Daily Dose of Fall #7

I found these leaves in Asheville, North Carolina. They were in deep shade, which has a bluish tinge; the leaves also were sort of a bluish-green, so the whole thing worked out well. ©Carol Leigh

National Farmers' Market Week, Day 7

Last day! I photographed these apples near Asheville, North Carolina a couple of years ago. ©Carol Leigh

(Not) Driving the Blue Ridge Parkway

This was my first visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway and yes, I had expectations. I envisioned a slow-moving, meandering road, lots of turnouts, lots of photo possibilities, amazing vistas, and various shades of blue as the soft edges of the mountains faded into the distance.

Ha!

The first thing I learned is that there's a difference between "leaf peepers" and photographers. The 45mph speed limit meant absolutely NOTHING to the leaf peepers, who zoomed up and down the road, impatiently waiting for me, traveling at 45mph, to move over and get the hell out of their way.

In addition, the two-lane road is relatively narrow, north and south traffic separated by a double yellow line. Every 20th car, it seemed, was driven by a leaf peeper intent on peeping at leaves, not on driving, and the car would invariably drift into my lane. Master of symmetry that I am, I would in turn drift over to my right to avoid instant death. Alas, quite often there was a ditch on my right, about the same width as a tire. Should I drift too far to the right, I risked coming to an abrupt halt, hurting me and my Hertz.

There are indeed lots of pullouts along the Blue Ridge Parkway where one can park, get out of the car, and admore the views. Assuming one can find a place to park.

Cars were double- and triple-parked, requiring a certain amount of last-second pre-planning, looking for (a) a place to park that (b) also had an exit route. A famous crafts center right on the parkway had a large parking lot -- no spaces available and a steady stream of incoming traffic. I hear the place is very nice inside...

And accommodations? It's leaf peeping season AND there are big football games going on. I could find nothing less than $180 all along the route. "It's gonna be that way up until you get into Virginia, I figure," was what one helpful motel employee told me, laughing.

I got off the parkway, drove twenty winding miles down to a lower, flatter elevation and found a motel room for $69. I admired the trees on the golf course before turning in for the night.

Don't want to end this on a down note. Would I travel the Blue Ridge Parkway again? Yes. But I would make reservations six months in advance and would stay in a cute little town like Blowing Rock, perhaps, going out onto the Parkway to photograph very early in the morning and very late in the afternoon, spending the middle of the day shopping, walking, shooting in town, eating apples, and snoozing. And I'll bring Chris. He can drive while I peep at the leaves. ©Carol Leigh

"No Photography Allowed"

It's difficult to get lost on your way to the Biltmore Estate, but between me and my GPS navigational unit, I managed to do so. And then found myself waiting in an interminably long line just to get onto the grounds of "America's Largest Home."

Once there, after having figured out why my camera was taking blue photos, I wandered around the outside of the house, looking at and photographing architectural detail.

On to the front door, where I reached inside my vest to grab my ticket, only to find I was handing the docent someone's business card, not the ticket. Although she admired the business card, she couldn't let me in with it. (Where's that southern hospitality when you need it?) Ticket found, I was finally granted entry.

The first thing I saw was a sign saying no photography allowed inside. None whatsoever. Not even with a cell phone. NOT THAT I COULD SEE ANYTHING ANYWAY! The place was so packed with people, moving in bovine fashion, that it took a couple of minutes just to take a couple of steps.

Aha! Maybe if I moved over to my left and skittered up the stairs, there would be fewer people. Well, under these circumstances, skittering wasn't in the picture, and as we moooooooooved slowly up the stairs, I couldn't stand it any more. About face, down the stairs, and out the front door. To photograph more architectural detail.

I should have known better than to strike out on my own, away from the loving arms of Jill, June, and Gisela, because the trip went quickly downhill from there as I set out to explore the Blue Ridge Parkway. ©Carol Leigh

More from North Carolina

 The Sandhills Photography Club invited me to join them on their fall field trip to Asheville, NC, where I gave a short presentation on how to set oneself apart from other photographers. And then it was off to shoot! We visited the arboretum, the botanical garden, had dinner at the Grove Park Inn out on the patio, where a gradually intensifying sunset made eating an afterthought. (Dave and Cheryl Powers, what a GREAT spot you chose for this dinner! You couldn't have done better.) I liked the shot I took of June, looking small and solitary in the forest. And when I saw June and Gisela in the entryway of a shelter, I had to photograph them silhouetted against the greenery. A strong silhouette of two strong women.

 I'm most impressed with what this camera club does and how they are so supportive of one another. Along the way I met Len and Jim and Dave and the Bee Man and Lana R. (who knows my student Carol B. in California), Lori F. (who made the drive to the camera club a hilarious one), Donna F., Chris C., Kathy G., Brenda and Don H. (hooray!), and, of course, Jill, June, and Gisela.

I was treated like royalty, was comped numerous meals, made to feel a part of the group, was ferried about, and was nursed back to health when I developed a horrendous cold. Thank you all for your classic southern hospitality. ©Carol Leigh

Photographing in North Carolina

The "girls" took me to a truck dump. My kinda place! Alas, it had apparently been cleaned up since their last visit, but we still found some cool things to shoot, such as this stenciled "keep dry" graphic on a metal container and the side of an old bus. At an old cabin nearby, I found this basket sitting on a shelf. Loved the way the basket stood out against such a dark background. ©Carol Leigh

Meeting some of my online students in person ...

A bunch of us got together at a restaurant where they knew I'd love the texture on the front door. Hoo ha! Panels of embossed metal and lots of rivets. Prime photomontage fodder. At the table I met the shy and retiring Donna F. and her good-looking and smart spouse Wes. Jill, June, Gisela, Chris C., Kathy G. -- and I am sure I am missing someone equally important -- were all there. 

North Carolina light can be quite harsh and contrasty, but, undaunted, we managed to take a few decent shots, such as this piece of equipment at a farm, a rustic wooden door, dried flowers or herbs hanging from a beam, a view of a window through a window, and an old building in Aberdeen. ©Carol Leigh

Home again ...

These past two weeks away from home were crazy! The best part was at the beginning, spending time with the gracious, fun, generous, talented, and slightly insane folks in the Sandhills Photographic Club in North Carolina. I stayed with Gisela the first few days at her house on a lake and felt like I was at a posh resort. I arrived at night (thank you, June, for picking me up at the airport) and so didn't know what was outside Gisela's door until the sky began to turn orange the following morning.  A purple martin nest box silhouetted beautifully against the sky, and then her red canoe at the base of a couple of pine trees caught my eye.

More to follow as I deal with recalcitrant thumb drives, a series of electrical storms, and other little computer challenges at the moment. ©Carol Leigh