Working in the Yard

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

I was out on Saturday morning to help my cousin with his cows when I caught his mother Cathy working in her yard and taking a break from mowing at her home in Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

Figs

The figs are starting to ripen on the south side of one of our barns. Succulent golden fruits that make wonderful preserves but are even better eaten fresh from the tree (or bush as it were). I picked a bowl for my wife the other day, and as as oft happens on our farm, I had help, this time from one of our farm cats, Tiger.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

(Posted from Hanover, New Hampshire after a 20 hour train journey. More to come on that next week.)

Train Journey

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

My son Tristan is at home this week to take care of the animals, so my wife Dedra and I are off tomorrow morning to New Hampshire to visit our younger son Devin in Hanover. We catch the Amtrak train at 4:00 AM from Greensboro to Boston, about a 15 hour trip. Why the train? Why not? We've never done it before, so it's sort of an adventure, a real journey. A chance to see the whole East Coast from a different perspective. My blog posting may be a little sporadic this week, but I plan on trying to keep up. Hopefully I will come back with some interesting images. No, the guy in the photograph isn't me, and I do hope our train car is in a little better shape.

Watermelons

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Watermelons are stacked at a roadside produce stand south of Greensboro, North Carolina.

Drag Racing Legend

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Today's photograph is pulled from my files and goes back to the days when a lot of my work was based on motorsports. The image is of International Motorsports Hall of Famer and Pro Stock driver Bob Glidden, who when he retired in 1997 held the record for the most NHRA wins at 85 (he now stands third overall). I shot this shot from a cherry picker over the start line at Rockingham, North Carolina.

Hip Hop

In a departure from my more rural posts of late, yesterday I had some fun shooting an aspiring young local Greensboro hip hop/pop/R&B artist Zarah Washington. She was fresh and full of energy. Though I'm not a connoisseur of or know much about that particular genre of music, I did enjoy the gritty imagery. Zarah has a Myspace page at www.myspace.com/zarahzarah.


(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Breakaway Cyclist

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

The lead cyclist breaks away from the pack during the 2009 Tour de Lions in Grays Chapel, North Carolina earlier this summer. It's not really a race, but the riders do take things pretty seriously. His late kick enabled him to finish about five minutes ahead of the rest of the field after a 75 mile ride. Not the Tour de France, but a lot of fun nonetheless.

Mill Machinery

Stone milling equipment at the Old Mill of Guilford near Greensboro, North Carolina. The old mill produces a complete line of stone ground flours and mixes on water wheel powered machinery. Below a young lady bags up the products.


(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

North Carolina Peaches

The peaches are beginning to ripen, and they are mighty sweet this year, so it's time to make a trip to North Carolina's self-proclaimed peach capital, Candor. Located in North Carolina's "Sand Hills", about 60 miles south of Greensboro, Candor is a center for growing peaches, along with melons, apples, grapes, and all sorts of vegetables.



Ken Chappell's roadside produce stand is one of many along NC Highway 211 between Candor and Pinehurst. Ken sells all sorts of produce he raises in the area near Samarcand.


(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Hospital Art

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

My son Devin's friend Cally (Cally and Devin are seen above during a visit) has spent most of the summer in the hospital at UNC-Chapel Hill. She hasn't been ill though, rather she is taking part in a choline depletion study for the Nutrition Dept at UNC. That means eating food that has no choline in it, which is pretty much nothing but sugar and water and a small amount of protein. Though she does have the chance to get outside for a few hours each day, most of her existence is in a small hospital room and the adjacent hall. Being forced to live in a contained space is at the least stressful, and Cally is doing her best to cope with the situation. Stress sometimes triggers a rise in creativity, and Cally has been doing just that. She reads, writes in a journal, and most interestingly, draws on her food service placemats after each "meal". She has created quite a portfolio of wonderful illustrations, some of which appear below. Click on the image for a larger view.


(all illustrations copyright 2009 by Cally Womick, used with permission)

Women's Fashion Photography - Blue Hoodie

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Model photography from a women's casual fashion shoot, shot at Jordan Lake near Raleigh, North Carolina.

Foggy Morning Fisherman

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

A fisherman sets off on a foggy morning at Lake MacIntosh near Burlington, North Carolina.

Sunflowers

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Sunflowers bloom in a neighbor's garden near Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

More Friday Fashion

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

More casual fashion photography from a recent shoot at Lake Norman near Charlotte, North Carolina.

56 Chevy

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

There is a body shop across from my studio in Greensboro, North Carolina, and they must do pretty good work. You never know what they will be working on, but from time to time there are some nice cars sitting out front. This slick 56 Chevrolet was there for some touchup last week. Looked fairly stock on the outside, but when I saw the hood open, it definitely wasn't original show-room.

Farm Couple

At the risk of this becoming poultry week, my photographs today are from the farm of Mr and Mrs E D Snider of Liberty, North Carolina. Mr and Mrs Snider grow chickens for the home grower and free range producer market. If you want a few good chickens to produce eggs in your backyard, the Snider farm is the place to go, for a half dozen, or for hundreds. Interesting and great people, I always enjoy going by their farm. Mr Snider ran a feed and fertilizer business for years, and his wife works for the US Post Office in Pittsboro. They live on land that was part of her family's (the McMasters) original 18th century land grant. I love to talk to people in our area who are still able to produce a livelihood from the land.


Below is a "Production Red" hen we bought from the Sniders.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Running Bird

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

We have several guinea fowl on our farm in Grays Chapel, North Carolina. Most are hens, but we do have two males. For the past couple of days, they have decided to see who is the most dominant, and have spent the afternoons and evenings chasing each other around the property and sparring. In the image above, our pearl male streaks across the yard after his rival.

Men's Casual Fashion Photography

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Men's casual fashion image from recent shoot near Charlotte.

"Roastnear Corn"

Sweet yellow kernels of goodness. Sweet corn, roasting ears or just "roastnears" are ready in our garden in Grays Chapel, North Carolina now. Whether eaten on the cob, boiled or roasted, cut off for corn pudding, alone or added to soup mix with fresh tomatoes; the wholesomeness of their golden harvest is here.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Ram Head

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Portrait study of a ram from a neighbor's farm in Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

Bass Fishermen

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

An out-take from last week's photo shoot. Two men fish for bass near Stokesdale, North Carolina.

Mini Cooper

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

One of the things I enjoy about photography is location scouting. Gives me a chance to just go out and look for nice places to shoot. The image above is of my Mini Cooper from a scouting trip in Liberty, North Carolina. Oh yea, I love my Mini.

Man and Dog

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Last week was five days of location photography and several thousand photographs shot. That means this week is several thousand images to edit. This is an out-take from Friday. Model and dog for casual fashion catalog and point of sale.

Water Lily

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

A water lily blooms in a neighbor's pond near Grays Chapel in Randolph County, North Carolina.

Head Shot

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

It's been a busy week thus far. Above is a head shot out-take from Monday's day of shooting work wear on construction sites.

Fishing

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

We're off to shoot fishing apparel today. Photograph is from an earlier shoot at Badin Lake, North Carolina.

A Study in Beans

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

A black and white still-life from the garden.

Catalog Time

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

I'm on location this week shooting a work wear and casual jean catalog, so my entries may be a bit sporadic. Work calls. Image is from an past catalog.

Christine

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

My wife Dedra and I raised two boys, so for years we never knew what daughters were like. My older son Tristan changed that last year when he married Christine, so we finally have that daughter. All I can say is we didn't know what we were missing. Christine has lightened up the lives of our whole family. She's a keeper.

Hydrangea

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

When we think about plants associated with old Southern home places, magnolia and wisteria come to mind. Another plant that is very familiar is hydrangea. This example is in full bloom just off our back deck. I'm not sure if I enjoy the blue and purples blooms better than the beautiful foliage.