Point Reyes Light

Further Update...

Unfortunately, still not sure what happens with trip. Had talk with wife about it and she is resisting very much. Seems my asthma doesn't matter as much as her inconvenience. I'm still going and it will, eventually, come to a shove on my part but I'll keep trying for a few more days to get it done with diplomacy. I need to get a few months stateside to find out what's happening and to let the dry desert air work on cleaning out my sick lungs. There's no other way, short of very strong and dangerous medicines, to do that. I much prefer the dry air, thank you very much.

Point Reyes Light

It's a long drive from rt. 1 out to the Point Reyes lighthouse and the road isn't all that much fun. There are many dairy farms along the road and one has to be aware of all the cows. Plus, the winds whip up sand and make the road dangerous along with it not always being a safe road with lots of blind corners and whatnot. After all that effort, you arrive at the parking lot below the light. There's nothing there but a driveway leading upwards and a very long and exhausting climb. By the time you reach the top, you're exhausted and hoping there's something worthwhile at the end. Imagine how disappointing it is when you finally reach the end and find ... this.

Point Reyes Light - 121mm(1.6 crop),f/22,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Not exactly a classic example of lighthousing, is it? The explanation is simple enough ... there was no need for a tall base given the light was already hundreds of feet above the water. And, according to the explanation, the trip to the light by mule team took a looooong time and it just didn't make any sense to waste all that energy on frills. So they built a minimal light, powered by coal and steam. It did it's job for a very long time and that's why it's famous. Add to all this the light was closed, in the late afternoon, so we (there were several of us who made the arduous climb) were forced to take pictures from an overlook several hundred feet above the light. It was a gray day (fog again) and colors weren't forthcoming so I had to make due with what I was given. This is a 3 image HDR and I worked very hard to find color in the final composition but there's just not much there. If I push too hard the whole image goes to hell and that's not going to please anyone. So you see a nice blue sign (bottom center) and some pretty rust streaks (on the light) and a bit of oxidized copper (roof vent on the attached building) and that's it. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. That's life for the photographer. That's why it's so hard to get that amazing image that pops. Everything has to be perfect and all too often it's not. But still, it's an OK picture, isn't it? At least the composition is good.

Zion Guardians

Update...

Still not sure of my trip. Wife has been sick and that's thrown everything sideways. She's getting better so I hope to make some decisions pretty soon. I want to spend at least 2 months stateside so I have plenty of time to visit all the places I've been researching. Will let you know as soon as I have a plan.

Zion Guardians

Have I mentioned I really like Zion National Park? Although it's not the easiest place to photograph due to it's north-south orientation, it's still an amazing place. The colors are beyond spectacular and the geography is just out of this world. I'm planning to visit again this trip and to try and get back into the slot canyons (up at the Temple of Sinawava) and beyond. This is an arduous trip as you spend much of it in the Virgin River, chest deep in very cold water. There are shops where I can rent thick wading suits and special packs to protect my camera gear but it's still a big deal and one has to always worry about rain and floods when there. Last year, during the summer, they had a serious flood that killed several people so one can never be too careful. But I really want to photograph those canyons.

One of the best things about Zion is the diversity of geography. All along the Virgin River there are deep cuts and soaring cliffs to enjoy. The sky is always filled with fluffy, white clouds and the sun, even at its highest, provides wonderful contrasts and shadows. It's a photographer's dream.

One of the most popular places for taking photos is behind the natural history museum near the west entrance on rt. 9. I got up very early and drove to the museum just for this picture. These three peaks are called ... I think ... the guardians. There's a huge amphitheater behind the museum and these peaks backstop the whole thing. I did a panorama here which I'll put up some day but for now I'll give you just a single image. This is an HDR processed the usual way. The sun was over my right shoulder just below the cliffs on the east side of the valley. Only 4 of us saw this scene that morning. It was definitely worth dragging my sorry ass out of bed so early. Damn ... the colors are just so amazing!

Zion Guardians - 33mm(1.5 crop),f/18,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Vermilion Cliffs Excitement

Trip Delayed...

Due to some family issues my trip home has been delayed for a few weeks. I'm now intending to leave around February 17th and return to Crimea at the end of April. That's a few weeks shorter than I'd planned but sometimes that happens. I'm in the process of developing my itinerary and will post it to this blog and my trip map when it's finished. I won't be rushing all over the west like last cycle but will concentrate on Southern California, Arizona and some spots in New Mexico. Still a very aggressive schedule but not nearly as much driving. I blew through 10K miles last time and that was far more than I'd expected. All those side trips to find a McD for internet access and getting out of town to find a place to sleep really piled up the miles. I'm hoping I won't have to do that as much this time as my schedule has me working at night and sleeping during the day. I would expect I can find many places to sleep when the sun is shining and won't be hassled by the cops as much. We'll see.

Vermilion Cliffs Excitement

I applied for a permit to get into the 'Wave' at Vermilion Cliffs but was unsuccessful ... over 650 applications representing almost a 1000 people fighting for 10 slots. The odds were just too against me. I may, if I'm in the area, swing by the BLM office there and see if I can get in during the daily lottery. They have 10 spots open for that and I'll probably have better luck as you have to be physically present for the drawing ... and the office is really out of the way. We'll see.

Anyway, I really like this area even without the Wave as it's truly spectacular. I spent a day last cycle wandering the slot canyon network (over 10 miles of canyons ... dwarfs Antelope Canyon big time) and took a huge number of pictures. I've only posted one so far and that's a shame as there are so many beautiful formations to record. I may go back even if I don't win the lottery just to wander the right branch of the canyon heading south ... I didn't even touch that one during my last trip. Hopefully it won't rain again and I won't get stuck in the mug like I did last trip. You really need a big tire off-road vehicle to make sure you can get in and out on the crappy dirt road they have there. Sometimes the BLM takes the 'wilderness' designation a bit too seriously and that causes big troubles. Every year some people die in the 'wilderness' because they can't find their way back out due to a lack of trail markers. If you don't have a GPS tracker it's really easy to get lost up there. And some people shouldn't even go there as their health isn't good enough to endure the strains of hiking the steep terrain.

I took this image on the dirt road south of the parking lot for the Wave. I really love the colors in this part of the Great Basin. You can see a large pallet of minerals in the many colors (and layers) in the lower half of the image. It was late in the afternoon and the sun was low in the west (over my shoulder) so the colors really pop. And it's like this the entire 30 mile drive! You want to stop every 100 feet and take pictures. I only saw one car in the entire time I was making the drive. If you are in the area I highly recommend you take the time to see this. You can park in any of the trail heads and walk in as far as you want. Just be aware of the heat (especially in summer) and the potential for rain as some of the canyons can fill up with runoff very quickly. You won't be disappointed I promise.

Vermilion Cliffs Excitement - 93mm(1.6 crop),f/22,1/13 sec,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0