Photo Of The Day: October 31, 2008

I just returned from a shoot in Turks and Caicos. Turks and Caicos are two groups of tropical islands just north of the Dominican Republic. Their population of roughly 30,000 includes 22,500 on Providenciales, where I was. Here's a shot of the sunset on my first day there. For more pictures of sunsets, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 30, 2008

This picture is appealing to me because of the reflection of the masts in the water below them. But if it were a perfect unrippled reflection, it might not have worked as well. The ripples in the water not only made the reflection of the masts a bit squiggly, they also broke up the masts, making it feel that much more interesting. Add the gradated orange color, and you get another perfect scene painted by nature. For more pictures of boats and water, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 29, 2008

This photo almost has a Christmas feel to it because of the combination of red and green colors. These are lily pads deep in the Everglades in Florida, and they make a wonderful sight when the green tops and red bottoms are all around you. For more pictures of the Everglades, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 28, 2008

Somehow even a basic steel bridge looks good when its surrounded by all the color of the fall season. For more pictures autumn colors, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 27, 2008

I can't help but think of the old Get Smart TV series when I look at this continuum of doorways, taken at Vizcaya in Miami. For more photos of Miami, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 26, 2008

The sky looked perfect at twilight the day I took this, sailing south under the Manhattan Bridge. For more pictures of New York City, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 25, 2008

This shot of a boat sitting in Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island looked perfect in the multi-colored sky. For more pictures of Rhode Island, look for a new gallery coming next week at Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 24, 2008

The sun is setting earlier on Sandy Hook, and at changing angles. So there are new opportunities to get sunsets you won't get any other time of the year. Here's one taken about a week ago. For more pictures of Sandy Hook, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 23, 2008

I'm heading down to Turks and Caicos to do a shoot on Sunday, and it's likely I'll be traveling through Miami. So it made me think it was a good time to include a photo of the Miami skyline, taken just as dusk was approaching. For more pictures of Miami, look for three new galleries coming this week on Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 22, 2008

During the summer, there was horrendous traffic getting off Sandy Hook because of the construction of a new Highlands Bridge. But one of the benefits of that was to take photos through the car window while waiting in traffic. A kite surfer in the golden sunset provided the perfect photo op. For more pictures of kite surfers and wind surfers, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 21, 2008

Swans always look picturesque. They look good just sitting there with their elegant necks. And when they swim, they look like they're gliding on ice. But in the autumn, you get the added benefit of water that picks up the reflective colors of the trees, giving the swan a wonderful artistic pallet to sit on, as was the case recently seen here. For more pictures of animals, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 20, 2008

When people think of long, elegant suspension bridges, they usually think of large metropolitan areas, where bridges like the Verrazano Narrows, Golden Gate, or George Washington Bridge are found. But they can also be found in smaller areas, too, like this one along a small road in Rhode Island. This 6,130 feet Mount Hope Bridge is a two-lane suspension bridge in eastern Rhode Island at one of the narrowest gaps in Narragansett Bay. The bridge connects the Rhode Island towns of Portsmouth and Bristol, and its 285 feet tall towers provide 135 feet of clearance over high water. And it looks really good at precisely the perfect time at dusk, when the bridge's lights are visible both on the bridge, and off the water. For more pictures of bridges, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 19, 2008

For the Queen Elizabeth 2's final trip out of New York this past Thursday, it enjoyed a full house, with 1,800 passengers paying fares ranging from $25,445 for a duplex grand suite with veranda, to $2,992 for a plain inside single room. Despite its impending retirement, the ship is still the fastest passenger liner in service, reaching speeds of over 37 MPH, and has a tennis court, a golf driving range, a 13-car garage, a theater, a synagogue, and a full shopping mall compete with a Harrods department store, as seen in this shot. For more photos of interiors, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 18, 2008

This past Thursday evening the Queen Elizabeth 2 left New York City on its final trans-Atlantic crossing after nearly 40 years as the fastest passenger ocean liner in service. It was its 806th trans-Atlantic crossing, and 710th out of New York. In November, it will sail to Dubai, where it will become a permanently moored hotel, entertainment complex and museum. I last shot the Queen Elizabeth 2 on January 13 of this year, where I got this shot. For more pictures of cruise ships, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 17, 2008

We're going to take a break from upstate New York photos for a while, and now just pepper additional ones in from time to time in the future. For today, we actually return to Rhode Island. And from there, it's evident that you can't get much more romantic than watching a sailboat pass in front of you just as the sun is setting. For more pictures of boats and sunsets, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 16, 2008

No shoot in upstate New York is complete without a shot of a horse grazing. And a shot of a horse grazing looks even better when it's backlit by the morning sun. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 15, 2008

The autumn colors are legendary in upstate New York, and the red maples look particularly good growing out of the hills. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 14, 2008

When you think of great blue herons, you may think of saltwater marshes and other areas along the coastline. But during my recent shoot in upstate New York, far from any ocean, I saw five separate herons in a 90 minute period. One of them was this one, which stopped to pose long enough for me to change lenses to get this shot. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 13, 2008

Lake Ontario looks expansive any time, but when the clouds are out as they often are in upstate New York, it can take on a wonderfully surreal silver tone with splashes of color as if done by a watercolorist's brush. Here's just one example. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 12, 2008

Oak Orchard Creek is a tailwater fishery in upstate New York that remains ice free throughout most of early the winter. A hydroelectric dam regulates the creek's flow into Lake Ontario, and there is 2½ miles of good fishing between the dam and Lake Ontario. But even if you don't fish, there's incredible beauty there, as seen in this photo. Perhaps that's why there are several large marinas and more than 300 private boat moorings here. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 11, 2008

Sometimes, plowed fields make a wonderful abstract design element that doesn't even require making the connection to the fact that you are looking at crops or the ground. Here's one example from upstate New York last week. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 10, 2008

In upstate New York, the colors turn far sooner than they do here in New Jersey. So by going there in early October, I was able to enjoy them early, as seen here in this shot taken last Saturday. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 9, 2008

Today we take a detour from our shots of upstate New York to remember John Lennon, who was born 68 years ago today. As you undoubtedly know, this shot is from Strawberry Fields in Central Park, not far from The Dakota, where he lived and his wife Yoko Ono continues to reside. In all the years I lived in Manhattan, I never saw this memorial without some flowers or cards, and the day I took this it looked particularly well styled, so I knew I had to capture it for posterity. For more pictures of John's home of New York City, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 8, 2008

Lake Ontario is one of the great lakes, and although it's not an ocean, when you look out at it, it's as vast and unending as the sea. One thing that is interesting is that much of the shoreline is rocky -- not necessarily as much as parts of the coast of Maine, but still rocky. When the sun is just coming up, it's a stunning sight. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 7, 2008

I just returned from a shoot in upstate New York where I saw a lot of beauty that we'll showcase here for the next few days. Here's a barn I passed on the road that looks just like it came out of a calendar. I had to stand on the bumper of my car to get the extra height to get sufficiently above the corn. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 6, 2008

Fifth Avenue in New York is beautiful in many ways -- the buildings, the energy, the people and the atmosphere all make for great viewing. But sometimes you have to step back, as they say. And when you do, it still looks great, forming a razor sharp diagonal slice right through the frame of this photo taken from the roof of a building on Central Park South. For more pictures of Fifth Avenue and New York, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 5, 2008

Today is my sister's birthday. I won't say how old she is except to say that it's a milestone birthday that ends in a "0." She lives in upstate New York where the winters can be a bit tough, but the beauty of the area is very notable. Letchworth State Park, about 35 miles south of Rochester, boasts over 50 waterfalls, including the highest one in the state of New York. Here's one of them. For more pictures of upstate New York, visit the dedicated gallery at Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 4, 2008

There's something about boats sitting on the water that guarantees your mind will be put in a good place. Here's a shot from my Rhode Island shoot taken during ideal light near Bristol. For more pictures of boats, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 3, 2008

Yardley, Pennsylvania developed from an early eighteenth century mill seat and ferry crossing for the Delaware River in Bucks County. It's a very quaint town with both very old and very new buildings and residences. The old library by Lake Afton is a Victorian Gothic structure built in 1878. In the library is a collection of photographs, books, documents and artifacts relating to Yardley's history. Here's a shot of it I took on a crystal clear day. For more pictures of buildings in Bucks County, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 2, 2008

Yesterday I had some business that took me past the Navesink River in Rumson, NJ, where the New Jersey dolphins have been hanging out since moving from their earlier New Jersey home in July. So I thought I would take my long lens to see what I could get to add to my local dolphin collection. And for the first time since they arrived here on Father's Day I could not see a single dolphin. They were either resting or they went on a field trip to get more food. So I reached back to my shoot I did in July at the Miami Seaquarium to find a substitute dolphin shot. For more pictures of dolphins and other animals, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.

Photo Of The Day: October 1, 2008

Today my brother and his wife sail south for the winter after spending the summer in the northern states from New Jersey to Maine. Here's how they looked sailing south on the Atlantic Ocean in 2007, their rainbow spinnaker ballooned out in full formation. For more photos of boats, visit Paul Scharff Photography.com.