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I absolutely loved how the light was shining in our yard this morning. By the way, I think I should mention that you’re right. I’m posting less and I have been slowly pulling back from social media recently. Mainly in order to wrap my head around being more productive in the new year. I’ll still be reachable and I’m not declaring anything ridiculous like I’m quitting social media. I just have some goals for 2023 and I think spending less time on Instagram and Facebook will help me accomplish those goals. Couldn’t hurt, right? It’s been fun taking the extended vacation, but I think I want to be something else now. Without a doubt I really enjoyed being a news photographer and it’s been REALLY great to be a retired news photographer, but I want to add one more chapter to my story. If for no other reason than to see if I can. As I walked away from broadcast news I told people I wanted to be so good at what I do next, people would forget what it was I used to do. Yeah, it’s time I got started on that. https://www.instagram.com/p/CmvpshBuWfE/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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My favorite son-in-law and I did some drone flying in the just slightly foggy morning off of White Point. High tide made the rocky shores very interesting. For the first time I found a sign that restricted drone use, but we decided to risk it because none of the other signs and no one had indicated it was prohibited in the area. I checked for signage again on the way out and still found none. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cmjq9IipCXh/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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I was kind of down on the U.S. compared to New Zealand, but I think I just needed to be reminded of how beautiful things are here (even if you have to sometimes look for it). (at White Point Beach) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl66vCJvUwR/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Nice lunch today with current and one future member of the CBS2/KCAL9 Retirement Club. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl2NBwjvWTh/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Happy Thanksgiving to all. As we start moving towards the last weeks of 2022, I hope everyone can make some time to enjoy life. (at White Point Beach) https://www.instagram.com/p/ClWmbd7Po9V/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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See? We got fall colors too. https://www.instagram.com/p/ClFvZJHr03k/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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One of our favorite things to do (and we have a LOT of favorite things to do) is attending the Distinguished Speaker Series of Southern California. Tonight’s speaker was Neil deGrasse Tyson and he put a lot of things into perspective. My take-away? Mostly how amazing it is to be alive and yet so insignificant in relation to the universe. Fortunately for me I can see it from the other way around. You’re welcome, universe. #distinguishedspeakerseries #neildegrassetyson #neildegrasse #bryananddellis #thefranks (at Long Beach, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck-w_HDLZiL/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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POW! I feel like I had to post a shot of the church with a little bit of the lake. #laketekaposw #churchofthegoodshepherd (at Lake Tekapo, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck2b_GBuJ_M/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Another iconic spot for photography in New Zealand, The Church of the Good Shepherd at Lake Tekapo. I have other shots that show the turquoise water in the background, but I was out after dark hoping the clouds might part and show me some of the dark star filled sky that people come to the area to experience. Nope. Wasn’t happening this night. We had a lot of rain over the two weeks we were there. It felt like we were lucky that most of the rain came in the late afternoon and at night. That sucked for trying to capture some astrophotography shots, but it felt like a fair trade-off for all the beautiful sunny skies we got. It was pretty dark when I took this shot. Did a 30 second exposure on a travel tripod at f7, 100 ISO and then I got the heck out of there because it was really spooky in the dark. (at Lake Tekapo, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck2aZSOOzcs/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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We love a good Marvel movie. Clocked out early and went to an early afternoon showing of the Black Panther sequel. I thought they did a great job with the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman. I could be nit-picky about a few scenes, but it entertained me and that’s all I was looking for. https://www.instagram.com/p/CkzirARLq24/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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This was taken along the Hooker Valley Track in the Mount Cook National Park. I’m not big on hiking, but this was an easy 6.6 mile trek on mostly flat land. It looks cold out, but the sun was baking the area and I wound up carrying instead of wearing a couple of layers. We had been warned about the carnivorous flys in the area and were prepared with bug repellant that’s apparently too strong to sell here in the states. #hookervalleytrack #newzealand #franktravels #mtcook (at Hooker Valley Track, Mount Cook National Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkyNIpyLldF/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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One of the most photographed spots on the planet, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get a shot of @thatwanakatree (google it) in New Zealand. Part of my motivation was the thought that I might never get back to New Zealand. Don’t get me wrong, I loved everything about this trip. It’s just that there are a lot of places to visit in the world and I have a strong desire to see more of it. #thatwanakatree #franktravels #franksinnewzealand (at Lake Wanaka, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkxbTq7O9jS/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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We took more photographs on this trip than any other time we traveled, so it might take a while for me to get bored with posting from this trip. Anyway, here is Lake Tekapo in New Zealand. I’ve never seen a body of water so strikingly turquoise before. The color comes from fine silt particles (also called glacial flour) in the water. #franktravels #newzealand #franksinnewzealand #laketekapo (at Lake Tekapo, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkxZpGfOGwy/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Last full day in NZ. Ice cream, burgers and beer, Hobbitses and just enjoying being in another part of the world. https://www.instagram.com/p/CknYCgDPMTM/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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The end of our vacation is rushing towards us. We moved from Te Anau to Auckland today, flying from the bucolic Southern fields of New Zealand to the urban Northern part. Lots of sights while getting from one to the other. We’re at a Hilton Hotel that overlooks the harbor and the view is pretty fantastic. After a little bar hopping and a nice meal in the hotel’s restaurant, we closed out the travel day by sitting on the balcony while the sun set and toasted an incredible vacation. I wish we had a few more days to see and do more of the things that make New Zealand so awesome, but I also want to hurry home to start going through the thousand or so photos that we took. (at Auckland, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ckk7ZaUuu8P/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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We drove to Milford Sound today from Te Anau for a short cruise. It was another day full of amazing sights. We expected rain but were lucky enough to get in and out through the downpours. It was cold and wet, but it would have been that anyway because of all the waterfalls. (at Milford Sound, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ckf2VZwPjCu/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Our Jet Boat ride made for another New Zealand epic adventure. Exploring the biggest lake on the South Island at around 70 kilometers an hour. I’m still dizzy from 360 degree hairpin turns, but the mind blowing thing about the whole adventure was how clean and drinkable the lake water is. (at Te Anau, New Zealand) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkdWRozPyp4/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=