A Short Vacation to Florida

I hate to miss a sunset. Since we were still on the road to the condo, I got the sunset in the side mirror while Ken was driving.

Then Ken pulled over to the side of the road to get the Choctawhatchee Bay. It is SO much better to take a photo when the car isn't moving, especially when it's dark outside!

Monday morning, this was the sunrise from the balcony of our condo.

And there was a crane or waterfowl of some sort, waiting for his/her breakfast to appear on the morning tide.

This is the view to the West after the sun was starting to rise.

Our good friends, Agi and Bill Vetter (who were in our wedding 12 years ago) washing the sand off their feet. You can see how white the sand is and it's extremely fine. Your feet squeak when you walk on it!

The walkway to the beach ... I love the look of this with the cobblestone walk to the wood of the stairs and the free standing shower. A serene and quiet place with the roar of the surf ever present. A great way to drift off to sleep in the arms of Morpheus, hearing the rhythm of the waves crashing on the beach.

It rained on Wednesday and half of Thursday, but the Pelicans still made their forays down the coast.

And our "goodbye" sunset was tonight with this unbelieveable display of color. So we drive back home to Dallas/Fort Worth and start madly packing for the trip to Japan on Tuesday. Recharged for another cat show!

Sunrise, Sunset

Sunrise, Tuesday, 3 November 2009, looking straight out from the beach.

Sunset, Tuesday, 3 November 2009. Standing on walkway to beach. Clouds make all the difference!

Sunset, 2 Nov 2009. Preston on steps preparing to set up his tripod to photograph the sunset.

Sunset, Monday, 2 November 2009, Blue Mountain Beach, Florida.

One of my favorite shots of Preston photographing the sunrise at Blue Mountain Beach.

Ahh, this was absolutely lovely. This was sunrise at the lake at Grayton State Park on Wednesday, 4 November 2009. We stood on the bridge and photographed the tall pines. This shot was taken before the sun rose and was dark, but turned out to be more than what I originally thought.

Looking West away from the sunrise at the lake in Grayton State Park. We were fortunate to have a full moon for this trip.

Ken doesn't drink beer often, but the first evening we arrived, he enjoyed one. You can see the sunset in the background, reflected in the glass doors.

So that's the end of the First Annual Cat Photographers Creativity Workshop and Retreat!

Anticipation

Double click on image for a larger view:

The stairway to the Gulf from the condo, taken by Ken and me and Kirk and Preston to photograph sunrises, sunsets, and go for walks on the beach. This shot puts a smile on my face. I fed the seagulls from the bottom landing yesterday. What joy. I could almost fly then, myself.

Room with a View

We went to Florida for our Anniversary! Here is the view of the ocean, the Gulf, actually, from our balcony. What a restful, serene place.

And from inside the common room, or living room, looking out the sliding glass doors to the patio. Preston Smith joined us, flew into Fort Walton Airport late Sunday night where we picked him up and brought him back to the condo.

Here's Preston, setting up his tripod, preparing to shoot the sunset from the beach. More to follow, later.

Florida on my mind ...

All photos by Ken Flick in this post

Note in a bottle.

In the ten years since I began photographing cats for a living, our only "vacations" have been a couple of days stolen during the return trip from some cat show destination. Most recently, that involved recovering for two days on the beaches of the Florida panhandle after doing the TICA Annual in Orlando, Florida. Just being there in this, our favorite vacation spot before I became a cat photographer, triggered a flood of memories. This is where Ken and I were married -- barefoot on the beach -- in October of 1998.

Although, as weddings go, we spent very little on this one -- by all accounts of those who attended, this was a celebration that was as cherished a time for them as it was for us.

Our wedding invitation came in a box. Inside the box was a square booklet, hole-punched, with ribbon ties. Inside the booklet were images of the beach, the above note-in-a-bottle picture, our wedding rings, our kitties (on the back of the last page -- why cats? Why not? They were and are a large part of our life!), a map of the area, and words Ken wrote. The booklet was seen as soon as you opened the lid of the box. Once you removed the booklet, you could see the box had compartments.

In these compartments were the following:

(1) a glass test tube with a rubber stopper containing turquoise sea water;

(2) a clear plastic rectangular box containing the white sand that this stretch of Florida is famous for along with some shells and sand dollars we bought at a shell store in Florida during our reconnaissance trip;

(3) a one sheet invitation which we created on brown paper, typed, individualized, and stuffed into a small bottle (a miniature of the one in the photo above); and

(4) an RSVP form with self addressed and stamped envelope to return to us, letting us know if the recipient was planning on attending a week long wedding feast and the ceremony itself. The RSVP also asked what at which airport the invitee would be arriving, date/time, and flight number so we could have them scooped up and delivered to the beach house we rented for a week in Dune Allen Beach.

This wedding invitation box was mailed out to a small number of our old and dear friends across the country. The note in the bottle, above, was printed as the first page of our wedding invitation.

Photo by Ken Flick

Looking down the beach.

Photo by Ken Flick

A shot of the dunes dividing the Gulf (which you can't see) from the lagoon in the foreground.

Photo by Ken Flick

Here is another shot of the dunes from almost the same vantage point but at sunset.

Photo by Ken Flick
One of my favorite shots of Florida: the water and waves.

Photo by Ken Flick
Standing out in the Gulf and shooting back at the beach.

The white sand is so reflective that you can get a sunburn from it in no time if you aren't careful. But it is the sand that gives the water that beautiful jewel-like color and crystal clarity. In the summertime, there are little tiny fish who swim close to shore and nibble at your ankles in the surf. I think they are exfoliating your calves and ankles, or else they are getting food from the sand you've whipped up with your feet as you walk in the water. Once you get past the breakers and are swimming, they don't bother you. One of our close friends is freaked out by them, but to me, they tickle!

Ken and I are looking forward to going back down to this area and celebrating our anniversary, albeit a little late. At sometime in the future, I will photograph the invitation and post it. I am very lucky in that I have a very romantic husband who is also a writer!

Walking on the Beach

The sands of the Florida Panhandle between Pensacola and Panama City are composed of pure quartz and are as white as refined sugar. This gives the water the blue-green cast of the Caribbean Islands. Above is a stretch of this beach just East of where Ken and I got married -- yup, "on the beach." With no shoes. :) It's our favorite vacation spot and where we'd live if we could afford it.

We used to come here several times a year when Ken wrote for a living and we had a lot of leisure time. Not so much, anymore.


This shot of me was taken by Ken. Here you can see a little bit more of the shades of the water closer to shore than in the first shot. We'll be walking on the beach in a few minutes before checking out and heading for my sister's house in New Orleans.