I had a special request this month for a beach-oriented calendar, and decided to dust off this classic TD photo from 2007. It’s a sunset on the beach on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
I hope you enjoy this wallpaper calendar for August and hope everyone has a great month!
What better wallpaper for July than a great summertime view from the Blue Ridge Parkway?
The Roy Taylor Forest is a section of the Nantahala Ranger District of Nantahala National Forest that includes the rugged and scenic Tuckasegee Gorge. The Roy Taylor Forest Overlook is at mile post 433 on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Waynesville, NC. At a cool elevation of 5580 feet, a paved path leads to a wooden platform that clings precariously to the mountainside here, with a more or less southwestern view overlooking the Balsams and eventually the Tuckasegee Gorge beyond.
This is a viewpoint that would benefit from some judicious pruning, as the view will soon be choked off by trees unless a helpful wind or ice storm comes along. It was in good form on a summer day last year and yielded this photograph that I hope you enjoy.
I had a different photograph all picked out for this month’s calendar, but this afternoon my June issue of WNC Magazine arrived. In it is a two-page spread with this photo, one of the two images chosen for the newly-revived Vistas feature. It’s pretty special to get a big spread in a great magazine, so I decided I would rather look at this one for the month of June. I hope you agree.
This photo was taken several years ago from Craggy Pinnacle, in Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway just north of Asheville. The vertical version of this is one of my all-time favorites, and now this one is growing on me too.
My friend and mentor Les Saucier frequently asks, “when is the best time to take a horizontal photograph?” To which the proper reply is “just after you’ve taken the vertical.”
My grandmother always used to say that it was bad luck to turn the calendar page ahead of time, but then I always forget to turn it on the first of the month!
It’s hard to believe that yet another month has flown by! I’ve got several more posts in the works but wanted to get this one out, because I know I have a few people looking for it!
This is a photograph of some cascades on Boone Fork, along the Tanawha Trail, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway near Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina.
The traditional adage is “April showers bring May flowers.” Here in the Southeast flowers don’t wait until May. Some of you still have snow on the ground but down here we’ve had our air conditioners tuned up and are ready for Spring. The Dogwood is the Official Flower of North Carolina, although these particular Dogwood were found in Georgia. Hope you enjoy!
March is a month of transition, especially here in the Southeast. We’ve been running around in shorts and flip-flops one day, sweats and boots the next. In just the last few days the signs of Spring have started to appear. A tinge of red on the redbud trees, a few daffodils peeking out of the mulch, and the Bradford Pears are starting to get a little excited. March is a month of Anticipation, so my photo for this month hopefully reflects that theme.
Also, this is the first official new post for my blog at a new location. For those of you following along, please use the RSS links to update your feed, and those following on Facebook through Networked Blogs can just use the “Follow” link. The biggest deal right now is that the Networked Blogs app isn’t playing nice with Facebook’s new secure “https” thing, so if you have to go to regular “http” to get to Networked Blogs you might have to go back and re-set your security settings. Those of you who know what I’m talking about aren’t the ones I’m talking to though, are you?
As with last month, below is an iPad version of the monthly calendar for those of you who are iPad-inclined.
Cypress Tree on Lake Mattamuskeet in Eastern North Carolina
As I was getting ready to publish my wallpaper for February and trying to decide what photo to use, I was going to use another beach photo or a glorious sunrise but thought, “February is a bleak month, I’m going to go bleak.” So I chose a photo that I think represents “bleak.”
“Bleak” might be a little harsh, but unless you happen to live somewhere like Barbados (Hi, Sarah!) February is a month of hopeful anticipation. Here in the southeastern US it’s definitely still winter but there can be signs of spring. The Midwest and Northeast will have snow on the ground for months. So, for February here’s bleak. Tell me if you agree.
Since I now have an iPad I thought I needed to have a matching wallpaper for that, so here is an iPad wallpaper to match the calendar. No calendar on this though, I didn’t want it to get too cluttered up.
iPad Wallpaper – If you have an iPad you should be able to figure out how to save it!
I saw a Facebook post yesterday that asked “As 2010 comes to an end, will you reflect or will you reset?” My thought is that the clock and the calendar continue to move forward, and so should we.
What better way to start the year than with a beautiful sunrise? Chincoteague, VA in November 2010.
Just a little late, but it’s still the 1st! A little holiday spirit for the month, taken on the waterfront in Belhaven, NC – one of my favorite places!
I am now taking orders for my 2011 Photography Calendar – titled “A Year by the Sea.” This calendar contains 12 beautiful photographs from beaches I have visited over the last several years, from Hilton Head, SC to Barbados. You can see a preview of the calendar on my website.
Place your order now for delivery by mid-December – just in time for the holidays! I’ll be taking orders through November 30 at the Paypal link on my blog (top of the right-hand column).
If you would like more than one calendar, please e-mail me for an invoice which I can send you via e-mail. This automates the payment process for me, allows me to collect the sales tax I need to collect, and lets me keep good track of orders.