A Collection of Autumn Colors

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I took a stand and made sure I got outside for a few minutes yesterday.  All the shots in the collage were taken in Donnie's yard.  We are definitely at peak color here.  What a joy to walk around and enjoy!

Here's the center shot cranked up just a bit!

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Autumn Portrait

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I posted this to Facebook so sorry if this is a repeat for some.  I just really like it and want to post it for my daily today.  We were on our way out the driveway to school when I stopped, told them to hop out, and we grabbed this shot from our front yard.  I planted that Japanese Red Maple years ago before Joey was born.  I guess it's 15 years old now.  This variety starts out red, goes green, and then turns a vibrant red again.  I like!  The leaves look nice for a week and then in a gust they are gone so you have to get the shots while you can.

Took this kindof nifty pumpkin candle shot this past week too and just pulled it off the camera tonight.

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Autumn Color

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Yesterday we had the most beautiful sunny sky and autumn color but I was stuck inside working.  This is a shot from Yates Mill from over the weekend.

Best View at Raven Rock State Park

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This is another shot from Raven Rock State Park looking down from way up onto the Cape Fear River.  I used HDR on the shot to bring out the detail and color.  With all the clouds, the shot needed some help.

Here is Johnny enjoying the view from the horseshoe shaped overlook wall.  You can hear the rush of water on the rocks below as well as see some people off in the distance enjoying Lanier Falls (rapids).

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Donnie really made an effort to get both boys up onto this unusual shaped tree trunk.  This is Johnny.

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And this is Joey.  Joey weighs over 100 lbs. so getting him up there was no small feat.

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Whatever it takes to get the picture, right?

An Autumn Walk at Raven Rock State Park

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Donnie and the boys went with me to Raven Rock State Park yesterday.  The park sits geologically where the sandhills of North Carolina and the Piedmont of North Carolina meet along the Cape Fear River.  The park gets it's name for the cliffs along the shoreline of the river.  Although it was cloudier than I thought optimal for picture taking, I enjoyed my time there very much.  The weather was a warm 75 degree day.  We hiked the 2.6 mile trail which ended up being closer to 5 miles for Donnie on his FitBit One  activity tracker.  Poor guy never gets to walk in a straight line with the boys wrestling him down the path.

I took in my tripod, and we used it several times to take group shots.  I just love looking at these pics over and over again.  Here's a collage of what I thought were the best of the best.

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We took this group shot early on.  Donnie and I go back and forth liking this one or the one I put in the middle of the collage.

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This shot down at Raven Rock itself gives you a feel for the grand size of the cliffs.

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From prior visits, I knew the boys were going to get dusty and dirty sliding all over the place.  Johnny really cranked it up!

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Here's is Pig-Pen impersonation:-)

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And a video to show you the dust in action!  I've always felt that kids deserve times to be themselves and let off steam and go crazy like this.  I know some moms would find letting a kid get this dirty tough to take.

Video

A big thanks to my handsome Donnie for making my day off a great day!

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I've got more Raven Rock shots I may share tomorrow.  Some of the foliage and views were really fantastic.  

A Walk at Simpkins Pond Lake Wheeler

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We took a nice walk around Simpkins Pond at Lake Wheeler yesterday.  The weather was delightful at around 70 degrees.  The fall foliage was looking splendid.  And, the company was great.  Lots of photo ops just the way I like it.  I couldn't pick just one to share, so you get the collage:-)

In Remembrance on Veterans Day

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A few shots I took when we were in Washington, DC last month.  Tears came to my eyes as we walked past the Vietnam Veterans Memorial...  I took quite a few photos there.

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This shot was taken at the World War II Memorial.  Joey is just old enough to start to understand the significance here.

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