#bokeh | Versatility By RNJ

Wide Awake

For years I’ve awakened to the soft neon glow of this particular alarm clock.

This photo gives you a personal, yet very misleading look into my life. It says a lot about my daily sleeping habits. You see, some days this is when I wake up, while on other days this is when I go to sleep. There are many causes for such a sporadic pattern of sleep, mostly work, which I’m certain other creative individuals can absolutely relate to.

Having an active mind full of ideas can keep you up all night, cause you to wake up early in the morning, or disrupt you at any moment in between. It’s this same creative surge that can fuel your passion, while also draining your spirit. Being an artist of any kind is never easy. It can be a constant battle within yourself to outwardly express what you see and feel inside. Creativity can cause you to become a habitual dreamer incapable of manifesting ideas into reality, living totally inside your own mind. Or it can cause you insomnia from constantly trying to artistically execute your thoughts in your physical life. This never ending traffic of mind games is mentally exhausting! If you’re like me, and have been battling your entire life, you already know that eventually it will catch up to you physically.

This is where I currently stand. Growing older and finding it increasingly difficult to find ways to win these internal battles. To find a steady balance. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE being an artist! I love being someone who can see things that others cannot. I love having the ability to create something out of nothing. Or being able to take something that exists and provide a unique re-interpetation from my own perspective. I truly believe it is a gift from God. I just wish that this gift didn’t have to come with burden of this curse wrapped around it.

July 8, 2017 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #blue, #bokeh, #color, #colors, #dark, #darkness, #light, #lightandshadows, #lights, #neon, #photoblog, #reflection, #robertnjonesphotography, #shadows, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Loving The Fall

I’ve been having some very trying times lately, so I wanted to post something positive and show a little love to my favorite time of year. To my surprise there has been more colors in my area than it’s been in years, making it feel much more like a real a autumn season. These colors have lasted much longer than I anticipated, but it appears that they’re rapidly disappearing. I hope to get out and capture one more round of fall colors before they’re all gone. Until then, I hope you enjoy!

(Please click on each photo for a higher resolution view)

December 15, 2016 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #autumn, #awesome, #bokeh, #color, #colors, #details, #nature, #naturephotography, #naturephotos, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, #water, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Morning Blossoms

I really love flowers. I love photographing them even more! Unfortunately there isn’t an abundance or variety of flowers where I live. Walking to my car I spotted these beauties and jumped at the chance to snap a few shots of them. I love all of the bright colors and how the flowers were lined up repetitively. I really wish there was a much wider variety to choose from so that I could build a nice collection to share. Until I can find more I guess these will have to do for now? Anyway, I hope everyone has a great weekend!

June 3, 2016 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #bokeh, #color, #colors, #flowers, #green, #orange, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Focusing

Just a few shots where I focused on the subtleties of the neutral tones and small details of random objects at a local park.

March 16, 2016 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #bokeh, #color, #colors, #nature, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #streetphotography, #tones, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography, photoshoot | Leave a comment

Morning Stretch

Good morning! I hope everyone enjoys their day and their weekend!

February 26, 2016 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #animal, #bokeh, #chipmunk, #color, #colors, #nature, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #portrait, #robertnjonesphotography, #squirrel, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, #wildlife, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

All Of The Lights

Holiday lights from the street.

December 25, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #bokeh, #color, #colors, #lights, #nightphotography, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Light & Breezy

Today was a very laid back and boring day…but the weather was very nice! An extremely mild temperature and a slight breeze for a change! I only wish the sun didn’t set so soon so that I could have enjoyed it longer.

November 15, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #bokeh, #color, #colors, #flower, #green, #landscape, #lightandshadows, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #plant, #robertnjonesphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, #yellow, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Share A Coke

I was given a Coke bottle with my name on it so I decided to have a little fun with it. Have a Coke and a smile!

August 15, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #bokeh, #cocacola, #coke, #color, #colors, #drink, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #shareacoke, #softdrink, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

All Star Summer

When my son’s friend left his shoes in the yard I decided to use them for an impromptu shoot that also symbolizes how many kids have spent their summer vacation.

July 26, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #, #allstars, #awesome, #bokeh, #chucktaylor, #chucktaylors, #color, #colors, #converse, #grass, #kicks, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #shoes, #skateboard, #sneakers, #versatilitybyrnj, #yard, art, photographer, photography, photoshoot | Leave a comment

Good Morning!!!

My current view. Have a great day everyone!

April 13, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #bokeh, #color, #colorful, #colors, #leaves, #lightandshadows, #nature, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Street Life

You Can Never Know What It’s Like To Live On These Streets Until You’re Forced To Survive On Them!

-Robert N. Jones

The cold, deadly Illinois streets

March 26, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #life, #lightandshadows, #monochrome, #people, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #portrait, #robertnjonesphotography, #street, #streetart, #streetlife, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

American Photographer

Closeups of a photographer working the streets of downtown Columbus during the Veterans’s Day parade.

January 26, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #americanflag, #awesome, #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #cameras, #flag, #lightandshadows, #monochrome, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #parade, #people, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #shadows, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Transformation

The more my son ages the more I see him as a miniature version of myself. He is starting to become a direct reflection of me as a teenager. Watching this transformation as both a parent and observer is quite amazing…it entrigues me, while making me happy and sad at the same time. I’m very curious as to how much more we will have in common and how much he will differ from me as he grows into an adult and fully develops his own personality? I will continue to try and document this process in the hopes that he will someday look back at it all with his own children and appreciate my effort to catalogue his development as a person created in my own image.

January 23, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #childphotography, #lightandshadows, #monochrome, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #people, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #portrait, #robertnjonesphotography, #son, #versatilitybyrnj, children, family, kids, love, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Holidays & A New Year

Happy New Year to you all!!!

I hope that everyone enjoyed their holiday season?

It’s hard to believe but, we’re already 10 days into the new year! Personally I’ve been taking a much needed break from everything for the past month. I decided to go back home to Illinois to spend time with my family, specifically my youngest brother Antonio, as well visit our old neighborhoods. Of course one thing I never take a break from is photography so naturally my brother and I have been shooting plenty of pictures. Chicago is very cold but so beautiful this time of year. The snow blankets the city and everyone seems to slow down a bit to appreciate the world around them. I really needed this! I needed to be here to breathe in this cold, crisp air. I needed to reconnect with my roots and revisit my past to better appreciate how far I’ve come. Coming back is always hard to do because, I always contemplate staying. Although I’m confident that I can go just about anywhere in this world and make it, this is my home. The sights, the sounds, the people, the food, everything reminded me that no matter where I go I’ll always be a Northerner, and I’m fine with that. This trip is recharging my mental battery. I feel strong again, like I’m ready to take on my next set of life’s challenges. My mind feels clearer and I’m more focused. My creativity is slowly coming back. Honestly, you can’t help but be inspired when you’re in a place like this. I feel the energy of the city, and the joy from my family has given me an extra boost of confidence to carry on and push forward. I’m at a point in my life where I need to make some very difficult decisions about where I’ll end up living next, but being home is helping give me a better perspective on which direction to take. Now like I said before, I have a collection of new photos that I will be sharing here on my blog within the coming days, I just need some time to try and organize them all. I hope that you enjoy them, and I hope they can give you a small sense of what it’s like to walk the streets of both Chicago and Joliet Illinois in the winter time.

Finally, with this being the start of a new year I’d like to thank everyone who has supported my blog and my work in 2014 and years prior. I’d also like to welcome back all of my original followers as well as any new friends who’d like to come join me for what I hope will be an even better 2015. Let’s make this a good one!!!

Peace & Love! RNJ

January 10, 2015 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #bokeh, #christmastree, #color, #holiday, #holidayseason, #illinois, #joliet, #lights, #newyear, #newyears, #ornaments, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #snowman, #versatilitybyrnj, #winter, beautiful, chicago, christmas, holidays, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Christmas Parade 2014

Here are just a few selections from this past weekend at the Christmas Parade in downtown Columbus. Enjoy!

December 16, 2014 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #christmasparade, #color, #colors, #costumes, #december, #event, #justgoshoot, #lightandshadows, #monochrome, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #parade, #people, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #police, #robertnjonesphotography, #soldiers, #streetphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, celebrate, celebration, children, fun, kids, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Winter Approaching

It’s hard to believe it’s almost winter yet again. It seems as though this year flew by. I woke up early this morning to a street covered in frost! Frozen cars, pavement, homes, and plants. I was loving the icy glaze coating on everything so I decided to get up close on a few plants to capture the tiny ice particles. Here are a few images of my very brief time outside today.

December 12, 2014 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #december, #freeze, #frost, #frozen, #grass, #ice, #landscape, #lightandshadows, #monochrome, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #plants, #robertnjonesphotography, #versatilitybyrnj, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Pure Enjoyment

Splashes of autumn colors, and subtle tones everywhere. I love it!!! I wish it didn’t have to end…

December 6, 2014 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #autumn, #awesome, #bokeh, #color, #colors, #flowers, #justgoshoot, #landscape, #leaves, #nest, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #plants, #robertnjonesphotography, #tones, #versatilitybyrnj, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

Water Web

A closeup of the morning dew sprinkled on a fresh web covering the leaves of a tree in my front yard.

October 31, 2014 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #awesome, #blackandwhite, #bokeh, #dew, #leaves, #monochrome, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #pentax, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #robertnjonesphotography, #tree, #versatilitybyrnj, #web, beautiful, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

October Fair 2014

It’s that time of the year again already! Fall means the county fair, and I love going! I try to take my kids every time it’s in town and this past weekend we were able to go once again. The weather was nice and we had a really good time. Below are a few of the many pictures I took while there.

October 23, 2014 | Categories: What's On My Mind Right Now | Tags: #amusement, #animals, #awesome, #bird, #bokeh, #bubbles, #color, #colorful, #countyfair, #fair, #leica, #leicam9, #lightandshadows, #lights, #motion, #movement, #night, #nightphotography, #outdoorphotography, #outdoors, #people, #pettingzoo, #photoblog, #photoblogs, #portrait, #rides, #robertnjonesphotography, #toys, #versatilitybyrnj, kids, photographer, photography | Leave a comment

A Quick Stop At The Park

The other day I stopped at the park to see if there was anything interesting going on. Not much was happening but, these little guys were out so I decided to snap a few shots of them before hitting the road again….