I am a very analytical person. My creativity flows from my need to understand and explain. I made a career of distilling processes to their essence and reconstructing them to be more efficient and productive. My approach to photography is an extension of my life’s work. I distill a scene to identify its processes and actors. I try to understand how the processes, generally the forces of nature and the forces of humans, have and are interacting with the actors to create the scene. I focus on one or more of the actors and compose a scene that shares a moment with them in an aesthetically pleasing way.
Actors may be humans or wildlife. They also may be the sun, the moon, a tree, a river, mountain or other object. Each image shares a unique moment showing how its actors and processes have, are, and sometimes even will impact each other. But I also want to entice the audience to linger and to find their own story. I want them to imagine themselves experiencing the sights, the sounds and the feeling as if they were there.
Our visit to the Sacramento and Colusa National Wildlife Refuges found us in fog an low light. These conditions make photography more difficult but also present some interesting opportunities for unique and special images. Additionally, on this visit, we were treated to some birds that we don’t normally see. I hope you enjoy these images.
Regards,
Larry
Note: Please click on caption to see image in larger size.
No, not government agents vs. protestors. On Jan 7th, Donna and I visited the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge near Willows, CA. The highlight of the trip was a standoff between a peregrine falcon, a gull, and a Turkey Vulture. The falcon was standing guard over a female mallard. It was not clear if he brought it down himself or found it. Regardless, he was guarding his prize. The first interloper was the turkey vulture. He made some strafing runs at the falcon and was able to drive him off for a short period of time, but the falcon eventually prevailed. The second interloper was a gull, possibly a herring gull. It was a lot more reticent. It mostly stood watch while the falcon ate. But, he did try one attack. The falcon would have nothing of it and expressed his displeasure. In the end, the falcon consumed his meal while the vulture and gull looked on. We left before any battle over the leftovers ensued. There wasn’t much leftover to fight about.
Regards,
Larry
Note: Click on caption to see image in larger size.
Politically, Iceland is considered part of Europe. Geologically, though, it is a very different situation. Iceland sits atop the mid-Atlantic ridge. The ridge is a chain of volcanic mountains, mostly under the Atlantic Ocean that stretches most of the way between the North and South Poles. It is the dividing line between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. As the volcanos erupt, the lava causes the Atlantic Ocean to become wider, pushing North and South America westward and Europe and Africa eastward.
The Almannagjá Ravine is a crack or rift between the North American and Eurasian plates that is located in Þingvellir National Park It is a small part of the section of the mid-Atlantic ridge that runs northeast to southwest through Iceland. It geologically, marks the boundary between Europe and North America.
These images were taken in the Almannagjá Ravine. As you look at them, the walls to the left are in Europe and those on the right are in North America. For geology geeks like my wife and I, it is truly amazing to be able to stand on the mid-Atlantic ridge and to be able to walk between Europe and North America.
In 930, Iceland established its parliament in Þingvellir, near this location. Sessions were held there until 1800.
I hope you enjoy these images.
Regards,
Larry
Note: Click on caption to see images in higher resolution and larger size.
I am mashing together 2 different subjects in this post: Aurora Borealis and the interaction of icebergs with each other and with the avian life that inhabits them. I hope you enjoy these images.
Regards,
Larry
Note to see these images in larger size and higher resolution, please click on caption.
Long ago, I heard the quip that Greenland is icy and Iceland is green. I’ve never been to Greenland but can attest that, at least in the late summer, Iceland is very green. That being said, there is a lot of ice in Iceland. Iceland bills itself as the land of fire and ice because of the many glaciers and volcanos. In the area we travelled, we saw the glacier capped peaks anywhere there was a break in the cliff sides or where the cliff sides were set back far enough that we could see above them. Some were so large, you can see them cover peak after peak for many miles. In places, their tongues would wind their way down mountain valleys, sometimes reaching the floor. I have seen glaciers on TV and have heard about the dangerous crevices but it was not until this visit that I was able to follow a glacier, with my eyes, and see that it not just a smooth icy crust, but rather a cragged set of peaks and crevices. Perhaps, when there is a lot of snow, it fills the crevices making the glacier appear smooth and making it a much more dangerous place to cross.
Several things intrigued me about the glaciers I saw: some of the ice is white and some of it is blue, there were big black stripes over the glaciers and several of the glaciers sat atop volcanos, 2 of which erupted recently. The blue ice is caused by how some of the ice crystals react with light. The black stripes are windblown particles of volcanic ash that cover the glacier in the summer. In the winter, they are mostly covered with snow.
Volcanos under ice is the interesting story. Eyjafjallajökull, a volcano under a glacier of the same name, erupted in 2010. Grímsvötn, a volcano under Iceland’s largest glacier, Vatnajökull, erupted in 2011. Katla, which is partly covered by Mýrdalsjökull is currently threatening eruption and may be a much larger than the others in recent history. (By the way, jökull means glacier in Icelandic.) In addition to the explosive action of the eruption, it can melt the snow and ice creating catastrophic water and mudflows called lahars. The eruption of magma, the lava flows and the lahars will reshape a landscape. Because Iceland has so many volcanos that are active, fire and ice are responsible for Iceland’s rugged beauty.
Between the eruptions, the glaciers provide the water for the many waterfalls and the lush, green, vegetation and wildflowers. Where the glacial tongues reach the plains, they calve icebergs into lagoons. At one of the most popular lagoons, Jökulsárlón, a short river provides an outlet for the icebergs to flow to the ocean as the tides recede. When the tides return, many of the icebergs wash back onto the black sand beach. It is a wonder to behold.
I hope you enjoy the images of Glaciers and Icebergs.
Note: Click on caption to see image in larger size and resolution.
When I close my eyes and picture Iceland, I think of coastal plains lying between the ocean and tall cliff sides. At some places, the plains are grass covered, at other places they are filled with jagged black lava. The cliff sides are impressively tall and massive. They are green with vegetation and filled with outcrops of volcanic basalt. All along the cliff sides, waterfalls appear at frequent intervals. Free range sheep, in small groups, dot the hillsides. Oceanside beaches are black from the volcanic rock and sand.
Glacier melt from the ice covered volcanic mountains creates many, many small streams. These streams drop in long thin ribbons of white from the cliffside. Where they hit the plain, they cut small streams that meander their way to the oceans. In September, the streams flow through gullies in their rocky beds. But, I am told, that in the spring the beds are full of raging water. The streams travel short distances so they don’t have time to merge into large rivers. Despite their size, the fall from glacier to ocean gives them a swift current.
The plains are used for ranching. A few ranchers have cattle but most raise sheep and horses. Icelandic wool products are sold throughout the country. Lamb is a staple; Icelandic meat soup is very good.
There are also many horses which are unique to Iceland. They are short, stalky beasts with long, shaggy mains and tails. There is little farming. In fact, we saw only one garden at a home behind a place where we stayed.
Iceland has a history of recent volcanic activity. So, the rocks are angular and jagged. They haven’t had time to weather into smoother surfaces. But, even in the lava fields, grasses and wildflowers grow between the rocks and gravel. Moss sometimes grows on the volcanic rock giving the lava fields a soft, velvety green color to contrast with its normal black, jagged features.
As you travel through Iceland, you get glimpses of the massive glaciers that cover many of the mountains. In a few spots, glacial tongues reach the valley floor. Where this occurs, you can see the blue icy edges of the glacier. At the edge, ice breaks loose and falls as icebergs into lagoons. In Jökulsárlón, the icebergs float down a short river and into the ocean where some flow back onto beach.
We got to spend precious few hours in the highlands (mountains). One visit took us across a rocky riverbed of gray-green volcanic rock into hills made of broken shards of shale. Shale is sedimentary rock meaning it formed under a calm lake or ocean. It is an anomaly in an otherwise volcanic landscape. A second trip took us to a high valley near one of the glaciers. The valley is reminiscent of those you might see in a medieval fantasy story. The path through the jagged rocks of the tall valley led uphill, next to a stream that cascades from the glacier. The atmosphere was cool and damp. The cliff side was covered with moss and wildflowers.
I’ll be publishing more images focused on different features. Iceland is a remarkably beautiful place. I look forward to visiting again.
Note: Click on caption to see images in a larger size.
On August 1st, Welcome Books released Lighthouses of America. I am pleased to announce that 2 of my images, St Augustine Lighthouse, FL and Point Arena Lighthouse, CA were included in this great book. Please check it out.
Bodie, CA is a ghost town in east central California. It is a state park whose buildings are kept in a state of “arrested decay”; i.e. as they were when the last residents left. I’ve photographed at Bodie many times because there are so many interesting things to shoot. About 2 weeks ago, The Bodie Foundation, a non-profit that supports the park, hosted a sunrise shoot for photographers. We were able to get into the park at 5:00AM instead of the normal 9:00AM and, instead of the normal crowds, there were only about 10 of us. It was a marvelous morning; quiet, comfortable temps, and a chance to watch the sunrise play across the town. I wish I could have cloned myself because there were so many places I would have liked to have photographed simultaneously. I hope you enjoy these images.
Regards,
Larry
Note: Please click on caption to see image in larger size.
A few weeks ago, we spent an evening and early morning at Yosemite. Water was running everywhere. The Merced River was a raging snake of whitewater. The granite cliffs of Yosemite are amazing anytime but, when they are covered with ribbons of water falling 3,000 feet, it is really amazing.
I hope you enjoy these images.
Regards,
Larry
Note: Click on caption to see image at larger size.
Earthwatcher 