Nature Archives - Page 18 of 37

July 28, 2016

Skyway Rainbow

A couple of weeks ago after some afternoon rain I drove up to Fort DeSoto Park to take photos. As I looked back I noticed this rainbow over the bridge. From where I stood it appeared to span about 8 miles from one side of the Sunshine Skyway to the other. To get this photo I took four vertical images, from left to right and stitched them together to form a panorama.

I have mixed feelings about this image. On the one hand the placement of the rainbow over the bridge is nice and if you look close there’s even a double rainbow. If I didn’t know better I might think it was photoshopped. On the other hand the scene lacks drama. That aside I decided to keep it as is, an image of a rainbow over the bridge without much drama.

other skyway photos from the gallery

With some images I take a lot of pains to simplify them in post production. I feel it’s important to not have distractions in an image. This one however needed none of that, just water, sky, bridge and a rainbow. Sometimes images like this just demand to left alone because they have a voice all their own. In this case I suppose I have to agree with that.

July 26, 2016

Drifting Off

This was taken off the coast of British Columbia a couple hours out of Vancouver. I was on an Alaskan cruise and spending time on the balcony watching the scenery and drifting off. Its like soothing scenery overload. It puts you in a relaxed state of mind and before you know it, La-La land.

Actually it was probably more a reaction to the massage. As we boarded in Vancouver the spa personnel were out offering first day discounts on massages. Having a sore back I jumped at it. After that I headed back to the room and sat on the balcony alternately snapping pictures of the coast and falling asleep. A good way to start the week.

full gallery

Many of us lead hectic lives and when we slow down our bodies use the opportunity to recharge. I wish I could do that more often, but then maybe I can on weekends or a little every day. In any case it was good to get away, watch the scenery go by and not think about a thing.

July 18, 2016July 18, 2016

Cedar Top Beer

I did a short hike through the Tongass National Park in Ketchikan Alaska. Despite the northern latitude this is a rain forest and Ketchikan receives the second highest amount of rainfall in the world, second only to the Hawaiian Island of Kauai. It goes without saying that the predominant color was green in all directions.

In fact it was raining during the hike, a light pleasant rain, however it was warm at the same time so a light poncho was all I needed. Tongass is the largest national forest in the US and I saw only a sliver of it.

These cedars are used for a lot of different things including the making of musical instruments. They are also used in the brewing of Cedar Top beer up in Skagway. Don’t bother looking it up (I just tried), it’s a local brew only. I know this because on advice of a guide I tried it at a bar in Skagway. It took a pint to get used to the flavor and after that it was smooth sailing on pint two.

Landscapes from the Gallery

Beer aside, I stopped on the trail when I came to a clearing and took this image. It just seemed kind of mystical with the low clouds over the mountainous terrain. And of course I was wondering how they got those cedar tops into the beer.

July 13, 2016July 13, 2016

Unforgiving

This is another image I took with my Sony 70-400mm G lens fully extended. I almost didn’t bring the lens on the trip because of its size and weight but I’m glad I did. It was key in getting perspectives I wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. Of course, having a tripod to mount it on was key.

The features of the landscapes like this are amazing and, for me, a little terrifying. The elements are entirely unforgiving. When I look at this my mind projects me onto the slopes and once there I consider my prospects dire. There is no easy way up or down and survival is anything but assured. I’m a problem solver by nature, but when I look at this there are no easy options.

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Why I do that in my head I don’t know. Why is it that when looking at images like this my heart races? Yet despite my reservations, if given a chance I would probably climb. I would be terrified and on life’s thin edge yet continue nonetheless. Perhaps that’s why I get terrified when I look at this, because I’m already working out the route and know that this mountain is in fact, unforgiving.

July 10, 2016

Eldred Rock Lighthouse

The Eldred Rock Lighthouse is somewhere outside of Skagway Alaska. On our cruise I spent a lot of time on the balcony just watching the scenery and taking pictures of peaks and land features. For this I used a Sony 70-400mm G fully extended and mounted on a tripod. Thanks to image stabilization this was possible despite the vibrations of the ship.

One of the best things we did was to bring a set of binoculars which helped in a couple of ways. First we could see things along the shore up close, but perhaps more important, they helped provide a sense of scale. In Alaska everything is so large you easily loose all sense of perspective. The landscape tricks you into thinking things are not so large on account of the immense spaces. Upon closer examination with the binoculars the impossible size of slopes, cliffs, waterfalls and peaks become apparent.

favorite photos from the gallery

Like anyone else I’ve seen Alaska in pictures and television yet was still surprised at what I saw. Images will never do justice to Alaska’s landscape. Nevertheless it’s still fun to take them if for no other reason than to remind myself of the experience.

July 4, 2016July 4, 2016

Hundred Miles Away

The thing about the Pacific northwest is that you can look for hundreds of miles in any direction and only see wilderness. When was the last time you did that?

This is the coast of British Columbia a few hours out of port on the way to Alaska. I’m on a boat spending a lot of time watching the scenery.

Its like looking back in time to a planet we once had and still do in this remote corner. I am left with the sense that this is one of the few places left where the earth still breaths.

One of the first things that strikes me is the layers to the ranges, one ridge, then another and another into the distance. There are forest, lakes, wildlife and, very few humans, the climate and terrain ensure that.

landscapes from the gallery

The mountains along the pacific rim are just as majestic as any I’ve seen, only more remote and, since there is nothing to obstruct the view, I can see them for a hundred miles away.

June 29, 2016

Heaven on Earth

Here I am looking across the Manatee River on an early morning after the rains. The combination of the clouds and calm waters is just a lucky happenstance of timing. Any later and the breeze picks up to ripple the water. Any earlier and I was just standing in the rain. But as the clouds broke and the sun began to rise it created this dramatic affect in the sky. Quite frankly it reminds me of a painting of heaven. I’d like to think that in my own version of heaven this is what it looks like.

Irrespective of that, I gravitate to idyllic scenes in my photography. Simple images that try not to cover too many subjects is best. Ironically, keeping it simple can easier said than done. I for one am easily enamored with all the little details, maybe because I’m a bit of a geek. But aesthetically, the more simple an image is the better, too many details water down the story an image conveys.

abstract gallery

Anyway, I can ramble on forever about composition, but in truth I consider myself a beginner, I have so much to learn and I expect it will continue to be a life long learning quest. But for now, simple, calm and idyllic; that’s my favorite recipe.

June 26, 2016

Leffis Key Dune

There is nothing higher than a palm tree in central Florida. As a result there aren’t may places you can go to get a perspective of the landscape other than a bridge or lookout tower. Leffis Key however contains a dune covered with vegetation that provides just barely enough elevation to look out onto the inter-coastal waterway. In this image the sun is rising over the fishing village of Cortez. Whenever visitors ask me where to get fresh fish I always recommend Cortez.

This is a single image HDR. That just means I didn’t use multiple exposures to balance the highlights with the darker areas. The sensor in the Sony A7R2 camera captures an very wide range of light so that images like this are possible. That wasn’t the case just a couple years ago unless we combined multiple images using HDR.

anna maria island

There was a breeze blowing so that the grasses swayed from side to side. Using traditional HDR, I would have taken three shots and combined them, however that normally causes problems with ghosting of the grass as it moves between each frame. Those problems are eliminated with a single frame and so it makes possible compositions like this. The technology in cameras is getting better every year and it makes me wonder what we’ll be able to do in another year or two. It’s is an exciting time for photography and geeks like me.

June 21, 2016June 21, 2016

Half by Chance

As is normally the case, I had no idea where I was going. All I knew was that it was before dawn on a Saturday and I was driving somewhere to take a picture of something yet to be determined. It’s not a very exact plan but sometimes that’s just how I roll. Often I have no idea where I’m going when I go out to take pictures. Instead of turning left I turn right and just go with the flow of random-ness in the universe.

I ended up outside the gates at Desoto Point looking at rain clouds and trying to remember why this was better than bed. I put on a poncho and walked to the shore. I told myself that once I got there I could turn around and head home knowing that I tried. Standing there in the rain I was grateful for the solitude, and the poncho. About the same time I noticed the clouds starting to break up. Sure enough the clouds parted, the sun rose and I captured the moment with what seemed to me like a bit of luck.

visit the gallery

I could have left for home before the scene unfolded, or not even walked the trail to the shore. The fact that I did and stayed seemed to me at the moment to be more chance than purpose. That attitude comes from many occasions where it doesn’t work out. So I suppose the odds were in my favor this time and I managed to get the shot, even if it was half by chance.

June 20, 2016

Roseate Spoonbills

The other day I was walking through the newly opened Perico Preserve when I spotted these Roseate Spoonbills. They were busy feeding in the shallows of a pond and they didn’t seem to mind me taking their picture. I was struck by the color of their feathers which reminded me of flamingos.

When I was in southern France I heard that the flamingos are pink because they eat so much shrimp. I’m no expert but I wonder about that since even flamingos in captivity are pink. These spoonbills are not in captivity and I don’t think they eat much shrimp. I think the pink color is natural and it tends to confuse people like me into thinking they’ve seen a flamingo. I imagine it happens a lot here in Florida.

other images featuring birds from the gallery

Its pretty amazing that I could just walk upon these. I get a similar feeling when I see herons, egrets and pelicans right up close. Many of them have grown accustomed to people and will not flee as long as you don’t indicate harm. In fact yesterday, I was walking through another trail and came upon two rabbits. Rather than run they just parted to either side of the trail to let me pass and then resumed to what they were doing. Not sure where I’m going with all of this other than I consider it a privilege to interact with the wildlife. I guess I just don’t look scary enough.