of the original idea.  I see magazines as a way to stay in touch with the photogrpahic community at large too.  I like reading about true professionals and how they see things. I also like the articles that take photography into the realm of art, into the realm of reporting, into the realm of service to society.  These magazines are a stepping stone that take the creation of images to a higher level.  Photo mags also give an idea of what is happening in the field now.  The leaders in the field are the ones that set the pace and the rest of us follow.  Not everyone can be an NBA star and not all of us can be polished, well known and sought after photographers. However, we can enjoy what we do, make a few extra bucks at it and strive to become better and better as we work the craft. Photography magazines are a bridge between us photo hacks and the more polished pros.

I suppose the main reason that I like photo magazines is because of the great pictures inside.

It’s amazing how one day can make a difference.  My wife Cathy and I photographed a wedding during the day. It was an exciting time as most weddings are.  The ceremony and reception went off without a hitch and I was able to get a lot of nice shots. The most memorable part was the groom’s shower of tears as the bride approached the altar.  This was especially touching to me as he didn’t show a great deal of emotion, at least when I was around him.  The entire wedding party was a loving bunch of people and I never noticed one cross encounter.  When we returned home late in the afternoon, Cathy and I both reviewed the wedding party shots and headed out for supper.

 

When we arrived back home, we got a call from Mary Catherine, our daughter, from Knoxville, asking if we had received the news that a UGA professor had shot 3 people dead. We had no idea that the violence had occurred.  Cathy began to research the web, I turned on the national news on the tube.  Sure enough, the incident happened only miles from where we lived and it was a bit shocking. Cathy began to search for the shooter’s name, she found out the that the killer lived only 11 houses down from us.  As a matter of fact, a SWAT team had visited the neighborhood earlier and the shooter was on the loose. He remains a fugitive as I write this.  The incident made national news.

 This Sunday morning after a great night’s sleep, I ground some coffee beans and brewed a fresh pot of coffee. When it was finished brewing, I poured a cup and let Gory, our dog out into the back yard and I sipped my coffee on the deck.  I soon noticed a woodpecker sticking it’s head out of a hole in a partially dead tree nearby.  It was watching us intently, looking for any possible threat.  I then realized that life goes on no matter what.  The woodpecker sticking its head out of the hole in the tree was not reflecting on how horrible and close to its home the shooting yesterday was, it was only relieved that the dog and I headed back into the house, so that it could continue making its home ready for the young ones that would soon be hatching out into the world.  We humans are almost too complex in some ways and not complex enough in others. As my father once told me, “It will be a wonderful world in the future if we humans don’t kill each other off in the meantime.”  Which is closely followed by what my mother told me, “It’s the little things in life that make it worth living.”

I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without ever having felt sorry for itself.

– D.H. Lawrence

Feed me, pet me, walk me. I don’t care what you do, as long as it is for me. Make me tired so I can go lay down. But until you wear me out, I will irritate you to no end. I will moan and groan and walk around in circles until you obey me. I want you to pay attention to me NOW! I am in your face until you do what I want…