Shotgun Shells,Tire Donuts, a Virgin Fog Cutter

It almost seems like a scene out of a James Dean movie, doesn't it? I've always said that being an Urban Photographer was the treasure hunt of all treasure hunts. You go looking for one thing and come up with something you never expected to find and that fits like a piece of a puzzle into the whole scheme of things.

Going to the doctor on Tuesday set me back a couple of days. Day before yesterday, I never left the house. It was the last day for a while of low humidity and fall-like temperatures. In short--it was my kind of weather. Then, this Equifax thing jammed up the Internet and consumed time to get nothing but a hold pattern more like a plane circling than waiting for a customer rep. Seldom do I give up, but I also know when to cut my losses (time wise) and I hung up. But, the point is that it was a big waste of time and that threw off my schedule. So, yesterday, I had to get back out and do some shooting. These days of 10 or 15 meager shots just didn't cut it to fulfill my goal. The majority of my portfolio is shot in Spring and Fall. I have tried to increase the Summer and Winter stock but the fact remains that Spring and Fall are my kind of weather and my kind of scenes. However, again, I bring to mind the words of the fictional character on the Golden Girls, Sophia, who always had the cookie cutter answer that never went out of style when she would look directly into the camera and say : "You never know!"  That would apply here because I have really been working this summer to increase the stock of Summer shots that are published and it has been a good summer for me in doing that.

Next week will slow me down again with another doctors appointment. It seems like you never can regain the lost time, even when you try to work harder to make up for the time lost. But, I do enjoy doing what I do. It's a hobby that pays back some of the cost, too. I was reminded a few years back that Urban Photography doesn't always have to be the best shots, too, but that doesn't mean I  don't try to be better with each click of the shutter. The example pointed out that there was  a very important time in American history unmarked of the actual spot where President Kennedy's plane was parked at Love Field. When Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as the new President following the death of John F. Kenned, no actual location was ever marked. One reason was because Love Field had been upgraded with runways and taxiways, the tarmac was never marked that day after the Dealey Plaza shooting. And, because of security and other reasons, the general public was not allowed out on the tarmac. There were not a lot of camera shots out side but plenty of the swearing in ceremony aboard Air Force One. As it turned out, there was one local photographer who had an image of the plane that could be used to pinpoint the actual location. Today, there is both a marker on the tarmac and a placard inside the terminal window looking out to the placard on the tarmac. So urban photographers do catch things that most others do not.

This weekend, I plan to go down to Lee Park and shoot the empty base where the Robert E. Lee on horseback statue sat until yesterday afternoon. I had shot the area with candles all around when Tony Romo, then quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys had gotten married. That is another story that I feel some comments coming forward, but the time isn't now. So enjoy the oddity shots with a bit of humor from the past that still rears its head today.

Fog Cutter N528VA cleared to make departure turn onto runway 13R at Love Field. The horizon of the plane is adjusted to cover the line of sight from the tail to the top of the construction cranes, not the horizontal plane of the runway.

Shotgun Shells left on the ground. When as a kid I went bird hunting with my uncle, grandfather,and dad, back in the early 50's they picked up there shells even then. This shows how people today could care less.

Most teenage drivers that lived on the wild side could recall those days of doing these donuts on the pavement. This is atop the new Sylvan Bridge that crosses the Trinity at Trammel Crow Park. It's where the long semi-circular ramp comes into the top to the bridge at a T-intersection where there is lots of room to do crazy things like this. There are cameras there.

Crossing the Trinity on the Skyline Trail

Every one that I have come across when discussing the new Trinity Skyline Trail noted as everyone  else did that there were trails on both sides of the Trinity but no one could state with any certainty where the bike trail would cross to the other side. Today, I found out.  The city parks and recreation guys are pretty knowledgeable about what's going on and with the aid of a supervisor from all-places, Burkburnett, Texas, could even provide more information since his company was the project contractor.  Burkburnett,Texas

The new ramp down to Trammel Crow Park off the new Sylvan  Avenue Bridge

is west of Wichita Falls just 2 miles off the I-44 bridge crossing into Oklahoma. That is right at 100 miles to go home or to come to work. Later, I was thinking that my uncle who was an electrician and driving that distance every day was just part of the job. He worked on Cobo Hall when it was being built with the Joe Arena. Now, the Joe is being torn down.Then, he worked for years upgrading Detroit Wayne County Airport. That's Metro. So distance like that isn't really a problem if  you want to work.

I had gone down to the Anatole to see if the Michigan Spartans were meeting the public but I had missed the events for the day. On the return, driving out Harry Hines to see if the new Parkland Hospital was clearing out the fences so a shot of the magnificent architecture could finally be taken. Usually, it takes five or six trips to check on the best times for sunlight--morning--afternoon--evening. During the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge build, it turned out that the best sun is afternoons between 3PM and 5PM in the winter months. This time of year when the angle of the sun is still low, even the morning shots can be more silhouette than morning sun normal. As I crossed the new Sylvan bridge, I saw a car at the new ramp that goes down to the boat docks and the parking lots of Trammel Crow Park. I turned around and came back and went down the new ramp. Later, the contractor super told me that he and the crew opened the ramp to traffic last night. Today, the crew was setting the post that blocks off all the areas of the new trail except the two parking lots and the boat ramp. He showed me where the crossing from the east bank over to the west bank would be made on the old Sylvan bridge which is at trail grade below the levees.

Now, it was clear where you could cross on the north end. For now, there must be a new crossing on the south end and I'm thinking that it will be the I-30 Maggie 2 bridge since it will have a pedestrian and bike way on the bridge. But, for now, if the weather ever comes back to normal for north Texas, I can park in the Continental Bridge parking lot or the lots at Trammel Crow and ride both sides of the river. It's marked as 6.2 miles from the old Sylvan bridge on the new trail.

There will be new wet lands north of Sylvan and the banks of the Trinity have really been cleaned up. The crews are still working and the estimated completion date is mid February, or about 6-weeks more work. The Trammel Crow lake is now drained but is being cleaned up and then will be re-flooded.