Thursday, April 03, 2008

Panama
I am currently on vacation in the Republic of Panama for a friend's wedding. I graduated from high school here and it has been almost 10 years since my last visit. These are some pictures I have taken from the first couple of days, visiting the beach and doing the normal tourist things.



Playa Santa Clara on the Pacific side of Panama.



The mola is an intricate, hand stitched design that has evolved to the original geometric, symmetrical shapes into more elaborate creations of animals and even entire underwater scenes. The designs are used for clothing, decoration, and pretty much anything you can think of using them for.



A native Panamanian, a Kuna indian, sews a mola at an open air market.



These are hand carved tagua nuts represent the myriad of poison dart frogs that are found throughout Panama. The rock-hard tagua nuts have to be specially treated before they become soft enough to carve.

Friday, March 21, 2008

Cops and Donuts

FPD Cpl. Jerri James laughs as she gets caught buying donuts during the Special Olympics Cops on Doughnut Shops fundraiser at Krispy Kreme on West Palmetto in Florence on Friday, March 21, 2008.

Cops and Donuts

FPD Cpl. Jerri James takes a bite of a donut to the amusement of Off. Tammie Durant and Lt. George Mack during the Special Olympics Cops on Doughnut Shops fundraiser at Krispy Kreme on West Palmetto in Florence on Friday, March 21, 2008.

Egg Hunt

A child reaches into a shrub for an egg during the Annual McLeod Medical Center Darlington Easter Egg Hunt on Thursday, March 20, 2008.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

OUCH!

This is what happens when you try to get a shot of a coach dropping a basketball through a hoop when you are shooting up with a 16-35mm....The ball hits your camera and screws up your shot!

Monday, March 10, 2008

Better in color

This photo is going to be published in black and white tomorrow, but I like the color version better: Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina PCBA President Bill Meyer stands on stage as he is recognized with the Ashpy P. Lowrimore Award for Outstanding Community Leadership during the United Way of Florence County Annual Meeting at the Florence Civic Center on Monday, March 10, 2008.

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

I Love 80s Music!

8 Days a Week reviewed Mighty McFly's performance at the V on Thursday, February 28 and I went to take pictures. I had to use flash so the pictures would reproduce for the paper, but I shot multiple frames per second hoping to catch some of the stage lights working their magic and this was my favorite shot: Lead singer Brent, right, and guitarist Annar are lit by the stage lights during a performance by Mighty McFly at V in Florence on Thursday, February 28, 2008. If you like 80s music, Mighty McFly is playing at the V again on Thursday, March 6 and they ROCK!

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Stormy Weather

I was trying to get a shot of a Palmetto tree in Florence being ravaged by wind with raindrops on the lens of my camera...out of several hundred pictures this is the closest I got to what I was envisioning.

Monday, March 03, 2008

Ah…baseball season…

The Darlington Falcons take on the Wilson Tigers at home on Monday, March 3, 2008.
I only snapped two photos on my way back to my spot from the press box and snagged the ball hanging over the plate. It was a beautiful night and I was so happy to be back on a baseball field!

ScienceSouth

Getting kids interested and excited about science is the perfect semi-retirement job for Tony Martinez, he says. An outreach specialist with ScienceSouth, Martinez stands in front of the new headquarters at Freedom Florence on Monday, March 3, 2008. A retired chemist and amateur astronomer, Martinez has been with ScienceSouth for seven months.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Heart Disease Survivor

Mike Smith, an avid runner who had emergency open heart surgery, runs on a treadmill at the YMCA on Tuesday, February 26, 2008. During a double bypass, doctors discovered two more blockages. Smith is now trying to pass the word that heart disease can be hereditary. I was trying to incorporate the little red heart rate icon on a treadmill into the picture and I really do like the result, but it doesn't read as well as I had hoped.

Billy Sylvester

Former Atlanta Brave Billy Sylvester is the new baseball coach at Carolina Academy, pictured here during practice on Thursday, February 21, 2008. A different version of this photo was published in today's sports section. I originally loved the clean white background I got in this photo, but I really love the field lights lining the bottom of the printed version!

Thursday, February 21, 2008

At the circus

I think this is such a beautiful shot, but it would not have reproduced as well on newsprint very well: Olga Kashina of Russia pics out an outfit for a child to try on before the show at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus at the Florence Civic Center on Thursday, February 21, 2008.

At the circus

Wade Luther, 3, left, Matt Stroud, 4, and Mary Madden Gage, 3, get excited as performers are introduced before the show at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus at the Florence Civic Center on Thursday, February 21, 2008.

At the circus

This picture is another almost, I just couldn't get the framing right: Two little boys try to see over the rows in front of them during the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus at the Florence Civic Center on Thursday, February 21, 2008.