Messina Hof, winery .

Took a tour of Messina Hof Winery this July (yes, it was warm out there!) and wow. It is amazing to see and hear about these vines, what makes them flourish, what hurts them, and see the entire wine making process.  I can't believe I have lived here since 1998 (mostly) and never been here!  Highly recommend to anyone around the area.  The owners are also super nice . . . was really neat hearing how they decided to start making wine.  They are always around and enjoy interacting with everyone that comes out to their place.  Here are a few shots of their vineyard, and one of their places they have a Bed and Breakfast. Oh! And their collection of antiques is fanTAStic, too.  Cheers!

NYC streets .

Last fall (2012), Lauryn and I had an opportunity to take a personal class on Street Photography. We had the BEST time, learned so much on the spot, and still talk about it to this day!  Was the best thing I've done (photography-learning-wise) thus far and I am so glad we had this opportunity and went for it!

We met up at Columbus Circle and had a little mini-lesson while we hung out/met each other.  Then we started walking and shooting  --  the next few hours definitely flew by.  Here are the shots from the first half of our session . . . the next set I will post has several of my favorites (ever, from our nyc trips) . . . they get more interesting the closer we got to Times Square (laugh).