“Old wisdom says, ‘Find out what you did wrong and never do it again.‘ New wisdom says, ‘Find out what you did right, so you can be sure to do it again.‘ The old way suggests moving ahead while looking back over your shoulder. The new way suggests moving forward by finding safe footholds and […]
Some photographers travel to shoots without researching the site. The idea is to have “no preconceptions”, I suppose, or to look at scenes as they unfold with “fresh eyes”. I like the idea of “no preconceptions”, but I think the more you know about a place the better prepared you are, and the better you […]
Two years ago, I wrote about photography on a longish kayak trip (Ten-day Power Trip, 06/2009) in Baja, a trip without the ability to charge batteries. My solution then was extra batteries and plenty of flash memory, coupled with judicious use of those resources. A solar charger didn’t make sense—the trip wasn’t long enough—and a […]
I thought it would be instructive to look at some of my favorite 2010 images, with a story and critique about the shot. I worked the birds by kayak pretty well early in the year, and then got in some hikes and backpacks to scenic places in the summer and fall. Although I also did […]
Five more favorite images from 2010. It bares repeating: keep that viewfinder glued to your eyeball and look, look, look . . . Mazama Ridge after Sunset: 2010 wasn’t a good year for Northwest wildflower photography. The mountain meadow flowers were late; many never made it. I made numerous visits to Mt. Rainier, but I […]
I survived our Enchantments backpack trip. OK, maybe better than survived. I feel more like I thrived, despite the 4,400 ft vertical climb the first day over Aasgard Pass. The thriving resulted from getting in shape, and cutting the gear load. The eye-popping, golden-larch and granite spire landscape-that-rivals-Yosemite might be a factor. Maybe. Washington’s Alpine […]
September, Bowron Lakes, BC. I got caught in a rookie mistake last week, on the Bowron Lake Canoe Circuit in British Columbia. I punched a hole in the bottom of my fiberglass Necky Eliza kayak during a portage when the padding on the aluminum rails of my cart slipped off. As I hauled the loaded […]
I was tempted to call this tip “Small is Beautiful”.I started pruning backpacking poundage after a 1995 trip to Washington State’s Enchantments, when my pack for five days in mid-September tallied 55 lbs. There’s no reason to re-hash the old gear, but the same trip today would weigh in at about 35 lbs, with better […]
A year ago I built a light-weight panorama tool out of wood. My hope was to make back-country panoramas. My dream was to rival the pixel count of high-end, medium-format digital backs, or scanned 4×5 film cameras without the weight, bulk or cost. Here in Washington State, I imagined Prusik Peak in the Enchantments, or […]
A high-summer, resort-based, guided trip with Sea Kayak Adventures at a remote wilderness archipelago called God’s Pocket. July, 2009. Hurst Island, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. My wife Kate and I join with guests of Sea Kayak Adventures on a resort-based kayak trip—five days paddling and five nights at the God’s Pocket Resort. The location is in God’s Pocket […]