Picture of the Day - Fern Creek

I came across this little scene while hiking in Glacier National Park. I love finding these tiny places hidden away among nature's grandeur. I've mentioned it before here, but I call this technique "looking down." Instead of just looking straight ahead, look down and see what might be around you.

This little spot was under a heavy canopy of trees and I didn't have a tripod to steady the camera (although I was using an anti-shake lens). So I used a flash-fill with a diffuser to help light the scene.

In post processing, I decided to play around with a new set of digital filters I bought from Tiffen. These filters match the glass filters that were used on 35mm film cameras, only they are digital. I started playing and found this one filter that I thought enhanced the original colors a bit without going too far out. The greens are a little more intense and more red was brought out in the dirt. Call me crazy, but I like this picture a lot.

Sometimes, you just want to step out of your box a bit.

Picture of the Day - Autumn Creek Bed

This is another image I took very near my travel trailer in the Icicle Valley. What looks like a trail is actually a dry creek bed...more correctly it is a small dry irrigation canal. The water runs through the canal 6-7 months a year, then is turned off before winter sets in.

But, if you came across it during the season, you would swear it was a creek. The mountain folage that grows all along its banks and its sandy bottom makes it look for all appearance like a mountain stream.

What's nice for me is that you can wander up and down the dry creek bed in autumn after the water is turned off and find some marvelous fall colors. It won't be too much longer before I can do it again this year, provided nature cooperates with some vivid colors. One never knows.

Picture of the Day - Autumn Leaves

Welcome to the first day of Autumn. What better way to celebrate than a picture of some Autumn leaves. Seriously, I took this image practically right outside the front door of my travel trailer in Icicle Valley last year.

Of course, it is a little early for these kind of fall colors, but in a couple of weeks, it may start to unfold. Autumn color can be good or bad, depending on a whole lot of factors. Let's hope it will be good this year.

By the way, a good friend of mine who lives in California, but was born and raised in Maine, came up to visit a couple of years ago during the best part of our Autumn colors. He drove from Seattle to Ephrata on the Highway 2, which took him through the Eastern Cascades and Leavenworth area. According to him, Maine has no bragging rights over us on Autumn color. Having spent several Autumns photographing the colors, I believe him.

I can't wait to see what will unfold this year in the Icicle Valley.

Postcard from Bora Bora - Shark Hunting

After a particularly stressful political campaign season in 1988, I fulfilled a life-long dream and flew to French Polynesia for three weeks. I scheduled myself to spend time on three islands in the South Pacific chain: Raiatea, Bora Bora, and Moorea. In fact, I visited 6 islands, including the big island of Tahiti.

At my first stop, I met up with two Frenchmen, and we became instant friends (a year later we met up in Paris for a great visit). It turns out we were going to the same islands on the same days and staying at the same hotels (which are all huts on or near the beach). Part two of our journey took us to Bora Bora, a fantastically beautiful island, highlighted by two giant 2,400 foot peaks that shoot straight up in the sky. They are remnants of an ancient volcano.

Like most of the French Polynesian islands, Bora Bora is encircled by reefs that take the brunt of the crashing ocean surf leaving the waters around the island as calm and warm as a bath. In the case of Bora Bora, there is only one passage through the reef to get to the island. There are also several small islands (called Motus) that surround the island. In fact the airport is on a motu and after you land, you boat over to the main island.

Anyway, on our second day on Bora Bora, myself and my two French friends signed up for a tour that would take us all the way around the island. When we arrived on the dock early the next morning, we met our Polynesian guide and discovered we were the only three on the tour that day. So, he told us he was taking us on a special tour that would take all day and show us things that he would never do for ordinary tourists. And just prior to departing, he went a got a mysterious covered bucket that he put in the back of the boat.

It turned into a fantastic day as we completely circled the island on our trip, stopping at many fascinating places. I could write several blogs about all the things we did.

But, in the middle of the day, our guide turned out boat west toward the opening in the reef. Keep in mind that he spoke mostly French to my two companions, so much of the time I was in the dark as to what we were doing.

When we got to the reef opening, we were about a mile offshore. We could feel the swales of the ocean. Our guide stopped the boat and threw an anchor overboard. He then reached for that mysterious bucket he had put on board at the last minute.

He opened the lid and it was obvious that he had brought a full bucket of grisly, ugly, smelly chum. He began ladling it over the side. Within minutes, we were surrounded by sharks. The water in French Polynesia is so crystal clear that you can see a long way down...and trust me, there were a whole cadre of reef sharks.

Then, to our amazement, our guide got out a rope, made a lasso and dipped it in chum. He then lowered it in the water and waited for a shark to swim through it. Then, as a shark started to go through...bang...he pulled the lasso tight and yanked the shark into the boat. He did this a few times so we dumb tourists could take our pictures. Then he would always remove the rope from the shark and toss it back into the ocean.

It was all very exciting, if not a little nerve wracking. That boat got a lot smaller when the sharks were on board. But, what a day! I managed to convey to our guide that his bosses were not paying him enough.

This second picture is a scan of a photograph I took that day and it is sadly fading away. I recovered what I could, but I only have a few photos left of this great adventure to the South Pacific. I did get a great photo of the sharks surrounding the boat, but, alas it is long gone.

French Polynesia was all I expected and much more. It is a paradise as I had long believed it was.

Picture of the Day - Flowers of Spring

As we are only a few days away from the first day of Autumn, I thought we should look back at Spring and remember how good it felt to come out of our Winter hibernation and see the flowers that greeted us.

I photographed these flowers up in the Icicle Valley, not far from my travel trailer. I always seem to go crazy with my camera when Spring flowers make their debut.

Maybe I will show you a few more before I bring out the Autumn photos.

Picture of the Day - Welcome

Every-once-in-a-while, when you are on the road, you stop someplace to see what's going on. And, if you like to take photos, you always bring your camera. And that is what I did here.

I was driving from Lake Havasu, AZ back to Yuma. About 95 miles north of Yuma, is the little town of Quartzite, which I have written about here before. It is in the middle of the desert on at the crossroads Interstate 10 (the main road from LA to Phoenix) and Arizona Highway 95. It's a town of 7,000 people that attracts 1.5 million people a year...mainly snowbirds in RV's. The fun thing is that there is always something going on here.

On this day, a Thursday, if memory serves, there was a large RV show which also had hundreds of 10x10 tents (and as many small vendors pandering to the needs of snowbirds) like we use at our art shows. I decided to wander around to see if there were any photo opportunities (and to find some new sunglasses, which I did). This picture was about the only usable photo I took on this day. But, I think it is a good one.

Here were all these handmade "welcome" signs, lined up perfectly, that just might go well in some snowbird's front yard. And, believe me, I saw hundreds of such objects 'd art in RV parks all over the Southwest. I think one of these signs would go well with all the plastic flowers that flourish in these desert oasis' (is my cynicism showing?).

It's a whole other culture out there that one has to see to believe....gazillions of RV's parked everywhere. For 6 months, they rule they Southwest.

But, no matter what, I like this picture.

Picture of the Day - The George Bush Memorial Port-a-Potty

In 2005, George Bush came to Yuma, AZ to unveil his plan for protecting our borders against illegal aliens and drugs. At the time, the Yuma area was a major crossing for illegal immigrants.

In 2006, he came back to Yuma to praise the work of Border Patrol agents, National Guard troops (including my son) and to talk about the fence that is currently under construction along the Mexican-American border. He recognized that Yuma had experienced a major reduction in illegal border crossings.

On this latter visit, a temporary dais was built near the border at San Luis, AZ, just south of Yuma. Bush gave his speech, pictures were taken and he left. The temporary dais was torn down.

Some time later, the National Guard troops were ordered to bring another port-a-potty to the same area for the construction workers who were building the fence. Left to their own devices, the troops placed the portable toilet on the exact spot where President Bush gave his speech. Hence, the naming of the toilet by yours truly.

Way off in the distance, you can see the fence. In a future edition of this blog, I will tell you much more about it and show you pictures.

Oh yes...I did make use of the George Bush Memorial Port-a-Potty right after I snapped the picture. I am a part of history.

Picture of the Day - Oak Creek Canyon

This picture was photographed last November in Oak Creek Canyon, about 15 miles north of Sedona, AZ. It is a beautiful two mile walk into the canyon from the parking area and it loaded with beautiful scenery. It is late autumn so the creek is lower than normal and much of the autumn color is gone.

This particular photo shows a classic example of an "S-Curve". Using the curve of the shoreline, you can see the "S" clearly in the picture. This is what gives the picture great depth and allows your eye to naturally flow from the front of the image to the back.

Always look for S-Curves when your out taking pictures, whether it be a river, a stream, a road, or whatever. A curve in the picture will always bring your photo alive and provide almost a 3 dimensional depth.

Picture of the Day - Steps

I took this picture a few years ago in Cannon Beach, Oregon as I was leaving town. I like the shadows on the stairs and the way your eye starts at the bottom of the stairs and works its way to the top...just as if you were climbing them.

Once again, the use of two dimensional lines gives the feeling of depth. When you are taking a photograph, you must always remember that you are looking at the subject in a three dimensional world, but the camera is recording the image in two dimensions. As a photographer, you must do your best to visualize how a scene will render itself in two dimensions...not always the easiest thing to do. So, whenever possible, look for lines or curves that will give your image depth. Digital cameras with their flat screens do make that somewhat easier.

The other reason I like this picture is that it proves you don't always have to take your pictures in the "magical light" hours of dawn and dusk.

Picture of the Day - Mountain Sunrise

Many of my long-time readers know that I have a travel trailer parked on private property up in the Icicle Valley near Leavenworth. It is the ideal situation for me, especially when I do the weekly Leavenworth Art-in-the-Park show. I am well off Icicle Road and have water-sewer-electricity-cable to make life even better.

On most mornings up there, I get up early and take a half-hour walk in the mountains before breakfast and leaving for the show. Let me tell you, walking in the mountains is far better than walking around Ephrata.

Anyway, the other morning I got up early and prepared for my daily walk. As I stepped out of the trailer, this was the sight that greeted me. It was too beautiful not to record with my camera, so I postponed my walk for five minutes to shoot this picture.

There is nothing better than a beautiful sunrise (or sunset) in the mountains. As we roll into Autumn, I will be sharing more images taken near my trailer. I think you will be amazed.

Picture of the Day - Tucson Sunset

When I spent six days in January in Tucson, I was told by more than one person that Tucson has some very spectacular sunsets. And guess what...they were right. This sunset photo was taken at the Mission San Xavier del Bac, just a few miles south of the city. The mission itself dates back to the 1700's.

This was not the only spectacular sunset I saw in my brief visit...but it was one of the best. Oh yes, it was in January and the temperature was around 65 degrees. If you get to Arizona, be sure and visit Tucson. It is a wonderful city and worth the trip.

Picture of the Day - Sedona Chapel

This picture is of the Chapel of the Holy Cross, located in Sedona, Arizona. Obviously it is quite unique, even for Sedona, which is a Mecca for religion, spiritualism, and new age healing (that is another whole blog by itself).

Here is a bit of the story behind it. It was designed by Marguerite Bruswig Staude, a student of the famous architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. According to her biography, the came up with the idea for a special church in 1932...and after a long search in Europe and the US to find the "right" location, she decided on Sedona when she and her husband were on a trip that took them through the city.

According to her biography, "This would be a monument to faith, but a spiritual fortress so charged with God, that it spurs man's spirit Godward."

It was completed in 1956 and is currently operated by the Catholic Church through the Diocese of Phoenix. Interestingly enough, there are no services held there other than a one-night-a-week prayer service. The reason, according to one story I heard, was that it was not originally built by the Church, so it can't be used for masses.

It consists mostly of a chapel and a very large gift shop. One must climb up to the chapel from the parking lot below. But, the views from there are amazing.

Whether you are religious or not, this is still an amazing piece of architecture and well worth a visit if you are ever in Sedona.

Picture of the Day - London Bridge

This is the famous London Bridge...not in London, but rather Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Yes, this bridge used to span the Thames River in London, but the developer of Lake Havasu City, Robert P. McCulloch (of McCulloch Chainsaw fame) bought it from the British as they were about to tear it down.

He brought it block-by-block to Arizona in 1968 and rebuilt it just as you see it here. But their is more to the story than just that. Lake Havasu is not a real lake, but rather a wide spot in the Colorado River. And, the bridge crosses a specially-made canal to what is now an island. But, before the bridge, it wasn't an island, but rather a peninsula. The canal was dug to accommodate the bridge.

The folks in London thought the Americans were nuts to buy this old bridge. And there is a persistent story that the Arizona developers were confused and thought they were buying the famous Tower Bridge. I find that one hard to believe. But whatever the case, the bridge did put this former fledgling city on the map and this spot in the desert grew to its present size of over 56,000 people.

The city is famous for its water sports and is a very famous student destination for spring break. Also the snowbirds from up in our neck of the woods also park themselves and their RV's there in winter.