Lincoln vs. Liberty girls hoops playoff

Lincoln senior Katora Criner (24) leans into Frisco Liberty junior Tori Flemming (24) during a high school basketball playoff game at J.J. Pearce High School in Richardson on Feb. 18, 2011.


photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News



Lincoln sophomore Kelsey Criner (23) passes the ball to sophomore BreAnna Hayden (4) around Frisco Liberty's junior Krystal Curry (23) during a playoff game at J.J. Pearce High School.




Lincoln sophomore DreAnna Hayden (4) pulls in a rebound in front of Frisco Liberty junior Krystal Curry (23) and junior Tori Flemming (24) during a playoff game in Richardson.

North Dallas vs. South Oak Cliff boys basketball

North Dallas' Jalon Brown (00) tries to shoot around South Oak Cliff's Kenneth Hall (25) during a high school basketball game at P.C. Cobb Athletic Complex in Dallas on Feb. 12, 2011.


photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News


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North Dallas battles South Oak Cliff during a high school basketball game at P.C. Cobb Athletic Complex in Dallas on Feb. 12, 2011.

Named in this slideshow are: &nbsp Sean Miles, Roy Shelton, Geremy Aldridge, Billy Hopson, Jalon Brown, Kenneth Hall, Jemarcus Armstrong, Jamee Foote, Christopher Hyder, James Presley and Darion Hancock.

LHHS vs. BHS boys basketball

Lake Highland's Trey Bingham (35) goes to the net as Berkner's Kendal Harris (5) looks to block the ball during a district rivalry basketball game at Lake Highland High School in Dallas on Jan. 7, 2011.


photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News


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Lake Highland and Berkner battle during a district rivalry basketball game at Lake Highland High School in Dallas on Jan. 7, 2011.

Named in this slideshow are: &nbsp Taylor Stell, Soma Edo, Jordan Mickey, Trey Bingham, Xavier Thomas, Kendal Harris, Jalen Strickland, James Preston, Kym Malone and Sam Welty.

Kayak: Lake Ray Hubbard

iPhotos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

The water level is so low that sections of old bridges are exposed and dry during a kayak paddle on Lake Ray Hubbard in Rowlett on Sunday, Oct. 14, 2012.


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Lake Ray Hubbard and its tributaries make for entertaining kayak paddles in Dallas, Garland, Rowlett and Rockwall.

*All images made with an iPhone.

Kayak: Trinity River Elm Fork

iPhotos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Morning light is a good companion during a paddle on the Trinity River between Sam Houston Trail Park and McInnish Park in Irving on Sunday, July 29, 2012.


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The Elm Fork of the Trinity River runs from Lake Lewisville to Downtown Dallas, where it merges with the main Trinity River. It is home to an array of wildlife and a ribbon of calm solitude for kayak paddles through the heart of the Metroplex.

*All images made with an iPhone.

OPFOR Reunion

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Jim Worthington, Charlie Schoenberger, Geoff Cottrell and Mark M. Hancock pose for a portrait at the Painted Rocks in Ft. Irwin, Calif. during the A Co. 6/31st Infantry reunion on Sept. 7, 2012.



After more than 25 years since their National Training Center service, former OPFOR soldiers from A Co. 6/31st Infantry reunite on Sept. 6 to 9, 2012. The group's journeys include Freemont Street in Las Vegas, Nevada; the National Training Center and the NASA/JPL Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in Fort Irwin, California; a helicopter ride through the Grand Canyon in Arizona and back to Las Vegas.

Chichen Itza

Visitors tour Temple of Kukulkan, also called El Castillo ("the castle"), at Chichen Itza in Tinum, Yucatán, Mexico on Jan. 2, 1996.
© Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Chichen Itza was a major Mayan city. Friday, Dec. 21, 2012 marks the end of the 13th b'ak'tun time period of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. This particular date had significance to the Mayan people.

Gabbie's senior portraits

Gabbie Pitt poses for a senior portrait in the former West End Marketplace in Dallas on Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012.

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com


Gabbie Pitt poses for senior portraits around Dallas on Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012.

Grand Canyon at sunset

The Grand Canyon colors burn with the setting sun during the A Co. 6/31st Infantry reunion helicopter flight in Arizona on Sept. 8, 2012.


© Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

This image is dedicated to our Band of Brothers. To those who lead point, those who covered our flanks and those who are bringing up the six.

Las Vegas

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com

Pigeons fly past the huge bronze lion in front of MGM Grand Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas on March 29, 2012.


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The Las Vegas Strip beacons visitors and conventioneers in Las Vegas during the last week of March 2012.

Farewell Sally Ride

Former astronaut Sally Ride is introduced as a Maverick Series guest speaker in Texas Hall at the University of Texas at Arlington on Feb. 15, 2010.


Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Former astronaut Sally Ride speaks as part of the Maverick Series in Texas Hall at the University of Texas at Arlington on Feb. 15, 2010.

In 1983, Sally Ride became the first U.S. woman in space aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger. She died today after a 17-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

May 26, 1951 – July 23, 2012

Fort Worth Museum of Science and History

American Indian artifacts are displayed at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in Fort Worth on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2010.
Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com


Artifacts are displayed in the permanent DinoLabs, Cattle Raisers Museum exhibits as well as the special Native American history display at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in Fort Worth on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2010.
YouTube version of this slideshow with music composed in GarageBand by Mark M. Hancock. Please set your viewer quality to 1080p.

Sam Houston Statue

Fayrouz Hancock visits the sculpture of Sam Houston at Sam Houston Statue Visitor Center in Huntsville, Texas on May 12, 2012


Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

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Fayrouz Hancock visits the sculpture of Sam Houston at Sam Houston Statue Visitor Center in Huntsville, Texas on May 12, 2012

"Leonardo Da Vinci: Man, Inventor, Genius" exhibit

© Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

A hang glider based loosely on the design of a bat's wings appears to soar over visitors during the "Leonardo Da Vinci: Man, Inventor, Genius" exhibit at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in Fort Worth on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2010.


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Leonardo Da Vinci's inventions were replicated from his drawing and are displayed during the "Leonardo Da Vinci: Man, Inventor, Genius" exhibit at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in Fort Worth on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2010

Please also see Fayrouz's photos.

2011 Fall Cottonwood Festival

Photos and music © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Attendees rest in the shade near the Cottonwood Boutique and a fountain during the fall Cottonwood Arts Festival in Richardson on Oct. 1, 2011.


Attendees view, purchase and participate in art during the fall Cottonwood Arts Festival in Richardson.

Easter lunch 2012

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Desert includes petite samples of creme brulee, lemon tarts, fruit tarts and strawberry Napoleons during Easter lunch at our home in Plano on Sunday, April 8, 2012.


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The Hancock family and Michael Ainsworth have Easter lunch at our place in Plano on Sunday, April 8, 2012.

Downtown Fort Worth

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

One of the two 48-foot tall angels on the Grand Facade of the Bass Performance Hall appears to blow its horn in Fort Worth on Saturday, July 7, 2010.


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Fayrouz Hancock visits some sites in downtown Fort Worth on Saturday, July 7, 2010.

Catching up in 2012

If y'all haven't guessed, I'm forcing myself to catch up on old files this year. Some of these folders literally contain thousands of images to cull, edit, tone and (sometimes) caption before I make the slideshows.

Additionally, I'm still shooting assignments for newspapers, magazines and businesses while editing and publishing as many as three books each month. I also have two other major projects (unrelated to PJ) in the works.

Once I catch up, I'll start digging through my archive. As noted in December, I got a negative scanner and have several million images on the shelf.

Consequently, I have plenty of images to present in the future. Stay tuned and thanks for your patience.

Enough for now,

Dallas Zoo under new ownership

Boudreaux, a nine-foot-long albino American alligator, comes into the light in the Ghosts from the Bayou exhibit at the Dallas Zoo in Dallas on Sunday, May 30, 2010.


Photos and music © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com


The Dallas Zoo was recently transferred from city ownership to private ownership in Dallas on Sunday, May 30, 2010.

Named in this slideshow are: Parrots, black-and-white ruffled lemur, ring-tailed lemur, collared lemur, blue and yellow macaw, great egrets, flamingos, golden lion tamarin, cotton-top tamarin, spectacled langur monkeys, Sumatran tiger, red kangaroo, Harpy eagle, bald eagle, Andean condor, red-crowned crane, tortoise, great anteater, rhino iguana, Oustalet's chameleon, veiled chameleon, Caiman lizard, Perentie monitor lizard, Fayrouz Hancock, albino American alligators, Mexican bearded lizard, Cape cobra, crocodile monitor lizard, Burmese python, collared lizards, timber rattlesnake, Eastern Diamondback rattlesnake, sailfin lizard, Asian yellow-spotted climbing toad, blue poison dart frogs, mandrill, African elephants, warthog, ostriches, giraffes, cheetahs and Boudreaux, a nine-foot-long albino American alligator.

A Co. 6/31st reunion planned

"OPFOR BRIEFING" by Patrick Farrell, Fort Irwin, California 1988

*** Polar Bears, Attention ***

This post is for former soldiers of A Co. 6/31st Infantry and/or A Co. 1/52nd Infantry (32 Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment OPFOR infantry) stationed at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California who served honorably during the 1980s (177th Armored Brigade).

A reunion is planned for Sept. 6-9, 2012. We will rally in Las Vegas and travel to Ft. Irwin via vans on Sept. 7, 2012 for a guided tour of the new facilities, tip a drink in Barstow to our fallen brothers and return to Las Vegas that evening.

Even if you can't attend the reunion, we'd like you to join our Facebook group and share your experiences. Please contact either Mark M. Hancock or Geoff Cottrell via Facebook to be added to the group.

If you're opposed to Facebook, there is also a discussion board on the 31st Infantry Association website.

These are some Polar Bears who will be missed forever.

Phillip Albert
Terry Blanford
Steve Busch
Larry Caudy
Mack Garret
Col. Tom Hagen
Col. Jerrell E. Hamby
Greg Nicholson
Ron Paiva
Don Worland

Pro Patria! For Country!

Corpus Christi Shoreline Blvd.

Photos & music © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

A vendor awaits customer during the Buc Days carnival in Corpus Christi on Sunday, April 25, 2010.


Activities happen from sunrise past sunset along Shoreline Blvd. in Corpus Christi during the annual Texas International Boat Show and Buc Days Festival.

Texas State Aquarium

An Atlantic bottlenose dolphin swims at the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi on Sunday, April 25, 2010.


Photos & video © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com
"Vida De Parranda" © Tekumbe / tekumbe.com

 

Featured in this video slideshow are: Fayrouz Hancock, Hans the tiger shark, sea turtles, a flounder, seahorses, a slipper lobster, a toadfish, a striped burrfish, an alligator, roseate spoonbills, egrets, a hawk-headed parrot, a prehensile-tailed porcupine, an arawana fish, piranhas, a French angelfish, a stingray, a great barracuda, an Atlantic sea nettle, a comb jellyfish, a northern sea nettle, moon jellies, Pacific sea nettles, Atlantic bottlenose dolphins and North American river otters.

Scarborough Faire 2010

The Flaming Idiots (Gyro, Pyro and Walter) returned from New York to perform a special anniversary act at Scarborough Faire Renaissance Festival in Waxahachie on Saturday, April 17, 2010.


Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com


Scarborough Faire villagers participate in activities during the annual Scarborough Faire Renaissance Festival in Waxahachie.

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Named in this slideshow are: The Flaming Idiots, Pyro, Gyro, Walter, Don Juan, Miguel, King Henry VIII, Queen Anne Boleyn, Suellen Moline and Fayrouz Hancock.

Butterfly House

Photos & music © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

A tiger butterfly rests at Smith Sammons Butterfly House and Insectarium at Fair Park in Dallas on Sept. 26, 2009.

Butterflies frollic at Smith Sammons Butterfly House and Insectarium at Fair Park in Dallas.

San Antonio Riverwalk

Visitors ride a barge through the Rivercenter Mall in San Antonio on Nov. 26, 2011.


Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com


Fayrouz Hancock tours the San Antonio Riverwalk on Nov. 25 and 26, 2011.

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2011 Review

Photos Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com and designated publications

Lighting illuminates part of the downtown Dallas skyline over the Arts District in Dallas on Sept. 29, 2011.


This is a collection of my favorite shots (it isn't all PJ work) from 2011. On a computer or iPad, it's best to view the slideshow in the larger format.

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The Alamo

Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Fayrouz Hancock tours The Alamo in San Antonio on Nov. 25, 2011.


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Fayrouz Hancock tours The Alamo in San Antonio.

Please also see Fayrouz's slideshow.

Christmas Eve dinner

Various specialty cheeses await guests during Christmas Eve dinner at our home in Plano on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2011.


Photos Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com


Appetizing dips included Mark's guacamole, onion dip and salsa during Christmas Eve dinner at our home.


Appetizers are available for guests during Christmas Eve dinner at our home in Plano


Various specialty cheeses had a little action during Christmas Eve dinner in Plano.


Smoked chicken, barbecue sauce and smoked brisket are some of the meat choices during Christmas Eve dinner at our home.


Corn salad and mango salad are among the dinner choices during Christmas Eve dinner in Plano.



Deserts included a chocolate mousse Yule log, fruit tart, pecan tart and pineapple upside-down cake during Christmas Eve dinner at our home.






Desert included a chocolate mousse Yule log during Christmas Eve dinner at our home in Plano.

San Antonio churches

The golden alter at San Fernando Cathedral reflects lights on Nov. 26, 2011.


Photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

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Fayrouz Hancock tours the San Fernando Cathedral, St. Mary's Church and St. Joseph's Church in San Antonio.

Please also see Fayrouz's slideshow of the churches.

San Antonio Season's Greetings

A carafe of wine accompanies lunch at the Luciano restaurant as a barge navigates the cove inside Rivercenter Mall in San Antonio on Nov. 25, 2011.

Photos Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com


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San Antonio turns on the lights near The Alamo and along the Riverwalk during Thanksgiving weekend 2011.