New York Hiking, Skiing, Climbing and Paddling
View allAll Photos Tagged opportunity
Any time I get an opportunity to visit Yosemite National Park High Country, I stop to admire Beautiful Tenaya Lake. It is somewhat remote from the vehicles and crowds that swarm the Yosemite Valley Floor, leaving one with a sense of freshness and renewal.
Caught between immense granite domes and clear Sierra Nevada sky, Tenaya Lake is the largest lake in Yosemite National Park. The Lake was named after Chief Tenaya, who was the last chief of the Yosemite Indians.
The lake is located between Yosemite Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. The surface of Tenaya Lake has an elevation of 8,150 feet. The lake basin was formed by glacial action, which left a backdrop of light granite rocks, whose beauty was well known to the Native Americans.
(iPhone 13 Pro Max, 1/5000 @ f/1.5, ISO 50, edited to taste)
Second time that I have the opportunity to see this nice red fox.
I could do one photo not far form her ( it is a female ) and then few from far away when she was hunting.
So this photo is a full cropped view (2k over 8k) to make a kind of portrait of this nice young fox.
I used the photo done as she was near to me +/-20m to make this crop.
I'll post a larger view of this photo later.
(_DSC0314-DNll10100-DNclrmlm50v2x3-ConvExp0200B+0002S03-4K-BlBG+4K169-DNclr-2k)
Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them. ~ William Arthur Ward
Sorry to bother you once again with this most-photographed scene on my stream. But once in a while I need to go to this beautiful place to shoot. This time it was really challenging because of many many mosquitos around. So probably this will be the one and only image of that pond this year :-)
Happy Sunday, dear friends!
In Parkes, NSW, for the David Malin Awards, I was told the normal floodlighting on The Dish radio telescope would be turned off to allow a timelapse to be made for the CSIRO. I hadn't planned to shoot The Dish as many others already have, but without the excess lighting, and given I didn't find a better site I thought I should try. Sigma lens, processed in Lightroom.
I had the opportunity to photograph this very cooperative Least Tern that was incubating it’s eggs. Knowing that the Sun will go down behind the bird, I decided to spend the rest of the evening photographing the bird. Strangely, she/ he had no help from the partner, every hour or so the bird took a break to feed itself
Nikon D850 | 600mm | f4 | 1/1600 | ISO800
Massachusetts, USA | 28-Jul-2019
The sparrowhawk is surely one of the UK's most striking raptors.
Unfortunately this male's own strike was far from successful and his chosen prey had long since fled when I took this shot.
Sparrowhawk (Accipiter Nisus)
Adel Dam Nature Reserve
Many thanks to all those who take the time to comment on my photos. It is truly appreciated.
This Barn Owl was perched on the post behind the tree making it difficult to get a good angle for a shot, when a brief gust of wind moved the branches allowing me to capture this photo, hence the title.
Moving from the Desert into the Metropolis that is Dubai I was stunned into disbelief at how this city has evolved in the 4 years since I last visited. Rather than the normal shots that appear I decided on a boat trip and took my images from the sea. The sun was directly above me and it was 50 degrees. Not ideal for taking photos but I wasn't going to miss any opportunity. The architecture is breathtaking so please forgive me if I over post.
Created for Kreative People Treat This: 2022.09.15
www.flickr.com/groups/1752359@N21/discuss/72157721917323641/
Many thanks to brillianthues for the beautiful source below:
www.flickr.com/photos/brillianthues/52355320658/in/album-...
Top layer created in Wombo using my artwork as a source, mirrored two times; third layer is my own manipulated photo.
Thank you for your visit, faves, invites and kind comments!
I love this angle looking northeast toward downtown St. Paul. This photo took a long wait, as the glaciers probably moved faster than did this manifest trying to make a start down the Mankato Subdivision. This train left Hoffman Yard and slowly worked its way to under the Wabasha Street Bridge then stopped for 10 minutes. The train then moved the distance of two city blocks near Ontario Street then stopped. I figured there had to be opposing traffic or something causing them to be so hesitant. Sure enough, a long manifest was ending its journey on the Mankato Subdivision and coming into St. Paul. Another 30 minutes went by, perhaps to give traffic downtown a break - the first manifest occupied Chestnut Street for 15 minutes. Finally, this westbound finally moved onto the Mankato Subdivision and completed a glorious scene here viewed from the High Bridge. I estimate it took 1 hour and 30 minutes for this to get here from Hoffman Yard - a distance of only three miles away.
(Warning: this is a long one, so grab some popcorn and settle in.)
Photographing landscapes has provided me with countless opportunities to have my mind blown over the past few years. From summits in the Canadian Rockies, to countless sunrises in the Sierras to spectacular night skies in remote corners of Utah to beautiful coastlines in Oregon....so many incredible moments. Of all of these experiences, the one I endured last Friday was truly special. It was a personal triumph and one that I have literally been working toward for the past two years.
Tom Bricker was the first one to mention the Diving Board to me. I had seen the shot by Ansel Adams, of course, and had always wondered where he took that shot from, but I figured you would just...you know. Get closer. I was sure that the location must be just beyond Curry Village. What was the big deal?
The big deal is that the diving board is a location in Yosemite that cannot be reached by taking one of the major, well maintained trails. Back in Ansel's day you just took some ropes and charged up the Leconte Gully. But the gully has long been deemed unstable due to frequent rockfalls. The standard route nowadays begins on the mist trail and winds around behind Lost Lake before heading steeply straight up the side of base of Half Dome. From what we were able to gather from scouting online, this would be a 16 mile round trip hike and the word "strenuous" was being thrown around by some very hard core hikers and climbers. My heart sank as I first heard these reports. After all, the hike up the Upper Falls trail had nearly finished me off a few years before. How in the world could I expect to haul my camera gear up the Mist Trail let alone the nearly vertical sections of this crazy trail to the foot of Half Dome?
But I really wanted that shot. I hit the treadmill and began building up my endurance. (Of course the first night was only 10 minutes, but hey. It was a start.) I also began challenging myself with some more difficult hikes, the most recent of which was up to the Fern Ledge in Yosemite. As the Summer drew to a close, we finally had a chance of thunderstorms and the promise of a possible sunset, and I sent Tom an urgent message: Can we go for it on Friday?
So last Friday, Tom and I took off at 4 AM for Yosemite. By 10:30 AM we were taking off from the Mist Trail parking area. Man I was feeling good! No stops at all on the way up to the first bridge. I was blowing past old people and asian tourists like they were standing still. Then the REAL climbing began. By the time we made it to the top of Nevada Fall, I was wiped. But we hadn't started the tough section yet. Tom and I had found a short cut up from Emerald Pool and we had a GPS map with us on Gaia. We were all set. What could go wrong?
So up we went.
The trip from Emerald Pool to the regular bush trail junction was easily the hardest climbing I've ever done. The nearly 30 pounds on my back turned out to be a huge mistake as I nearly gave up several times. Between the steep terrain and the bushwhacking, I was toast. When we hit the junction, things only got worse. I was having to stop almost every 100 feet and poor Tom just sat there waiting for me. After clawing my way up another 700 feet or so, I finally collapsed, unable to continue. I told Tom to head up without me, but he refused. After a long break, it finally hit me: I could dump whatever I wasn't going to use at the top and grab it on the way down! So out came my 24-70 lens (way too hazy for a valley shot), the tripod, almost all of my food, two jackets and over a liter of water. I dropped by stuff in a neat little pile behind a tree reminding myself that it would be a bad idea to forget those items on the way down.
Suddenly the backpack was WAY lighter and even though it hurt, I continued to force my way up. For the final 500 feet, I hung back and sent Tom up ahead. After another 1/2 hour break, I lurched back onto my feet and with the soundtrack of Rocky playing in my head, I charged up the last 500 feet to the Diving Board...some EIGHT hours after leaving the parking lot.
The view was absolutely spectacular as Half Dome rose far more majestically than I could have ever imagined. Although we didn't get quite the epic sunset we were hoping for, we did get some color during the last few minutes, just enough to give some atmosphere. A goal I had set two years prior had just been achieved. I had made it all the way to the diving board!
Our smiles began to fade as it dawned on us that it was getting dark in a real hurry and my car was still 8 miles away. There would be no "short cut" on the way down as we were pretty sure we would not survive a hike back down the sketchy ravine we had just clambered up. So down we went on the long, normal route around past Lost Lake. About 45 minutes later, I said something like "Hey Tom....where's my stuff?" Both of us were convinced that it must still be below us, so we plowed on. After we had gone another 1/2 hour or so, it dawned on us that we must have passed it. We were both beyond exhausted and nearly out of water. But Tom, being the hero that he is, charged back up to look for it. But didn't find it. He had a quarter of a liter of water left and I had maybe a half. I wasn't even sure if I could make the hike out, so I took a deep breath and told Tom we just needed to leave my lens...and all of my other stuff up there, which would have been roughly $2500 to replace.
Ouch.
Okay...this is taking way to long. I'll skip to the end.
After we passed Lost Lake on the way down, we found water in a creek and used my filter to keep from dying on the way back. Tom made it back to the car around 2:30 AM and very kindly drove the car around to the trailhead as I had some severe blisters. I didn't make it back to the trailhead until 3:30 AM.
Fast forward to last Monday when I drove back to Yosemite to find my stuff. I stayed overnight in El Portal and set off the next morning, this time without the 30 pounds taking only water and food. I left at 4 AM and by 8 AM I found my stuff exactly where I had left it! I made it up there in HALF the time! My lens and gear were undamaged and I breathed a huge sigh of relief before heading back down.
For those of you who might be interested taking this hike, I'll have much more details for you including maps, etc on my blog in the very near future. Sorry for the ridiculously long story and THANK YOU for reading the whole thing if you are still with me! The Diving Board was truly a once in a lifetime trip for me....at least for now. I MIGHT try it again, but if I do, it will be with MUCH less gear and more water!
--------------
Thank you so much for your views and comments! If you have specific questions please be sure to send me a message via flickr mail, or feel free to contact me via one of the following:
Blog | Website | Facebook | Instagram | 500px | Twitter | Google +
LIFE IS....
by Mother Theresa
Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.
==============================
I just have to upload and share what is available. From my archive. Hope you all dig it.
I have a very poor memory when it comes to naming flowers. My apology!!!
From our garden.
===========================================================
All the best to everyone.
Thank you for your understanding, support and comments. Very much appreciated...
An opportunity to see some Gray-crowned Babblers while I was walking around Lake Fyans in the Halls Gap area.
There were several of them chasing each other from perch to perch - usually in many branches - - so as much fun as they were to watch they never were a great photo op as a grouping.
Gray-crowned Babbler - Halls Gap, Australia
Occasionally we see butterflies perch on our ashe juniper trees - not the prettiest setting. But this one sat there for a good minute, giving me a good opportunity to explore the possibilities...
Feeding Osprey at Honeymoon Island State Park, Dunedin, Florida, USA.
This photograph/image is copyrighted and may not be used in any way without my permission. If you would like to use it, please contact me via Flickr mail.
Thanks for visiting and for your faves and comments.
On my way to the city centre I noticed that the gate to the back yard of a shop was open with fairy lights sparkling, so I took the opportunity to quickly take a photo of the scene.
I can't resist fairy lights when I have mounted a vintage (or fast) lens onto one of my cameras ; ))
[ manual Ricoh XR Rikenon 50mm f1.4 on a Pentax K-70, stopped down a bit ]
When opportunity knocks, you have to make sure that you have everything just the way it needs to be, nothing left to chance. So when a SD40-2W and BC Rail Dash-9 in red, white, and blue show up, you do everything in your power to make it perfect. With fine tuning done on all of my lights, the execution was all that had to happen. The results are good, and there was a lot less stress wondering if everything was going to be right.
RKO_6412. “Shall I…”
While trying to get some shots of the European Kestrel I came across this interesting situation. Obviously the Common Buzzard just killed -and was feasting on- a bird while this crow (?) was nearby waiting for the left overs. You can almost read the common buzzards thoughts......
I couldn't resist to upload this image as it was so interesting to watch.
Copyright: Robert Kok. All rights reserved! Watermark protected.
More of my work and activities can be seen on:
linktr.ee/robertkok
www.instagram.com/robertkok_photography/
More than 10 million visits on my stream! Wow, thank you all!
Please do not use my photos on websites, blogs or in any other media without my explicit permission.
Thanks a lot for your visit, fave and comments. Its truly appreciated!
Great skua (Stercorarius skua).
Gannets have been diving for fish below - this Gt. skua waits for one to surface with their catch before diving down to seize it!
Last Sunday, I had a great opportunity to capture images inside a terrain with many young born sheeps. I like the attached a lot, as it creates some smile just when watching. Looking at local weather here today, just the opposite is happening. But there is not bad weather, just...All good weekend ahead. Thanks, Udo.
Windows of Opportunity" have been on my mind a lot. We are tentatively scheduled to take a May tour of Bryce & Zion canyons with Road Scholar in May of 2022. The COVID numbers are rising. If I were in my 40's , I would wait and say that there would be other opportunities "when life becomes more normal (safe)". I am in my mid-70's and healthy. There is still the thought in the back of my mind as to how many windows of opportunity will be in my future. We will decide as the time draws nearer.
I am reflecting, not complaining. We have weathered the pandemic well and our living situation is comfortable. I have also had many opportunities in the past to experience other places. The Irish rover in my genes still longs for a look beyond my present horizon, however, and it's a nagging feeling.
There will be one other post in this "windows of opportunity" series.
Given the opportunity to consider this shot, gave rise to thoughts of time. Have you ever pondered it and tried to explain time? Or listened to those who attempt to do so? Typically. the defining term becomes one of direction. Time appears to move only forward, unlike the other elements that constitute our universe.
As a companion, its meaning lead me to compose this image. Headstones for leading lines, and a tree branch to frame them. This photos purpose is related to the mysteries of time, its "direction", and the enigma that lay ahead.
the sun is out and the cormorants took full advantage in soaking up the sun and drying themselves off
Another negative that has been rescanned and reprocessed to produce an improved result. The original image, uploaded seven years ago, has been deleted.
The shot was taken at Hartlepool while on a week-long Eastern Region Railrover ticket, and features class 37 unit 37160 hauling a rake of COVHOPS, possibly carrying lime destined for the nearby Steetley Works from Thrislington or Coxhoe Quarry.
Above the loco can be seen the floodlights of the Victoria Ground, home of Hartlepool United FC and, to the left of that, is the dog track - now demolished and replaced by a Morrisons food store. The signal box is just visible through the girders of the barn-like structure on the right.
In the brake van the Guard has his coat hung up, and he's no doubt thinking about the imminent arrival and any tasks he needs to perform before signing off.
The station and surroundings were looking pretty uncared for by this time, hardly unusual for the period. Even so, I suspect there would still be a queue to go back and take a few more snaps, should the opportunity ever come up!
Ilford FP4, rated at 95asa, developed in Acutol.
8th September 1976
a gap of light in the arctic Bodø , since sunset is early in the day , you got to be fast and lucky!
I was at Brooks Falls for photos of the bears feasting on salmon. However, this Common Merganser mom swam by with her brood, and I've never seen common merganser chicks, so I took some shots! It's interesting to me to see the different patterns that chicks have between species!
Taken 26 July at Brooks Falls, Alaska.
After a monumental screw up that could have been easily prevented a week earlier, another opportunity presented itself on the shot. After waiting in town for three and a half hours, a short Y102 returns back north with only a couple cars through Holly, MI past the very charming Battle Alley.
Today I had the opportunity to work in a studio for several hours and photograph still life for the first time. Recently, I finally opened my wallet and bought a 100mm macro lens. I’ve been in agony since last July when I accompanied another photographer to Elizabeth Park in Hartford, CT. when the roses were in full bloom. Borrowing her lens was a HUGE mistake!
Much like my 500F4, I’ve quickly found that the DOF is paper thin and it will take some time making good images. Most of the images I made today had controlled lighting either by myself using a 600EX-RT with a transmitter coupled with a 10 second delay allowing me to position myself for light angle or by actual controlled studio lighting.
Both the lens and the studio environment were completely foreign to me and the majority of the images were unsatisfactory.
Close to the end of the day, as the sun was descending, a series of large paned windows created natural backlighting on this flower. Nothing more than a piece of black poster board was used behind for separation.
This is the second time I’ve successfully used natural backlighting on a subject and been more than satisfied with the soft tones and stunning texture from the illumination.
I have a long humbling road ahead of me with this lens and the many new concepts I will have to learn to gain proficiency but again it’s a satisfying journey learning, observing and the education of photography.
Thank you all for your comments, favors and words of wisdom. Happy Easter my Flickr Friends!
Between the ages of 11 and 18 I cross country ran for school and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. In fact after school I continued to run good distances for many a year. A few years on I started hiking but at no time did I ever combine the two activities and fell run. Oh, how I regret my actions.
This photo, taken a couple of weeks ago shows a lone fell runner descending from Harter Fell towards Nan Bield Pass.
„The small on the big, the new on the old. But be careful, two knives - equally sharp - whether small or large, whether new or old..."
„Das kleine auf dem großen, das neue auf dem alten. Doch Vorsicht, zwei Messer - gleich scharf - egal ob klein oder groß, egal ob neu oder alt…“
„I would like to take this opportunity to thank all followers, all new followers, and all those who just stop by. I say thank you for all previous and for all the new fav's and comments. 🙏“
„Ich danke an dieser Stelle allen Followern, allen neuen Followern, und all jenen die einfach so mal vorbeischauen. Ich sage Danke für alle bisherigen und für all die neu hinzukommenden Fav‘s und Kommentare. 🙏“
My personal challenge for 2022 - I'll try - and do my very best...
Meine persönliche Herausforderung für 2022 - ich werd's versuchen - und mein Bestes geben…