Hocking Hills Autumn Splendor

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Travel Spirit

A quick two-day mid-week trip to Hocking Hills State Park for hiking followed by soaking in a hot tub with girlfriends was just what the doctor ordered! Located in Southeastern Ohio, 2 1/2 hours from Cincinnati, the rugged cliffs, breathtaking gorges, cascading waterfalls, and flourishing forests of Hocking Hills State Park, afford visitors a pristine outdoor wonderland. Our first hike was to Old Man’s Cave. The well-marked one mile round trip trail, includes both man-made and natural steps. The view from inside the mouth of the wide cave looks down onto a small stream and stone bridge…

Autumn is one of my favorite times of the year to visit this park…

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Beautiful Woman

Posted on October 11, 2014 by Travel Spirit

I had the opportunity yesterday to photograph a beautiful woman. Her name is Carrie Kondor and she was referred to me by the Yoga instructor that I recently took photos for. Carrie is starting her own business. She teaches meditation, yoga, and some type of healing; wherein while the person is lying down, she beats a drum to open their chakras. She reminds me of a cross between Carly Simon and Seane Corn (whom she admires).

Doesn’t she have a great smile…so full of life!

She arrived with a variety of outfits and colorful scarves…

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The Search for Autumn

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Travel Spirit

My latest assignment for Cincinnati Refined was to find the most colorful “leaf popping” streets within selected Cincinnati neighborhoods, so off I went, on a 40 mile journey and was amazed that I only found a few colorful trees! It seems that Autumn is arriving late. This was the most vibrant tree…

A peek at a bit more of “the” tree…

On the way home, this bean field and sky shouted for me to stop…

So…I’ll be going out again next week hunting for Autumn!

Foggy Morning

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Travel Spirit

I woke before dawn and made my morning coffee. Peering out the window, everything was encased in fog. I hastily threw on a jacket over my pajamas, grabbed my tripod and camera, and wandered down the lane in my house slippers to capture the beauty.

Do you have a favorite?

Unwind and uncork a bottle at these 3 Local Wineries

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Meranda-Nixon Winery

If you’re lucky, like I was, when you arrive at the Meranda-Nixon Winery, you’ll be greeted by one of the proprietors’ friendly dogs. You may even see one of their beautiful horses as you gaze at the lush vineyards.

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Western & Southern Open Fashion Show

Posted on August 15, 2014 by Travel Spirit

The Western and Southern Open Fashion Show, sponsored by Cincy Chic, was a fun event to photograph for Cincinnati Refined! I continue to have “firsts” as I work assignments for Cincinnati Refined as I’ve never photographed a fashion show before. A couple of the models were definitely uncomfortable and insecure and it showed, but I think it’s important to push ourselves to do things that we’re not comfortable with, so we grow and develop our skills and potential to their fullest!

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Western & Southern Open

Posted on August 10, 2014 by Travel Spirit

The Western & Southern Open is being held August 9 – 17, 2014, here in Cincinnati, Ohio and I was on assignment today. It was my first experience taking tennis photographs and I wasn’t sure what to expect. It’s been a long day. I began by leaving my home at 7:30am and returned after noon. The remainder of the day (until 8:30pm) I’ve spent editing photos. I think I did fairly well for my first time.

After researching the players, I decided to photograph the match between Ben Becker from Germany and Malek Jaziri from Tunisia…

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Lumenocity

Posted on August 1, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Lumenocity is an annual event held here in Over the Rhine, Cincinnati, Ohio at Cincinnati Music Hall. I was invited to the dress rehearsal by a friend and met her and two other girlfriends to have a bite to eat beforehand at a restaurant called Abigail Street right around the corner from Music Hall. The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Cincinnati Ballet perform under the white tent shown below while you’re treated to an elaborate and flamboyant light show on the exterior of Music Hall…

Earlier in the evening at Abigail Street Restaurant, I captured a selfie in the mirror of the lovely shabby chic ladies’ restroom…

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Summer Fun

Posted on July 30, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Bouncing on the water, holding on tight, our friend had tons of fun tubing behind our boat this past weekend! Everyone looks forward to summer because there’s so much to do…Bicycling, concerts in the park, picnics, having a frosty cold drink on the deck, and of course fun in the water! You know it’s summer when you smell freshly cut grass, blooming flowers, and the aroma of grilled food.

I enjoyed honing my photography skills snapping pics from a boat skimming the water at high speeds jostling my camera and I…

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Guinness Book of World Record for the Most People Salsa Dancing

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Thursday evening, July 24, 2014 is a day to go down in the record books, specifically the Guinness World Records book, for the City of Cincinnati to beat Mexico’s past record of the largest Salsa dance, with over 2,000 people moving to the rhythm! I was there to capture the excitement and energy for iSPYCINCY taking photographs of the event. Green “Gain” shirts were given out to the attendees, as you can see in the photo…

My husband accompanied me, as usual, and since it was a perfect evening for motorcycle riding, we arrived on our Harley. He dropped me off so I could get started while he parked the bike. My first shot was of this performer on the sidewalk next to Fountain Square…

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Washington Park Festivities

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Washington Park in Cincinnati, Ohio is the happening place to be in the summer! There’s always something going on and this weekend was no exception. iSPYCincy had me on assignment to find out how much fun people have at a Fireworks festival and as you can see…it was a lot!

The Almighty Get Down Band was groovin’!

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Red White & Blue Ash Fireworks

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Travel Spirit

My 4th of July celebrations included attending a friend’s party and walking from her house to a fireworks‘ display called Red White & Blue Ash Fireworks! It’s located in Blue Ash, Ohio, which is a suburb of Cincinnati and there were over 100,000 people there! Midnight Special and Cheap Trick were the bands playing and the Rozzi Fireworks were spectacular! I took my tripod to capture the fireworks. It was my first time and I had my settings on 8 seconds at 8 F-Stop. In Lightroom 5, I edited some of the smoke out by increasing my black and contrast.

One of my friends took my photo with my camera. As you can see it was a beautiful day…low humidity and 78 degrees!

My friend Frank had a temporary tattoo on his head…

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MidPoint Indie Summer Series at Fountain Square

Posted on June 22, 2014 by Travel Spirit

The summer’s off to a great start here in Cincinnati at Fountain Square‘s MidPoint Indie Summer Series, where they have a free concert every Friday night with a variety of bands! This past Friday night, I was on assignment for iSPYCincy and here are some of the photographs from the night.

This first photo is of a band called Frankl Project…

This dude is with the Crosstown Rivals…

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Hiking in Spring

Posted on April 16, 2014 by Travel Spirit

My girlfriend came over today and we had a wonderful afternoon savoring a homemade lunch of Swai fish, rice and a Salad. She brought the fish and rice and I made the Salad. Here’s a pic of what the salad looks like. It has zucchini, squash, grilled corn, grape tomatoes, red onion, pine nuts, red and orange bell pepper with feta cheese over a bed of lettuce and a homemade vinaigrette dressing…yum!

We went hiking at Cincinnati Nature Center’s property called Long Branch Farms in Goshen, Ohio. Of course, I took my camera and captured a few shots. Using Lightroom 5, I altered the feel of this one by decreasing the clarity. I like the muted look sometimes…

There’s a pretty barn there…

Of course Jake had a blast! I noticed the tree limbs were glistening in the sun…almost as though they were covered in ice…

We had a great time talking and catching up on what’s been going on. Here’s the barn from a different angle…

My next goal is to purchase a wide-angle lens and start taking photos of homes. I’ll contact some Realtors and see how I can get my foot in that door!

21c Museum Hotel and Gilpin’s Steamed Sandwiches

Posted on February 3, 2014 by Travel Spirit

Walking through the 21c Museum Hotel is an experience not to be missed in Cincinnati! Friday night, my friend and I began our evening attending the Art after Dark event at the Cincinnati Art Museum, followed by Final Friday at the Pendleton Art Center in Over the Rhine, and finished the evening with a walk through the trendy 21c Museum Hotel, and a yummy steamed sandwich at Gilpin’s Steamed Sandwiches next door! By the time I got home, it was almost 2:00am! But it was worth it…we had fun.

The next few images are pieces of art you will discover at this boutique hotel…