Missing in Action

Polled Hereford cattle graze in a field along West Cove Road, McLemore Cove.

This will be a very short post because I'm working on some things that can't be put off any longer. (And believe me, I'm good at putting thing off!) I'll be back Wednesday to follow up last Friday's post about cell phone photography with a post about the importance of making prints.

Meanwhile, here's a picture I hope you will enjoy. 

Fuji X-T20, Fujicron 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 OIS lens. 

Photograph and text copyright 2022 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone

My book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia, is now out of print, although copies are apparently still available from Amazon, and possibly other sources. The second edition is now in the editing stage and is scheduled to be released in December.

My Daughter-in-Law Is Not a Photographer

My granddaughter Marlee, all dressed up for the prom. 

Kim, my daughter-in-law, is not a photographer. Yet, she takes more pictures than any non-professional I know. In that, she's like my sister Anah. I have a secret suspicion that the reason Kodak went out of business is that Anah passed away and stopped buying their film and ordering double prints of everything. Kimberly does it all with her little cell phone.

I could say that I wish she would use a real camera that would make pictures with better technical quality, but the truth is that she would probably be impatient with the complexity of a real camera and not use it much. She also wouldn't like that she could not post her photos on line immediately. The upshot is that most of the pictures that give her and her family and friends enjoyment would not exist.

In short, she loves pictures but isn't interested in photography. The cell phone is the right camera for her and many others. And that's the camera she used to make the stunning portrait of her daughter Marlee all dressed up for the prom.

Almost the whole history of photography is about the continual effort to make picture-making easier and more convenient. At a time when most photographers were using large cameras with the film emulsion on heavy glass plates, George Eastman revolutionized the photo world with his Kodak box camera preloaded with a roll of film good for a hundred pictures. When the picture-taker used up all the film he sent the camera to Eastman's lab and got back his pictures plus his camera loaded with a new roll of film. Kodak's slogan made history: "You push the button and we do the rest." 

The cell phone is the ultimate heir to Eastman's legacy. You push the button and the camera does the rest. Quickly, conveniently, and cheaply. In fact it's not just cheap -- it's free if you already own your phone.

So am I ready to give up my cameras and make photos with my cell phone? Not a chance! I'm a photographer. I love my cameras and everything about the photographic process. And I can make better pictures with my equipment. But not everyone is willing to carry a camera around all the time as I do. For Kim, and for millions of others who don't care about the limitations of the cell phone, it's the right camera. 

Just be sure to save your pictures and back them up. If you don't your children may have no photo-heritage.

Photograph copyright Kimberly Jenkins 2022. Text copyright 2022 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone

My book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia, is now out of print, although copies are apparently still available from Amazon, and possibly other sources. The second edition is now in the editing stage and is scheduled to be released in December.

 

Lula Lake and Falls

Lula Lake and the Cascade

One of the most beautiful places on Lookout Mountain is the gorge where Rock Creek tumbles down a 25-foot cascade into a round pool, nearly 100 yards in diameter, named Lula Lake.  The creek then flows on a few hundred yards to a sheer drop over magnificent Lula Falls. When I was in college I spent many happy days hiking around the cliffs and swimming in the lake. Later, it was a favorite spot for picnicking with family and friends. Unfortunately, the area was closed to the public in the 1980s.

 

The Chickamauga & Durham Railroad, completed in 1892, wound 17 miles up the mountain to the coal mines at Durham, with a trestle crossing Rock Creek just above the upper cascade. The railroad was closed in 1951, and the tracks were taken up in 1952. But in 1956 it was still possible to drive my car up the old railway bed from Nickajack Road to Lula Falls. 

Now under the control of the Lula Lake Land Trust, a non-profit organization which, in conjunction with other agencies, seeks to preserve and protect approximately 8,000 contiguous acres on Lookout Mountain, the lake and falls are open to the public on the first and last weekends of each month, April through November, and the first and last Saturdays only, December through March. Unfortunately, swimming is no longer allowed, but hiking is better than ever, with access to 60 miles of trails. Much of the road into the Trust area follows the old railroad bed. This is one of the lesser-known, yet most beautiful natural sites in the Chattanooga area.

Most of the waterfalls in the southern Appalachians are cascades, where the water runs down a steep slope. Lula Falls is one of the relative few with a sheer drop.

Lula Falls: A 100-foot straight drop into Rock Creek Canyon

Both photos were made with a Fuji X-Pro1 mirrorless digital camera. The lens was the Fujicron 27mm f2.8 -- a lens I really need to use more often.

Photographs and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone

My book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia, is now out of print, although copies are apparently still available from Amazon, and possibly other sources. The second edition is now in the editing stage and is scheduled to be released in December.

The Andrews-Guthrie House

The Andrews-Guthrie House, McLemore Cove

The Andrews-Guthrie House was built by Otey Andrews in the 1890s for his new bride. A modified plantation-plain design, it, like many Cove houses, has a lowered second story. It was the Guthrie family home for many years, and although currently empty, is still owned and well maintained by one of the Guthrie sons who grew up there.

Andrews Lane with the Andrews-Guthrie House in the distance.

In this view from near the bridge over Chickamauga Creek on Andrews Lane, the Andrews-Guthrie house gleams in the distance, just right of center. Lookout Mountain forms the backdrop. Andrews Lane connects West Cove Road, which runs along the west side of the Cove at the base of Lookout Mountain, with Hog Jowl Road, which runs along the east side of the Cove at the base of Pigeon Mountain. The two roads come together at the south end of the Cove to form Dougherty Gap Road, which goes to the top of the mountain.

The photo at the top was made in November, 2008 with a Canon 5D Classic camera and a Canon EF 24-85mm f3.5-4.5 lens. The bottom photo was made in 2011 with an Olympus E-PL1, my first mirrorless digital camera. The lens was the little 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 Zuiko that came with the camera.

Photograph and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone

My book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia, is now out of print, although copies are apparently still available from Amazon, and possibly other sources. The second edition is now in the editing stage and is scheduled to be released in December.