As a family, we traveled to Yosemite National Park for our 2011 Christmas holiday.  While driving through Yosemite, I saw a coyote for the first time.  As it turned out, there were several coyotes along Glacier Point Road in the park.  Coyotes can live by catching mice and squirrels.  However, coyotes have also learned to beg humans for food.  It did seem like the coyote was expecting a treat from us after waiting for me to take its photo.  We were not keeping any food in the vehicle due to the warnings about bears going after food.  The National Park Service requests that visitors do not feed the coyotes, so they remain wild and self-sufficient.  The coyotes we saw looked healthy, and they were enjoying the park as much as we were!

Last year in 2010, our holidays were spent in Wyoming at Togwotee Mountain Lodge.  We all agreed that one of our favorite activities was dog sledding.  The lodge where we were staying offered the dog sledding right behind the lodge.  The dogs are so excited and love to go out on the runs.  They all want to be chosen.  The dogs pictured here are veterans who are being mushed by Billy Snodgrass who participates in the Iditarod.  If you ever go, take a balaclava with you to keep warm and to help with the gaseous odors that the dogs seem to emit.  It’s still worth the ride.  Each sled seats one to two persons depending on the size.  This photograph was taken by a photographer who works at the lodge named Lindsay.  Happy holidays to all in 2011 and looking forward to a great 2012.

In February 2010, I visited Lone Elk Park in St. Louis County again.  I must admit that I have a greater appreciation for the wildlife after visiting Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park.  It is much easier to find and photograph the elk in the 546 acres of Lone Elk Park than it is to find wildlife in the huge national parks.  The original elk used to populate Lone Elk Park came from Yellowstone, creating a link between St. Louis County and the national park in Wyoming.

So far, the best Christmas we have ever spent was in Wyoming.  An unexpected surprise was going to Dornan’s Hootenanny, which is held on Monday evenings.  This is in a bar and pizzaria located inside the Grand Teton National Park.  Sometimes referred to simply as “The Hoot,” it is like a local American Idol, where people sing and play string instruments.  Several of them were excellent.  The best part was that there were “no” judges.  The crowd of people in attendance were respectful and wanted to hear the performers.  If you ever go, arrive early.  It is standing room only.

Fall color is over now for 2009.  I have to admit that this year was more of a challenge than most because it rained in Missouri more than half of the days in October.  However, just because it it “not” sunny, you can still have fun and get a good photo.  You just have to be more creative.  This was one of my favorites from this year taken at Pere Marquette State Park, north of Grafton, Illinois in the greater St. Louis area.

Within a day’s trip of the St. Louis area, my favorite fall color spots so far have been:

* Pere Marquette State Park, north of Grafton, Illinois

* Cuivre River State Park, northeast of Troy, Missouri

* Powder Valley Nature Center‎, in St. Louis County, Missouri

The photograph shown here was taken at Pere Marquette State Park.  If you go there on a weekend, go early in the morning.  In the afternoon, there is often a two-hour wait to dine in the state park restaurant, especially during fall colors.  During the week, you can usually be seated with no wait – the fried chicken is excellent!  There is no restaurant at Cuivre River or Powder Valley – bring your own food.

I was quite surprised when John Auble, a television reporter for Fox News in St. Louis called me today and said that Barbara Gusewelle Boyle was released from prison six days ago. In 1985, I was a newspaper reporter for the Collinsville (Illinois) Journal-Herald, covering the case. She was convicted for the murder of her husband. During the trial, it reminded me of the north versus the south court case.  She had hired F. Lee Bailey as her defense counsel. He was from Boston, talked fast and was already famous as an attorney.  The prosecutor, Robert Trone, had an extreme southern accent.  It seemed likely that a Midwest jury would relate more to him than an outsider. According to the prosecution, she and the person who actually performed the killings planned for her to first meet Ronald Gusewelle.  But it always amazed me how did they know he would fall in love with her and marry her?  To plan to murder someone before you even meet seems difficult to comprehend.

Attached are stories from the trial that I did while working for the Collinsville Journal.

Barbara Gusewelle Boyle Trial

Lucky Number 13 won the harem in September and October 2009 at Lone Elk Park, St. Louis County, Missouri.

Last week two squirrels were at one of the corn-on-the-cob feeders in our back yard.  The backlighting of the squirrel on the left makes the tail appear transparent.

“There is something about wildlife photography that is immensely soul-satisfying.”

The authors point out that some photographers merely document animals taking a few photos before moving to the next subject.

“Great photographers will often stay with a subject as long as the subject will allow.”  This allows time to see how the animal reacts to its environment, to other animals or how it feels at that time.

This is my favorite photography book because the images of the wildlife are truly outstanding, and the photographers share their lessons learned and experiences to help others.  Here are a few of the suggestions:

Lighting strongly affects the feeling of the image.  Front lighting provides an even light source and is good for stopping action.  It is also the best for creating reflections in a pool of water. 

Side lighting helps bring out textures and adds shadows to a photo.

Back lighting is used for silhouettes.  In some cases, it can provide a spiritual feeling and outline your subject if the sun is low in the sky.  It can also make some parts of an animal appear translucent – like the tail of a squirrel or the feathers fanned by a bird.  Sometimes referred to as rim lighting, the authors recommend bracketing at different exposures to see what effect you like the best.

To avoid sun flares, point the camera where the lens hood will block the sun from shining into the lens.  You can also use a tree, a building or anything to help shield the lens.

“To create a silhouette, expose for the background and let your subject go black.”

“Overcast light is some of the best possible light in which to photograph wildlife.”  Just remember to minimize or eliminate the sky in the photo.

“Give your subject adequate room to move within the picture.  It’s usually better to chop off the rear of the animal and still give it room to move into the frame than it is to include the entire animal but have its nose almost touching the border of the photo.”

In some cases, the animals will have room to move in the photo; in other cases, it’s more of a portrait.  The more space the subject takes up in the photo, the less depth of field there will be.  This affects depth of field more than the size of the lens.

When looking through the viewfinder, the authors suggest selecting the elements you want to retain and want to remove from your picture.  “This process will never be easy, but there are a number of techniques, like framing the center of interest, capturing eye contact, balancing more than one center of interest, and the use of rhythm, to help us compose images that go beyond documentation.”

What is your perspective to the subject?  Taking photos from a higher or lower vantage point can make them stand out.  You can also make the subject strong by photographing it at the animal’s height.  This will also help to blur the background, bringing more attention to the subject.

If you can photograph a behavior of the animal, this takes it from being just a documentary image.  “A couple of obvious examples of behavior-rich times are during courtship and when young animals are present.”  Researching information about your subject in advance can help determine the behaviors you might have a chance to witness.

Celebrate the seasons by taking photos that can include an element to indicate what season it is.  To have falling snow show up in your photograph, you’ll need a dark background behind it.

To capture rain in a photo, the rain must be coming down extremely hard.  “Don’t hesitate to follow your subjects through the seasons.  Show your viewers how the creatures handle the vagaries of the weather.  A picture element or two that shows the season or the weather and how your subject relates to it may be all you need to take that photo beyond documentation.”

This book truly goes beyond documentation to help us interpret and enjoy the animal species around us.  There is something “immensely soul-satisfying” about their photography.

 

Reviewed by Susan Vollmer

Author of Legends, Leaders, Legacies

In 2008, Barbara Walters’ latest book came out titled Audition: A Memoir.  What a great title for a book about her life.  Most of us think of her as a broadcast journalist, which she is, but she also shares personal aspects of her life that I certainly did not know.

 

While reading her words, I could hear her voice and Boston accent.  The book definitely had the ring of truth, which is of utmost importance to any journalist.  It’s important to do research to be as accurate as you possibly can be and as objective as possible, even when reporting on the most difficult subject – yourself.

 

While growing up, her father had various Latin clubs over the years, which he owned and managed.  As a child, she learned that the people behind these entertainment acts were real people with real problems.

 

“This gave me an understanding of celebrities that I never would have had.  As a result, I was not in awe, years and years later, when I began doing interviews with big name stars.”

 

Barbara also wrote, “Those early years at the Latin Quarter also affected the way I later asked questions and listened to answers.  I knew that the childhood years of most celebrities were their most poignant and could often explain their future choices as, of course, it has mine.”

 

One of her favorite persons to interview was Anwar Sadat.  “When I arrived for the interview, I noticed a slight, bemused man sitting on one of the empty boxes our television equipment had come in, the crew setting up the cameras and microphones, monitors and lights.  There were no security guards, aides, or secretaries around him.  The president of Egypt was simply taking in the scene.”

 

In November 1977, Barbara was one of many international journalists covering Anwar Sadat’s historic trip to Jerusalem.  At the Tel Aviv Airport, “there were hundreds of people waving Israeli and Egyptian flags.  I wondered how the Israelis had managed to get so many Egyptian flags so quickly.  And how the Israeli army band had gotten the music and learned the Egyptian national anthem.  But most of all I remember all of Sadat’s former enemies lined up to greet him – Menachem Begin, Golda Meir, Moshe Dayan, Ariel Sharon, Yitzhak Rabin.  It was almost too much to comprehend.”

 

Over the years, broadcast journalism has changed, with less time spent on heads of state and more time spent on celebrities and their alcohol / drug problems or on notorious criminals.

 

As of 2007, “the most-watched news special in television history,” was the two-hour interview that Barbara had done which aired on 3 March 1999 with nearly 50 million people watching.  The interview was of Monica Lewinsky.  She was the intern at the White House during the Bill Clinton administration who had become involved in a notorious scandal.

 

In 1997, Barbara became instrumental in the creation of a daytime television program called The View.  The show combined women of different viewpoints, ages and personalities who could disagree in a friendly, entertaining way.  The show would include discussing hot topics plus include some guests.  The show has had ups and downs with its staffing but has returned to its original roots.

 

In 2004, Barbara announced that she would be retiring from ABC’s newsmagazine titled 20/20, where she had worked for the past 25 years.  She had worked hard in journalism, where often you are only as good as your last story.  The uncertainty of her life as a child, watching her father earn and lose fortunes, had shown how quickly a family’s lifestyle can change.  She often worried that her success would be taken from her and worked even harder as a result.

 

She decided to leave the 20/20 part of her television work while she was still excellent at it and when she decided it was not fun nor prestigious anymore.  “The hard-news stories we used to report on were few and far between except on CBS’s stalwart 60 Minutes.  But that newsmagazine catered to an older audience.  20/20 was after the young – the 18-to 49-year-olds.”  Barbara wrote, “And it seemed that every celebrity, every murderer, every frog had a lawyer or a press agent all interviewing the interviewer to determine where they could get the most airings for their clients, what kind of questions would be asked, and how much promotion and advertising would be guaranteed.  The interviewer had to audition to land the interview.”

 

Audition is a great title for the book.  And perhaps this entire life is an audition for the next one to come.

 

Reviewed by Susan Vollmer

Author of Legends, Leaders, Legacies

http://www.susanv.com