Check out Matt Krease art! New blog site coming soon!

Green Bay....The Good Guys....

A few weeks ago, my six year old grandson saw this picture of himself in a Green Bay uniform. We had visited the Green Bay Hall of Fame a couple of years back, and kids could participate in a number of hands-on activities. He asked me, "Grampa, is that uniform the good guys?" I told him "Yes, the Green Bay Packers are the good guys." His final comment....."Good, cuz the Lions suck!" What a way to build a fan base, huh?

Fishing

No comment necessary! This is heaven.....unfortunately, I was on the other side of the camera.

Sheer Elegance!

I'm stalking this one. A blue heron.....lives nearby on the Saginaw River.
(More shots to come)

Sometimes I feel
I'm adrift
In a sea of confusion

Stumbling
Through a house of mirrors
In the dark

In the near future, I will be posting some of the op/ed cartoons that I produced in the 80s and 90s. Many of the issues, as you see in the cartoon above, are still very applicable to issues today. This particular cartoon could have been published yesterday. Or, I could change the issue to the peanut scandal, and the executive could be labeled "Peanut Co.".....There are endless possibilities. Oh, how I miss those days when I could freely speak my mind without fear of retribution. Sometimes we just have to make ourselves laugh just to keep from crying. And, of course, there are always those people that have no sense of humor at all.

I was cleaning up my desk top when I came across this photo of my six year old grand daughter! A bit spooky, so I thought I'd share it. I never quite understood this side of her.

A New Neighbor!

Here's a Juvenile Cooper's Hawk that recently moved into the neighborhood. This was shot by Matthew Krease (Matt Krease) with my Nikon D50 Digital SLR and a 55 - 200mm zoom AF-S Nikkor Nikon DX lens. The point here is to demonstrate the quality you can get from even a less expensive lens if you set up the camera correctly. This 'little' guy is about 18" tall!

Here Ya Go!

O.K. So the 'stalking squirrel' is just a "Hungry Squirrel". Here's the photo I promised as a follow up to yesterday's post......A "cute" (if you like rodents) little fuzzy panhandler. I hope you enjoy this shot. Yes, my Nikon came through again. Please don't hesitate to click directly on the image. You'll get a better idea of the photo quality, for sure! Nikon makes a great product, and so does Canon, for that matter. I use both and love the results! I'll post comments on any others as I use them. Thanks for stopping by!

THE STALKING SQUIRREL!

Here's one for ya!....A stalking squirrel! This is one good reason to always keep a camera with you at all times. In this case, I had my digital SLR on the seat next to me while I pulled over to catch up on some paper work before returning to the office. I heard a commotion on the front of the vehicle and quickly grabbed the camera. Before I knew it, this evil looking little creature came up over the hood of my Jeep and began very deliberately, and slowly, creeping toward my windshield looking as though it had some very bad business on its mind....if the beast has a mind. It became somewhat agitated, clucking and snapping its tail. I quickly assumed that someone near this area had been feeding squirrels and this critter was expecting a handout. The thing finally jumped to the roof of the SUV and peered down into the driver's side window, still begging. Now if you read my older posts, you know my relationship with squirrels isn't pretty. This time, however, I decided to be more cooperative and I found some sunflower seeds in the console. It was a happy ending, and no I did not run him down when I was ready to leave. Actually, you'll see him (or her) eating in a future post. My Nikon once again proved its worth! (actually, any brand will do, and a film camera is fine too...just keep a camera handy for the unexpected shot like this one.)

IF YA CAN'T BEAT 'EM......

If ya can't beat 'em, join 'em! Sure I complain about long dreary February days, but I'm stuck here, I might as well do what Michiganders do best ....find things to do while waiting it out!
To the left is a shot of one of my sons, my fishing partner. We decided to spend a Saturday shivering on the banks of the Flint River. Didn't catch any fish but enjoyed the peace of nature in the wildlife preserve at Shiawasee Flats National Wildlife Refuge.....and of course I brought along my trusty photo outfit.

IT'S BEEN A LONG WINTER!

This image, shot with my trusty Nikon digital SLR, is pretty much the theme of this long cold Michigan winter. Is there an end in sight? The telltale footprints in the foreground proceed only into the gloom, their maker not returning with any good news for sure! I'm ready for Spring.
Perhaps it's time to meditate on some of the warmer days of Michigan's vibrant summers, the great fishing, camping, sunrise and sunsets, wildlife .......This has been a long winter

A Perfect Storm!

Winter in Michigan! Today we woke up to a good ol' fashion winter storm. The kind we used to get in the 60s and 70s. The kind of near blizzard that has ya shoveling in shifts. We have about 6" so far....getting an inch or more per hour throughout the day. Winds will be poppin' tonight. But, hey, it'll be Spring before we know it!

I shot this photo with my Nikon digital SLR. It's about 9a.m. Sunday, December 16....Only 9 more shopping days til Christmas! When did we start to chart our lives by how many days we have to spend money? :-)

Jimi Hendrix

A powerful talent, but out of control. The sixties were notorious.

Here is a charcoal sketch of Hendrix that I found in some stuff in my basement. It was done by Matt Krease while he studied at the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit. Let me know your thoughts.

Lake Devoe, Michigan

The really beautiful thing abut this lake, in the Rifle River Recreation Area, is that absolutely NO motorcraft of any kind are aloud. Although I enjoy my Starcraft boat with it's Evinrude pushing me along to my next fishing hole, it's nice to just take the canoe here, along with my Nikon camera equipment, and slide along without the hassle of worrying about getting dumped by someone's wake....always calm and always memorable.

The ENTIRE Mackinac Bridge!

This is the Mackinac Bridge from end to end! I'd never seen the entire bridge in a photo, so I searched for a vantage point outside of St. Ignace, Michigan. I used a Nikon digital SLR with a 55-200mm zoom lens. The bridge is 50 years old this year.

BAD DREAMS?

M.J.Krease copyright 2007

I couldn't Resist....

Timely, I think. It's from a few years back, but it seems to fit today. You judge
copyright D.F.Krease 1991