Photography by blsphotography

Troop 163 at Valley Forge

blees — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 14:28:02 +0000

Troop 163 of Shoemakersville went on another excursion recently. Our latest trip took us to Valley Forge National Park in Valley Forge, PA. A short drive from our Berks County home, it is none the less a place where many of us probably have never been before, I know I have never visited.

Valley Forge is the area where the Continental Army camped out over the winter during the Revolutionary War. The encampment began being populated in December of 1777. The first task was to build shelters for the soldiers and a tidy sum was offered to the group that had their shelter done first. Many replicas of the cabins are represented there.

(more…)

Updates to our website

blees — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 15:00:58 +0000

Dispite recently migrading from our old website, I have been working on getting the Photography by Blsphotography blog design updated. Upgrades by WordPress, Gallery and the WPG2 add on have been completed for the website and I have been working on getting the design fixed for both these programs and our photography directory. The integration is going well but it means we are lacking in updates.

I am still out taking photos and have a lot to post in the gallery. This photo of the fire works at FirstEnergy Stadium after a Reading Phillies game in August, is just one of the many I have to post.

Scouting is fun

blees — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 14:15:02 +0000

This Summer, I had the opportunity to once again spend the week with Boy Scout Troop 163 from Shoemakersville, Pa at the Hawk Mountain Scout Reserve in Schuylkill Haven. Our week at camp is the fifth week of the program at the end of July.

The weather can be unpredictable this time of year but one thing you know right off the bat is that it is going to be hot. We did have some days that were very sticky but all in all the week was pretty good weather wise. Two days were absolutely beautiful. The only storm I recall was a fast moving one that passed though Friday in the late afternoon, right when the boy’s parents arrived for the BBQ Chicken dinner and week end campfire.

I love attending the camp with my son and the other boys, it is my vacation away from the fast pace of the work week and I have a whole week to shoot photos while following the Scouts around camp.

One thing I didn’t see this year were the butterflies, which I love photographing. They usually congregate at the plants in front of the administration building but this year they seemed absent.

Enjoy the photos

Fishing at Gring’s Mill

blees — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 19:55:12 +0000

On my way home from work on a beautiful morning, the last day in June, I stopped by Gring’s Mill Recreation Center near Reading, PA to see if I could get some photos. At 9am the park was already filled with people hiking, cycling and like this man, fishing on the Tulpehocken Creek.

The Tulpehocken Creek area is filled with recreational amenities. The Union Canal Bicycle & Walking Trail is a 4 1/2 mile path from Stonecliffe Recreation Area to Reber’s Bridge, near the Blue Marsh Lake, paralles the creek.

A look at war — from the inside … and the outside

blees — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 02:21:39 +0000

Beginning July 8, two compelling exhibitions at the James A. Michener Art Museum visually interpret experiences of the American military in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown is about to offer artistic interpretations of the American military and its Middle East experiences through two individual yet complementary exhibitions.

“Fire and Ice: Marine Corps Combat Art from Afghanistan and Iraq” will feature Marine Warrant Officer Michael Fay’s drawings and watercolors, while “Soldier” will highlight photographer Suzanne Opton’s portraits of military men and women shortly after their return from deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The exhibitions open July 8 and run through Oct. 21.

more at Phillyburbs.com

Mika Nakashima

blees — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 16:08:05 +0000

Exchange student Mika Nakashima’s time in Hamburg, Pennsylvania was short but the gift she left to the town and her classmates will help us to remember her time here for many years to come. The young artist loved the movie ‘The Wizard of Oz’ so she decided to paint a mural depicting the characters of the film in a place where the town could enjoy it when they went to the movies at the Hamburg Strand.

Mika was a student at Hamburg for one year and attended 12th grade with the 2007 graduating class. She recently moved back to her hometown of Tokyo, Japan but she left her beautiful painting for us to remember her by.

Hamburg High School Graduation

blees — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 21:48:01 +0000

This time of year young men and women embark on new adventures as graduating classes all over take part in commencement exercises. In our small neck of the world, the senior class at Hamburg High School’s 2007 graduating class will always be remembered as one that was unfortunately marked by tragedy.

The day before the students were to graduate, two of the seniors were driving home from commencement rehearsal and crashed into a bridge abutment. One of the students was killed instantly in the crash the other was treated at the hospital. An empty chair with a cap and gown draped over it represented the victim, another one represented a boy who passed away during the classes freshman year.

When it came time to award diplomas, cheers went out as the names were read including those of the two missing students. A time of joy and excitement for the future mixed with sorrow.

Good luck to all the graduates and enjoy the photos

Getting Close to the action

blees — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 15:18:21 +0000

On a recent trip to Washington DC I took an interest in a photo hanging in one of the Smithsonian Museums. With the American History Museum closed for renovation, some artifacts were re-located to the Air and Space Museum. There a photo entitled D-Day by Robert Capa hung on the wall. It shows a landing at Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944. We remember that the landings there were rough to say the least. When the gates came down on the landing crafts many of the men were cut down before they got into the water. Capa was where he wanted to be, close to the action. In fact, one famous quote of Capa was “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.”

Capa was a famous War Photographer. His climb to fame grew out of a controversial photograph of a soldier falling to his death after being shot during the Spanish Civil War.

Unfortunately, Capa’s work centered around war and he led a hard life. He died in 1954 at the age of 41. He had many relationships and after the war he became involved with actress Ingrid Bergman. It is said that their relationship was the model for the one of James Stewart and Grace Kelly in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window”.

Belleman’s Church Memorial Day Service

blees — Wed, 30 May 2007 01:02:23 +0000

For many generations Memorial Day has been a day of fun and remembrance at the annual picnic at Belleman’s Church in Mohrsville, PA. The church members take great pride in seeing that the graves of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in armed conflicts, as far back as the revolution, are cared for.

Flags are placed for each of those conflicts or wars, and flowers are placed on the graves of those members killed in action. A flag is also placed for the September 11 victims.

One thing to note about the event is the fact that they almost never cancel it. I have been going with family members for twenty years and I can’t remember a Memorial Day when there wasn’t a service, despite the weather.

Enjoy the photos

Ellis Island Trip

blees — Thu, 24 May 2007 17:51:10 +0000

The day was beautiful and Ellis Island was even better the second time. We had to complete a scavenger hunt which took us throughout the building. Despite complaints from the boys, they learned something about immigration and so did I.

Ellis Island is the main point of the immigration subject but the highpoint is certainly visiting the Statue of Liberty. You have to make reservations to go into the museum now, two days in advance, and they only take groups of 15 in at once.

Enjoy the photos