The Sun Rises! The Sun Sets!

The Sun Rises! The Sun Sets!

I am now entering A Different Season of Life. My body is beginning to fail.
There is so much that still needs to be done. I have literally thousands of images.
I will have to choose a few dozens prints to place in the LuckiShotz Gallery.
Your purchase of my creative works of art and images will help keep my memories alive in your homes and offices.

It is my hope that you will respect the purpose of the LuckiShotz Gallery and purchase my prints. Your purchases will add a much needed additional income for my spouse after I enter through the blue light of grace..

I have had a wonderful life and still treasure the last glimpes of light I now capture.

Being there at the right time! Being in the best possible location to capture that special moment when sunlight refracts through the clouds, off particles of pollution, and the dust in the atmosphere.

And then performing processing techniques to arrive at a creative end point.

The Sun Rises! The Sun Sets!

And everyone sees it differently. Some like to view the raw image while others enjoy the concepts given by an artist eye.

Photography in the digital age is explosive.

Your enjoyment is my pleasure.

Poppy Morning

I arose about 6am this morning waiting for just the right time to capture this image at 8am I headed for the intersection of Joyce Blvd and 71B in Fayetteville. I parked about 500 feet from this scene. It perfectly reflected my mood for today. Hope you enjoy it too!

Japton Arkansas

After coming back to the office this morning from shooting images out near Japton Arkansas, my office buddy John, took one look at this image and said it made him feel sleepy. Let's see what you say.

Japton Arkanas County Road 6263

The Creative Brain

A highy structured perfectionist style environment is not conducive to creativism.

Wimberley Texas is a lot like Eureka Springs Arkansas.

If you are a writer, a photographer, or a composer I can imagine that you would like the semi-structured atmosphere of Wimberley. The reason I am writing this post is because I have come to realize that 'the creative brain' needs stimulus to operate more effectively. The creative brain feeds on a contrasting environment. If the creative brain is stuck in a highly structured environment it will rebel and seek out those places that provide freedom of expression.



The town square in Wimberley Texas boast two dozen or more shops. As you might imagine after viewing this 'Kiss the Cook' business (pictured above) there are a lot of creative people in this town of Wimberley and during the summer months, I am told, lots of visitors that produce the means to survive during colder days.



About the only place to eat breakfast is at the Wimberely Cafe (pictured above). I must praise Camelia for giving us great service. The important words out of her mouth as she greeted us was 'Good Morning Folks, My name is Camelia'. It was indeed refreshing. In bigger cities the greeting is 'Hi Guys, my name is' and it is the Guys that turns me off especially when I am sitting at a table with a young lady, or women. Perhaps it just rolls off your shoulder but I expect a little respect from waiters and waitresses.

I will revisit Wimberley with someone other than the person I traveled with this trip. In fact perhaps I could gather a group of say 4-6 writers, photographers and others that would like to caravan to Wimberley.

If this sounds like someone you'd like to do - please give me a call at 1-888-403-4636 Ext 801.

There are many B&B's in this area that provide just the right atmosphere.



The Wimberley Inn wouldn't be my first choice when I return but if you've never been to Wimberley it is most likely the easiest to find. The address to search in Google is 200 FM 3237, Wimberley Texas; the address they provide is 200 Ranch Road, Wimberley Texas.

Please visit my photography online at LuckiShotz.net or become a facebook fan of LuckiShotz.

Cross Country Trips

As I wind down from a cross country trip I am both relieved and frustrated. Traveling with someone who doesn't care about photography or the arts or good music is really a distraction from my creative left brain. Being on a time schedule is also the worst nightmare. There have been many times I saw a perfect shot and just kept my noise pointed to the east or west as the case may have been. Turning around and going back to that location or finding a road that would allow for photography simply would mean I would listen to endless rhetoric and would end up delaying our trip. So this trip in the end was hardly any different than previous trips; lots of driving a little bit of photography and lot of food and a little bit of sleep. I have a few photos of the square in Wimberley Texas that I will post in the Travel section of my online Gallery at http://luckishotz.net

Las Vegas Las Vegas Las Vegas

Las Vegas changes it seems almost everyday. The city that never sleeps. Continuely tearing down and building up. The most recent openings was City Center. 67 acres and 18 million square feet of hotels, casino and the new theatre located at ARIA which will house a permanent new Cirque du Soleil show based on the life and music of Elvis Presley. Finding it on the Las Vegas Blvd is no easy chore. On todays picture taking venture I parked at the WYNN Self Park and walked south toward City Center. After taking many pictures along the way, I crossed over to the entrance.

This first view of Las Vegas was taken approximately 6 miles from the north end of the strip.

Stratosphere Las Vegas is a tower, hotel, and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States[1] and the second tallest in the Western Hemisphere, surpassed only by the CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario. The top of the tower has two observation decks, a restaurant known as "Top of the World" (revolving restaurant), and three thrill rides: Big Shot at 1,081 ft (329 m) is the highest thrill ride in the world
Insanity, opened in 2005, at 900 ft (270 m) is the second highest thrill ride in the world; it dangles riders over the edge of the tower and then spins in a circular pattern at approximately forty miles per hour.

You can see all 299 images of Las Vegas at
LuckiShotz Gallery or
Sam McMillan's Facebook Page will host a few. Also I invite all Facebook(R) users to
Become a fan of LuckiShotz

ICHIZA

On every trip to Las Vegas I take the family out to the best Japanese Restaurant in Las Vegas. Ichiza opens at 6am and closes at 3am. If you are a member you can make a reservation. If not you either have to get there early or wait. Ichiza is quite small but don't let the size influence your decision to try the food. It is out of this world. The picture above is beef tongue. My wife and children love this dish. To see more pictures of Ichiza visit http://luckishotz.net/Food/ICHIZA