28
Oct
2009
Harvest Haul
Ah, time for a bit of a catch up post!
First off, my book Egyptian Dreams, which you may recall is available through Blurb, is entered in a contest at Blurb. I would MUCH appreciate if you could take a few moments to go and vote for it if you have not already done so!
For those who have already voted, thank you so much! For those who haven’t yet, there’s less than 2 weeks, what are you waiting for!?
As long as I’m shamelessly self promoting, I felt like I should point out that there’s currently a special running at Zazzle, another online Print on Demand shop where I host some of my work. It runs through 10/31 and is appropriately 10.31% off any purchase. So, a great time to start or finish your Christmas shopping and save some money on the way. To take advantage of this special, enter the code TRICKORTREAT
at checkout. Here’s all the lovely tiny print for the offer.
* 10.31% of the net sale price will be deducted when the coupon code TRICKORTREAT is applied at checkout. For most products, the net sale price is the price of the product (excluding shipping and taxes). For Zazzle Custom Stamps, the net sale price is the difference between the price of the Zazzle Custom Stamps (excluding shipping and taxes) and the face value of the postage. Offer is valid from October 19, 2009 at 12:01am PT through October 31, 2009 at 11:59pm PT. This promotional offer may not combine with any other Zazzle promotional or discount offers.
A little less self-promotion but partially so is reminding everyone that this weekend is Montezuma’s annual Fall Festival, known as the Beaver Creek Festival. Keep your fingers crossed for good weather because I’m told that the 15th annual festival should be a good one! And I will have a booth there – that’s all my self promotion for one post! Here’s a quote from one of the organizers about what to expect this year.
There will be GREAT children’s games, yummy food, cool art, excellent musicians, and worthwhile prizes! Don’t forget the Duck Doodle: $300 would come in handy for Christmas Shopping!
Okay, now for a few photos! I completed editing and uploading photos from my brief stop in Savannah last month. I still have to work on the NYC photos, but at least some progress. Savannah was beautiful and I hope you’ll all enjoy some photos!
Savannah River Sunrise
From my first morning in Savannah, Sunrise on the River near Battery Hamilton. It was a bit subdued by the clouds but pretty nonetheless!
Tybee Light at Dawn
Tybee light was beautiful in the morning and I love the cottage that the lighthouse keeper lived in back in the day. It’s been restored inside. All in all a very well kept monument to the history of the area.
East River Street
I didn’t get a lot of photos of the town itself. Spent so much time out on the coast or on the bus that I never really explored like I’d like to, but this photo from East River Street gives you a bit of a feel.
Cathedral of St. John The Baptist
Savannah’s lovely cathedral – simply gorgeous – be sure to check out the gallery for some interior shots as well!
Moon River
The natural beauty near Savannah actually inspired several Panorama shots. It’s hard to pick just one to show here, but this is Moon River near dusk and the colors were very special!
Angels of Bonaventure
In case you’re unaware the statue on the front of the book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, was photographed in Bonaventure. Not the oldest cemetery in Savannah but a lovely one! The statue from the book had to be moved to protect it but there’s still some incredible statuary there!
Sunset Sea
My last evening in Savannah was back out to Tybee Island where I enjoyed strolling the beach. It was a subdued sky with a lot of clouds, but the colors and light was still pretty perfect. The above is a long exposure shot. I’ll pick one more, but I hope you’ll go check them all out. It’s hard for me to pick out my own favorites never mind yours!
Tybee Blue
One of the last from that evening on Tybee, the sun had sunk down and twilight was almost a solid cast of blue from the sky to the reflecting water on the beach.
For more of Savannah, check out the Savannah gallery.
23
Aug
2009
Red Sea Camp
An amazing part of our trip was two days relaxing on the Red Sea at the Sawa Camp near Nuweiba.
Sinai Sunrise
We literally stayed in straw huts a few steps from the waters. Here you can see an early morning shot of the beach and huts with a mountain range as a backdrop. After over a week of being on the move, this was a great place to just relax. Some in the group went scuba diving and their was a wealth of options like that, but this was my chill place. Just looking at this photos puts me back into that same state relaxed state of mind. Check out the clouds streaking the sky with pinks and blues!
Red Sea Sunset
And this is a colorful photo of the sunset. The mountains you can just see silhouetted on the left side of the photo is Saudi Arabia. This was taken with a neutral density lens so that it was a long exposure – this is what creates that soft feel to the water and really gave the camera time to soak up some of that rich color. If it looks like paradise, it’s because it was the next thing to it. Amazing stark contrast, though, a beach location and yet so dry. There’s very little rainfall and the water to this little community on the beach has to be brought in by truck. Still worth it for a view like this…
For more of my photo prints from Egypt, please check out my Egypt gallery.
16
Aug
2009
Luxor Temple Ruins
Luxor Ruins
Our first afternoon in Luxor, we wandered along the Corniche – the riverside walkway along the Nile (apparently used in Egypt but borrowed from the French). Our guide was pointing out things we could do, amongst which was the temple ruins at Luxor. We managed to come by just as the late afternoon sun was casting a warm glow over them. They look quite atmospheric, but they are not amongst the best ruins to visit. We were told we’d pretty much seen what there was to see but could visit. I’m not sure any of our group did visit, but I know this was as close as I got. I was satisfied with these wonderful shots of these ruins.
Luxor Temple
This is another perspective on the ruins – here you can see a distinctive New Kingdom temple with an obelisk. The temple ruins at Luxor was once the site of ancient Thebes and were dedicated to what was know as the Thebian Triad – the three gods popular in Thebes – Amun, Mut, and Chons. The temple was founded around 1400 BC. This shot catches a vibrant blue and gold sky with just a hint of the warm passing light casting on the stones.
For more temple ruins and prints from Egypt, please check out my Egypt Gallery.
13
Aug
2009
Balloons Over Luxor
I recently discovered that the hot air balloon flights over the Valley of the Kings were grounded after another series of crashes this year. I say another because shortly after my flight, there was a crash. On one hand, I have to say, anywhere there are daily balloon flights, there are probably going to be accidents. If you don’t believe me, google hot air balloon crash and see how many results you get! The fact is, shortly before my trip I happened to hear an account of a hot air balloon that went up in flames. The story from one lady who survived but with many broken bones, by leaping out of the balloon was chilling. At the time, I hadn’t even heard of the popular flights over Luxor.
Balloons Over Luxor
Still when the opportunity came up, I really wanted to try it. Several in the group had been in hot air balloons before and loved it and part of any trip for me is doing something that I would probably never do at home. Stepping out of my comfort zone as it were. And safety records aside, it was fabulous. The balloon lifted into the dark morning sky before the sun had risen, one balloon after another, burners lighting up the bulbous balloons in the sky in short bursts. This shot captures a trio of balloons against a dusk sky with subtle hues of pink and blue fading into near darkness. I’ve managed to catch one balloon with it’s burner going.
Carefree - Hot Air Balloons Over Luxor
Another shot that shows those subtle pinks and blues of the pre-dawn sky over Luxor. This time with four balloons against the sky. They fade into near silhouettes and one is glowing a bit as the flame burns to heat the air. There’s something truly magical about gliding on the breezes like a child’s helium balloon. It’s one of those experiences I would not trade for anything.
Over The Valley Of The Kings
Yet another photo shot against the dawn sky (more of those great pinks and a bit of blue). The sun will be out shortly. In the near darkness below you can just make out the Valley of the Kings where ancient Pharaohs of the New Kingdom were laid to rest. To really see this, you’ll need to see it larger (follow the purchase link and click on the image for a larger view). This is definitely a print that would be best enjoyed on the larger side!
Sunrise Over Valley Of The Kings
This is one last photo of morning over the Valley of The kings. One lone but colorful balloon against the warm sky and dry mountains where Pharaohs lie. This is quite literally one of if not my last photo of the morning. I took a couple hundred photos, and then I did something I can scarcely believe, I turned off my camera, and put it in my bag. And I enjoyed that warm sun hitting me and the gorgeous scene, but I didn’t record it. I didn’t record it as we glided over villages full of kids pointing to the sky. I just took it all in and internalized the moment. It saddens me that there are people going now who won’t have this experience. I hope they soon get their ducks in a row so more people can have the experience of freedom I had that morning over the Valley of the Kings in Luxor.
There are more balloon photos, aerial shots, and of course more Egypt photos prints for you to check out in my Egypt Gallery.
11
Aug
2009
Everyday Egypt – Prints
While ancient monuments and temples are a treasure and grand to see, they are not what defines a place That would be the people. And while I don’t specialize so much in portraits thus far, I still made some attempts at catching the people and the places that made up the experience of visiting.
Ubiquitous - Minarets Across Egypt
This was shot on Elephantine Island – site of a Nubian village which was relocated with the rising waters of Lake Nasser after the construction of the dam. As all over Egypt, there is a mosque nearby and its impressive minaret pierces the sky. This is the source of the call to prayer (5 times a day). Although you might miss one of the later calls, the morning one was sure to get your attention as a western visitor! This lovely print is a mixtures of blues with the single yellow mosque standing out.
Home Towns - Streets of Daraw
This scene is from Daraw, a small village in the heart of Egypt. It’s main draw to tourists is a camel market, but for this traveler, is was far more interesting to see a place less visited and capture a few moments from the every day here to take home with me. This man may push his bike past this corner every day, but I was only there to see it once. For me, this is truly the magic of photography, attempting to capture the every day as something special – as much as I love ancient temples and grand buildings.
Everyday Egypt - Streets of Daraw
One more scene from the same little street in Daraw. This is how I’ll remember this little village, filled with friendly and curious locals. Beneath all the differences, if stripped away, I really left feeling it was no different than my own small home town.
To see more scenes from Egypt, please check out my Egypt Print Gallery.
