Film Crews Encampment

The first day of February brought the film crews back to Dallas to shoot for the day at White Rock Lake. It's always fun to see the guys and chat a bit with them. I even got an invite to the mess tent, but gracefully declined. The offer was sincere and I did appreciate the offer even being made.

The last time that I saw so much equipment was in Deep Ellum. The crews were parked under I-45 and I-30 ramps in the Good Latimer, Commerce and Main Streets corridor. That's been a couple or three years and was also during the Film Festival. While film crews shoot all the time in the Metroplex, seeing the big boys from the major studio houses is still that thrill of  scene boards, lights camera, action!  It makes watching the credits all worthwhile---sort of, kind of, maybe, he hah!

And, I must admit that the area were they set up camp on this trip makes total sense. Plenty of room, for sprawling mess tents, parking for the big gun trucks, star trailers, restrooms and such. It really is a small city when they shoot a scene or a series episode. This trip, they were shooting for the second season of  Queen of the South.
[Click any image to open up larger view] 

Operated by 20 Century Fox Film Corp.

Comfort on the Road

Catering at its finest! And I do mean fine.

 Hanna Brothers Motion Picture Catering,

 The entry is on the left.

There will be another post of pictures only to go with this post.It will be the first up as post load
from last first.

Did You See That We May Be Living In A Hologram?

It has never been my intention to have a bird and weather report blog. Sometimes, things take a turn where they were not intended. Not as frequent as times in the past, I used to get in my car, head out down the street in one direction with no where in particular in mind. It was one of those car conversations that I have from time to time with the Head Navigator Upstairs. It was like my car knew where to go from then on. All I did was to hold on to the steering wheel and go with the flow. Some of my best images have come out of my camera with days like that. Although I don't have as many of them as I did years ago, I still have that conversation with the Navigator now and then, especially if I've had a dry run on material. So, maybe there is something to us being in a Hologram.

Today, was the first time this winter that I have had to use my sunglasses. The angle of the sun is coming into play once again as the sun angle becomes more high and more intense. I tried to drive without them but the Navigator basically was telling me today that I wasn't getting any help from upstairs  and I reached for the shades and put them on for the first time this year. I've had so much cabin fever this winter with the gloom and doom of low clouds and grey skies. These past five days of 70 plus and sunshine has been a welcome sight to me. Talk about feeling better. I fell energized again.  It actually hit 80 today and I was prepared for it when I left the house. In fact, for a brief time, the AC in the car was running and it rather felt good, too!

So, I started out today on high ground overlooking the lake and trying to get a fix on the pelicans and the any of the hawk families that live at the lake. As I made my rounds, there just was nothing happening. In fact, there wasn't any bird watchers and I only saw one photographer making his way around the dam and spillway area. So, back to square one, I made the run around the marinas and just parked and set listening to Saint Saens Organ Symphony No 3 on WRR.Then, out the corner of my eye, I see these two big birds sitting near the top of a large Cypress tree overlooking the lake. They were a pair of Red Shoulder hawks that I normally see a bit farther around the lake. As I got closer and the clicking of the shutter spooked the female, she flew off behind me into a thicket of big tulip and oaks. Then, the male followed. One thing about hawks, they fly a triangle to their nest site, never going directly. You just have to watch and wait for the second leg of the triangle to be complete. Bingo! there's the nest! And, the male. I'm not sure where the female had landed. The male was standing watch in all his glory. What a sight.

Just as I headed out for home, I got side tracked with the 20th Century Film crew and their encampment for  filming Queen of the South, season 2. They set up in a area that gave them more parking and more room for the big mess tent but I could have missed it had I not waited on the hawks to settle down again.

Pair of Red Shoulder Hawks

Near the nest site

Little song birds were having a practice

By Land, By Sea, By Air

The Gull on the left had plenty to say to the other two. I wish I knew what was so important.

A warm winter's day for two gents.

A nice toy. A very nice toy.

The Best Fisherman At White Rock Lake

When ever I see a serious fisherman, my curious nature  is to ask if they are catching anything. Some will tell you," no". Some will say they got one or two while others will play their cards close to their chest. I understand that.

Yesterday, while starting my stroll looking for that "White Rock Unusual" it occurred to me that the best fisherman at White Rock was not a person. It wasn't even a bird or animal. It  was a tree! The tree that I am making a reference to at this point has more fishing gear, lures, bobs, hooks, leader line, spring clip clasp than some fishermen have in their tackle gear.

It became clear to me that the story wasn't in the fishermen catch, but the catch made time and time again by the tree that I stood looking into with the glimmers of sunlight striking every one of it's prized catches, sending the week-end fisherman home with less gear than they came to fish with today. 

There were some thirty lures not counting the lead sinkers, and other artificial bait lures.

Several of these hung at various levels in  the tree.

Saw Three of These At Three Different Lights

Went to the bank this morning. When I came out I saw this Red Tail hawk sitting on one of the new LED light poles. He had a wing span of  nearly 5 feet. He flew across the street into a wooded back yard and blocked by a Homeowners Association brick fence. Driving on, it was less than three miles when I made a turn and low and behold, there sat another big Red Tail. I parked and grabbed my camera and got a couple of shots before I saw the female sitting in  little thicket of trees along a creek. It was an amazing morning to see not one, not two, but three of these beautiful birds. The rest of the day was uneventful.

Red Tail Hawk

Same Bird

Thank You To Those That Ride As Patriot Guards

It was my maternal grandmother who taught me many,many years ago to never judge a book by it's cover. At first, my thinking was that she meant a book cover literally. Over a couple more decades, she expanded on that definition. The bottom line is that I got the full meaning literally and figuratively and have always remembered the basics and fundamental principals behind those lessons.

Today, I had an opportunity to shoot some really amazing images at another funeral for the first fallen police officer in North Texas in 2017. As it evolved with hours of waiting with mounted units, color guard units and the like, two hours later, I spot the procession coming  down the street at a distance. As I am moving toward my car to re position off cemetery property, an operations manager whistled me down and made a point that they had photographers and the  family had requested no pictures. While he was making his point, I made mine that I would never shot pictures at a funeral that had been listed as private. My intent was to stop shooting just as soon as the family entered the grounds.
There were other issues apparent and were not worth factoring in here. In as much as I am a background shooter and like the back story generally.

As it turned out, images that were to honor the fallen officer would also have honored previous policemen and firemen with another massive display of motorcycles. But the moment had been lost forever and that's alright.

A distinguished Arson Investigator from Richland Hills.

In lost moments, there is always that cloud with the silver lining. As it turned out, the book I learned never to judge is one of the most experienced Arson Investigators and he rides as a Patriot Guard. Thank You!! Thank You for allowing me to capture a moment in time that balances out and smooths out the chafe of life's wheat.

Only The Second Time On Antibiotics

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Well, I'm sicker than a old dog and that's two days in with the antibiotics which is only the second

Red Shoulder Hawk dead center

Same

Moved but still dead center

time that I have ever taken antibiotics. My thinking is that since I have not taken them on a regular or routine agenda they should attack this little bacteria like no one's business.

The weather here is totally miserable. Before I sat down to write this post, I heard this racket outside then a clap of thunder and then lightening and thunder again. I walked over to the window and at first sight all that I could see was clear sky, then I look out on the sidewalk and it is covered in hail (hence the racket). It's been a roller coaster of temperatures since Christmas. One day it's 40 then its 75 the next day. We have been getting these upper air disturbances every other day regularly. Oh, and then, there is the wind with 5-10 MPH today, 40 MPH gust the next. I cannot remember a winter like this in the past 15 years.

Looking at my shoot log, this crazy weather is beginning to show up there too, which shows up later in sales down the road not just a month but for as much as a quarter since buyers buy on a quarter cycle ahead of the season. The editorial  images are needed to augment those gaps but even that has been rather sporadic at best.  If it wasn't for the love of the photography in the first place it would be the time to be making some  decisions like: it's time to retire from retiring. Which I know I will not do until the lights go out.

I've been watching a couple of trees at White Rock where a pair of Red Shoulder Hawks claim as their hunting grounds. A couple of days ago when I was feeling pretty lousy, I spotted the male squirrel hunting. I stopped the car and shot from the car, which I seldom do, but I just didn't feel like getting out and chasing down a bird that can fly faster than I can walk and that's after I back-up and park. You will need to click on the image so that it opens up larger to get a better view, otherwise all you are going to see is trees and branches. But, it opens up pretty well when enlarged. I can't get better than 100 percent since I lost the use of my high power lens on the Nikon camera. Olympus keeps telling me that they are bringing to market a ring that will allow my Nikon lens to be used on the Olympus camera. That will give me an added 50mm of power to get that 150 to 200 coverage that I lost.