Well I hope you all had a happy holiday season, and hopefully some time during it to slow down for a bit and relax.
That's pretty much how my vacation was for me.
The holidays can be both a blessing and a bit of a curse, right? I mean- you love it - the time with your family and friends, right? But the month beforehand where everything is going 60 billion miles an hour is friggin EXHAUSTING!
Or, maybe it's just me. But anyway- we had a really good break that didn't consist of anything to exciting. Family get togethers, a few parties with friends, and unufortunately- only a couple chances to get out with the camera (thanks for nothing, Mother Nature!)
The best morning out I had was 2 days into vacation when I headed up to Bailey Island ME, a beautiful little spot I had never shot a sunrise on. It was the only really good morning color I had during the whole vacation.
Here's the lobster shack at Cooks Lobster and Ale House just as the sun rose over the famous bridge...
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
This was a selfie I took about an hour before sunrise -
It was a really nice morning.
We did get the chance to continue our 2023 Brew Tour - chalking up a couple that put us over the 30 mark for the year. First- one of our local faves-
And we also had a great time with our Brew Crew at Stoneface Brewing Co in Newington!
That's our friends Gary and Lorraine - they're fun to hang with! And that's the first time I had a beer in a mug like that-
Can ya tell? haha -
Christmas was really nice. We had Valerie's family over for xmas eve- and Christmas night featured a furious "Girls vs Guys Gingerbread House Challenge", with ours and my brothers kids - and let me tell ya - it gets INTENSE!
And they followed that up with a dare for me to do a shot with them -
And one of the best gifts of the holiday was one the kids and I gave Valerie. We commissioned Sarah Fenerty (the artist who painted the images on The Buzz Beer cans) to do a portrait of our dog Molly- whom we lost this past year.
She did an incredible job - and no, there wasn't a dry eye in the house for a bit-
And even though the weather was less than stellar - there was morning where I went out to photograph the fog- and was surprised by a little bit of color in the sky before the sun rose.
Here's one I got of a fishing boat headed out to see - into a redish/pink/purple sky.....
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
And 20 minutes later- it was foggy -
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
Its crazy how quickly it changes.
I did visit a couple of eagles over the break as well -
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
In "stick season" (the season between fall and snow, or the season between winter and spring when the landscape is all sticks and mud) - there isn't much to photograph when it comes to landscapes.THAT'S when I turn my attention to bald eagles. Always fun to watch and photograph.
And lastly - New Years Eve was spent with friends- and we rang it in at midnight~
Here's Valerie and I giving you all a toast!
And after ringing in 2024, I got up a few hours later and headed to Meredith to shoot the sunrise over Lake Winnipesaukee!
Photo: Greg Kretschmar
Doesn't everybody do that?
So that's about it. Well, thats what I took pics of! Some things just gotta stay off the record- haha
Hope you had a good weekend-
and Happy New Year to you All -
g