Getting Its Dew

Hosta Leaf, Old Farm House Garden, Lewisburg, Ohio  © Doug Hickok


By being planted next to a pond, in a humid climate, this green hosta is getting its due... by accumulating dew overnight, it absorbs the morning moisture through its large leaves, thus satisfying its inveterate thirst for water.

Due to the deep grooves running the length of the leaves, moisture is duly channeled and gathered for optimum consumption.

Contemplation

Ferns and Bench, Thuya Gardens, Mount Desert Island, Maine  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


This solitary bench placed next to a lush growth of ferns seems the perfect spot for quiet contemplation... maybe on this week's celebration of green and the first week of spring.

Something else for you to contemplate is the photography link below...

When walking along the street, have you ever had the sudden urge to bust a ballet move, perhaps leaping into the air and performing a grand jete´ ? Then you will appreciate this set of intriguing images.

Travel Companion

Bear Photog, at a rest stop, somewhere in Kentucky  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


This little bear with a camera, my protege, traveled with us last summer on several of our road trips. He kept asking me to take his picture. So I obliged, and made this quick portrait of him while he posed on the dashboard.

Mint Chocolate Chip?

Quoins, Stucco and Shutter, Broad Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


This visual snippet of the corner of a 19th century commercial building on Broad Street shows a few architectural elements typically found in Charleston. Many structures are constructed of locally made brick, often in a Flemish bond pattern, smoothed over with stucco.

In this image, stucco quoins, made to look like quarried stones,  and a stucco wall, combine with a wooden shutter and an iron clasp to form a vignette reminiscent of the color of mint juleps or mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Out Late

Marquee Lights, Riviera Theater, King Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


At the end of the day, colorful lights on the Riviera Theater glow in the blue of twilight. Although you will not find any vampires or werewolves in this twilight, you will find me. Over the next several weeks, I will be up early and out late photographing (or in front of the computer processing images) on assignment for the Charleston Visitor's Bureau. They want to replenish and update their image library, so I will be out hunting new material for them.

I apologize for my sporadic or delinquent blogging. I will try to catch up when I can. But don't go away. I will keep on posting new pictures for you to enjoy each day.

Thank you for your patience!

Old Terminal

Old Port Passenger Terminal, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


This view of the old passenger terminal at the port shows rusty metal siding that has weathered over the years. Below the pedestrian catwalk is the grass of the salt marsh in summer green. Due to the booming cruise ship business in Charleston, this building will come down when the new cruise ship passenger terminal begins construction.

 

Schoodic

Lobster Boats, near Prospect Harbor, Schoodic Peninsula, Maine  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


Lobster boats repose
beneath a blue Maine sky,
 after a long day of toil,
safely harbored till dawn
 calls them to sea
again.

Thus begins a new week,
 a new color theme
for you and I.

 

Sanctuary

Sanctuary Sign, Angel Oak, John's Island, SC  © Doug Hickok


We end this yellow week with wild birds gathering on a sign. After the wild week we've had, it's nice to have the sanctuary of the weekend ahead of us... maybe we need a "Hickok Sanctuary" sign in front of our home.

Tubing

Rows of River Tubes, Whitewater River, near Harrison, Ohio  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


Have you ever been tubing? When it is summer time, and the living is easy, and the fish are jumping, and the cotton is high, somewhere there is a quiet river for your tubing pleasure. Jump in a tube, guide it carefully into the river, and float on the cool, soothing waters, move lazily with the calming currents, as though you had not a worry in the world. It is the perfect way to cool off on a sunny summer day.

If you don't have a lazy river near you (or if it's still too darn cold) here are a few photography links to explore indoors.

Odd and quirky sums up these images from Poland.

See the amazing undersea work of Wayne Levin, especially his fish schools series.

Finally, we present the incredible minimalist images of Matthias Heiderich.

Memories of Summers

Castle Hill, Budapest, Hungary  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view.)


This week I have presented warm pictures for your enjoyment, mostly from summers past. This picture I remember well, because I made it in Budapest on one of the hottest days of that year. The hot sun heats up the warm colors on the facade of this historic house on Castle Hill... lots of yellow and orange, with a little splash of green and blue.

One day soon, summer will come again.

Glimpse

Carriage Horses, Old Town, Krakow, Poland  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film)


While walking around the old city of Krakow one summer day, camera in hand, I decided to explore an open door that led to a long hallway. Finding a dead end there, I turned around toward the street, attracted by the sound of clip-clopping hooves. As I looked-up, I happened to glimpse a tandem of horses pulling a carriage. I made this quick image through the door just as the horse closest to me stepped forward.

A Tale of Knights Turning Tail

Yellow Picnic Table, Folly Beach, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)



There was a time, long ago,
 when knights were brave and chivalrous.
 But the knights I tell a tale of were not.
 When trouble called, they were no where to be found.
 When damsels were distressed, they ran away.
 When jousting tournaments came to town,
they claimed a prior commitment.
 When lords called upon them for support in battle,
they hummed loudly and put their fingers in their ears.
 When a quest was required, they sent their squires.
 These my friends were The Knights of the Yellow Round Table.

Designer Trappings

Lobster Traps, Schoodic Peninsula, Maine  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)

March 12, 2012

Dear lobsters,

Do not be tempted by these lovely designer colors.

You may think that getting away from the mirky sea bottom and rising to the heights above the sea is progress... success.  You may have even heard of a process that will turn your shell from dreary and dull to a stunning shade of red and of bathing in fragrant  liquids.  DO NOT BE FOOLED!  Trust me... There's no place like home!

Sincerely,

Becky Hickok

Interior Designer

Hue & Eye Photography & Design

cc Dorothy and Toto too

A Tarn Yarn

Goldenrod Flowers, The Tarn, Acadia National Park, Maine  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)



At The Tarn we witnessed goldenrod swaying, 
two loons yodeling, 
three beavers drumming, 
four chipmunks chuckling, 
five trout clapping, 
and a moose dancing in a birch grove, 
all in a joyful greeting to the early morning light
 of an Acadian summer day.

A Time for Orange to End

Detail of a Kayak, Bohicket Marina, John's Island, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


To end our color theme week like clockwork, 
orange dominates the entire composition,
leaving no room for other colors.

We have had a red week, then an orange. 
With tomorrow we begin a new week,
and a new hue,
for your eye.

Linked

Post and Chain, near Piazza Navona, Rome, Italy  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view.)


Each moment in time is linked,
 in directions both past and present,
 like a chain.
Yet, where the links take us,
 is a mystery.

Except for today.
 Today, I offer links,
that contain no mysteries...
or do they?

Click this link to see Normandy in ghostly monochrome.

This link takes you to the impeccable Rodney Smith.

And the final link is Watanabe's Kabuki.

Buoys in the Hood

Orange Buoys in a Window, Bass Harbor, Maine  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


A row of orange buoys hangin' out in a lobster shack window in the neighborhood of Bass Harbor, Maine.

Strolling

Green Railing, Market Hall, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


Strolling scrolls of green ironwork adorn the steps leading to the entrance of Market Hall.

Seperation

Palmetto Tree and Shutter, Aiken-Rhett House, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


From this vertiginous point of view, a palmetto tree and its doppelganger shadow are cleaved in two by a roof's razor edge.

Safe Harbor

Shrimp Boats at Sunset, Shem Creek, Mount Pleasant, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


A row of shrimp boats anchor safely along Shem Creek, as the setting sun casts its reflection in a cabin window. As in yesterday's post, the dominant color today is blue, although a complementary spot of orange adds a defining accent.

A New Week Means...

Display at an Open Bar, Folly Beach, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


... a new color theme.
If you wish to speculate which color it is, I will gladly help by giving you a hint. In China and Japan, it is the color most associated with love and happiness.


May your week be filled with love and happiness.

Exception?

Stacked Canoes near Little Miami River, Harrison, Ohio  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


This black canoe is the only one in a stack of red ones. It is the oddity, the rara avis... which begs the question... does the exception prove or disprove the rule? This is a question that dates back to the Roman orator Cicero, from a rhetorical defense of his client. For example, would it be truthful to say that all of Doug's posts this week have the color red, therefore, red is always in his posts? Or, is it ordinary for Doug's posts not to have red, and this week is the exception that proves it.

More likely this is all just idiomatic gobbledegook.

Metal Mouth

Old Red Truck, Danny's Classic Cars, Elko, South Carolina  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


I had braces... both of my kids had braces... if only our "grills" looked this cool!

Keeping-up with a new tradition begun here at Doug's Photo Blog, I will end today's post with a photography link for your weekend enjoyment...


Great images are often a matter of being in the right place, at the right time and/or having a creative mind.

Out Looking...

Entry to the American Theatre, King Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


The voice in his head told him, "You never know what you might see when you are out looking". So he kept his eyes open and alert... all four of them. Little did he suspect that, when walking past this old movie theater, he would suddenly be enchanted by this wonderful collection of shapes, lines and warm colors. Doug could not resist the urge to take a picture...
 so he did.
And, he did all of that (dramatic pause),
 without tripping or stumbling.

Well, that was a really exciting story.

Symbiosis

Rope and Shrimp Boat Hull, Shem Creek, Mt. Pleasant, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view.)


The word for the day is symbiosis. It is a noun meaning "any interdependent or mutually beneficial relationship." The word dates from 1877 as a biological term, and refers to a mutually beneficial association of two different organisms.

In this photo I would like to think that the colors red and green are visually symbiotic, and the boat and rope are just as symbiotic.

In my experience, chocolate and coffee (especially chocolate covered espresso beans) going into my face, also exhibit traits of symbiosis... maybe... I hope the coffee and chocolate benefit...  somehow...

I Wandered...

Main Square, Old Town, Krakow, Poland  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)


... lonely as a cloud,
That floats on high o'er Krakow square,
When all at once I saw a truck,
a beacon, of bright red paint;
Beside the umbrellas, beneath the trees,
flashing and gleaming in the summer heat.

And even though this poem doesn't rhyme,
I don't mind,
'cause I made a picture,
Worth more than words.

Misty Monday - Low Tide

Steps to East Quoddy Head Lighthouse, Campobello Island, New Brunswick  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


The only way to visit the lighthouse is at low tide (you can see how high the water reaches by noticing the marine vegetation, the rust on the stairs & railings, and dark stains on the rocks). On most days, here at the Bay of Fundy, tides will vary about 
30 to 40 feet from low mark to high. Wading or swimming are extremely dangerous due to swift currents and cold water temperatures. Woe to those who get stranded on the island when the tide rushes in. They will have to wait about 8 hours for the next chance to escape.

Saint Philip & the Spider

Spider Fountain, Waterfront Park, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


Backlit by late afternoon sunlight, the Spider Fountain at Waterfront Park glistens like a gossamer web against a Charleston skyline. Seen in the distance is Saint Philip's steeple standing tall above the French Quarter.

Bare for Now

Bare Dogwood Tree and Fence Rail, Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


But soon there will be white flowers...
and green leaves!

Residua of a Past Age

Twin Bollards, Church Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film)


If I can beg your patience for one last image from the Hank's Seafood Cookbook... this one shows two stone bollards, the remnants of a place along Church Street where boats used to be moored. However, if you walk past here now, you will notice something missing... the water. The tidal creek that once bordered this house was filled-in during the late 18th century, so that habitable land could be expanded beyond the bounds of the old city walls. Today the surrounding neighborhood has many Revolutionary and antebellum era houses.

I will leave you a few photography links for your weekend perusal...

 Have you ever wanted to run away to join the circus?

This Vermont artist, now living in California, pursued photography as ritual and story.

Lastly, see extraordinary color abstracts by Pepe Boulette.

Pirates and Cookbooks

Ornate Gate to Pirate Alley, French Quarter, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view.)


Another picture from the Hank's Seafood cookbook? Yes, you guessed it. But what, might you ask, does a cookbook have to do with pirates? Nothing really. This image just happens to portray the gate to Pirate Alley in the French Quarter, which hints at Charleston's historic past (plus it makes an interesting topic of discussion for this post).

Pirate Alley is adjacent to the Pirate House, a purported hangout for buccaneers in the early 1700's. Although there once were pirates in colonial Charleston, they are now safely tucked away in history books, and the only ones likely to be seen today are in costume, leading walking tours through the city.

Bridge Wednesday - Twilight Glow

Ravenel Bridge at Night, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)


Aglow in the twilight, the Ravenel Bridge displays its symmetrical form while reflecting its illuminated towers in the waters of Charleston Harbor. This is another one of the images from Hank's Seafood cookbook.

Courtyard Garden

Fountain in a Small Garden, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)


Another picture from Hank's Seafood cookbook portrays a classical fountain in a small courtyard garden. These kinds of green spaces adjacent to homes are a significant part of Charleston's charm. Protected by surrounding houses and vine covered walls, these enclosed gardens usually have something blooming anytime of the year.

Cooking Charleston

Saint Philip's Churchyard Gate and Carriage, French Quarter, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film)


As I alluded to in a previous post, Charleston has been receiving much favorable attention as a travel destination in recent months. Conde Naste Travel Magazine ranked it as the number one city to visit in North America. Fodor's Travel went even further by placing Charleston among the top 21 "to go" attractions in the world. They described it as a "buzzy" destination that is "foodie-centric" and "leading the Southern food revival". Charleston, for such a small city, is indeed graced with an abundance of fine restaurants and cafes. There is a menu for almost anyone's taste.

Today's image is one that is featured in a coffee table cookbook recently published by Hank's Seafood Restaurant.  It is replete with delicious recipes presented by nationally recognized chef Frank McMahon. The intent of the image is to offer a taste of Charleston's historic and charming ambience.

Travertine

Colonnades and Lantern, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City, Italy  © Doug Hickok
(Click on image for larger view)

A solitary lantern hangs between the rows of large columns in Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City. The centuries old colonnades are made of travertine stone, a common material of buildings in Rome, and throughout Italy. Travertine is a limestone formed from mineral or hot springs. The word itself derives from an Italian word meaning 

"of Tibur", an ancient Roman town, which is today called Tivoli, near Rome. 

It was a preferred stone of Michelangelo... and Bernini, the builder of the 

colonnades pictured here.

Time Capsule

Gresham Mill, Canton, Georgia  © Doug Hickok


Gresham Mill, amid the suburbs of Atlanta, seems like a Depression era time capsule preserved for modern eyes. Not far from a busy interstate highway, it is a reminder of who we once were, and how dramatically times have changed, even within recent memory.

The Edge

Palm Trunk and Shutter, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


Today's photograph illustrates color contrast between warm and cool colors, and is an apt segue into my Favorite Photographer Friday selection, Tom Mackie. He is a renown practitioner of color design, creating saturated images with vivid impact. He teaches about seeking conditions that maximize atmospheric lighting and color, conditions that create tension by being in a state of transition... for example, the edge of day and night, the edge of changing seasons, or the edge of clearing storms.

My take on this visual tension is the above image, which portrays the edge of light and shadow, where the setting sun briefly illuminates textures on a palm trunk, while the background lies in deep blue shadow.

I hope you take a few moments to look at his website.
Have a great weekend!

A Wheel and the Great Beyond

Tiller Wheel, The Old Depot, Lewisburg, Ohio  © Doug Hickok


Teeth on the wheel of this old tiller form an alternate pattern, seeming to move with the wheel in a relentless path toward the heavens...
 to infinity and beyond!

Bridge Wednesday - Into the Darkness

Cape Creek Bridge, Coastal Highway 101, Oregon  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view.)


This arched bridge, reminiscent of an ancient Roman aqueduct, disappears into the Stygian shadows of a mountain ridge as daylight fades to night. Who knows where the road may lead, or what lies ahead... perhaps only the Fates can say.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Shadow of a Chair on Shell Pavement, John's Island, SC  © Doug Hickok


I know, I know, the color is a bit over the top...
 but it's Valentine's Day,
so why not go to extremes!?

Misty Monday - Veil of Obscurity

Sun and Fog, Newfound Gap, Great Smoky Mountains NP, North Carolina  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film)


Beauty, behind a shroud of mist, will reveal itself for those patient enough and 
willing to see.

Guardians

Bronze Door, The Basilica of Saint Anthony, Padua, Italy  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)

Saints of the Church, like guardians of the faith, peer down at the faithful from their ornate alcoves on the Basilica of Saint Anthony's tall bronze doors. The basilica was completed in 1301 to honor Saint Anthony of Padua, who after his death became the patron saint of lost people and things. The basilica is a major destination for pilgrims from all over the globe. If you have lost something dear to you, perhaps this is the place to begin your search...

"Tony, Tony, look around. Something's lost that can't be found."

Weathered

Blue Door of a Restaurant, Folly Beach, SC  © Doug Hickok


Rusted metal, peeling paint, worn wood... this weathered blue door seems to have the character of an old mariner, exposed to years of salty seas at the helm of his weatherworn ship.

Friday Finials

Tourists on Legare Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


Finals in the shape of stylized pineapples decorate this 19th century mansion on Legare Street. Pineapples are symbolic of hospitality, a tradition that dates back to the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. Eventually the tradition spread to Europe and then to colonial America, where pineapples became a common architectural motif, from door knockers to finials to fountains. 


As one of the images featured in the Spoleto Festival USA ticket brochure, this picture gives a sense of Charleston's historic setting and the old world feel that the city can sometimes convey. 


I've listed a few photography links to click on if you have some extra time this weekend.


Here is a collection of stunning images by the renown photographer Peter Turnley.


A police officer with camera makes poignant images.


Finally, consider how different everything looks in the light of night.


Have a good weekend.

A Ride Back in Time

Horse Carriage and Old Exchange Building, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)


One of the fun ways to see historic Charleston is a horse carriage tour. It makes you feel like you have journeyed back in time, to an era when life moved at a considerably slower pace.

This is one of the images from the Spoleto Festival USA website, from a section that promotes things to do when visiting the city. If you come, remember to bring your Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara costumes, along with your carpetbags. But please, no scalawags or rascals allowed.

City at Night

City Lights, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film)

Another one of the images used in the Spoleto Festival USA ticket brochure, one that suggests a lively night life... theater lights, restaurants, cafes, the fluxing auroras of city streets...

or maybe alien crafts landing at the site of an active volcano...

Palm Tree Cloud

Palm Tree and Cloud, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)


Palm tree fronds wave against an azure sky in this image from the Spoleto Festival USA ticket brochure. Although this picture may suggest a tropical island setting with visions of white sandy beaches, grass huts and coconuts, it's not...  Charleston has more of a semi-tropical coastal climate. There are tan sandy beaches, but no grass huts or coconuts that I know about.

Spoleto Festival USA 2012

Cover, Spoleto Festival USA 2012 Ticket Brochure  © Doug Hickok

Original Image, Riviera Theater Marquee, King Street, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


I am proud to announce that Spoleto Festival USA  selected this image to feature on their ticket brochure this year. Spoleto Festival USA is one of the largest international arts festivals, not just in the USA, but in the world. It has been a center piece of Charleston attractions since it was begun here in 1977 by the founders, who were looking for an American venue to correspond with the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. The two week event runs from late May through early June.

Charleston was selected because it would "provide the charm of Spoleto as well as its wealth of theaters, churches and other performance spaces..."

This image was made at night using a quick zoom blur with my tripod mounted zoom lens. I'll show you more images from the ticket brochure and the Spoleto website, in the following days.

Stitch Design Co., an awarding winning design and marketing group, did exceptional work, as they always do, in designing the brochure and selecting images.

Supercalafragalisticexpealadocous

Old Ornate Gate, Saint Michael's Churchyard, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok


This is a detail of one of the most famous decorative wrought iron works in Charleston, Saint Michael's Churchyard gate. It was made in 1840 by a German born blacksmith, 
J. A. W. Iusti. Inside the gate are the tombs of John Rutledge and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, signers of the U.S. Constitution (1787).

As you may know, the first 10 amendments of the Constitution are the Bill of Rights, which allow for, among other safeguards, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of religion, etc.

It furthermore allows for the drinking of coffee on a leisurely Sunday morning while humming songs from Mary Poppins...  "Supercalafragalisticexpealadocous" anyone?