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Travel Photography

Thanks to all who visit my Travel Photography. Feel free to leave comments. They are well appreciated. Any questions on how I do my HDR shots, leave a comment!
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"Rocky Coast of Shell Beach"-Sometimes seeing is not believing, because this night a few weeks ago while out on the California coast, I was hoping for a great glowing sunset that never happened. I had scouted out a spot that afternoon on some jagged rocks I figured would be the ideal vantage point for a sunset shot. Grey clouds moved in and that was that. I waited like I always do ’til the bitter end at this point which was pretty much dark. Behind me lights come on at this cliffside castle-looking home and an ever-so faint bit of pink showed up in the background. I thought with a long enough exposure and bracketed frames I could pull together an HDR shot. For a house that had gotten to dark to even see, the magic of light somehow shined through. It was one of my favorites from the trip. Pismo Beach shines with the anticipation of a 4th of July party in the far right background.
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"Rocky Coast of Shell Beach"-Sometimes seeing is not believing, because this night a few weeks ago while out on the California coast, I was hoping for a great glowing sunset that never happened. I had scouted out a spot that afternoon on some jagged rocks I figured would be the ideal vantage point for a sunset shot. Grey clouds moved in and that was that. I waited like I always do ’til the bitter end at this point which was pretty much dark. Behind me lights come on at this cliffside castle-looking home and an ever-so faint bit of pink showed up in the background. I thought with a long enough exposure and bracketed frames I could pull together an HDR shot. For a house that had gotten to dark to even see, the magic of light somehow shined through. It was one of my favorites from the trip. Pismo Beach shines with the anticipation of a 4th of July party in the far right background.

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  • "Timeless Venice"-The corridors of Venice are like a big maze. If it weren’t for the signs saying either Rialto Bridge or St Marco Piazza, you would be completely lost. But half of the fun in Venice is to lose yourself to the back streets and get a glimpse of everyday living of Venetians. So it’s hard to do with all the tourist but fun just the same. I have 40 years of remembering Venice with many trips back and it always feels good to me with new places to explore. I’ll never grow tired of my favorite city.
  • Island Pastels from Burano, Italy<br /> A small island not far from Venice is a town of many colors. Each home and business is painted a different color. The rainbow effect splashed down on this favorite spot of mine. Anytime we go to Venice we try to take a water bus over to this quaint little place that beckons tourist to spend a little time, spend a little money and photo buffs like me a chance to go crazy clicking a way. Beautiful restaurants on the canals and a popular item here to buy and watch artisans hard at work on, is “lace”.
  • "Three Coins In The Fountain"-One of my first photos of HDR, practicing in my own neighborhood here in Arizona. I happen to live in a lake community in the Phoenix area and a fountain with water is a natural draw for HDR shots. Their’s nothing natural about a lake in the desert, so man-made is as good as it gets. It’s humbling to think of a lake in such a dry and arid place, and sometimes the luxury of it all seems a little silly.
  • "Home Sweet Home in Dubrovnik"-I was intrigued by the entryways in Dubrovnik, Croatia. It seemed the stature of your door represented your wealth in life. Maybe or maybe not, it was fun to go up and down the stairways looking for an interesting door to photograph. I think the crazy thing about being a photographer is you’re always looking for something interesting to photograph. I think if you were locked in a room, you would be trying to find interest in photographing a keyhole or the grain in the wood on the floor. A camera was designed to take pictures and that would be exactly what you would be doing.
  • Some Town, Somewhere in Ireland<br /> These our times when I wish I had a GPS, or something to tell me where I’m at. We had spent the day tirelessly traveling south from Shannon, Ireland to wherever we might end up for the night. We pulled into this picturesque town, got a room and I went out to photograph while it was raining. What could be better then strolling the streets of some Irish town, with no direction in mind, and in the end, not even know what town it is. If you happen to recognize this place, let me know where you think it is. It was a beautiful town!
  • "Moonstruck in Siena"-The dark corridors of ancient Italian villages and towns make for some interesting eerie HDR’s. We happen to be in Tuscany during a full moon, so it just had to be in the pictures. Cobblestone streets lead out to open piazza’s where you will usually find people meandering, restaurants and pizzerias buzzing and shops galore promoting their wares. Searching out dark hidden pathways made it all the more fun and exciting to try out some high dynamic range photography. The older and grainier the better.
  • Pittsburgh Skyline from Mt Washington-I’m from Pittsburgh, Pa and was back visiting family for July 4th. I use to work in downtown Pittsburgh at the young age of 18, as a clothes salesman at Horne’s. I don’t even know if they’re still around. I missed the flight back to Phoenix, so I decided to spend the evening on top of a hill overlooking Pittsburgh at sunset. As a kid living there I had no interest in photographing Pittsburgh. It wasn’t until later years and traveling alot did I notice that Pittsburgh has one of the most beautiful skylines of any city, especially from the vantage point high on a hill overlooking it all.<br /> <br /> Knowing the Pirates were playing at the ballpark below (center left) made the evening even more special. The lights were so bright I had to crop it out because it dominated the photo. This photo was taken with 3 images merged in Photomatix.
  • "Rocky Coast of Shell Beach"-Sometimes seeing is not believing, because this night a few weeks ago while out on the California coast, I was hoping for a great glowing sunset that never happened. I had scouted out a spot that afternoon on some jagged rocks I figured would be the ideal vantage point for a sunset shot. Grey clouds moved in and that was that. I waited like I always do ’til the bitter end at this point which was pretty much dark. Behind me lights come on at this cliffside castle-looking home and an ever-so faint bit of pink showed up in the background. I thought with a long enough exposure and bracketed frames I could pull together an HDR shot. For a house that had gotten to dark to even see, the magic of light somehow shined through. It was one of my favorites from the trip. Pismo Beach shines with the anticipation of a 4th of July party in the far right background.
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  • "Wild Horses- Navajo Country, Arizona"-They looked friendly enough. They lined up to pose for the stranger who stopped to take their picture. On the route to Lake Powell from Flagstaff you’ll see them roaming through the high desert with the red rock as a backdrop. They scare easy, so I moved slowly and as close as they would let me get. Most of the 20 or so ran off, but these 3 stayed long enough for a quick shot before moving on.
  • Smith’s Tropic Paradise, Kauai-In Kauai last week, took in a Luau at Smith’s Tropic Paradise. It had beautiful grounds to wander around for hours if you chose. I got there at a great time for photos. The clouds were very dramatic and lighting was perfect. A wedding had just commenced on this bridge, so when everyone cleared out I grabbed a chance to grab a few shots. Fabulous night, weather was perfect and a great spot to spend an evening, if you’re ever on the island of Kauai.
  • Kei Beach Sunset, Kauai-Kei Beach is on Kauai’s extreme west shore. It’s at the end of the road. Many hikers take off from Kei Beach to hike Napali Coast. I decided we would do that another time. Many people come from all over the island just to sit in the sand and watch the sunset. This night rain kept shaking up the party and folks would go running for cover. As quickly as sunset came it went and then a nice down pour that pretty much ended the party. I spent most of my time underneath the trees trying to keep my equipment dry. In the end it was a race to the car, but not before catching this nice glow.
  • Kilauea Lighthouse, Kauai-One of the most photographed spots on Kauai, is the Kilauea Lighthouse. I’ve stopped by here a number of times trying to hit on the perfect clear day. This shot kind of gave me what I was looking for. I shot it as an HDR to cut down on the deeper shadows that were in the rocks. It pretty much went as planned. Definitely a great stop if you’re touring the coast of Kauai.
  • Kayaking The Wailua River, Kauai-On our trip last week to Kauai, we decided it was time to navigate the Wailua River in a kayak. We had been to Kauai a number of times and don’t know why we hadn’t done it sooner, because it was a blast. The goal is to row up to a drop-off point, hike a mile into the jungle to a secret falls, and then row back out another mile to the ocean. Sad to say I didn’t take my pro photo gear with me, because of the threat of getting it wet. We managed to get our lunch all the way to the falls without it getting wet, so the next time I’ll chance the trip with gear. It was awesome enough to catch some great shots. Scenery was out of this world and definitely something you ought to try if you get over there.<br /> <br /> This shot was taken at a small loading ramp where we put in our kayaks. Straight out to the left is Smith’s Tropic Paradise where we went to a Luau the next day.
  • San Diego Skyline-The fog was starting to move in on San Diego one evening as we were strolling along the bay. The clouds and fog gave off bright hues of golds, yellows and browns. Other photographers were out trying to catch the skyline and complained their shots weren’t coming out very well. I told them to try shooting multiple shots at different exposures and merge them later in a program like Photomatix. I don’t know if they bothered, but I’m sure glad I did. The bay was rocking the mast of the sailboats pretty good and that was a pain to deal with the ghosting. Anti-ghosting settings in Photomatix helped, but as we know, movement doesn’t heed well with HDR.
  • Kapoho Tide Pools on the Big Island-You may be wondering what the heck this is, but be assured it’s all part of the lifestyle along the coast at Kapoho on the Big Island south of Hilo. Homes along the volcanic coast, dig out their backyards and volcanic heat seeps up through the ground heating these tide pools. Nothing like a nice warm pool in your backyard. The tide rolls in keeping a nice balance of hot and cold. As you’re standing in one of these tide pools you can feel the heat coming up from the floor of the pool. They all have fish in them and a variety of other sea creatures. One pool we were in, would trap sea turtles that would hang out until the tide rose again. It was fun swimming with them. The mix of fresh and salt water caused the water to be brackish and that made for some interesting underwater distortions in vision. Kinda cool!
  • Smokey Grand Canyon Sunset-Smoke had settled all along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. Some say it was from the utility plant up at Page, Az. Others blamed it on the fires in Arizona and Colorado. It created some interesting moods in the canyon below. I took 3 shots to create this image, then merged them in Photomatix. This is pretty much what I saw when I was there. Without HDR, the trees and downed wood would be dark in this photo.
  • Mounthaven Resort, Rainier, Washington-I’ve stayed at this resort a couple of times over the past few years and we almost stayed again a few weeks ago while traveling through Washington. We ended up in Issaqua instead. But this neat little cabin in the woods is just outside the entrance to Rainier National Park. Each evening the local deer in the area wander onto the grounds and the owners feed them and the tourist grab their cameras and get an up-close shot with some local wildlife. I found it convenient to get an early start in the park for some great shots, before the sun popped over the hills.
  • Lazy Days in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico-In old San Juan, families come out to sit in the square and watch their kids play, just like they would in a park somewhere. We stayed in a hotel overlooking the square, right in the heart of old San Juan. Most visitors usually end up staying in a resort on the beach, but this trip we wanted to be downtown, closer to the normal coming’s and going’s of the locals. I spent the day pretty much walking the entire town, trying to grab the local scene, the typical sites, and the off-the-beaten path kind of shots.<br /> <br /> We don’t feed pigeons in Arizona. Most people treat them like pest here and would just as soon eradicate them. I live in a rare community in Arizona that is surrounded by water, so we have a lot of them hanging out. I won’t be feeding any pigeons. Neighbors don’t take kind to that. So we hop on a plane and go to Venice or Puerto Rico or somewhere where they are treated like nice pest and through out some bird seed.
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