photography » Traverse Earth

Breakfast in London

England, Europe, London, Travel 136 Responses »

Jan 132012

If this goes right, this should be posting itself while I’m on a flight to London on my way to Prague. So, I think it makes sense that I post the one photo of London I have. I took this on my way to Africa. To maximize our time in Africa we decided to do two overnight flights back to back. But, this meant we had a lot of time to kill in London. We stuck our bags in storage at Piccadilly station and spent the morning taking a walking tour starting at the Tower of London before crossing Tower Bridge and walking down the south side of the Thames. Cameron and I had spent a week in London a few years ago and stayed in a hostel near this café. It’s a cool little place. For lunch they serve paella cooked on huge frying pans on the street. For breakfast they had giant Cumberland sausages cooking on the grill served on a fresh bun.

The setting is also great. It’s actually close to London Bridge train station. It’s hectic up there, crossing the street to get to the stairs is pretty stressful on 4 hours of sleep. But, it’s worth it when you drop down in to this little oasis of calm. As a bonus we were there on a Saturday. That meant that the Borough Market was happening just around the corner. They’ve got tons of good stuff there ranging from meat and fish, to cheese, to giant piles of brownies. I’m partial to the giant piles of brownies.

I’ve added a London category for this entry so I really hope I get some time to get my camera out while I’m there.

Oh, and if you’re wondering, the four people sat at the table were my travel buddies. Three weeks in Africa and we’re still speaking to each other… just about.

Approaching the Winery

Africa, Cape Town, South Africa, Travel No Responses »

Jan 122012

This is the view in the opposite direction from the previous photo I posted. This is the Waterford winery and was our firstwine tasting stop. Just before coming here we’d been to the Spier winery to interact with the cheetahs at Cheetah Outreach. Our visit to Waterford was a great experience. The building is beautiful. It’s definitely got an upscale feel about it, which was interesting as we traipsed through in hiking boots and shirts surrounded by a much smarter looking crowd.

We decided to do the wine and chocolate pairing. This involved 6 wines, 3 of which were paired with custom-made chocolates. One of the chocolates had rock salt in it. It tastes pretty horrible on its own, but paired with the wine it was incredible.

The House on the Hill

Africa, Rwanda, Travel No Responses »

Jan 112012

This photo gives a good indication of why Rwanda is called the land of a thousand hills. We stopped off on our way from Gisenyi to Musanze at the twin lakes, Burera and Ruhondo. We drove up to a viewpoint and along the way came across loads of kids. Everywhere we went in Rwanda the kids would ask us for our empty water bottles and we’d been wondering what they used them for. Today, we found one use. It seemed like every single child on the way up this hill had a plastic bottle full of grasshoppers to hand. Apparently, they fry them up with chilli oil. We didn’t get an opportunity to try them prepared in this manner, but one member of our group did get to sample a grasshopper. I came back from taking a few other photos and he said, with a surprisingly concerned tone to his voice, ” So… I just ate a live grasshopper.”

As it turns out he’d asked one of the kids what they do with the grasshoppers. The kid proceeded to demonstrate how they prepare them for cooking, removing the legs and wings and then said that some people eat them live. Apparently, it tasted like a grass paste.

This photo is a combination of 7 exposures ranging from -3 to +3. The image produced by Photomatix had a lot of noise so I used Imagenomic’s Noiseware Pro to smooth out the sky and hills in the background.

Blue Hole Cave

Bermuda, Travel 1 Response »

Jan 102012

This is another Bermuda picture taken in Blue Hole Park. There’s another cave here you can swim in. I’ve lived here my whole life and only found out about it this summer. We swam into the back where there’s a much smaller cave, or so it seems. You lower yourself into the water which puts you into what’s probably a 5 cubic foot space. It’s pretty claustrophobic. Then we shined our flashlights down and discovered we were swimming in a huge cavern. You could also see ropes set up by cave divers that seemed to go on forever. I’m planning on going back there to try to take a picture in the small cave. It’ll be interesting to see if I can show how it expands underwater.

Main Street Musanze

Africa, Rwanda, Travel 4 Responses »

Jan 092012

We stayed in Musanze, Rwanda to visit the mountain gorillas. My hotel room had a view of the Volcanoes National Park. I had decided that this would be a great shot in the morning as the sun rose and side-lit the volcanoes. A great shot that is, if not for the rusty chain-linked, barbed-wire fence blocking my view. Still, I resolved to get this picture, I thought maybe I could find a hole in the chain-link or a gap in the barbed wire. I paced the length of the property to no avail. I spotted a 7 foot tall wall and considered how to get up there for a clear vantage. I’d have had to climb up about 30 feet back from where I needed to be and balance on the slanted top of the narrow wall. It was wet and I decided not to risk it. Instead I struck out onto the street hoping to find a vantage point next door.

I had only planned on stepping out quickly, so I hadn’t brought my bag. I was just carrying my camera, with lens attached, and tripod. It was pretty nerve-racking stepping out on the street with my gear exposed and I decided not to stray too far. In the end I spent about 2 and a half hours wandering around the town greeting locals as they went to church or carried their goods to market. Many even stopped to watch what I was up to. Rwanda really is a friendly place, with an incredibly safe feel about it; especially when you consider the general reaction from people back home to the idea of going there.

I even picked up an assistant! An eleven year old who watched me extend one leg of my tripod and came over and started extending the other two. He followed me for two hours, helping me set up my tripod, pushing the shutter button and enjoying the multiple shots he was taking. He even suggested pictures to me. One of which I think could be very good if I can figure out how to process it. To get it I had to shoot directly into the sun.

Today’s photo, though, is the first one I took on that walk. So, it’s actually the road right outside my hotel.

Safe Harbour

Africa, Travel, Zambia, Zimbabwe 11 Responses »

Jan 082012

I’ve called this photo Safe Harbour, but that’s probably debatable. It was taken the morning after our first night camping on the Lower Zambezi. The day before, after a few hours of paddling, we’d had a taste of the upcoming rainy season. Clouds loomed and bellowed across the sky. We saw rain falling in front of us and behind. It was also raining to our left, where the storm was coming from. Debate raged, while the wind picked up, as to whether or not it was heading directly at us or would pass just behind. Our Zimbabwean guide, called CB, quelled the debate. He was a soft-spoken individual, typical of the people we’d met during our time on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. He told us we’d be making camp an hour earlier than planned. The storm was heading straight for us and the strong winds increased our chance of capsizing. We began to paddle a bit harder than the previously relaxed pace of the day. The landing spot pictured above came into sight and CB gestured for us to head in. At this point, we experienced just how terrifying an angry hippo can be.

“Paddle! Paddle! Paddle!”

CB was suddenly animated and we spun around in our seats to see what was happening. The second-last canoe was moving faster than I knew a canoe could. I swear it was actually on a plane, the nose rising and falling with each paddle-stroke as it ploughed through the water. About five feet behind was a hippo, surging through the water with it’s head bobbing up and down with each forward thrust. We’d find out later that, apparently, one of the people in the last canoe struck what he thought was a rock with his paddle. As you can probably guess, it was a submerged hippopotamus – the creature second in line to the mosquito for causing the most deaths per year in Africa. The chase probably spanned about 15-20 feet or so, before the hippo calmed down, but it definitely gave us a taste of what we’d gotten ourselves into.

Once we reached land and pulled our canoes ashore, the rain set in. Most of us had rain jackets. Chris and I had lightweight rain jackets that didn’t shield you from the impact of the rain, and this was rain like I’ve never experienced. It was coming in sideways and the drops must have been the size of marbles. You could feel the impact of every single one. We were better off than George though, an Aussie we’d met back in Livingstone who decided to join us. He’d left his rain jacket on a bus a few months earlier and, not having any need for one in the dry season, hadn’t replace it. Four of us stood next to each other, with our backs to the onslaught, for him to hunker down in front of us and try to stay dry. It didn’t work very well. The rain didn’t take long to pass and we set about making camp.

It quickly became evident that this would be an interesting night. We were setting up on sand, amongst dried elephant and hippo dung. As it turned out, the grassy, muddy field behind us was a popular night-time feeding place for elephants and hippos. On top of this, it was hot. Keeping the fly sheet on the tent was not an option, so we slept with nothing but a mesh tent separating us from the outdoors.

A quick wave of our flashlights revealed the startling close glint of eyes in the darkness and we settled in for the night. Just prior to falling asleep I heard the trumpet of an elephant. It sounded like it was right outside the tent. I remembered CB’s advice that we would hear animals and they would sound far closer than they really were. With this in mind, I drifted off to sleep. I woke up a few times in the night, once to the sound of hyenas, another to the sound of lions, and repeated the mantra that they could be heard form a great distance away. I drifted off comfortably each time.

However, we had at least one very close encounter. In the morning, my tent mate Chris told me he’d woken up to the unmistakable thud of elephant dung hitting the ground. We’d become accustomed to this sound on our elephant-back safari a few days earlier. He said he actually felt the vibrations of it hitting the ground. Sure enough, we found a fresh deposit just outside our tent. I only wish he’d woken me up so I could try to shine a light outside and spot one. This might be why he didn’t wake me up.

As I mentioned this photo was taken in the morning, just before the sun came up. I’ve combined 7 exposures from -3 to +3 in Photomatix and then cleaned it up in Photoshop.

The Angel’s Armchair

Africa, Travel, Victoria Falls, Zambia, Zimbabwe 4 Responses »

Jan 072012

This is another shot from Victoria Falls. We came across this, the Angel’s Armchair, on the way to the Devil’s Pool. During higher water, when you can’t swim in the Devil’s Pool, people swim here. They jump off the rocks to get in. Water would be flowing down into it from above and then tumbling over the edge. In the distance you can see the bridge that joins Zambia and Zimbabwe. The river is the border.

This bridge is a bungee jumping site. When we went rafting we had one solo traveler join us who happened to be in the same hostel. The day after rafting, upon returning from our elephant back safari, we sat down for a beer. Two seconds later the guy we’d been rafting with the day before burst in. Now, this individual was pretty chilled out the day before when facing category five rapids. At this point though, he was jittery and speaking in rapid fire asking if we’d had a good day, what we’d done etc. and not waiting for an answer. He ended this delirious monologue with, “I need a beer. Anyone need a beer? I’m gonna get a beer.”

After he returned from the bar, still sporting his wild eyes and jittery demeanor, we managed to get out of him that he’d just been bungee jumping. He was definitely still buzzing and stayed that way for an hour or so. We left him at the bar to explore the curio market in Livingstone and returned an hour later. He was no longer there. Apparently, he’d hung around for another half hour then suddenly crashed and gone to bed. It was 3 in the afternoon. He reemerged at 10pm. I think he’d had a total adrenaline overload.

Speaking of rafting, if you click this image to go through to my portfolio, then click it again and select the “O” size you’ll be able to zoom in and see a group of people preparing to go rafting from the Zimbabwe side.

Flatts Inlet Bermuda

Bermuda, Travel 119 Responses »

Jan 062012

Another Bermuda shot, Flatts Inlet. This summer, I went out early morning before work to take a bunch of pictures around Harrington Sound. This was my last stop. I wound up getting mesmerized by the fish under the dock and really struggled to remove myself from it.

I’ve just booked a trip to Prague. I’m leaving on Friday. I have to go to London for meetings so i decided to go grab some pictures somewhere else in Europe as well. So, assuming I can get on the internet there will be photos from Prague being posted in two weeks. I’m also hoping to head out with my gear in London but that will depend on how the sunrise/sunset lines up my meetings.

Dip on a Rebel Elephant

Africa, Animals, Travel, Zambia, Zimbabwe 6 Responses »

Jan 052012

On my recent trip to Africa, each of the five of us had one thing we really wanted to do. Soniko’s one thing was an elephant ride. I didn’t find it that appealing until we got to Livingstone. Then, for some reason I decided it had to be done. So, off we went, along with Chris and Shannon. When we arrived the head guide told us that all but three people would be riding tandem. A man there with his two daughters was quick to jump on the opportunity to ride solo. He was quickly followed by Chris and Soniko. My slow reactions meant I had to share with Shannon. Nothing against Shannon, but having your own elephant would have been pretty cool.

In the end, this worked out in my favor. As it turned out one of the elephants allocated for Soniko and Chris didn’t feel like going for a walk that day. They don’t force these massive animals into anything. So, Soniko and Chris ended up sharing an elephant. I have many close-ups of this situation that I don’t think I’ll release to the world. It’s hard to look good when you’re riding tandem on an elephant with another dude.

Despite this, in a way they were lucky to get their elephant. As Shannon and I trundled along at a comfortable pace we heard a crack from behind us. Chris and Soniko’s elephant had just ripped a branch off a palm and was tearing away in the wrong direction – nimbly crushing the branch with ts trunk. Our driver (no idea what you call the guy steering the elephant) told us that their elephant tended to misbehave and preferred going where it pleased. It became clear they were in for the more exciting ride. The guides had taken the head elephant, along with the solo man’s two daughters, to bring Chris and Soniko back to the herd. This never really happened and gives rise to today’s photo.

About halfway through our trip all the other elephants did as their drivers told them and we all waded through ankle-deep water. That’s elephant ankle depth. As usual, Chris and Soniko’s elephant did its own thing. She had spotted a shortcut and there was nothing that could change her mind – she was going to swim across that river. This photo captures the moment as their driver is attempting to help Chris get his foot back in the stirrup. They’d had to lift their feet as high as they could to keep them out of the range of crocodiles.

This was a tricky photo to take and process. I shot three exposures hand-held. That’s not necessarily a problem, but it became more difficult due to two factors. First, I was on the back of a lumbering elephant. Second, the elephant was facing the wrong way, placing these guys over my right shoulder. To overcome these issues I zoomed out a little further to account for the bouncing camera and set a larger aperture than I’d have liked to speed up my shutter speed. I felt like I’d turned my upper body so far that my shoulders were perpendicular to my hips. It hurt, but going home without this picture was not an option.

In processing it quickly became clear that the pictures were far from aligned. I had to put faith in Photomatix’s auto align to fix this for me. It did a pretty good job except for the island on the left. This was completely blurred out. I wish I’d noticed the issue before my last check of the picture. Masking this area out didn’t look quite right, so I started from scratch. I actually used the selective ghosting tool in Photomatix to fix this. I also used this on the trees in the background, just to be safe, and of course the moving elephants.

Times Square Trio

New York, People, Travel No Responses »

Jan 042012

Another shot from Times Square. My mom is from New York and as a result I’m pretty sure that’s where the bulk of my audience is coming from. So, I’ll try to sprinkle my New York shots around liberally for the time being.

I was heading right through the middle of Times Square a few hours before sunset as I meandered towards Central Park. I came to this corner and decided I liked the lines created by all the poles. I’ve also always liked that Bubba Gump Shrimp sign and couldn’t tell you why – I’ve never even been in the place. Looking at the scene, I thought it would be cool to catch the guy snoozing on his chair, and the vendor leaning on his stand, against the backdrop of the hustle and bustle of Times Square. I stood there for a very long time, waiting for the space in front of them to clear enough. Then, this third guy came and lent against the pole to the right. This motivated me to recompose the shot. I began waiting again. At this point everyone’s attention turned to Broadway and I could hear why. What must have been hundreds of bikers came flying through. It was a trail of bikers that lasted a good few minutes. Some doing tricks as they came through the mass of people. It was shortly after this moment I was able to get the clearest shots of the scene. Even so, I’m not sure how many pictures I had to blend together to hide the random foot, hand or arse captured by the camera.

I used to get uncomfortable setting up my tripod in busy areas, which was pretty detrimental to the results. I’ve decided that the best cure for this in the whole wide world has to be setting up in Times Square. It doesn’t get more crowded than here and setting up here is actually a pleasant experience. The majority of people pay you no mind and you feel like you’re stood there in your own bubble as the rest of the world rushes around you. I reckon that even if you don’t have a tripod it’d be worth finding somewhere to just stand still. It seems like very few people do that in Times Square. On top of this, the few people who did pay me any mind all seemed to have cameras in hand and approached to ask questions about which lens I’m using, or why I’m shooting so many exposures. That’s enjoyable too, and makes me feel far more experienced than I am. I’m sure there are other places in the world that could offer up the same phobia breaking experience if you’re having a similar problem. Feel free to suggest some in the comments by clicking below. My goal tonight is to figure out how to make this button more obvious.

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