Davis Bayou, Mississippi.

Shrimp boats rest in harbor at Biloxi Mississippi.

Live Oaks hanging with Spanish Moss line the pathway at Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia.

Morning Fog at Cedar Point NC

Some days the sky starts off gray, but the air is calm and the water is still. That gives you a chance to find the beauty every day.

It’s a good day to be in South Carolina with live oak trees and spanish moss on the Intracoastal Waterway.

Churchill Downs in Louisville Kentucky is the epicenter of racing tradition.  The road to the Kentucky Derby begins with each racing season where winning horses earn points until there are a final field of 20 horses that will compete on Derby Day, the first Saturday in May.

The Little Painted Desert in Northern Arizona

The Little Painted Desert – Find the Beauty Every Day © Doug Allen

Roll back the years and slide behind the wheel of a true luxury car.  The 1948 Lincoln had it all, including a grill with chrome for miles.

Wildlife in the Grand Canyon is full and flourishing.  This desert bighorn sheep lives in some of the most rugged terrain in the west.  The males have large curling horns that can weigh up to 30 pounds.  Desert Bighorn Sheep survive on sparse vegetation and can go for extended periods without water.  They range from the rim to the river and endure extremes in temperature from well below zero to over 100 degrees.  This large male is a spectacular presence, who keeps a keen eye on his harem.   Find The Beauty Every Day – Desert Bighorn Sheep © Doug Allen

The clouds and rain storm passed through the Grand Canyon this afternoon and everything turned grey.  Flat light for sunset is a challenge, but sometimes you have to be patient.  Eventually the sun popped down below the clouds for a couple of minutes.  Just long enough to shoot a few frames and get a big star pattern.  I bracketed seven frames at Moran Point tonight with f-32 and finished with HDR Pro processing in Photoshop CS5 with an artistic twist to make me happy.  Find The Beauty Every Day  -  Moran Point Sunset @ Doug Allen

Time to kick back and have a cool one…Find The Beauty Every Day @Doug Allen

I created this image in the Florida Keys.  We were staying at a little place on the bay and had been out shooting stuff around Marathon all day.  We had gone inside to cool off as the afternoon moved on because the “no-see-ums” were coming out to feed.  Those are small flying critters that you really just can’t see and lord help you when they bite because the itching just goes on forever.  As the sun dipped down I ran back outside and set up while the sky started changing from hazy blue to golden orange.  Some days you are the bug and some days you are the windshield.  It just goes to show you that you can find the beauty every day.  Now it is time to kick back and have a cool one.

Find The Beauty Every Day

I worked with this young model to produce a portrait that would show her inner beauty and charm.  Capturing just the right expression in the right setting with the right light is always challenging, but when it happens it is truly rewarding.  We shot scores of images this day in different settings with numerous wardrobe changes.  Yet this simple image was my favorite from the session.  I feel there is a timeless quality about her expression and natural beauty.

Sunset Pima Point Grand Canyon – Find the Beauty Every Day © Doug Allen

While traveling through the California desert at Anza Borrego State Park, the winds were blowing over the mountains and rocking the house.  In the late afternoon these lenticular clouds popped up over the mountains.  If you look real close you can see the alien mothership hiding in the clouds.

I love macro shots…seeing things close up reveals an entire world of beauty that we all too often glance past.  Take the time to get close to your subject and see what you can see.

The river swirls on the first day of the raft trip down the Colorado River into the Grand Canyon.  After putting in at Lee’s Ferry the raft meanders through Marble Canyon underneath Navajo Bridge.  All of the gear is battened down and now it is time to relax and get into the trip.  Standing on top of the bridge I get to watch my friends Joe and Bonnie Stevens as they head into the “Great Unknown”.  The Colorado runs green and cold today as the water comes out of the bottom of Glen Canyon Dam.  In 1869 John Wesley Powell commanded the first boat expedition down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.   At that time there was no dam and the river was a reddish brown color from all of the sediment being washed down from the mountain streams.

We were driving home to the Grand Canyon from Flagstaff on Arizona Highway 180 when the storm clouds rolled in.  The sun broke through the base of the clouds and illuminated the rain coming down across the Kaibab Plateau.  Unfortunately I did not have my “real” camera with me, but at least my Android phone came through to capture this panoramic scene.  Sometimes the sunset is about the reflection of the light, sometimes it is about the refraction of the light.  Tonight it was just amazing to see the glow below the storm.

Rollin’ down the street, smokin’ endo - Sippin’ on gin and juice, laid back - With my mind on my money - And my money on my mind

Mona has a sweet ride.  She kicks back in her Cadillac Eldorado and cruises all night long.  Some love affairs go on forever and in this case there is a ghost in the machine.