Your Bio

UPDATE May 8, 2013. Thank you for visiting!  I'm Jay S. Mangum from Kingwood, Texas. The equipment that was used after July 2010 is a Canon Rebel T2i, and after April 2011 was a Canon T3i in conjunction with the T2i. Prior to that was a Rebel XTi for the photos taken since Dec 2006. A Minolta Konica DimageZ3 (point and shoot) was used from March 2005 to November 2006 photos, and a twin lens reflex for the old dragster photos.  The telephoto lenses are a Canon 18-200 IS or a Canon 100-400 IS  4.5/5.6.  The Canon 18-55MM kit lens was used for most others. Super wide angles are with a Sigma 10-20 f4.5/5.6 and a Canon 10-22. If you have info on those unidentified subjects, please let me know.  My email is jaymangum73@gmail.com. Many thanks to friends Wayne Wendel, Aubrey Cruse, Ken Coleman, Jimmy Hemphill, Dave Billingsley, Frank Farese, David McDonald, Nancy Fisher and Damien Carey for their fellowship, assistance and ideas. All photo rights reserved.

Galleries

Reddish Egrets, San Luis Pass, June 2013 : In nature photography when you find a cooperative creature you try to take full advantage. I found a cooperative Reddish Egret on June 7, 2013 at the far west end of Galveston Island and shot handheld actively for about two hours non-stop, moving around in shallow salt water to minimize distance and maximize light angles. Here are the results, with a few extra birds and a crab thrown in. Aubrey Cruse III was with me and is shown in a couple of shots. Due to very slippery footing I was constantly looking into the inches-deep shallow water and never saw a shrimp. The Egret was snatching them up like an all-you-can eat buffet. Amazing.

Reddish Egrets, San Luis Pass, June 2013

In nature photography when you find a cooperative creature you try to ...

Updated: Jun 14, 2013 1:07pm PST

Antelope Canyon, Page, Arizona, March 22nd and 23rd, 2013 : PLEASE USE SLIDESHOW TO FULLY APPRECIATE THE DETAIL AND TONES IN THE IMAGES. Disney got trumped. THIS is the most magical place on Earth. Antelope Canyon, just outside Page, Arizona, is one of the most fascinating and photogenic landscapes in the world. These images are from 2 visits in Lower Antelope Canyon and one in Upper Antelope Canyon. You see the varied colors with the naked eye, but the camera picks up a little extra. Photos taken under the brighter light of midday were less dramatic than the morning and evening shots. Color adjustments on the CR2 images were done in Lightroom 4 using the original memory card in camera as a guide. No HDR or image blends. Until you see what the light does here in person, it is just hard to believe. I guess with blue sky, yellow sunlight and magenta rocks, Mother Nature had her 3 primary colors and all else she needed to create a gem.

Antelope Canyon, Page, Arizona, March 22nd and 23rd, 2013

PLEASE USE SLIDESHOW TO FULLY APPRECIATE THE DETAIL AND TONES IN THE I ...

Updated: Jun 06, 2013 11:02am PST

Angel's Landing, Zion, March 24, 2013 : Many thanks to the visionaries who carved Angel's Landing Trail in Zion National Park, rated one of the most beautiful and exhilarating public hikes in America. Due to 6 deaths in the last 10 years, users are warned multiple times of the dangers. The hand chains help greatly, but you still need high traction boots, good balance, calm nerves and a healthy dose of common sense to get up and back safely. There are hand over hand "scramble" areas and steep, narrow paths which have an unprotected 1500 foot vertical plunge only inches away.

Angel's Landing, Zion, March 24, 2013

Many thanks to the visionaries who carved Angel's Landing Trail in Zio ...

Updated: Jun 03, 2013 8:52pm PST

Cars, Machines, Art and Abstracts : Cars, machines, art and abstracts concentrating on transportation.

Cars, Machines, Art and Abstracts

Cars, machines, art and abstracts concentrating on transportation.

Updated: May 24, 2013 11:29am PST

Favorites : Selected favorites from all the Galleries.

Favorites

Selected favorites from all the Galleries.

Updated: Jan 24, 2013 9:33pm PST

Norway-North Cape, Bergen, Geiranger, Tromso, Flam and Stavanger : When you can squeeze a half dozen waterfalls into one photo you are in a pretty special place, and Norway was that place. This gallery is our Princess Cruise in June 2012 and covers all our Norwegian ports of call except the Lofoten Islands and England, which are both in separate galleries. Lots of mountains, deep fjords and remarkable towns. The cruise started and ended in Southhampton, England. Images are a lot sharper and bigger in SLIDESHOW, an option in the upper right of this page that I recommend. The captions say a lot about what you are viewing and will show up in slideshow as well. You can also skip images and control the speed of image changes.

Norway-North Cape, Bergen, Geiranger, Tromso, Flam and Stavanger

When you can squeeze a half dozen waterfalls into one photo you are in ...

Updated: Jan 24, 2013 9:32pm PST

Wings Over Houston Saturday 2012 :

Wings Over Houston Saturday 2012

Updated: Jan 05, 2013 9:23am PST

Wings Over Houston Sunday Airshow 2012 :

Wings Over Houston Sunday Airshow 2012

Updated: Jan 05, 2013 9:22am PST

U.S. Grand Prix 2012, Circuit of the Americas : Try the SLIDESHOW OPTION to see the images larger and much clearer (top right of screen). Formula One came back to U.S. soil in impressive fashion for 2012. The Circuit of the Americas, a world class facility, opened near Austin, Texas in November, and I was the guest of my oldest son Brian and his father-in-law Cliff Herseim to this great show. Many thanks to them for good company and a fine opportunity to take photos at an exclusive event.

U.S. Grand Prix 2012, Circuit of the Americas

Try the SLIDESHOW OPTION to see the images larger and much clearer (to ...

Updated: Nov 20, 2012 11:30pm PST

High Island 2012 : The spring migration season on the Texas Gulf Coast was a downer for birders and photographers alike in 2012. A record drought in Texas took water and food sources away from the birds. Entire localized ecosystems were shut down. Consistent and strong prevailing winds from the south in March and April combined with the drought to push the birds right over the coastline and further inland, away from traditional sighting areas. With one exception, these photos were all taken during several days in a blind at Audobon's Boy Scout Woods Sanctuary on High Island, Texas. Many North American bird enthusiasts would be thrilled with such a gallery of opportunities as those contained herein, but the sightings were very light considering past years on the Upper Texas Coast. Most of these photos were shot with fill-flash assist from the on-camera unit of a Canon T3i with the Canon 100-400 IS Zoom.

High Island 2012

The spring migration season on the Texas Gulf Coast was a downer for b ...

Updated: Nov 11, 2012 9:17pm PST

Southern England and our cruise ship, 2012 : We spent two great days in London and saw a lot, as shown here, after which we headed to Southhampton for our Norway cruise. An interesting fact about that city relates to the Titanic, which sailed from there before sinking. No one got hurt more than Southhampton, which lost 550 residents in the disaster-huge for such a small town. Many of those lost worked for the cruise line-it was something I had never thought about. There is a memorial in Southhampton in their honor. Even today some folks get a little spooked when they leave from the same dock the Titanic sailed from, which is still an active dock.

Southern England and our cruise ship, 2012

We spent two great days in London and saw a lot, as shown here, after ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 5:59pm PST

High Island, Spring 2010 : After 5 active years of basically fruitless Painted Bunting pursuit, it all came together for me on April 26, 2010 at High Island. Twelve continuous rewarding hours in the Boy Scout Woods blind produced most of the images here. It was capped by a great day of fellowship with photographer friends Wayne Wendel and Aubrey Cruse.

High Island, Spring 2010

After 5 active years of basically fruitless Painted Bunting pursuit, i ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:52am PST

Waterfowl, Wading Birds : Primarily Herons, Egrets, Ducks, and other birds that live around water.

Waterfowl, Wading Birds

Primarily Herons, Egrets, Ducks, and other birds that live around wate ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:51am PST

Vintage Dragsters of the '60's : I am Jay S. Mangum from Kingwood Texas, and can be reached at jaymangum73@gmail.com .See the last 3 pages for the newest pictures. These photo originals are large format color slides with more detail if viewed in original size. Please contact me if you would like to use or publish one of these images in the larger format. With help from veteran racers and fans we have made progress on identifications of the first set of photos. Thanks to all! If you have additional information or comments on the old dragsters shown here please email me at jaymangum73@gmail.com. I welcome your comments. All of these photos (except the Miller Lite and Scott Kalitta pix using a modern SLR) were taken by me with large format cameras, a Rolleiflex twin lens or a Yashica Mat 124 twin lens reflex wide angle set up. Back then you could walk right up to the guardrail and walk down track taking pictures only a few feet from the cars going by. With no Press Pass I could get a blast of smoke and fumes in the face from a nitro-powered fuel dragster as it went by under full throttle 6 to 8 feet from me. In the very early sixties many of the National Championship contenders towed their prized machines on open, flat trailers or simple flat bed trucks, exposed to the rain and wind, with only the motor covered, and often with little or no pit crew. They would occasionally enlist race fans to help with any chore that took more than two hands. It was easy to be a "crewmember for the day" back then.

Vintage Dragsters of the '60's

I am Jay S. Mangum from Kingwood Texas, and can be reached at jaymangu ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:45am PST

Brazos Bend State Park, May 27, 2009 :

Brazos Bend State Park, May 27, 2009

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:40am PST

High Island & Quintana, Tx., April 2009 : In the spring, bird watchers and photographers descend on High Island, Texas (on the upper Gulf coast) to see a wide variety of colorful migrating birds under ideal conditions. On their approach to Texas after crossing the Gulf on an exhausting non-stop trip, many birds first notice tiny High Island, which is elevated by a natural salt dome underneath. They gather in amazing quantities during April and May for rest and food. Normally cautious species are more easily approached at this time, as they too exhausted to be on full alert while gorging themselves on berries, bottlebrush and other available food sources. Texas is a funneling point on the massive North American migration corridor where many millions of birds annually return to the East and Midwest, including Canada. Birds that do not cross the water, but follow the coastline, stop here as well. At the same time all this is going on, a nearby rookery is in full swing containing dozens of Blue and Green Herons, Snowy and Great Egrets and Roseate Spoonbills, adding to the viewing pleasure.

High Island & Quintana, Tx., April 2009

In the spring, bird watchers and photographers descend on High Island, ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:39am PST

Alaska late Aug.2008, Mangum's : The scenery was amazing. Continuous cloud cover (we never saw the sun) and rain for the entire trip kept our cameras covered and hidden often. Lens fogging and cleaning was a constant problem. Much of the Inside Passage coast is a Northern Rain Forest. Some areas get over 200 inches of rain annually. They got their share while we visited, too.

Alaska late Aug.2008, Mangum's

The scenery was amazing. Continuous cloud cover (we never saw the sun) ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:32am PST

California Condors : The spectacular California Condor, a very rare and highly endangered species adds to it own drama by choosing the awe-inspiring Big Sur Coastline as a hangout. One of the my greatest experiences with nature was a California Condor making a very low, deliberate pass directly at me at eye level, then going straight over my head, very close. His approach started 100 yards or so away, wings locked in glide, moving directly toward my head, staring me down. I did not know what he had in mind! A few yards away, he slowly started pulling up. Over the noise of the ocean breakers below I could easily hear the whistle of the wind through the 22 pound bird's giant wings as it passed over me. It was not more than 10 feet over my head. Its huge shadow on the ground was impressive and somewhat menacing. Wingspan is 9 to 10 feet. Most likely it was just curious (a trait they have that can work against them), because I had stood there and watched it and a couple of other Condors for a long time before this happened. Less than 150 California Condors are flying free- mostly in the mountains and coastline around Big Sur, The Grand Canyon, Pinnacles National Monument, Zion, and a handful in Mexico. I have had the thrill of photographing many of these free flyers-22 of them close enough to read their wing tag serial numbers. Their steady glide is rock solid and majestic, with very long intervals between wing beats. The Ventana Wildlife Society (and others) work hard to keep these birds healthy and safe. The bird's locations are electronically monitored daily.  If one appears to be stationary, even over a short period of time, a search rescue is initiated to check on it. Because each Condor's transmitter sends a unique signal with a dimensional characteristic, researchers miles away can I.D a specific bird and, with a twist of the receiver, tell if the bird is on the wing or perched! UPDATE: The Ventana Wildlife Society facilites were devastated by the massive 2008 wildfires, and your donations for the rebuild are badly needed to continue the bird's recovery process from near extinction. (Google "Ventana Wildlife Society").

California Condors

The spectacular California Condor, a very rare and highly endangered s ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:29am PST

Sunny Alaska July 2009 : NEW PHOTOS 8-2-09, now all in proper sequence of the trip.. We made up in sunshine in '09 from last year's clouds/rain. We had full sun 8 of the 9 days in Alaska, and the locals were constantly reminding us of our good fortune. A lot of these photos were made from moving vehicles where control over composition was limited, but the scenery and lighting were both good enough most of the time to make up for the other missed opportunities. The captions and facts come from info given directly to us by guides, personal observations, or from published sources. The ship was luxurious, as the photos on the last page will attest.

Sunny Alaska July 2009

NEW PHOTOS 8-2-09, now all in proper sequence of the trip.. We made up ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:21am PST

Bodie Calif. Ghost Town and Twin Lakes Cal. : Located in the barren hills of eastern California a few miles north of Mono Lake, Bodie is regarded as the best preserved ghost town in the U.S. Gold lured around 10,000 crusty souls here in the late 1880's. Bodie developed a nasty reputation that was well founded. Killings were an almost daily occurrence. In June of 1932, long after Bodie's heyday, a small boy playing with matches set a blaze that destroyed 90% of the town. Fire fighting water pipes from the lake were clogged with mud and debris, contributing to the disaster. Bodie was functionally abandoned afterward, leaving a treasure of relics behind. Fortunately, the mining company that owned the land did a decent job of keeping out looters. Bodie was made into a California State Park in 1962 and is maintained in a state of "arrested decay" with about 5% of the original buildings left standing today. Preservation efforts include screening building windows, replacing glass in buildings containing valuable contents and antiques, and repairing roofs where practical to keep decay to a minimum. It is a paradise for photographers, antique buffs and historians. Security after hours is very tight. These photos are all big files, so feel free to put the cursor on them and select the original file size for better detail.

Bodie Calif. Ghost Town and Twin Lakes Cal.

Located in the barren hills of eastern California a few miles north of ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:08am PST

Other Birds : All other birds incl. smaller birds, Birds of Prey, Hummingbirds, etc. The first page or so consists of birds owned or cared for by Houston Area Falconry and Hawking enthusiasts. Seeing these regal wonders of nature from several feet away was thrilling.

Other Birds

All other birds incl. smaller birds, Birds of Prey, Hummingbirds, etc. ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 10:05am PST

Structures, Nightscapes, Landmarks & Fireworks : Time exposures, Disney sites, cityscapes and old wooden landmarks.

Structures, Nightscapes, Landmarks & Fireworks

Time exposures, Disney sites, cityscapes and old wooden landmarks.

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:58am PST

nature and misc :

nature and misc

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:47am PST

Drag Racing Texas State Championships 2011, nostalgia dragsters : The Texas State Championships race, run by the Texas Timing Association was conducted in San Antonio, Texas on Oct 22,2011. Special thanks go to Ed Miller for putting together a great show and to press veteran Forrest Bond for his support during the event. The race had a strong emphasis on nostalgia cars with a salute to the golden era of drag racing. The only stock bodied cars there were far from stock and had to be original, historical body styles. No rear engine dragsters. A number of restored, original historical dragsters from the '60's were present. While they were too valuable and rare to race, those old fuel cars fired up their engines simultaneously in two "cacklefests" of noise. More modern fuel altereds vied for the state title and some are pictured in this gallery. Former National Champion and Hall of Fame drag racing legend Bobby Langley had ironically died the night before, and two of the cars he raced "back in the day" were represented and received special recognition.

Drag Racing Texas State Championships 2011, nostalgia dragsters

The Texas State Championships race, run by the Texas Timing Associatio ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:41am PST

Rome, Italy 2010 : Here are photos of Rome only, but other galleries cover the rest of our first European adventure to Florence, Venice, Nice (France) and Paris. There is a lot of impressive detail in the ceiling artwork of the Vatican, so be sure to move your cursor to the right side of the large photo and select "original" to appreciate them fully.This gallery focuses on structures because that is a lot of the preserved history of Rome. None of the indoor photos were taken using a tripod-they are not allowed. I used a small bean bag and held it to a pew, rope stanchion or wall, and many shots were totally free-hand held such as all of those inside St. Peter's Basilica. This was a walking tour of ancient Rome with an ambitious schedule. There was often no time to brace the camera against any object, so I took multiple shots in succession to try and get a clear one. (Placing the shutter on two second delay and holding your breath helps steady the camera.) Lighting was often quite dim, and some of the totally hand held exposures were 1/5 second in duration at ISO 400. No Rome churches were on the Globus tour schedule except St. Peter's Basilica. The other church photos, and all of the night exposures, were done on side journeys my wife and I conducted by ourselves based on prior research, or were pointed out in passing by our tour guide who thoughtfully catered to my interest in the Church's interiors.

Rome, Italy 2010

Here are photos of Rome only, but other galleries cover the rest of ou ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:33am PST

Other Wildlife And Flowers : Dragonfiles, butterflies, wild flowers, reptiles.

Other Wildlife And Flowers

Dragonfiles, butterflies, wild flowers, reptiles.

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:25am PST

Venice and Assisi, Italy August 2010 : A huge city resisting the relentless sea and a Medieval city on a hilltop kept my camera smoking.

Venice and Assisi, Italy August 2010

A huge city resisting the relentless sea and a Medieval city on a hill ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:18am PST

Florence, Italy- August 2010 : A city of amazing, incredible architecture, art and history.

Florence, Italy- August 2010

A city of amazing, incredible architecture, art and history.

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:09am PST

Pisa, Italy and Nice France : Also includes the Medieval fortress city of St. Paul de Vence, Classic Churches

Pisa, Italy and Nice France

Also includes the Medieval fortress city of St. Paul de Vence, Classic ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 9:01am PST

Paris, France, August 2010 : These are a sample of about 2000 photos I took in Paris. We only scratched the surface of this beautiful city. All of these photos are large and can be seen in full detail by placing your cursor on the photo and selecting the "original" option on the right edge of the picture.

Paris, France, August 2010

These are a sample of about 2000 photos I took in Paris. We only scra ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 8:56am PST

Cape Cod,Boston,Mystic Port : After a pleasant half day in Plymouth, a tropical storm crashed in and hampered our efforts to see some things in the area. We still got a lot done, though. The day we spent on Cape Cod had the nastiest weather. It never cleared up for very long during our first day, which was punctuated by an umbrella-ripping horizontal rain at times. This is a great place to visit, however! Mystic Seaport, Connecticut was a step back in time- a fascinating place that deserved more time than we had to give.

Cape Cod,Boston,Mystic Port

After a pleasant half day in Plymouth, a tropical storm crashed in and ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 8:47am PST

Austria, 2011 : Some of the original church photos in this collection are large, which was necessary to pick up the amazing detail. Select "slideshow" at the top right, which shows much better clarity than clicking on the thumbnails. All of these Vienna church photos were taken on a 4 hour whirlwind, self-guided tour on May 26, 2011. Many central Europe churches have limited public access, keep odd hours, and are closed for big blocks of time during the day-all of which must be planned around.

Austria, 2011

Some of the original church photos in this collection are large, which ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 7:47am PST

Covered Bridges, New England : Fall colors plus charming structures in Vermont and New Hampshire made for two great days of photography. New Hampshire was sunshine filled, while continuous rain marked the following day in Vermont. I had never set foot in either state, so I searched images online for the more picturesque sites. GPS addresses were loaded up in order of visitation for time management. Building and confirming that data took some time, but saved a lot of time when it counted. There were three occasions when GPS took me down a one-lane dirt road with no posted name, nowhere on my paper map, and not the road I had expected to use. Traveling alone, I trusted the electronics to guide me and it always worked. New England roads are poorly identified, and GPS really helped, as I only had those two days to work with. All meals were after sunset-a notable sacrifice for a guy who loves breakfast and lunch! (Crackers and Twinkies at 60MPH don't count, do they?) Very mild HDR editing pulled out shadow detail while maintaining color integrity. Most modern road signs were removed in editing to capture the vintage look these bridges had in days passed. All rights are reserved for these images.

Covered Bridges, New England

Fall colors plus charming structures in Vermont and New Hampshire made ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 7:22am PST

WWII Aircraft on Final Approach-Wings Over Houston : As the only son of a career aircraft designer and flight test engineer, one of my hobbies has been learning about WWII aircraft. I was excited about finally going to the Warbird/airshow at Ellington Field October 15, 2011. (Schedule conflicts in the past had kept me away.) Aubrey Cruse and I were near the north end of the runway on a man-made hill, directly under the aircraft as they made runway passes and landed. Lots of fun. These photos are large, so drag the cursor to right edge of the feature photo and select "original" to see more detail. Use the slideshow feature to see clearer and larger images. The info on each picture comes from years of mental note taking and was verifed or enhanced with internet info. Thanks for visiting!

WWII Aircraft on Final Approach-Wings Over Houston

As the only son of a career aircraft designer and flight test engineer ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 7:13am PST

Germany 2011 : This was a Globus bus tour of Central Europe in late May and early June 2011. Good weather greeted us as we explored parts of central Germany, Bavaria, & the Black Forest at the front and back of a 13 day trip. Larger versions of these images can be seen by moving cursor to the feature photo and clicking on "original" or a larger size image.

Germany 2011

This was a Globus bus tour of Central Europe in late May and early Jun ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 7:10am PST

Dolomite Mountains, Tyrolia and Innsbruck, Austria : Day 6 of a 13-day run through Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Austria. All of these photos were taken on May 28, 2011. Except for the photos of downtown Innsbruck and Cortina (Italy) plus several lakeside photos at Misurina, all of the other pics were taken through the bus windshield or a side window while in motion. On the night of May 27 we slept in the southern Austrian lowlands village of Villach where it rained most of the night. I feared the highly anticipated next day in the Dolomites would be ruined by rain. Little did I know the storm also brought significant snow to the mountains. The clouds broke at mid-morning to reveal a fresh white dusting on the high peaks which greatly enhanced an already dreamy landscape. My gratitude goes to Globus Tours and our Italian driver Sabino for spotless cleaning of the bus windows every night, making these shots possible. Most photos were taken with a Canon 18-200 zoom using shutter priority at 1/500 or 1/250 of a second, and care was taken to avoid fast moving foreground objects. Bus seats were assigned and rotated, so composing to eliminate window reflections from inside the bus was an ever present challenge.

Dolomite Mountains, Tyrolia and Innsbruck, Austria

Day 6 of a 13-day run through Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Austria. ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 7:07am PST

Texas Birds 2011 : Use the slideshow mode to view the photos. They show up much clearer with far better detail. Unless identified otherwise, most of these photos were taken at Boy Scout Woods blind and drip in High Island, Texas in April 2011. High Island is a major migration corridor in the spring for birds moving into North America from Mexico and South America. Tired from a non-stop flight over the Gulf of Mexico, they are anxious to find rest and food. High Island rises a few meters above the flat beach as a result of being over a natural salt dome. The birds see it from way off and gravitate in huge numbers. Over time, bird lovers have groomed the island's plants and landscapes as a purposeful haven for the weary travellers. This gallery has more repeat species than I normally post, but I wanted to show color variants of male, female, immatures and effects of water and flash on the feathers. I had the good fortune of having captured some of that. Conditions on two of the days bordered on a mild fallout, which helped make it a great season!

Texas Birds 2011

Use the slideshow mode to view the photos. They show up much clearer w ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 6:57am PST

Switzerland 2011, Panoramas : Our visit to Switzerland in early June 2011. These panoramas on page 1 are stitched composites of large photos and, at full size to show all the detail, they may be several times the width of your monitor. They are best viewed by moving the cursor to the larger image at right, selecting the "O" or "original" image size and moving the slide bars around. For best overall viewing use the "slideshow" option at top right-the pictures are much sharper that way. Wikipedia and other reliable sources provided the caption facts. I am sure our great guide Werner told us a lot, but when I am making rapid photo decisions not much else gets thru to me! Enjoy the trip.

Switzerland 2011, Panoramas

Our visit to Switzerland in early June 2011. These panoramas on page 1 ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 6:41am PST

Country Scenes and Courthouses : My friend Wayne Wendel has inspired me to open this gallery after running with him on his quest for Texas Courthouse photos. These are random images captured along the roads of Texas and other states including the Alabama coast and Mississippi.

Country Scenes and Courthouses

My friend Wayne Wendel has inspired me to open this gallery after runn ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 6:35am PST

Birds 2012 :

Birds 2012

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 6:33am PST

Lofoten Islands, Norway, June 2012 : In a land of clouds and rain, great weather graced us every day. These images were all taken on June 26th, 2012 in the Lofoten Islands of Norway. Included was a day-long bus excursion, part of a 12 day Princess Cruise out of Southampton, England. Most photos were taken at speed from inside the bus through the side window. I built a special shield on my camera to block reflections which made this gallery possible.

Lofoten Islands, Norway, June 2012

In a land of clouds and rain, great weather graced us every day. These ...

Updated: Aug 22, 2012 6:24am PST

Texas Nitro Championships : Nitro was the word May 5, 2012 at San Antonio Raceway. Vintage dragsters and more modern nitro race cars in that same spirit were the stars of the one day event.

Texas Nitro Championships

Nitro was the word May 5, 2012 at San Antonio Raceway. Vintage dragste ...

Updated: Jun 14, 2012 12:20pm PST

Wood Ducks : Cooperative Wood Ducks in morning sun light. Taken Oct 15, 2011 at Hermann Park, Houston, Tx.

Wood Ducks

Cooperative Wood Ducks in morning sun light. Taken Oct 15, 2011 at Her ...

Updated: Feb 12, 2012 8:49pm PST

Victorian Homes-Martha's Vineyard : If you love "gingerbread" houses, Martha's Vineyard is your candy store. There are hundreds there-this gallery is only a sampling. The highest concentration is in the Camp Meeting Association- a rather disconnected name for the area where these houses are shoulder to shoulder for block after block. Take extra memory cards for your camera if you want to capture the magic of this community. As you will see, retail and residential structures alike promote the charm of this archectural style.

Victorian Homes-Martha's Vineyard

If you love "gingerbread" houses, Martha's Vineyard is your candy stor ...

Updated: Nov 04, 2010 11:13am PST

Yosemite and California, February 2010 : With each February trip to Yosemite I discover more of Yosemite's winter glory. It is now my favorite stop for winter as well as spring photography. Regardless of the time of year, a very wide angle lens is needed to capture the tall mountain scenes and the Merced River at the same time. The Merced runs so close to the peaks such as El Capitan that even 10MM ( APS-C format) is not wide enough to get the reflection and the mountain in one landscape format shot without panorama stitching. Even during warm spells, temperatures are below freezing in the morning, so dress warm for the sunrise opportunities. On a cloudy day or in the shadows anytime, shoot RAW or bring a gray card to set custom white balance-there is a strong blue shift in those non-sunlit snow scenes.

Yosemite and California, February 2010

With each February trip to Yosemite I discover more of Yosemite's wint ...

Updated: Jun 19, 2010 3:34pm PST

American Landscapes : Mountains, Waterfalls, Beaches, Sunsets,etc.

American Landscapes

Mountains, Waterfalls, Beaches, Sunsets,etc.

Updated: Mar 02, 2010 4:29pm PST

My Smug Mug : Chasing West Texas birds at Choke Canyon, Texas with Wayne Wendel, Spring of 2008

My Smug Mug

Chasing West Texas birds at Choke Canyon, Texas with Wayne Wendel, Spr ...

Updated: May 25, 2008 6:03pm PST