Bryce Canyon Overlook

Trip Finalized...

Finally have the trip finalized. I leave Crimea on March 31st and return on June 4th. Fly from Simferopol to Moscow where I catch an Aeroflot flight to Paris (ahhh ... so close and yet so far away), then Atlanta and finally Albuquerque. Return trip is the reverse. I'll stay in ABQ for a few days to get things ready and to make some arrangements for medical testing to see what's up with my blood chemistry and then head west. Plan now is to hit a few parks (maybe Grand Canyon if there's snow and Death Valley before it gets too hot) and then on to LA and a few weeks of shooting at night. After that I'll hit a few more national parks and monuments before making my way back to ABQ and home. Need to sit down and really plan out the trip which I hope to do in the coming days.

I'll be working on astrophotography for much of this trip along with the time lapse for the LA video. Expect to be working from sundown to sunrise for most of the trip and sleeping during the day. That may help with finding places to crash as cops aren't as worried about a truck parked in the daytime. Was a real hassle finding places to sleep at night with all the prohibitions on 'overnight camping'. Put a lot of extra mileage on the truck looking for places to park. Especially a problem in CA where they really don't want you overnighting anywhere.

Bryce Canyon Overlook

If you take the road south from the main canyon there are a series of overlooks that highlight various parts of the park. There's an arch and lots of hoodoos to see. This photo was taken at one of those overlooks. I wanted to show something different, beyond the actual sight and this overlook was really interesting. I was lucky that no people were standing there (I had to wait for a small group to leave) so the image is all about what you see. As you can tell, I'm not really keen on taking pictures of people in natural settings. Sometimes they can add to the image but not usually. They're rarely solemn enough and who wants someone taking a selfie to appear in their landscape pictures?

Anyway, this image is really nice. I like the composition and the wonderful sky with some residual storm clouds. Everything is wet so the colors are deep and rich. This is a single image, run through Lightroom and that's it. Enjoy.

Bryce Canyon Overlook - 35mm(1.6 crop),f/18, 1/125 sec,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Slot Canyons in Vermilion Cliffs National Monument

Update ... again

I'm 90% there on the trip home. Am presently setting up flights home from Crimea to Albuquerque. This will probably be my last flight out of Crimea as the western sanctions have made it almost impossible to get money from America. We've lost Western Union, VISA/MasterCard and SWIFT. There's not much left except maybe carrier pigeon. Unfortunately, we need money to live and that comes from the US so we've made the very painful decision to relocate, at least until the sanctions ease, to a relative's house in the eastern part of Russia. Ulan-Ude is just south of Lake Bikal, near the Mongolian border. It's a wild place, with lots of mining and logging. My wife has a cousin living there so we're taking up residence with her until further notice. Not sure how my asthma will take to all the dust but we'll find out when I get back. I'll be returning to Simferopol for a short visit with my relatives and to see how our flat is faring then on to the east. Oh joy...

Oh, dates of travel ... March 28-29 on the trip to ABQ and June 2-3 on the trip back. 2 months in the states and lots of things to do. Will be running the whole time. Have to wedge in some doctor's visits to see what's up with my blood chemistry (which is all over the place it seems) and to clean up the ever messy financial situation. Not sure yet how these off items impact my main agenda but we'll adjust as needed. Since I'm wandering I don't need to really have reservations and the road's always there leading to the next place. I'll update my trip map when I know more.

Slot Canyons in Vermilion Cliffs NM

I didn't win the Wave lottery (had a 1 in 100 chance) but I'm still determined to hit Vermilion Cliffs during my trip and maybe stop by the BLM office to see if I can get a second chance. If not I'll find other parts of the area to explore. There's lots of beautiful scenery to check out so it's not a lost cause.

One of the most amazing parts of that area is the slot canyons. Over 10 miles of wildness and are they spectacular. Not as well known as Antelope Valley in AZ but still a great place to hike and take photos. I have literally dozens of shots in the hopper and each one is better than the last. I like this one because it looks like an animal (maybe a camel or an elephant laying it's trunk against the rocks). It's amazing the shapes one gets with fast running water and sand. Just watch out for the rain as these canyons can fill up very fast.

This is a 3 image HDR, run through the usual treatment with PhotoMatix and Lightroom.

Slot Canyon/Vermilion Cliffs - 29mm(1.6 crop),f/18,HDR,ISO 100,license CC-BY-NC 4.0

Crater Lake Moss

Update on the Trip

It's been just over a month since my eye blew out so it seems appropriate to fill in the empty spaces left with the postponement. Eye is good but still has some floating debris that will, over time, disappear. It's well enough I can drive and read so that's a huge improvement. No residual pain or distortions which could impact my ability to take my pictures (whewwww ... what a relief). So that part is good.

Just went through my yearly re-certification here in Crimea which was a stressful event. You are required to fill out a form that basically gives up all your secrets ... or at least it feels that way. How many trips out of the country did you take? Where did you go? How long were you gone? Who did you talk to (a few thousand in my case during the 3 months). How much money did you make and what were the sources? It's pretty intense. Even the wife was more than a bit nervous about this but the guy we worked with (same guy we used last year to get the permanent residency papers) was very quick. We waited for him for about an hour and then it was over in 7 minutes. So I'm good for another year in this wonderful place. And I'm now cleared to leave once again. So, I'll be making plans this weekend for the trip home. Expect I'll be out of here during the month of March and will return around June 1. Need to make all the flight arrangements and get balls rolling for everything else. About time!

Crater Lake Moss...

They get a lot of rain at Crater Lake. Guess it's because it's really the first major mountain range the weather hits once it leaves the coast. We had rain several days I was there last spring along with some snow. And it's mighty damp. So, one shouldn't be surprised to see lots of moss and other wet weather stuff growing on the trees. We're not too far south of the Colombia River Gorge and it gets lots of rain and has trees covered in this stuff. Oregon is a wet place...

I was stuck at the visitor's center during a very heavy rain storm and, being the resourceful type, I started casting around for some interesting scenery to photograph. Across the road from the center the cliffs rise very quickly and are prone to develop fog and mist. I fitted the 70-200 on my camera and started shooting. Got some nice mist shots and then found these cedars all covered in the brightest green moss and lichen. They literally glowed even without the bright sun. And the cliffs weren't too shabby either. This is a 3 image set, run through Photomatix and then finished (including a severe crop from landscape to portrait orientation) in Lightroom.

Crater Lake Moss - 200mm(1.6 crop),f/11,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Zion West Entrance

Trip on Hold...

It's not been a good 2 weeks. 12 days ago I was getting the kid ready for her shower when I noticed a black streak across the center of my left eye. Having seen this before I knew immediately what had happened ... a vein in my eye had ruptured and blood was flowing into the fluid inside my eyeball. I had this happen to my right eye 2 years ago. Within seconds my eye was filled with floating debris and I knew that my trip home was in jeopardy. I informed the wife who immediately went ballistic and then got crazy. After she settled down it was decided I needed to see the eye doctor the very next day. After about 30 seconds the doctor made the decision that we needed to see the laser surgeon and get the veins sealed before the bleeding got worse and I lost the eye. So, after a very nervous weekend we went to get the procedure done. It's very uncomfortable and painful ... feels like someone is driving a needle into your retina. The surgeon directs a powerful green laser beam through your cornea and focuses it on the back of your eye. He literally vaporizes the tissue, sealing the vein and stopping the blood flow. In 15 minutes he was done and I was sent home to recuperate. I'm not allowed to do any heavy lifting or any activity that might raise my blood pressure or put any strain on the repaired vessels. So, travelling is now out of the question for a while. Last time this happened I was told no plane flights for at least 2 months. That means I could be stuck here until at least the end of March. Now, I many not actually stay here that long but I'm probably not leaving here until the end of February. I have to get home to fix some financial issues pretty soon under any circumstances and I'm still having real problems with my breathing. But all my planning is out the window for now. Stay tuned and I'll update you as I know more.

Zion West Entrance

Much of the action in Zion happens on the west side of the park. The visitor's center, the museum, the campgrounds and the valley all sit there. There's some spectacular scenery in the east but it's not as organized or as concentrated. People tend to congregate in the west and venture out by car to see the rest of the park.

My first night in the park campground, I took a short drive to the west gate. I wanted to get a really nice sunset and, as I've pointed out in previous posts, much of the park is in shadow long before the sun goes down. So I drove to the parking area just outside the entrance and walked across the street to a bluff that looked to the east. I wanted to get the line of peaks just as the sun was hitting their bases so they were somewhat isolated from their surroundings. This is an HDR panorama. You can just see the Zion entrance sign in the lower left. Out of view at the bottom is the parking lot and entrance road. To the extreme right is the Watchman, a famous feature in the park. I'm sure the other peaks have names but I don't remember them.

Beautiful, isn't it? I hope to see them again if, and when, this next trip happens. Care to join me?

Zion West Entrance - 31mm(1.6 crop), f/25, HDR, ISO 100, license CC BY-NC 4.0

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