Shadows

The Breakers, Newport, Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island has been a summer resort destination for a long time. In fact, during the Gilded Age, many rich industrialists built some of the most opulent summer "cottages” of the era. They came to Newport for the short summer social season. Their "cottages" had large receiving areas, dining, music and ballrooms, but with few bedrooms, since the guests were expected to have "cottages" of their own. The social scene at Newport is described in Edith Wharton's novel The Age of Innocence. The biggest of all of the mansions is the Breakers which was built by the Vanderbilt family. The Breakers has 70 rooms and contains approximately 65,000 square feet and cost $12 million to build in the 1890's.

This image of a small portion of the front entrance to the Breakers caught my eye before entering the mansion. The sunlight painted great streaks of shadows on the marble columns and walkway.

Giant Spoke

London Eye, London, England

I thought I would give you another uncommon image of a very famous icon. When looking at this subject, I was trying to figure out how to capture it in a way that showcased the size of this popular attraction in a way that was different from the thousands of other photographs of it. The spindle in this photo is approximately 225 feet in the air. The cables include 16 rim rotation cables and 64 spoke cables, which are similar to bicycle spokes, holding the rim tight to the central spindle. Did you guess what it is? No, it's not a big bicycle spoke in the sky but rather London's very famous tourist attraction, the London Eye. Have a great weekend everyone

Early Morning at the Lodge

McKinley Lodge, Alaska

As I have mentioned in my previous posts about my Alaskan trip, we stayed at the Mt McKinley Lodge for a couple of nights before heading to Denali National Park. The lodge is located off of Alaska's Parks Highway (Milepost 133) that connects Anchorage and Fairbanks. This remote location (the nearest town of Talkeetna is 45 minutes away) guarantees that there is always a crowd in the lodge relaxing and taking in the view of Mt McKinley and the surrounding scenery. The lodge is beautiful and and well appointed with several restaurants, viewing rooms and outside decks. As you can tell from my website, I rarely take photos of the inside of buildings (not sure why) but I really wanted to capture the beauty of the lodge's main viewing room. I figured that in order to shoot the room without anyone in it, I had to get there very early in the morning. I was happy to see that at 5:30 am, I was the only one there other than staff. I wish that the weather was not overcast as having Mt McKinley visible through the window would have been great but I am pretty pleased with the result. I think that I will making an effort in the future to shooting more inside subjects.

Cape May Light Sunrise

Cape May, New Jersey

I have always had a fondness for lighthouses and love to visit them whenever I can. In fact, I am currently touring New England lighthouses with my son who is an aspiring screenwriter. He has recently written a short story in which a lighthouse is featured prominently and we are in the process of scouting possible locations for a shoot. You can see more about his project and itinerary at his website. You can probably expect some of the New England lighthouses we visit in future blog posts. This image is of Cape May Light near the southern tip of New Jersey. I was visiting my brother-in-law who has a place in Wildwood and took my nephew out before dawn to shoot the lighthouse with the sunrise in the background. I hadn't done any scouting beforehand (I know, this should be done whenever possible) and there wasn't a great angle to get both the lighthouse and the sunrise in the composition. Instead, I went out to the beach and was quite pleased with the scene of the lighthouse basking in the soft light of the sun against the blue of the dramatic clouds.

Ruins

Cape Sounion, Greece

We only had a day to spend in Athens, so with so many options, we had to narrow down where to visit to a couple of things. Of course, you must visit the Acropolis but what to do next? For something a bit different from the bustling activity of the city, we decided on taking a bus to Cape Sounion to visit the ruins of the Temple of Poseidon. Along the way to the cape, we passed some stunning coastal views as well as many great beaches. Pulling up to the entrance of the temple, it was obvious why the temple was built on this site. The ruins are situated on top of a rocky hill where views of the beautiful Aegean Sea are visible in almost every direction.

The Temple of Poseidon was built around 440 BC and these columns are all that remain. According to Greek legend, Cape Sounion is where Aegeus, king of Athens, leapt to his death off the cliff, thus giving his name to the Aegean Sea.

I chose this composition as I thought the colors of the columns would contrast nicely with the cloud cover.

Open Range

Denali National Park, Alaska

Continuing our adventures in Alaska, we visited Denali National Park on a pretty dreary day. While it didn't rain much, it was pretty raw out. Since we didn't have a car, we took a tour of the park hoping to see some wildlife. Even with a car, you can only drive as far as we did on the tour. To be able to go further into the park, you must arrange an expanded tour (wish we knew that going in). Unfortunately, while we did spot a few animals, they were mere specks in the distance. Despite the lack of wildlife and the gloominess of the weather, the scenery was outstanding. I was struck by the amount of open range in the park and how the mountain range contrasted with it. The clouds added to the gloomy mood. As I studied the scene, I was reminded of the words "...Purple Mountain Majesty..." in the song, America the Beautiful. It seemed to me that the words were inspired by these mountains.

Spiderman's View

Transamerica Building, San Francisco, California

After my post last Friday of the Balancing Upside Down Elephant, I decided to end this week with an unusual image. The Transamerica Building is an iconic part of the San Francisco skyline. There are thousands of images of the famous pyramid shaped building from every angle (okay, I admit to taking some of those more common shots). I also wanted to take an uncommon shot of the building and this is it. I have a little history with The Transamerica building. In the 1980's I visited San Francisco for the first time for some business meetings that were held there. It was then that I fell in love with the city. When I first looked at the image, my first thought was the perspective Spiderman would see if he tried to climb the building. I'm not sure why that popped into my head but it is probably because as a kid, I loved to collect and read comic books (baseball cards were a close second). I don't know what happened to the comic books of my youth but I still have a fondness for them today.

Sailing the Icy Strait

Icy Straits, Alaska

My recent trip to Alaska was a combined land and sea adventure. As I have probably mentioned before, one of my bucket list items is to visit and photograph as many US National Parks as I can. On this trip, I was going to get to visit two of them: Denali National Park and Glacier Bay National Park. After spending time on mainland Alaska and in Denali, we boarded a cruise ship to see the inside passage including Glacier Bay National Park. Sailing down from Hubbard Glacier the day before, we entered into the Icy Strait early the next morning. The Icy Strait is in the Alexander Archipelago and can be entered from the Alaskan mainland from the north. Continuing into the strait reaches the entrance to Glacier Bay en-route to Juneau to the south. To say that the scenery was breathtaking is an understatement.

This is one of the numerous images I shot from the deck of our ship. The wind was whipping around and I was dressed in layers with gloves on. The interesting thing about it was even though it was cold, I hardly seemed to notice. The light was good, the clouds added great interest to the snow-capped mountains. These mountains are actually part of the national park, namely Glacier Bay Park and Wilderness.

Peaceful, Easy Feeling

Byers Lake, Denali State Park, Alaska

After our exhilarating flight to the summit of Mt McKinley the previous day, I was ready to have a more relaxing morning by walking around Byers Lake in Denali State Park. While the adjacent national park is world famous, I discovered that Denali State Park was no slouch. The lake was about 20 minutes away from our lodge and is accessible from the Parks Highway that connects Anchorage and Fairbanks. The park is undeveloped wilderness with the exception of the two day-use areas, three campgrounds, and two trailheads, one of which leads to Byers Lake. The lake was very tranquil and relaxing. About a quarter of the way around, we came upon this secluded small dock. While there were a few people around, the lake was essentially empty. The clouds were outstanding and perfectly reflected in the calm lake waters. While sitting there looking at the scenery, the Eagles song, "Peaceful, Easy Feeling" came to mind.

Soaring the Alaskan Range

Denali National Park, Alaska

After our overnight stay in Anchorage, we hopped on a bus for 3 hours to Mt McKinley Lodge. I was really looking forward to getting to the lodge because it looked like a nice day where we might have a chance to actually see Mt McKinley (the mountain is only visible 30% of the time). Even more exciting was that we had signed up for a Mt. McKinley Summit Flight that afternoon. We got to the lodge (yes, McKinley was visible), had lunch and hopped on a 45 minute bus ride to Talkeetna Airport (the lodge is pretty remote). On the way, my wife Carol muttered "I don't know why I agreed to do this" (she is not the best of flyers). When we got to the airport, we were assigned a small 10 seat airplane. She was assigned the co-pilot seat and was told not to touch anything (like she would have). I was alone in the second row and our friends were in the back row. To complicate things, it was raining and a fresh storm was approaching. Off we went anyway.

On the way to Mt McKinley, we soared above the Alaskan Range and this image was taken en-route to Mt McKinley. The majesty of this mountain range is something to see. It was pretty challenging to photograph from the plane. I kept getting the damn propeller in my shot and shooting through a small window at such high speed was a challenge. All-in-all, I do it again in a second but I'm pretty sure Carol won't.

Standing Tall

Avon, Connecticut

If you are anything like me, you are always looking for your next trip so that you can take photos of somewhere you've never been. But often times, there are wonderful subjects right around you that are just waiting to be photographed. This is one of those subjects. I live on a very small mountain (627 feet - not sure if it even qualifies as a mountain) and often walk around my neighborhood for a little exercise. I almost never carry a camera with me. This day, I decided to take my camera with me with my macro lens (Nikon 105mm Micro - highly recommended) and shot a couple of flowers in the community gardens. This is one of the better images of a flower with it's stamen standing tall with the pollen ready to be freed by a summer breeze. I think I will be carrying my camera a little more often on my neighborhood walks.

The Balancing, Upside Down Elephant

Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona is a wonderful city with fantastic architecture and unusual sights. We saw a lot of unique things during our visit. However, whenever you think you've that you have seen everything, there is always something around the corner that surprises you. As I stated in an earlier post, we usually tour a new city on a hop-on, hop-off bus. As we toured Barcelona's sights we drove past the CaixaForum Centre building and discovered this wacky sculpture (I guess it is art) of an elephant balancing upside down on its trunk on the sidewalk. The sculpture is a work of Miquel Barceló, a famous Spanish artist.

Anchorage Evening

Anchorage, Alaska

I started to look at my Alaska photos today and realized why I don't look at them for a few weeks or months after a trip. I am usually overwhelmed by the sheer number of photos (many of them to be deleted) as well as they seem to pale in comparison to the actual scenery. After a few weeks or months, my perspective is much better and I find that I actually find some gems in there. That said, I decided to edit the very first photo I took in Alaska. If you asked me before I took the trip, I would have guessed my first image published would be of the beautiful Alaska landscape but instead it is a photo of Anchorage from my hotel room. The journey to the hotel was long and tiring. Up at 4 am to catch a flight out of Hartford, we didn't get into the room until almost 5 pm (9 pm Eastern Time). To our surprise, it was really hot in the room and it had no air conditioning (I guess we should have been happy that it was sunny out for the first time in weeks).

I opened the drapes and saw this scene. Unfortunately, the angle was bad which caused terrible reflections in the window pane. Because of the lack of air conditioning, the windows were able to be opened just enough to barely stick my D700 out the window. I fired off a burst of 5 shots and hoped that Photoshop's Auto-Align would work miracles (it did). A good start to the trip.

Moraine Lake Reflection

Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

The Canadian Rockies are filled with spectacular lakes, mountains and scenery. Whenever I visit Banff National Park, I make sure I get to the "Valley of the Ten Peaks" to shoot at Moraine Lake. The lake is glacially fed and when it is full, reflects a blue shade. There are boats available at the lake and there are numerous hiking trails. Early in the day it is extremely serene and you can feel one with nature. This particular morning, the sun was hitting the opposite shore resulting in a wonderful reflection. While I like to have clouds in my images to add depth and interest, I think that the beauty of the lake and its surrounding mountains speak for itself.

Island Monastery

Sveti Đorđe, Bay of Kotor, Montenegro

One of the most surprising places that I have visited was Kotor, Montenegro. Once a part of Yugoslavia, Montenegro became an independent nation as recently as 2006. Located between Croatia and Albania, its shoreline lies on the Adriatic Sea. It is a small country (about the size of Connecticut); is mostly rugged mountains and is home to only about 620,000 people. According to our guide, the most amazing fact is that it has 365 churches. I have already posted about our visit to the Lady of the Rocks (you can read it here) located in the middle of the Bay of Kotor. After our visit to the church, I wandered outside and noted the smaller island across the water. I learned that this was a monastery (Saint George Benedictine monastery or Ostrvo Sveti Đorđe).

I was intrigued by the sight of the majestic mountains behind the monastery. I took a single shot as it was mid-day with the light and shadows being harsh and didn't expect it to come out. Only recently did I pull it out of the archives to see what I could do with it. I am pretty happy with the results.

Colorful Chapel

Air Force Academy Chapel, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Back from my awesome trip to Alaska and Vancouver where I shot tons and tons of photos. I haven't processed any yet but I am sure that you will be seeing some in the near future. In the meantime, a revisit to the Air Force Chapel in Colorado Springs (you can see my original post here). This time we head inside the chapel (there are actually three chapels) to check out the Protestant Chapel. The point of the roof is about 100 feet from the floor and the spires are separated by colored glass. The chapel seats 1,200 people.

That's it for today while I recover a bit (I need a vacation from my vacation).

Gone Fishing

Grand Canal, Venice, Italy

Well not exactly. I will be off the grid for a couple of weeks with limited internet access. Before I go, I want to thank all of you who have viewed and commented on my blog. I really didn't get going with it until mid-May and wasn't sure how long I would do it. My initial plans were to post a couple of images a week. The number of people that have left me comments has motivated me to post 5 days a week. Better yet, I have discovered the blogs of many other talented photographers whose wonderful images inspire me.

This image was taken early in the morning on the Grand Canal in Venice. As I was headed back to the hotel for breakfast after the morning of shooting, I spotted this old man fishing off the side of the canal. He seemed oblivious to the passing boats, while enjoying the beautiful early morning. I was a little surprised to see anyone fishing as I don't think I would be willing to eat a fish from the canal with all the thousands of boats that travel through it daily. Maybe he is a sports fisherman who does it for the solitude and fun of it. It wasn't until I began processing the photo that I noticed the face drawn in the wooden support. So much for my observational powers!

Hope to see everyone in a couple of weeks. Thanks again for your support.

Leaving Port

Valletta , Malta

Most serious photographers like to plan out their shots by controlling where their subject is positioned with respect to the light. When shooting landscapes, the timing of the day is another key factor in making great images. When on land, the photographer can easily control these two things and the main variable then becomes the weather. But what do you do when you are on a cruise ship with little control over all three things? You do what I do: pray a lot and take advantage of the opportunities when they come. Don't get me wrong. Traveling on a cruise is a wonderful experience and allows you to visit many different places that you might not have ever visited. There have been many locations that wouldn't have been on my top ten to visit but, after visiting, become a favorite memory. One of those places for me was Malta. After docking, we took a full day jeep ride over the island and visited some of the most beautiful parts of the Mediterranean. We ended in up in Valletta, the capital of Malta where we wandered the streets.

I was hoping to catch a shot of Valletta during the sunset hours and was disappointed that our ship was leaving at 6:00 pm. After leaving port, the ship moved past the city and as we started to move to the sea, we passed this lighthouse. Built of old stone, the textures of the lighthouse bathed in warm light contrasted well with the blue of the sea. The sailboat in the background was icing on the cake.

My advice for photographers that are taking a cruise is not to get frustrated but rather be ready when the right time comes.

Shadows and Light

Black Canyon of the Gunnsion National Park, Colorado

I try to visit the American Southwest as often as I can as the scenery is second to none. One area, the Grand Circle, boasts the largest concentration of national parks and monuments in the US. Located in the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah, the Grand Circle is home to 12 national parks. Many of the parks are recognizable to everyone (Grand Canyon, Zion to name a couple) but there are a few that most people never heard of. One of those is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. In fact, it only became a national park in 1999. The park is about 2 hours north of Durango, Colorado just outside of Montrose. To quote the National Park Service, "No other canyon in North America combines the narrow opening, sheer walls, and startling depths offered by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison." It is an extremely rugged landscape with the Gunnison River flowing at its depths. It is also a favorite destination of rock climbers.

We had driven about four and a half hours from Manitou Springs on our way to Montrose and reached the park pretty late in the day. The visitors center had just closed so we were left to ourselves to explore the 12 miles of scenic road in the park. The sun was beginning to set and the landscape was painted with shadows and light. It was a wonderful ending to a great day.

Click to learn more about the Grand Circle and the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

Windy Day on the Bay

Salem , Massachusetts

One of the most recognized towns in New England is Salem, Massachusetts. Founded in 1626, it is one of the oldest settlements in North America. Originally populated by Puritans, Salem gained it's notoriety for it's infamous witchcraft trials. Salem later became one of the most significant seaports in early America. Located north of Boston on Cape Ann, it's economy is now built on tourism. Attractions include the Peabody Essex Museum, Pioneer Village, numerous historic homes, a tall ship and, of course, a Haunted Passport program that leverages its witchcraft history. Spending some time in Boston, we decided to visit Salem on the way home (okay, we went a little out of the way). It was a chilly April day and the wind was blowing extremely hard. The clouds had rolled in and it was all I could do to stand still while taking a shot of this boat across the way. I particularly liked the colors of the boat contrasting with the water on such a gray day.

Click to learn more about Salem.