long exposure

Winter is coming

Plunging temperatures and low sunlight heralds the arrival of winter in Iceland. And it arrives early this far north, with cold, windy and dry conditions taking over from the blissful and wet summer.

Signs of these changes were everywhere. Waterfalls had an aura of winter all around, puddles and streams on trails became icy, while lakes in the highlands had already started freezing. These conditions make outdoor adventures in Iceland challenging, but offers unique conditions and compositions. This is one of the multitude of falls showcasing its winter sheen.

Kvernufoss
Iceland

Astra Lumina (Star Light)

Astra Lumina was quite the experience. Pulsating lights and lasers synchronized to an acoustic soundtrack shaped and bent to different shapes to highlight different patterns, all within the confines of a beautifully manicured garden, made for an immersive experience. Photographing the show proved to be a challenge especially in the low light and constantly moving crowds.


Seattle
WA USA

Ushguli Skies

While I was standing in the dark on top a small hill in the town of Ushguli, trying to compose this very image, I felt a small nuzzle on my legs. I turned around and it was a stray dog. Not just any stray dog, but one that I had fed a few cookies earlier in the day while hiking on a trail a couple of miles away. How it found me in the dark so far away from where I had seen it earlier is a mystery that may be hard to solve.

It just lied down beside the tripod quietly. And it didn't want anything. Just a few pets and scritches. I can still picture that scene, a mutt with floppy ears lying down and watching walk back and forth on that small hill under a moonlit sky. It was one of the friendliest strays I had ever met.

After finishing this star-trail shoot, I headed back, wondering if I would ever see that mutt again. And to my surprise, it showed up just as I was about to board the van taking me away. I almost wanted to bring it with me...

Ushguli
Georgia

A National Parks Journey - Rocky Mountain National Park

It was late May, and yet I felt like I was visiting the my 27th National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, at the wrong time of the year: many of the trails that climbed to the backcountry lakes were still icy, and Trail Ridge Road was just beginning to be opened. And yet, crowds thronged the trails and roadways of this National Park, as well as the nearby town of Estes Park. I came to the park expecting a few moments of peace and solitude in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, and my early spring visit was anything but.

But then I waited until the sun went down, and I wandered down a remote trail far away from the main attractions. And it wasn't until then did the park quieten down enough for me to hear the gurgling brook, the rustling leaves and the soaring winds. Being so close to major urban centers and with such a short visiting season, this gem of the park system attracts dense crowds in the summer months, and can make it challenging to escape into the wilderness, but if you search for the right place, you can find your moment of zen too

Rocky Mountain National Park
CO USA

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Shimmering Cascades of the Smokies

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If you are always racing to the next moment, what happens to the one you are in?

It had been a hectic trip until then, driving miles and miles around the Appalachian foothills, and enjoying the vast difference in scenery this place had to offer. It was easy to get the big picture, but it was hard to slow down, stop, and enjoy the little creeks, the tiny cabins, the mellow wildlife, and the gentle colors of the forest.

I did want to slow down, but in the pursuit of "seeing everything" in a limited time, I was on the verge of missing all. And so I did. I found this lovely little creek cascading under the canopy of the golden leaves of fall. And I plonked myself right in the middle, just to enjoy its gentle gurgles.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park
NC USA

Skyfall

From the time of childhood, I had been exposed to the wonders of the night sky, starting with the lullaby Twinkle twinkle little star. And that fascination with the night sky continues to endure to this day, where with every backcountry trip I take, I look forward to staring at awe at the starscape that forms every night.

This trip to the Sawtooth wilderness was no different. Apart from being a fascinating place to explore a new environment, the lack of any light pollution provided a prime opportunity to indulge in this passion. And the Sawtooths delivered like no other. Tracking the band of light that stretched across the sky, I tried to capture the swirling masses of spectral clouds at the heart of the Milky way that seemed to illuminate the light of a thousand suns. Right at that moment, a bright (possibly) Perseid meteor scintillated just above the jagged outline of the Sawtooth range.

Sawtooth Wilderness
ID USA

Staring at the Stars

After a long day of hiking, I wanted nothing more than to cook up a hot meal and settle down for a night of well-deserved rest. I was going to do that until I saw the night sky above. It took a while for my eyes to adjust, but eventually the night sky became bright with stars, and the faint line of the Milky Way traced a line across the sky. Faint satellites moved against the collage of stars that frequently played hosts to the scintillating flashes of meteors.

At that moment, I felt blessed to be living in a region where I could head out to experience the darkness of the night sky as it truly was.

Alpine Lakes Wilderness
WA USA

An Ode to Memorable Sunsets

Lost, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered for they are gone forever.

As a photographer, seeking out the golden hour can mean the difference between being at the right place at the wrong time and the right place at the right time. Once sunset a couple of years ago, I found myself at the scenic Pacific coast of Nicaragua, far before the turmoil began there. I count myself lucky to have found one of the two golden hours.

Las Peñitas
Nicaragua

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The Blue Zone

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The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.

- Yeats

As the last light of the day withdrew from the cloudy skies, I noticed something strange: the turbulent waters churning to a shade of deep blue , reflecting colors that were present nowhere. All around, the sky was socked in clouds with nary a shade of blue, and yet, these waters in the northeast of Maui displayed a fascinating hue I hadn't seen before.

I thought that was the last I would see of these mystical blue waters, but in the early hours of the next day, the same shades showed up at a different beach whilst under cloudy skies and yellow morning light.

Maui
Hawaii