Happy New Year – And The Winner Is…

Posted on January 1, 2016 by azgilstrap

Special thanks to all who participated in our 2015 Photoremedy Image of the Year Poll. As always, we had a lot of fun with it and we recorded the second highest number of votes in the five year history of the contest. As the contest rolled on, two images jumped out to an early lead and frequently jockeyed for the lead.

2) Houmas House Plantation – Vacherie, LA

Fall City, WA – 2015 Image of the Year

In the end, the Fall City fall foliage image pulled away from Houmas House plantation and recorded the win. In a Facebook comment, one of my Arizona friends may have best explained why Fall City eventually recorded over 35-percent of the vote. Matt said, “These are both outstanding! The bottom one (Fall City) is prettier to me but the top one (Houmas) is more mysterious.”

Fall City, WA – 2015 Image of the Year

I’d like to give the incredibly humble photographer all of the credit for this image, but the truth of the matter is I happened to be in Fall City on the perfect fall day. I guess this proves, once again, how important timing and the recognition of beauty are in stimulating the process of taking (and making) great images.

Here’s to making 2016 the best year of our lives. May all of us recognize what is beautiful in our lives and may we make the most of what our good and gracious Lord provides. Cheers!

Photoremedy is primarily based on the role that photography has played in helping me combat ongoing chronic pain issues that stem from my degenerative cervical and lumbar spine challenges and severe psoriatic arthritis. It is designed to encourage others fighting chronic pain (and other illnesses) to consider pursuing the benefits associated with moving their minds from the pain in their lives to the beauty that surrounds them. It’s important to note that many of the photos I take and develop frequently blur the lines between traditional art and contemporary photography, much as art therapy often blurs the lines between traditional and alternative forms of medicine.

Farewell Seattle?

Posted on December 15, 2015 by azgilstrap

Lake Union – Seattle, Washington

Over the past couple of years, Mary and I fell in love with the Seattle area. Our youngest son, Will, was there to complete his studies at the Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE). We were fortunate enough to visit him several times, and always took advantage of the opportunity while in the Seattle area to squeeze in ample amounts of photoremedy.

AIE is located in the Armory Bldg in the shadow of the famous Seattle Space Needle

AIE 2015 Graduation Ceremony

Greg, Will and Mary Gilstrap at Lake Union (after graduation)

Will has now graduated and is back in Arizona and scheduled to open the doors to his new career in January.Featured below are some of the Seattle area–photography and digital art–I’ve played around with this year.

Lake Union Area

Volunteer Park

Seattle Flowers (most are from the spectacular Volunteer Park Conservatory)

St. James Cathedral

ShrineBlessedVirginMarySeattleStJames 2j

ShrineBlessedVirginMarySeattleStJames 1j

Seattle Dining (photos from one of our favorites – Pasta Freska)

Fall City, Washington

Rural Washington

We don’t have any Seattle or Washington trips planned for the near future. I have a feeling, however, that it won’t be long before the seductive landscape, cerulean waters, unique dining, and magical fall forests call us back. And–yes–I’ll bring my camera!

Seattle Neighborhood

Quail Ridge

Posted on September 19, 2015 by azgilstrap

The last RV park featured in our summer Verde Valley (area) series is, ironically, the first place Mary and I stayed with an RV. Quail Ridge–located near Dewey, AZ–promotes itself as ‘A beautiful, friendly and clean park – always 10-20 degrees cooler than Phoenix.’

Quail Ridge RV Park – Dewey, AZ

It is good to note we concluded Quail Ridge believes in truth in marketing. Not only was it beautiful and clean, the park operators recognized we were ‘newbies’ and spent considerable time helping us to set everything up correctly. From Quail Ridge, we could visit all of the other destinations and attractions featured in this series. It is more closely located to Prescott than the others; we made a rainy day trip there to visit the highly regarded Thumb Butte Distillery.

Downtown Prescott, AZ

Yavapai Co. Courthouse – Prescott, AZ

Thumb Butte Distillery – Prescott, AZ

Visiting area farms and farmers markets is another awesome Verde Valley day trip option for those staying at Quail Ridge and other nearby RV parks. Mary and I were particularly fond of the sweet corn.

Verde Valley, Arizona

One of our most pleasant surprises was Montezuma’s Well – featuring the well, historic ruins, springs, and beautiful walking trails. The well is often overshadowed by Montezuma’s Castle, but it is an equally breathtaking destination attraction.

Montezuma’s Well – near Camp Verde, AZ

We have lived in Arizona since 1993, yet we somehow managed to miss visiting many of the attractions and colorful locations featured in this series. I guess that proves there’s just as many reasons to going exploring (and pursuing photoremedy) near where you live as there are when on a vacation that takes you miles away from home.

Verde Valley Thousand Trails

Posted on September 2, 2015 by azgilstrap

As highlighted in our most recent post, Mary and I have spent a portion of the summer at three RV resorts that are located in cooler country about an hour north of our Anthem, AZ home. All of the attractions and scenery in this series can be easily accessed from any of the the three campgrounds, which are roughly located 20-30 miles from each other.

In this post, we focus on Verde Valley Thousand Trails.

Verde Valley RV Resort

From Thousand Trails, we targeted sightseeing and photoremedy in three primary areas.

Cottonwood, AZ

Alacantara Vineyard – near Cottonwood, AZ

Near Verde Valley Thousand Trails and Cottonwood

Summer Storm – near Cottonwood, AZ

Immaculate Conception Church – Cottonwood, AZ

Old Town Cottonwood, AZ

Bing’s Burger Station – Old Town Cottonwood, AZ

Old Town Cottonwood, AZ

Larry’s Antiques & Things – Old Town Cottonwood, AZ

Firehouse Donuts – near Old Town Cottonwood, AZ

Sedona, AZ

Sedona, AZ

West Sedona – From Airport

West Sedona from Airport

Chapel of the Holy Cross – Sedona, AZ

Jerome, AZ

Jerome, AZ

When our Arizona summer series continues, we’ll feature photoremedy from Camp Verde, Pine & Strawberry, and the farmer’s markets of the Verde Valley.

Photoremedy is primarily based on the role that photography has played in helping Greg W. Gilstrap attempt to combat ongoing chronic pain issues that stem from his degenerative cervical and lumbar spine challenges. It is designed to encourage others fighting chronic pain (and other illnesses) to consider pursuing the benefits associated with what is popularly known as art therapy. It’s important to note that many of the photos Greg takes and develops frequently blur the lines between traditional art and contemporary photography, much as art therapy often blurs the lines between traditional and alternative forms of medicine.

Louisiana Thingamabobs and Baton Rouge

Posted on May 12, 2015 by azgilstrap

Our long and winding Louisiana photoremedy tour–featuring photos collected during a short January trip to Cajun and Creole Country–winds down today with a quick look at the Baton Rouge area and with a hodgepodge collection of items that I affectionately call “thingamabobs.”

Baton Rouge, located on the Mississippi River in central Louisiana, is a college town full of bright colors, rich history, cool trees, and deep religious roots. I was able to capture a bit of this during our all-too-short trip through the city.

Corsair II Jet at the Louisiana Memorial Plaza

USS KIDD at Louisiana Memorial Plaza

LSU Campus

LSU Barnes and Noble Store

LSU Campus Trees

Paul M. Hebert Law Center building on LSU’s campus

LSU Tree Lined Streets

LSU Campus

LSU Christ the King Church

LSU Christ the King Church

Our final collection for the Louisiana series features many of the colorful and interesting items–I affectionately call thingamabobs–captured when I zoomed in and took a closer look at items most people generally walk by without noticing. I’m not sure I’m using thingamabobs correctly, but it was how Mary and I referred to these items as we traveled along. We primarily used the word when I coaxed Mary into looking at photos on my Canon viewfinder. At this point, I’d say something like, “Hey, check out this thingamabob!” In this case, the focus of my thingamabob search was door-related items that, in a small–but significant–way, represented the color and culture of their communities.

I love “looking for thingamabobs-style photoremedy” because it always serves as a reminder of my belief that God does not overlook the little details that make each person, creation, and place special. How many potential thingamabobs can you find in the photo below?

Oak Alley Plantation – Vacherie, Louisiana

We hope you enjoyed a few tales of our photoremedy Louisiana pursuits – Mary and I were thrilled to experience the bright colors, fiery spices, historic places, unique people, and unbridled fun so often featured in the Pelican State.

Note: photoremedy.me is published as a labor of love. Please feel free to share the site, or any of our posts, with others. Our Home Page always features an option for our readers to sign up to immediately receive new material as an email. We hope you will become a part of our photoremedy network.

Houmas House Plantation

Posted on May 4, 2015 by azgilstrap

Located along one of the many scenic Mississippi River curves south of Baton Rouge lies what is often referred to as the Crown Jewel of Louisiana’s River Road. The Houmas House Plantation and Gardens is a destination for both tourists and locals.

Houmas House Plantation and Gardens

The one time sugar plantation, originally owned by the indigenous Houmas Indians when they were given a land grant to occupy the fertile plain between the river and Lake Maurepas to the north, now features a myriad of attributes that keep visitors coming (and coming back). On its grounds are an historic inn, beautiful gardens and statues, spectacular oaks trees, several themed restaurants, wedding amenities, guided tours, and motion picture history.

Houmas House Plantation and Gardens

There are even rumors of a couple of ghostly spirits that have reportedly been witnessed by mature, sober adults.

Houmas House Plantation and Gardens

Houmas House proved to be one of our top Louisiana photoremedy destinations. We didn’t encounter any ghosts, but we saw enough to understand why someone would want to return to this magnificent destination.

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Tag Archives: Travel photography

Happy New Year – And The Winner Is…

Farewell Seattle?

Quail Ridge

Verde Valley Thousand Trails

Louisiana Thingamabobs and Baton Rouge

Houmas House Plantation