Sep 24
Today, I visited the Gettysburg National Military Park and Gettysburg National Cemetery, the site of a bloody American Civil War battle in July of 1863. As with most of the Civil War battlefields, the park is filled with hundreds of monuments memorializing the dead and wounded soldiers.
Here’s an infrared photograph of the State of North Carolina Monument, sculpted by Gutzon Borglum (who also sculpted the heads on Mt. Rushmore and the carving on Stone Mountain).
I am in Boise, Idaho, for a conference, and had a spare afternoon. I drove up Hells Canyon, on the Oregon/Idaho border, and did some hiking just below Hells Canyon Dam.
Here’s an infrared photo, taken with my infrared Nikon D200, converted to infrared by Life Pixel. It’s interesting how the infrared highlights the different textures of the water.
I took this photo just upriver of the Hells Canyon dam, looking downriver along the Hells Canyon Reservoir…
I’ll be back. I’d like to take one of the boat tours that heads deeper into the canyon.
A reminder that I asked a few friends to suggest words to inspire topics in this blog.
Today’s word is “strength”.
I found out this afternoon that one my best friend’s dog passed away. Those of you who know me know that I’m a dog person, and I was deeply affected by this news. My heart goes out to Shelley, Cory, Sierra, and Lyla for the loss of their family member.
I also learned today that two people were killed Tuesday in an ultralight plane crash along the Na Pali coast of Kaua’i. I didn’t know them, but I saw the police and ambulance crews rushing to the north side of the island.
We get through times like these with strength—our own inner strength, but more importantly, the strength of our friends and family. People who love us and care for us, and make us feel better when we lose loved ones and we hurt.
Today’s images are from the Na Pali coast. These photos are taken with my Nikon D200, which I had converted to an infrared camera by LifePixel. These daunting cliffs, especially rendered in infrared, say “strength” to me—Nature’s strength, the strength of the Hawaiian people who lived there, and the strength of the people who visit the coast today on foot, on the water, and in the air. This is a challenging place.
I hope tomorrow’s better. See you then.
I was in Denver again this past week for work, and visiting friends.
And seeing a Rockies baseball game.
And seeing the Goo Goo Dolls concert at the Red Rocks Amphitheater. (Wow, that’s an awesome place!)
I also had a chance to do a little hiking. I borrowed a friend’s copy of the book Hiking Colorado’s Front Range
Here’s the GPS track from my hike. I used the new Garmin GPSMAP 62s, which I really like.
And an infrared photo, looking off to the southwest…
Thanks again to all my friends from Colorado, and my friends from Austin who were up there with me.
There’s a whole lot going on in Austin, Texas, this week. The biggest event is, of course, South by Southwest (SxSW). This last weekend was also the Zilker Kite Festival.
Inspired by my friend Carol Watson, who showed me some of her early infrared work at the kite festival, I took my infrared Nikon D200 (converted by LifePixel).
There were thousands of people, and hundreds of kites in the air at any one time. (Not to mention the dozens of kites stuck in trees.)
Click on any of these images to enlarge.
A squid…
Tinkerbell…
A gecko…
I spent the weekend with my good friends Crystal and Paul. On Saturday, we went to Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monuments. The image above is an infrared shot of the Wukoki Pueblo (approximately 800 years old) at the Wupatki National Monument.
Dec 20
On Friday, I drove up to the south rim of the Grand Canyon, driving from east to west. There were a few inches of snow along the rim, but with a little care, I managed to get to some of the overlooks. Here’s an infrared shot from Grandview Point. (To see more detail in each image, click on them to enlarge.)
For sunset, I drove to Pima Point, which is along Hermit Road almost all the way to Hermit’s Rest. Here’s some of the last of the evening light falling on the Tower of Ra [see the comments].
Here’s another infrared photo. I think this does a good job of showing the variety of textures and layers in the rock.
Thursday, I was in Sedona, Arizona. I went on a short two-mile hike (on an injured leg—bummer) to a large sandstone arch named Devil’s Bridge, in Coconino National Forest. Here’s a view along the way. I hope to post some HDR images of the arch later.
I also visited the nearby town of Jerome. Once a huge copper mining community, it is now known for its artists and art galleries.
Finally, I ended the day at the Sedona Airport Scenic Overlook for sunset. Thin clouds have been coming in during the late afternoons, and the sunsets haven’t been that spectacular. However, I do like the clouds in this infrared shot. 
As a musician, I’ve been trained, in the moments leading up to a performance, to relax—to calm myself, and peacefully contemplate what I’m about to do. It puts me into the right mindset, by clearing everything else out of my head. And then when I’m ready, I can execute the way all the rehearsals taught me to perform.
And so it needs to be with photography. I know my cameras; I can handle most of the photographic situations I’ll be in. But if my mind is still back home, thinking about work or other chores, I won’t be ready to make the photographs I know I can make.
Even in nature photography, there’s a lot to think about—what’s going to happen next? When’s the sun going to set? Which way is the wind blowing? What time does this park lock its gate? What’s the hyperfocal distance for this shot?
Today, in the Rincon Mountain District of Saguaro National Park, I had to just say, “Stop!”
I was standing next to a 30-foot-tall Saguaro, and listening.
The wind was blowing hard. I stopped to listen to the wind flowing through the needles of the Saguaro. Wow. I bet a lot of people go through life never hearing that sound. Let’s listen a little bit more, to the birds, and the squirrels…
A whole lot of nature photography is being patient. It’s waiting for the right light. It’s waiting for a shadow to move. Or a cloud.
And sometimes, the right light doesn’t happen. Sometimes, the cloud doesn’t show up in the right spot. That’s part of nature photography.
But if my mind is open, I will still enjoy what I’m doing. I can listen for the wind. I can watch and listen for the animals around me.
Okay, I’m ready again. Ready to take another photograph. My mind is clear again.
I’m in Arizona this week.
In the days leading up to this trip, I was stressing about projects left undone at work and at home. I wasn’t sure how easily I would shift my focus to photography.
I visited the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park this afternoon. I just did a quick drive-through around sunset, to get a better idea of what I want to try tomorrow.
Once I got out into the desert, watching the sunset, I knew I was mentally prepared for the photography. The challenges back home are well taken care of (for which I am grateful!), allowing me to settle into the nature around me.
Here’s one of my infrared shots from today.
Look for more over the next week.
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