Author: timothyk68

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 4

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The adventure continued on Tuesday, May 1. We got up extremely early in order to catch sunrise from the location we had scouted on the Foothills Parkway. We arrived just as dawn was breaking. The valley below the overlook had a farm with some cows grazing, and due to the temperature, there was a mist hugging the valley floor. It was serene. As the sun cleared the mountains on the horizon, I was able to catch the sunburst over the valley (the featured photo). While the sky itself was not overly dramatic, it was still a great sunrise. We spent the better par of an hour there, then, headed back to cabin for breakfast.

At the start of the trip, I mentioned to Cathie that I really needed to get a haircut. I didn’t have the chance to do it before I left. My day job had been extremely hectic that week, and, Saturdays are my normal haircut day. But, we were in Kentucky on that past Saturday. Cathie thought this whole thing was strange, but, hair doesn’t cut itself. And, I’m all about supporting local businesses. After breakfast, I called the place I chose, and made my appointment, and Joe also took advantage and scheduled an appointment as well.

As our appointments were at 12:30, we decided to kill some time and played a round of miniature golf. On my trip to visit Cathie last August, we played a LOT of miniature golf. We also were battling some very harsh mid-day light, so, we had to find other ways to occupy ourselves. As much as sunny days are nice, and they are, for photography, they do not work well. After the first round of golf, we got lunch, then went for our haircuts. Cathie was still bemused by this whole thing, and got some photos of Joe and I as we were getting our haircuts.

Afterward, we played another round of golf, and the second course was much more fun than the first one. By the end of that round, we had gotten to later afternoon, the light was starting to improve, so we went to Roaring Fork Nature Motor Trail. There are some great hikes to waterfalls, but we didn’t have the time to do either one, so we drove the loop road until we got toward the end. There is an excellent roadside stream among some large rock formations, and the water was running strong. I navigated through the stream, trying not to hurt myself on the very slippery rocks, and set up for a couple of long exposures in the middle of the stream. Whatever it takes to get the shot!

We spent well over an hour and a half there, and the light was starting to fade. Since the light was no longer ideal, we did not stop at the old mill at the end of the motor trail. Instead, we headed back to the cabin, had dinner and relaxed a little. And we thought we were prepared for what awaited us the next day.

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 3

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Monday, April 30, was my 50th birthday. Spending my birthday with my two favorite people is what this was all about. We had breakfast at the cabin, and then ventured into the park. Whether it was too warm, or we arrived too late, the Cades Cove area was not blanketed in its usual morning fog. And there was not much going on around the loop road, so we ended up stopping only at the Cable Grist Mill. I had the chance to finally use the new Lee neutral density filters there, getting some long exposures of the turning water wheel. We then stopped at the souvenir shop, and since I needed a hat, I bought a Smokies trucker cap (two of them, I couldn’t decide on one or the other), plus a few other items. We had lunch, and then scouted the Foothills Parkway for sunrise locations. On the way back into Townsend, we stopped at a country store, where Cathie found a table that she fell in love with. The table was a bear holding up the glass table top. It was hand carved, really well done, but, was quite expensive.

These mid-day diversions became a necessity for most of the trip. Although the weather was spectacular, there were little to no clouds during that week. This makes more for some very harsh light, particularly from mid-morning to late afternoon. Whether you’re shooting in the visible light spectrum, or infrared, that harsh light from the sun directly overhead does not result in the best photographs.

Once we finished at the store, we headed back into the park, and went to one of my favorite roadside rivers, on the road to Cades Cove. We stopped there for close to an hour, and because there are tall hills on both sides of the road, the sun was blocked, giving us some more even light. I utilized the filters again, getting some long exposures of the raging waters (the featured image at the top of this post was taken there). When we finished, our original plan was to head back in the direction we came. But, traffic was backed up all the way to our spot, due to road resurfacing near Tremont. Knowing how far that road was, we decided to head back to Cades Cove and then take the Rich Mountain Road, and head back to Pigeon Forge that way for dinner. It turned out to be a happy detour. First, at Sparks Lane, there was a large group of horses grazing, and walking right up the fence to check out us crazy humans. I was able to get some photos after I was freed from Cathie’s car. For some reason, Cathie decided to park right next to the only road sign on Sparks Lane, blocking me so that I could not open the door. After about 10-15 minutes of her merrily photographing the horses for herself, she realized I had not gotten out of the car. That’s when I pointed out where she had parked. Thanks, Cathie, lol! Once I was able to start getting some photos, the first of a few weird occurrences happened with my workhorse Nikon D800. As I was rapidly firing, the viewfinder suddenly went dark, and the metering was not working. Even after turning the camera off and on, taking out the battery and putting it back in, it was only when I had changed lenses that it started working ok. I went back to the lens I was using, and it seemed to be working fine again. This happened a few other times on this trip. I’m still researching what the issue could be. 

We continued on to Rich Mountain Road, and on the drive up the hill, we came across a bear. It was the first one I had seen in the park in my two trips. I was on the wrong side of the car to get any kind of decent shot. At one point, I had gotten out to try to retrieve my camera from the trunk, but this got the bear’s attention. To be safe, and to not encourage her to approach closer, I got back in the car. Cathie got several photos, that was good enough for both of us. Finally, we headed out to get dinner. I chose Bennett’s Barbecue Pit for dinner, we ate there the last time. The food is excellent, as was the beer, and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly after a great first full day in the park.

First Road Trip for 2018 Continues

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Sunday morning, after getting breakfast at the hotel in Danville, KY, Joe and I set off for the Smokies. The drive isn’t a very long one, so rather than taking interstates, we jumped off and took some back roads south through Kentucky, until we joined up with I-75 just south of the border with Tennessee. The drive took us through part of the Daniel Boone National Forest, some beautiful country. Our meet up with Cathie was at the Sugarlands Visitor Center in the Smokies. When we got into Sevierville, and then into Pigeon Forge, what would have been a 20-30 minute drive into the park took nearly twice as long, traffic was very much like a weekday rush hour in Chicago.

We ended up having to park in the RV parking lot, and then walked over to the visitor center where Cathie was waiting outside on one of the benches. After the first of many purchases in and around the park for the rest of the week, and Joe joining the Great Smoky Mountains Association, we drove into Gatlinburg, got lunch, dropped off our rental in a public parking lot, and ventured back into the park to introduce Joe to it. We intended to head into Cades Cove, and stopped at a roadside bridge over one of the many rivers in the park. I took a few infrared photos from there, including the one below.

 

But, as it was early afternoon and a cloudless day, the light was very harsh, so we didn’t take a lot of photos. We decided to continue on to Cades Cove, and, ran into a traffic jam due to repaving. We found a space to turn around, and, realizing that we still had to go back into Pigeon Forge to check in to our cabin, we decided to leave and take care of that. We also needed to stock up on food and other items we would need for the week.

The cabin rental company’s office is right next to the Titanic museum, and I was hoping that wouldn’t be a metaphor for the rest of the week. We checked in, and headed to the cabin. It was quite an entertaining (and nerve-wracking drive) up some winding mountain roads to get to it. While the directions seemed complicated, it didn’t take us long to master them, as well as finding a shortcut that wasn’t mentioned by the cabin rental folks. We unloaded the vehicles, then headed back down to Pigeon Forge to get dinner, and then stock up. We got back to the cabin after dark, settled in, and made our plans for the next day.

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 1

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For my birthday at the end of April, I met up with my friend Cathie in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. My friend Joe also joined us, as he had a birthday in November and we really did not have the chance to celebrate it. We both turned 50, and we wanted to do something special.

On the drive down to the Smokies on April 28, we stopped overnight in Danville, Kentucky. We were going to stay in Lexington, but, due to the Land Rover Kentucky Three Day Event, it was impossible to find a room. The reason for staying in that area is, Joe and I wanted to explore some of the bourbon trail. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a bourbon fanatic. We got the area in the afternoon, and there wasn’t a lot of time, but we were able to visit the Buffalo Trace distillery https://www.buffalotracedistillery.com and have a tasting. Buffalo Trace is one of my favorite bourbons, as is Blanton’s (which is also made on the premises). I tried their Eagle Rare bourbon, which is aged for a minimum of 10 years. It is absolutely incredible. I also picked up some of their Bourbon Cream, and some bourbon chocolates (yes, I love bourbon!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

We got dinner and then tried some Kirk & Sweeney 12 year old rum, which was quite good, not like any rum I had before. The next morning, as I was loading up our vehicle for the next stage of the adventure, I saw the sun rising behind Conrad, the horse outside of the entrance to the hotel. It was too good to pass up, even though all I had was my iPhone.

 

 

Sunday, April 29, was spent driving to meet Cathie at the Sugarlands Visitor Center in the park, and introducing Joe to the park (Cathie has been there three previous times, and I have been there one previous time). I will write more about Sunday in the next part. Stay tuned, as they say!

Looking Back At The Past Few Winters

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As we are in late February, the winter season usually starts winding down around Chicago. That doesn’t mean winter is done with us, but, usually, the worst is behind us by now.

This has given me the chance to look back at the images I have taken this winter, as well as from the past few. I have not shared most of these before.

I love winter photography, I always have. Using Adobe Spark, I created a “highlight reel.” If I didn’t have to be concerned about copyright issues, the soundtrack to this would be Pink Floyd’s “Terminal Frost.” But, I used one of the soundtracks available for free.

If March gets interesting, I will be out capturing it.

The link below will take you the video, thank you for looking and your continued support!

https://spark.adobe.com/video/dmqaOcFCbsJjP

River Of Ice

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Living in Chicago, and being a photographer, I have a serious love/hate relationship with winter. When the icy winds blow from the north, sweeping down with it the polar air, there are not enough layers to wear to really protect you from it. Snow piles up, usually with some ice mixed in, making walking and driving treacherous. But, at the same time, winter has a beauty all its own. That’s where the “love” kicks in for me. Snaking through the loop, the frozen river adds a textural element that is a sight to behold, especially as evening descends. The frozen river shimmers as the street lights turn on, turning “blue hour” into a rare jewel of gold and turquoise.

The last two winters have been unusually mild, and neither the lake nor the river held ice for very long, if at all. I wasn’t complaining, but, as a result, I did not get out to do much winter photography. Since Christmas, we have been in the grips of the arctic air again. The river started freezing over, and I have been waiting for the ice to cover most of the main branch of the river. Usually, only the main branch freezes, the south and north branches have stronger currents which do not allow for much ice formation. But, this arctic air has been so cold that the ice has now spread into both branches.

Some friends of mine and I decided we needed to pounce on this opportunity. This past Wednesday evening, and yesterday, we ventured downtown to explore the icy river. Wednesday’s excursion centered around the DuSable Bridge, and the river walk just to the west and east of the bridge. We had to go out in short stints, the wind chills rapidly dropped down into sub-zero temperatures after the sun set.

Yesterday, we met up further west near Wolf Point, where the river branches to the north and south. We captured sunset, blue hour, the night reflections, and made a circuit to the Kinzie Street Bridge, and finishing on the river side of the Merchandise Mart.

Winter photography is special in many ways. If you take the necessary precautions to protect yourself and your photography gear, you will capture something incredible.

2017- A Look Back

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As we approach the end of the year, as in years past, I look back at the work I have done, and then put together the highlights.

The moments that were captured stand out, but also, the greater context of them. Where I was, and more importantly, who I was with. When I am reviewing the year’s archive, I not only look for particular images that I knew stood out, but also, the connection to the place, time and people I may have been with. The image becomes more than just an image when there is that added context to them. That’s what I always look for when I’m doing these reviews. I have had the great fortune to have met so many incredible photographers (and even more than that, amazing people).

The additional element to this year’s retrospective is a challenge from a friend of mine, who asked me to create a Facebook album of my 17 favorite photos. The slideshow contains these 17 images.

January featured a trip to Boston to attend a memorial for my friend Paul Kempley. Later in the month, I met up with some local photographers, very dear friends, for a casual meet up. We always have a fantastic time, but it seems that January is the only time we can all get together.

February was spent locally, I continued to look for good winter sunrises, as well as some wanderings in the loop capturing the spirit of Chicago.

At the end of April, my great friend Cathie and I met up in the Smokies. Probably the biggest highlight of the year for me, I had never spent time there. But I will be going back!

June featured the Out of Chicago Conference, where I resumed my duties as photowalk coordinator with help of my friend Bryan Esler. It’s always an amazing experience, and just being a small part of the show has been an incredible experience. I’m looking forward to the 2018 Summer conference, I’ll be back as photowalk coordinator!

The rest of the summer was spent with various meet ups with local friends. And then, the last weekend of August, I flew to Raleigh Durham and spent an extended weekend with Cathie again. We played a hell of a lot of mini golf, which was great, because most of the time, we’re running from location to location to photograph. It was nice stepping back and just enjoying each other’s company, albeit competitively. But, the trip started with Cathie and I meeting up with Dan Thompkins for sunset on the Friday I arrived. I’ve known Dan for a few years through Facebook, but I finally got to meet him and his wife Carolyn. That made it all the more special.

In September, I helped out on a street photography workshop conducted by my friends Mike Boening and Jamie MacDonald, two absolutely incredible photographers and better guys. Jamie unfortunately was not able to make the trip, but, I did what I could, hobbling in the boot because I had just been diagnosed with Plantar Fasciitis. The weekend was a blast, even with having to wear Das Boot. Later in September, I finally had the chance to photograph Chicagohenge. On the spring and autumn equinoxes, the sun sets down the east-west streets in the Loop. That is the final image in the slideshow.

2017 was a great year. It did not feature as much travel as I have done in recent years. But, I maximized the times I did travel, and explored the local environs. Next year is shaping up to be another great year, with some trips already planned, as well as the possibility of a couple of others.

Thank you for continuing on this journey with me. Have a wonderful holiday season!

A Boot And A Blast

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Earlier this year, when I heard that a couple of my friends, both Olympus Visionaries (Jamie MacDonald and Mike Boening) were going to host a workshop in Chicago this past weekend, I knew I had to attend. They are fantastic photographers, and even better people. I have been following their podcast, and now their YouTube channel Mirrorless Minutes https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqCm16qk_T2JoDzvin_f9eA ever since I met them a few years ago. I had been looking forward to this past weekend for months. In August, I was able to meet up with Mike while he was in town doing some scouting for the workshop. The agenda for this weekend included several great, signature Chicago locations, including sunrises at the lakefront, and an exploration of one of my favorite neighborhoods, Wicker Park.

Leading up to this weekend, on Wednesday, September 13, I met up with a couple of local friends for the sunset at the Museum Campus. I went downtown a little early, planning to eat dinner somewhere, and then walk over to the campus. The place I settled on for dinner was near the Art Institute, and it was a fairly long walk from there to the campus, but I have made this walk many times, and even longer walks. So, after fortifying myself with food and a beverage, I began the walk. By the time I got to the lakefront, near Buckingham Fountain, my right foot was hurting, right by the heel. And the more I walked, the worse it got. By the time I got to the spot we chose for the sunset, I was in agony. And since I had gotten there early, I ended up standing a lot as the sun began setting, and we stayed around for the blue hour. The sunset wasn’t great, but, there were some very low clouds hugging the tops of the skyline, which made for some great night photos. However, by the time we left, I could not put any weight on my foot. The next day started with the same level of pain. As Thursday went on, it slowly improved, but, since I had taken Friday off from work, I made an appointment to see a podiatrist. I had a feeling I knew what I was dealing with, and she confirmed it the next day- plantar fasciitis. She said my case wasn’t a severe one. If this wasn’t severe, I don’t want to know what a severe case feels like! The treatment plan involves stretching each morning before I even get out of bed, and RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation). I told her about the workshop, and that there was no possible way short of death that I was going to miss it. She fitted me with an Air Boot that I wore for the weekend, to help me get through all of the activity without further aggravating my foot.

We met for the workshop Friday evening, and took a quick trip near the hotel to take some photographs overlooking the Eisenhower Expressway at night, getting some great car light trails heading east. The next day started early, we met at North Avenue Beach for sunrise, then, after breakfast and a morning session, we ventured to Wicker Park. The bulk of the afternoon was spent there, exploring the streets. That neighborhood is perfect for street photography- the stores, passersby, the vibe, it’s a great place to photograph. We took a group photo at the new Vivian Maier street art installation on North Avenue, done by the famous street artist Kobra. We went back to the loop, got dinner, and then went to the Adler Planetarium for sunset and blue hour.

Sunday started at Buckingham Fountain for sunrise, then, back to the hotel for breakfast, and the wrap up where we chose our 5 favorite photos from the weekend, and talked about them. Outside of myself, only one other attendee has lived in the Chicago area. The group came from Detroit, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Nashville, Atlanta, Indianapolis and even Winnipeg, Canada ( and I might be missing some other locations, not intentionally). I loved seeing everyone else’s views of my home city. Everyone’s eyes saw something a little different, and it was a beautiful quilt that everyone had weaved through their vision. And now, for me, it gives me yet more reasons to continue exploring, to see a place so familiar but yet in an entirely new way. It was truly a fantastic weekend, even with the boot!

 

Return To South Carolina, Part 2

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Continuing where we left off, Cathie and I set aside Sunday to spend time in Myrtle Beach. A couple of the piers were damaged due to Hurricane Matthew, which hit South Carolina in October of 2016. Surfside Beach pier lost a good 50 feet from its length, and the local council has approved plans to replace it with a concrete pier. We visited the pier after breakfast, and when we got there, there were several huge pipes on the beach, and neither Cathie nor I could determine exactly what they were for. And not far offshore, there appeared to be a couple of oil drilling platforms, at least that’s what they looked like to me. But, they were too close to shore for that purpose. We learned later in the afternoon that this was all part of a beach replenishment program that they do every 5 years or so. The waves were even bigger than they were Saturday, due to a tropical cyclone that had parked off of Hilton Head Island. This would play in a role in some of the events to come on Monday.

The light was quite harsh, not conducive to good photography (especially not infrared photography). So, we left the beach and played some mini golf, continuing where we left off Friday night. Sunday turned out to be all about piers and putting. We had lunch at Sea Captain’s House, which is right on the beach. I may have made the comment, more than once, that the view did not suck. Nor did the food, the She Crab Soup was excellent, as were the crab cakes. And, as I was not driving, I decided a Bloody Mary was in order.

From there, as the light was still harsh, we played several more rounds of mini golf, and stopped to get milk shakes at Cold Stone Creamery. We were working our way toward the second of the two piers we intended to visit, and it was late afternoon, with far better light, when we arrived at Springmaid Pier. This pier was almost completely destroyed by the hurricane, and no decision apparently has been made concerning the fate of what remains. We both freshened up afterward and had dinner at a Brazilian Steak House, Rioz. Excellent food, a carnivore’s dream.

As we had not quite satisfied ourselves with mini golf, we played two more rounds that night.

Monday was my return back home, my flight was to leave Raleigh-Durham at 6 pm. Due to the approaching tropical cyclone, we left Myrtle Beach earlier than originally planned (although we managed to get in two more rounds of mini golf first). Having cleared airport security, I had a beverage at the Gardon Biersch brewery in the airport, and, arrived at the gate to do some photo editing before the flight departed. We were to start boarding at 5:30, and, we started lining up to board. Just as my group was called, I received a text from the airline that our flight was delayed for 30 minutes, and the gate attendant ran down the jetway to bring back a few people who he had sent through. That thirty minute delay became much longer, as we received successive alerts of further delays. The issue was not in Raleigh-Durham, as it turned out, but back home. There was a lot of turbulence around O’Hare, and this was causing mid-air funnel clouds. A full ground stop was called at O’Hare as a result. The airline really had no idea when the ground stop might be lifted, and even then, there were bound to be issues at O’Hare. And there were. We finally got the all clear to board 2 1/2 hours after our original scheduled departure. The main issue at O’Hare, by the time we landed, was that there were still too many planes on the ground and not enough gates. We received our gate assignment about 15 minutes after we had taxied off the runway. I finally got to my apartment around 10:45, and went right to bed. It had been a long day. But, it had also been a great trip. It’s always great spending time with Cathie, and I’m planning another, longer trip there in the spring.

Return To South Carolina, Part 1

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I had not returned to South Carolina since my last trip there in September 2015. Cathie visited Chicago last July, so at least we were able to spend some time in 2016. But, things did not work out for me to pay Cathie a visit last year. I did not want 2017 to go by without going back. I was able to secure accommodations at no charge due to my accumulation of points with Hilton, and, I was able to fly first class both ways. Neither of these things sucked, for the record. I flew into Raleigh-Durham on Friday, 8/25. Invariably, the airfare is less expensive than flying into either Myrtle Beach Int’l Airport, Charleston, or Wilmington, NC. Cathie drove up to pick me up at RDU, we had lunch with an old friend of Cathie’s, at a place that we actually ate at the last time I was there in the area. After lunch, we proceeded to Myrtle Beach, which is about a 3 hour drive. I checked into the hotel, and then we met up with Dan Thompkins, the owner of Southern Living Photography, for sunset. I have known Dan for a few years, but we never met in person until this trip. I have long admired Dan’s work, he is a tremendously talented photographer. An added bonus, Dan was joined by his wife Carolyn, who was celebrating a birthday that day. We staked out a location at the swing bridge in Socastee, South Carolina. An adventure company runs a jet ski rental service there, but they were kind enough to allow us to stay as long as we wanted on the dock. The sunset was incredible, a perfect start to the weekend. While Cathie and I do a LOT of photography when we get together, I also wanted to spend some time with her just having fun, so, prior to the trip, we talked about playing some miniature golf. Myrtle Beach has a quite a lot of miniature golf courses. After Cathie and I parted ways from Dan and Carolyn, we got a quick bite to eat at one of the local Chic-Fil-As, where Cathie teased a local LEO (Law Enforcement Officer) about how at least he wasn’t eating at a donut shop, and then we played a round of miniature golf at Mt. Atlanticus (Minotaur Golf). Cathie is quite competitive, as am I, and I still contend that she had been practicing every chance she had after we talked about doing this, as she got a hole in one on the first hole. Still, we ended up tied at the end of the round.

Saturday was to be a Charleston day. I love Charleston, it’s such a beautiful city, and perfect for infrared photography, which I do quite a lot of. While it was a beautiful, clear, sunny day in Myrtle Beach, by the time we got to Charleston, it had clouded over. On the way down, we stopped at an abandoned home not far from Hampton Plantation, in McClennanville (where Cathie photographed the eclipse the previous Monday). We stopped at a few historic sites on the way in to Charleston (Charles Pickney’s home, a National Historic Site in the National Park Service, and Fort Moultrie, on Sullivan Island). We got some lunch, and then visited and toured Drayton Hall, an historic home run by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. From there, we planned to go to Botany Bay in the late afternoon for the boneyard- an eroded beach where the trees have been succumbed by the tide. Unfortunately, as we found out from the ranger station there, Hurricane Matthew, which hit the area in October 2016, destroyed much of the boneyard. So, instead, we went to the Morris Island Lighthouse, which you can see from Folly Beach. We tried going there on my last trip, but never made it to the beach. What struck me right away was how strong the wind and waves were. I thought there might be a storm on the Atlantic, and there was. But, it was a little more than a storm, it was a tropical cyclone.

Still, the waves created some great photographic opportunities which we took advantage of. And, a wind surfer was taking advantage of the waves and winds too. I took a lot of photos of him as he was cruising back and forth past the lighthouse. From there, we got dinner. We had entertained the thought of shooting the Pineapple Fountain on the Charleston waterfront, but, we decided to head back to Myrtle Beach instead, as we thought we would try to catch sunrise Sunday morning. Given the travel time, it made more sense to get back and get some sleep.