Postcard from Tucson

This massive aircraft is the SR-71A Blackbird Long Range Strategic Reconnaissance Aircraft, on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum here in Tucson.

Its job was to fly military and CIA spy missions from 1964 to 1998. There were only 32 of them ever built, only 20 of which survived. 12 were lost to accidents and none were ever lost to enemy action. It could fly as high as 80,000 feet at speeds of Mach 3+. If a ground missile was ever fired at it, it could easily outrun it, which probably explains why none were ever lost to enemy action. It once flew from from Washington to Los Angeles in just over 64 minutes.

The Pima Air and Space Museum houses hundreds of aircraft from all over the world. A few have been featured here in this blog. A few more will be featured in the future. For a sneak peak at some of them, check out the brand new section of my web site entitled, “Weapons of War.” Here you will find some of my best photos of aircraft from the Pima Museum as well as a tank and missile launcher from the Yuma Proving Grounds…all artistically rendered, of course.

In case you are wondering, I did play with the above image a fair amount using Photoshop and a couple of plug-ins. I was going for art, not accuracy. Hey, I am allowed to have fun! In any case, I am very proud of this image and happy to share it with you.

For more, very in-depth information this airplane, check out the Wikipedia Article on the SR-71.   

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

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Postcard from Chicago

Here is one photo from downtown Chicago I‘ve never shared before. Not sure how I missed it, but I did. Obviously I got a little creative here. The tilt effect was not done in Photoshop.  Oh no! I did the tilt on site. Every once in a while, especially when shooting architectural scene, I like to tilt the camera slightly in one direction or another. It gives one a different perspective in looking at a scene. Try it sometime…it works with any camera.

The tall red building in the background is known as CNA Plaza. It stands out in the Chicago skyline because of its red color. Its only 44 stories tall, short compared to other buildings in Chicago, but when looking at the skyline of downtown Chicago, your eye is drawn to it because of the color. FYI, it is on Wabash Ave, just one block off of famous Michigan Ave.

It was completed in 1973 and it has a bit of a history, both good and bad. During a 2004 renovation of the lobby the entrances were hard to find for pedestrians. So the entrances were clearly marked with "Enter Here" while other portions of the black plywood wall were marked with a yellow dashed outline of a person and the legend "Don't enter here. You'll get splinters."

In 1999, a shard of glass fell from a 29th floor window and killed a woman on the other side of Wabash Avenue. The ensuing investigation revealed the window had been cracked for months and the building had a history of cracked windows for more than 20 years. The glass couldn't cope with the level of thermal expansion it experienced and when the accident occurred, more than 40 windows were cracked. The building's owner paid a huge fine to the city, settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family, and replaced all 3,000 windows in the building.

As for the other two buildings in the photo, Google Maps says the building on the right houses the Chicago Department of Revenue. The other building appears to be an apartment complex…my best guess, anyway. What makes this photo work is that all three buildings are completely different styles of architecture…and having one of them be red is a major plus. Chicago is indeed a playground for a photographer.

(To see a larger version of this photo, just click on the image)

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Yosemite

If you follow me via this blog for any length of time, you know I don’t do a lot of wildlife photography…in fact, almost none. But, I could not help but photograph this little fellow while hanging around Yosemite Valley on one of my many visits.

This is a Steller’s Jay, often mistakenly called a Blue Jay. You will find them all over Yosemite, especially if you are eating. You see, these birds will get real close and let you take their picture…if, of course, you drop them a tasty morsel of whatever your eating. The more you give them, the closer they get. So you don’t need a long lens to get a good picture…just a quick trigger finger to catch them while still. They like to move their heads a lot.

Actually, they are a very smart bird and are a bit fussy about what they eat. Many, many years ago, I was on a picnic in the valley with a girlfriend and were feeding the jays. I decided to have a little fun and dip a small potato chip into some very spicy horseradish dip. The little fellow snatched it up and took off. A few minutes later, while wondering how he liked the dip, he flew back and dropped the chip and dip…right on my head. True story. And yes, my friend and I had a good laugh. So watch what you feed them.

There is another reason I showed you this photo today. A few days ago, a fellow artist, photographer and friend, who specialized in wildlife photos, passed away from pancreatic cancer. Don Graham, who lived in Moses Lake, and I did several art shows together each year in various Northwest locations. He was a good friend, a nice guy and I am sad at his passing. Because of distance, I am even sadder that I cannot attend his memorial service. Rest well, Don. 

(To see a larger version of this photo, just click on the image)

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.

Postcard from Glacier

I photographed this small creek on a hike I took in Glacier National Park. Take the two mile trail from the main highway to Avalanche Lake and you will find it. In fact, bring your camera as you will find many wonderful, small places to photograph along the trail where nature shows off some of her finest work.

But make sure you have save room on your camera for the lake itself. It is spectacular! Several cascading waterfalls come down off the high mountains and flow right into the lake.

As for this photograph, I was fortunate to find a bend in the small creek where colorful rocks happen to be. I did not set this up, this was the way I found it. OK, so I did push the colors a bit in post-processing, but that is what artists do...or so I am told. Still it is a good image and is close to what I saw.

 

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

 

 

 

 

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Postcard from Oxford

I call this photo "Tyrannosaurus Rex Mans the Information Desk." And that is where the bones of this ancient dinosaur are...right above the information desk of the Oxford Museum of Natural History. This was not meant to be one my artsy pictures, but rather one of wonder and humor. After all, it is the only photograph I have of T-Rex. 

The Oxford Museum of Natural History is a unique experience as it houses countless specimens of animals past and present. From dinosaurs to butterfly's, they are all here waiting to be viewed. Intertwined with this museum is the Pitt River Museum, named after General Augustus Pitt Rivers, who collect thousand and thousands of anthropological items from all over the world. 

There are two museums (both built in the 1800's) as 19th-century thinking declared it was very important to separate objects made by the hand of God (natural history) from objects made by the hand of man (anthropology). Today, one is not sure where one museum begins and the other ends as they are so intertwined. Wouldn't that scandalize those valiant thinkers of the 19th century.

Besides T-Rex, the museum has the only complete skeleton of a single Dodo. Its true that other museums have complete skeletal remains of Dodo's, but they are made up of several individual Dodos. I bring this up because a fellow named Charles Dodgson used an artist's painting of this Dodo as a character in one of the most beloved books of all time. You see, Charles Dodgson's pen name was Lewis Carrol and the book is "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

I have a few more photos of the the place which I shall share in the future.  

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

 

 

 

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Postcard from Eastern Washington

Highway 25, the road from Davenport, WA to the Canadian border is filled with abandoned trucks like this. They are everywhere. I shared some of their images here before. And this is just another one, left for dead in a lonely field.

Still, as I drive by each one of them, or, in this case, stop and take a photograph, I wonder how it got here to its final resting place. And why here? Why not a wrecking yard? Why by the road? And of course, how long has it been here?

Each abandoned vehicle has its own story, serving their owners for many years, then abandoned and left for dead. Now, its only purpose is to rust among the weeds and bushes that surround it. Without shelter, it must survive the best it can while being pounded by wind, rain, and snow. No doubt it gives shelter to many small animals. At least it has some purpose. 

The motor is gone, the flatbed in back is gone, doors and windows are gone...all that's left is a hulk...a remnant of a once new and proud vehicle that did its job to the best of its ability. But, it had one more purpose in its long life...to sit and wait for someone like me to make a picture of it...turn it once again into something beautiful, and bear witness in writing to the fact that it once was special to someone. Maybe someone will remember me that way when I have served my purpose in this world and moved on to the next great adventure.   

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To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

 

 

 

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Postcard from Tucson

Downtown Tucson is very much mixed in with Old Town Tucson. It just happened that way. Here you will find Tucson's tallest structures next to a historic Spanish Hacienda home. They are just intermixed. 

This sign is from the 1950's and is still in place, even though the hotel is long since gone. No one would dare take it down as it is an historical landmark and loved by the locals. Although the hotel is gone, the building has been renovated and now contains law offices. And though the sign cleverly advertises a pool, it also is long gone, having been filled in back in the 90's. 

So, pretty much everything about the hotel is gone...but the sign still survives...a remnant from the historic golden era of motor travel. 

It seemed like a perfect image to render in black and white.

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com

 

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Postcard from Leavenworth

Recently, I told a friend of mine that I really miss seeing Iris growing all over town. She replied that if I want to see Iris, just go down to Trader Joe's. Sorry, not the same thing. Now don't get me wrong, I love the variety of flowers that grow here, but I do miss certain flowers that flourish up north...and of all those, its the Iris I miss most.

Fortunately, I have a very large collection of Iris photos taken over the years...a few of which you may have seen here in past issues. But I wanted to publish another one with a little bit of a twist. Since the Iris is so tall and slender, I decided to crop the picture in a long and slender mode. I think it turned out well. 

I found a poem about the Iris, oddly enough written by a member of the Tucson Area Iris Society (I guess that means there may be some Iris flowers somewhere around here besides Trader Joe's). It says pretty much how I feel about this beautiful Spring flower.

Iris, Most Beautiful Flower

Iris, most beautiful flower,
Symbol of life, love, and light;
Found by the brook, and the meadow,
Or lofty, on arable height.
You come in such glorious colors,
In hues, the rainbow surpass;
The chart of color portrays you,
In petal, or veins, of your class.
You bloom with the first in Winter,
With the last, in the Fall, you still show;
You steal the full beauty of Springtime,
With your fragrance and sharp color glow.
Your form and beauty of flower,
An artist's desire of full worth;
So Iris, we love you and crown you,
MOST BEAUTIFUL FLOWER ON EARTH!
 

- Edith Buckner Edwards

 

 

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com. 

 

If you subscribe to this blog by e-mail and wish to purchase a print or send a free e-mail greeting card using this image, click this link to the main Postcard Blog Site. Don’t forget, e-mail greeting cards are free.