Roger McGuinn Composite

There are times when one is minding his own business and an idea shows up that must be dealt with immediately - never quite sure why or where it comes from - it suddenly just steps forward. And over the years I have learned to jump on these ideas to see where it takes me.....today was no exception.

This afternoon I was looking through my lightroom catalog and come across this image of Roger McGuinn from the 70's and the idea of putting a texture on the image comes to mind....I went in to the texture folder and the first one that I see works for me - then the idea of text comes into my mind and I was off an running....

I have no idea why this happened but I am glad it did.....Hopefully there are a few more ideas in there....and they are all welcome around here.......

Sunset Beach, Cape May

Cape May, Sunset Beach

'I have never believed in God, but I believe in Picasso'.......Diego Rivera

Everglades - Lone Mangrove

Lone Mangrove Tree, Everglades

A few years back I became interested in our National Parks after watch the documentary by Ken Burns. As a kid growing up in Atlantic City and Da Bronx these treasures were something that never entered my mind - and actually going to one was, well, just would have never entered my mind. I was much more obsessed with Yankee Stadium and Coney Island.

After watching the 6 DVD's it became quite clear that I needed to get out of the house and visit as many of these parks as possible with my camera  in tow....To date I have been to Yosemite, Death Valley, Zion, Olympic and Everglades - there is also Caddo Lake in East Texas which should be a National Park. My intentions are to try and hit a few more of these treasure this year and continue on until I have seen them all -all 58 of them.

One day my friend Tom Fielder called me and said Clyde Butcher was giving a two day workshop in the Everglades.  Clyde i s known as the Ansel Adams of the Glades, and, of course I jumped at the chance to meet Clyde and take his workshop.

On the first afternoon we went out to photograph the Mangroves.The surprise was that we would be making images while standing in almost waist deep water, which, at certain tides could be chest high. At any rate long story short we get out to the Mangrove's, get out of the boat and make images for about two hours. This was a truly unique experience very different from the Bronx and Atlantic City and I plan to go back at some point and explore this area a bit more.

Me , the boat and Mangrove Tree, Everglades

Multnomah Falls

Multnomah Waterfall, Columbia Gorge

After the recent iPhone workshop in The Palouse I stopped by a few waterfalls just outside of P{Portland, Oregon on the way back to the airport.  There are several waterfalls along this route all easily accessed without much hiking. I am told there are many others that can be reached by foot - something on this particular day was not in the cards for me.

Multnomah waterfall is on the Oregon side of the Columbia River. The upper part is 542 feet and the lower is 60 feet.

The Palouse, Sunset

Sunset, The Palouse

I was out looking for images on the last evening shoot in The Palouse with Sam and Cecily. We had just finished at an old abandoned hotel and decided to get back to Colfax for dinner. We drove about 200 yards and noticed great color in the sky so we pulled over and starting making images. Thinking the good color had passed we got back in the car and started into town. Not!!!! As we drove the sky lit up in rays of light and we started to look for a place to pull over....Cecily was driving while Sam and I shouted out stop,. no not here and on and on...We finally got into a valley and that was the spot, right down to a cow staring at us...As Minor White said:

'Be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence'...Minor White

All three of us agreed we could now go home with a smile on our faces... 

The Palouse, Farm Gear

Farm Symmetry

Found this farm as we were leaving Colfax yesterday and simply could not resist pulling out the big boy camera for this image. After spending 8 days in this part of the country I have a new found respect for family farming.

On a personal front the people we met cold not have been nicer - we were pretty much allowed free access to photograph their farms . One farmer, Rod Hubner, even took our group on a combine ride while he and his hand were out harvesting the wheat and lentils.

Stay tuned for more images from The Palouse.

The Palosue, Sunrise Line and Color

The Palouse Washington State

N'o matter how slow the film, Spirit always stands still long enough for the photographer It has chosen'....Minor White

The Palouse, Washington State

Steptoe, Twilight, The Palouses, Washington State

Finally made it to a location I have heard so much about over the past few years, The Palouse in Washington State.  So far The Palouse has exceeded all of my expectation.....Stay tuned for more...

Telluride

Telluride, Colorado

'Artists do not get back to work until the pain of working is exceeded by the pain of not working'...............Annonymous

Death Valley, Badwater Basin Panoramic

Death Valley, Badwater Basin

Been searching my archives for landscape panoramic images to use in an upcoming show and found today's image - Badwater Basin just after sunrise.

Fairly sure this image has crossed my path before, possibly as an iPhone panoramic, but for some reason I just never took the time to stitch the two images together....I read somewhere that a finished piece of art is when imagination and execution correspond and this image certainly fits that description - in this case my execution caught up with my imagination....

Definitely feel a print coming on...