Laura at Wall Doxey State Park

Laura at the Lake

During our recent visit to Wall Doxey State Park in Mississippi, I took a few different photos of Laura around the park. It was a good way to enjoy the day, and now it is a good way to remember the fun time that we had together there. Here are a few of the photos that we took.

In this first photo, we had walked out onto a fishing pier during our walk around the lake at Wall Doxey. We had to be quiet while we were out there, because there were actually people fishing from the fishing pier, believe it or not! And I could tell from the looks that we were getting that they were concerned we were going to come in and make lots of noise and scare away the fish. So we talked very softly and stepped very lightly. For the record, I did not see them catch any fish, but I think it was because we were only out there for a short time and not because we were making lots of noise. Because we weren’t.

We were also stepping lightly because several of the boards looked like they had moved on from the “good” phase to the “rotting” phase. And some of the other boards were gone completely. So even if people had not been fishing there, I still would have not jumped up and down or stomped around. Just to be safe.

Fall Colors

In this photo, you can see just a few of the fall colors starting to show up. I guess we were a little early to see the real fall colors. Fortunately, seeing fall colors was not the reason that we went when we did. We went because we had a free Saturday and were looking for something to do. Wall Doxey turned out to be the place. Everything else was gravy.

Also, you may have noticed in these two photos that Laura had her jacket on. You can’t see me because I was behind the camera, but I had mine on, too. We knew it would be a little cool, but it was cooler than we expected. It probably felt even cooler because there was a breeze coming off of the lake, and it had not been that breezy at home when we left. We were very thankful that we had brought jackets with us!

Laura In Nature

It almost looks like the trees are about to swallow Laura up here! As we were walking around the lake, we came to this narrow, slightly leaning bridge. Our choice was to either cross it or go back the way that we came. We wanted to go all the way around the lake, so of course we crossed it. It was actually probably more sturdy than the pier in the first photo! And although it was narrow, it was wide enough to walk across easily. Fortunately, we did not fall off into the water below. Because that would have made us even colder!

Good Memories

I am thankful to have these photos and others that we took from our trip. As of this writing, the trip was only about a week and a half ago, so I can still remember it well. But as time goes on, those memories may start to fade a little, and that is why it is good to have photos to help remember things.

I used to get gently fussed at by a certain wife for taking lots of photos of buildings and lakes and trees and stuff, but very few photos of people. As I get older, and as more and more people that we have known are not around any more, I realize the value of that more and more. It isn’t just about taking artistic looking photos of cool things. It is also about creating memories of those you love.

Maybe one day many years down the road, Jaylin’s grandchildren will be going through old things and say, “Why did great-granddad take so many photos of great-grandma?” And if that happens, I will have done a good job.

Bible Verse

The memory of the righteous is a blessing. - Proverbs 10:7

About the Photos

I purposefully gave each of these photos different looks. I thought it would be good to change things up a little instead of sharing three photos that looked almost the same except for being in different locations. While they are not necessarily drastically different, they are different enough that you can tell they are supposed to be different.

Processing was done in Aurora HDR, with which you can create all sorts of interesting looks. These are more subtle than what you might expect from an HDR program, but that’s okay. They work for me.

Photo: A single Raw exposure, processed in Aurora HDR. Read more about photography tips, photo software, camera gear, and more at Steve’s Photography Tips.
Camera: Sony Alpha A7 II
_Lens: _ Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS Lens
Date: October 12, 2019
Location: Wall Doxey State Park, Mississippi