Photos of the year 2009 (many of which are for sale)

Purchase a print | Barack Obama delivers his inauguration address after being sworn in as president on Jan. 20. Full post


Purchase a print | A crowd is gathered on the National Mall on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20. Full post


Purchase a print | Seen from Palm Shores, shuttle Discovery lifts off after sunset on March 15. Full post

Purchase a print | A tree casts its shadow onto an outside wall at my apartment complex on April 29. Full post

Purchase a print | Venus and the moon rendezvous for a close conjunction on April 22. Full post


Purchase a print | Traffic moves across Pineda Causeway in Brevard County as Venus and the moon rendezvous for a close conjunction on April 22. Full post


A boy, impersonating a soldier, laughs next to his father at a "tea party" protest against government spending at Wickham Park in Melbourne on April 19. Full post


Purchase a print | An Atlas V rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral with a military communications satellite on April 4, as viewed from Melbourne. Full post


Purchase a print | An osprey chows down on a fish at Viera's Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands on April 30. Full post


Purchase a print | A palamedes swallowtail spreads its wings on top of a fern deep in Melbourne's Wickham Park on May 2. Full post


Seen through palm fronds, a cardinal carries a bug as it hops along on a house fence on May 4. Full post


Purchase a print | The sun breaks through a cloud over Space View Park in Titusville just before the liftoff of shuttle Atlantis on May 11. Full post


Purchase a print | A strong thunderstorm moves over the Indian River in Palm Shores and brings needed rain on May 18. Full post


Purchase a print | Lightning strikes in the Atlantic off south Cocoa Beach on May 19. Full post

Purchase a print | A killdeer scurries away from oncoming traffic at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge on June 1. Full post

Purchase a print | The sun sets over the Indian River in Titusville on June 1. Full post

Purchase a print | Shuttle Atlantis rides on a 747 as the cargo transport flies along Patrick Air Force Base beach on June 2. Full post


Purchase a print | The underside of a shelf cloud over Sebastian appears wind-torn on May 26. Full post

Purchase a print | A thunderstorm moves over U.S. 1 near FLORIDA TODAY headquarters on June 5. Full post

Purchase a print | A spiraling tail cloud is lit at sunset on June 5. Full post


Purchase a print | Ducks stand by the water at Wells Park in Melbourne on June 11. Full post

Purchase a print | A rainbow arcs over the green Atlantic off Indialantic on June 11. Full post

A thunderstorm, which had brought funnel clouds earlier to Central Florida, moves off Patrick Air Force Base on June 13. Full post


Purchase a print | An egret grabs a fish in the Indian River in Titusville on June 15. Full post


Purchase a print | Clouds light up with color at sunset over launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center on June 17. Full post

Purchase a print | A trio of lights - the moon, the shuttle's launch pad and Jupiter - highlight a rib of clouds over launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center on June 17. Full post

Purchase a print | A thunderstorm moves over a house on Harlock Road in Melbourne on June 18. Full post


Lightning strikes offshore near the Cocoa Beach Pier on June 22. Full post


Purchase a print | The skies get stormy over a deserted part of Palm Bay on June 23. Full post


Purchase a print | A Delta IV rocket lifts off through layers of blue, as seen from Palm Shores on June 27. Full post


Purchase a print | A gust front moves over Lake Washington in Melbourne on June 29. Full post


Purchase a print | The sky over Melbourne produces a rare display of mammatus clouds at sunset on July 3. Full post

A storm moves over Patrick Air Force Base Beach on July 4. Click for full panorama. Full post


Purchase a print | Fireworks explode during a show off Cocoa Beach's Shepard Park on July 4. Full post

Purchase a print | A small alligator lurks in Crane Creek off Promenade Park in Melbourne on July 6. Full post

Purchase a print | The sun rises over a flooded church parking lot near Wickham Park in Melbourne on July 9. Full post

A few details of the International Space Station can be seen during a flyover on July 9. Full post

A nearly full moon is seen on July 9, as the Apollo 11 anniversary nears. Full post

Purchase a print | A shelf cloud moves over Cape Canaveral beach, scrubbing a shuttle launch attempt on July 13. Full post

Purchase a print | Lightning strikes near the parking lot of FLORIDA TODAY on July 24. Full post

Purchase a print | Toy cows with parachutes are dropped from a helicopter during a promotion for a new Chick-fil-A location in Viera. Full post


Seen from Space View Park in Titusville, shuttle Endeavour lands on July 31. Full post


Purchase a print | A Delta II rocket streaks into the pre-sunrise sky at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral on Aug. 17. Full post


Purchase a print | Contrails from a Delta II rocket are lit in a pre-sunrise sky at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral on Aug. 17. Full post


Purchase a print | Contrails from a Delta II rocket are lit in a pre-sunrise sky at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral on Aug. 17. Full post

Purchase a print | A shelf cloud moves over Pineda Causeway on Aug. 20. Full post

A surfer crashes into a wave as Hurricane Bill sends swells toward Cocoa Beach on Aug. 22. Full post

Purchase a print | A wave from Hurricane Bill nears me as I swim off Patrick Air Force Base on Aug. 22. Full post

Purchase a print | Lightning flashes inside storm clouds over the Indian River in northern Melbourne on Aug. 23. Full post

Purchase a print | Lightning, seen from Titusville, scrubs a shuttle launch attempt on Aug. 25. Full post

Purchase a print | Shuttle Discovery streaks into space in this time-lapse image with a police cruiser's lights in the foreground on Aug. 28 and 29. Full post

Purchase a print | Lightning crawls near Trinity Towers in downtown Melbourne on Aug. 31. Full post

Purchase a print | The Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay is seen under a haloed full moon on Sept. 4. Full post

Purchase a print | Lightning strikes along Interstate 75 in South Florida on Sept. 4. Full post


Purchase a print | A storm hangs low over Interstate 75 in South Florida on Sept. 4. Full post

Purchase a print | Key West and Disney's Magic are seen from the top of an old lighthouse on Sept. 6. Full post

Purchase a print | A prairie warbler browses for bugs in a pine tree on Smathers Beach in Key West on Sept. 6. Full post

Purchase a print | Fish swim under the pier at Smathers Beach in Key West on Sept. 6. Full post

Purchase a print | The International Space Station passes by a thunderstorm over the Gulf of Mexico and into the lights of Marathon on the other side of Seven-Mile Bridge in the Florida Keys on Sept. 6. Full post


Purchase a print | A fisherman watches the sun set over Lake Washington in Melbourne on Sept. 9. Full post

Purchase a print | A great blue heron is caught snoozing at my workplace on Sept. 14. Full post

Purchase a print | A rainbow arcs over Pineda Causeway on Sept. 23. Full post

A Delta II rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral, as seen from Jetty Park, on Sept. 25. Full post

The solid rocket boosters separate from a Delta II on Sept. 25. Full post

Anticrepuscular rays appear in the sky opposite the setting sun in Rockledge on Sept. 25. Full post

Purchase a print | The International Space Station makes a pass of the moon over Pineda Causeway on Sept. 28. Full post

Purchase a print | Pilot Jason Newburg's Oakley-sponsored Viper biplane is seen through beach grass during the Cocoa Beach Air Show on Oct. 4. Full post

Purchase a print | A rainbow appears over the Penobscot River in Lincoln, Maine, on Oct. 5. Full post

Purchase a print | Storm clouds move over Stump Pond in Lincoln, Maine, on Oct. 5. Full post

Purchase a print | Clouds float over the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge on Oct. 6. Full post

Purchase a print | Fall turns blueberry fields red in Meddybemps, Maine, on Oct. 8. Full post

Purchase a print | A photographer shoots a moose in Stump Pond at Maine's Baxter State Park on Oct. 9. Full post

Photographers wait for moose to appear in Sandy Stream Pond at the foot of Mount Katahdin in Maine's Baxter State Park on Oct. 9. Full post

An amateur photographer from New York City takes exposures of the low-level cloud cover over Maine's Mount Katahdin on Oct. 9. Full post

Dark clouds move over a house along a backwoods road off Route 6 in Washington County, Maine, on Oct. 10. Full post

Purchase a print | A lone red maple leaf sticks out in a sea of gold in Princeton, Maine, on Oct. 11. Full post

Purchase a print | Stars of the Milky Way shine brightly above the treetops in Princeton, Maine, on Oct. 11. Full post

Purchase a print | Pileus - the horizontal, wispy clouds that often form over cumulonimbus clouds during strong updrafts - also appear over plumes from forest fires, such as this controlled burn at Kennedy Space Center on Oct. 21. Full post

A child reacts after hearing that the Ares I-X test launch was scrubbed because of cloud cover on Oct. 27. Full post

A shock wave forms around the Ares I-X rocket in a test flight for NASA's next generation of spacecraft on Oct. 28. Full post

Purchase a print | Shuttle Atlantis lifts off from Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A, as seen from the NASA press site on Nov. 17. Full post

Purchase a print | An Atlas V rocket carrying several communications satellites blasts off from Cape Canaveral on Nov. 23. Full post

My new Harley-Davidson Sportster is seen in the setting sun and wildfire smoke on Nov. 30. Full post

Purchase a print | The launch of a Delta IV rocket lights up the Indian River in Palm Shores on Dec. 5. Full post

Purchase a print | A roll cloud moves swiftly over Cocoa Beach on Dec. 14. Full post

A meteor appears during the Geminids shower on Dec. 14. Full post

Purchase a print | A floodlight is filtered through a tree and shines on fog in Melbourne on Dec. 16. Full post

Purchase a print | Comet pops his head through the railings in a live reindeer exhibit in Viera on Dec. 19. Full post

Purchase a print | An egret sticks its head under the water in search of fish while flying along at full speed at the wetlands in Viera on Dec. 29. Full post

With KnappImages.com, The Offlede opens for business

Purchase a print | If you'd like to buy a print of the above image of a rainbow touching down during my Maine foliage vacation in October, click on the link and click the "add to cart" button on top of the photo.

Purchase a print | Another one of my more popular photos of the year: shuttle Atlantis lifting off in November.

With the economy like it is, it's high time to find an alternative source of income. A new camera won't buy itself, especially with my employer, Gannett, imposing furloughs again in the first quarter of 2010. And there are several items on the "need" list, including a new door handle for my 2000 Chevy. So that's why I'm asking the people of the World Wide Web to help a desperate newspaperman.

My donors will be getting something in return, of course. This isn't the give-me-money-if-you-want-to-see-more-blog-posts deal. I'm just using The Offlede as a way to showcase my ever-evolving photographic works in hopes that someone would pay a few bucks for a print. I started this blog two years ago on a trip to New Orleans, mainly to write about the post-apocalyptic happenings there. Photography took a back seat the whole way, as a mere illustrative supplement to my musings.

In the past few years, however, the tables have turned. My writing has gotten considerably worse, and my photography has improved. Lucky for me, people are willing to pay good hard cash for photographs but squat for words on paper. That turnabout appears to be working in my wallet's favor.

That's why I've set up a new Web site, KnappImages.com, which takes orders for photos, does the printing and ships them to you. Not all photos seen on The Offlede will be available for sale. I'll choose the ones I think are the best, upload them to KnappImages.com and let you know in each post which photos are for purchase through a link in the caption. But if you spot a photo you'd like to buy that isn't in the store, please e-mail me at andrewknapp@offlede.com, and I likely will make it available.

Coming soon, I'll post my best photos from 2009, many of which will be available for sale. As a sneak peek, this page contains most of the photos already for sale.

I'm doing this on a trial basis. If it proves not to be worth the monthly fee for PhotoShelter's Web hosting, I'll stop. My prices also are introductory and probably will be adjusted. The site itself has not been heavily designed yet. I'm still working out some bugs in that department. For now, it's simply for purchasing. Eventually, it will become my portfolio.

In addition to prints of pretty landscapes, weather and animals, my services also are for sale. At this point, I'm specializing in candid outdoor portraits of families. I also can photograph indoor events such as children's birthday parties or other celebrations. Not weddings quite yet, though. If you live on Florida's Space Coast, give me a ring at 321-501-9531, and we'll talk details.

Below, check out a few examples of my outdoor family portraiture. Both sets of photos feature two of my dear co-workers' families.

It's a difficult world for the modern photographer, with good cameras for relatively cheap and digital media to allow inordinate snapshooting. It's my mission to stand out, though, and bring a different angle to the same old square. I can only hope that it's worth something.

Another ring around the moon - this time, on a cold, clear night

A circular ice halo formed around a waning moon in the clear of Sunday morning.

Florida's Space Coast this week is experiencing one of its deepest cold snaps of the past decade. For about five consecutive days, the temperature has been and still is forecast to be around freezing. Some sheltered inland areas of Brevard County could dip into the upper 20s. On Sunday, the high temperature of 52 in Melbourne was its lowest ever recorded on the same date.

That caused this native Mainer to break down and turn on the heat for the first time this winter. And I think I remember using the air conditioner just last week.

If it's near freezing on the ground, it's even colder up there in the lower atmosphere, which tends to create many of the scenes for my photos. Sunday morning's phenomenon was the same as Saturday morning's, but it came under different conditions. The sky for Sunday's halo was completely clear, allowing for a more defined ring, whereas we were on the verge of a rainstorm Saturday morning.

These circular halos are caused by ice crystals suspended in the upper troposphere. Those wispy cirrus clouds we see mostly just in the winter here in Florida contain lots of ice and supercool water. When the moonlight refracts through them, a halo appears. It's sometimes possible to make out the colors you'd typically see in a rainbow, which is why some halos are called icebows.

Earth's a cool planet, isn't it?

So much so that I need a hot chocolate.

The moon is made of green cheese - or is it blue?

Reflected sunlight and high clouds create a halo effect around the moon early on New Year's Day. Darker rain clouds move in at the lower levels of the atmosphere.

The year 2009 ended and the year 2010 began with a full moon, the second in the month of December. Such an occurrence has become popularly known as a blue moon, which more likely got its name from the idiom, not the other way around.

The term's apocryphal beginnings can be attributed to a 1946 Sky & Telescope article that misinterpreted the Farmers' Almanac, which is published in Lewiston, Maine (best state in the Union). The agricultural bible assigned the name "blue moon" to the third full moon in a season with four of them. (Seasons typically have three full moons.) It didn't necessarily mean there were two in one month.

Before that, "blue moon" referred to either somberness or rarity, as "once in a blue moon" now conveys.

And to get even more technical, the moon wasn't ever full following its rise just after sunset Thursday in the United States. That opportunity would have come in the afternoon, before it was visible.

That's all according to my exhaustive Google searching. Astronomy can be confusing, and there's nothing like the Internet to confound people further. There's lots of mythology related to Earth's natural satellite, including one belief that its pull can determine when a pregnant mother gives birth. A story to that effect was published in my newspaper today. Good grief.

Though what I write here, as best as I can tell, is true, it doesn't matter much. What matters is that the moon was rather rad in appearance early Friday morning. High, wispy clouds caused the sunlight reflected off the lunar surface to create a halo. After the night grew old, lower storm clouds moved in, at which time I made the above exposure.

The rain wasn't far behind.