Tag Archives: Fuji X-T4

A Visit To The Dali’ Museum – St. Petersburg

January 28, 2022 Tom Dills 2 Comments

The Helical Staircase in The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida

Despite being a photographer for years, I’ve never had much more than a passing interest in art, and artists, in general. Sure, I’m aware of a lot of the famous names. We’ve attended galleries and shows, and even a few art auctions on cruise ships.

The Dalí (Salvador Dalí Museum). St. Petersburg, Florida

After visiting The Dali’ – the museum dedicated to art by Salvador Dali’ – I now know that Dali’ was much more than the guy with the weird mustache that painted even weirder pictures. After reading and learning about the surrealist movement and the motivations and inspirations behind it, it starts – starts – to make a bit more sense. I have to believe that substances of some kind must have been involved.

“The Hallucinogenic Toreador” The Dalí (Salvador Dalí Museum). St. Petersburg, Florida

The Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. The Dalí (Salvador Dalí Museum). St. Petersburg, Florida

“The Ecumenical Council” The Dalí (Salvador Dalí Museum). St. Petersburg, Florida

Admittedly, though, seeing Dali’s art in person doesn’t really make it easier to understand or explain the imagination that must have been crucial to developing the ideas and concepts that resulted in this work. But that is what genius is.

We missed by a week being able to see work by another famous artist – Picasso. A Picasso exhibition was opening the week after our visit. That would also have been interesting, but will have to wait for another time.

Dali’s Galacidalacidesoxiribunucleicacid (Homage to Crick and Watson). The Dalí (Salvador Dalí Museum). St. Petersburg, Florida

Visiting both the Dali’ and the Chihuly museums is a strong reminder that there are lots of fine and worthy galleries everywhere. Charlotte even has a number of them, and we need to keep that in mind as we think about things to do and places to go.

One of the other positive things I found in both museums is that in each of them, signs said that “Photography is encouraged!” Of course they want you to tag them on social media, but that’s OK. It was a welcome approach in this age of restrictions and paranoia.

Travel

Dale Chihuly: A Master Of Glass

January 23, 2022 Tom Dills 4 Comments

Glass works by Dale Chihuly at The Chihuly Collection at the Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, Florida

One of the highlights of our visit to St. Petersburg was The Chihuly Collection, part of the Morean Arts Center. I’ve been familiar with Chihuly’s works for years, of course, having seen pieces in several locations throughout the country. There was an exhibit in Asheville some time ago, but we didn’t make it to that one. Our most familiar example is the ceiling in the visitor center at Makers Mark Distillery in Kentucky.

I suppose all of Chihuly’s works are portable in some way, although the large chandeliers and huge static pieces would require a bit of planning, effort and logistics. It was nice to see such a nice selection all in one place.

One tip I learned at the Dali’ museum (which we visited before this but I’m going out of order) was to be sure and watch the video presentations. Although the video room at The Chihuly Collection comes near the end of the exhibit, it is still worth taking the time to learn more about the person and the process, both the artistic process as well as the actual making of the art. Quite the place!

Travel

Exploring St. Petersburg, Florida

January 22, 2022 Tom Dills 4 Comments

Monument commemorating The St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line, the world’s first airline. On the pier in St. Petersburg, Florida

As I mentioned in a previous post, once we found out that our cruise had been cancelled, we began looking for something interesting to do for a few days. We originally looked into a beach resort, but the temperature forecast – while warmer than North Carolina and a lot warmer than places farther north – did not seem to us to be warm enough for beach time. Maybe it was just a letdown from not being able to go to Cozumel? 😉

Railing shadows. St. Petersburg, Florida

We settled on St. Petersburg for a number of reasons. We had never been there, it is on the water (Tampa Bay), has a number of interesting museums and looked to have some interesting restaurants. We found a Hampton Inn right downtown near the waterfront for a reasonable price, and headed that way after our time in Lake Wales.

We found St. Petersburg to be a youngish town, and in a lot of ways it reminds me of Fort Collins, but with water instead of mountains, sandals instead of hiking boots. There is a vibrant arts scene there, plenty of public space, a good selection of restaurants of all kinds, and a pretty open and accepting mindset toward people of all kinds, ages and preferences. We really felt welcome there.

Teak Restaurant. On the pier in St. Petersburg, Florida

Mural at the St. Pete Sailing Center. St. Petersburg, Florida

Duke Energy Center For The Arts. St. Petersburg, Florida

After visiting a town, Kathy & I often wonder aloud about how it would be to live there. The downtown area has plenty of condos and apartments, and there were at least two grocery stores within easy walking distance of our motel. With the restaurants, shops, waterfront and museums, there would be plenty to keep anyone occupied. Of course we aren’t looking to relocate, but the hypothetical is still interesting. It looks like it would be pretty expensive, and one of the things we love about where we are is that it is not expensive, which allows us to do the travel we do. So we visit!

This boat owner is not going to be happy! Pelicans. St. Petersburg, Florida

Wild Nanday Parakeets In St Petersburg, Florida

I’ll write separately about the museums, but wanted to share a few of the photos I made while wandering around the town on our various outings. We had lovely weather which helped a lot. There is nothing like a blue sky and sunshine to provide a feeling of warmth, especially when it is 25 degrees with snow on the ground as I write this!

Fountain in South Straub Park. St. Petersburg, Florida

Internationally renowned artist and Tampa Bay native Janet Echelman has created one of her famous billowing net sculptures to dazzle Pier visitors. “Bending Arc” measures a massive 76 feet at its highest point and 428 feet at its widest and is perpetually in motion with the wind. The artist titled the sculpture Bending Arc in reference to MLK’s words: “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” St. Pete Pier, St. Petersburg, Florida

Skyline from the Teak Restaurant on the pier in St. Petersburg, Florida

Mural at the Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, Florida

Travel

In Lake Wales, Florida: Bok Tower Gardens

January 21, 2022 Tom Dills 6 Comments

The Singing Tower. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

We had driven past the entrance to Bok Tower Gardens several times, but it took us until the 4th visit to our friends Bill and Cathy to actually get there. It is quite a beautiful place!

Door detail. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida. Edward Bok’s grave is marked by the flower basket

Sundial – what time is it? Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

The tower and gardens are the creation of Edward Bok, who was editor of the magazine The Ladies Home Journal. Ed gets most of the credit, although it appears that the money actually came from his wife, Mary Louise Curtis Bok. Mary Louise was the only child of newspaper and magazine magnate Cyrus H.K. Curtis, founder of, among other publications, The Ladies Home Journal (coincidence? 😉 ). With her daddy’s money Mary Louise founded the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She also did a lot of other good and charitable work, especially toward supporting talented young musicians.

Entry flower display. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

Bamboo. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

The tower and gardens are on the National Register of Historic Places and the grounds were designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, Jr., son of Frederick Law Olmstead, Sr., known for his work with the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC, Central Park in New York City and other important landmarks.

Photo spot. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

In 1925, Bok decided build a stone water-and-bell tower. He hired architect Milton B. Medary to design “the most beautiful tower in the world”. The 60-bell carillon occupies only the top of the Singing Tower, some of the rest contained large water tanks to irrigate the gardens, with Bok’s baronial study at the base. The 15-foot-wide moat surrounding the tower’s base now serves as a koi pond.

The Gothic Revival tower was built at the highest elevation of the site, south of a reflecting pool that reflects its full image. The tower is 51 feet square at its base, changing at the height of 150 feet to an octagon, with each of the eight sides 37 feet wide. It is built of pink Etowah marble and gray Creole marble, mined in Tate, Georgia, and coquina stone from St. Augustine, Florida.

The tower’s 60-bell carillon was cast by Taylor & Company, of Loughborough, England. The bell chamber is on the eighth floor of the tower, and just below it is a playing room that houses the clavier, or keyboard, that controls the bells. The bells are stationary, only the clappers move to sound them. The sixth floor is a studio for the carillon player. Recitals are given daily. We got to hear one of the recitals, with the carillonneur easily viewed via video feed to a sitting area within view of the tower.

Peace Lantern. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

Gate detail. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

We were very thankful to have visited the tower and gardens on a day that was relatively cool, with low humidity. I can only imagine how warm and sticky it would get on a sunny day, especially in summer.

For anyone wishing to figure out the sundial, we visited on January 9. By following the instructions below the dial, it is pretty easy to calculate the (approximate) time. Yes, the answer can be found in my metadata (convert from GMT). 🙂

I haven’t felt especially wordy lately so I haven’t been posting much. But I did finish processing the photos from our recent visit to Florida. I have posted a gallery on Adobe Portfolio of a selection of all of my photos from this trip.

Travel

Making The Best Of It

January 16, 2022 Tom Dills 4 Comments

Frog fountain. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

So what do you do when you’re in Florida for a cruise and the cruise is cancelled? Well, for Kathy & me, we find something else to do! We had already been planning to visit our friends Bill & Cathy, who spend the winter in a community near Lake Wales. Our original plans called for us to visit them after our cruise, so we called them and said, “guess what?” They were somewhat relieved that we would not be coming to visit them after having spent a week on a Covid-infested cruise ship, even though we had planned to take a test after getting off the ship.

We were able to shift our motel reservation to a week earlier than our original plan, then take a few days there to decide what to do with our newfound time (and money). Since the cruise line cancelled the cruise, they are going to refund all of our money PLUS give us the equivalent amount in credit toward a future cruise. A deal for us – we get a few days in Florida and still get a free cruise in the future! Some strings are attached, of course, but nothing we can’t deal with.

We decided to play tourist in Lake Wales while we were there. We visited the Bok Tower Gardens, a relatively famous landmark that we had heard about but never visited. We stopped by the Florida’s Natural Visitor Center and learned about the history of Florida Orange Juice. Who knew?

Door detail. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida

So what to do? We looked at the weather forecast and decided that it was just going to be too cool to head to a beach resort somewhere. Yes, the temperatures were forecasted to be in the upper 60s to low 70s, which is warm if you are coming from Minnesota or Canada, but for us thin-blooded North Cackalackians it just wasn’t warm enough! We settled on a few days in St. Petersburg, another town we had heard about but never visited.

Over the course of three days in St. Petersburg, we visited the Salvador Dali’ museum, the Chihuly Glass Collection at the Morean Arts Center, and generally wandered around town exploring.

Glass blowing demonstration at the Morean Glass Studio, part of the Morean Arts Center in St. Petersburg, Florida

On our way home we stopped by Ocala and visited the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing, and were even treated to a “Big Daddy” sighting!

Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing in Ocala, Florida

We’re home now and watching an assortment of winter weather passing through the area. Yes, it might be warmer if we had stayed in Florida, but it is nice to be home in our house any time. We’re well stocked and shouldn’t have to leave the house for a few days. So it can snow/sleet/freezing rain all it wants – the sun will probably be back out tomorrow then it can be almost spring! 🙂

Photography

Things We See

January 5, 2022 Tom Dills 10 Comments

Gridwork on the canopy of the Solarium area of Harmony of the Seas

When we travel I seldom go anywhere without my camera. Even in our hotel at breakfast I sometimes manage to find some interesting things to aim my camera at. One morning on our recent cruise I walked around the ship, looking for interesting little scenes. The car I posted at Christmas was an obvious subject, but sometimes it is the not-so-obvious things that make the most interesting photographs. I’m often aware of people looking at me and wondering what I am taking a picture of. Sometimes they ask.

The Daytona, Autograph Collection hotel in The Shops at One Daytona, Daytona Beach, Florida

Zoltar. Boardwalk on Harmony of the Seas

Travel

Cars On Cruise Ships

December 23, 2021 Tom Dills 6 Comments

Jaguar XK120 in the Royal Promenade of Harmony of the Seas

Many of the larger Royal Caribbean ships have an inside area known as the ‘Royal Promenade.’ It’s actually an indoor space lined with shops, restaurants and bars. Often there is a British pub, and to go with that theme there is usually a sports car parked somewhere along the way. Such was the case on Harmony of the Seas.

If my research is correct, this is either a 1954-ish Jaguar XK-120 or a really nice replica. In the “correct” color, too! 🙂 It seemed to be missing some key components, such as door handles and a license plate holder, and I couldn’t tell if there was a motor in it or not. And of course the cockpit was filled with Christmas presents so I couldn’t check out the interior! It may be a replica but was still a pretty sweet car. You could keep all those boxes and give me the car, and that would make for a pretty nice Christmas gift! 🙂

Travel

Back At Sea!

December 20, 2021 Tom Dills

Sky Princess departing Cozumel, Mexico at sunset

Kathy & I spent last week on our first cruise in nearly 2 years, aboard Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas out of Port Canaveral. It felt good to get back on the water and we had a great time.

There has been a lot of sensationalistic reporting in the media about cruising, with much hype around the occasional rare but real report of some kind of outbreak. Covid is only the latest hand-wringer. I’ve said for years that cruise ships have been among the cleanest places we’ve visited. They have always been very vigilant about cleaning in an effort to reduce the spread of all kinds of passenger-borne bugs. A report of an outbreak of any kind is fresh meat for a media looking for anything to wring their hands over. Yes, it happens. But relax. It was fun. Yes, we had to take a Covid test before we left home. Yes, we had to wear a mask on occasion. But we have to do that at home anyway, and it was a lot warmer in Cozumel than it is back here in NC! 😉

We paid a visit to Kennedy Space Center before the cruise. I took a few photos and will have more to share over the next few days.

Photo Project: 50 States

A Treasure Trove Of Memories

December 8, 2021 Tom Dills 8 Comments

The Vermont Toy Museum, located in Quechee Village, Vermont

As promised in a previous post, here is a selection of my photos from the Vermont Toy Museum in Quechee Gorge Village near Hartford, Vermont. The museum’s website is down, possibly due to the recent AWS issues, but I got the following from Atlas Obscura:

Nestled above a charming general store near the Quechee Gorge, the Vermont Toy Museum’s vast collection of dolls, action figures, lunchboxes, yo-yos, and matchbox cars is a hidden treasure right off the White River Junction. Around 100,000 toys are housed inside the museum.

The museum’s items largely came from members of the local community. They were collected and compiled decade-by-decade, which displays the evolution of toys and games from the 1950s to the present day. Though it’s unknown who operates and maintains the museum, it’s closely watched by the employees at the downstairs Cabot Cheese Store and the antique mall next door.

The museum also houses an intricate model train exhibit that takes visitors through the four seasons of the Green Mountain state for only a quarter. This museum’s tireless attention to detail, nostalgia, and cozy atmosphere make it a must-see for travelers on Route 4.

It was a fun visit. A place we might have spent a lot more time, but just like the camera museum in Staunton, Virginia, there is only so much time…. 😉 As it was, we spent a lot of time saying things like, “I had that!” or “I remember those” or “the kids had these.” Fun stuff!

Almost forgot! I have completed processing my photos from our New England trip and have posted them on my Adobe Portfolio site.

Photo Project: 50 States

State Number 49: New York

December 7, 2021 Tom Dills 2 Comments

Growing up in western Pennsylvania, I had actually visited New York many times prior to this most recent trip. I went to Peek’n Peek to ski, visited Buffalo, Corning, Watkins Glen, Troy and even Lake Placid. But those visits were all before I started getting serious about photography, and many of them, including Lake Placid, were Before Kathy, and I wanted to take her there. While I had some photos that would have worked – they’re our rules, after all! – we decided that another swing through the state would be the right way to do it. Plus we wanted to visit the Finger Lakes.

Departing Burlington, we swung around the south shore of Lake Champlain, crossing into New York near the town of Moriah. Moriah’s claim to fame is as the home of Johnny Podres, 1955 World Series MVP for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Your trivia for the day. 😉 The rain and fog were still with us, but as we drove north and west the skies finally began to clear.

Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid, New York

Lake Placid Olympic Ski Jumping Complex in Lake Placid, New York

Our first destination was Lake Placid, and we arrived there in time for a late breakfast and a few photos of the fall color on the lake. We didn’t stay long, since we had a long day ahead and didn’t want to linger at the beginning. Also, the town was in the process of some major road work in town. Main Street was torn up and loaded with piles of dirt, rocks and road equipment, rendering the normally picturesque town pretty rough looking. Another technicality is that the lake in town is actually Mirror Lake, and that Lake Placid is out of town to the north. We did stop to see the Olympic ski jumping site on our way into town, but didn’t try to take a tour.

Reflection of fall color on the Raquette River on SR 3 near Piercefield, New York

Leaving Lake Placid and heading west through Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake, we crossed a bridge over the Raquette River near Piercefield and were greeted with a lovely park overlooking the river, complete with still water reflecting the fall color of the trees along the riverbank. The skies were clearing but still mostly cloudy, providing us with ideal conditions for photos. It made for one of those unplanned stops we were glad to have taken the time for.

Morning on Seneca Lake at Plum Point Lodge near Himrod, New York

The Glenn H Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, New York

Our ultimate destination was a lodge on the west shore of Seneca Lake, one of the Finger Lakes and central to the Finger Lakes wine region. I had a chance to do a little early photography before heading out to explore the area attractions. We visited three wineries, bought souvenirs at two of them, visited a distillery and the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport. We took a boat cruise on Saranac Lake out of Watkins Glen. That was the seventh boat cruise of our trip – do you get the feeling we like boat cruises? 🙂

The George Eastman Museum in Rochester, New York, on the estate of George Eastman

One of our days there was dedicated to a drive to Rochester, where we visited the George Eastman Museum and, most importantly, met up with two of our long-time photo buddies Paul Maxim and Ken Bello. We had lunch with them and Ken’s wife before driving along the shore of Lake Ontario through Webster (Where Life Is Worth Living) and ultimately returning to our lodge.

Sodus Bay Lighthouse on the shore of Lake Ontario at Sodus Point, New York

New York made for our 49th state visited. Number 50 is Hawaii, and we have plans to visit there in February. After that? We’ll have to see, but there is a lot more of this country we want to see, we have friends to visit all over, and we might want to see a little bit more of the world. 🙂