Adventure, Gear, Outdoors, Travel

Swimming with Dolphins

    

We were in Hawaii, on the island of Oahu (my birth place) in October 2015 visiting a friend. On day five we signed up for a “dolphin excursion” where we would go out in a boat, locate a pod of dolphins, don our snorkel gear and quietly enter the water. I was so excited I could barely contain myself.

To be sure it was certainly not what you see in resort photos of people hugging Flipper. It was more like an African Safari where you view them from a distance. As a rule, these fellow mammals wanted NOTHING to do with their human brothers and sisters. Needless to say, I was still excited.

I had purchased a waterproof housing for my Canon S120 for about $250. I went this route as a housing for my then Canon 7D would cost as much as a new camera and it simply was not in the budget. It turned out to be a great little housing that allowed me to access all of the buttons on the camera.

We ended up swimming with six pods of dolphins over the course of about four hours. I was quite please with the images. We also saw several sea turtles as well.

If you are planning a once in a lifetime trip and don’t want to break the bank getting nice images remember that smaller cameras with waterproof housings are still just tools. As long as you know how to use them your images will turn out quite nicely.

 

Gear, Outdoors, Travel

Hawaiian Beaches

1 Comment

I’m a teacher and, for me, the month of March means Spring Break isn’t far away. Given our rainy, snowy winter I have decided to take a break from winter and share with you some lovely beaches from our trip to Oahu, HI in October of 2015.

At that time I was still shooting with my Canon 7D but I also had with me my trusty Canon S120 point and shoot. In fact, some of the pictures were taken under water with a housing I had purchased for the little Canon specifically for this trip.

Remember that beaches aren’t just sand and surf. There are plenty of interesting things to be found on a beach. Here you’ll see an outrigger canoe, surfboards, someone’s rock design, buildings from the jetty beyond the surf wall, a juggler in the rain and more. One of the images looks like a deserted beach but only because I was able to position myself in such a way, for a few seconds, to click off a couple of frames before people reentered the into view.

Bring your camera, no matter where you go, you just never know. You can use any tool and with the proper training and practice, get fantastic images.  If plan on spending a day at the beach be sure to have a safe, dry, sand free place to store your camera. Don’t make it too obvious and be sure someone is with your gear at all times. It is too easy for someone to bend down, grab a bag and walk off into a crowded beach with your belongings. I have been successful shooting beaches in Rio, Costa Rica, Panama, Hawaii and Florida. The smaller unassuming Canon helps. Happy shooting! I’d love it if you could share some of your beach photos in the comments section!

Celebrations, Cultural, People, Uncategorized

The Women’s March~Flagstaff

3 Comments

I just want to begin this post stating that this is NOT a political statement. I am hoping to convey how much fun it is to shoot an event, be it a demonstration, protest, festival or whatever. This just happened to be a demonstration.

It was January 20th, a Saturday and the day after Trump’s inauguration. My wife and I were meeting friends downtown (I live in Flagstaff, AZ for those who don’t know) for coffee and tea
before heading to our City Hall to join, what we later learned, was the largest post inauguration demonstration…ever.

As we approached the intersection of Route 66 and Humphrey’s, and witnessed an impressive amount of people, I could feel my adrenaline begin to pump. Pumping partly because of the undeniable energy in the crowd and partly because I was looking at a thing of visual beauty just WAITING for me to capture it. I bid farewell to my cohorts and told them “I’m going shooting, I’ll catch up with you later.”

I disappeared into the crowd with my Lumix GX8 and a 14-150 (28-300 equivalent) lens. There was 21 inches of snow on the ground and more falling from the clouds but that seemed to deter no one. I wound my way through the crowd, running into friends and acquaintances and eventually finding myself atop a snow mound. From there I could see the whole crowd and it was big.

Whether you are a trump supporter or not I hope you take away from these images the idea that people are fun to shoot. They are passionate, creative, colorful and make for great subjects. Event shooting is something I really enjoy. Being turned loose in a location to ramble, meet, greet, search for images and shoot, is my idea of a fun time.

The local Samba drum corp came out and added some great rythms.

       

Do it Yourself, Family, Outdoors, Winter

Neighborhood Luge Run

1 Comment

 

In January Flagstaff got hammered with three winter storms in a row. Schools shut down for three days (Friday, Monday and Tuesday) which shows the severity…it was a five day storm. Piled up snow, high winds and icy roads caused the city
of Flagstaff to shut down early on Monday. By the afternoon the Mall was closing as well as banks and restaurants. NAU and Coconino Community College closed early as well.

So now we’re home, with our 11 year old granddaughter and a lot of snow. She has a friend down the street whose dad is quite industrious. She disappeared for a while as my wife and I pulled out the snow blower and shovels. After the work was done we went to check it out and here is
what we found: a tunnel, a cave, a walk way so as not to destroy the run and, the crowning jewel, a sled run that began above the cave and ran down into the roadside ditch to the neighbors house. It. Was. Awesome.
After making a run myself I ran back to the house to grab, you guessed it, MY CAMERA!! I came back to document the impressive feat. Below are some images from the day with the settings listed below. It was dark, cloudy and beginning to get foggy. On my camera (the Lumix GX8) continuous shooting is at my fingertips. That’s how I followed the sledders as they bolted down the hill.

I set the camera to a high ISO (800) as it was late in the afternoon pretty cloudy and dark out, even with the snow. I knew I wanted to stop the action of the sledders so I needed a high shutter speed as well. This I set at 250. It was fun shooting the action until I lost the light. What a great time the kids had.

Family, Outdoors, Travel

Jail Trail, Cottonwood

1 Comment

Here are a few images from a fun little biking trail in Cottonwood. We took our 11-year -old granddaughter and she did just fine. These were taken in the middle of January, on Martin Luther King weekend.

Standing by the Verde River in high water.

At the end of Main Street in Old Town Cottonwood is a parking lot with a rustic old jail, now a tea house, on the corner. From that parking lot you have access to the Jail Trail. It begins as a wide, urban path and is quite a pleasant ride. It quickly adjoins the Verde River and follows it to Riverfront Park, about two miles away. There were a few rocky stretches but for the most part it was an easy ride.

From Riverfront Park we were able to access Dead Horse State Park, just over the bridge, and ride on their roads and trails as well. Dead

Horse allows access to much more challenging trails but for us, on this trip, the easier Jail Trail was perfect.

Heading out from the parking lot in Old Town Cottonwood.

The pictures were taken with my Canon S120, a little point and shoot that shoots RAW. I love this camera for it’s compact size and ease of use. I can carry it in my pocket and pull it out in a moment’s notice. For me it’s quicker to use than a phone camera. The most important thing is just to have a camera with you…and USE it!

These images will wind up in our granddaughter’s end of the year photo journal, which we give her on her birthday in April. It’s really fun to watch her go through it and reminisce about her adventures with her Yayas (grandmothers).

Riding under the bridge that we would eventually ride on to Dead Horse State Park.
Here you can see the river in the distance and the debris from high water flow wrapped around the tree trunks.
A nice mellow, smooth stretch of the trail.
This is a trail in Dead Horse State Park. We had to turn around because the river was too high and covered the trail just beyond this point.

 

Uncategorized

Chinese Cultural Center~Phoenix

5 Comments
ISO 400, 1/500, f/6.3, 75 mm

I was in Phoenix a couple of weeks ago and happened to be traveling south on 44th street from Camelback Rd. As I passed under the 202 I was some beautiful Chinese architecture to my right so I flipped a U-turn and found a place to park. I had heard of the Chinese Cultural Center but somehow thought it was in downtown Phoenix.

ISO 400, 1/500, f/8, 63 mm
ISO 400, 1/1250, f/8, 80mm

Surrounding the parking lot, to my surprise, were Chinese Restaurants, a large market and some other, smaller shops. I spent about thirty minutes wandering around and getting the accompanying images.

 

ISO 400, 1/100, f/8, 36 mm

 

The surrounding grounds were lovely. Right along 44th street were some gardens with statues and interpretive signs explaining what I was seeing. On the south side of the building was a large pool with Koi fish, some fountains and a statue.

 

ISO 400, 1/100, f/16, 34 mm

I’m looking forward to sharing my discovery with the folks in Flagstaff. It’s easy to get to, just south of the 202 on 44th St. I’d like to take more time and go through the market to see what products we can get there that are not so readily available for us in the North Land.

ISO 400, 1/80, g/16, 31 mm

I was glad I had the time to stop and shoot such a lovely area. I was also glad I had my camera in the car. Happy Shooting!

ISO 400, 1/200, f/8, 14 mm
ISO 400, 1/1000, f/8, 39 mm
ISO 400, 1/250, f/8, 90 mm
ISO 400, 1/250, f8, 14 mm

 

Uncategorized

Always Bring Your Camera!!

5 Comments

 

You can’t shoot if you don’t have your camera with you. I was reminded of this “law” on a recent trip to Phoenix.

I happened to be in Phoenix for a meeting on a Wednesday in January. I was early so decided to do a little hiking, maybe some shooting, in the Phoenix Mountain Reserve near Piestewa Peak. I arrived around noon and drove to the end of the park road. I was surprised at how busy it was on a Wednesday in the middle of the day. It was definitely busier than the Squaw Peak Park of my youth.

After using the restroom, grabbing a water bottle and ultimately deciding, yes, I SHOULD bring my camera (even though it was mid-day with hazy skies due to winter pollution inversions) I headed out on trail 302, not really sure where I was going.

As I hiked along, a helicopter showed up and hovered at various points above me near the summit. As I ascended a rise in the trail Ispotted 6-8 emergency vehicles parked near the first parking area with lights still flashing. Hmmm, I hoped theperson they were looking for was ok!

I continued on my path and eventually ran into trail #300, the summit trail. I figured I’d go up as far as I could in my allotted time and see what I could see. I stopped frequently to take pictures but the helicopter disappeared for a while. As I lumbered up the summit trail a firefighter merged from a trail entering from the left.

I came to learn that a woman had damaged her ankle somehow and was unable to make her way down. I was glad it wasn’t life threatening. As I continued to make my way to the top another helicopter showed up, one with three tires, not skids. He circled several times and by the time I made my way around the back of the mountain I looked up and was able to watch him land that thing on a very small, flat rock. All three wheels fit. He kept the motor running as a group of firefighters descended on the path carrying a stretcher.

 

They apparently loaded her successfully, backed away from the helicopter and it took off. I was able to watch it lift off and head out over the valley floor, presumably to a hospital.

Today’s lesson? Keep a camera close. In this instance I had with me my Lumix mirrorless camera with a 28-300 (equivalent) lens on it. I was sure glad I didn’t decide to just bring my iPhone.

Gear

Your camera is merely a tool!

Does anyone else ever get irritated with the following comment? “Wow! What a beautiful photograph! Did YOU take that? You must have a really nice camera.” That’s like saying, “Thank you for the lovely meal, it was delicious. You must have a really nice…oven!”

Never forget, your camera is merely a tool. How the photographer uses the tool is what makes the beautiful photograph. So please, never do the reverse and tell someone who compliments you, “Thanks, I have a nice camera.” Take pride and ownership of your craft, talent and abilities.

The accompanying photos were all taken with a Canon point and shoot. I’ve been through several Canon Elph series cameras and currently have the S-120 but they are all still pocket cameras. As a travel photographer I love this size for its convenience and safety. Safety meaning I don’t have a large, obvious camera hanging from my shoulder that is easy to steal.

Get out there with your little camera, experiment with angles, lighting and distance and have fun shooting!

Family, Outdoors, Winter

Snow Day!

I am a teacher. I live in Flagstaff, AZ and we average 100 inches of snow a year. Snow days are one of those nice little “teacher perks” you get here in the North Land, and it gives me an excuse to shoot. Below are some images of a snow day we had last January with information on how I shot them.

Photographing them can be tricky, especially if it is still snowing. I suggest waiting for it to stop. You then have to decide what it is you want to capture because there are many choices. You could shoot the “snow chores” (shoveling, snow blowing, car clearing, etc) or you could shoot snow play (building snowmen, snow forts or sled ramps). There’s always the activities (snow shoeing, sledding, cross country skiing, downhill skiing or boarding) or just  neighborhood activity.

On this day I went with the neighborhood activity. The following images were captured with my Canon S120 point and shoot. I threw it in my pocket  to have it nearby and pulled it out as I wandered the neighborhood. The ISO was set at 400 with an f/stop between 2.8-4.0. These settings allowed for ample light given the changing light conditions with the bright white of the snow and on and off sun. The shutter speed set itself in the 2000 range which meant I didn’t have to worry about blurry photos due to movement.

Once the driveway was cleared our granddaughter went down the street to build a snow fort with a neighbor boy.  When they were finished I was invited down to take a look. They had quite the space  inside.

This is just a small “around the house” shoot I did on a snow day from school. If the big cameras seem to much then grab a small one and have it in your pocket, cell phones are great for that these days, and shoot! There are SO many wonderful images to capture around you. This article is to show that you don’t have to go very far away to find them and that you don’t even need a big fancy camera.

Life's Adventures…