National Parks Magazine

I got a nice little package in the mail today. It contained three copies of this month's National Parks Magazine. And on page 25 - my Into the Unknown image from Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It's always fun to see one of my own images in print. :) Interestingly, this image sat on my computer for almost a year before I finally decided to process it.

Nichole, from NP Mag, contacted us a few months ago asking for a list of the National Parks we have represented in our portfolios. Although we had been to Great Smokey Mountain National Park, we weren't thrilled with the collection of images we came away with - and none of mine ever made it to the processing stage. She was disappointed to see that GSMNP wasn't on our list. So, we dug up a few of our shots and sent them over to her just in case. And sure enough, she asked for this one. Imagine my surprise! I'm glad I kept the shot, and believe it or not... today, I sold a 20x30 inch print of the same image. Someone saw it in... you guessed it... National Park Magazine, and wanted it hanging in their home. Go figure. :)

Travel Plans...

We have some exciting travel plans this year. We'll be in the Canadian Rockies at the beginning of August. I was born in Canada, and have made small trips into Canada a few times in the last several years... but never to shoot. We're both looking forward to that trip. In September, we'll head out to Montana to visit Glacier National Park again. And we've just booked flights to Hawaii in December. We weren't expecting to make it to Hawaii this year, so we're pleased to have been able to schedule this trip. With any luck, we'll get to stop in to see my Grandmother on Maui for a day or two during our stay.

Of course, in between travel, we'll be teaching another seminar in August and preparing for upcoming webinars. We have a workshop in November, too - in Utah... Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. So if we aren't busy enough with our six kids, we should be able to find plenty to do. ;)

And last but not least - I've updated my website once again. You'll find a new Details gallery... textures, macros, and small details. I've also added images to several other galleries. Check out the Newest Photographs gallery to see all the new photos in one place.

Finished

We had a great time teaching this weekend. Our seminar went very well. We had a great group of students -all of whom are passionate about photography. We will leave from San Francisco at 11pm, and we should arrive home around 6 am. I hope I will get some sleep on the plane, because I won't be getting a break tomorrow.

Sent from my iPhone.

-Varina

Sunny California

We flew into San Fransisco late last night. This morning, I checked in with the hotel where we'll be teaching our Intelligent HDR seminar and everything is ready to go. The weather is beautiful here - and I'm appreciating it, especially since I know that heavy storms are sweeping through the Cleveland area today. Jay and I spent a few hours working on the plane (before we both fell asleep.) We're working on a new endeavor that we're not quite ready to announce. ;)

We're looking forward to tomorrow's seminar. It will be great to meeting those of you who are attending.

Little Brother

We are just about ready for our June 20-21 iHDR seminar in San Jose next week. We have only a few spots left, so if anyone is still interested in signing up, you'll need to be quick about it. I'm really looking forward to meetings those of you who have signed up to join us!

Although we've been busy preparing for the seminar, I did take a few minutes to process this shot from Ruby Beach in Washington. I loved the moody feel to the image - and although I considered converting it to black and white, I felt that the subtle blue color worked best. The pretty rock in the foreground had been washed onto the shore behind me, but I moved it into the waves to I could capture the effect of the smooth water washing it's surface. The waves were strong enough to push it out of the way, so I had to take several shots before I got the one I wanted.

Although I love the dramatic lighting that we are always looking for on our photographic trips, sometimes these more subtle photos really make me smile. :)

And then there's the title for this one. I know it's a bit odd... but it's what keeps coming back to my mind when I look at this shot. That little stone may be the smaller of the two brothers... but its smooth surface and small size suggest that it has been around for a very long time. Humans grow up as they grow older, but stones grow smaller over time.

-Varina