Yesterday dawned warm and sunny – a perfect summery day. Mark and I decided to take a trip downtown to the Toledo Farmers’ Market. (It is approximately a 25 minute drive from our home in southeast Michigan.)
The market is located on Market Street in the Warehouse District. (Read more about it here.) This was only my second time at the market and I had a long list of produce I needed to buy. Though not overly large or grand, the market is a feast for the eyes and the tummy! Since it was early in the season, not all the booths were occupied, but it was fairly full and very busy. It was nice to see so many people downtown.
There was a wonderful array of products on display and a rainbow of colors everywhere I looked. Of course there was produce.
And flowers everywhere.
And delicious artesian breads. We bought some bread from this booth – it was beer bread made with ale from the Maumee Bay Brewing Company – another downtown Toledo business and one of our favorite restaurants.
We purchased the parmesan black pepper bread and it was sooooooo good! Our daughter and son-in-law had invited us to dinner in the evening – ribs and sausage-stuffed pork loin cooked in the smoker – and this bread was a very good accompaniment. It was pricey, but worth the splurge.
There was a lovely rainbow of handmade scarves.
I never knew there were so many varieties of basil!
When we had purchased all our produce and the tote bag was getting heavy, we sat down for a little break with some fresh blueberry-lemon scones. Sad to say, but my scone photo was the best of the day.
(Yes, I had already taken a bite off the end before I decided I should take a picture! 🙂 )
I have been trying to read up on photography. I borrowed two books from the library and purchased a guide on my Kindle. I also created a Pinterest board and have been pinning lots of photography “cheat sheets” to help me understand things better. Unfortunately for me, I’m not understanding it better yet. It’s just not sinking in. And the truth is, I don’t have an artistic eye. It’s just not there. So, maybe I can learn, maybe I can’t. Maybe I’ll never been very successful at blog photography or landscapes. Only time will tell. Hopefully those that know and love me will stick with me through this process.
After our scone we went to the Libbey Glass outlet. Libbey Glass is a Toledo hallmark, and Toledo has a long history of glassmaking. If you are bored and don’t have anything better to do, here is an interesting Wikipedia article about Edward Libbey and Toledo glassmaking.
The outlet is another feast for the eyes, with lovely colors and patterns everywhere.
Patriotic glasses for the 4th of July.
Margarita anyone?
We were able to purchase a couple of items to be used as gifts. Our arms laden with glassware and vegetables, we headed to our vehicle and started for home. On the way home we passed a huge art fair going on across from the Toledo Museum of Art, but Mark wouldn’t stop. Traffic was very congested and parking looked to be a horror, so he kept driving. I admit, I was a bit disappointed. Funny, but several years ago when I was in the throes of severe panic disorder (something that ravaged my life for almost 17 years), I could never stop at something like that on a whim. Now, I was sad to miss the opportunity. God is good!
After our market trip, I was able to hang three loads of laundry to dry on the clothesline and drank water from my Tupperware Eco-bottle, so I was feeling quite environmentally sensitive today! And later, I got to enjoy some fall-off-the-bone ribs – one of my favorite foods! Yep, it was pretty much a perfect day!
45 Degrees North 
It looks and sounds like a very enjoyable day!
Your photos are just fine for the type of blogging that you’ve been doing so far, far better than the photos that I see on other blogs similar to yours. Photography is a tricky art to master, I’m not sure if any one truly does master it. I still learn from every photo that I shoot, mainly what I’m doing wrong.
You’ve had a good camera for just over a month, give it time, you’ll get the hang of it as you go. There will be times when what you’ve read will suddenly click, and then you’ll understand what they were talking about. If you judge your photos by comparing them to photos taken by people who have been serious shutterbugs for years, it will only lead to frustration. What matters is the improvement that you see in your own photos, even though there will be spells when you seem to be going backwards. It’s all part of the learning curve.
LikeLike
Thank you, Jerry! I get impatient with myself and I am my own worst critic – no doubt about that. It was kind of hard taking these photos because the market was under roof, so shaded, but outside the sun was directly overhead and shining very brightly. I had to do a lot of cropping of some photos because there would be one strip of eye-blinding light. LOL I appreciate all your encouragement!! I need all I can get.
LikeLike
The market looks like such a fun place to visit. And you are doing great with your camera…just keep having fun!
LikeLike
Thanks, Kathy! It is a pretty cool place – even if the produce cost a bit more than Kroger. LOL 🙂 Hard to not impulse buy when everything looks so good and fresh! I will try to keep having fun and not get frustrated. Eventually I will understand the mechanics – well, maybe, hopefully, at least somewhat. hahaha
LikeLike
Your eye will develop all the time as you look at your own pictures and say to yourself that that one worked and that one didn’t. I’ll give you a year and people will be asking you for advice.
LikeLike
You are very encouraging, Tom. I have a tendency now to compare my photos to yours and there just really is NO comparison! Yours are so artistic and lovely. I hang on to hope that I will get there someday.
LikeLike
Thank you for sharing photos of the Toledo Farmers’ Market. Nice shots! We visit our local market on a regular basis. It’s good to support the local farmers. They work so very hard! The smell of cinnamon-spiced nuts roasting and good coffee on a Saturday morning, is very inviting. The market provides a sense of community; it’s a meeting place and a showcase of local musicians and artists. Whenever, we visit other areas of the country, it is fun and interesting to check out their markets. I especially enjoyed the artisan crafts and unique foods when we visited markets in the Maritimes. It is a great way to learn about the local culture. I even found the perfect crystal jewelry to wear to my son’s wedding, the very morning of the wedding, at the market in the city where they were married. (Went to buy a coffee and stumbled across the market). Yes. Farmers’ Markets are great!
LikeLike
I totally agree!! We have decided we will try to go back on a regular basis. There’s just a certain air about it, it makes you feel good. 🙂 There sure were lots of yummy treats and next time I would like to try some of the specialty coffee being sold there. This Thursday we are going to take my mother-in-law to the Perrysburg, OH farmers market and there is also a free concert in the evening – so I will see how the two compare. I’m sure the Perrysburg one is a bit different atmosphere because it is set up in front of the shops along the downtown thoroughfare, and not in a market building. When we travel to Vermont later this summer, I’m hoping to visit a market there, as well. It will be interesting to see how they are different in different communities.
LikeLike