Nov 142012
 

I wish I could say I’ve named this photo after a great experience in Ristorante Barchetta, but I didn’t hop off the ferry in this village. It looks like a nice spot for a bite though, or an afternoon beer. From the ferry I saw this lady in the green dress on her phone, while the rest of the world rushed by her. I wondered if it was an important call or if she was just having a a chat. What do you think?

Women in a green dress talking on cell phone on street in front of restaurant with green mountains behind on Lake Como, Italy

Nov 132012
 

After teetering on the edge of collapsing into the river along with my camera gear and my travel buddy (aka my umbrella holder), I scrambled back onto the bank and decided to further my attempt to fall in by crossing the rope barrier to get a closer look at the incredible Svartifoss.

It was raining and gloomy. We’d walked for about an hour to get here, but when we arrived, we forgot about how cold, damp and miserable the hike had been. This waterfall is beautiful. I’d decided I wanted to capture the thin veil of water that tumbled onto the jagged rocks at its base. I was able to climb an outcrop and set my camera up with tripod on the lowest level, to snap this shot.

I tried processing this through Photomatix as I normally do to produce HDR images but eventually decided it wasn’t necessary. I just used one exposure and tweaked the contrast and saturation in Photoshop then boosted the detail a bit using Topaz Adjust.

Thin veil of water tumbling on to the jagged rocks covered in green moss landing in a pool of water at the base of Svartifoss waterfall in Skaftafel, Iceland

Nov 122012
 

There was something kind of creepy about these run down unkempt gates in Piedmont. I tried to capture it here by setting the camera down low in the brambles across the road. I paid a price for this one as the thorny vines took hold of my leg causing me to jerk away. Probably the wost reaction as it just dug the thorns deeper in.

Erie unkempt gates surrounded by brambles and thorny vines with setting sun in Piedmont, Italy

 

Nov 122012
 

These glaciers melting on the beach were really cool. We spent about 2 hours wandering amongst them. I really liked the one on the left in this picture. I think it looks like that because it’s been melted by the rain that fell the night before, but I don’t really know if that’s the case. We tasted some of it too. Delicious!!

Glaciers melting on a black sand beach with ocean waves in Jokulsarlon, Iceland

Nov 102012
 

After taking the photo posted featured in “The Gates” I turned around to see the sun was bathing the lane and dried out crops behind me in the perfect golden light the Piedmont region is known for. My family were waiting for me to get back so we could go to dinner, but I decided to take a few more minutes to catch this shot.

Dirt road and dried out crops with golden light in Piedmont, Italy

Nov 072012
 

The Victoria Falls during the dry season was an incredible experience. The gorge ripped open by the force of the Zambezi was clearly on display. We were able to walk across the top of the falls to swim in the Devil’s Pool and hang our heads over the edge, and I was able to take this photo of the rainbow born of the spray from the torrent just around the corner.

I enjoyed my time there so much that I’m planning on going back in January. This will give me the chance to experience the full power of the falls as it will be during the wet season. I’m also hoping to coordinate my visit with the full moon in the hope that I’ll get to see the lunar rainbow.

View of the Victoria Falls, Zamabia during the dry season with a torrent of water and a rainbow between the gorge.

Nov 052012
 

In previous posts I’ve mentioned that on our first full night in Iceland we set out to drive the full length of the southern coast of the Westfjords. I also mentioned that we didn’t make it. In theory it should have been possible. It was a four hour drive there. We’d spend two hours photographing puffins on the most westerly point in Europe, and drive back. We expected to stop occasionally on the way down and I actually had a couple of stops planned near the end of our journey.

On this ill-fated journey I realized that I had to rethink ambitious plans like these. The problem is that, in Iceland, unexpected photo opportunities appear frequently in whatever direction you head in. Today’s photo is an example of this. There are a lot of waterfalls in Iceland. There are a load of named, famous waterfalls, but there are even more beautiful small waterfalls like this one.

The next time I go, my plan is to take the ferry out to the puffins and drive back from there. This should guarantee we see what we missed last time. I’m determined to photograph some puffins.

Waterfall meandering down the green covered rocky hills to a stream in Westfjords Iceland

 

Nov 042012
 

I took a lot of photos on my first night in Iceland. You’re probably all getting sick of seeing this lighthouse. This is the last one I’ve got, I promise… at least until I go back there again this June.

Gardur Lighthouse at end of long cement path on rock coast with clouds and sunset in the background in Iceland