SOOC - Sky on Fire

Patti has been looking at the sky lately, and in this change of season, she captured a beauty last week in our domicile of Ansonia. She calls it Sky on Fire - and it is! So I am happy to submit this for Straight out of the Camera - SOOC I am not a fan of the cold seasons we are entering, but the Autumnal beauty we see now looks so nice...

SOOC - Sunflower Farms

Autumn is a great season of color. So for SOOC - Straight out of the Camera, I am using photos taken today by the always lovely Patti. These were taken at Sunflower Farms, a mere 10 minutes away in often bucolic Orange CT. The temps are falling, the sky is an equally cold gray, so the bold and even fiery colors of Fall are much appreciated as the warm weather wanes until Spring...

SOOC - Memorial on the Green

Straight out of the Camera - SOOC takes us back a month to these pics taken for an article by Patti at a memorial service in Derby Connecticut for those firefighter and other emergency personnel killed in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. The memorial has an actual piece of steel from the epicenter of the fallen tower, flanked by 'towers' that remind us of the two 110-story buildings felled that fateful day. The steel is a poignant reminder from a bad day...never forget.

SOOC - After the 5K Cooldown

We look for gems for Straight Out of the Camera - SOOC, that right now shot that might explain the details of the subject a bit more. Here is my nephew Adam, aged 8, after he completed the annual Center for Cancer Care at Griffin Hospital 5K walk run in June. He actually ran the entire course and here after removing his shirt, sitting and seemingly in thought. Adam looks to be in thought, perhaps with the satisfaction that he succeeded in completing the course for a cause. He is a great kid...

SOOC - Dunk Tank (Mayor) Dave

Any oddity we see can be a subject for Straight out of the Camera - SOOC 

If we see it and like it, we take our chances. Here is Ansonia CT Mayor Dave Cassetti at the August Rock the Valley event in our small city. Here happens to be perilously perched on the shelf of a dunk tank, the tank being a fundraiser, and many stopped by to fay their money to dunk the mayor (for the cause of course :)

Yes, he heckles the ball thrower who makes it so easy to take a chance to fund the Mayor. And many did! The sequence follows the sun as it begins to set, so it is a bit dark - but perfectly real for SOOC!

SOOC - Wedding Pictures

Finding unexpected events when they were not sought makes for nice subjects for this week's SOOC - Straight Out of the Camera. We arrived for the wedding of my niece Julie to the great Luis, and after we parked our vehicle, we saw a picture shoot in process of the couple, and captured same. A beautiful couple on a beautiful day at a lovely hotel venue having their pictures captured unknowns to the couple makes for a nice straight out of the camera memory...

SOOC - Red Sky

Pictures can leave a confusing impact to the viewer. So for this edition of Straight out of the Camera - SOOC, I am using a photo captured by the always lovely Patti in 2010, this being in Boston at the Red Sky. This was taken vertically from the sidewalk...but I see this as horizontal, too. I am imagining a passenger ferry, looking toward the bow, and the striped awnings look almost like long passenger benches. Is it upward - or outward? It may depend on the viewer...

SOOC - Reviewing Stand

For Straight out of the Camera (SOOC), we have views from the Memorial Day Parade in our small city of Ansonia (CT). At the reviewing stand, the Connecticut Hurricanes band is playing for the officials in the reviewing stand. In sequence, we can almost hear the brass instruments at work, note by note...

SOOC - Cross and crown

I spotted an amazing Straight out of the Camera (SOOC) last week at after a First Communion held at St. Margaret-Mary Church in South Windsor Connecticut. During the 50 day Easter season, through Pentecost) a cross is placed on the floor and is illuminated by floor lamps. What is so interesting here is the shadow that rises above the cross - it looks like a crown, which is so fitting - scripture notes Christ as the 'King of Kings', the shadow agrees...

SOOC - Winter sky on fire

Happily it is the first day of Spring (and it is snowing again!), but we welcome the end of the preceding Winter 2014/2015. But not to say winter is without its charms - despite the cold, there is beauty to enjoy. So for Straight Out of the Camera (SOOC), the always lovely Patti captured a fiery sunset from our Ansonia home that looked warm at least. Only 2-4 in (5-10 cm) of snow today - a quick melt is hoped for...

SOOC - Snowy Bird

It has been an unusually cold winter in Southern Connecticut, the coldest on record (since 1905) in some towns in this small state. However, this Straight out of the Camera (SOOC) capture of a bird in a tree in the back yard with a mere hint of snow seems to suggest that Spring may be here soon. Warmer temps and melted snow would feel like seasonal change was in fact here...but the bird lets me know that the change will be soon :)

SOOC - Winter Moon over Derby

Winter is not a favorite season of mine as I am not a fan of the cold. Yet, there is an undeniable beauty of parts of it, such as a fresh white coating of snow and the cold but really blue winter sky. So for Straight out of the Camera - SOOC, I offer a recent pic that Patti took, a daytime moon over the (1889) Sterling Opera House in Neighboring town of Derby CT. Yes it is cold, but a look at space over a local landmark...

SOOC - Snowy Seasonal Sunrise

Snow this week as well as predicted snow for Monday means that we are in the throes of Winter, unable to escape the cold season of a four-season climate. Yet for SOOC - Straight Out of the Camera, we look for the artistry for the warmth of our souls at least. As we see in this lovely early morning sunrise captured by the always lovely Patti - on the day after the snowstorm from the front door. The pale yellow and blue streaks a hint of artistry as the day begins...

SOOC - Tricolour in the Mist

Daughter Allegra captured one of my favorite pics ever - even isn't one of hers. So I am making it the subject for Straight Out of the Camera (SOOC). It was taken in Paris in February 2004 on a cold and gray day, nearly devoid of color...except for the French Tricolour flying proudly on thee building to the left. In a sea of gray, the simple red, white and blue stands out very well!

SOOC - Tree Lighting

2013 Christmas Tree, downtown Ansonia, CT

2014 Christmas Tree, downtown Ansonia, CT

Due to a variety of computer issues and holidays, I have missed SOOC - Straight out of the Camera - but am back! Since it is still the Christmas holiday (I count until the Twelfth Night), the Christmas tree on our green downtown is still lit at night, and a lovely sight downtown. This year and last, a good looking tree sits under the stars - last year it seemed a bit more winter-y with the snow under its boughs, but this evergreen looks so seasonally nice any year!

SOOC - Rowing together

Learning the fine art of teamwork on the Housatonic, 1 August 2014. Captured by Patti

For SOOC - Straight out of the Camera - we see students who have been taking rowing classes at the Yale University Gilder Boathouse upon the Housatonic River in Derby CT. The kids learn the art of rowing as a team on a still body of water which which allows them to learn fine teamwork that is fun now and most useful later in life...

SOOC - Small town student sounds

SOOC - Straight out of the Camera - returns as I turn the spotlight toward the Ansonia High School band marching in our small city (19.000) Memorial Day parade. A bit of hometown pride exists as there may be way bigger schools and bands that exist. However, they remain a favorite draw of the locals. A band that is talented, sincere and showcases our hamlet very nicely...

SOOC - Memorial Day memorials

SOOC - Straight Out of the Camera - takes me back a mere three hours today. Just after parking my minivan and prior to Ansonia's Memorial Day Parade, Patti and I went to the park located next to City Hall and viewed the memorials that reside there. These were constructed to honor Ansonia residents killed in service from WWI to the present. As this is not merely a three-day weekend to relax, it is centered around Memorial Day - and remembering those who have been lost...