Chateau Chantel By Air

Here is a photo from a long, long time ago (last October….COVID time is like dog time).  I took this while traveling in Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City Michigan.  There are a ton of vineyards, distilleries and places that make hard cider in this area.  Not to mention, it is just beautiful…rolling hills, numerous peninsulas, Lake Michigan as the backdrop, fall color and much more.  It was great getting back up there, since it’s probably been over 10 years since our last visit.  Much too long.

I took this photo looking down on the Chateau Chantel vineyard/winery.  They have an amazing spot, and it is worth a stop.  Plus, the wine is great as well.

Tunnel of Trees

MJ and I are supposed to be in Bermuda…..but COVID messed that up, like it messed up all of 2020.  So, we decided to get away regardless….  Pure Michigan it is!!  We traveled the Lake Michigan coast.  This photo is from inside the Tunnel of Trees which is north of Harbor Springs.

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Grist Mill

Today’s picture is of the Grist Mill in Babcock State Park in West Virginia. We planned this perfectly to capture the fall color change at this spot and of course, it didn’t work out.  As you can see, the color was changing, but we missed the peak fall foliage color.

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Turkish Grand Bazaar

So….I’m sorry that I’ve been absent lately.  MJ and I were on another badly needed adventure with our good friends (Kris and Scott).  I’ll be the first to admit that I needed that time away and I had a great time.  As far as trips go (for us) it was a very relaxed trip.  Lots of naps, down time, sun, a few beers and just fun (no stress) activities. 

We’ve traveled with Kris and Scott many times and they make it easy.  We all get along, enjoy each other’s company and just go with the flow.  I want to thank them and MJ for the wonderful trip.

Anyway, while we were in St. Thomas, Kris found this awesome store called the Turkish Grand Bazaar.  I loved this place.  The store employees were great.  I think they are all family members, but I don’t know that for sure.  We shared, talked and laughed.    They had so many amazing items in this store, MJ and I could have spent a lot of money in that spot.  I loved all the colors, lights, and cool items.  Tonight’s photo is some of the colorful lamps.  I loved them all.

To view a larger version, click here:  https://500px.com/photo/198110491/turkish-grand-bazaar-by-brook-ward?ctx_page=1&from=user&user_id=3695440

Turkish Grand Bazaar

Valley Brook Country Club

Here is another photo from my photo shoot at the beautiful Valley Brook Country Club.  I was honored to be approached by them to photograph their new green, which they’ll open next year.  I thought this photo did a good job of capturing this amazing spot.

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Fall Color In Pittsburgh

Back in October, Brad, Blair and I did some “roof topping” photography.  Jay provided the tip and we took advantage of the information to gain access to a great spot in downtown Pittsburgh looking down on the city.   

As you can see, the fall color was still in effect.  On top of that, it was getting very dark and I used a ND filter, which means I needed a long exposure.  The long exposure created a dreamy sky, smooth river, and light trails from the moving vehicles. 

This was an amazing night and it’s what I love about the fall season.  Warm evenings, wonderful colors and just that relaxing feeling.  Do you like fall?  If so, why?  

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Autumn In The Appalachian Mountains

I realize this isn’t a great photo.  I took this 7 exposure auto-bracketed set hand held and it was windy outside.  So those two factors caused some of the blur effect you see on the image.  Plus the sky was terrible for photography.  It was a bright overcast day with little to no interesting features. 

But as it turns out, I like it.  Plus is reflects what it looks like in the Appalachian Mountains of southern Pennsylvania.  I took this at Seven Springs Resort just prior to participating in a fund raising sporting clay shoot.  I found this spot just before the clay shoot started and liked the vistas.  So now you get to see it too.   Plus my shooting was terrible, so I had to take something positive from the day.

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George Washington Hotel Lobby

This hotel was built in 1923 and designed by famous architect William Lee Stoddart.  Presidents JFK and Harry S. Truman have stayed at the hotel in the past.  There have been a number of music and movie stars who have stayed at the hotel over the years.  Interestingly, the horror film New Terminal Hotel starring Corey Haim (if you can call him a star), was filmed here.  In 2010, local firefighters discovered what they thought was the most grisly murder in Washington in over 35 years.  About 8 hours was spent investigating before authorities discovered it was leftover from the film. 

This picture is from the second level looking down on the lobby.  You can see the full color version below as well.

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Full color version.