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Fine Art Photography by David Morefield from Houston, Texas

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My Trip to Washington DC

Vietnam Wall

  By David Morefield

Some of you may know that my son Caleb was pretty sick when he was in the eighth grade and because of that, he missed his class trip to Washington DC.  I have a good friend that told me that she would make sure that Caleb got to see Washington DC when he was healthy and after telling Caleb, he was no longer disappointed about missing his trip. I had no idea that she was not only going to make sure that Caleb got to see Washington DC, but she was going make him feel like a Rockstar!

It started with a flight on a private jet to Manassas, Virginia and then we went to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy near Dulles Airport. From there, we proceeded to our hotel and began our weekend of adventure. Caleb and I enjoyed museums by day and then at night, we walked through the city of Washington DC and took in all of the sights. Of course, being the diligent photographer, I took my bag of tricks with me so that I could bring back some great pictures of our Nation’s Capital.

Many of you know that I have very strong patriotic feelings about the United States of America; after all, I have traveled the world and there is no other place on this planet that I would rather live.  Along with my love for my country, I have a high level of respect for those who have served our country, both living and deceased. When I visit a place like the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, I look at all of those names and recognize that each and everyone of those men or women had parents, friends and a future. Yet, they are immortalized on a wall because they went to a foreign country to take up arms when their Country asked them to go.

Iwo Jima Monument

Caleb and both stood in reverent silence as we both took in the magnitude of the monument. The following morning, we visited the Marine Corps War Memorial, aka The Iwo Jima Monument. We embraced the sun as it rose and I was able to get some great shot of the memorial with the city of Washington DC in the background. Once the sun was up, we took a walk to Arlington National Cemetery and I visited a couple of my friends who are interred there. Caleb and watched the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and visited JFK’s burial plot. Caleb and I then headed to some museums along the Washington Mall and saw the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence at the National Archives Museum.

As we toured Washington DC, Caleb and I tried to take it all in in the three days that we were there.

In all, I think we got around nine hours of sleep in three days. Caleb and I had a great time in Washington DC and I even got some great pictures while I was there. This will be a trip that we will remember for a lifetime.

 

Panama City Beach Florida

Florida-Blog-Post-Picture-PCB-PIer

 

By David Morefield

This past week, my family and I went to Panama City Beach, Florida. I have great memories of Panama City Beach as a kid, so I not only get to relive those memories, but make new ones whenever I go back.

The first morning that we were in Florida, my family and I went to Wright Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach, Florida where my cousin Jeremy Gates is the pastor. After church, we went to lunch and caught up on the past twenty years. I had not seen my cousin since I was in High School, so it was great to get to spend some time with him and meet his wife and daughter.

Tuesday afternoon, we rented a pontoon boat from Adventures at Sea and took it to Shell Island. If you have never gone to Shell Island, then I would highly recommend checking it out while you are in Panama City Beach. Shell Island is located across the bay from Tyndell Air Force Base and is not inhabited. Basically, you find a place to anchor your boat and then walk through the island to the other side where you can have a beach all to yourself. While snorkeling in the bay, we found starfish and countless sand dollars; which was a whole lot of fun. I even had a puffer fish follow me around for a while.

Wednesday morning, I woke up early and drove down the Russell-Fields Pier otherwise know as the City Pier. It was a cloudy morning and there were some ominous clouds in the sky, but thunderstorms come and go quickly in Panama City beach, so I figured I would get to the pier and see how the weather was. As I got out of my truck lightning struck the water about 500 meters past the pier, so I quickly aborted the photo shoot that morning. I ended up going to Thomas Donuts to pickup up breakfast and returned to the beach house as a hero.

The weather was more favorable the next morning, so I went back out to the pier around 5am. I love to shoot early in the morning and the light was perfect. The clouds in the sky reflect the colors of the sunrise and I just love the colors that can be captured at that time of morning.

The Russell-Fields Pier is a 1,500 foot long pier that provides not only some great fishing, but some fantastic views of the Panama City Beach coastline. I ended up staying out at the pier for a couple hours watching all of the activity. In retrospect, I was glad that I did not go to the pier earlier in the week. I observed Black Tip Sharks swimming within 30 feet of the shoreline and it’s probably best that I was blissfully ignorant of this earlier in the week while at the beach. I think sharks are cool as long as they are behind glass, but swimming in open water with them is not my idea of fun.

At the end of the week, we all felt recharged and had a great time. The beach house that we stayed in was great for a family week at the beach and was actually cheaper than staying in a hotel. If you are headed to Panama City Beach, Florida and you are looking for a recommendation of where to stay, look no further. The beach house that we stayed in not only had a great kitchen, but it even had an icemaker in the wet bar. This meant that I did not have to run out for ice everyday before walking out the backdoor to the beach, which was awesome. Here is the link to the Beachfront Oasis.

Navy SEAL Foundation fundraiser Danny Dietz Memorial Team Roping

Navy SEAL Lt. Jason Redman signing his book "The Trident: the Forging and Reforging of a Navy SEAL Leader"

 

By David Morefield

For the past three years, I have had the honor of being able to contribute to the Danny Dietz Memorial Team Roping benefitting the Navy SEAL Foundation. The Navy SEAL Foundation’s mission is to provide immediate and ongoing support to the Naval Special Warfare Community and their families. The amount of sacrifice that these families make for our Country is truly humbling. Danny Dietz was a Navy SEAL that was killed on 28 June 2005 during Operation Red Wings.

On this Memorial Day, I want to take a moment and tell you about a special man that I have had the privilege to get to know – his name is Lt. Jason Redman.

Lt. Redman has served his Country as a leader in the Navy SEALs and although he has retired from the Navy, continues to lead by example with his undying tenacity. Most people know that a Navy SEAL has to be able to “Embrace the Suck” and continue the mission no matter what happens; the mindset of these warriors is what truly sets them apart.

Lt. Redman was on a mission in Iraq in 2007 when he was shot multiple times with machine gun fire. One of the rounds entered at the jawline and came out of his nose, blowing off much of his right cheek and leaving his eyeball unsupported; he also lost much of his left arm. When telling me the story, Lt. Redman said, “Yeah, a hit like that can kind of take the wind out of your sails.” Despite his injuries, Lt. Redman said a little prayer and then got up to go home to his family.

While in the hospital recovering from his wounds, Lt. Redman gained the attention of the world by posting a sign on his door stating that he loved his Country and anyone feeling sorry for him should not enter the room. The sign became a symbol of the warrior spirit and has inspired many other wounded warriors. President George W. Bush invited Lt. Redman to the Oval Office in order to autograph the sign that he had posted on his door.

Getting to know Lt. Redman, I can tell you that he is much more than a Navy SEAL; he is a loving father, husband and a man of great faith.

While fighting his battles with his injuries, Lt. Redman started an organization that provides clothing to wounded veterans called Wounded Wear. Wounded Wear’s mission to is “Helps warriors rediscover the hero within.” Lt. Redman explained that after having half of his face blown off, he then had to deal with the “World of Stares” when he went into the public. Recognizing that many other wounded veterans were having a hard time dealing with this kind of attention, Lt. Redman was motivated to help other veterans. Some of the other needs that Lt. Redman saw were that clothes did not always fit the prosthetics that other veterans were wearing and that they needed specialized clothing to accommodate their needs if they didn’t want to wear sweatpants the rest of their lives.

I would encourage everyone to order a copy of Lt. Redman’s book “The Trident: The Forging and Reforging of a Navy SEAL Leader” in order to hear this epic story. Lt. Redman takes an honest and unfiltered look into his own life and continues to lead.

Click Below to Order “The Trident: The Forging and Reforging of a Navy SEAL Leader”

Looking Back on Pictures of Israel

HDR shot of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem Israel

 

By David Morefield

This past week, I have had pictures of Israel on my mind. Last year, I went to Israel with my mom and my brother on a trip by Collette Tours. Israel is one of the most beautiful places on the earth and even now, I am awestruck by the pictures of Israel that I took while I was there.

While celebrating Easter this year at church, I was able to close my eyes an picture the events leading up the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This puts the story into the geographical context, which helps me visualize what happened.

I am truly blessed that I was able to travel and take pictures of Israel. I hope one day that I can return and see more of Israel, but last year’s trip will always be special because I got to share it with my mother and my brother. We went to the Sea of Galilee, Tel Meggido, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Caesarea, the Dead Sea, Jericho and saw much more. Looking back on my pictures from Israel, I am filled with all kinds of great memories of the experiences that we share together. It was the trip of a lifetime.

It is difficult for me to say what is my favorite out of my collection of pictures of Israel, but the Dome of the Rock has got to be one of them. Of course, I also love the sunrise over the Sea of Galilee.

Please visit My Facebook Page and let me know which of my My Israel Pictures is your favorite.

WordCamp Austin 2014

Pennybacker Bridge Austin Texas during WordCamp Austin 2014

 

By David Morefield

WordCamp Austin 2014 was Awesome!!

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to go to WordCamp Austin 2014 aka #WCATX. Aside from having a lot of fun, I got to engage with a small segment of the WordPress blogging community and hear from experts in their respective fields. I met a lot of really awesome people and had a great time.For those who have not heard of WordCamp Austin 2014, it is a gathering of the WordPress community where users, designers, developers and hosts can all come together to share information. They hold WordCamps all around the world and this was my first time to WordCamp.
Of course, I also managed to slip out and take some pictures during this wonderful weekend. My pal Tim Stanley and I went to the 360 Lookout over looking Pennybacker Bridge the Friday night that we arrived and climbed a treacherous trail to the top. Sure, the trail is not that bad for most, but when you are climbing a trail with loose rocks carrying thousands of dollars of camera equipment, that kind of changes the dynamic.
During the weekend at WordCamp Austin 2014, I got to hear from experts like Tony Tovar , Yusuf Chowdhury and many other web design experts. In the coming weeks, you may even notice some changes to my website as well. I met webmasters from around the great State of Texas as well as some who had travelled from other states.
The atmosphere was one of community and collaboration; despite just meeting many of these people, I felt as if I had known them for a very long time. I got some great insights on where to go with my own webpage as well as some that I manage.
I look forward to what the future may bring as I put the knowledge and skills gained at WordCamp Austin 2014 into action. Next, WordCamp Dallas 2014!!