Uncommon Places

I've hinted about Uncommon Places in some of my flickr comments, but I've been meaning to post about it for a while now. I finally received it as a gift this past Christmas (I try to resist buying photography books for myself). I remember the first time I saw it at Borders. I was instantly captured, and I don't think I've looked at spaces in quite the same way since. On top of that, Stephen Shore actually makes you want to get in a car and go to middle America. Quite an accomplishment. Pictures on the computer screen don't do it justice either. For example, this picture seems like nothing to write home about when viewed online, but it's one of the first pictures in the book, and it blows me away.

Related: America

Cloudy Sunday Blah

And I mean that in a good way. We all need that solitary downtime. A good low-contrast day to let our minds explore and relax. Listen to some Chopin or Gershwin while you're at it. Make a photo book, perhaps. Here's a photo book I recently made from my Alaska trip last year:



As an update to those interested, here are a few photos from our summer trip to Rochester, Niagara Falls, and Toronto (plus the image up top):

At Last, Shenandoah

Who knows how many times I've flown over Shenandoah National Park. Dozens? Yet I'd never been there. I was always headed to "bigger and better" things out west (Yellowstone, Denali, Zion, etc.). That all changed last weekend.

With the Xpan stuffed in my backpack, we headed west. We shot around the DC beltway, out on I-66, then down US-29 to VA-211. As we reached Sperryville, our lunch options began to dwindle. Luckily, we found High on the Hog BBQ for some good local "grub". Topped off, we wound our way up 211 and headed further back in time.

We entered the park at Thornton Gap. The friendly ranger gave us a map, told us it was a free weekend, and waived us on through. Excellent. With the Skyline Drive in our sights, we headed south.

After some stops at various overlooks, our first main destination was Limberlost trail near mile marker 43. It's probably one of the easiest trails you'll find in the whole park. It's paved with gravel and rated as ADA accessible. This isn't some blah trail though. There's plenty to see and photograph if you pay attention to the details and patterns. Also, if you wear some boots and long pants you'll have a little more freedom to get off the trail to explore different angles.

When we were done with our hike, we continued to head south to the Byrd Visitor Center at Big Meadows. The Meadow is indeed Big, especially by east coast standards. Unfortunately, heavy rain and fog rolled in just as we got out of our car. After sitting tight for a little while, we decided to start working our way north again, toward Luray.

We checked in at the Days Inn. The accommodations were completely adequate for our needs (bed, thermostat, shower,... ahem... free wifi). Also, if you find clashing decor entertaining, then this is definitely the place for you. After we got settled, we headed into town to find some food.

Artisans Grill was actually one of the surprise highlights of the trip. We settled on it after driving up and down Main St. a few times. The food and service were excellent, and the prices were reasonable. It will almost certainly be our go-to spot the next time we find ourselves in Luray.

After dinner, we made a cold, windy, and brief attempt to watch the sunset from one of the overlooks. With the Sun setting so late in the evening though, we decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel.

The next morning, we reentered the park at Thornton Gap and headed north on the Skyline Drive. It was a Monday, so unfortunately the free weekend was over. I gladly paid the $15 though; it was certainly going to a good cause.

The Fox Hollow Trail was our next major destination. This was also a worthwhile hike. Though not as easy as Limberlost due to its inclines. It's still one of the easiest trails in the whole park though. We were amazed how different this trail was from Limberlost too. The huge poplar trees seemed to loom over the entire forest. Be sure to pick up a $1 guide book at the trail head. There's a lot of history along this trail, so you're going to want to follow along.

With another great hike behind us, we made a brief stop across the street at the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center. As we headed north out of the park and into Front Royal, we could satisfyingly say we'd been to Shenandoah National Park.

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The main book we used on this trip was Best Easy Day Hikes, Shenandoah National Park. While not photographically oriented, this book does give some great tips on where to go. When you're reading it though, keep in mind that when they say "day hikes", they mean "day hikes." In other words, make sure to look at the distance, difficulty, time, and your supplies before picking a hike. On the plus side, many of the hikes are out-and-back, so you can turn around when you've had enough. Also, for the photographer, finding "easy" trails is important when schlepping camera gear. Pick and choose what you take.

Another useful book when visiting any national park is the National Audubon Society Guide to Photographing America's National Parks, which you may have seen me mention before.

Alas, there are no pictures to share from this trip yet. That is the price of stepping back in time and shooting film. More to come...

Geometric Getty

Besides being an architectural masterpiece, The Getty Research Institute is the perfect place to practice your your geometric photography skills. What am I talking about? I'm talking about clean lines and simplicity that generally lead to better photos. In other words, think of your photos more in terms of graphic design, with a few clean shapes, solid colors or smooth gradients.

John Shaw goes on a bit about this near the end of his Landscape Photography book when talking about the Palouse region of Washington. The book may be out of print now, but its lessons on composition still apply. It also has one of the best explanations of exposure (i.e. what "stops" are) that I've ever read.

Anyway, back to the Getty. Absolutely go there, enjoy the architecture, and start thinking of your photos more in terms of clean, abstract graphic designs.

My shots here were mostly taken with the 5D and 50/1.8, but you really don't need anything more than a point-and-shoot to take advantage of the amazing architecture. I feel like these photos only scratch the surface of possibilities at The Getty.











Happy shooting!

The Essential Notepad

I was reading the Lonely Planet Guide to Travel Writing today, and it reminded me of something I've been doing since at least 2006... carrying a notepad and pen. I know what you're thinking, "Haven't you ever heard of a PDA?" Of course, but an electronic gadget is often more trouble than it's worth for quick notes. I can keep the notepad in my back pocket for an entire year, sitting on it day after day, without fear of breaking it. A notepad doesn't need batteries or a connection to the Internet cloud. It doesn't need to boot up. It doesn't crash. It's also got convenient history and messaging functions; turn back a page or pass a note.

Obviously, the other essential item is a pen. I prefer the Zebra F-301 blue or black pens. They look sharp, handle well, and haven't failed me yet. The pen lives in my the left pocket (I'm left handed) of my jeans, clipped to the top, near the back. It stays put surprisingly well too, ready for the quick draw. My Swiss Army Knife also has a pen, but it's small and awkward, so it's strictly a backup. As a side note though, I heard Swiss Army officers were originally issued knives to sharpen their quills for record keeping.

And as you can tell from my blog, I've got a ways to go on my travel writing...

Pocket Ref

This is in no way related to Alaska, but I've been meaning to tell everyone about Thomas Glover's awesome little Pocket Ref. If you're planning to travel anywhere with less-than-stellar Internet availability (i.e. airplanes, Wyoming), then you need to drop a few bucks and get one of these. It's like having a little bit of Google, Wolfram Alpha, and Wikipedia in the palm of your hand. Want to know the difference between a cirrocummulus and a cumulonimbus cloud? Page 652 (with pictures). Want to know how to tie a blood knot? Page 537. Want to know the chemical composition of azurite? Page 342. Want to know how to convert from ounces to grams? Page 719. I could go on and on, but needless to say there's a lot of great stuff in this 5.6 ounce (158 gram) book. I found my copy at the bookstore hidden in with the dictionaries and thesauri. Check it out!

Return from Rocky Mountain National Park

Just got back from Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado last Wednesday. I wanted to share a couple photos and other observations.

Early June may be a little too early in the season for this park. My girlfriend and I definitely got snowed on multiple times, though none of it stuck. On the plus side, it was true mountain weather; if you don't like it, wait 15 minutes.

The active weather was actually a plus for photography as well, since there were almost always dramatic clouds in the sky. The clouds would build up behind the mountains, then gradually roll down and dump on us for a while, then clear up again. I mean, just check out this cloud drama:



The other plus of early June was that the park was not very crowded, which meant we had no trouble parking our car (rental Buick LaCrosse) or getting a campsite.

We also encountered plenty of elk, chipmunks, and Wyoming ground squirrels, but only a couple marmots. The ground squirrels liked to hang around our campsite, but were never a nuisance. We were pretty diligent about keeping our food put away though.



Sunrise was at about 5:30am. I was able to pop out of the tent in Moraine Park campground at 5:15 and make it to the spot to take this photo at 5:30 without too much of a rush.

Also, we found the Rocky Mountain National Park Dayhiker's Guide particularly useful. It's also got some good photos to give you an idea of where to go for what. The only error we spotted was that Bierstadt is actually 2.0 miles from Bear Lake, not 1.6.

Ok, here's one last shot near Deer Mountain.

How to Photograph America's National Parks

There's a new edition of AAA's National Park Photography, which I've praised in the past. This time it appears to be sponsored by the National Audubon Society. After flipping through it though, it appears to be the same great book. I'm sure there are some updates here and there. In any case, go get a copy.

At a friend's gallery showing last March, a budding photographer asked me how I find the time to visit so many national parks. I told him the trick is to simply visit one national park each year. It's a reasonable and achievable goal if you can budget your time and money for the year. Maybe you'll get great pictures, maybe it will be cloudy, but at least you can say you were there. Simply being there seems to be largest problem most photographers face.

AAA's National Park Photography

AAA's National Park Photography is a book that never seemed to get much attention. I have found it quite useful when my time in the park is limited. There have been a few occasions when I was traveling for other business and decided to tack on an extra day to explore a nearby national park. This book shows you where the "hot spots" are so you can prioritize rather than aimlessly wandering through the park (though there's something to be said for aimlessness when time is on your side). It also tells the best times to visit the park, which can be very helpful.

Will you come back with pictures that have been taken before? Of course. Will you take other pictures along the way? Most likely. Will one of them be original? I hope so.

My only gripe with this book is that the binding is somewhat poor, causing pages to fall out. This can be turned around into a bit of an advantage though, because it means you only have to take the pages that concern the park you're planning to visit. Every little bit of weight savings helps when you're packing, and this is no exception.

The bottom line is that this book can be a big time saver and has the tips that most photographers are looking for.

Annie Leibovitz At Work

I finished reading Annie Leibovitz At Work today. I'd highly recommend it if you have any interest in photojournalism, celebrities, or photography in general. She doesn't get bogged down in the technical details, though she does touch on it every now and then. She talks more about how she came up with the ideas for her photos and how she interacted with her subjects. She also talks about the many photographers and editors that have inspired her over the years. This book is also interesting because it covers her work right into 2008, so it's easy to relate to current events. Check it out.

Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?

Just finished reading Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? by Thomas Kohnstamm. It's a fun read. The 270 pages flew by. Thomas manages to describe each scene in detail without slowing down the pace. He also dispels many of the myths that tend to romanticize travel writing. If you're going on a trip and need a light-hearted and light-weight book to read, I highly recommend it.