As I had mentioned in my post last Wednesday, my son and I were scouting New England lighthouses to find locations for his upcoming movie. We drove to our hotel in Edgecomb, Maine which is located close to the Pemaquid Peninsula. The next morning, we headed about 30 minutes from Edgecomb to the tip of the peninsula where the Pemaquid Point Lighthouse is located. The lighthouse is situated on top of a huge rocky promontory with dramatic views in every direction. The surrounding rocks have deep ridges caused by the perpetual pounding waves of the ocean. The lighthouse was commissioned by John Quincy Adams in 1827. Today, visitors can visit the lighthouse and museum. If you climb down one side of the rock promontory, there is a small collection of water where you can see a reflection of the lighthouse. On this morning, it was quite windy causing non-stop ripples in the water. It was a waiting game and the wind never totally stopped blowing to get the glass-like refection I was hoping for. After a while, the wind died down a little for a minute or two and I snapped this shot.
Giant Spoke
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
Standing Tall
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 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.
Gone Fishing
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
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.
Iron Horse
There is something about trains that I really love. Can't really put my finger on it but whenever I see a train, I want to photograph it and ride on it. I've been on some memorable train rides including the Rocky Mountaineer that goes from Vancouver, British Columbia to either Banff or Jasper, Alberta. One of my favorites is the train ride from Durango, Colorado to Silverton, Colorado. The train is a narrow gauge, which is better suited to navigate the sharp curves of the mountain terrain. It was used to haul silver and gold ore from the Silverton area as well as supplies and workers. Today, the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is used as a tourist attraction. The train leaves Durango for a 3.5 hour, 45 mile trip trip through the rugged San Juan Mountains. The scenery along the way is outstanding. It arrives in the town of Silverton for a two hour layover. Silverton is a small old-time mining town which has been designated as a National Historic District.
This shot was taken as the train was readying to head back to Durango. It is a HDR from a single photo.
Click for information about the train's history and schedule.
All Aboard!
I grew up in New Jersey outside of Philadelphia. Whenever we wanted to visit somewhere different, we hopped in the car and headed out to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. A popular tourist destination, Lancaster County is also the home of over 50,000 Amish (also known as Pennsylvania Dutch). We have lived in Connecticut for the past 19 years (hard to believe) and hadn't been there since before our move. When our friends from New Jersey suggested to meet there for a few days in April, we jumped at the chance. Driving through Lancaster County, you can spot the Amish in their distinct horse drawn buggies. There are also numerous covered bridges throughout the county, most of which are still operational. One of the popular tourist attractions is to take the 45 minute train ride on the Strasburg Railroad. While waiting for our train ride, I wandered off (as I usually do) and found this out-of-service train car sitting behind the station. Since the dynamic range was challenging, I decided to shoot a HDR bracket sequence even though I didin't have my tripod. The train car shows the old grandeur of travel in the mid-1800's.
Check out these websites if you are planning a trip to Lancaster County or taking the Strasburg Railroad.