Georgia Backroads & Zirkle

07-26-2009

The last couple of weeks I've done the least amount of photography than in several years. Bonnie had her major surgery and I've been back and forth to the hospital and working at the same time. She is still real weak so I've been hanging around close to home while she is going through this time and probably driving her crazy. I did send in a few photos and a short bit of history about Zirkle to Georgia Backroads magazine and they sent a reply that they are interested in maybe doing a story on it. I've found out a little more history on it and am going to see what other information I can find before I send in what I have on one of my all time favorite places to make pictures.

These two photos are:

Baptist Hospital at 3am looking out across the water. I decided to see if I could get a decent shot of the lights and buildings across the other side.

I took my daughter and son-in-law to their first trip to Zirkle a couple of evenings ago and the water is really, really low. Someone has been in the water digging up small logs and boards that I suppose came from the sawmill that was there in the early 1900's and laying them up on the bank. The water is barely coming over the dam now.

http://www.waynemorganphotography.com/

(912)288-0810

Twenty five years

07-07-2009

Twenty five years ago today I was still a teenager, had hair (with some sexy sideburns), no kids, never had any type of surgeries and about to be married to my highschool sweetheart. I had just bought my one bedroom house on a south Georgia dirt road and acre of land for $1,500 and started my job at the sawmill making a whopping $5.38 per hour. The original house is still here but has expanded all the way around and we still live on the same dirt road even though the name has changed.

Fast forward to now and all of the other things have changed somewhat but I am still married to my highschool sweetheart. Bonnie has put up with me through a lot over the years with different projects (I can't stand to be bored) and I keep telling her that I am the best thing that has ever happened to her. Truthfully, it is the other way around but it still does not stop me from saying it.

Both of our kids are out of highschool now with Kristen being married and operating her own business and Kyle still looking for work before starting to college in the fall. I moved on from the sawmill job, started taking lots of photos and work on trains now. Bonnie has never been on a plane before and hopefully that will change very soon and we can start to travel, see more of the world and start on the next twenty five years.

These are a couple of photos I made in the fog a few days ago that I like.

wayne

www.waynemorganphotography.com

A Little Prick

07-01-2009

For the past few months I've been hobbling around while working 12 hours almost every day on cement with pain in my right heel. I finally got an appointment yesterday to get it looked at and I have a heel spur. I figured that was it because five years ago I had the same pain in my left foot. The doc examined me and said he was going to inject something in the inflamed area and whipped out a little tiny needle and said there is going to be a little prick. Wham, straight into the side of my heel and it was a good thing he had a good grip on my foot at the time. After that he had to move it around and around until he hit juuuust the right spot. He knew it when he hit it and so did I. That was when the pain went from just hurting to hurting and burning. Now I've got a brace to where for a couple of days and I should be good to go.

This morning I was back at Zirkle wading around in my chest waders and walking on the soft river sands of the Little Satilla that felt so good I didn't even think about my foot.

The yellow flies are bad and I bet PETA would not have liked the way I killed one of them with my hat that was biting my ankles after getting my wading clothes back off. I knocked it to the ground, put my foot on it and did the twist. I already hurt enough around my ankles and don't need a yellow fly to add to it. Made me feel good that at least one of them didn't get away.

This set of trees is some I've enjoyed taking photos of that is near Herrin Lake and now the river is getting low enough I can get to them again.

wayne

http://www.waynemorganphotography.com/

(912)288-0810

Brantley Magazine & a bluebird

o6-22-2009

I was sitting at a table at the Brantley County High School cafeteria for an event honoring local people that had done good for our county this past year. Publisher of the Waycross Magazine, Dave Callaway was sitting across from me and I heard him tell the lady next to him about how when he first came to Ware and put out the magazine he had ticked off a certain photographer.

It took me a few seconds to think about what he was talking about and then it came to me. I was doing a show at the Okefenokee Heritage Center and he took a picture of me standing next to one of my photographs. I was sitting somewhere one day and happened to pick up this neat looking magazine that had Waycross across the top of it and was looking at it from the back to the front like I always do. There was the picture and I thought wow this is good to have my stuff in a nice magazine like this. Then I read the caption underneath.......... Wayne Morgan with his "painting" at the Heritage Center. I could feel my blood pressure rising.

I found his email address and sent him a quick note when I got home that said something to the effect of "I really do appreciate the exposure of having my picture in this nice magazine but I am "NOT" a painter. I wish I could paint but I cannot and I am a PHOTOGRAPHER. I work hard at what I do and it is always a struggle to just get recognized as a photographer and now this." He corrected the mistake in the next issue and I thought nothing else about it until this evening and we had a good laugh.

Now today Brantley has its own magazine that Dave has published and he also took my picture again with one of my photos on the front cover. I am extremely proud to be associated with it and think it is a breath of fresh air for our county. As long as he does not list me as a "painter" we won't have a problem.

After working graveyard shift last night and getting my sleep I looked out my back window to check on the bluebirds. They are nesting again and the male and female are bringing food back and forth to the nest. I grabbed my camera and caught this male bringing in his portion of a freshly picked cricket.

wayne

http://www.waynemorganphotography.com/

(912)288-0810

Man on a bench

06-12-2009

We rode back down to Jacksonville for more tests on Bonnie this week. Before leaving I checked out my camera and it appeared to have a full charge on the battery. They discovered she has a cyst on her esophagus so now we are waiting to talk with another doctor about the next step.

On the way home we were crossing over the road that had a sign pointing > Fernandina Beach when she said "I don't feel like going back to work today. I think I'd like to go to the beach." I am a river person and had not been to the beach as far as getting wet in a very long time so around I turned at the first chance I got and we headed to the coast. After stopping at a store to get a few beach things we drove straight to it. When I pulled up I saw this man sitting on a bench with head phones on and a bible laying next to him and I thought that would make a good photo. The parking lot was full and we had not had anything to eat since early this morning so we turned and went back to eat lunch. After eating and coming back about an hour later this man was still in the exact spot as before and I couldn't stand it any more. There was one parking spot right where I needed to be so I swung in and parked the car. I grabbed my camera and stepped out and took several photos of this man enjoying his time watching the birds and listening to his music. Normally I try to keep people out of my photos but this scene to me was something interesting and I was able to get a bird in it anyway.

We decided to ride on down to a less crowded area and get out to the water. It was a beautiful day and when we got to our spot I grabbed my camera and started taking pictures of the waves breaking when my camera died on me. For some reason the battery was completely dead and I did not bring a spare with me.

I put my camera back in its bag and normally I would have been frustrated but we had a really good time splashing around in the water like teenagers. Bonnie said with that one scene of the man on the bench the trip was worth it - plus we had fun.

wayne

www.waynemorganphotography.com

(912)288-0810

I WILL SURVIVE

06-05-2009

I think some wondered if I would survive this past week on my own. My bunch should be back late tomorrow night from their cruise and I think I've done pretty well thank you very much. I sleep on one little section of the bed so it is not messed up and will be easy to make up just before everyone arrives. I've had very little dishes and most of that is just glasses where my sweet tea was in. I've worn my work clothes all week so all I have to do is take them in to work and that is taken care of. I have not even got one laundry basket of dirty clothes stacked up yet. I've heard that you can get by for three or four days on one pair of underwear by flipping them inside out. After a couple of hot, sweltering, grass cutting, weed eating days I would think that it is doable but........ I don't recommend it.

I've "conveniently" arrived at lunch and supper to kin folks homes a couple of times and been invited to eat which I would have felt bad turning it down. The to-go plates also helped me get by another day or two. I've also had a friend offer to buy me lunch on one occasion while I was in Brunswick and he was persuasive so again I would have felt bad not to oblige. I have watched very little tv as most everyday I've been either asleep or out taking pictures. I've been to Homerville, Okefenokee Swamp Park, Brunswick, Satilla River, Golden Isles Speedway and even stopped by at the recreation department and caught 9 & 10 year olds practicing softball.

There is a song from long ago called "I Will Survive" and I've always considered myself one. A suvivor on my own. At least one more day.

When I saw this gator at the Swamp Park my whole idea was to get down to eye level with it and get the tree root in the photo. Once again I brought no bug spray and the mosquitos are big and bad in the swamp. This other one was from my trip to a lake in Homerville.

The latest word is the Brantley Magazine with several of my photos in it will be out next Monday.

wayne

www.waynemorganphotography.com

I GET TO GO & Zirkle dam

o5-31-2009

My bunch has all went on a cruise to Key West, Jamaica and Grand Cayman Islands while I stay at home and work this week. The first time Bonnie and Kyle has done anything like this so I hope they have a good time and know the next time I GET TO GO! Due to my hire date at my newest job with the railroad I don't have any vacation time built up but am looking forward to it happening so I can go somewhere to make some new photographs of other places.

I have switched a couple of framed pictures around at some of the local businesses where they are on display just to change the scenery. This one of Zirkle I hung at the Knox Hotel and when Blanche saw it she said "I've saw this one before." Apparently she thought she was interested in attending an art class in Waycross and met a lady that brought something to class with her. The other lady told the instructor she wanted to "paint this" and handed over a newspaper. The way Blanche jokes around I thought this was just another one but this time she was serious. It was this photo that the Blackshear paper had used on the front page last year of my photo and this was going to be her painting project. Blanche gave up her art career after a couple of classes and does not know who the other lady was or how her painting turned out. I've been asked before if it aggravates me when someone wants to paint one of the pictures that I've taken instead of buying one and my reply is always "shoot no. It makes me feel good to know some people like my work enough to want to paint a copy of it for themselves to hang on their wall."

wayne
http://www.waynemorganphotography.com/