An "Off the Beaten Path" Adventure

I haven't had time to go on many photo shoots recently, but a couple of days ago I left Vicksburg, driving East on Old Highway 80, and had a very pleasant morning just "looking for pictures waiting to be taken." I found several on Highway 80, but, unfortunately, had to leave them there because traffic conditions prevented me from stopping on the side of the road to capture them. Needless to say, that soon became very frustrating, so when I reached the small village of Bovina, Mississippi, I veered off the beaten path to explore the back roads of Warren County — and I wasn't disappointed by what I found. I am always inspired to see that the spirit of patriotism can be found just about anywhere ... This old country store is at a crossroads, and I would have loved to have gone inside, but thought better of it. I took these pictures from my car, and while editing the pictures, I found several things I would have liked to have gotten a closer look at (you can click on the picture, if you'd like to get a closer look, too) ... I always loved the old Bovina water tower, and captured this picture of it back in January of 2009. That old tower is long gone now, torn down in the name of "progress," and replaced with a bright, shiny new blue tower. Progress is a good thing, I guess, but, in some cases, it surely isn't as picturesque. And speaking of picturesque ... you probably don't think of a muddy creek or river as being pretty, but, as I crossed a bridge over this muddy river, I could see beauty in the contrast of the blue sky and the starkness of the trees along the water's edge, and in the swift current of the river's muddy waters. It was a very peaceful moment as I stopped to snap the picture, and listened to the wind in the trees and the sound of the river moving under the bridge. Some of you may recall this picture of two blue chairs which I captured in May 2009 ... I came across the chairs again on my latest adventure, and here they are as they look now ... Not quite as inviting in January, but I think they still make an interesting picture. Here's another picture I took that same day in May 2009 ... I was glad to see that old chimney still standing ... Just a few yards up the road from the chimney, I happened to notice this old rail car sitting way back off the road, almost hidden in a wooded area on the edge of a pasture (I took these pictures using my zoom lens, and you can click on them to enlarge them and get a closer look) ... I took those pictures from my car, and as I was sitting there on the side of the road, the owner of the property pulled out of his driveway and stopped beside my car when he saw me taking pictures. I explained what I was doing, and he very graciously told me that his father had been a vice president with Illinois Central Railroad, and had bought the rail car many, many years ago. I wish I could have asked more questions about its history, but he was stopped in the middle of the road and I didn't want to keep him. I was delighted to capture the train car, but as I passed by the owner's house ... I noticed this old family cemetery sitting on a hill next to the house ... I'm going to save its story for next time, and hope you will join me to find out what I discovered about it.

Sepia Potpourri

Today I'd like to share a few of my pictures I converted to sepia tone, which makes them look as if they belong in the pages of an old photograph album.

Gibbes Country Store, Learned, Mississippi

Building in Learned

Baum Statue, with Court House in Background
Vicksburg, Mississippi

Ceres Plantation Barn, Flowers, Mississippi

Country Road near Bovina, Mississippi

Carriage Doors, Vicksburg

Cotton Boll

Gingko Tree at Vicksburg National Cemetery
Vicksburg National Military Park

Water Tower, Bovina, Mississippi

Church Bell
St. Marks Episcopal Church, Circa 1854
Raymond, Mississippi

Rosalie, Natchez

Natchez Under-the-Hill

Mailbox, Old Highway 80, near Vicksburg

Urn at old cemetery off the Natchez Trace

Radio Station Sign, Canton, Mississippi

Department Store, Canton, Mississippi

I love the way sepia tones can totally change the look of a photograph and make the subject look as if it is from another place in time. Some of the places shown in the above photos are very old, but some of them are not. Can you tell the old ones from the new?