Tag Archives: Iceland

Eleven for ’11: Looking Back At My Favorites

Once again, it’s that season when we look back and reflect on what we’ve accomplished during the past year. Hopefully, there is some degree of accomplishment. We all have a finite number of years remaining and every one of them should be lived to its fullest – to achieve real personal growth and experience as much as one is capable of in a short 365. Last night I sat awake and ruminated over the past year and I feel as if I accomplished many – if not most – of my personal and professional goals for 2011. I still feel as if I have a lot to prove – not to any one person, mind you, but only to myself – and I’m looking forward to a challenging and exciting 2012 as well. And with that, a Happy New Year to you all.

As for the images that mark many of my fondest experiences, here they are in no particular order. These are only my favorites, for whatever it’s worth. You may disagree. But I do hope you enjoy the indulgence of my reminiscing on the year that was through the lens.

September 2011: Midway Geyser Basin by Moonlight, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming USA

May, 2011: Canyon Flame, Upper Antelope Canyon, Arizona USA

March 2011: Los Cuernos, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile

August 2011: Ursa Major, Lake Clark National Park, Alaska USA

July 2011: Reynisdrangar at Twilight, Iceland

March 2011: On Earth as it is in Heaven, Iguassu Falls, Brazil

November 2011: Wall Street, Zion National Park, Utah USA

July 2011: Braurfoss at Midnight, Iceland

September 2011: Beam Me Up, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming USA

July 2011: Dyrholaey Puffins, Iceland

October 2011: Indigo Dawn, Acadia National Park, Maine USA

December 29, 2011 | 17 Comments

Posted in Announcements, General, Images | Tagged Acadia, Alaska, Argentina, Brazil, Iceland, landscape photography, waterfalls, Wildlife, Yellowstone National Park

The Puffins of Iceland

Iceland is home to over half the world’s population of the Atlantic Puffin. Their comical lack of grace, outrageous colors, and clownish, expressive eyes make them wonderful photography subjects.

Although we had reports from other photographers that puffin sightings were poor due to warmer than normal ocean waters near Iceland this year, we had no problems finding them by the hundreds once we knew where to look.

I am finalizing the details on a photography tour to Iceland July 15-24, 2012 with fellow photographer and friend, Joe Rossbach. Stay tuned to this blog or the workshop page of my website for updates.

August 1, 2011 | 10 Comments

Posted in Images | Tagged Iceland, puffins

Iceland and Clichés

Clichés, the late William Safire once wrote, should be avoided like the plague. Artists and writers can agree that this is good advice, to be sure, yet one can only hope he was aware of the statement’s irony.

But for once, it really was exactly as I had imagined it to be. Iceland really did abound with natural wonders. And there really were rolling green hills, ponies with shaggy manes along rocky, wind-swept beaches, hulking glaciers looming on the distant horizon. It was a trifle too fitting.

With this in mind, I set out to avoid the conventional and attempt to put a new face on this fantastically beautiful and dynamic country. A few of these attempts succeeded, most utterly failed, and an alarming number have yet to see the light of a properly calibrated computer monitor. (I have only a one-week interval between Iceland and an upcoming trip to Alaska so it might yet be a while).

So this represents just a few of those attempts, but I will sharing many more in the future. I hope you enjoy.

July 29, 2011 | 13 Comments

Posted in Images | Tagged Iceland, landscape photography

The Longest Season

Folks, please wake me on September 23rd. Its not that I don’t like summer, it’s just that…well, okay, I don’t like summer. Is there something inherently wrong with that? Oppressive heat, humidity, wilting foliage, dried up waterfalls and streams, hazy skies, extended hours of idle light, and unattractive people wearing too little clothing are just some of my photographic and personal banes.

And here in South Carolina, the agony is protracted well beyond its traditional boundary of the autumnal equinox. Summer, at this this latitude, is the longest season. By the time it gasps its last stale breath, it needs a not-so-polite shove out the door, like a guest whose welcome has been overstayed.

It’s little surprise, then, that I have planned back-to-back photo trips this summer to Iceland (July) and Alaska (August) to beat back the summer blues. These escapes don’t occupy all of the sweaty dog days, but they do offer a couple of refreshing respites from the hellish climate here.

And with that, Happy Summer Solstice to all!