Category Archives: photography

A picture’s worth

Here’s an account of some of my picture taking.

My first Brownie camera came my way when I was seven. It was a gift for my First Communion. I’ve graduated from that model since. Here’s what I had to say about taking pictures in 1986.

Now my phone is a handy camera for sunrise and sunset photos. Digital is perfect for me. Having the phone in my pocket means I’m ready to whip it out when something happens and I can document it with a photo.

Happily I can share my photography efforts on Facebook with friends near and far.

Copyright © 2021 by Susan Manzke, all rights reserve

Sibling photos – late 1982

I’ve been going through old photos and scanning them for a column collection from 1982-1983.

Today I’m sharing two here.

This first one is of Rebecca and baby Rachel Jo.

The second shared photo is of Russell and big brother Rob.

I love the expressions in both photos.

Of course, everyone was sweet every day–NOT. As they grew, these four had many meltdowns. But they survived.

Today, our children are best friends.

Copyright © 2020 by Susan Manzke, all rights reserved

New toy

I used to ask Bob to take a picture when I needed extra hands. He was always accommodating, though he had a heavy finger and often ended up with 20 snaps when he was trying to get only one.

Now I need to take my own photos. I have a tripod for my camera, but I wanted one for my phone.

This is what I bought.

I took this photo with my camera. You can see me on the screen.

The tripod came with a Bluetooth clicker so I can activate the phone camera while I’m standing away.

This was photo was taken with my cell phone on the tripod. I used the Bluetooth to snap it and got 100 photos! I guess Bob wasn’t the only one with a heavy finger.

Copyright © 2020 by Susan Manzke, all rights reserved

Late-night visitor

For the first time this year, I set up our critter cam. It was one of Bob’s favorite ‘toys’ and brought back many good memories of him.

What I hoped to capture was the black bear who pooped in our front yard Friday night–Bob had always wanted to see that wandering bear, but though neighbors had seen it, Bob never got a glimpse.

Well, it finally came close enough to our house to touch, yet I had no photo. The critter cam was still sitting on Bob’s desk, waiting for me and for new batteries.

These are a couple photos the critter cam snapped last night:

Squinty the cat looking for supper
Raccoon heading up to get bird food

I knew there was a raccoon visiting. I had seen it before, eating leftover cat food.

Two visiting raccoons

I didn’t know two raccoons were coming for late-night snacks.

No bear showed up last night, at least not on camera.

Later, I’ll take a look around for more bear scat. Maybe it visited the other side of the house.

No matter, I’ll go outside during the day, but after dark you’ll find me indoors.

I’m not going to take any chances surprising visiting wildlife at night. It’s the smart thing to do.

Copyright © 2020 by Susan Manzke, all rights reserved

Newborn photo

I was looking through some papers and had a photo show up.

It brought back many memories.

Can you guess who this is?

If you know our family you won’t have any trouble naming this baby.

The second photo shows a pink hospital top. That narrows down the identification of the baby.

The baby is Rachel Jo. She came into the world in July 1982.

I believe I will use a Rachel baby photo for the cover of my next book, a collection from 1982-1983. It seems appropriate to use it.

Copyright © 2020 by Susan Manzke, all rights reserved