The Daily Joe

  Clouds Trying to Mask the Sun Photo of the Day 182/366 I took this photo this past week. The clouds were moving quickly and the sun was sinking fast. Between the two - I was trying to capture images that I liked. I took a number of photos where the sun was partially behind the clouds, but this one was the best. The sun seemed to have struggled to be masked by the clouds.    

Just Before the Sun Disappears Photo of the Day 181/366 Last evening, my sister came into town for the weekend and after dinner, they took a nap. Timing was perfect because while they napped, I was able to steal away for a few minutes and try to capture the last moments of the sunset. I managed to capture a number of photos, but this one was my favorite.    

    Peaceful Summer Sunset Photo of the Day 180/366 This photo was taken last evening after I came home from my martial arts training. I had seen the lone cloud on the way home and wanted to grab a few photos. Unfortunately, I saw the best possible view as I was driving with sunbeams shooting down from the clouds, but I missed it by 5 minutes. So here is the peaceful shot that remained.    

Sun Setting between the Trees Photo of the Day 179/366 I took this photo earlier this week while waiting for my wife after taking my father-in-law back to his room. It is amazing how the sunset changes in a few moments. This photo was taken perhaps 10 minutes before yesterday's photo and the skies look so vastly different. Nature's paintbrush and palette are amazing.    

        After Sunset Across the Valley Photo of the Day 178/366 On our way home, last evening, after taking my father-in-law for a visit to the hospital, to see his wife, we were noting the beauty of the sunset. My wife and I were thinking of places to go to shoot the sunset. I don't like to inconvenience anyone, so we decided to go about 2 miles from my home into a church parking lot. This was the result - totally worth it.      

    Early Morning at the Lake Photo of the Day 177/366 This photo was taken last week when I took a day off work to "burn the time" rather than lose it for the year. I drove out to the lake that we nearest to our old home. It was early, quite quiet, and too warm for that time of the day. I didn't stay out more than an hour or so, but I did get some nice lakeside photos.  

Streams of Sunset Skyfire Photo of the Day 176/366 I took this photo last evening on the second leg of a sunset walk. I had looked outside and saw a large gray cloud blocking the sun so I held out little hope. A few minute later, I saw the sun peaking out througha break in the clouds, so I went out to take some photos. Just when I made it to our home, I saw the taails of color through the gray cloud and had to hurry back to a decent location to get this photo.  I think it was worth the extra effort.        

      Hot Summer Sunset Photo of the Day 175/366 I shot this photo last evening. All afternoon, the sky was hazy, but mostly clear, and the weather here in Pennsylvania, was hotter than Texas or Florida. Seeing all that, I did not put much hope in for a nice sunset. There would BE as sunset, but I only expected the orange of a hazy sky. At the last 15 minutes, some clouds moved into the west and the sky was ablaze with color. The air was still hot, but the sunset was marvelous.        

Pre-Dawn Sky over the Misty Valley Photo of the Day 174/366 This photo was taken while out on a very early jaunt through the countryside. I saw the newly mown grass in the foreground and the wonderful sky in the background and could not avoid stopping to take a few pictures. This was one of those cases where I had to edit the photo to get it to be what I saw when I took it. The camera did not give the correct (for my eye) lighting and colors.  However, I did what I know to do and made the photo what I saw that morning!  Enjoy!      

Sunset from the Driveway Photo of the Day 173/366 This photo was taken in the past few weeks. We've  had phenomenal sunsets this spring. Now that the summer season has started, the heat is on and there is a need to be more creative, so I got down low for this photo. The phone did a great job on the depth of the photo and I likehow it came out. No edits on this one.    

Last Spring Sunset Photo of the Day 172/366 I took this photo last evening. On my way home from my martial arts dojo, I noticed the brightness in the sky and the colors. When I got closer to home, I was seeing that the sun hadn't quite set, and the sky was still open. I parked the car in my driveway and hustled to a spot on my neighbor's rental property where I could get a good view. I managed a few shots but this was the best overall sky view of the last sunset of the spring. Today starts summer!      

      Dusk Sky on the River Photo of the Day 171/366 This photo was taken earlier while traveling through our state's capitol city, Harrisburg. Front Street runs beside the river and is normally very pretty. However, with the right sky, either sunset, or just after, the sky and river can light up. At those times, the details of the islands and shore can disappear into darkness leaving bands of color - and this was one of those occasions.         

      Old Barn in the Valley Field Photo of the Day 170/366 This photo was taken in Juniata County a few years ago. Despite the likes for sunsets in my photos, I like other scenes, too. This scene brings back memories of our cabin and the peaceful days and weekends we had just puttering about exploring the area and finding new roads, new paths, and new scenes. We could just drive and not worry about anything except running out of gas. Those were very peaceful days for our lives and our souls.        

Another Glorious Sunday Sunset Photo of the Day 169/366 The sunsets just keep coming this season.  Almost every evening, I've been able to capture some great and powerful sunsets. Sometimes, it is just catching the right moment wiht some decent equipment, but I don't remember getting consistently great sunsets this often in quite some time. I'm not complaining - they are all different, and each one morphs as the day moves towards evening - but to have this many is a true blessing. I hope you all enjoy them.      

    Almost Like the Sky is on Fire Photo of the Day 168/366 This photo was taken a few nights ago, the sky was farily clear except for some steamers of clouds, which kept moving and shifting. This movement caused drastic changes in the composition of the sky so I took many photos. I particularly like this because the clouds seem like smoke trailing from the sun's ball of fire.    

Sunset over the Neighborhood Photo of the Day 167/366 I took this photo last evening. I had been puttering about the house when my wife said "oooh - you need to see the sky." It had been a cloudy afternoon, so I hadn't been looking.  I'm glad she did - the sun broke through a band of clouds and lit up that part of the sky. I've been very blessed to have a great wife and capture these photos.  

      Sunset over the Lake Photo of the Day 166/366 This photo was taken last year at about this time. It was a beautiful, warm day, much like yesterday. I did not get a chance to get out last evening, so I wanted to have a representative image of the day. At our previous residence, this lake was, perhaps, 5 minutes away and I could get there for scenic walks whenever I wanted/needed. This was one of those wonderful opportunities. I remember seeing the gap in the trees and thinking - gotta get this one.      

      Sunset over the Grassy Field Photo of the Day 165/366 This photo was taken last weekend on one of my sunset jaunts. It was taken near the beginning of the walk as the sun wasn't even on the horizon yet. I remember just about being blinded by the bright sun coming through and around the camera when I took it. The light and the sky made the temporary discomfort worth it.  

      Sparse Clouds at Sunset Photo of the Day 164/366 This photo was taken last evening. I had a busy day at work and my wife and I celebrated 41 years together in marriage at a fancy restaurant. When we got home, I wasn't sure I wanted to try to catch a sunset, but I did and this was one of the shots I got. There were just enough clouds to get my interest and a nice way to end the day.

      Wildflowers in the Field and a Stormy Sunset Sky Photo of the Day 163/366 This photo was taken about 2 weeks ago on a farm near our home. The sun was trying to show us some colorful love but the coming storm had other ideas. When I saw the storm coming, I was trying to get home before I got wet - but I had to get this shot. The wildflowers were a nice offset to the sunset colors and the coming clouds. I did make it home before the rain, but not before I captured some nice images. This is also one of my wife's fave shots and its our anniversary so it's for her, too!

      Sunday Evening Sunset Photo of the Day 162/366 This has been the weekend for sunset skies. We've had very beautiful sunset skies every evening this weekend. It's been a little difficult to pick which photo I should post each day. I liked this one because of the sun just before it became hidden by the clouds and the faint light on the grass in the foreground.    

      Beautiful Sunset Sky Photo of the Day 161/366 This photo was shot this past Friday evening on my sunset walk. I was very lucky in that for the past few evenings, I have seen absolutely phenomenal sunsets and sunset skies. This images is no exception. The sun just above the tree line gave the oranges, the clouds reflected light in an almost painterly way, and the humidity was low and allowed the blues to be so vivid. As a photographer, I can't ask for more.      

      Sun Peeking out from the Sunset Clouds Photo of the Day 160/366 This photo was taken last evening on another of my walks to see what that forces of nature will let me see. I've been getting better on timing so I leave during "golden hour" to try to capture the whole palette of colors of the coming time. For this view, I zoomed out as far as I could to see the fine details of the clouds and the sun just peeking from behind one of them. I took many photos of this but I like this one the best.      

      Hay Bale and Willow Tree Photo of the Day 159/366 This photo, taken last weekend, just caught my eye. I took a number of photos of this particular hay bale and its surroundings and this one, with the willow and the forest behind it, just caught my eye. There is a pond behind the willow, but that can't be seen, but I see it in my mind. This scene reminds me of my youth on farms in northern Pennsylvania - the scene, the quiet....memories.        

    Late Afternoon Wild Sky over the Farm Photo of the Day 158/366 I took this photo earlier this week on a quick trip out. The sun peaked out off the clouds for only brief glimpses of time. In this photo, the sun had been out, but been behind the barn. I nabbed the photo (from a moving car) and really liked the composition. I love the light and the subtle colors in the sky.   

      Sunset Over the Valley Photo of the Day 157/366 This photo was taken late last week. On this particular walk, the sun was hiding behind clouds and trees on the right of the frame. The colors in the clouds over the valley, however, were very pretty with reds, oranges, golds, and bits of gray and blue. The field was lit by the sky above and the sky to the west looked like a painters palette. It seems, over the past few weeks, that the sunset clouds are more "streaky" and less defined - but they are still beautiful.      

        Tall Grasses and Hazy Sunset Photo of the Day 156/366 I shot this photo over the weekend. The hazy sunset was obscured on and off by the clouds and I got some very nice scenic shots but as I was walking, I noticed the tall grasses on an embankment silhouetted against the hazy sunset. I could not pass up trying to get a good shot. I took a few from different angles and liked this one.      

        Sunset over Hay Bales Photo of the Day 155/366 This photo was taken over the weekend.  This was almost perfect weather for mowing and bringing in the hay, for our farmers. The humidity was low and the temperatures were moderate. When I went out for my afternoon walks, the farmers were just finishing up and the light was fading fast. I was able to capture these scenes from various fields and am pleased with the outcome. I couldn't ask for better.      

      Hay Bales at Sunset Photo of the Day 154/366 I shot this photo last evening while out on a "get-out-of-the-house" walk. I just felt cooped up and in the early evening, I decide to get my camera (and my phone) and take a long walk (for me, about 2 miles) and off I went. The walk started before sunset and ended after sunset. The farmers took advantage of the great weather and were "haying". Two nights ago, the fields were mown and last night, the bales started to appear. This is some of their handiwork at the end of the day.      

      Sunset over the Newly Mown Hay Field Photo of the Day 153/366 This photo was taken last evening I was out hunting for a sunset walk. When I started, the sun was bright and obscured all of clouds, making it appear very bland (beautiful, but not very photogenic). So, I kept walking hoping for something different. I had noted earlier that the farmers had all mown their hay and when the sun had almost set (it was hiding behind the far tree) - everything came together, the clouds could be seen, the hay field lay in front of me and the scene was fantastic!  Hope you enjoy it!