October snow

Along Turkey Ridge Road - Greene County, Virginia

The winter storm that hit the northeast this weekend passed through Greene County late Friday night. Around noon Saturday, the cold rain stopped and the sky began to clear. There was snow in the mountains.

Snow in October is unusual, and I decided to drive up into the mountains and see what the snow looked like on the autumn foliage. The photo above was taken shortly after the skies started to clear. Although I was not high enough for snow at this location, snow was visible in the higher elevations and I continued up the mountain on a narrow dirt road. At the end of that road was about four inches of heavy, wet snow.

Join me this week for autumn color and snow on the mountain

Autumn light #5

Autumn light #4

Autumn light #3

Autumn light #2

Autumn light #1

Autumn afternoon - Greene County, Virginia

Autumn day - Greene County, Virginia 

Amtrak Station - Charlottesville, Virginia 

West Main Street - Charlottesville, Virginia 

One of the photography sites that I visit regularly is Gordon Lewis' Shutterfinger. Gordon is a professional writer and photographer, and writes on a wide range of photographic topics. His advice is practical and his writing is clear and concise. In addition to technical topics, Gordon shares his insights into the creative processes that lead to growth as a photographer. For example, a recent post titled "How to See" offers good advice on the mental approach to seeing photographic possibilities. Shutterfinger is well worth visiting and learning from.

I have added a permanent link to Shutterfinger in the sidebar.


(The sign in the window says "Beware Pickpockets and Loose Women" Click on the photo to enlarge)

Bucket - Bogue Chitto, Mississippi

Empty house - Stanardsville, Virginia

Alley - Stanardsville, Virginia

House behind courthouse - Stanardsville, Virginia 

Thought I would mention that this is the 500th post since Photography in Place started in January of 2010.

Why do particular numbers seem more significant than others? The 50th wedding anniversary is special, not the 43rd. Centennial year celebrations are marked with fireworks.  We don't even have a name for 99 year milestones.

Anyway, I thought I would mention that this is post number 500. I'm going to bed now.

Thanks for reading.

Stanardsville United Methodist Church - Greene County Virginia 

 A couple of weeks ago, I took a quick walk around Stanardsville on a quiet Sunday afternoon just before a rain. For the rest of this week, we will be looking at pictures of some of the buildings around town from that walk.  Stanardsville was established in 1794 and is the county seat of Greene County, Virginia.

Redbud leaves in the morning sun 

Early Autumn on the mountain - Greene County, Virginia

This weekend the air was clear and cool, and the first blush of autumn color is visible on the Blue Ridge Mountains. Depending on the weather, the colors will peak in a couple of weeks and then the cold winds begin to shake the dry leaves out of the trees. For now though, the first days of fall are serene and pleasant, with summer lingering in the afternoons, and cold mornings nipping the leaves.
 

 The Japanese maple is starting to turn red 

Leaves of native black cherry are already falling

Distant Mountains - Greene County, Virginia 

Along the tracks - Charlottesville, Virginia 

Morning sunshine 

Inscrutable

I don't much like fortune cookies. They are dry and bland so after I break open the cookie and extract the fortune, my wife eats the cookie. The fortunes are usually bland too, a tired mix of proverb and horoscope along the lines of "Your greatest fortune is the friends you have," or "You will spend old age in comfort and wealth."  But occasionally there are surprises.

Last week I brought home Chinese carry-out for dinner one evening, and here is my fortune:

"The rubber bands are heading in the right direction"

Ponder that for a while. I don't know what to make of it, but at least it is not bland.

Farmhouse near Boonesville, Virginia

Fairy Handkerchief - Greene County, Virginia 

One recent morning, as I walking out of the house, I noticed that the flower garden was filled with the dew soaked webs of small, ground-dwelling spiders. My wife calls these webs "fairy handkerchiefs"  which have been carelessly dropped by visiting fairies. It is a tale that goes way back.

In 1842, Louisa May Alcott spent the summer in Concord, Massachusetts, and explored the woods surrounding Walden Pond in the company of Henry David Thoreau.

"They were months of taking walks with Thoreau, who told her that the cobwebby way the dew formed on the Concord grass in the morning was really handkerchiefs left by fairies."  Susan Cheever, Louisa May Alcott, 2010