Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Museum Center
Union Terminal.
Old Glory hanging proud at the Cincinnati Museum Center. Prior to this building being a museum, it was a train station that saw over 200,000 US troops during WWII. Recently The Museum Center is now planning a tribute to this historic building and it's key role during the second world war.
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Ceder Falls

Cedar Falls
Hocking Hills, Logan Ohio
Image taken on 05/23/09 at Hocking Hills State Park near Logan Ohio. Cedar Falls itself is the greatest waterfall in terms of volume in the Hocking region. Queer Creek tumbles over the face of the Blackhand displaying the awesome force of waterpower. Early white settlers who mistook the stately hemlocks for cedars misnamed Cedar Falls.
This prints is available in my online shop. Below is the following link.
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A Day of Falls. The story behind Clifty Falls and Wild Flower.

The following is the story behind my prints “Clifty Falls” and “Wild Flower”. Some of the other images may be also available for prints later.




Clifty Falls State Park is located in the quaint town of Madison Indiana. Madison has that small town feel and within the city limits is Clifty Falls. Clifty Falls State Park is a unique Park that has many waterfalls concentrated in a small area. The landscape of Clifty Falls reminds me of the Red River Gorge in Kentucky, and if you compare the pictures from my previous Gorge stories perhaps you may agree.


My trip to Clifty Falls was a spur of the moment decision. I gathered up my camera gear and made the hour and a half trip to Madison. The trip was nice because I didn’t have to take any high ways. US Route 50, to IN 421, to IN 56 was an all rural drive and many of the farmers fields were blanketed with purple wild flowers as far as the eye can see. This route would be a perfect trip for the motorcycle enthusiasts.
I arrived in Madison Indiana, and became somewhat lost. For a state park with many waterfalls, the park wasn’t marked very well. I stopped in a Red Cross located on the main strip of this beautiful town, and talked to a very nice lady who assisted me in finding the park I traveled to see. She was extremely nice and her hospitality definitely matched the look of the town. If you are ever in the area I highly recommend visiting Madison and of course the park.



After getting directions, I made my way on Route 56 to Clifty Falls State Park. As I was driving through the park I was greeted by two different water falls along the road. These waterfalls to me were a good sign.
As I was driving along the road I saw a sign to the trailhead leading to Hoffman Falls. I saw a wooden board walk and decided to not take my trekking pole assuming this was going to be an easy trail. I was kinda wrong.



A very short distance on the boardwalk I saw Hoffman Falls. I wasn’t thrill about the shot so I continued along the boardwalk that eventually turned into stone steps that eventually turned into a trail full of roots and rocks descending a fairly steep angle. It was at this point where I began regretting my decision to not bring my trekking pole. This hike wouldn’t have seemed a treacherous to me if I didn’t have my good tripod attached to my big camera backpack.

I call this my good tripod, because it is my most expensive one I own. This tripod is rugged and made well. The bad thing about this nice durable tripod is that it is HEAVY and was the majority of the weight I was lugging.
I got to the bottom of the trail and noticed that the trail turned away from the falls. I then looked to my right and saw another trail with a big wooden sign that read “NO HIKERS BEYOND THIS POINT”.
Now, to some this sign says “don’t go this way”. To me and other fellow photographers I know this signs means, “Go This Way To Get Good Shots!” I’ll leave it to you all to guess which way I took.

I started my way along the trail that ran along the creek towards the falls. My really nice tripod kept reminding me it was there by the weight and the fact that every tree and vine felt that they needed to grab onto the head of the tripod and create problems. It was at this point that I had a great idea, (a rarity usually). The tripods center comes out to form a telescopic monopod, and this monopod I found out also doubles as a hell of a hiking staff. So with some of the weight off my back and the part that was catching on branches was now my hiking staff I had more stability which I definitely needed. This “unofficial trail” sometimes led into the creek, across it and then back across it.
My labor was beginning to get some rewards was I approached this first set of three small waterfalls.


I took several pictures of these three falls waiting for the clouds to go over the sun to give me less light to prevent over exposure. I knew after taking these first shots I was going to get some good waterfall shots.

After taking several shots of the above three waterfalls, I continued along the creek and took another small waterfall shown below.



I then began walk again through the maze of downed trees and rock to finally get to my destination of Hoffman Falls. In my opinion, I liked all the smaller falls better than Hoffman Falls which is pictured below.



I began to make my way back the way I came across the falls that was the rear one of the first picture I took of falls. I was too lazy to take my tripod off, so I attached my camera to my hiking staff and actually used it as a monopod.
Moving on along the unofficial trail I kept seeing these green and white wild flowers that to me resembled lilies.


I spent some time getting shots of these wild flowers and below is the print “Wild Flower” that is available for sale in my Etsy shop.



After shooting some pics of these flowers I looked down at my watch and double timed back to my truck so I could get some pics of Clifty Falls itself. The ascent up this trail was a tiring one because I was carrying way too much weight, and I am way too out of shape. Out of breath I made it back to my truck and began my journey down the road to shoot Clifty Falls.

After huffing and puffing along the creek of Hoffman Falls, I assumed that Clifty Falls would be an easy hike. It wasn’t.
After pulling into the lot I hiked to the familiar looking board walks that went over Small Clifty (a separate waterfall) and saw Clifty Falls aka Big Clifty. As I was walking along the boardwalk I looked down at the falls and noticed people down there. It was then I thought, “I must get down there by any means necessary.” I saw three separate falls all in one general area. This area was a gorge where the falls all fed into a creek below.

The board walk connected with a trail simply called “Trail 7”. I followed Trail Seven then walked down 5 man made steps made of large rocks. It was somewhere along here I went from Trail 7 to one of those “Unofficial Trails”.
After going down the stone steps I saw the edge of another water fall that was somewhat caddy corner from Small Clifty Falls. I looked over the stream of water to a trail that went on the other side. I waded through the edge of the falls to the trail and continued along this trail. It became obvious to me that I was no longer on Trail 7 because I was way too close to the edge of a cliff for this to be an official trail.

Some would see this as a hint that this perhaps wasn’t a real trail by the ruggedness and the potential to fall 4 stories to a rocky bottom. My determination to get to the bottom superseded common sense and I continued along this “trail”. After risking my life a few times slipping, and getting the top of my damn tripod caught on vines and branches, I looked down and saw a pair of someone’s shorts hanging on a branch. This pair of shorts marked a trail that led down into the gorge where I wanted to go. But before I was to get to the beginning of this trail I had to scurry down a 6 foot cliff that had ridges for foot holds.

I made my way down this cliff on my ass and was at the “trail marker” and the trail that led down. At first I was happy at the poor soul that sacrificed his shorts to mark the trail. Then as I slipped and slided down the almost the 45 degree angle “trail” I wanted to hang the SOB with those shorts.

After making it down in somewhat one piece I passed the first unknown falls that I originally crossed unsafely at the top and made my way to shoot Small Clifty Falls. Like Hoffman Falls, the entire area was littered with trees. It looked like an obstacle course and if I wasn’t climbing over down trees, I was walking over slippery rocks and crossing the creek over and over. Some parts of this creek were knee deep and would obviously go over my waterproof boots. I constantly had to pick routes over the creek that were somewhat shallow and after having to backtrack a few times I finally got to the spot of Small clifty where I wanted to shoot. I walked up from the creek a little to look for a decent shot of the falls. I tried climb up a four foot tall boulder to some solid ground, when what was bound to happen well…happened.

I fell.

As I was trying to climb up this boulder, I plunged my trekking pole into what I though was solid ground, it wasn’t. The trekking pole slipped off the rock and caused me to lose my footing and I fell four feet into the creek bed landing on my left arm. I felt pain upon impact on my arm, knee and either a rock or branch that collided onto my left ass cheek ripping my pants.

I then rolled over stood up in pain check to make sure my camera was ok. (Notice where my priorities were). The camera was still in my bag on my back and the padding did its job. As far a me I was ok and suffered only minor cuts in bruises. After dusting myself off still a little rattled I set up my tripod and camera and took the below shot of Small Clifty Falls.




After taking a few shots I attempted to walk along (sometimes into the creek towards Big Clifty Falls). I tried several different ways along all the downed trees and rocks nearly breaking my ankle several times. It was at this point where common sense finally succeeded convincing me to make my way back to the top of the Gorge.

Being that the only way I knew to go up was the way I came down. I made the exhausting and dangerous way up the 45 degree angle incline to that dreaded pair of shorts that was the trail marker. I shortened my trekking pole that is telescopic to use more as a climbing tool and stabbed my way uphill. I was somewhat relieved when I made it up to the trail marker, and then I realized I had one more major obstacle to climb. I had to climb up the 6 foot cliff I previously scurried down. The cliff was wet and muddy and had to really take my time climbing up this cliff. I’m not much of a climber, but being I had no real choice I had to climb. The previous fall made me extra careful and with a small adreline dump I made my way up. I treaded slowly along the Cliffside trail and back across the top of the falls. I was happy to be back on Trail 7 again and made it back to the wood boardwalk.

Before going back to my truck tired, in pain, and discouraged that I didn’t get more shots down in the gorge, I decided to stop off at the observation point and finally shoot Clifty Falls, one of the main reasons I went down there in the first place. I made my way down the boardwalk to a manicured observation point and shot the below print available in my shop of Clifty Falls.




The above image is actually only the top part of Clifty Falls, but is a good shot and I seeing it as completing my objective.

It was a day of some good shots, and a lesson in not biting off more than you can chew. There is a saying that God looks after children and fools, and he was definitely looking after this fool that day.

Regardless I do plan visiting this gorge to shoot again, but this time ill bring a piece of paper called A MAP!!!

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A Return to the Gorge. Stories behind my prints "Creation Falls 2", "A Serene Place", and "Red River Gorgeous."

The following story is the story behind my prints...




On a cold April day, I decided to thumb my nose at the weather, and return to a favorite area of my, The Red River Gorge. It was roughly a year ago that day when I was there and back then it was a high of 81 degrees that day and sunny.

This wasn’t one of those days.

It was struggling to make it to 50 degrees and a pale, drab, gray sky. The one thing about this trip I could say was good was that it had a 70% chance of rain, and I somehow escaped it. What made this trip unique was that this was the first time I was to visit this place alone. Since the skies were to remain gray, I decided to make this day trip one dedicated to waterfalls. There were a few waterfalls I knew about, and I made it my primary agenda too seek out these falls and shoot them.

With a slight drizzle on and off on the trip down, the threat of rain seemed to stop when I arrived there at the usual time it takes to drive down there, almost 2 hours even. Like I always do, I went to the usual small camping store to purchase my back country day pass. After I left the store, I turned onto route 77 which goes through the bottom part of Red River Gorge that eventually winds upward to the ridge area.

I started my trek along Route 77 specifically looking for an unnamed water fall located close to the roadway. Due to the recent rains, I knew I was going to see waterfalls with some good current cascading down. As I meandered through the serpent like road after several miles I finally spotted my first waterfall destination. This specific waterfall from the quick research I have done has no name. When I hiked there in my 20’s we used to use this waterfall as a shower, because the water is clean and cool. When hiking in 90 degree weather this waterfall revives you with an indescribable feeling of energy and cleanliness. Apparently we weren’t the only ones who used it as a waterfall due to the several bars of soap that were located at the bottom of the falls.

The below image and Etsy listing is of the first falls I shot. I call it “A Serene place” because of the feeling of serenity I always feel when seeing this waterfall.
After taking some shots of the falls located off of Route 77, I continued on the road to make my way up towards the ridge section of Red River Gorge on my way to the Rock Bridge Trail to shoot Creation Falls.

As I arrived at the Rock Bridge Trail parking area, I heard sounds of chainsaws. Several workers from The Department of Forestry were near the trail head sawing blow downs from trees that were damaged and knocked down from the ice storms from the previous winter. My concern that the trailhead was closed was relived when I saw the trail head open. I gathered my hiking and camera gear and began my way down the beautiful Rock Bridge Trail. Most of this trail is paved so it is a very easy trail to hike. I began my decent and noticed the steps carved into the sandstone.


This trail has to be one of the greenest trails in Red River Gorge. The Rock Bridge Trail is full of giant White Pines, Eastern Hemlocks, Oaks, and Cucumber Magnolia Trees. As I continued down the trail I could hear the loud rushing of water, knowing that Creation Falls was going to be larger than the last time I saw it. As I arrived at Creation Falls I was greeted with the magnificent waterfall roaring. My happiness then got somewhat hindered when I noticed a few trees blown down on top and in front of the falls. I however didn’t let it discourage me, and began shooting.




My Etsy listing Creation Falls 2 was taken. Below are both listings Creation Falls taken in April of 2008, and Creation Falls 2 in April of 2009 at almost the exact same spot. As you can easily notice the difference in amount of water falling.


After taking many shots of the falls, I continued along the trail to the Rock Bridge. Rock Bridge is a natural Arch that has actual water running through. This is apparently rare in the eastern United States.

I passed The Rock Bridge and stopped to take a few images on the end of it. Every time I am at this specific location I can’t help to take a picture of this Hemlock that winds against the bridge itself. The images below are of the tree and the end of the Rock Bridge. An amazing combination of trees and stone.I then made my way back up the trail and as I arrived to a viewing area I had to take another picture of the steps carved into the sandstone.


As I got to the top of this viewing area I scurried down a little unofficial trail which gave me a nice view of all the White Pines and Eastern Hemlocks. The view reminded me of pictures I have seen of the woodlands in Maine.


As I arrived back to my truck I felt good that I was able to get two at of three shots so far. My next destination was to shoot a known climbers area in an area of private land close to Natural Arch named Torrent Falls.

On my way to Torrent Falls I saw a sign advising of a lake called Mill Creek Lake, as I was passing I saw a another unexpected falls and a area of rapids. I backed up and pulled into the lot to take some images of this area.

After taking a few shots of this roaring falls and rapids, I continued to go to my next and final destination Torrent Falls. As I arrived at the falls I noticed a stunning horseshoe shaped canyon with a waterfall in the middle. The employees at Torrent Falls are very nice and allowed me full access to the canyon. They even offered me a helmet if I wanted to climb the ladders closer to the top. I politely declined accenting up the canyon because I had a heavy tripod and don’t really consider myself good at climbing.

I did however it a really nice shot of the canyon itself. The below pic is my etsy listing “Red River Gorgeous”. I call this print this because wants in the picture is everything in the Gorge I love. The sandstone walls, the large rocks, the evergreen trees, and the water. Unfortunately the falls is not in the below print.


After taking an overall picture of the area I approached the falls itself to take a few shots. It was tough to get the shot I wanted but was able to get a few images. I’m not overly thrilled with these shots, but it is what it is.




I considered the day a success. It didn’t rain and found a bonus waterfall I wasn’t expecting. I look forward to going down there again soon on a sunny day to get some good panoramic shots. This trip was another one I will remember, and am happy with the shots I got.

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Old Man River. The story behind my print, "The Walking Trees."

The following, is the story behind my print "The Walking Trees" that is featured in my shop.


This story also features my prints, The 'ol Ohio, and Sycamores which were also taken at Fernbank Park and are also available in my shop.




Since I was a child I went to Fernbank Park along the Ohio River. This park has a lot of significance because it was where my grandfather first took my mother fishing when she was a child, where my stepfather shows his cars at car shows, and where I often take my son to run amok and play on their very nice playground. Even though you can't tell, both below images of my son playing, and the wedding picture were both taken at Fernbank Park.

















Fernbank park is located on the West Side of Cincinnati along the Ohio River. Years ago, Fernbank Park began falling into disrepair until Hamilton County took the park over as part of the Hamilton County Park District. With the county taking it over, they applied and received grants. The park is now a fantastic place to take your family, run, bike, fish, walk your dog(s), etc.

The area of the park has many sycamore trees around the park. It was winter when I took the below image, and I love how the whiteness of the bark of the trees contrasts well with the blue sky once converted to black and white.
Along a walkway that loops the entire area of a park is a small (unofficial) trail which leads down to the river itself. This area is a popular area for fishing because of a sunken barge at the waters edge that works as a good cover for fish. Because of it being at the waters edge and the rising and falling of the river level, the soil eroded around the trees exposing their roots. You would think this would damage the trees however, these trees have been here for many, many years, and have adapted to their environment.



Every time I am down there at that location of the park, I can't help to take many pictures of these unique trees. The following below pictures are from that area along the Ohio river.





The reason the following print is title "the Walking Trees" is because to me the trees look as if they uprooted themselves and are creeping along like a spider.




The one thing you can't help to notice is the level of erosion that has occurred over the years considering at one time the roots were covered with soil.
I love this park and see myself and my family enjoying it for many years to come.
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Horses and Halloween. The story behind my print, "A Mothers Love."

The following is the story behind my print, "A Mothers Love" which is available in my shop http://www.12step.etsy.com/.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=22003485

Halloween was a nice mild one last year. The day called for clear skies and perfect weather in the evening for my three year old son to go trick or treating. We had all day to spend as a family and with my newly acquired Canon Rebel EOS XS digital camera we decided to travel down to Lexington Kentucky and visit the Kentucky Horse Park.


The Kentucky Horse Park has had horses on their land for over 200 years. There are many activities and is a very family friendly place. The park is home to some of the most famous racehorses in the world, and is the final resting place for racehorses, including the world famous Man o War.


When we arrived at the park the trees were beautifully colored in fall foliage. My anxious three year old was anxious to run around and explore the vast expanses of the park and to check out some of it's residents.






The day could not have been more perfect. Clear skies, warm weather, and few people we felt we had exclusive rights to the entire park. Close to the entrance of the park is a beautiful fountain/tomb and a stunning memorial to the world famous race horse Man o War. Man o Wars lifetime record was 21 starts with 20 wins and a second place and he retired as the leading money winner in America at the time. He set 8 records, 3 world records, 2 American records, and 3 track records and broke most by several seconds. The fountain definitely expresses the greatness of this legendary horse.





As we continued through the park we went into several different stables with many different breeds of horses. My son had a blast haying hi at the horses, and I believe the horses were as amused as he was. My son would go right up to the fence to check out the horses, and the horses came right up to the fence to check out him.

























After my son and these two horses got to know each other, we continued along the fence which connected to one of many stables throughout the park. As we approached the stable we were able to pets a few horses, including one miniature. The first thing I noticed was that the miniature horse was separated by a fence from the other horses. As the miniature horse made his way down the fence, it seems as if he was introducing himself to the other horses.




As the miniature horse continued along the fence he came to a pale colored horse. This is when I took the original shot that became my print titled "A Mothers Love". Yes as you can realize, the horses arnt even related, however the shot reminded me of the affection and love a mother has for her child. Below is the original unedited image and below that is the final edited one.





After spending the day at this wonderful park, we drove back home to Cincinnati, rested a little, then got my son ready to do some trick or treating.


In case any of you are wondering, my son was a blue monster for Halloween.






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Crazy From the Heat. The story behind the prints "Canoes At The Waterfront" and "Bridge of Ferns."

The following story is how I shot both of my prints "Canoes At The Waterfront" and Bridge of Ferns."



Auguest of 2008 was a busy month. With a very frantic wife planning our wedding, once it came and went, we both were very anxious to enjoy our honeymoon. We honeymooned on Marco Island Florida which is a island a stones throw away from Naples Florida on the Gulf side. We had a week to enjoy and we both felt we did a pretty good job doing so.

One day we both took a some time to do our own thing. My wife enjoyed a day of shopping in the Naples area and I decided to do two things I enjoyed, hiking and taking pictures.

I have always been fascinated with the Everglades. The Everglades is a mere 20 minutes from the island, and after seeing one of my favorite photographers Clyde Butcher's work, I was dying to see the same area and take some images.

I dressed lightly for hiking. I don't think I really need to explain what the temperature is like in the Everglades in late Auguest. In case you don't know I can sum it up in three words, HOT and HUMID. I sprayed a lot of bug spray on me, grabbed some water, my small Fuji FinePix F-480 Point and shoot camera, and hopped in the rental car and did the quick drive into the Everglades on State Route 41. A few days previous we both drove on Route 41 which from Naples will take you right into Miami straight through the Everglades. We spent the day in South Beach, hated it, and returned right back to Marco Island. The one thing I did enjoy about the trek to Miami was the beautiful, and to me intriguing Everglades. So now by myself, I was about to enjoy the Everglades.

I unfortunately did not have all day so I was unable to really drive deep into the Everglades. I was however able to get a taste of it, and I found that taste at Collier Seminole State Park.


As I drove into the park, I paid a small admission fee, and found a place to park. After a few minutes of driving, I found a lake and parked in a area next to it. I place two water bottles in each side pocket and did a stroll around the lake. It was here where I found the reptile, a large reptile, that Florida is known for.


The above image does not do this gator justice. This gator was about 12 feet long. And I was about 30 feet from this fella until I realized he was well....30 feet from me. There are two things about Florida that amaze me, especially because I am a Ohio suburbanite.

1) Gators in Florida are usually not in a zoo, and there are no barriers between you and them.

2) Floridans casual nonchalant attitude and acceptance that these gators are just simply part of the whole package of the environment. (Note: This gator is in front of a lake that offers canoeing.)

After I took the above image, I respectfully backed away and continued in the opposite direction along the lake. As I was walking, I realized one major mistake I made. I did not bring nearly enough water. As a wedding gift, my wife bought me a nice watch that had a altimeter, compass, barometer, and thermometer. I was hot, and was curious to how hot it actually was. My watch said it was 102 degrees and the humidity was oppressive. Fortunately my interest out weighed my discomfort so I continued around the lake. As I approached around the corner I saw some yellow canoes upside down on sawhorses and took a few pictures of them.

The below picture is the unedited image that originally became my print Canoes On The Waterfront.


The Image below is my popular print Canoes At The Waterfront that is available for sale in my shop at http://www.12step.etsy.com/.



After taking the above image, I noticed a trail head into the treeline. I downed my first bottle of water and started my journey on the trail. It didn't take me long to realize that mosquito repellent is pretty useless against the ruthless Everglades misquotes. I found it best to NEVER stop walking for more than 5 seconds. Because the Everglades is a swamp, trails rarely are without boardwalks. About half of the trail was under water hence the requirement of boardwalks.



As I was walking down the trail, I was immediately drawn to a stunning display of ferns growing on a tree. Hot, thirsty, and being assulted my misquotos I hastely took many pictures of this fern coverd tree. Below, is the orginal image of my print titled, Bridge of Ferns.


The below image is the finished print Bridge of Ferns also available in my shop at http://www.12step.etsy.com/.





After taking pictures of this tree, I was out of water, hot, and developing a headache from the heat. I also had to get back to shower and take my new wife out to dinner. I wished I had more time to explore the fascinating environment of the Everglades, but I was grateful to have the experience. I look forward to going there again soon in the near future, with my new equipment, and MORE WATER!!!

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