A windmill I like, but the background can be busy.   Fog, however, removes that issue for a while.   From late Thursday afternoon in Jonah.

Normally, I’m not a fan of taking photographs in the middle of the day.   The light is often mundane, or harsh, and not in a good way.   That exception comes on days adorned with mist, fog and rain.   Those don’t always pan out, either, but this afternoon was a good one.    Just some photos while taking a drive around the prairie today.  All are close to Taylor. 

While traveling for wildflower photos can be enriching, I also like finding examples close to home, maybe  something that gives you a sense of where we live.   Much of the Blackland Prairie in Texas is farm and ranch country.   You’ll see large swaths of land dedicated to livestock and crop production, but wildflowers sometimes  peacefully coexist with farmland.   This is the Wuthrich Hill area, where  you’ll find Prince of Peace Lutheran Church.  On a recent drive out that way a few days ago I noticed healthy rows of corn beginning to sprout.  Nestled above is a field of bluebonnets.    Just across the road you’ll see wildflowers in bloom on the church grounds, including around the pond.   It took a couple of trips to get what I wanted.  

Spring has arrived on the Blackland Prairie.   Although other photos were taken today, this one, well past sunset in Wuthrich Hill, is one I find soothing.  

Driving through North Williamson County near day’s end on Monday, I did a double take when seeing nature’s gift of light spread across this field.    It was a good thing the road was lightly-traveled.   The scene had everything I like in a landscape…..good earth, good sky, sun-bathed trees, a quiet pond and even a few cows.  These golden moments cry out to be documented.  

This continues my collection of barn photography as seen on  the Blackland Prairie.  Since I began taking photos here in 2009 a number of them  have left us.    Progress (so-called) is taking hold.   It’s important for  me to document these sites before they’re gone.  The ones posted tonight are still with us.  

Every year about this time I aim a camera at red poppies, mostly in Georgetown, where these bloom are cherished.   This is, however, the first time I’ve seen them after a day of needed rain. The flowers are looking quite healthy, drinking in those  raindrops.  Poppies will continue to flourish in the area for a few weeks.   Georgetown’s Red Poppy Festival is celebrated near the end of April. Hopefully, a few will still be around by then.   I wish the city would hold the festival sooner, but it’s always inspiring to see these flowers.   They’re happy blooms.

Rain didn’t damper the enthusiasm of attendees to the 5th Annual Texas Photography Festival, held on the square in Georgetown today.   Formerly the Georgetown Photography Festival, the event was founded by David Valdez, shown in the opening photo, with the Williamson Museum serving as host.  Several photographers from around the state were showing their work at locations around the square.  Attendees enjoyed joining fellow photographers in photo walks around town.  The group was particularly fond of a 1924 Ford Model T on display during Pistons on the Square, a monthly car show in Georgetown.   Although some attendees are full-time working photographers, many were just very serious enthusiasts.   I liked seeing the fellow toting a vintage Yashica Mat, a twin-lens reflex film camera.   I used one of those to shoot high school football games in the early-1970s.   These are just some highlights.  Photography can bring folks together for a common purpose not focused on political discussions.   Politics is important, but space from it can also be healing.

A view of West Davilla Street in downtown Granger on a pleasant evening this week.  Locals know this, but that spire is Saints Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church.  This community of around 1400 residents is quite nice.

It’s been a few years since my last visit to Independence, Texas, a picturesque and historic community in Washington County.  Founded in 1835, it’s  the original site of Baylor University, also the home of Sam Houston and his family for a time in the 1850s.   Like many others I go there to see the wildflowers.   We were fortunate to find a place to park.  I can only imagine what weekends are like when flowers are blooming.   Wildflowers are the draw, but the site is adorned with historic structures.   Sometimes you can go inside these places, but not on the day we were there.   Photographers were everywhere.   That makes perfect sense to me.   Note I don’t usually watermark photos on this site, but this time I did.