It's all in the moment for St. Charles photog

It's all about the "magic" of catching one's expression and mood.

It's worked for professional photographer Barbara Collins during her 25 years of taking pictures of people - mostly children - in the Tri-Cities region.

"I think that capturing the moment is the key thing that makes good photography, and I think that skill has helped my business stay strong," said Collins, who is setting up her photography studio near her former Dunham Road location, a site she refers to as "a photographer's dream" because of its 6 acres of flowery landscape near a small lake.

"The biggest challenge over the years has been the switch to digital technology and the scanners, all of which took away from the professionalism that photographers learned over the years," Collins said.

Anyone can shoot a digital photo and spend hours at a computer adjusting it, but it is not the same as being a professional at work, Collins said.

"You still need good lighting and a good eye for photography," Collins said. "Even with the best electronic and digital equipment, you just can't automatically capture that.

"To capture kids in a natural state, without all of the posing and 'cheese' smiles is something that parents certainly treasure these days."

Collins picked up the photo bug by following her children around with a camera 25 years ago.

"It got me hooked and got me specialized in (photography of) children, which was an unusual niche at the time," said Collins, who also produces family, business and animal portraits.

Her work can be viewed on her photographybybarbaracollins.com Web site.

"I've had a lot of loyal customers over the years and have been able to stay with this for a long time, even through this tough economy," Collins said.

Waiting on Rex's: Tom Balk is pretty certain about one thing related to the empty Rex's Cork 'n Fork restaurant on East Main Street in St. Charles - it's going to become a restaurant again at some point.

"There was some interest in the building as a non-restaurant use, but there are structural problems with that," said Balk, a Realtor who is listing the property for Phillips Martin Real Estate in Warrenville.

"There's nothing concrete, but relative to other properties, I am getting some good response and questions about another restaurant coming in there," Balk said.

Balk said the Rex's site has some positives that many other properties don't. "It has good presence on the street and it has a great history," he said. "Those are good things, and it is just a matter now of finding the right fit."

It may take some time, Balk said, because commercial property sales are "not like a few years ago when things were just humming along."

A determined bunch: An outdoor party to celebrate the first phases of the First Street Redevelopment project in St. Charles has run into the formidable Mother Nature obstacle two years in a row with heavy rains.

Downtown Partnership and city officials, as well as business and restaurant owners, were determined to reschedule last weekend's Taste of the Plaza washout. It has been rescheduled as the "Second Helpings of the Taste of St. Charles" for 2 p.m. Sept. 20, with the food service on the first floor of the parking garage, thus eliminating any fear of rain drops.

Also, it appears that under that setup, if planners are lucky enough to get a super day, arrangements can quickly be made to move things outdoors.

Sum of its parts: So, Batavia gets voted in at No. 56 on a list of 100 great small towns by a CNNMoney.com survey - and I start hearing everyone debating such a notion.

It's healthy for all of us to stand up and be counted in singing the praises of the town we live in, but the truth around here is that the sum of its parts is what has always made the Tri-Cities area stronger than so many other regions in the state.

You can't beat the river setting along Pottawatomie Park in St. Charles, you can't beat Third Street in Geneva as a retail and outdoor dining area, and you can't beat Batavia's Riverwalk and Depot Pond as a throwback to the perfect "town square" where everyone in a small community can gather.

Each town has its unique offerings and they blend together beautifully. Each has its unique problems, and they rely on each other more often than not to solve them.

A dog in the bush: Our friend Kathy Freedlund of Batavia was frantic when she thought she had somehow lost her Havanese Poodle mix puppy, Ellie, in her own backyard. Kathy was doing yard chores and Ellie was safely on the deck of the house, behind some gates. But suddenly Ellie was gone, and not responding to Kathy shouting her name.

The gates were not moved, and no one in the neighborhood saw Ellie wandering around. Kathy asked a neighbor if their spaniel could help in the search.

"Tess" came out and began sniffing around the yard. She suddenly got focused on a bush near the deck and began barking.

"The bush was kind of moving, but we thought maybe it was some other kind of animal," Kathy said. "Then we looked in the bush, and there Ellie was, hung up on the branches, wagging her tail and waving her legs to try to get loose."

It's always a huge relief to find your dog after it has suddenly gone missing, but doubly nice when the search ends just a couple of feet away from where the dog was last seen. Ellie apparently slipped through a small opening on the deck rail and plopped into the bush. Tess's heroic effort was another lesson in the ability of man's best friend to smell or hear things we cannot.