Wanders & Wonders

Arizona Centennial

Feb 142012

Besides being Valentines Day, this February 14 is the 100th anniversary of the declaration of Statehood for Arizona. This desert southwest state includes some of the most dramatic scenery in the United States and many locations are constant draws for nature and landscape photographers. Arizona also offers a wealth of opportunity for adventure travel and for history buffs.

The images in the slideshow imbedded here are from some trips I’ve made to Arizona, and show just a sample of its attractions: Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly, Lake Powell, Sedona, Route 66 and more. Hover your mouse pointer near the top of the images for caption and location. Click on this link to watch the slideshow with larger images in a separate window.

Check out the work of some of my friends who live in Arizona for even more outstanding photography of the state: Jack Dykinga, Kerrick James, Victor Beer. Each of these photographers also offer tours and workshops in the state. For a small group tour, without a specific photo purpose but with people who will put you in some of the most photogenic locations, I highly recommend Detours of Arizona.

Check this link for some of the special events planned this year for the Arizona Centennial. For more information about visiting Arizona, check the official Arizona Office of Tourism website. Photographers will definitely want to get a copy of Laurent Martres’ award winning guidebook Photographing the Southwest, Volume 2 – Arizona.

Do you have a gallery or slideshow of Arizona photographs? Feel free to add a link in the Comments section.

Alabama Hills Arches

Jan 152012

Mobius Arch and the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains at dawn

Mount Whitney and the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains seen through Mobius Arch in the Alabama Hills.

The fantastic rock formations of the Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, California, have been favorite subject matter for photographers for many years. The combination of jumbled and roundly eroded rock rising up from the Owens Valley with a backdrop of the dramatic eastern face of the Sierra Nevada mountains is hard to beat.

Scattered throughout the Alabama Hills are a number of interesting rock arches. At one time, some photographers and concerned conservationists tried to keep the location of the arches a secret, but word started to get out, and now the whereabouts of some of the most prominent arches are well known. The Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce even gives out a map with directions to some of the arches.

The most striking of the arches, and the most popular with photographers, is often referred to as Mobius Arch due it’s shape. I believe that it was master landscape photographer David Muench that made this arch famous with an image made years ago showing Mount Whitney viewed through the arch.

Mobius Arch is one of those shown on the CofC map (available at several stores in town) and is quite easy to find. From US Highway 395 in the center of Lone Pine, turn west at the stop light on the road signed for Whitney Portals. Drive 2.5 miles and then turn right onto Movie Flat Road. Follow this road (sometimes bumpy but no problem for passenger cars) and veer right at a “Y” junction at 1.5 miles. Pull into the large parking area immediately on the left. A well-marked trail starts from the northwest corner of the parking area. The trail descends into a wash, then climbs back up, heading north to a jumble of rocks. The arch will suddenly appear in front of you after a short ¼-mile walk.

Lathe Arch in the Alabama Hills framing the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains

Lone Pine Peak and Mount Whitney through Lathe Arch at sunrise.

Before heading back to the parking area, look for a faint path to the left immediately after leaving Mobius Arch. A few steps will take you into a slot where you’ll be right next to a narrow, flat arch, nicknamed Lathe Arch, which can also be used to frame Mount Whitney.

Back at the parking area, look for a small heart-shaped arch near the top of tall rock formation to the northeast.

For the best photos of Mobius Arch, hike out before dawn and have your composition lined up when the sun first hits Mount Whitney and the ridge of Sierra peaks. Stick around for awhile, until the sun hits the arch itself. In this high desert environment, the beautiful golden light lasts just a few minutes.

There are a couple of campgrounds in the area, as well as several motels in Lone Pine. For more information about the Alabama Hills National Recreation Area, check the Bureau of Land Management website. If you’re in need of camping or outdoor gear, the friendly folks at Elevation have crammed an amazing amount of great stuff into their little store on the corner of US 395 and Whitney Portal Road.

Happy New Year!

Jan 012012

Sun in a foggy forest of fir trees.

May the sun shine upon you, and may a light shine within you.

Wishing everyone a great year that brings peace, health, happiness and prosperity.

Plaza Machado, Mazatlan

Dec 202011

Cafe Pacifico and pulmonia in Plaza Machado

Cafe Pacifico and pulmonia on Plaza Machado, Mazatlan

In cities large and small all over Mexico, the town plaza is the cultural and social center of life. Plaza Machado in historic Old Town Mazatlan is one of the most enchanting of the plazas I’ve visited. Historic buildings surround the park-like plaza with its typically ornate ironwork kiosko. There are several restaurants with outside seating where guests can enjoy the usually mild evening weather of Mazatlan.

One of the things I enjoy most about visiting Mexico is hanging around the plaza in the evening. Teens and young adults meet and court, seniors sit on the benchs and talk old times, and whole families come out for an evening on the town.

People enjoying Plaza Machado in the evening

The top photo above includes Café Pacifico, the oldest bar in Mazatlan, and one of the little pulmonia taxis that are unique to the city. To make the photo, I walked down one of the side streets a bit and used a slightly telephoto setting on a zoom lens. This let me compress the elements in the scene a little, and it allowed me to keep the lines of the architecture in correct perspective. Shooting right at dusk, I was able to balance what was left of light in the sky with the mutiple artificial light sources around the plaza. In the days of shooting film, it would have been almost impossible to filter this scene properly, but the auto white balance setting on my digital SLR needed only a little tweaking to render a pleasing color balance.

Are you a Mexico fan, too? Do you have a favorite town plaza somewhere?

Haleakala Crater at Dawn

Dec 122011

Dawn light on the cinder cones in Haleakala Crater.

One of the most popular things to do on the island Maui is watching the sunrise from the rim of Haleakala crater. Almost everyone goes right to the summit viewpoint. Much less crowded and just as spectacular is the view from Kalahaku Overlook.

This view, looking north instead of east to the sunrise, shows the prominent cinder cones in the crater (technically speaking, it’s a caldera, not a crater). On the upper right, Sliding Sands Trail is visible, leading to the cone of Pu’u O Maui. Visible in the distance are the summits of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea on the Big Island.

This photo was taken just before the sun rose above the rim of the crater. A layer of thin, high clouds were beautifully lit by the rising sun and the rich color bounced back to the landscape. I used a long exposure to help intensify the color.

Have you been to the Kalahaku Overlook at Haleakala National Park? How about Lelewi Overlook?

Bandon Beach, Oregon Coast

Dec 082011

sea stacks and sunset sky at Bandon Beach

Face Rock and sea stacks at Bandon Beach

One of the most scenic places on the Oregon coast is Bandon Beach. It’s one of my personal favorites, and I think it is has some of the most photogenic scenery on the entire west coast.

The main attraction for photography is the sea stacks – monolithic rock formations that provide dramatic subject matter for photographers in just about any weather condition. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better location for sunset seascapes. Nowhere else on the coast has such a concentration of sea stacks, and you can walk up and down a mile or so of sandy beach looking for angles and compositions.

The Old Town section of the city of Bandon is also fun to visit, with a nice selection of shops and places to eat. From the harborfront walkway you can see the Coquille River Lighthouse across the channel.

On the north side of town, Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge provides important wetland habitat for waterbirds. Just across the Coquille River is Bullards Beach State Park, providing access to the lighthouse, and year-round camping.

For more detailed information about photographing Bandon, see my book Photographing Oregon. And look here for some more of my photos of Bandon Beach.

Have you been to Bandon? Where else on the Oregon coast do you like to go for photography?

Passports With Purpose

Dec 042011

Looking for a good cause to get behind this holiday season? Passports With Purpose is an annual fundraising effort by a group of travel bloggers, now in its fourth year. PWP has done some great projects in the past, and this year the goal is to fund a library in Zambia. Make a donation through the Passports With Purpose website and you’ll also have a chance to win some great prizes, including tours, hotel rooms, gift cards, electronics and photography gear. Check out the complete list of prizes and sponsors. If you win the Costa Rica tour, take me with you, okay?

Holiday Print Sale

Nov 262011

Trees and tracks in the snow at Mount Rainier National Park

Trees and tracks in snow, Paradise Valley, Mount Rainier Park.

Looking for a unique gift for someone special, or just want to have a nice piece of art for your own walls? From now until December 16, choose from any of the photographs that are in my “Nature of the Northwest” photo show for 20% off the already low show price of $185. These are my personal custom made 12×18” archival fine art prints, mounted and framed to 18×24”. The frames are excellent quality, simple design and dark wood; mats are soft white. Visit the show at the University of Oregon School of Law, 1515 Agate Street in Eugene, or view the images online at http://gregvaughn.photoshelter.com/gallery/Nature-of-the-Northwest/G0000JNr8puuIHC0

Details: price includes delivery in the Eugene-Springfield area on December 17. Shipping is extra to other locations. The above deal is only for the framed prints in the show, and there is only one of each, so make your selection early. Email me at Greg@GregVaughn.com with any questions and to place your order.

If you prefer a different size print, a gallery wrap canvas print or one of my photographs that is not included in the Nature of the Northwest show, I’m also offering 20% off on all orders placed through my website. For these orders the print is made by a custom lab and shipped directly to you. Select the print options you want and enter the coupon code HH11 during the checkout process. The sale price is good for any of the photos on my website, can be applied to multiple orders, and also expires on December 16. Be sure to order early enough to allow for processing and delivery time if your purchase is for a gift. Look for specific locations or subjects with the Search function on my website, or select from my online photo galleries.

Happy Holidays!

Maui: Beyond Hana

Nov 232011

: Alau Island at sunrise, Hana Coast, Maui.

After negotiating 600 curves and 54 bridges on the narrow, winding 52 miles of Hana Highway, a lot of visitors to Maui just spend a couple of hours in Hana town, make the obligatory stop at Hasegawa General Store, then turn around and head back to the resorts on the south side of the island. That’s a shame, because some the best parts of the Hana Coast, and some of the most scenic locations on the island of Maui, are just down the road a piece.

Hamoa Beach, Hana Coast, Maui.

Spending the night in Hana will let you easily get to a sunrise view of Alau Island – just beyond mile marker 51, turn left on Haneo’o Road and you’ll shortly arrive at a beach park. Check out nearby Koki Beach while you’re there. Continue on Haneo’o Road to get to Hamoa Beach – a beautiful beach and the biggest stretch of sand on the Hana Coast.

Wailua Falls on Maui's Hana Coast.

Continuing on the Hana Highway as it curves around the east end of Maui, Wailua Falls will certainly grab your eye. It’s a good idea to get there either fairly early in the morning or else late in the afternoon, as there is limited parking and it’s a popular and busy stop. Wailua Falls is one of the most scenic waterfalls on Maui, if not in the whole state of Hawaii.

Coast at Oheo Gulch, Haleakala National Park, Maui.

Next stop is at the Oheo Gulch area, part of Haleakala National Park. A short hike from the visitor center leads to several pools and waterfalls, popularly known in the past as the Seven Sacred Pools. The area is culturally significant as well as incredibly scenic, so plan on spending some time here. The 4-mile roundtrip hike on Pipiwai Trail to Waimoku Falls, some of it through a dense bamboo forest, is fantastic. Good photo ops and a swim in a waterfall pool to top it off. Be sure to pack the bug juice – mosquitoes like this area, too.

Laulima Farm produce stand, Kipahulu, Maui.

Not far beyond Oheo Gulch, the area known as Kipahulu is one of the most beautiful and interesting parts of Maui. The lush tropical rainforest meeting rugged lava coast has attracted fans from famed aviator Charles Lindbergh (buried on the grounds of picturesque Palapala Ho’omau Church) to the one and only Oprah, as well as back-to-the-earth organic farming hippies. Stop at the Laulima Farm produce stand for fresh fruit and blend your own smoothie with the bicycle-powered grinder.

Rental car companies discourage it, but the really adventurous can continue to follow the road along the coast, past remote Kaupo and around the south side of the island as the road ascends the lower slopes of Haleakala, passing through Ulupalakua Ranch and the Tedeschi Winery before heading back down to the popular visitor destinations.

Photo tips: A graduated neutral density filter will help immensely for the sunrise shoot at Alau Island. Even better, add a heavy solid ND so that exposure times get down to 5-10 seconds and the water swirling around the rocks smooths out for a nice, silky look. Hamoa Beach is another great spot for sunrise photography. Wailua Falls and the surrounding foliage photographs best in the winter and spring when there has been plentiful rainfall; during dry spells the waterfall is but a wisp and the vegetation is not at its prime. Typical weather along the Hana coast is more or less sunny mornings, with clouds building in the afternoon, which is ideal for coast sunrises and rainforest waterfalls.

There are few options for overnight stays in Hana, but they do run the gauntlet from ritzy to rustic. At the high end is the very upscale Travaasa Hana (the new owners made a big mistake, IMO, when they changed the name from Hotel Hana Maui – a legendary Hawaii resort – but it’s still one of THE best most awesome places on Maui to hang out, and with spa facilities that can’t be beat). Mid-range but very nice and oceanfront on the bay is Hana Kai Resort. Those who are looking for hostel and backpacker type budget lodging can check out Joe’s Rentals. Another option is tent camping or trying to snag one of the cabins at Wainapanapa Beach State Park. The cabins have always been booked prior to my visits, and I haven’t yet had the opportunity to personally try Hana Kai Resort, but I have stayed at both Hotel Hana Maui and Joe’s place and I’ve camped at Wainapanapa, each a wonderful experience.

Click on the link if you’d like to see more of my photos of the Hana Coast of Maui.

On my next trip to Hana, I’d like to explore some new places. What have you found?

Triple Play – Three Waterfalls In One Day

Nov 192011

: Spirit Falls, Umpqua Natonal Forest, Cascade Mountains, Oregon.

A very scenic drive on Forest Service roads in the Umpqua National Forest will take you to a trio of waterfalls between Cottage Grove and Oakridge, Oregon. I found conditions for photography just about perfect the other day for waterfall photography, with soft light overcast light and good water flow in the creeks thanks to recent rains. To add to the attraction, there is still a bit of fall color left in the lower elevation areas on the west side of the Cascade Mountains.

Driving east from Cottage Grove, I skirted Dorena Lake and continued on Laying Creek Road, which becomes Forest Road 17, and headed up into the mountains. First stop was Spirit Falls, pictured above. Alex Creek fans out over moss-covered basalt to form a beautiful veil, dropping 60 feet into a small, shallow pool surrounded by lush forest.

: Pinard Falls; Umpqua National Forest, Cascade Mountains, Oregon.

Just a few miles away, I found Pinard Falls, where the East Fork of Laying Creek drops 105 feet in a narrow gorge. The view right from the trail is pretty nice, and I tried using some bigleaf maple tree leaves to help frame the scene and add some color. This is one of those falls where if you get right down to the pool and look up, your photo will include a lot of white sky.

Moon Falls; Umpqua National Forest, Cascade Mountains, Oregon.

The third waterfall on this drive is Moon Falls, a few miles upstream from Spirit Falls on Alex Creek. The falls are a lacy 125-foot cascade that is quite beautiful, but difficult to get a good photo angle on due to the terrain. Rather than a full view, I opted to scramble up a talus slope to an upper pool area with a side view of a portion of the falls.

Each of these falls is reached by an easy 1-mile roundtrip hike. The surrounding forest is a mix of second growth and old growth, with ferns and mushrooms in the understory. Fall and late spring are the best times to photograph them; in summer the creek flow is very low and in early spring the falls are thundering torrents from the mountain snow melt. If you just want a pleasant hike, however, the trails are accessible year round. Visiting these falls makes a really nice day trip, and you can make it a loop trip by continuing on good gravel-surfaced forest roads to Oakridge and then west on Highway 58 to return to I-5.

Here’s a Google Map with Spirit Falls pinpointed to give you a general idea of the location: http://g.co/maps/7ha86

The Umpqua National Forest and BLM teamed up for a website that has information and driving directions for a whole bunch of waterfalls in the area that lies east of I-5 between Eugene and Roseburg.

A really great resource for more information on these falls, and waterfalls all over the Pacific Northwest, is www.waterfallsnorthwest.com .

Tech stuff for the above images: Nikon D300s, Nikon 12-24mm f/4 and 17-55mm f/2.8 lenses, ISO 100 and polarizer plus ND filter so I could get down to shutter speeds of 1-5 seconds and give the water that nice, silky look. On a tripod, of course (Gitzo legs & Really Right Stuff BH-40 head).

There are hundreds of beautiful waterfalls in western Oregon – where are your favorites?

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