Storm over Green Bay © 2012 Bo Mackison
Nothing is more beautiful than the love that has weathered the storms of life. The love of the young for the young, that is the beginning of life. But the love of the old for the old, that is the beginning of things longer. ~ Jerome K Jerome
Pink Queen Anne’s Lace ©2012 Bo Mackison
In the right light,
at the right time,
everything is extraordinary.
~ Aaron Rice
When asked the question “What kind of photographs do you take?” I usually respond with the same answer.
“Mostly macro-botanicals,” I reply.
When I get a questioning look, I explain further. “Close-ups of flowers and plants.”
And macro-botanical photographs are what I mostly exhibit at Art Festivals. As patrons enter my show booth, they tell me they feel as if they are entering a huge flower garden. There are that many large macro-photographs of flowers hanging on the walls.
I spend lots of time photographing flowers, too. Each week I spend three or four days visiting and taking photographs in the botanical and horticultural gardens near my home. When I travel, I search for the locations of the nearest gardens and I try to schedule time for a visit. Yes, I photograph macro-botanicals!
So you would think when it is time for me to choose a Photo-Heart Connection photograph at the beginning of each month, I would naturally pick a macro-botanical. Not so. Today I realized that this is the first time in 2012 that I have picked a flower photo.
So. Why did I choose this photograph of Queen Anne’s Lace? I loved the colors. It is unusual to see Queen Anne’s Lace this color — they are usually white with perhaps a touch of pink. But this small stand of QAL was bright pink. And I loved how the rising sun shone on this roadside weed and turned it into a glowing, dew-drenched beauty. And I loved that I took this photo while I was on a long weekend with my husband in one of our favorite places in Wisconsin – Door County, a peninsula that juts out into the waters of Lake Michigan.
Three good reasons. Color. Light. Memories. Perfect for August’s photo-heart connection.
Dahlia and Bud ©2012 Bo Mackison
When words become unclear
I shall focus with photographs.
When images become inadequate,
I shall be content with silence.
~ Ansel Adams
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She photographed these flowers while walking the paths of a sculpture garden near Fish Creek, Wisconsin.
Begin with Potatoes ©2012 Bo Mackison
A visit to Door County is hardly complete until one experiences a Door County Fish Boil, a Scandinavian tradition. Now the Fish Boil is a tourist attraction, but in the 1800s it was the most expedient and cheapest way to feed the masses of fisherman and other workers in a sparsely populated area.
Lake Michigan Whitefish ©2012 Bo Mackison
It is cooking at its simplest. Outdoors over a log fire. A huge black kettle. Plenty of salt water. Basic ingredients – potatoes, onions, and Lake Michigan Whitefish. Tradition has given way to modern convenience in one way – the stainless steel inserts often come from recycled washing machines. The Whitefish is only hours from Lake Michigan. Three or four steaks are cut from each fish, and fileted by machine.
Checking the Progress ©2012 Bo Mackison
Potatoes go in almost whole. The ends are cut to allow the salt water to flavor the whole potato. Next the fish boil master adds the onions. And then he adds the whitefish last.
Adding a Little Salt ©2012 Bo Mackison
He adds a huge scoop of salt. This is salt water cooking!
Hard to Wait! ©2012 Bo Mackison
And then the wait is on. All the diners circle around the cooking area, all with cameras in hand. The littler kids squeeze up front for a good view. These little guys, brothers who wer 5 and 2, kept chanting. “Hurry up! Hurry up!” Ten minutes is a long time to wait when you’re a little kid (or an adult for that matter) and you’re waiting not only for dinner, but for the fish boil master to yell “boil over!”
Regulating the Boil ©2012 Bo Mackison
The fish boil master regulates the fire and the cooking temperatures by kicking away logs. Logs standing on end keep the fire burning intensely. Logs kicked to the side allows heat to escape and reduces the heat.
Adding Kerosene to Fire ©2012 Bo Mackison
When the fish and accompaniments are fully cooked, kerosene is added to the flames. This cause a flash of fire, the water boils over the pot, and the excess oils from the fish wash over the pot.
Boil Over ©2012 Bo Mackison
The fish pot is then lifted by two men with long poles, and delivered to the kitchen where dinner is quickly put on plates and served. The clean plate award is a slice of cherry pie. That’s another Door County tradition, courtesy of the many orchards on Door County. Its geographic position, a peninsula stretching into the waters of Lake Michigan, keeps the county more temperate than the rest of Wisconsin, so apple and cherry orchards are plentiful.
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She took this series of photos while on a weekend trip to Door County this summer. Bo has been to many a fish boil, beginning with her first one when she was ten years old. She remembers taking a single photograph of a fish boil with her Brownie camera, and wishes she still had a few photos from her earliest attempts.
Good Thoughts © 2012 Bo Mackison
It’s amazing what ordinary people can do if they set out without preconceived notions. ~ Charles F. Kettering
Driving along one of the country roads in Door County, in the rain and fog, I saw this sign. The “good thoughts” part of the sign is permanent, as is the word “BE.” The word under the “BE” is on a hook and can be changed. On the hook dangled the word “AMAZED.”
What a great reminder. It was a real pick-me-up. We had spent the day dodging raindrops, and were a bit disappointed that we were having a rain out on one of our three days of vacation. But the day – the day was still amazing. We were still enjoying ourselves and having an amazing time, and the foggy scenery was, well, amazing!
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is looking through the many photographs she took on her weekend trip to Door County, and remembering all – with AMAZEMENT!
