Uncategorized – LLOYD'S LENS PHOTOGRAPHY LLC

In Memory of a great man

01/31/2022

Today’s feature image was one of 1000’s taken through the lens of my beloved husband Lloyd AKA Buddy to his family and close friends. He passed from this life into the arms of Jesus on Jan 18, 2022.

Buddy was a kind soul that loved God and his fellow man. He had a desire to make the world a better place. He touched countless lives and shared his vast knowledge with many.

He will be forever missed. I am going to leave his blog up for a little while so everyone can reread his article. I will let everyone know before I take it down. Until then, be bold, be brave and keep your God Focus. Be blessed all throughout your days.

Angela Dempsey

Reaching For The New Light

Color Photography, Uncategorized, wildlife

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Reaching For The Light 31721” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Reaching For The Light 31721” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

Forage Friday #95 Strawberry Bush – Toxic

Color Photography, Forage Friday, Uncategorized

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature was taken specifically for Forage Friday and is simply titled “Strawberry Bush 92920a”. All photos found on my website are my original work unless otherwise specified and are available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

WARNING ⚠️ STRAWBERRY BUSH IS LISTED AS A TOXIC PLANT IN ALL OF MY REFERENCES.

Please remember that Forage Friday is presented as trivia and not to be mistaken for medical advice.

The first time I found a strawberry bush I thought it looked like something out of a science fiction movie. A pinkish spiked husk encasing bright redish orange berries had my reaching for a tri-corder. But it is native to earth and specifically the Appalachian Mountains. It’s actually in the bittersweet family and the berries are eaten by wildlife however it’s toxic to humans. The side effects that are listed in the medicinal values include “strongly laxative” which means that it’s capable of making any survival situation even worse. Nevertheless the history includes using the plant for several common conditions and includes that it was once given to treat malaria. The powdered bark was applied externally to treat dandruff.

Image Titled Strawberry Bush 992920b.

In my opinion, the plant is best used as an ornamental in place of a imported invasive species.

Image Titled Strawberry Bush Flowers 60520

The flowers themselves are not very showy but the plant makes up the difference in late Summer and Fall with it’s bright fruit and deep red leaves. Plus, it’s listed in association with several native Butterfly species. And the berries are readily eaten by turkeys, Yellow Rumped Warblers, Eastern Bluebird and the Northern Mockingbird. So, even though you might not want to eat the berries yourself the fact that they attract turkeys means that you might use it to bring the big birds in. And of course the songbirds are a way of dealing with stress when they sing and I count that as being a medicinal value all on it’s own.

Good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.

Announcement 2.0

For those who have been following me on Facebook and know of the struggle content providers have to get circulation from big tech I’ve been recommending for people to adopt MeWe as a social media platform. One of the problems I’ve run into on MeWe is that people don’t know how to navigate the platform. So to help with that I’ve created a permanent page on my website as a basic Basic Beginner’s Guide To MeWe I’ve tried to anticipate all basic questions there and You can bookmark the page to have as a reference and if you have any questions or suggestions don’t hesitate to contact me. I do still have a day job and I help admin several pages on both platforms so replies might be a little slow but I will answer you.

We also have the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe that is set up as a fully functional community. There you’ll not only be able to see and connect with me but you can also make your own posts and interact with each other.

I want you to join my group on MeWe: https://mewe.com/join/lloydslensphotographydiscussiongroup

Click the link below to jump to the Basic Beginner’s Guide To MeWe.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/guide-to-mewe/

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Lloyds Lens Photography web link — Click here to visithttps://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simply use the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Forage Friday #91 Blue Cohosh

Color Photography, Forage Friday, Uncategorized

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Blue Cohosh 32420” and was taken specifically for Forage Friday. All photos found on my website are my original work unless otherwise specified and are available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

Please remember that Forage Friday is presented as trivia and not to be mistaken for medical advice.

Blue Cohosh is one of our native cash crops in the Appalachian Mountains. It’s long history among Midwives goes back deep into the history of the Native Americans. They used it to cause flow of delayed menstrual cycles and to cause miscarriages. It’s also said to have been used for muscle spasms including hiccups. Some online sources say it was once used to treat epilepsy. The action of the would appear to be that it has a relaxing effect on parasympathetic nerves. Modern science has concluded that it contains glycocides and alkaloids are toxic to the myocardium ( muscles of the heart ). Obviously it shouldn’t be used lightly by anyone but especially heart patients.

It is a member of the buttercup family which has a lot of toxic plants. So we shouldn’t be surprised to find out that blue Cohosh is one of the plants that should be reserved for those who have reached a certain level of expertise ( which I am not one of them having never been in need of it’s main purpose). In spite of all the hazards, blue cohosh is available over the counter and I’ve not really heard anything about people reporting bad experiences.

As stated earlier it is a cash crop for landowners who make the time to go out and collect it. It’s kinda like taking a hike in the mountains and finding money just lying around all over. Currently it seems to go for about $11.00/pound and the last time I sold it ( more than 20 years ago) the buyers bought it washed and wet. This means that the diggers would soak it in a bucket overnight to increase the weight. The buyers knew that and adjusted their offering price accordingly. As best as I can remember we dug it in late summer and it’s actually considered endangered in some places. (Check your local regulations before harvest. Some plants have a legal season.)

As far as food value goes I am aware that the roasted seeds can be used as a coffee substitute but there’s also more plentiful plants like dandelion and chicory that can be used for coffee that it’s never been worth pursuing for me.

That’s really all I have for tonight. The growing season here hasn’t really started yet so there’s not much foraging available.

Oh and before I sign off. Please consider joining the MeWe discussion group. ( Announcement below). I’ll be addressing this in further details as a bonus post in the near future that will not be posted to Facebook except for the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Facebook page and my personal page.

Good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.

Announcement:

I am adding additional social media to my network. Eventually, I’ll be leaving Facebook behind for a multitude of reasons. Even though the Lloyd’s Lens Photography page is strictly non-political I have been restricted from interacting with followers with no explanation for why. But it’s not just that. For years now Facebook has throttled content providers in general. They encourage us to grow our audience and then want to sell us back the access to them. In addition, they collect and sell the data from our interaction. So Facebook has become an entanglement of thorns. In response I have created the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe. We can still interact directly on the blog but starting today I’ll be looking for more platforms that respect the privacy of my followers and don’t limit who gets to see the post.

I want you to join my group on MeWe: https://mewe.com/join/lloydslensphotographydiscussiongroup

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

Forage Friday #85 Nostoc (Cyanobacteria)

Color Photography, Forage Friday, Landscapes, Uncategorized

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Eastbound 112420a” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

Warning: Some types of Cyanobacteria are considered toxic by some sources.

Please remember that Forage Friday is presented as trivia and not to be mistaken for medical advice.

The rails stretch out eastward drawing my lens towards the quiet tipple in the distance. It’s one of my favorite scenes and I occasionally stop by to enjoy it. However, on this trip something caught my eye that wasn’t quite so picturesque. The lumps of green goo look like something that escaped from a B grade science fiction movie.

But what we’re looking at isn’t something from the nightmares of Irvine Millgate. Instead it’s right out of nightmares of an 8th grade student in a biology class. In my day it was called Blue-green alga but it’s not an alga. It’s Cyanobacteria but not bacteria. You’ll find it listed as “Nostoc” or a variation there of.

But why did I include this green goo in Forage Friday? Well for one thing it’s listed as being edible. Nostoc commune is pretty much found worldwide and is eaten as a salad, stir fry and stew in Asia. Personally I can’t get past the looks of it. I suppose that if I was desperate for nutrition that I could but I’ve never been that hungry. There’s also the fact that I’m not 100% positive about the ID of this colony. It appears to be Nostoc commune but I’m not sure yet. There is also a question about purity. While it’s obvious that anything growing in an industrial area could be contaminated with industrial chemicals Nostoc is known to assimilate lichens. And while the Nostoc itself is non-toxic some of the lichens are. Now if I really wanted to give it a try I could try to find an Asian market and ask for “Fat-Choy”.

Believe it or not I used to see it powder and capsule form as Walmart as a vitamin.

Medically it was used as an anti-inflammatory, antibiotic and cancer treatment.

The last market where Nostoc comes into it’s own as a living fertilizer. It doesn’t really poison your plants and it’s a nitrogen fixing lifeform.

That’s it for tonight friends. Be blessed throughout your days.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.