Photogaboutit

So every year for the past decade, a group of male friends have gotten together for a hike/social event on Columbus Day weekend. We've all got yearly passes from our significant others to take this weekend. (Thank you Julia!) This takes place often, but not always, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Yes, we started both days of hiking with Irish Car Bombs in the parking lot. Doesn't everybody? The full crew. After last year's trip encountered difficulties in a campground, we decided to just find a spot in the woods this year. Planning came down to the last minute, when we decided to meet on the hairpin turn on the Kancamagus highway just east of Lincoln. Dan will tell us where to go. Just turn that map right side up first. Perty leaves hang on even past peak foliage. A bunch of goofballs. Justin, Dan, Kevin and Jevan. After pulling up Swingers style with almost as many vehicles as people, (cars-5, people-7) we headed into the woods up the ...

So, I'm busily trying to complete a number of hikes for a book that is due very soon. This weekend I did three, and this view from Deer Leap Rock looking south over Sherburne pass was one of the most beautiful. It's all about the light, and once again, running late worked in my favor. A view from Deer Leap Rock in the late evening this last Saturday. The trailhead leaves just behind the Inn at the Long Trail, so when you're done, grab a beer!  Sony RX 100

When backpacking for long distances, it's a given that unwanted things will happen to your camera. If you hike with the camera strapped on your front so as to always have it at hand, as I do, it can become the first point of contact when falling. (I always bring an extra compact camera and many lens caps on these trips.) A rock and my camera met with unfortunate consequences. Luckily, the digital viewfinder turned out to be a savior, as I was able to do everything in the viewfinder that I could do on the screen, including reviewing images. On the circuit hike in Torres Del Paine, I was packing up the camera in it's lightweight case and it slipped from about waist height. In the case, a rugged body, low drop height, I was sure nothing had happened. But when I opened it up, the rear lcd screen was smashed. Now I love that screen, especially since it's articulated. When hiking with a heavy pack, it's easy to shoot down low or up high without having to strain. More...

In the summer of 2011, my wife Julia and I spent about a month in the self-proclaimed autonomous region called Nagorno-Karabakh (N-K). This is a contested region between Azerbaijan and people of Armenian heritage and was the location of a vicious war in the early 1990's. We were attempting to map and photograph a hiking trail through the region called the Himnakan Janapar. This literally means the "backbone trail." The trip didn't go according to plan, but that was expected. Nonetheless, it was a great experience and we got some nice photos from the adventure as well. We used kickstarter.com to fund the trip as well, and we're about 2/3 done with our work and about 2/3 done with fulfilling rewards. I don't have the time right now to go deeply into our adventure, but if you happen to be in the Upper Valley tonight, we'll be hosting a presentation at 5pm in Haldeman Center (room 041) followed by a reception next to a number of prints hanging ...