Grand Canyon at Dusk

I first visited the Grand Canyon with my children and it is one of their favorite travel memories. At that time you could drive yourself around to the various lookouts, while the pressure of large crowds has meant the institution of a shuttle nowadays. The massive crowds even outside of the summer months has made the experience more frustrating but it is still a place you should visit if you can. The views will still stop you in your tracks.

Grand Canyon at Dusk

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Ring of Brodgar

The Ring of Brodgar is a wonderful stone monument from Neolithic Orkney. It is part of a wider series of nearby standing stones. Much about this complex set of stone circles, tombs and standing stones is not fully understood including close dating of its manufacture. It is thought to have been built 4,000 to 4,500 years ago. It is difficult to grasp that perhaps 20,000 generations of man have lived and died since it’s construction.

Ring of Brodgar

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Castle of Yesnaby, Orkney Islands

The Castle of Yesnaby is a famous sea stack off the main island of the Orkney Islands. It was first climbed in 1967 and has become a favorite of rock climbers. Its crumbling weed covered rock makes it a challenge.There is an amphitheater like coastline with a trail along the top which curves around it, providing the walker with spectacular views. It would be an amazing sight in a heavy sea, I hope to see it on a future visit.

Castle of Yesnaby, Orkney Islands

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I have made a few half hearted previous attempts to photograph fireworks, but with the arrival of Canada Day, I decided to sort out some good methods. Here is what I found:

Scope out your best place to shoot ahead of time. Arrive while there is still enough light to see, make sure there are no obstructions and that you have a nicely composed view to frame your shot.

Use a tripod, you need to have a rock solid base to eliminate camera shake.This is especially true when using long exposures.

Use a remote shutter. Although you can get by without it, it will make life much easier. Not only does it reduce camera shake, but it lets you work from a comfortable position, perhaps sitting on your comfy chair.

Camera settings. You want to look at long exposures times in order to get long colorful light streamers, anywhere from 6 to 10 seconds. You also want to keep the background dark to set them off. If you shoot in Bulb mode, you will be able to easily control the length of the shot. Open your shutter at the beginning of the fireworks explosion and close it when the trails begin to fade. A good depth of field and low ISO will give you clean focused shots, as well as keeping the background dark. I started with f/11 and ISO100 and was prepared to adjust from there but found that suited.

I think I have the general idea now and next time perhaps I can get some more creative shots. Following is my favorite fireworks image from Trey Ratcliff  (Stuck in Customs)

Trey Ratcliff (Stuck in Customs)

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Canyon de Chelly, Arizona

The U.S. Southwest is well known for its red rock of many beautiful shades and one of the finest places to see it is Canyon de Chelly National Monument in Arizona. The yellow and greens of the trees provide an counterpoint to the sheer sheets of the colorful walls, especially in Autumn.

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Honolua Bay, Maui

A classic world surfing location, it is known for large tube waves and an extended 600 ft. ride. We were there on a gorgeous day and the scene was outstanding. In these images, you may be able to pick out a few dozen surfers waiting to catch a ride.

Honolua Bay, Maui	Honolua Bay, Maui
Honolua Bay, Maui	Honolua Bay, Maui

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Monument Valley

Hollywood has made it known to many people, as a great many Westerns were filmed in Monument Valley. It is one of my favorite places, a place where a look in every direction shows great beauty.

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Point Pelee morning

In May every year we make a three day trip to Point Pelee, Ontario. This is one of my favorite images ,the sun rising as seen from the marsh boardwalk there.

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Oahu's Eastern Shore

These four ladies have found a beautiful spot of beach they can call their own. This is from Oahu’s eastern shore. Their are miles of deserted beach once you get away from the population centers like Honolulu.

Oahu's Eastern Shore

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Green River Lookout, Utah

This is the Green River Lookout in Canyonlands ((Rim) National Park in Utah at sunset. There is a road below that makes a circuit if you have a tough enough vehicle. You best be sure because it costs a couple of thousand dollars to be hauled out.

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