March 20, 2011

Death Valley Days

We (finally!) got the chance to visit Death Valley this month. I went six years ago, but it was right after an epic flood so half of the park was closed. On this return trip we got to see some of the sights we missed last time. I blogged about the Racetrack Playa last week, but today we'll look at some of the other examples of the stark beauty of the place.

We started in Badwater, the lowest point in the US at 282 feet below level. The salt flats are bright, so not the best place to take pictures at 2:00 pm, and we certainly were not alone, but we do what we can with the scenery.

Next, we headed to Artist's Drive, a rolling one way loop through various hued hills and mountains:

To finish the evening, we drove up -- to Dante's View at 5400 ft elevation overlooking Badwater. This first shot is a great look at the salt flats we walked out on earlier (note the trail in the left lower corner).

The next morning at sunrise, I headed out to Zabriskie Point, another quite photogenic part of Death Valley.

March 15, 2011

Racetrack Playa

The Racetrack Playa in Death Valley National Park is a fascinating place. It's a 27 mile winding and washboarded road to the Playa, a dry, flat lakebed that has water only a few days a year. The reward for the effort of getting there is the viewing of a strange geologic phenomenon not seen anywhere else on earth: Sailing Stones.

Although no one has witnessed it, these rocks really move. It's tough to explain this, so check out this article for more information.

To give a sense of scale, the rocks are about basketball size.

These last images are of the Grandstand, a large volcanic (igneous) outcropping rising dramatically from the flat lakebed:

January 2, 2011

New York City

New York City at Christmas. Again, not a photography trip, but I tried to take a few interesting pictures.

This is Rockefeller Center and the iconic Christmas tree. This is the only usable picture I could get without thousands of people in the foreground.

The Guggenheim is a Frank Lloyd Wright architectural masterpiece. It was also very crowded and you are only allowed to take pictures on the ground floor, which is even strange for a museum. Again, lots of people, but a little post processing makes it work. Click her for another shot from an earlier trip when the museum was closed.

My favorite fruit related tech company (from the inside of the new Upper West Side store).

Taking pictures in museums is a bit of a challenge--I don't simply want to take a picture of someone else's art, so I try to catch an angle or get the experience of the observer. At the Museum of Modern Art:

This shot outside of Rockefeller Center is a little artsy, but I like the effect of the camera blur on St. Patrick's Cathedral in the background. The sharp focus image was boring.

Oh yeah--we ran into several thousand Santas in Central Park. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and not keeping track of naughty lists.

November 15, 2010

East Texas Fall

It happens late, but the color in this part of Texas can be very nice.

Here are a few images from Tyler State Park on a gorgeous weekend:

And, one from the front yard:

November 11, 2010

Chicago

I had the opportunity to take trip to Chicago last month. I was there on business, but I had a little time to take a few pictures, especially around Millennium Park.

Although popularly known as "The Bean", this shot demonstrates the real name "Cloud Gate".

Self portrait in "The Bean". I swear: there is just one of me.

Although probably an overdone image, I challenge you to find it with no people (I had to wait out a rainstorm).

More scenes from Millennium Park.

Finally, in the above mentioned rainstorm, I thought this was an interesting capture of light and raindrops.

August 18, 2010

The Beach

Here are a few more pictures from Florida:

These next images are shots of the dune Sea Oats. It's illegal to pick or harm these plants in Florida. Their extensive root system holds the dunes together. I like the iconic look of the oats set against the sky and water. You have no idea how many pictures I have of these....I'll limit this to 3.

And finally, a bonus shot from our detour to New Orleans.....

August 16, 2010

Western Lake

Western Lake is a rare coastal dune lake found in only a few parts of the world. It's connection to the Gulf of Mexico is transient, but it's serenity and beauty are constant. The WaterColor community that surrounds part of the 214 acre lake has carefully and unobtrusively integrated the development with nature.

I've had the opportunity to photograph this area on several wonderful family vacations. Here are a few images from last week:

August 1, 2010

Summer Night

I got to play around in Kemah a little last night while visiting in Houston. It's quite a popular place on a summer Saturday night.

Anyway, I was just playing around and testing the low light capabilities of the camera.

On this last shot, I was trying to get a motion effect of a vertical pan as the ride drops the crazy people strapped into the device. Interesting, but I need to work on this.