Autumn Near Princeton, Nebraska

It's been awhile since I last posted a photograph on this blog. Despite not posting anything new over the past several months, I have been snapping lots of photos. Recently, I have been doing a great deal of cycling in and around Lincoln, Nebraska, and many of my photos have been taken via the numerous bike trails. In this case, I was biking with my cousin on the Homestead Corridor Trail in early November, 2011 when I noticed this wonderful field just south of the town of Princeton. The moon was clearly visible and the sun was about an hour from setting. It was a wonderful Autumn day, and this image really encapsulated the day for me.

A View Looking North Near Boulder, Colorado

In mid-August, 2010, I squeezed in a brief trip to Colorado to visit family and friends, and to do a little hiking. A friend from Denver and I made an afternoon trip to Boulder and hiked in Chautauqua Park into the foothills east of the Flatirons. On our way back to the car, I was enthralled by the incredible cloud forms in the sky ahead of us (to the north). I loved seeing the path before us and the beautiful mountains in front of us as we made our way back downhill towards Boulder. I decided I needed to capture this place at this moment with my camera. I wanted to include the cool-looking clouds, the distant mountains and the path trailing away. I like the wonderful shades of green and blue in this photo, as well as how the path and the clouds lead me visually into the middle ground where the mountains and the greenery of Boulder become the focal point. Unfortunately, the size of this and the other photos on this web page do not really do the images – or the actual atmosphere I tried to capture through these images – justice.

Sunrise at Hualien, Taiwan

Among the many things I enjoy seeing and capturing with my camera are sunrises and sunsets. At the beginning of November, 2008, I convinced one of my Taiwanese friends and our host in Hualien, Taiwan to get up at 5:00 am and venture down to the Pacific coast. As we walked along a stretch of beach and snapped numerous pictures of land and sea, the sun slowly crept up over the horizon and pierced through the clouds in the distance. I managed to capture a half-dozen images of this sunrise that I really like; this is one of my favorite three. The sun peaking over the clouds and the rays shooting out to illuminate the sky gain my attention from a distance and draw me into the picture. If you get the opportunity to visit Taiwan, Hualian is about two hours southeast of Taipei by train, next to Taroko Gorge National Park. Getting up early to capture the sunrise over the Pacific is well worth the effort.

Antiquarian Books

During an earlier period of my life, when I could budget a little money for my book-collecting hobby, I built up a small antiquarian library. I started out with some books from the 1800s that I had purchased for $.25 to about $5.oo apiece. As I got more into the hobby, I began to focus primarily on books published before 1800. I love the look and feel of older books still in their original leather bindings. I enjoy looking at the gilt spine decorations, the raised bands, the morocco leather labels, the old printed text, and even some of the old ink signatures as I handle and flip through these old volumes. As I was looking for images to capture in my apartment I couldn't help but turn to the old books sitting in an old refinished bookcase in my living room. I especially like the two extraordinarily gilt volumes that I placed in the middle of the top shelf. These two volumes date to 1754; I purchased them for the bargain price of $14.50. When I snapped this picture, I wanted to place these two volumes roughly in the center of the image. I love the variety of gilt decor on the various volumes as well as the faded reflections of those volumes in the slightly dusty shelf top. This image communicates to me both the age and the beauty of antiquarian books.

A View through a Doorway at Thommanon, Cambodia

The randomness of my photo blog continues as I return to Cambodia with this image, which I snapped in early November, 2008. My trip to Cambodia with a friend was brief but amazing. In one day, we managed to see reconstructed and unreconstructed remains at Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom and a half-dozen other sites nearby, including Thommanon. As we explored what seemed like every square foot of the buildings at Thommanon, I shot about a dozen pictures. As I stood in a smaller building on the western end of Thommanon, I looked through its doorway at the main structure to the east. I was amazed by the architectural detail of this nearly 900 year old structure, and I wanted to capture some of this detail and the main building's size with my camera. I decided to use the frame of the doorway to "frame" the top of my photograph. I like how the darkness of the doorway's frame contrasts with the lightness of the sky. I get drawn in by the incredible details and by the three dark doorways of the main structure. I find myself especially wanting to enter the middle doorway. [By the way, the middle doorway leads to a very small room cut off from the rest of the building.] From a distance, the light and dark values within the photo and the shapes created by the value contrasts gain my attention. As I imagine potential images like this one, I enjoy looking for different ways to present the subject matter to the viewer. "Framing" a subject with a part of the surrounding environment is not often possible; but when it is possible, I think it can greatly enhance the interest of the final image.

A View of My Guitar

Trying to get away from the landscapes and architecture I tend to photograph, I decided in the Fall of 2009 to photograph objects in my apartment. I thought about what I would photograph by looking at the variety of textures, shapes, lines and colors around me. I took close-up photos of pillows and rugs, of pottery and wooden furniture, of books and manuscript pages. I also took some photos of my cherry colored Harmony guitar. For me, the shape of a guitar lends itself to incredible photographs; the head and tuning keys, the long neck with its many frets, the pick guard, the sound hole and the bridge all easily become visually stimulating shapes, especially when photographed at unusual angles. In this case I aimed my camera at the lines printed around the sound hole while facing towards the guitar neck. For me, the lines draw me in and carry my eye up and into the image. The strings moving across the upper left corner add to the picture's interest, as do the reflection of the strings in the guitar body. From a distance, the dark oval shape created by the sound hole, the black and white lines wrapping around the hole and the red-orange color of the guitar make for an eye-catching composition.

Thermophiles at Yellowstone

When I went to Yellowstone with a friend in July, 2007, I wanted to see Old Faithful, among other known destinations in the park. Little did I know that Old Faithful would not be the most exciting site in that part of the park. My friend and I covered more than a few miles traversing the boardwalk that wraps around numerous geysers and several pools of hot water filled with incredible colors. These colors are formed by a high concentration of thermophiles (literally, "temperature lovers"), living organisms that thrive in very hot temperatures. Along a stretch of boardwalk not far from Old Faithful, I came upon this wonderful section of a hot water pool containing a variety of greens and yellows. I just had to stoop and gaze at this beautiful site, and I just had to try to capture an image of it with my camera. I really like this picture because it still leaves me wondering what it is, even though I know. I look at it and think of both a bird's eye view of a swampy river and of a microscopic view of some unusual organisms. This photo reminds me to stop and look closely at whatever might be at my feet.

Fly Fishing on the Lewis River

I haven't posted on this blog in a while, partly because I haven't been out and about lately photographing anything worthwhile. Instead, I've been mostly photographing my other artwork. Every once in a while I look through some of my older photos for images I might display; I've shown some in a couple of local photography shows. This photo was one that I showed in a nature-themed photography show on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. I captured this image in late July, 2007, when I went camping with a friend in Yellowstone National Park. Not far from the south entrance, the Lewis River winds its way east underneath the main road and south toward the park's boundary. My friend and I wandered along the river to the west to see the short waterfalls nearby; then, as we returned to the road, I wandered across the road to get a better view of the two fly fishermen wading out in the stream. I really like the way the river winds its way into the distance. I also like the two logs that appear at the bottom of the image, pointing the viewer up into the photo. I highly recommend visiting Yellowstone National Park, if you get the chance.

Receding Doorways in Chiayi, Taiwan

From mid-August to mid-November of 2008, I lived in Chiayi, Taiwan, near the east end of the city of about 250,000 people. I covered hundreds of miles on foot venturing around the city, looking for things such as Buddhist shrines, local markets and parks. On some of my adventures through the city I trekked through Chiayi Park. The park is huge: it has some historic buildings, a tall tower, bridges, creeks, statues, a shrine and playgrounds; and it's right next to the city's baseball stadium. One part of the park also has this series of brick doorways of various shapes. The doorways caught my eye: I'm just intrigued by receding doorways, and this group was different from others because of the shapes. The challenge for me was to find the right angle with my camera that would draw the viewer in as the real thing drew me in.

Receding Doorways at Angkor Wat, Cambodia

While walking through the main structure at Angkor Wat in Cambodia, I came upon this great set of receding doorways.  I enjoy the feeling I get while looking through so many portals, one behind the other (but also visually inside the other): the doorways just seem to pull me in.  In this case, the shadows and light add to the atmosphere and help create more depth.  The distant light and shadowy figure create a final destination for the eye as well as a bit of mystery: to where does this path lead, and what is that on the other end?  I took a different route around the palace and didn't walk through these doorways, but I believe the shadowy figure is (or was) a person; however, I don't know for sure.  You can use your imagination as you enter into the photograph.

Waterfalls at Taroko National Park, Taiwan

It's a bit of a hike from the roads that go through Taroko, but the view of these waterfalls is well worth it. There is a large wood deck with seating as well as a cool suspension bridge that you have to cross to reach it.  I moved around on the deck in order to find just the right angle that got the upper and lower waterfalls just how I wanted them.  I like the variety of tones, including the bluish tone of the background landscape, the white and orange of the rocks in the lower right and the green of the trees to the left; and I like the contrast between the more monotone background and the sharper objects in the foreground.

Through a Doorway at Angkor Thom, Cambodia

In early November, 2008, I made a short trip to Thailand and Cambodia: the primary destination was an area of Cambodia filled with centuries-old ruins, including Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom.  As I was walking around the reconstructed remains of the main structure at Angkor Thom, I caught a glimpse of this relief carving through this doorway.  The face especially got my attention: it just seemed to pop into view.  I love receding doorway pictures (and took a couple of those pictures in Cambodia), but this doorway picture was different.  I framed the doorways in the photograph to give the picture its own "matte": from a distance, this really stands out.  I also liked the contrast between the white walls of the "matte" and of the sculpture in the background and the dark shadows in between.  It was a brief but incredible trip: I highly recommend going to see these amazing sites.