Suffusion

Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center, near Atlanta, Georgia
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



The last light of day suffuses the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center 
with a glowing warmth.


(And... A very happy birthday to you, Bucko!)

A Cool Sunrise

Sunrise, Folly Beach pier, Folly Beach, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

A cool morning sunrise greets a lone fisherman on the Folly Beach Pier. I remember when Becky and I first moved to Charleston, we drove out to Folly Beach to eat at the Atlantic House Restaurant, which offered lovely views of an adjacent pier and the ocean. 

But both the restaurant and the pier were destroyed by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. 6 years later the Folly Beach Pier was constructed and is intended to be hurricane proof. So far so good!

Local Advertising

Old Door and Wall, Krakow, Poland  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved
(Velvia slide film. Click on image for larger view)



Many years of repeated use have proven this metal door an ideal place for local advertising and the hodgepodge of placard remnants blends perfectly with the chaos of the old stone wall.

Leaving Early

Tire Tracks in the Snow, near Harrison, Ohio  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Making fresh tire tracks in the snow, a car leaves signs of departing home in the bluish light of frigid dawn. With the streets utterly still and quiet so early on a holiday weekend, I was curious what errand this person ran...
 a trip to the tanning salon perhaps?

Beautiful Decay

Old Garden Door, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



An old wooden door slowly succumbs to decay,
 while being framed by the lush greens of a winter garden.

Finding the Niche

Old Oak on a Marsh, Magnolia Gardens, Charleston, SC
© Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Lowcountry live oaks spread their limbs any direction they can to find their niche in the wild... the very epitome of adaptability.

A Walk on the Creek

Shem Creek Park, Mt. Pleasant, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Fishing boats, marshlands and Lowcountry vistas... a perfectly natural place to build a boardwalked park for all to enjoy.

Anyone for a Sunday walk on the creek?

Nature's Hand

Snowy Gravel Pit Mounds and Bare Trees, near Harrison, Ohio
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved


These mounds of gravel covered with slowly melting snow 
offer an interesting visual...
an industrial site fashioned by the hand of man,
transformed by the hand of nature.

Winter Trellis

Garden Trellis, near Harrison, Ohio  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved


Charleston is not the only place where I find ironwork to photograph... this scroll is part of a garden trellis near Harrison, Ohio. In summertime, colorful vines may twine themselves around it, but in wintertime it is piled with freshly fallen snow.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Morning

Woodlands, near Harrison, Ohio  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Becky and I spent the holidays back home in Ohio with family. We awoke one morning to a fresh snow fall, so I could not resist the temptation to leave the house early and shoot.

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I had promises to keep..." promises to eat the sour cream doughnuts that awaited me back in the warmth of the house.

Desert Canyon

Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Texas  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



When Becky and I camped here last summer, it was 104 degrees! 
Horse trails and hiking trails meandered through dusty canyons, past red rocked cliffs, scrubby mesas, and a landscape rich in fossils. 

Today, in the midst of winter, this desert canyon seems a comforting sight indeed!

An Eagle has Landed

Lantern with Brass Eagle, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved
(Click on image for larger view)



A lantern has winged company for the evening along Saint Michael's Alley in a district of Charleston known as South of Broad.

Modernity

Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center, near Atlanta, Georgia
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



This contemporary performing arts center
illustrates a change of venue... from old colonial Charleston
 to the modern metropolis of Atlanta, Georgia.

 

Balding

Bald Cypress, Magnolia Gardens, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



The bald cypress is a deciduous conifer. Here it is gradually loosing its "hair" and will soon be completely bald for the winter.

Man, I feel its pain, because I can relate!

Hidden Anchor

Bare Tree and Billboard, Atlanta, Georgia  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Some personalities are recognizable anywhere,
even when incognito.

Bristly

Winter Crepe Myrtle, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



Shoots from a pruned crepe myrtle
 appear to bristle after its leaves have fallen.

Before the Storm

Lily Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



The tendril of a late afternoon thunderstorm creeps toward a mountain lake in the Rockies where two floating anglers try their luck before the rains fall.

On a High Horse

Equestrian Statue, Florence, Italy  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved
(Velvia slide film)



Cosimo I de Medici rides tall and proud atop his bronze saddle in the Piazza della Signoria of Florence. And well he should... the Medici were great patrons of the arts, and put their indelible mark on the history of Florence
 and the Italian Renaissance.

Early Winter Garden

Red Bridge and Pond, Magnolia Gardens, Charleston, SC
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved



In early winter there are still plenty of hues to see in Lowcountry gardens,
 and abundant pools of still waters to reflect their beauty. 
Beholding such delights is a fine way to begin a new year!

Happy New Year from Charleston!

Favorites of 2012 - Becky's Picks

Dusk, Folly Beach Pier, Folly Beach, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved
(Click on image to begin slide show)

Spring Blooms, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Pediments, Saint Francis Garden, Roper Hospital, Charleston, SC
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Live Oak with Spanish Moss, Daniel Island, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Reflection in Pool, Pineapple Fountain, Charleston, SC
© Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Misty Harbor with Boats, Mt. Desert Island, Maine  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Palmetto Tree Trunk and Shutter, Charleston, SC
 © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Ironwork and Steps at Night, Market Hall, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Lambs Ears and Stones, Boulder, Colorado
© Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved

Beneath the Archway, Saint Louis, Missouri
© Doug Hickok  All Rights Reserved




Happy New Year Everyone!