I love Lavender in RL and all i can say this gorgeous Set from Ariskea is just so beautiful.. for all Credits please read below..

C R E D I T S

Dress

Mossu - Alice Dress @ Belle Event

Hair

Tableau Vivant -Bunny Angel @ Fameshed X

Pose

Lyrium - Jar Series @ Commotion Event

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

D E C O R A T I O N

Ariskea - Lavende Collection @ The Epiphany

• Ariskea[Lavende] Lavender Pot

• Ariskea[Lavende] Eau de Lavande

• Ariskea[Lavende] Lavender Basket

• Ariskea[Lavende] Dry bag Lavender

• Ariskea[Lavende] Lemonade Plate

• Ariskea[Lavende] Lavender IceCream

• Ariskea[Lavende] Lavender Candle

• Ariskea[Lavende] Book of Study

• Ariskea[Lavende] Bath Bomb RARE

Ariskea - Jewel Set @ Kustom 9

• Ariskea[Jewel] Bamboo Patio Chair

• Ariskea[Jewel] Marble table

• Ariskea[Jewel] Flowery Pillow

• Ariskea[Jewel] Flamingo Pillow

Other Items

• Apple Fall Hardwick Manor

• Soy. Reed Screen [Sudare] Light -Half rolled

• Soy. Reed Screen [Sudare] Light -Rolled

• dust bunny . hanging plants . cheese plant

I arrived at this site while it was still raining, but I noted that the rain ceased, the sun broke through, and clouds began to lift. Time to break the camera out of the dry bag.

Fall in the West Elk Mountains.

Thanks very much everyone this is the most views, favs and I believe comments I have received in one day without an explore. You are all too kind, thank you very much for making my experience on Flickr an amazing one!

We were learning how to use kayaks the past few days, this morning I felt confident enough to carry my camera in a dry bag. Only a few hundred yards from where we launched we discovered this very busy Mother Merganser with 8 chicks. Photography from a kayak is a whole new learning curve plus I did not want to frighten these darling little fuzz balls, so everything I did was in slow motion and very methodical. I got a few shots and the camera survived another adventure :)

Good evening dear friends,

I would like to explain the photo a little. The location is Stein am Rhein in Switzerland on a sunny day last week. The sky was blue and the sun was shining the whole day but it was really cold.

For the photo I was standing on a bridge. Behind me on the left side there is the historical old town of Stein am Rhein with wonderful old building and wall paintings. In front of you see the Rhine. This is the first place we call it the Rhine, because behind the little islands, which you see in front the photo, there is the end of the Lake Constance. On the right side you can see the Werd Island, where the monks live. You remember perhaps an other photo of me.

When I paddle in summer with kayak or SUP I normally come from this direction. Often I take a break on Werd-Island and paddle on under the long wooden bridge, you can see on the right side. Here at this place begins the flow of the Rhine and you get a really good speed down the Rhine on the way to Diessenhofen and to Schaffhausen. If you swim down the Rhine you are really fast and you have to decide early, where you want to get out, otherwise you had a long way back home. By kayak or SUP it is a wonderful experience about 50 km to paddle from Moos to Schaffhausen. Beautiful, really. But you need a second car at the end of the tour. With a SUP you can go back by train. I did it several times, and I slept very well in those nights...;)

I will show you more of my photos when I'm on a Rhine tour again in 2018. The camera is always in my dry bag or the little black suitcase you know from the Steckborn story...;)

Have a nice Sunday :)

See you.... Yarin

And please habe a look to the other side of the Rhine in b&w here...

www.flickr.com/photos/gerdkozik

Thank you!

Here is a simple shot of a molting Sanderling, taken last August in Cape Cod. The marsh where this was taken has some exposed mudflats that are great for shorebirds, but the problem is that it the area is inaccessible by foot. I had to put my gear in a dry bag and kayak across a brackish inlet and through salt marsh, but once I did, it was definitely worth it. I liked the bit of seaweed in the foreground of this image.

Almost two years have gone by since I last hiked the Narrows and I'm still wading through the images. I find it a very slow hike because the rock formations and the reflected light on the canyon walls keep forcing me to stop and dig my camera out of my dry bag to shoot!

A warm tropical sunrise illuminates the lakes and dunes of the Lencois Maranhenses. I was happy to see the sun again after a powerful thunderstorm rocked my campsite overnight. I had watched with trepidation as a towering wall of black clouds moved in toward me after sunset. Huge cracks of thunder were breaking the silence. A powerful wind kicked up and I realized I better set up my Bivi Sack before the wind made it impossible. Just as I got it set up, the purple rippled bottom of the thunderstorm let loose with driving rain. I dove into the Bivi and waited for the thunderstorm to pass, hoping to try a few starlight shots when it was over. But the storm didn´t stop. It grew stronger as the night turned utterly black. Lightning was flashing through the fabric of the Bivi and I could feel the sand underneath me vibrate with the thunder. Lightning and thunder were flashing and crashing every 20 seconds. I had set my bivi up on a fairly low spot in the dunes, but it was still pretty wild out there and I was flinching with every crack of thunder. It was surreal being alone out there, and the sky was SO black except for the sharp flashes of lightning. I finally fell asleep, wet and cold from a leak in my bivi bag. When I woke up again, the last stars had begun to fade and I could see the storm had finally drifted off to the far horizon. I quickly grabbed my camera out of a dry bag and made it to this spot just as the first warm rays of sunrise hit the dunes and the sand began to dry out...

A large boulder rests in the North Fork of the Virgin River in Zion National Park. This particular section of the Narrows is just before the mouth to Orderville Canyon is reached, beyond which lies the renowned 'Wallstreet' section of the slot canyon. This was the first time I've hiked through the Narrows, and it was a pretty amazing hike. Many sources list the Zion Narrows as one of the best day hikes in the world - I don't think I can disagree! The water levels were pretty low for this time of year, which made hiking with the camera less precarious than typical/ I brought a dry bag to line my backpack with, but found myself mostly just walking with the tripod/camera out. Next time I'm in the park I plan on getting a backcountry permit for one of the sites in the Narrows, and do the full 16 mile hike from the top down. This would give great access to the Wallstreet section early in the morning, without the typical hordes of hikers in every shot. Also, I'm sure many of the 'feeding' canyons are equally beautiful, such as Orderville Canyon.

My D810 didn't work

Our third hiking trip in New Zealand was to Lake Marian.

Lake Marian is an alpine lake at the southern end of the Darran Mountains in the Fiordland National Park in the South Island of New Zealand.The trail to the lake is 2 miles in length and 1300 ft in height and is marked as a 3-hour return track. At the beginning, the trail was easy. Once it passes a series of small waterfalls, it became rougher and was muddy in some parts. At the second half, we had to climb up through mud and tree roots to get to the lake.

Once we got there, we took about 2 hours to scout around. The sunset wasn't that great, so instead of shooting, we setup our tents and waited for the time to prepare for night photography. During the blue hour, I setup my camera and got everything ready; leaving my camera on the tripod and using a dry bag to cover it. By the time we got to to shooting the milky way, I found my eye couldn't see the image clearly. I rubbed my eyes and tried again, still the image looked very fuzzy. Then, I though it was my lens, I tried to clean the lens and tried again. After many tries, I realized it was my camera that got wet inside! So, I gave up and went back to sleep. Next morning when I checked my camera, it was OK. After a couple of shots, it started fog again. That night we all left our cameras on tripod, two Nikon D810 and one Canon Mark VI. By the end, only Mark VI was able to take pictures, none of Nikon D810 could take a clear picture.

This picture was taken in the morning when the camera wasn't too foggy. Since it was a foggy morning, the picture was acceptable:-)

Thanks for taking the time to take a look of my pictures. Your views, comments, faves, and support are greatly appreciated!!

Okay, I lied!!! I did take a camera with me when I went out on my first trial run, but it was tucked neatly away into the old trusty Dry Bag that I always take with me. After I paddled for a while and felt comfortable with the stability of the canoe, I did take out my old Sony RX10 Mk IV. Not a powerhouse camera especially when it comes to low light because of the smaller 1” sensor. It’s not a match in IQ for an APS-C or Full Frame sensor, but it does do a decent job when the light is right.

A bit of a test here on momma gator who was none too happy with my presence as she enjoyed some sun with her family. She was guarding what was left of her youngsters on Horsepen Bayou on the straight run that parallels Middlebrook Drive. Quite a bit of backlighting, but I have to say that the RX10 did an admirable job. As stated previously, the 1” sensor is no match for the larger sensors, but it is adequate.

BTW, she's about 7 feet in length and not to be underestimated.

Still awaiting the arrival of my Nikon 200-500 which arrived yesterday while I was out and not left. It requires a signature, so I am waiting impatiently today.

DSC04386uls

This is a pretty place in the evening. In the evening the light is absolutely golden through here. Yesterday was the first time I was brave enough to bring my camera in the kayak. I kept it in a dry bag on the rapids and places I was worried about flipping. After you go around this bend its so quiet, that its almost deafening. No animal sounds usually just silence. Hard to believe there is a party spot to my right. This is on Terripin Creek between Piedmont and Centre.

Didn't get much shots here cause my camera started acting up after the swim there. I had it in a dry bag, but I guess it wasn't sealed enough.

Lunch break at The Holy Grail Cave head. The ground surface is some 65 feet above, accessed via the vertical ladder (just right of center frame) in a borehole through the limestone.

I packed my DSLR camera and tripod down the ladder in a dry bag and left it at this location with a plan to make this photograph at lunch. These are not camera-friendly places.

Near Spring Valley, MN USA.

Kauai's Na Pali Coast has some of the most amazing geology I've ever seen. The beach on the left is Kalalau and is accessible only by a brutal 11-mile, 4000-ft-gain and 4000-ft-loss hike. Raiatea and I backpacked there and spent three nights photographing the area. One day, we put our cameras in a dry bag and swam to Honopu, the beach on the right side of this photo. It's about 1 km (a bit over 1/2 mile) each way. There was a lot of surge (and white caps on the way back!), so it took us 35 minutes of hard swimming each way. I'll post photos from the ground in the coming weeks. Swimming from Kalalau or landing a boat are the only ways to reach Honopu--so few people go there that the beach had no footprints.

At the end of our trip, we hired a helicopter and saw the same spots from the air.

The rain chances for the day were very low and so I didn’t hesitate to push away from the dock on this fine morning and head out to my favorite location and search for some signs of birds. The clouds off in the distance did light up nicely as the sun broke over the horizon and the colors in it were quite intense and the reflection didn’t look half bad either. I continued to paddle toward Horsepen Bayou and fired off a number of shots while still near Bay Area Park. This is still a part of Armand Bayou at this point (scene with the bow of the canoe in it) and it will join Horsepen bayou as I round the bend to the right and become Lake Mark Kramer. After I arrived at Lake Mark Kramer I looked back toward the sun and things looked somewhat nice with the rays streaming skyward. The view to the south and toward Horsepen Bayou wasn’t as promising and it was a good time to see if that parka was still in the dry bag. Might be a good time to drag out that parka and get ready for the rain that was about to arrive. The rain lasted for a few minutes as the huge cloud drifted to the north and off into the distance. Nothing more than a shower, but I did like the way the cloud lit up in the early morning light. Photos taken on Armand Bayou.

DSC01690uls

View looking East with Lake Mark Kramer on the right side.

The rain chances for the day were very low and so I didn’t hesitate to push away from the dock on this fine morning and head out to my favorite location and search for some signs of birds. The clouds off in the distance did light up nicely as the sun broke over the horizon and the colors in it were quite intense and the reflection didn’t look half bad either. I continued to paddle toward Horsepen Bayou and fired off a number of shots while still near Bay Area Park. This is still a part of Armand Bayou at this point (scene with the bow of the canoe in it) and it will join Horsepen bayou as I round the bend to the right and become Lake Mark Kramer. After I arrived at Lake Mark Kramer I looked back toward the sun and things looked somewhat nice with the rays streaming skyward. The view to the south and toward Horsepen Bayou wasn’t as promising and it was a good time to see if that parka was still in the dry bag. Might be a good time to drag out that parka and get ready for the rain that was about to arrive. The rain lasted for a few minutes as the huge cloud drifted to the north and off into the distance. Nothing more than a shower, but I did like the way the cloud lit up in the early morning light. Photos taken on Armand Bayou.

DSC01716uls

I like Falling Springs, it's probably the nicest waterfall in all of VA yet not shot all that much and almost never from the bottom. Probably like most falls in the state it is highly isolated from the others and most people may not be willing to make a special trip for just one. Probably never see one from this side by someone with a good camera. Getting here you will either need to pass under the falls and get soaked, wade the stream and get wet over the waist, or walk/crawl the one slick as ice multi-logway that allows staying dry. I packed up my camera in a dry bag before doing it.

Finding some of these beauties made me take the camera out of the dry bag and outwait the wind. They're worth the wait.

Since I started paddle boarding back in 2013, I have always wanted to paddle in icy waters and my recent trip to Alaska allowed me to do that.

It was exhilarating and also a bit nerve racking because the ice was moving incredibly quickly around me, despite not much of a measurable current being present.

The icebergs you see in the water here all fell from the John Hopkins Glacier in the background. Over time, the ice leaves the inlet and makes the way out into open water where it is broken up into smaller and smaller pieces, melting until the pieces have vanished.

I took my DSLR onto my paddle board this morning to get a few unique shots amongst the ice. I was nervous to say the least, but the camera was inside a protected and inflated dry bag until the moment I was ready to take a photograph.

For more of my Alaska adventures read my blog posts here:

Day 1 & 2: amyheiden.com/blog/alaska-day-1-2

Day 3: amyheiden.com/blog/alaska-day-3-glacier-bay-national-park

The last day of my 9 day 900km bike ride along the Kettle valley rail trail in BC Canada and onto the coast.

My trusty old $60 Gary Fisher loaded up with jean panniers i had made the night before leaving, an old dry bag and ladies floral bag i got from a charity shop for a few $. All covered with old bags i found along the way to keep my things dry. This was a great trip and one that got me hooked on bike touring.

if you want to read more about the trip i have a blog post about it on my site here untilthecashrunsout.wordpress.com/2015/09/08/going-for-a-...

I’d walked up the Narrows before but the water on this trip was pretty intense. Never dangerous, but it took a bit more effort to get to Wall Street. In fact it was so deep that on the way back I just swam a few short sections with my pack on. The dry bag was definitely a good call.

Single exposure with a polarizer.

If this shot seems to bright let me know - I'm still trying to figure out how an image should look for the web.

Thanks for all the comments and faves lately.

Barrett

250

Weano Gorge Pool, Karijini, Western Australia

I'm still thinking about this one. Not sure if I like the warm rocks in the middle or if it is too strong. Thinking, thinking, thinking...

For such an amazing place, it can be really challenging to capture an image that properly shows what an incredible location Karijini is. Weano and Hancock Gorges are down below Oxers Lookout, the quintessential overview that everyone who visits has to shoot. We usually shoot it once or twice because the walks into both gorges begin here, and we usually do both gorges.

I'm not sure which gorge is better either, but I digress. Weano is an easy walk in, but then it tends to get a little wet! You definitely have to wade the first pool up to your waist, and then you have a choice of walking around the edge of the pool or just taking the plunge and swimming through. I take a dry bag to put my camera backpack in and take the plunge these days - the water is refreshing and it takes no time at all to dry at the other end.

Past this pool is a short walk and then a series of narrow slots that are easy to walk or climb through, opening up into a small pool (seen above) before into a much larger pool, imaginatively called Hand Rail Pool because there's a hand rail to help you get into there. If you're taking a tripod, make sure you take a backpack that lets you tie your tripod on, leaving both hands free for the handrail and the ladder down to the pool. With two hands, it's very easy and very safe.

So back to the little pool above. The photograph is taken with an ultra wide-angle lens, equivalent to a 14mm or thereabouts on a full-frame DSLR. By sitting back against the wall and bringing the tripod in towards me, I could fit the full circle of the pool into the frame. It's a simple composition. It possibly needs a little something more, like a penguin swimming through or something like that.

Or perhaps a splash of light. This is one of the challenges shooting in the gorges. If you go during the middle of the day, direct sunshine can create incredible contrast between the highlights and shadows, making it difficult to get an adequate exposure. By shooting in the early morning or late afternoon, we don't have the problem, but the light is flatter and you have to create your own energy. Perhaps a sunbeam of light will do it, but that would mean copying one of Christian Fletcher's Freaky Fotoshop Fudges, and I couldn't do that!

What I did notice when exploring the image in Capture One was how the image responded to different white balance settings. The raw file was processed twice, the second time with a much warmer white balance setting is and this explains the different colouration.

Off for an overnighter. First stop from Greytown is Martinborough for some lunch. (Pie and a coke)

Huge blue dry bag as I couldn't find my sleeping mat again, and took a roll - which is light but doesn't fold very small.

Holga 120N, Arista Edu Ultra 400, developed in Adox Rodinal, 50 + 1. Scanned negative. I don’t usually remember how I got light leaks on a roll of film because so much time often passes between photographing and developing. This roll, however, I remember exactly. I was finishing off a roll that started at Armington Pond, and ended at the reservoir. I took my Holga out of the dry bag and I recall looking at the camera for what seemed like minutes. I was rather disoriented by its appearance. Well, that’s because the back had remained behind in the bag. I shoved the camera back in quickly, and got things straightened out. Grateful the whole roll wasn’t ruined and for the happy little accident.

I often hear the advice that a photo should tell a story. More often than not, the story I'm hoping to tell is, "Beauty is like Dolby sound - it's all around usl" Part of the problem for me in telling a story with my photography is the lack of context for most photos. This one is a case in point.

When I arrived at Chemainus Lake early last Saturday morning, there was no-one there. The advantages of arriving in the dark on a very cold morning. I put my canoe in and paddled along the margin of the lake, careful not to alarm the 30 or 40 Trumpeter Swans that were milling around. My plan was to hide out in the reeds, wait for the sun, and get some epic shots. I had been on the water for about a half an hour when an angler came and launched his pontoon boat. Unconcerned with the swans, he paddled out and began fishing. The swans were all awake now, honking and gathering. Then they started taking off. It was absolutely stunning. These large majestic birds getting air-born, their wings whack whack whacking the waves, their voices echoing between the tree lined shores. The fellow hardly looked up. I kept thinking, "surely they won't all leave." but they did. And while I was watching the last of them leave the wind blew me into a stump and my tripod toppled in the water, camera, lens, and all. Then the sun came up above the tree line and the lake was bathed in beautiful golden light while I frantically reefed a towel out of my dry bag and began the process of drying my gear.

I thought this might be camera #3 lost to the lake, but when I got home I put a towel in the dryer, got is screaming hot, and wrapped my gear in the towel and put it in a one-way permeable dry bag over night. Both lens and camera are still working. This was the only wildlife shot of that day worth posting. And it doesn't quite tell the story, so I thought I would use some text!

dress：

ALTAIR* kitten collar .black.

ALTAIR* kitten garter .black. maitreya

ALTAIR* kitten lingerie B maitreya

ALTAIR* nomnom mouse .albino.

ALTAIR* pawpadsies maitreya HIGH

ALTAIR* twinkle vision eyes

tattoo：Stardust - Dream - Body & Face Tattoos

Eyelashes：Stardust - Misa - Eyelashes

Jasmine Stardust

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/BREATHE/204/167/1002

:: MOMOCHUU :: Aoi - Head towel A - A

:Moon Amore: Arcano Rings

:moon amore: BlossomTime/ Floral Eyepatch - Coal

DISORDERLY. / WOODLAND WATCHER / SPARKLES

DISORDERLY. / Holiday Glamour / Short Ornament Dome / Gold

suika-Earrings

hair：VCO ~ Sakura [B] Ash - resizer

[VO.Z] Short Bento Nails With Rivets - Maitreya

21. Sallie Language Cosplayer Torso Body w/Pose yellow

Ariskea[Lavende] Lemonade Plate

Ariskea[Lavende] Dry bag Lavender

-Nomi-Fruitie Neko Sit-C White

糯米-Nomi-

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/BEAUTY%20DREAMS/128/220/25

{-Maru Kado-} Oil Stove_dark red (2Li) diannuanlu

{-Maru Kado-} Sleep Cat 4 (2Li)

Ariskea[Lavende] Book of Study

dust bunny . tray of champagne . gold

dust bunny . kawaii lunch . chicken sliders

dust bunny . chocolate strawberries

dust bunny . box of roses . pink . box a

dust bunny . kawaii lunch . fawn bento

02. Lagom - PinkKink [Bed] RARE

*FG* Lovely Watermelon #04- Blanket

Frangipani Garden

Ariskea[Lavende] Savon de Lavande[Lavander]

I decided to invest in a dry bag and brought my old camera with me on my paddle tonight. This view caught my eye the last time I was out on the strait - and it did not disappoint tonight either!

Oregon's Stunning Oneonta Gorge. I've made several fruitless trips to this mystic little slot canyon in the Columbia River Gorge. I've been stymied by high water, I've been drenched in a torrential down-pour and I've been tormented by throngs of recreation minded hiker-bathers types. During my most recent trip, I was prepared, mostly. I had a big dry-bag for all my large format gear, the weather was great and I was mentally prepared for the large man-eating log jam near the entrance of the canyon. I wasn't prepared for the brutally low lighting conditions. Up to two minutes in some shots. Yikes! Luckily, it was mostly windless. I really like this composition and how it the little stream pulls me into the falls at the end. I debated printing this image in portrait or landscape format the first time around( I shot it both ways) but the little stream won out over more mossy canyon walls, at least this time around. Please let time know what you think and share your own stories about This beautiful little canyon below. Thanks, www.mikeputnamphoto.com

Visit my website at: www.graemekellyphotography.weebly.com

you can also follow my page for news and updates on Facebook

I’m also now displaying my work at 500px

I’m just back from a week in the stunning Faroe Islands and have uploaded the first batch of images to my website, including this one of the iconic waterfall at Gasadalur. This was the first location I visited and I was able to walk here straight from the airport-how many places can you do that?

I was here taking pictures for most of the afternoon but as the sun started to set a series of heavy showers swept across the scene. Luckily I was able to capture one band of rain catching the light before it reached me, forcing me to hastily plunge my camera into its dry bag. I’ve popped 3more images on the website so far if you were curious to see more, and I’ll be posting more over the next week or so.

Like the image? Press ‘L’ to see it large and ‘F’ to add it as a favourite, and feel free to leave a comment; it’s always nice to hear what you think.

Thanks for looking

Graeme

© Copyright 2014 All Rights Reserved. If you would like to purchase prints or use my work then please contact me through flickr or my website.

Two GHB were flying around the shallows of the bay when we were out on the kayaks after dinner. It took a bit but I slowly drifted close enough to get a few shots in the shadows along the shore before sunset. This one was getting nervous about my approach and shortly after decided I had drifted a little too close. I use the Canon Powershot G3 X when I'm in the kayak because it fits nicely into a small shoulder dry-bag I can take with me. This little 'Super-Zoom' has 600mm FF equivalent focal length making it great for these outings, though a challenge to track moving subjects with.

ISO 4000 on the G3 X is pushing it but I managed decent recovery in Topaz DeNoise AI.

The Venus Mill, built in 1908, eased the high

cost of shipping silver ore out of Yukon Territory. Gravity

pulled a line of ore-filled tipping buckets 460m down

an aerial tramway cable from Venus Mine to the mill.

Belt-driven mill machinery crushed and ground the

ore into a powder. Mineral concentrate, floated out

of the crushed rock by chemical means, was dried,

bagged and shipped by steamboat to the railway at

Carcross.

At peak production, the mill produced 10 tons of silver ore

concentrate per day. The Venus Mill did not operate after 1920

From their website:

"What sets us apart is our boats. We have the fastest tour boats in San Diego with the ability to reach speeds of over 50 mph. Moving fast means that we can cover more ground and see more of what we love!

adventurewhalewatchingsandiego.com/

Nothing better than setting out to sea in a rubber raft put together by a government contractor who put in the lowest bid! Nah, I'm pretty sure that the SpecWar folks get the best equipment available, at least I'd like to think so.

If you're into seeing marine life in the wild this would probably be a great way to do it. Just make sure your camera gear is in a dry bag and your waterproof camera housing really is waterproof!

Because I said so - and I carry a Big Stick, A colorful meeting of complex river rat minds, Colorado River, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona.

Ed thought he had heard he could have a small fire... but that turned out not to be the case. It was a simple misunderstanding quickly rectified with the aid of Lew's big beer can smashing stick (a broken oar with metal plate).

Veteran River Guide Lew Steiger can usually be found somewhere on the Colorado River between Lee's Ferry and Grand Wash - just find a shady spot and wait - I'll be by soon.

A few hours before sunrise, the Milky Way centre rose with the Moon over Tasman Bay in New Zealand's South Island.

I made the effort to carry my camera and tripod in a dry bag on our two-day kayaking trip in Abel Tasman National Park in the hope that we would get clear skies when we camped. While I was lucky with the cloud cover and the tide, I wasn't so lucky with the position of the moon.

Mosquito Bay, Abel Tasman National Park, New Zealand, 2019

Sony a7R II with Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM

Vermeer 6x12 pinhole camera with Kodak Ektar 100 film

Exposure approximately 2 seconds

That reddish orange to the right is my dry bag for carrying cameras.

The Venus Mill, built in 1908, eased the high cost of shipping silver ore out of Yukon Territory. Gravity pulled a line of ore-filled tipping buckets 460m down an aerial tramway cable from Venus Mine to the mill. Belt-driven mill machinery crushed and ground the core into a powder. Mineral concentrate, floated out of the crushed rock by chemical means, was dried, bagged and shipped by steamboat to the railway at Carcross.

At peak production, the mill produced 10 tons of silver ore

concentrate per day. The Venus Mill did not operate after 1920

I love it when I am surprised. I took a trip up to Grafton Notch State Park this afternoon to take a look at Screw Auger Falls (why does one state need 2 different screw auger falls by the way. What exactly is a screw auger?). The falls themselves were pretty cool but I was not going to hop out to the rock overhang to shoot them properly (I don't know what I'm going to do when I visit the Grand Canyon in August. I'll be the guy crawling on his hands and knees out to the overlooks).

I thought I would climb down to the bottom and see if I could make my way up to the falls. As you come up to the falls the stream takes you through this little grotto here. Nothing like I have seen in Maine. I didn't quite make it to the falls (right around the bend there). I was waist deep in water already and getting to that next step would require chest high wading. I'll make another attempt when I have somebody to watch my gear or a dry bag.

This is actually my third favorite comp of the set but thought I would get some practice on the processing before processing my favorites. I do like the way the light hits that rock on the right as well as the patterns though. I actually prefer this one in black and white and an unfinished conversion is currently functioning as my wallpaper. I think I am probably in the minority though when it comes to the black and white thing... The colors here are pretty cool. I thought I saw flecks of gold in the water too but turns out it was just lots of mica and quartz embedded in the rocks.

facebook | website | blog

View looking East across Lake Mark Kramer

The rain chances for the day were very low and so I didn’t hesitate to push away from the dock on this fine morning and head out to my favorite location and search for some signs of birds. The clouds off in the distance did light up nicely as the sun broke over the horizon and the colors in it were quite intense and the reflection didn’t look half bad either. I continued to paddle toward Horsepen Bayou and fired off a number of shots while still near Bay Area Park. This is still a part of Armand Bayou at this point (scene with the bow of the canoe in it) and it will join Horsepen bayou as I round the bend to the right and become Lake Mark Kramer. After I arrived at Lake Mark Kramer I looked back toward the sun and things looked somewhat nice with the rays streaming skyward. The view to the south and toward Horsepen Bayou wasn’t as promising and it was a good time to see if that parka was still in the dry bag. Might be a good time to drag out that parka and get ready for the rain that was about to arrive. The rain lasted for a few minutes as the huge cloud drifted to the north and off into the distance. Nothing more than a shower, but I did like the way the cloud lit up in the early morning light. Photos taken on Armand Bayou.

DSC01714uls

Portfolio & Services

Vexing Photographers for Decades

In my quest to find new spots that are close to home, I have spent hours on Google Maps looking at interesting rocky shoreline near my home. I'll zoom in as far as I can, and I proceed to click and drag...over and over again.

My first time to Greyhound Rock, I mentioned some cool rocky formations to the south of the main beach. They appear inaccessible, bordered by open ocean to the west and 300+ foot cliffs to the east. The ocean meets the cliffs at their bases, and the cliffs are eroding by the minute.

One of my contacts, surfwax, is a local Santa Cruz photographer, and he sent me a message after that first Greyhound Rock post, laughing about my write-up. He knew exactly what I was talking about regarding those formations to the south.

And I quote "Lol...that area has vexed me for 15 years. That amazing question-mark/ear-lobe shaped finger, curling around a mini harbor full of basking seals. Lots of tubes and tunnels and tons of photographic teases."

Photographic teases indeed.

I made my way down to Greyhound Rock beach on Saturday night after work, determined to get some shots of this forbidden coast, if only as a reminder that surfwax and I plan on exploring this coast, but at the next minus tides. We may get a little wet even with the tides. I will certainly have my camera in a dry bag will most likely wear my 3mm wetsuit. So I took the beach to its rocky end and stood on the shelf that marks the end of the easy access and snapped away.

I am excited to explore the forbidden coast.

Nikon D300

Nikkor 12-24mm @ 12mm

0.8sec @ f10, ISO 100

Tiffen .9 ND Filter

Lee .9 and .6 Soft GND Filters (angled to mirror the angle of the cliffs)

The people jumped in the waters to snorkel immediately after we docked here. I took out cam and sat near the boat's edge and took this shot. Then, I placed the cam back in the dry bag and took a deep breath. Not for any particular reason. I just want to soak in the moment, so to speak.

I just can't believe our waters can be that clear. I'm making myself miss Palawan right about now.

An early morning adventure by kayak from Seabrook Island South Carolina over to Botany Bay on Edisto Island turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life, although the photos did not turn out as grand as the experience behind them. I packed my camera gear carefully in to a dry bag and loaded that in to the dry compartment of my kayak. I set out at 4:30am to ensure I gave myself enough time to get there by sunrise and hoping to get there early enough to get a shot of the milky way above the trees. I knew that kayaking in the dark across the ocean alone was a rather risky proposition, so I had prepared - checking the weather and looking carefully at the maps, I'd also kayaked over to the edge of Edisto in the daytime and had spent a fair bit of time kayaking around the inlet between Edisto and Seabrook so I had a good feel for the waves and tides there. There is a large sandbank that protects this inlet pretty well so the surf is not too rough.

Unfortunately, I didn't realize how far Botany Bay was up Edisto from where I landed. I pulled the Kayak up while the tides were still low (just starting to come in) and started walking up the beach looking for the stand of dead trees called the boneyard. It turns out that what looked close on the map was about 1.5 miles up the beach from where I had come to shore. The stars had faded by the time I got there and the light was just coming on. A bank of clouds clung to the horizon and obscured the best part of the sunrise after I took some pre-dawn shots, so this was as much color as I got. I packed my gear back up quickly and had to jog back to my kayak as the tide was coming in quickly and I wasn't sure how safe the kayak would be from the tide where I left it. As I was halfway back down the beach, the sun emerged briefly from the cloud to give me a glorious show (which was both nice and depressing at the same time, as I was no longer in position to shoot it).

Two things I will never forget from this paddle are how visible the galactic core was from here and the glow of my paddle strokes in the ocean from the bioluminescence (of plankton?) in the ocean. That was an awesome sight, which spooked me a little at first as I was not expecting to see it. Looking forward to repeating this again some day in the future.

Porcelain Rocket Mr Fusion V2 saddle bag in detail.

One of my goals over the next couple of months is to do a lot more waterfall shooting in the Columbia River Gorge. This is an area I've neglected for a while, mostly because it's so close and easy. You know how sometimes you'll make a long list of stuff you need to do around the house and something like "pick up socks that are on the piano" somehow doesn't ever get done because it's so easy you think you can do it any old time? Well, that's how these gorge waterfalls have been for me.

Anyway, that's changing. Here's one from Oneonta Gorge in Oregon's Columbia River Gorge scenic area. I've been in here around a dozen times, and each time I take less and less care with my gear. On the way out this time, in the armpit-deep section, I actually did a kind of double-stumble over a rock, and my Lowepro bag (not waterproof, just water resistant) ended up floating for a moment before I could lift it over my head again. As soon as I lifted it I could tell that the bag was heavier because it had taken on water.

After a quick examination, though, I was lucky to find out that only a few drops of water had gotten into the camera compartment, mostly through the zipper. The nylon outer portion of the bag was soaked, though. Whew! I think I'll start taking a dry bag with me again.

Another morning image at New Zealand's Cathedral Cove. We kayaked to this beach, so I packed my camera in a dry bag. We lucked out with a low tide, decent light and not as many people as were there later in the day.

The Ogre on my first go at overnight Bike-Packing. There is clearance on the front wheel - it just doesn't look it here.

The dry bag on the front is a bit large though but it was the only one in the only store that was open. What was a failure were the only straps in this store - 100kg marine weighted. The straps were continuously slipping and I just had to hand tie them in the end.

Some of the things that made the trip enjoyable, like a hoody for the campsite and my Kindle were the most awkward things to pack.

I have ordered Revelate straps and a small 'Jones Bag' for the Jones bar which should let me tidy up the front end considerably. Going from the photo the saddle could tip forward although it doesn't look that angle in real life?

We walked up Filey brigg which was really cold and windy with a sea fret that fogged up my camera lens.

A few of my dolls had come with me, dressed in bikinis for a nice day at the beach but i think they regretted their clothing choices as we got closer to the coast and it got duller and colder - in the end they decided to stay in the warm dry bag! 😂

Waimanu Valley, Island of Hawai’i

Continuing the story of my Hawaiian backpacking trip - I’d just hiked 10 strenuous miles, taken photos of the valley at sunset, and my foot was touched by a creepy crawfish and I eeeek’d like a little girl and went to sleep.

Waking up in a secluded paradise the next morning was pretty great too. I took some pretty cool abstract-ish photos of the valley wall reflecting onto the wet black sand beach that I'm looking forward to putting together. We had originally planned to stay in the valley another night but we saw storm clouds a-brewin' and sadly decided to pack up camp early and cross the river, which is kind of a process with only one dry bag. It was like one of those elementary school math problems where you have a boat and a river and only so many people and things can cross and come back at a time. Anyway, we didn’t want to leave the valley too early so we hung out on the beach for a couple hours, then started hiking back up the steep valley wall. About 3 miles away there was a nice pavilion with a roof and floor we would stay at, ensuring we'd be dry and have only 7 miles the next day to hike. Of course, it started to absolutely downpour as we were hiking up so we got pretty soaked. Luckily it was a warm rain, or we would probably have been in danger of hypothermia. Also, the trail stayed pretty in-tact with all the roots and rocks keeping the mud together.

I had no intention of taking my camera out in that heavy rain, but at one point on that 3 mile wet stretch the rain started to let up a little. I looked over and saw an absolutely gorgeous scene that is this photo. Sometimes I am lucky to just look up and see a scene and my brain immediately composes a photo. Most of the time good photos require exploration and experimentation and hard work, but this was one of those satisfying times where it was just right there. The rain made for a really cool, hazy atmosphere amongst the massive trees and the underbrush framed the scene nicely. I dug out my camera and tripod from the dry bag and somehow I was able to pull off a 4 second exposure without getting water on my lens and without the tree leaves blowing too much. As I was looking around for other compositions, the deluge resumed. I packed up my stuff and we trudged on toward the pavilion.

Arriving in it felt like heaven. We wringed out all of our wet things and then wringed them out again. The rain continued into the night but we stayed bone dry thanks to the “luxurious” roof and floor (backpacking sure makes you appreciate the little things in life). The next morning there was no rain. Somehow we got a sliver of cell phone reception and saw there was rain forecast for noon, so we got up before dark and started hiking to make it back dry. Long story short, we did. Hiking back down the Z-trail wasn’t as physically strenuous as going up it, but I kept slipping on its loose rocks, even with trekking poles. That kinda took a mental toll as each treacherous step made me afraid I would slip and hurt myself, or worse, my camera :) I grit my teeth and continued on. How do you eat an entire elephant? One step at a time. That’s what I always say. We crossed the river in Waipio Valley, which was much higher after all the rain but still pretty manageable. We saw wild horses and wild naked hippie children and then walked back up the steepest road in America. It was difficult and slow-going, but walking on the flat, consistent pavement felt like a treat after a couple miles loose rocks and sand. We made it to the top without a problem.

We plunked down in the car, peeled off our sweaty clothes and blasted the AC. We took hand sanitizer showers (surprisingly effective) and found the nearest laundromat to wash our still-wet clothes. We had our first meal at a Portuguese restaurant that tasted like pure bliss. Then we went to an AirBNB for the night, which was absolutely amazing. It used to be an old dance hall but a very nice old hippie lady turned it into a house and an orchard. This orchard apparently contains the oldest macadamia trees in Hawai'i, whose nuts we helped ourselves to. She had a secluded outdoor shower, which felt even better than it sounds. She had friends over and cooked all of us fish tacos with fresh food from her orchard, which we ate by candlelight. She used to be a professional chef so it was fantastic. Her boyfriend was a lead engineer at the famous observatories on the big island, so it was very interesting to hear about the trials and tribulations of that line of work. We drank wine, got along well, and chatted into the night (which for this earlybird means like 10pm). The next morning we had fresh fruit and cacao coffee and said our goodbyes. That was the absolute best way we could have spent the night after a tough backpacking trip, and I will always look back on those 3 days very fondly.

That’s the story, but I still have a few photos from that trip I will post so stay tuned!

See more photos, find social media links, and support me and get digital wallpapers and prints at www.brentgoesoutside.com

Captured: February 2018

Camera: Nikon D610

Lens: Nikon 16-35 f/4

Settings: ISO100, 27mm, f/11, 4 sec

Can only mean one thing, RAIN IS COMING! It moved from the far right horizon to almost overhead (see previous image) in minutes. Time to put the camera in it's dry bag and start paddling. The race is on to get to shore!

On our second night boating the San Juan River, we were met/wet with the first of 6 consecutive torrential thunderstorms and flash floods, each stronger than the last. This first one occurred at the Mexican Hat campground (the rock formation is the Mexican Hat) and was over in time for me to take my camera out of its dry bag. The sun was just setting, so the entire landscape had gained a golden hue, while the river began turning bright orange, but the greatest part of the view (which I just couldn't get a picture of) was the lightning striking through the rainbow.