Scene from the past

I totally love a day when the sky/clouds are like this.

 

Better than going to the movies....

Driving through the strip pit area late in the evening is better than almost any form of entertainment.

It is funny how quickly they change... 

I had to show two versions of this one...

I almost always convert cloud pictures to B&W just to see what they look like.  And truthfully, probably prefer them that way.

Okay this set is my last for the night...

The skies have it

My photos just cannot do the sky justice...but maybe they will give you an inkling of the beauty and drama....the above is looking west into Illinois and the one below is looking north...

This one below is a continuation of the could above.

And then there are these below...

they are looking east.

I hope you enjoyed the cloud picture show.  I just could not post just one...one just does not do justice sometimes.

Scenes from the late afternoon/early evening

I dare not mention going to Paris, Illinois on a Sunday afternoon...every time I do, a storm comes up.  Today was no exception, except it wasn't one to stop us going.  The car got a great wash as we  drove over there.  And on the way home I snagged a few pics of the sky.

The very first photo is looking northwest, and the second photo is looking northeast...they are taken from the same spot within seconds of each other.

I just had to take time to drive through the end of the strip pit area...the view above is looking east and the one below looks west.

I always find the sky fun to watch.  It is fun to see how quickly it can change.

Skies so pretty it almost hurts....

The sky was wonderful to watch all day, but these are all from the late afternoon, evening.

All except the top photo are from the strip pit area.

Every direction was a different sort of view....I even took some short videos to show it, but they were handheld and not very steady.

Yes, there was even a rainbow of sorts...and no, it had not rained.  It was there a long time...

I zoomed in a bit for this one...

I just had to take another photo of these clouds...the same ones as the second picture, I had just moved on farther east.

I will stop with this one...I hope you enjoyed them.

Glorious days!!!

We have had the prettiest skies this summer...days like this are usually few and far between, with them being a bit more numerous in the fall.

Every day seems to be a great day to snap photos...the two above were taken on Saturday.

This glorious sky was what we watched on the way to Terre Haute today.

These first two are out the windshield as we travel south.

This is what was to our left side, looking east.

And believe it or not, this is what we looked at on the way home.  Every day the sky seems to put on a show just for us.  As Roger says, well, I can't remember just how he says it...but he is implying that God is the Master Artist...that no one can paint a sky quite His way.

Days like this and a ?

We have had more days like this this summer than I think we have ever had in one summer.    We try to get out and enjoy them all we can.

Down at the end of this pond lotus are growing...the property has No Trespassing signs so I cannot walk down close to them.

How I wish I could cause they are only about 8-10 minutes from here.  They are not far at all...

This Great Blue Heron was down close to the far end.  We see him in about this exact spot quite often.
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At a different pond, I spotted this guy.  When I first spotted it, it was out in the water, with its wings spread open.  Before I could even zoom in and focus, it took flight.   The only thing that crossed my mind was cormorant, but don't really have any idea if it could be one.  I am hoping someone that sees them often can tell me if they think that is one or if you know what it is, please say so.  My photo is so blurry that I can do nothing to enhance it to give details.  Even in the original, I cannot tell much about its beak.

We have seen cormorants down at the Goose Pond area...and in looking at photos on Google, I found a photo of one sitting in the water that closely resembles what I saw.  I just wish I could see the beak in my photo.

Days like today...

A couple shots, each one in color followed by a B&W version.

I shot these on the way home today...I am thankful there was no other cars till I could snap these...

For some reason I really love cloud shots in B&W...not more than color but probably as much.

Days with skies like this

they make our heart sing.  We both keep telling each other to look at the sky!

Tuesday's Treasures

This may strike some as odd, but oh, how the sky can be a treasure.

I get so excited when I see the sky in all its beauty.

Who can find a finer view than these?

I really don't know which I prefer--color or B&W.  Most times with clouds, I would just as soon have B&W, but know others have different views.

I am just grabbing a few from here and there...

Just for curiosity's sake, I will post a couple pics both in color and in B&W,  just to let you see which you like best.

And keep in mind, that with B&W there are the color filters to add which will sometimes totally change the look.

I hope you have enjoyed this little sky show...I am linking to Tom's Tuesday's Treasures with this post.

Nothing but blue skies....and an award

On the way home a few days ago, I could not resist snapping pictures looking down the road as we drove along. The one I liked best was this one...it is actually looking down a side road. I did have to rotate and crop some because I had it off kilter a little bit.
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I was presented this Liebster Blog award a few days ago.
It was given to me by a new blog friend, Ellie....and her blog is Ellie's Place. I think her first comment might have been on one of my other blogs, Pics & Pieces....anyway, I am going to enjoy getting to know her and seeing photos from her area of the world which is the West Coast of Scotland. I know some of you already visit her, and hope the rest take time to stop by herself and say hello.

She is new to blogging and has jumped in with both feet and is already loving it.

The award's rules are these:

1. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Post the award on your blog.
4. Bask in the love from the most supportive people on the Internet - other writers.
5. And best of all - have fun and spread the karma!

And you know what they say about rules--they are made to be broken. I am choosing not to pass it on. I hope this doesn't offend anyone. I did want to accept and by this way introduce you to Ellie.

Midwest sky

This was taken in Parke County, Indiana--not to far from Bridgeton. I love this sky.

Under a prairie sky

I am beginning to get quite a collection of photos of this farm over in Illinois...I wonder if the owners have any idea?

This was Thursday afternoon...about an hour after we got home, it rained so hard. Our garden was one big puddle...and puddles stood everywhere for hours afterwards.