tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70209344553017209422024-02-17T01:20:08.860-08:00Lori Carey PhotographyLori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.comBlogger295125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-50477566347669129672018-10-30T16:21:00.000-07:002018-10-30T16:21:01.128-07:00Mormon Row: The Most Photographed Barn in the World and The Trouble with Iconic Photos<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-39ztL7Z/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-39ztL7Z/0/3b5cafe6/M/i-39ztL7Z-M.jpg" alt="T.A. Moulton Barn, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park"></a></center><center><font size = "1">T.A. Moulton Barn, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park</font></center><br />
I had no intention of visiting Mormon Row when I recently visited Grand Teton National Park. After seeing hundreds, maybe thousands of photos of the T.A. Moulton Barn, known as "The Most Photographed Barn in the World" it had become little more than a cliche to me. A photographer friend who knows I purposely avoid chasing iconic trophy shots jokingly said he would smack me if I took a photo of the barn. But after unpacking and getting settled in to our first campsite in Wyoming, we found ourselves with a few hours to kill before we were to meet a friend for dinner. Bill suggested we head over to Mormon Row since it was nearby and he figured I would want to photograph it because it is so well known! It sounded like a good way to kill some time, and since I didn't originally intend to photograph the barn I didn't care that it was midday. <br />
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If you've seen photos of the T.A. Moulton Barn (above), you'd be forgiven for thinking there is just the one barn. It is rare to see any photos of any of the other structures along the Mormon Row Historic District, and I was pleasantly surprised to see an extensive spread of preserved homesteads. Mormon Row is the site of the town previously known as Grovont. My high school French was enough to realize that it is pronounced the same as Gros Ventre, the French name for the A'aninin or Atsina Native American tribe, as well as the name of the nearby campground, the Gros Ventre Wilderness, Gros Ventre River, and many other locations in the area. Curiosity got the better of me and when I returned home I did some research into the name. I learned that when the town applied for a post office, they were told that Gros Ventre was too difficult to spell and pronounce. Wanting to keep the name as close as possible to the original, they decided to use the phonetic spelling of the original pronunciation and settled on Grovont. Mormon settlers began arriving here from Idaho in the 1890s, and the town eventually consisted of 27 homesteads, many of which are still standing. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-LHXHRbT/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-LHXHRbT/0/9cb7cc7a/M/i-LHXHRbT-M.jpg" alt="Bunkhouse at John Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1">Bunkhouse at John Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park</font></center><br />
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I visited on a Saturday, so it was easy to spot the famous barn from a distance by the large crowd of cars and people. We pulled into the parking area across from the T.A. Moulton Barn and I gave myself some time to get a feel for the place while I patiently waited for my turn at a chance to grab the obligatory photo. I watched car after car pull up, quickly grab a photo or a selfie in front of the barn, and then jump back in the car. Because photos of the barn were the only images they had seen, they had the mistaken assumption that it was the thing worth their time at this historic site. Very few people took the time to understand or care why the National Park Service felt these homesteads were worth preserving and to see any of the other numerous buildings. They were just there to check off the box and be able to show friends that they visited "the most photographed barn in the world". I see this behavior so often in the National Parks that I started calling it Check Box Tourism, where people do little more than race around grabbing quick selfies to prove that they were there. Saddest of all is that even the two "serious" (meaning using a dSLR on a tripod) photographers I spotted were fixated on shooting nothing except the famous barn, each spending at least a half hour photographing nothing but the barn from relatively the same position. As there were no dramatic changes of light or weather worth waiting for, I struggled to understand their fixation. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-sSX3gDK/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-sSX3gDK/0/54b7f1b9/M/i-sSX3gDK-M.jpg" alt="The Pink House at the John Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1">The Pink House at the John Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park</font></center><br />
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I took a fairly ordinary documentary image of the most photographed barn in the world. If I wanted an iconic trophy photo I wouldn't be here at midday on an ordinary summer day, using a wide angle lens. Instead I would suggest use a telephoto lens to make the Teton Range loom large, and going at sunrise to get beautiful light on the mountains when you can line up elbow to elbow while jostling for the opportunity to take the same photo as everyone else. As it was, I decided I'd have a better chance with a wide angle lens that would allow me to get closer to the barn and hopefully have less of a problem with people walking into frame. There was one other photographer with a "real" camera who was working a different angle, also using a wide angle probably for the same reason. <br />
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<center><i><b>"What was the barn like before it was photographed?" he said. "What did it look like, how was it different from other barns, how was it similar to other barns? We can't answer these questions because we've read the signs, seen the people snapping the pictures. We can't get outside the aura. We're part of the aura. We're here, we're now." White Noise, Don DeLillo</b></i></center><br />
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Although <i>White Noise</i> was written more than thirty years ago (and about a different "most photographed barn in the world"), DeLillo's words ring truer than ever today. Just as in <i>White Noise</i>, nobody sees the barn any more; it has become impossible to see the barn. To paraphrase a comment I recently read about the current state of landscape photography, it's as if no one feels any connection to this land, this place. It has become only something to photograph. <br />
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We lose all understanding and respect for the barn (insert nature, man, animals, whatever we're shooting) when the experience becomes *only* about taking the photo. Recently on a Twitter thread a photographer said "it's pretty often that the photo of the thing makes you happier than the thing" and I think that is a sad way for an outdoor/landscape/nature photographer to view the world. <br />
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The cloudy day gave beautiful soft light with no harsh shadows, something I don't often get at home with our clear blue skies and hard sunlight, so I was happy to spend some time photographing more of the buildings. I didn't mind that there was no dramatic weather like snow or fog because I personally prefer a more subtle style and the soft light was perfect (for me) for shooting the buildings. It was my first time attempting any kind of serious shooting since my diagnosis last year, and I was just incredibly happy to work on getting back in the groove. Once I moved away from the T.A. Moulton barn I practically had the place to myself. <br />
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When I visit old homesteads I like to imagine how it felt to live in a remote and harsh but incredibly beautiful place. I want to capture a sense of place, not romanticize it. For me it was about the sense of isolation. Farming here was not easy. The high desert soil was sandy and rocky, and the winters were harsh. Irrigation ditches had to be dug by hand and during the winters the water in the ditches would freeze, so the families would need to travel to the Gros Ventre River to get water for their homes. There was no electric power until the 1950's, by which time many of the homesteads had been sold to the National Park Service. At one time there was a church and school here, but the church has been moved to the nearby town of Wilson. In 1997, Mormon Row was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Several homesteads were still occupied into the 1980s before they were transferred to the park, and significant preservation work didn't begin until 2013. One homestead is still privately owned and occupied, although it was <a href="https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/features/for-sale-last-piece-of-an-era/article_59b843f3-687d-50f6-8428-6b330863690c.html">listed for sale</a> last year. It is a one-acre parcel with a 2652 sq. ft. 8 bedroom 4 bathroom house, barn, and several outbuildings including tourist cabins, completely surrounded by National Park land and was listed at $5 million. The good news is it was <a href="https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/the_hole_scroll/article_fb73dd53-d114-51cc-8a55-07472903ae5b.html">recently announced</a> that an anonymous donor has enabled the Grand Teton National Park Foundation to purchase the property for an undisclosed sum and donate it to the park. <br />
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I wandered down the road to the John Moulton homestead, where I got excited about the soft light on the Pink House shown above. There was a line of cottonwood trees along the side of the property that I felt was important to the setting, and I eventually settled on a composition that included one of the trees and the path leading up to the house, along with Grand Teton, Mt. Owen, and the Teton Glacier in the frame. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-c5dgNRW/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-c5dgNRW/0/db48ad31/M/i-c5dgNRW-M.jpg" alt="John Moulton Barn, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1">John Moulton Barn, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park</font></center><br />
When I approached the John Moulton barn I came across another photographer who asked me if I realized that it was the most photographed barn in the world. At first I thought maybe I had been mistaken in thinking the other barn was the T.A. Moulton barn, but a quick check assured me I was correct. "I'm fairly certain you are looking for that barn down the road," I said as I pointed to the T.A. Moulton barn. "No, the ranger told me it is this barn," she insisted. Neither can really be faulted for making the mistake, the John Moulton barn is often referred to as the Second Most Photographed Barn in the World because so many people mistake it for the T.A. Moulton barn, and even the <a href="https://www.gtnpf.org/exploring-mormon-row/">GTNP Foundation mistakenly included a photo of the John Moulton barn in a newsletter article about restoration work taking place on the T.A. Moulton barn, and later had to apologize after it was pointed out by readers</a>. Unfortunately for this woman, her desire to photograph only the famous barn meant that she never did take the time to visit the actual famous barn. She took her photos of the "wrong" barn and went on her way and will surely add to the collection of mistakenly captioned photos. (Here's a hint - the John Moulton barn has a fence directly in front of the barn.)<br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-XNsdphW/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-XNsdphW/0/a024197d/M/i-XNsdphW-M.jpg" alt="Reed Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1">Reed Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park</font></center><br />
Still further down the road, 7/10 of a mile north of the famous barn, was the Reed Moulton homestead. Not a single person, besides us, was apparently interested in making that short walk on a beautiful mild day. I began to wonder - if every building on Mormon Row were torn down except the TA Moulton barn, would anyone notice or even care? <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-WGzG7kH/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-WGzG7kH/0/6e4350d6/M/i-WGzG7kH-M.jpg" alt="Reed Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1">Reed Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming</font></center><br />
I found the architecture of the Reed Moulton barn, which was originally built by Thomas Murphy, much more interesting than the other two more famous barns, if only because it was so different. This barn is hardly ever photographed, not only because it is so far down the road from the T.A. Moulton barn but also because there is only one angle that will allow the photographer to get Grand Teton peak in the frame. I chose a completely different composition that included Mt. Moran and the house. At the time I was thinking only to photograph "the homestead" while capturing the remoteness, but in hindsight I wish that I had spent more time with just the barn. I was hard pressed to find even a dozen photos with a google search of this beautiful barn when I returned home. In my defense (as if there could be any) it was my first day doing any type of activity at altitude, and after driving 1,000+ miles straight through the previous day, not to mention dealing with the physical effects of Stage IV cancer, I was pretty tired and I still had to walk 7/10 of a mile back to my Jeep so I decided to pack it in. That's also my excuse for not realizing that there were more buildings to the south of the T.A. Moulton barn. I missed the entire Andy Chambers ranch and homestead, which I didn't realize until after I viewed the photo I had taken of the interpretive sign (a trick I learned to make identifications easier once back home) but I figure that gives me good reason for another visit to this incredibly beautiful National Park. <br />
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It was easier in the days before social media to avoid the "stand here, shoot this" mentality, and photographers are just now beginning the realize the negative impacts that the over-sharing of photos of iconic locations can cause. Many have written about the physical damage that is being caused to much-loved places as hordes descend on fragile locations and I'm glad that I visited places like Horseshoe Bend in Arizona and the Racetrack in Death Valley when they were still relatively unknown and I had the places to myself. But it's more than just physical damage and over-crowding, the images we choose to take and share affect the way people perceive our world, for good and bad. If we profess to truly care about the world as outdoor photographers and vow to be good stewards (and not just use it to our advantage to make money or gain followers and likes) we have a responsibility to put some thought into what and how we share, beyond the desire to get "likes". Often, what we leave out of the story is just as important as what we include. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/National-Parks-and-Monuments/Grand-Teton-National-Park/n-DB3rjm/i-FGJGdcb/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-FGJGdcb/0/7aa0f814/M/i-FGJGdcb-M.jpg" alt="Reed Moulton Homestead in black and white, Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming"></a></center><center><font size = "1"> Reed Moulton Homestead, Mormon Row</font></center><br />
Our National Parks are more than just beautiful natural landscapes, they also preserve our history and culture. According to the NPS, nearly 70% of our National Parks tell stories of our amazing history, prehistory, and cultural diversity. It saddens me that most people miss the point of the preservation efforts at Mormon Row, a wonderful example of the linear villages established by the Mormons in the West, thinking only the T.A. Moulton barn is worthy of their attention and for only long enough to grab the perfect photo or selfie. Much of the fault lies with photographers who think only trophy photos of the famous barn are worth taking and worth sharing on social media for the likes, perpetuating the myth. Although my example here concerns historical structures, it's no different in places like Alabama Hills, where the majority of photographers only visit the two best-known and most-photographed arches - Mobius and Lathe - where everyone lines up to take exactly the same photo, not realizing or even perhaps caring that there are hundreds of other arches to be discovered in the area, some of which also are suitable for framing Mt. Whitney if you feel the need. Again I wonder, if the other arches were to suddenly disappear, would anyone notice or care? Are most people just paying lip service or "virtue signaling" when they claim to care about these places? The very fact that so many people have been dying while taking selfies at iconic locations recently - usually by falling off a cliff - shows that they aren't even paying attention to the land. It's just a prop. <br />
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I wish I could convince photographers to put aside any preconceived notions of the images they believe they are "supposed" to take, and instead allow themselves to find the images that speak to their heart. Instead of studying the photos of those who have visited before you, enter a space with an open mind and let discovery be part of your creative process. Maybe sharing an iconic photo of an iconic location will generate more Wows and likes on social media, but the images you find on your own will be more authentic, and just maybe you can show the world that there is more out there to see and care about. <br />
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I know that some pros will jump in to say that the iconic images sell better and that's why they concentrate on them. While that's understandable, I'll also note that many of my images I license are photos of places that very few other photographers think to visit and photograph. There's a lot to be said for having something unique to offer. At a minimum, even if you desire to trophy hunt, after you get the photo stick around for a while and see what else there is to see instead of packing up after bagging your shot. <br />
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I won't kid myself into thinking that one person's thoughts do anything to change the current mindset about trophy hunting in iconic locations. The best I can do is promise you that I will always try my best to bring my own unique vision and stories about these places. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-3229965860193210892018-08-01T17:39:00.000-07:002018-08-01T17:39:54.107-07:00Long Overdue<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-2KJNNXx/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-2KJNNXx/1/0922c268/M/i-2KJNNXx-M.jpg" alt="my feet in hospital bed"></a></center><br />
Hello, is anyone still here?? This post is long overdue. If you don't follow any of my social media accounts or know me personally in real life, you probably don't know that I was diagnosed with Stage IV de novo Metastatic Breast Cancer last September. I didn't feel like blogging, I couldn't bear picking up my cameras, I couldn't even deal with reviewing any of the hundreds of photos I still need to process. If this post is TL:DR for you, or you don't care to hear about the stark realities of life and death, feel free to skip directly to the last paragraph where I share some good news and get back to business. Much of this is me just thinking out loud, but I feel that I owe an explanation for my extended absence from my own blog. Said too much or said too little, it doesn't really matter and if I don't hit the button to Publish now I'm afraid I'll just stare at this post for another couple of weeks while I agonize over it. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-5RmSzBJ/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-5RmSzBJ/1/d98bc277/M/i-5RmSzBJ-M.jpg" alt="one day of tests"></a></center><center><font size = "1">A busy day full of scans.</font size></center><br />
I have a rare and extremely aggressive type - Inflammatory Breast Cancer - that hit me hard and took me down fast. It spread to both breasts, my chest wall, brachial nerves and I lost use of my right arm, skin, liver and throughout my skeleton and had me fighting for my life in no time at all. Everything was a blur - one minute I was perfectly fine, I drove myself to my doctor's office and figured I would give my husband the news that night over dinner. A few hours later I was being admitted to the hospital with dangerously low blood pressure, blood oxygen, and an erratic heart rate of 208. The cancer continued to spread while I was in the hospital undergoing what felt like every test known to mankind, and they thought I was going to die. They said I'd be lucky to last 60 days. I fought long and hard to get back on my feet. My sister-in-law flew out and stayed with us for over a month because I was unable to care for myself and my husband almost had a breakdown trying to take care of me, the house, and his business. Although the chemo started working immediately, it was still six months before I even felt like I had a chance to pull through (part of that due to an atypical adverse reaction to chemo), and then a few more months of slowing gaining strength with targeted therapy drugs. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-4p6VJMh/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-4p6VJMh/0/6047c3b6/M/i-4p6VJMh-M.jpg" alt=""></a></center><center><font size="1">My Mom calls this photo "The Free Spirit, The Earth Mother, and The Wild Child". My baby sisters flew out to visit me and fill my freezer with food. They probably thought that they were saying their last goodbyes. I didn't want my photo taken when I didn't feel well, but I'm glad that my sister-in-law insisted because I love this photo. My hair had just started to fall out but I was still able to disguise it with a scarf.</font size></center><br />
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Many people ask me if I had been skipping my mammograms, as if that would have somehow prevented it. I know they ask the question only to make themselves feel better, as if annual mammograms will prevent the same thing from happening to them or their loved ones and maybe that is where I went wrong. Repeat after me - annual mammograms only aid in detection, they do NOT prevent breast cancer and they do not save your life. In fact, it was recently determined that mammograms have been leading to over-diagnosis (Stage 0 DCIS that probably never would become cancerous) and over-treatment. The New England Journal of Medicine published a report stating that <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1804710?query=featured_home&">up to 85% of women with early stage cancer didn't need the chemo they were treated with</a>. <br />
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With IBC the tumor grows in sheets or layers instead of a lump so it is not usually detected by a mammogram. By the time there is any sign of it all, typically nothing more than what appears to be a rash, it is always late Stage III or Stage IV. Just luck of the draw, I've never been known for doing things half way. It's pink-washing to think that annual mammograms and catching it early will save your life too. 30% of all breast cancers will go on to metastasize, sometimes as much as 20 years later. <b>The death rate from Metastatic BC has not changed in 30 years.</b> Too much money being spent on pink ribbon "awareness" campaigns should be directed toward researching a real cure for MBC. I have a lot more to say on that topic but I'll save it for another day. And as far as <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/basic_info/risk_factors.htm">risk factors</a> go, according to the CDC my only risk factor was that I didn't have children and that I have breasts. I have no family history, I (usually) eat good foods, I'm not overweight, I live(d) an active lifestyle, I didn't start my period early or go through menopause late, I don't drink alcohol excessively (the past ten years I rarely drank at all), I've never been sick a day in my life, my biggest risk was just the fact that I have breasts (men have breasts too, and they can also get breast cancer). <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-VcrRRRq/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-VcrRRRq/0/cd78de1c/M/i-VcrRRRq-M.jpg" alt="chemo infusion"></a></center><br />
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My doctor said it was most likely growing inside me for years, undetected and symptom-less. In hindsight I often wonder if that is why I felt so fatigued the past few years. I chalked it up to getting older and lazy. When I was admitted to the hospital the main thought that went through my head the first few days was that I finally had permission to rest without feeling guilty, and how good it felt to finally put my head down and not worry about anything, just sleep and sleep. I slept for months, resting and healing, only leaving the house for chemo. <br />
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There were many times that I thought about blogging, but I didn't want to bombard my readers with talk about cancer and dying, I didn't want that to be all I was about, but that was the only thing I had going on in my life. I didn't even post on social media much because I didn't have much to say that wasn't about cancer. I wrote beautiful prose in my head, but when I found the energy to grab pen and paper the words disappeared. I thought about creating a new blog just for my cancer story (it's a trendy thing to do these days), but it required too much energy and frankly was another expense that I couldn't justify. Cancer treatment is insanely expensive (my current targeted therapy drugs are $10,000 every 3 weeks with a 20% co-pay at the Silver level, I could never afford it without co-pay assistance. I maxed out on my total out-of-pocket by March of this year) and I haven't worked since I was diagnosed. And as much as I hate to admit it, because my husband and I are both self-employed with irregular income, we rolled the dice and cancelled our health insurance the year before because our "affordable" premiums had sky-rocketed (whoever thinks $18,000 a year for a family of two is affordable needs to have their head checked, especially on top of a California mortgage and cost-of-living. In all of the ACA discussions there isn't nearly enough attention paid to self-employed people who make over roughly $65,000 - the point where subsidies are cut off. I can't even imagine how a free-lancer with kids who makes just over the threshold could possibly afford it.) and neither of us had ever been sick or seriously injured in our lives. It was cheaper to pay cash when we needed to see a doctor. I never was very good at Craps (dice game for those who might not know). This was only time I ever had doubts about my decision to leave my 22-year corporate job with all of the great benefits. Now we have bills from my hospital stay, port surgery, and chemo that my husband will still be paying off after I die. Every penny counts these days. I don't know how we're going to do it, we'll probably end up selling our house, but I have faith that we'll find a way. We always have. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-WrXrWqC/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-WrXrWqC/0/74cc17fe/M/i-WrXrWqC-M.jpg" alt=""></a><br />
</center><center><font size = "1"> I needed to have a Bard PowerPort put in because my veins went into hiding and the few they could find were too scarred. I'll probably be having infusions for the rest of my life and the port makes it easier. One line goes into my jugular and one into my carotid artery.</font></center><br />
<font size = "3" font color = "68CEDC"><b>But this blog isn't supposed to be about cancer,</b></font><br />
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It's supposed to be about photography and adventures.<br />
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I thought that any photographer worth her salt should be documenting the experience with a camera and I felt like a failure. I managed to snap a few shots in the hospital with my phone one day, but mostly I slept. When I started chemo I knew that all the cool photographers, even amateurs, would take a selfie and post some brave face rah-rah shit, but it seemed disrespectful to me and I decided to not do it. It's different when you are early stage and have a defined end to treatment, they get to ring the bell and celebrate having made it through the god-awful treatment, go home knowing that it's over and they've survived, but I'll be in treatment for the rest of my life. I won't get to ring any bells. Not only did it seem wrong to make light of it, it felt disrespectful to everyone else in the infusion room, many of whom were "lifers" like me. I didn't want to talk about what was going on my head because I didn't want to scare people. It's strange how some people are so scared by the idea of death and refuse to believe that something could be incurable. They want to believe in miracles and false hopes. I prefer to deal with the reality of the situation, and I put a high value on the few friends who were okay with openly discussing things with me. The hardest part for me was seeing what it did to my husband. I didn't (and still don't) know how to make any of this easier on him. The truth is, I think came to terms with things easier than most people would. It made sense to me in a way. My life has been full of more pain and hardship than many people could bear, and this only seemed fitting to the rest of my life. I still remember that my Aunt wrote to me, "After everything you've overcome, this isn't fair.", but I figured why should the end be any different? That probably comes as a surprise, but very few people know anything about my life except what I let them see. This is just another challenge. Life deals you a hand of cards, and you play them best you can. I've really had a great life despite all of the hardships, and best of all I've had the opportunity to spend the last years doing what I love best. It's almost as if that was part of the plan. <br />
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I keep kicking around the idea of doing a Stage IV photo project. I tried taking a few photos as time went on, but they didn't have the depth of emotion I was feeling. They felt empty and devoid of feeling. I realized that it was too hard to convey emotion without a human element, and I didn't have the energy to do more than grab a snap now and then with my phone. Well-planned conceptual shots were beyond me; I was lost in a morphine haze and proud of myself when I actually managed to take a shower, get dressed for the day and feed myself. Self portraits were out of the question because I couldn't bear to look at myself in the mirror. I looked like I was dying. I wanted to run from the person in the mirror and I did everything I could to avoid looking at her. <br />
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<center><a href="https://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Stage-IV-Project/n-XfrKHg/i-5FsCfDw/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-5FsCfDw/0/a89aa9bb/M/i-5FsCfDw-M.jpg" alt="My Bard PowerPort"></a></center><center><font size = "1">This is what my PowerPort and scars look like after healing. The black spot near my neck is where my body was rejecting part of it and pushing it outside my skin, but that's just a white scar now. All of the new wrinkles are courtesy of chemo, which is absolute hell on the skin.</font size></center><br />
But as I felt better and started looking into other cancer photography projects I realized they all fell into one of two groups - either a photographer with early stage cancer documented his/her journey, or a photographer documented another's Stage IV journey. I haven't come across any where a photographer documents their own demise from a terminal cancer - what it feels like from the inside not how it looks to an observer; to see those around you suffering; to write instructions for your husband for things that need to be handled upon your death and how to pay the bills with on-line banking and where you keep the titles to the house and cars; the darkness when your body becomes resistant to a treatment and they're not sure if there is anything left to try; the constant roller-coaster of dealing with side effects of treatments; what it feels like to sign a DNR as your husband watches with tears in his eyes and tries so damn hard to stay strong, what it feels like to be afraid to make plans because you're not sure if you'll be up to it, or even alive; what it feels like to wonder if this is your last anniversary, last Christmas, last birthday, the giggles when my hair started growing back and my husband called me his "little q-tip", the feelings of relief after a good scan. I've come up with a few ideas but they're mostly conceptual and require a good deal of planning, prop-making and set up. Since I started with my phone, do I need to finish with my phone? Can I mix black and white with color images? Is it okay to mix raw and real with conceptual? I'm still kicking it around in my head and I'm not sure if I have the time and energy to pull it off. I also want to put together some memory photo books for my husband before my entire photographic legacy disappears into the ether, and that should probably take priority. But I'm going to give the Stage IV Project an effort, and if I make progress I'll be sure to have posts appropriately labeled for those who don't care for such things and only want to enjoy my outdoor and/or Jeep photography. <br />
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<font size = "3" font color = "68CEDC"><b>Now For The Good News</b></font><br />
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It's not all doom and gloom. I am one of the 20% of women who benefit from monoclonal antibody targeted therapy, a type of immunotherapy. I'm actually feeling pretty good right now, all things considered, and I've been getting stronger every day. I know that it will only keep the dogs at bay for a while, hopefully a long while, but I'm determined to enjoy life as best I can, while I still can. Bill and I just returned from a ten day camping trip in beautiful Wyoming and I have lots of photos and stories to share. We visited Jackson, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Bridger-Teton National Forest, and Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Of course we took the Jeep out there and found some beautiful dirt trails to explore! It was a bucket list celebration trip for us because I finally felt well enough to venture out camping and spending time in nature, and we wanted to go make more great memories together. I work at a slower pace these days, but please look for my posts and photos soon!Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-66713671113524152452017-08-08T14:35:00.000-07:002017-08-08T14:35:59.465-07:00Learning To FlyI have a love/hate relationship with drones. <br />
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I hate seeing my neighbor's drone fly over my backyard. They can be annoying when an insensitive drone operator buzzes around people (which isn't legal) or along a hiking trail where people want to hear the sounds of nature, or when they are wrecking the shot somewhere that landscape photographers are trying to shoot without a care for others. Then there's the idiots with a sense of entitlement, few skills and no common sense who fly where they shouldn't and crash them into the <a href="http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/environmental/tourist-fined-for-crashing-drone-into-grand-prismatic/article_2aea910f-e8d1-562d-a356-baae6f00459e.html">Grand Prismatic spring</a>, annoy wildlife, interfere with fire-fighting efforts, and do other stupid things that give drone operators (unmanned aircraft pilots per the FAA) a bad name. <br />
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But there's no denying that aerial footage from drones can be spectacular and absolutely breath-taking when done right.<br />
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My cousin Sean Mitchell visited us last January while he was in California on business. Sean was the co-founder and COO of the Irish tech company Movidius before they were purchased by Intel earlier this year. I won't even pretend to have an inkling of exactly what Movidius does beyond making chips with a focus on AI (artificial intelligence), but some of the technology they developed was the Vision Processing System that does the Active Track, Tap-To-Fly, and Obstacle Avoidance for DJI drones/quadcopters. (I'm incredibly proud of my cousin - he's an astute businessman who is extremely intelligent and now wildly successful, but he's one of the most down-to-earth people you could meet and a really fun guy to hang out with). While I was cooking dinner, Sean and my husband were discussing the advances in drone (quadcopter) technology. My husband was fascinated and thought it would be great to have on our Jeep trips. I explained that as awesome as it would be, I was already stretched thin and didn't have time to dedicate to learning something new. Learning to shoot and edit video, and do it well, takes an incredible amount of time. Motion is a whole different ballgame than still photography. <br />
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A few weeks later my husband received a package in the mail with no note or sender information. It was the newly released DJI Mavic Pro Fly More Combo, in our hands while others were still wondering when they would ship. I couldn't ignore such a generous gift and all of my excuses about not having time disappeared. After adding international calling to Bill's phone so he could call Sean to thank him, Bill and I set up our game plan. I told Bill that if we were going to do this (rather if I were going to invest the time and effort), we were going to do it the right way and make it worthwhile. We would have to work as a team, with each of us taking on the responsibilities that played to our strengths. <br />
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He learned how to fly the drone and work the camera controls, I began studying basic cinematography and then teaching him what I was learning - camera angles and movement, the relationship between frame rate and shutter speeds, exposure, visualizing the scene, and all that other fun stuff that needs to be learned only after you learn how to control the drone. I'm sure I drove him crazy by making him watch endless drone footage that showed the kind of camera movement I wanted him to learn. Eventually he was doing more than just flying the Mavic around with the camera running. He began filming with an eye toward the end product. <br />
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I started learning about the legal and business angle of drones and devoted a lot of time toward studying for my 107 UAS Pilot license, which is required for commercial shooting. I'm ready to sit for the exam but I still haven't decided if I'm going to pull the trigger; being licensed changes the game completely and adds a lot more legal responsibility as well as additional restrictions (one would think that hobbyists would have more restrictions than licensed professionals, but it's actually the opposite in this case). I need to make a strong business case for obtaining my license (the exam is $150 and several hours) or we may just stick with doing it for fun. <br />
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Then I had to learn video editing. I purchased Adobe Premiere Elements because I couldn't justify $50 per month for Premier Pro unless I was making money shooting videos. I hated Premiere Elements. While there are some things I like about the program, I didn't like that only very basic grading could be done, the title templates looked very hokey, and the whole thing had the feel of software for amateurs. It was way too cutesy for me. After spending a couple months playing around with it, I decided to try the highly recommended DaVinci Resolve. After months of learning Premiere, now I was back to square one. Resolve is a very sophisticated and highly capable video editor, but learning how to use the program is akin to learning Photoshop; you could spend the rest of your life learning how to do everything the program is capable of doing. Nothing is intuitive, so while I usually can sit down and figure out how to use software right off the bat, Resolve took me hours and hours of studying before I could do even the most basic thing. <br />
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Meanwhile I was supposed to be shooting the "B-roll" when we were out in the field and I have to admit that I failed miserably. I get too wrapped up in shooting stills and forget about getting any video footage, and when I do remember to shoot video one of the hardest things for me to remember is to shoot for several seconds longer than I think I should...shoot "through" the scene. I've shot so many clips that were way too short to be of any use. I need to figure out how to change my mental work flow when I'm in the field. Bill kept adding to our aerial footage over several months and our archive was building. I wanted him to have a "brag" video to show his friends and family, and I wanted to show my cousin that his generous gift has been put to good use. We'd been working on this since January and still didn't have anything to show for it. I also wanted Bill to see the results of his hard work, and that there was a reason for the things I wanted him to learn (and also see why some things are mistakes that don't work). <br />
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All of this learning about how to fly (and control) the Mavic and the camera, aerial photography, cinematic techniques, video editing, and studying for the license exam has taken up a substantial portion of my time in 2017. We both still have a LOT to learn, but finally we've reached the point where the footage is starting to match my vision and my editing/grading skills are improving enough so that I could finally put something together. <br />
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I called it <i>Learning To Fly</i> because that's what it really is - Bill learning to fly the drone to capture cinematic footage at several beautiful locations we've visited in the California desert. I had hoped to share it on Facebook, but it's too big to upload there so I had to use YouTube. It's not perfect, we're both still working on our skills, but I think we're headed in the right direction. I have something to show my cousin, and Bill absolutely loved it, which was the important thing. I hope you enjoy seeing the places we love to explore and photograph in a whole new light. <br />
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<center><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NqQAWoTt3tg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
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The DJI Mavic Pro is perfect for us because it's small size is easy to fit in our already over-packed Jeep and it's so easy to fly. Knock on wood, we haven't had any mishaps with it yet. <br />
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It's getting harder and harder to find places to legally fly the drone. We try to stay educated on the legal issues and we're very conscious of only flying in remote locations where we won't bother other people. National Parks and Monuments are out, National Forests are okay. A huge portion of BLM land in California was recently made into two new monuments (Sand To Snow and Mojave Trails), so they are out now. Entire towns have banned drones (Laguna Beach most recently). We have to use an app on our phones to check for TFRs (Temporary Flight Restrictions) and NOTAMs (Notice to Airmen) and if we're going someplace without a signal we need to do our research first. Another app tells us if there are any airports within five miles (including heliports) that need to be notified before we fly. If I get my 107 UAS license so I can do it commercially, there are even more restrictions, more regulations, more requirements. I often wonder if it's worth all of the trouble. Yet there's no denying that the footage can be incredibly beautiful and shows a location in a way that still photos can't. I'm still weighing the pros and cons. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-85138867499626874512017-07-31T14:15:00.001-07:002018-09-11T16:49:55.282-07:00Hunting Arches In The Alabama Hills<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-jqvW8HN/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-jqvW8HN/0/8c5ad472/M/20170513-1I8A4655-M.jpg" alt="Moon, Mt. Whitney, scaly rock formation and tiny unknown arch in the Alabama Hills, Eastern Sierra, California"></a></center><br />
I am probably the only landscape photographer who has visited the Alabama Hills in the Eastern Sierra region of California without even once taking a photograph of Mobius or Lathe Arches. Google either one of them and you'll find thousands of photos, most of which look pretty much the same...."Stand here, put your tripod there, and shoot that.". Those two arches are easily accessible. The BLM put in a parking lot and a sign pointing the way to the well worn trail head. There are typically dozens of cars there at any given time of day. Even sadder is that most of the photographers mistake Lone Pine Peak for Mt. Whitney. It's an easy mistake to make if you don't do your research. From this spot, Lone Pine Peak dominates the landscape and looks much higher than Mt. Whitney, so everyone just assumes that it is Mt. Whitney. (HINT: That is Lone Pine Peak in the photo at the top of this post.)<br />
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I supposed I'm spoiled because I don't usually have to deal with other people when I'm out on the trail. I find that standing elbow-to-elbow, jockeying for position, and waiting for the selfie crowd to get out of the frame so everyone can shoot substantially the same image is more than I have the patience to deal with. It's even worse trying to photograph a popular location at night because someone will undoubtedly want to do some light painting with no concern for everyone else, or someone will hike up with a flashlight turned on, ruining the long exposure star trail shot you've patiently been waiting on. <br />
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I don't see the fun in that. I think that other photographers do it because a) they want to have the iconic shot in their portfolio, even if everyone else has the exact same shot, and/or b) the shot is a proven formula, guaranteed to get lots of "likes" as long as you at least halfway know what you're doing (and even if you don't know what mountain peak you are seeing). <br />
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I became fascinated with locating the lesser known arches after finding a hand drawn map several years ago that showed the general location of many arches and other points of interest. The man who drew the (not to scale) map had located hundreds of arches in the Alabama Hills area. Unfortunately the map only covers a portion of the area. While many of the arches are given names, others are only identified with a number. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-nDTQzjh/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-nDTQzjh/0/2fbb3515/M/20111029_0535-M.jpg" alt="Three Brothers rock formation, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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It's the same map I used to find the <a href="http://www.loricarey.com/2013/12/experimenting-with-dstretch-to-enhance.html">petroglyphs on the Three Brothers rock formation</a>. To this day I haven't found any other mention of the petroglyphs on the Three Brothers, so I always make sure to bring the map with me any time I visit Alabama Hills, and my trips have become a game of of seeing what other surprises I can find. <br />
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My travels on my most recent trip took me beyond the area covered by the map and I found several arches that I haven't been able to identify. One is the small arch in the photo at the top of this post. I spotted that arch while hiking around somewhere between Cyclops Arch and Boot Arch. <br />
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Cyclops and Boot aren't hard to find. There is a small parking area for each, but there are no signs pointing the way like there is for Mobius and Lathe, so fewer people find their way to them. I actually found the Cyclops Double Arch by chance. I was doing some scouting around our camp when I spotted the large arch off in the distance. I attempted to see if I could drive closer, but the trail only took me further away. When we got back to camp, I grabbed my camera and set out to find the large arch. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-8Ph8NRM/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-8Ph8NRM/0/3662f4b9/M/20170513-1I8A4521-M.jpg" alt="Cyclops Arch, aka Double Arch, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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If you want to shoot Mt. Whitney, Lone Pine Peak, or any of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range through the arches, you need to shoot in the morning. The mountain range is to the west, and by late afternoon you are shooting directly into the sun. <br />
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As I got closer, I realized the arch was very different than it appeared from farther away. It was a massive double arch, several stories high. Shooting in the afternoon allowed me to capture the unique shape of the arch and understand why it was called the Cyclops Arch. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-S6ZLCLv/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-S6ZLCLv/0/42eccc73/M/20170513-1I8A4523-M.jpg" alt="Cyclops Double Arch in black and white, Alabama Hills, California"></a><br />
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I considered shooting the arch that night in the moonlight, but the moon and the Milky Way rose in the exact same spot at almost the exact same time, and the moon was behind the arch, so it was wasn't worth making the hike. I made a return trip the next morning to get the traditional shot of the mountains through the arch. Sunrise was bland and boring, but there was still a tiny moon setting in the sky and I hoped to include the moon in my composition. I had to scramble up some boulders in order to frame the mountains through the arch. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-RxZNs42/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-RxZNs42/0/c8707673/M/20170513-1I8A4631-M.jpg" alt="Mt. Whitney through Cyclops Double Arch, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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The moon was closer to Lone Pine Peak and I couldn't get the angle. I instead chose to frame Mt. Whitney in the arch (the rather un-dramatic high peak is Mt. Whitney, and you can see why many photographers mistakenly photograph the more dramatic Lone Pine Peak, believing it is Mt. Whitney. It's a trick of perspective from this location.). <br />
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I was glad to be wearing good boots with sticky soles. After I finished shooting, it took me several minutes to figure out how to get back down the rocks I had climbed while holding a camera in one hand. I spotted Boot Arch off in the distance and started making my way over. I found the tiny unknown arch in the top photo while wandering toward Boot Arch. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-Pr4r9b8/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-Pr4r9b8/0/e5563b13/M/20170513-1I8A4646-M.jpg" alt="Boot Arch"></a><br />
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Boot Arch is named for the shape of the arch, the hole in the rock. Many people see a horse head in the shape of the rock itself. Once again I found myself scrambling for a position that would get me high enough to shoot the Sierra mountains through the arch, this time with Lone Pine Peak and the setting moon. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-kzPXZNh/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-kzPXZNh/0/a293355e/M/20170513-1I8A4649-M.jpg" alt="Boot Arch, Lone Pine Peak and the setting moon, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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Those were the only two new (to me) arches I was able to identify on this trip. While driving along the dirt roads and trails gathering material for some DrivingLine articles, I found several more large arches and a few tiny ones. There isn't much information available on line about the arches of Alabama Hills, and after several hours of researching I've thrown my hands up trying to identifying of them. <br />
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I found this arch overlooking Owens Valley when I followed a hiking path up in the hills. It wasn't far from where we had camped on our previous visit. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-q3p4FbD/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-q3p4FbD/0/85925713/M/20170513-1I8A4411-M.jpg" alt="Unknown arch overlooking Owens Valley, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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I might be able to identify this one if I had photographed it from the other side. I thought possibly it was Fat Slob Arch, but it doesn't match up completely to the photos I've been able to find. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-xS7rJZM/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-xS7rJZM/0/d8af0427/M/20170513-1I8A4497-M.jpg" alt="Unknown arch, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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Then there's the tiny arch in the photo at the top of the post, and several more almost-arches or very small arches whose photos aren't worth posting here. Shooting trails for DrivingLine usually means shooting under the desert midday sun, very challenging conditions and not exactly my favorite time to shoot. I've learned to consider it as scouting trips for "real" photography in the future instead of letting it frustrate me. <br />
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The Alabama Hills trails I covered for DrivingLine are suitable for any SUV, so if you want to escape the crowds of boondockers at Alabama Hills check out my two DrivingLine articles on Alabama Hills. You can get directions to where I found these arches and discover a few of my favorite "secret" camp locations, although they're not much of a secret now that I've published them and I have only myself to blame if I find someone there next time I visit. <br />
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<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/the-other-alabama-alabama-hills-in-the-eastern-sierra/">The Other Alabama: Alabama Hills in the Eastern Sierra</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/exploring-unmarked-trails-in-alabama-hills/">Exploring Unmarked Trails in the Alabama Hills</a><br />
That's not the original title I gave this article but my editor changed it. ;)<br />
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In closing, this is Morning Moon Over Lone Pine Peak (NOT Mt. Whitney!). After a boring sunrise, I was glad to have something unique to add to the composition. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-bXShftN/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras/i-bXShftN/0/f4f35dee/M/20170513-1I8A4612-M.jpg" alt="Morning Moon Over Lone Pine Peak, Alabama Hills"></a><br />
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Prints are available in the <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Eastern-Sierras">Gallery</a>. Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-70957665253634331482017-06-02T14:11:00.001-07:002017-06-02T14:15:47.610-07:00Sleeklens Through The Woods Workflow for Landscape Photographers ReviewShooting in RAW means that every single photo I take needs to have some post-processing. When you shoot jpegs the camera decides how much saturation, contrast and sharpness to add. When you shoot RAW files you need to make those decisions yourself and apply them to the image file. Depending on the image and the final usage, this could be as simple as correcting any lens distortion, setting the black and white points, maybe a curves adjustment and sharpening for output. Often it requires more extensive work, especially when processing images that were shot in tough light conditions or when I want to bring my creative vision to an image.<br />
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Lightroom presets can be a great way to speed up a photographer's workflow because they are a bundle of edits contained inside one click. In addition to saving time, they can provide a quick way to evaluate many different "looks". If you keep the Navigation Pane open in the Development Module, you can quickly preview an effect just by hovering your cursor over the name of a preset. Presets can also provide consistency across a shoot. I created a preset for most of my off road trail images for my DrivingLine articles to keep a consistent look, and a result I think my off road images are fairly easy to recognize. While I would never recommend relying entirely on presets, high-quality presets do have a place in my workflow, especially when I'm trying to decide what direction I want go with an image. They are another tool in my toolbox. <br />
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When Sleeklens asked me to review their Through The Woods workflow for landscape photographers, I was excited to have the opportunity to play with some new "toys". The workflow is available either as Lightroom Presets or Photoshop Actions. I chose the Lightroom presets because it seems that most photographers prefer to use Lightroom these days, and despite 20 years of extensive experience with Photoshop I have never like using Actions for several reasons. <br />
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Sleeklens Through The Woods Workflow</h3>
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The Through The Woods workflow contains 51 presets and 30 brushes. There are 12 All-In-One presets, 12 Base presets, 6 Exposure presets, 5 Color Correction presets, 4 Tone/Tint presets, 6 Polish presets, and 6 Vignette presets. The brushes can be used with the Adjustment Brush, Radial, and Graduated filters. What sets this collection apart from many other presets collections is that everything, including the All-In-One presets, is stackable which allows you to layer the effects. <br />
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Sleeklens provides several videos showing how to use their workflow and a "recipe book" of examples. I have to be honest, the example recipes were a little garish for my taste and I got worried that they wouldn't be a good fit for me. Post-processing is highly subjective and personal and some people prefer a highly saturated and over-processed look. My style is typically toward a more natural look. The good thing about presets (unlike Instagram filters) is that all of the individual settings in a preset can be adjusted to personal taste, so I tossed the recipe book to the side and worked on instinct.<br />
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<h3>
All-In-One Presets</h3>
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The first thing I did was to grab a photo with a well-exposed histogram (even distribution across the histogram, no blown highlights or blocked shadows) and tried out each of the All-In-One presets to see how they looked. All-In-One presets are designed to do most of the editing in one click. I didn't make any adjustment to the RAW file before using the presets. This one is from a recent trip to the Alabama Hills in the Eastern Sierra.<br />
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Original RAW File</div>
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Calm Sunset</div>
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Heavenly Warmth</div>
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Dawn Rising</div>
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Mid Range Splendor</div>
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Love Me Tender</div>
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Pastel Caress</div>
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Pressed In Time</div>
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Shine Into The Sun</div>
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The Real Teal</div>
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The Royal Treatment</div>
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Warm Shadows<br />
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Wide Open Spaces</div>
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Five of the color and one of the black and white All-In-One presets are low contrast, which doesn't really suit my work. However, the low contrast matte look is quite popular these days. Four of the twelve Base presets are also low contrast. Some of the All-In-One presets have color casts not generally suitable to my work (purple and teal), and others are too highly saturated for my taste (although saturation, along with the other settings, can be adjusted after applied). Most of the presets had too much sharpening. But again, a preset is just a start and all of the settings can be adjusted to taste.<br />
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I went back and worked the image using the All-In-One Warm Shadows preset to see what I could do with it.<br />
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All-In-One Warm Shadows</div>
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Reduce Vibrance (from +64 to +26)</div>
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Medium Contrast Tone Curve</div>
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Reduce Yellow saturation</div>
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Reduce Orange saturation</div>
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Subtle Black Vignette - adjust midpoint</div>
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Brush - Cloudy Sky Definition on mountains in background</div>
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Reduce Blue saturation</div>
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I decided to test with another image to get a better feel for how each of the presets would work. This image taken at sunset in the El Paso Mountains Wilderness has all mid-tones with a compressed histogram centered squarely in the middle. The frame was exposed to preserve detail in the highlights of the white stripe down the right side of the hills where it is hit by sunlight. <br />
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Again no adjustments were made to the RAW file prior to testing the presets. If this were real life instead of testing, I would adjust the black and white points before doing anything else, which would make a big difference in how these look. </div>
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Original RAW FILE<br />
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Dawn Rising<br />
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Calm Sunset<br />
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Heavenly Warmth<br />
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Love Me Tender<br />
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Mid Tone Splendor<br />
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Pastel Caress<br />
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Pressed In Time<br />
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Shine Into The Sun<br />
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The Real Teal<br />
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The Royal Treatment<br />
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Warm Shadows<br />
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Wide Open Spaces<br />
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We can see that color casts from The Real Teal and The Royal Treatment aren't as strong when applied to mid-tones. The strong saturation of some of the presets isn't as apparent either, except with Calm Sunset, which has an anything but calm strong red. </div>
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Warm Shadows is the closest to how I remembered the scene, so I played a bit more with it. Since there are no strong dark or light tones in the photo I know I want to add some contrast. </div>
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All-In-One Warm Shadows</div>
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Strong Tone Curve</div>
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Brush- Cloudy Sky Definition</div>
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Set White Point</div>
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Remove dust spot</div>
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Crop to 16:9</div>
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At this point, the yellow grass at the bottom of the frame was really popping and I found it distracting, so I used an adjustment brush to reduce the exposure a full two stops just on the grass.<br />
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I also removed the sharpening that was added by the preset. I don't typically sharpen until output because the correct amount of sharpening is highly dependent on the output - print, web, etc. I also don't believe in always sharpening an entire image (especially the sky), which is a limitation of Lightroom. Many the presets in this collection have the sharpening set between 76-106. Warm Shadows uses 106, which creates some pretty heavy artifacting as seen here in a section of the sky -<br />
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Over-sharpened Sky</div>
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Reducing the sharpening cleaned that right up. </div>
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If you don't like any of the All-In-One presets you can start with the Base, Exposure, Color Correct, or Tint/Tone presets. The Base presets include an Auto Tone for color and for black and white, Basic Film, Cinematic which is an orange/blue split tone, Autumn Color which adds gold to the highlights with a saturation bump to all of the warm colors, Dance In The Rain which bumps both the shadow and highlight sliders to the right +75, Down To A Whisper which slides everything including Saturation and Clarity to the left, Exdenting DR (which I wondered was a typo?) which makes strong adjustments to shadows and highlights. High Dynamic Range which essentially slides highlights and whites to zero, shadows and blacks to +100, Monochrome Fantasy which is a low contrast black and white conversion, Morning Light increases exposure and raises the shadows +50, and Punchy which gives a big boost to Vibrance, Contrast and Clarity. The remaining presets are for smaller edits such as more/less contrast, more/less highlights, warm/cool tinting, four color reduction presets (blues, reds, greens, yellows), and the vignette presets. </div>
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The brushes have several haze effects, tint/tone adjustment, and adjustments for clarity, contrast, highlights and shadows. </div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
More Examples</h3>
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I decided that Warm Shadows and Shine Into The Sunset were best suited to my work. They both do a nice job of bringing warmth back into my desert shots, although I usually need to tone them down. Warm Shadows increases Magenta luminence +24, adds gold to the shadows, and gives an overall vibrance boost of a whopping +64. Shine Into The Sunset bumps Orange saturation +15, adds a more subtle gold to the shadows, +43 vibrance and lifts the shadows more than Warm Shadows does.<br />
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This photo taken in the Mojave National Preserve was taken on an overcast day with just a few peeks of blue sky. Again this was exposed to preserve highlight detail in the clouds.<br />
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RAW file</div>
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Base - Basic Film</div>
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All-In-One - Warm Shadows</div>
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Reduce Vibrance</div>
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Reduce Sharpening</div>
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Adjust white balance</div>
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Yellow Saturation -20</div>
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Blue Saturation +11</div>
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This photo of a lone mesquite on the edge of Panamint Dry Lake taken at dawn is my favorite result from this workflow so far.<br />
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RAW file</div>
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All-In-One Shine Into The Sunset</div>
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Color - Deep Blue Skies</div>
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Tone/Tine - Color Pop</div>
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Brush - Cloudy Sky Definition</div>
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Reduce Blue Saturation</div>
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Noise Reduction</div>
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Vignette - Subtle Black</div>
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Adjust white point</div>
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Brush - Add Golden Sun to small sections of grass in foreground</div>
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I shot this during blue hour but did not want to use Tungsten white balance to deepen the blue sky because I wanted to preserve the golds in the foreground. The Deep Blue Sky preset did a good job of bringing the blue hour tone back to the sky (the preset would be too much for a day time shot unless you like super-saturated skies), but the Cloudy Sky Definition brush also adds a small amount of saturation. This meant I needed to reduce the blue saturation after using both. I recommend that if you plan to use the Cloudy Sky Definition Brush (which I really like because it isn't overdone like many other cloud definition presets and brushes), don't make any adjustments to your blues until AFTER you use the brush. Shine Into The Sunset lifts the shadows more than Warm Shadows and was better suited to this photo that was taken before the sun was up.<br />
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I selected a photo from Trona Pinnacles to try out the monochrome presets.<br />
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RAW file</div>
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Mid Tone Splendor is too low contrast for my tastes, but Pressed In Time gave a nice dramatic result with the strong shadows I love on this file. </div>
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After using the Pressed In Time preset, I set the white point and then decided on a 16:9 crop. </div>
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Then in a happy mistake because I forgot that the presets were stackable, I realized that I could use a technique that I often use in Photoshop. When the colors in an image aren't quite working for me but I don't want go straight black and white, I often desaturate by adding a black and white layer on top of the color image and adjusting the opacity. It gives an edgy, gritty look that I sometimes use for desert shots. </div>
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Because I forgot to reset, I clicked Base Color - Autumn Colors on top of the Pressed In Time black and white preset and decided that I liked where it was going. I made a drastic reduction in the orange saturation, and since the clouds had almost faded into oblivion I used the Cloudy Sky Definition brush. That brought more blue into the sky, giving me a nice blue/orange complementary color scheme. I couldn't avoid using Photoshop on this one. I realized that when I used the Lens Profile Correction in Lightroom, the rock formation on the right moved too close to the edge of the frame and it was really bugging me. I took the file into Photoshop, extended the canvas a smidge on the right and added some breathing room. While I was in Photoshop I noticed a car far off in the distance and removed it.<br />
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<h3>
A Note to Beginners About Processing Underexposed Images</h3>
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Most of the examples provided by Sleeklens in their recipe book and video tutorials use extremely underexposed photos. This often happens when a beginning photographer uses an auto exposure mode and the subject is backlit, when the sky is bright but the foreground is dark, when the photographer shoots directly into the sun, or any time the dynamic range is too great to capture in one frame.<br />
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When shooting a scene with high dynamic range I typically shoot multiple frames to combine in post and I'll have a range of frames exposed for the highlights, midtones and the shadows. For this example I selected a frame that was exposed for the highlights with a very dark foreground. Actually, the sun is still overexposed and blown out in this frame, but it will work for this example. This was taken during one of my pre-dawn hikes in Joshua Tree National Park.<br />
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RAW file</div>
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All-In-One Calm Sunset</div>
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Pull Highlights down</div>
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Base - High Dynamic Range</div>
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Adjust Highlights</div>
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Adjust Vibrance</div>
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Adjust Blues</div>
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Adjust Exposure</div>
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Remove Sharpening</div>
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Brush - Golden Haze, around sun and</div>
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top of plants where light is hitting</div>
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The first time you do this you'll probably be amazed how much data can be recovered from an area that looked solidly black. Today's digital cameras are amazing! Doing this can make for a dramatic image that will undoubtedly be popular on social media, but this image would never be suitable for print or even viewing on a large screen monitor. </div>
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Even shot on a full frame Canon 5d Mark III at ISO 1250 (1/500 at f/22 to get the sunstar), there is an incredible amount of noise in the shadows that is revealed when you increase the exposure or use the shadow slider. The problem would usually be even worse on a consumer level camera. You can see in this crop how much noise there is even though I still left the foreground fairly dark. This crop is from the finished image before applying any noise reduction. </div>
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Before applying noise reduction</div>
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You can use noise reduction to reduce the problem to some degree, but there is a point where you start to lose too much detail in the image and have to back off. I used very aggressive color and luminence noise reductions settings in the final image above to get it to where I felt it would be appropriate for social media posting viewed on a mobile device, but there was still a substantial amount of noise and the final image would never make it into my portfolio or be suitable for print.<br />
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If your goal is just to create images for social media posting viewed on a mobile device, this collection makes it very easy to create the look. If you aspire to shoot this type of image for professional use or even personal printing, you should always be sure to view the image at 100%, preferably on a large, color-calibrated monitor to check for artifacting, noise, halos, and chromatic aberration because this method can completely trash an image. There are other technically correct methods to produce a high quality final image of this type (although they involved quite a bit of work).<br />
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Summary</h3>
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Overall I think the Sleeklens Through The Woods workflow was created for photographers with a very different style than mine based on the number of low contrast and haze presets and brushes, but there is still a lot I like in the collection. The All-In-One Warm Shadows and Shine Into The Sunset are a good fit for my desert images, and I absolutely love the Cloudy Sky Definition brush because it adds just the right amount to look natural, without being overdone like so many others I've seen. The most important thing to remember is that presets are just a starting point and can be adjusted to better suit your individual style. </div>
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The hazy, low-contrast style is very popular these days, and I'm sure that landscape photographers who shoot in that style will find much to like in this workflow. I'm looking forward to giving them a try if I ever find my way back to the forest and can shoot sunlight streaming through the trees, which I think several of the presets and brushes would be perfect for. </div>
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The workflow is easy to install and easy to use. I really like the ability to stack the presets, which sets Sleeklens apart from many other companies selling presets. I was very happy with results I was able to achieve using this workflow. </div>
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The Through The Woods workflow is $39 and you can learn more about it here -</div>
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<a href="https://sleeklens.com/product/landscape-lightroom-presets/" target="_blank">https://sleeklens.com/product/landscape-lightroom-presets/</a></div>
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Check out all of the Sleeklens workflow and preset collections</div>
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<a href="https://sleeklens.com/product-category/lightroom-presets" target="_blank">https://sleeklens.com/product-category/lightroom-presets</a></div>
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The Sleeklens Pinterest Page</div>
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<a href="https://www.pinterest.com/sleeklens/lightroom-presets/" target="_blank">https://www.pinterest.com/sleeklens/lightroom-presets/</a></div>
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Sleeklens also offers a professional editing service</div>
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<a href="https://sleeklens.com/product/professional-photo-editing-service/" target="_blank">https://sleeklens.com/product/professional-photo-editing-service/</a></div>
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<i><b>Please note that while I was provided with a free copy of the Sleeklens Through The Woods workflow for purposes of this review, I was not compensated in any way. The links posted here are not affiliate links, and I do not make any commission should you decided to purchase from Sleeklens. This review is entirely my own unbiased opinion based on my personal experiences. </b></i></div>
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<h3>
Final Images Created with Sleeklens Through The Woods workflow for landscape photographers</h3>
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-70808374892757980112017-05-30T15:33:00.000-07:002017-05-30T15:33:57.710-07:00Snagged <center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-sQf7jBL/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-sQf7jBL/0/beccd5e8/M/20161124-1I8A2633-M.jpg" alt=""></a></center><center><i>Dances With Coyotes I</i></center><center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-sQf7jBL/buy">Purchase Print</a></center><br />
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We base camped a few nights at the edge of the dry lake, one of the rare times that we camped on the flats instead of tucked away in a canyon where we could shelter from the fierce Mojave winds. Every morning before dawn I would grab my camera and tripod and hike out into the brutal 25°F darkness, silent except for the crunch of my boots on the frozen ground and the occasional coyote howl. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-8DMTHtm/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-8DMTHtm/0/0ab87c56/M/20161125-1I8A2851-M.jpg" alt=""></a></center><center><i>Lone Mesquite at Dawn</i></center><center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-8DMTHtm/buy">Purchase Print</a></center><br />
During the day we ran Jeep trails. We would get back to camp late in the afternoon, and I would wander through the dazzling gold of dried grasses and mesquite trees at the edge of the lake that shimmered in the late day light. The brilliant gold is what attracted me to the location in the first place and the reason for camping here. I would stay out long after the sun set, then head back to camp for dinner before heading back out for night sky photography. I don't usually have much time for sleeping when I'm out in the wild.<br />
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I love wandering in the desert at night. <br />
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Although it was the brilliant gold grasses and trees that initially attracted me to this location, I found myself repeatedly drawn to this majestic dead tree and I photographed it every time I went out. I guess you could say I was snagged by a snag. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-zRWFktf/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-zRWFktf/0/8b8039f1/M/20161125-1I8A2845-M.jpg" alt=""></a></center><center><i>Dances With Coyotes II</i></center><center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-zRWFktf/buy">Purchase Print</a></center><br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-65158058769421277952017-03-14T13:57:00.001-07:002017-03-14T13:57:24.788-07:00When Life Hands You Lemons<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Still-Life/n-B8WJ2g/i-PVQgFWT/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-PVQgFWT/2/M/i-PVQgFWT-M.jpg" alt="When Life Hands You Lemons II, still life with lemons"></a></center><center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Still-Life/n-B8WJ2g/i-PVQgFWT/buy">Purchase a gallery wrapped canvas print</a></center><br />
It's been a while since I spent serious time in my studio. As much fun as it is to be running and gunning outdoors shooting in natural light, I'm really in my element when I have the time to properly set up and light a shot, something I can't usually do when I am chasing Jeeps down a trail. I love working with and manipulating light to create the scene as I envision it in my head. California finally got much-needed rain this year, and my lemon tree produced an overabundance of fruit. I have a list of all of the goodies I am going to make with the two quarts of lemon juice I've squeezed so far (with suggestions from friends - lemon bars, lemon meringue pie, lemon curd tart, limoncello, and lemonade - with and without booze), but I couldn't resist grabbing a few lemons to bring into the studio. <br />
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<i>Chiaroscuro</i> is an Italian term which literally means "light-dark". It is the dramatic play of light and shadow in an image, where the nuances and subtleties help create the narrative. If the look reminds you of the Old Masters, that's because the technique was developed by da Vinci, Caravaggio and Rembrandt in their beautifully dramatic oil paintings. You can learn a lot about fine art photography by studying the techniques of the Old Masters, something every serious fine art photographer should do. Photography at it's essence is really about light. <br />
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There is a brief period of time when the light coming through the upper windows of my house is perfect for still life photography. Of course I could always recreate the effect with strobes, but there is something about that beautiful quality of light streaming through my windows that makes me want to use the real thing, not a simulation. It only lasts about a half hour and the time of day changes with the seasons, so I have to watch and wait for it to be just right. Being able to "see" the quality of light is one of the most important skills a photographer needs. I used a black card to create the shadows and depth, and I re-arranged the composition over and over using props from around the house until it felt right. I'm sure you can't tell that the candle has slices of lemon embedded in it, but I felt that it was a stroke of genius when I spotted it in another room. If you've ever wandered around your house desperately searching for just the right prop, you'll know exactly what I mean. <br />
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My husband was impressed by the photos but said he never understood the appeal of still life images. He has just started to learn about cinematography and has been paying more attention to the art of photography, so he asked questions and we talked a bit about the chiaroscuro technique and the often underlying meaning of still life images. We talked about symbolism and intent - are the loaf of bread and grapes in a painting meant to represent the Body and Blood of Christ, sustenance, bounty, or merely a random collection of items found in the kitchen? <br />
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I explained how there is often a subtle underlying theme of <i>Vanitas</i> in Dutch still life paintings. Vanitas art always includes some reference to man's mortality. Vanitas is Latin for vanity and refers to Ecclesiastes 12: 8 in the Old Testament (Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.), which implies that all human action is transient in contrast to the everlasting nature of faith. More modern vanitas art has moved away from the religious reference, while still implying that man is a mortal being who will one day die. Images in the vanitas genre typically use more obvious symbols such as skulls, dead flowers and rotting fruit, but I gave a more subtle nod with the cut lemon. While it is visually appealing to show the interior of the fruit and it adds to the composition, I explained that it also signifies the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death. The same could be said for the unlit candle, although I resisted the typical portrayal of a wisp of smoke from a freshly snuffed candle because this image isn't about vanitas, it is about light. It's also important that my lemons aren't the perfect specimens that I would use in a completely different type of image; the natural imperfections are part of the narrative here. Usually this stuff makes his glaze over, but this time Bill described a chiaroscuro still life painting he remembered from his childhood and what he thought it meant, and I could tell that he was developing a new sense of appreciation for still life and fine art. <br />
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I don't usually have a difficult time choosing my favorite composition, but this time I do. The compositions vary only in that the candle is higher and the shadows are deeper in one, and the cut lemon is in a slightly different position. Just when I think I've chosen my favorite, I see something in the other that makes me change my mind.<br />
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<center> <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Still-Life/n-B8WJ2g/i-r5QNKdm/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-r5QNKdm/1/M/i-r5QNKdm-M.jpg" alt="When Life Hands You Lemons I, still life with lemons"></a></center><center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Still-Life/n-B8WJ2g/i-r5QNKdm/buy">Purchase a gallery wrapped canvas print</a></center><br />
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One of these is going to look great hanging in my kitchen, I just need to decide between the two. Which one do you prefer? <br />
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One of these would look great hanging in your kitchen or dining room too. You can purchase a gallery wrapped canvas print by clicking the link below the image. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-56945952225909070372017-02-27T14:13:00.000-08:002017-02-27T14:13:11.280-08:00Breaking The Rules - What Remains, Honorable Mention<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Personal-Projects/Forgotten/i-sdcZ8VG/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Personal-Projects/Forgotten/i-sdcZ8VG/1/M/20140426_4668-M.jpg" alt="Carrizo Plain Ranches I"></a><br />
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I'm very honored that my photo "Carrizo Plain Ranches I" was selected for Honorable Mention at L.A. Photo Curator's exhibition "What Remains" by curator Jody Miller! I was a bit nervous about submitting to an L.A. photo exhibit because Los Angeles is a very trendy and highly competitive market for photographers. It's also my home market so I thought was time to dip a toe where I suspected that people might not be so quick to question my desire to photograph strange things (it has been pointed out to me more than once that in my personal work I tend to be drawn toward the strange and weird, rather than traditionally beautiful images). <br />
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Over 200 artists submitted their work and some of the entries just blew me away. The winning photo "Late Dad" by Paula Rae Gibson is very emotional and powerful; I knew it was a winner as soon as I saw it. You can see all of the winners and read about the Call For Entry at <a href="http://www.laphotocurator.com/what-remains-curator-jody-miller">L.A. Photo Curator: What Remains</a>. My photo is on the second page of the Honorable Mentions gallery and I have a full page with additional images in the Group Exhibition 3. Do take the time to view the rest of the entries and winners, there is some really spectacular work and I am humbled to be included in the list of winners. It is an on-line exhibit only but I decided to enter this competition for a few reasons. The main reason is that a percentage of the entry fees is donated to charities. For <i>What Remains</i> the donation went to the Sacred Stone Legal Defense Fund, the legal defense of the Water Protectors. What could be better than using your art to help a good cause? In addition, the first place winner receives a one-on-one review with at least one of the curators, and L.A. Photo Curator (Laurie Freitag) really goes above and beyond to promote photographers on the website and social media pages. Add to that, I felt that the theme was a good fit for my work and previous exhibitions showed that the focus was on quality fine art, not the type of photography that is popular on social media (that's a topic for a whole 'nother blog post). <br />
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This is especially meaningful to me because a few months ago I decided that I needed to rededicate myself to my fine art pursuits. I've focused so heavily on creating content for DrivingLine the past few years that people who are new to my work think of me as someone who writes about Jeeps, not as a photographer. For me the Jeep is just what I use to pursue my fine art photography and the writing is a way to share my photos and stories. I've been a photographer for over 30 years and I felt the need to bring that to the forefront again. Don't worry, I'm still shooting and writing about my off road adventures for DrivingLine, I'm just making a concentrated effort on the fine art photography that I feel I've neglected the past couple of years. I was still shooting it when I had time, but I wasn't making the time to do much with it. My theme for 2017 is #NotJustJeeps to remind people that first and foremost I am a skilled photographer. <br />
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As a bit of a niche photographer whose personal work doesn't chase "pretty pictures", I need to be highly selective in the exhibitions I enter. Fine art is defined differently by every artist you meet; I know what it means to me and I only enter when I feel there is a good fit with my work. Entering juried exhibitions is a pay-for-play game that can get quite expensive if you don't put a lot of thought into your entries. I prefer themed exhibitions rather than general open calls, and I need to feel an emotional connection to the juror's work (I always research the juror before deciding to enter). That approach has been paying off as I am two for two in just the few months since I've refocused my efforts. <br />
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My photo "Carrizo Plain Ranches I" was the selected winner both times (and was also selected as the title page image for the exhibition brochure of <a href="http://www.loricarey.com/2016/07/exhibition-sense-of-place.html">"A Sense of Place"</a>. I forgot to tell you about that), so I want to point out to beginning photographers how it violates one of the cardinal rules that people will preach non-stop at beginners - the building is smack in the center of the photo! I composed the photo this way because I was drawn to the dirt roads that spiraled around the building, and I used them as a compositional element. I also love symmetry and believe that it brings a certain "quietness" to a photo, with the risk of being boring if not done properly and intentionally. If I had followed the rule of thirds the image wouldn't have the same emotional feeling. Nothing angers me more than seeing a beginner photographer told that his/her photo doesn't follow the rule of thirds, without any other reason other than it's the rule. If I had followed the rule of thirds when composing this image, the entire dynamic would change and it wouldn't tell the same story. I actually did shoot this building in several compositions, but this was the composition that spoke to me, and it's reassuring to see that it speaks to others as well. <br />
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The xext time someone critiques your image by telling you that you should never center the subject and you should always follow the rule of thirds, ask them how it applies to the specific photo. If there is no justification beyond "it's the rule", take it with a grain of salt and go with your gut. Learn the rules, then learn how to break them and embrace your unique vision. <br />
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You can purchase a print by clicking on the photo at the top of this post. Now I think I'd better find the time to mat and frame the exhibition print so I can hang it in my own home. <br />
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Thanks for reading! Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-211897441001137412017-02-09T11:11:00.002-08:002017-02-09T11:11:54.079-08:00Lori Carey Presenting at San Diego Photo ClubI am very honored to have been asked to share photos and stories of my back country adventures deep in the remote regions of the Mojave Desert with the San Diego Photo Club. If you live in the area and are looking for something to do on the evening of Thursday the 16th, the meeting is free and open to all. <br />
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I will be talking about how I got into this line of photography, the perils of solo travel through harsh, remote terrain (and to prepare for it), and of course I'll be sharing many stories of my adventures, both good and bad. I'd love to see you there!<br />
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Details on the <a href="http://photo.sierrasd.org/meetings/2017-02-16-scenes-less-travelled-lori-carey/">San Diego Photo Club</a> website. <br />
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<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/i-NXh4cbL/0/M/i-NXh4cbL-M.jpg"></center>Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-12393197070230275842017-02-01T14:02:00.000-08:002017-02-01T14:02:06.073-08:00The Desert Foxes Story<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-LpLW2rm/1/M/i-LpLW2rm-M.jpg" alt="Desert Foxes graffiti, Black Mountain"><br />
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You know how much I love a good story, and this one really put a smile on my face. <br />
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<b>The Back Story</b><br />
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In 2008 while visiting the Black Mountain Rock Art District, an archaeological area of the Mojave desert that has over 12,000 petroglyphs, I took a photo which became the subject of several subsequent blog and social media posts. I was fascinated by the Desert Foxes Jeep that was scratched into the rock in 1961. While it is obviously considered "graffiti" by today's standards, I couldn't help but feel a kinship with whoever had explored this harsh terrain by Jeep before I was even born. I tried researching the Desert Foxes but was never able to find any information about who they were. I wasn't sure why that specific piece of "vandalism" made me smile when other, older ones like the heart and initials dated 1933 made me cringe. The experience kicked off an on-going photo project that explores what I call "Modern Rock Art" and asks at what point do we as a society accept graffiti and vandalism (in the wilderness) as historically or culturally significant. I became obsessed enough with the question that I even reached out to a Twitter friend who is an archaeologist to discuss the topic and she sent me links to several white papers for further research on the topic. <br />
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To be clear, I am adamantly opposed to vandalism and graffiti and won't hesitate to confront anyone I catch doing it. Tread Lightly and being a good steward of the land are common themes in many of my social media posts and published articles. But there are examples of more recent graffiti (recent as opposed to prehistoric petroglyphs and pictographs created by indigenous people) that society has decided to accept without outrage, and I find that interesting. In the same Black Mountain Rock Art District it's a common game to try to find all four A. Tillman signatures from the 1870s. Tillman is thought to have been a teamster who traveled through this area on a regular basis. <br />
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<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-B7FZpRm/1/M/i-B7FZpRm-M.jpg" alt="A. Tillman signature dated July 1873 in Black Canyon"><br />
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We can explain our fascination with the Tillman signatures as historically significant due to the dates they were created, but there are more recent examples which aren't (yet) old enough to be considered historic, but are cherished and even protected by locals. One example of this is Brenda, a.k.a Face Rock a.k.a. Miss Alabama, in the Alabama Hills. Local artists take good care of her and every once in a while she gets a new look, sometimes in a seasonally appropriate outfit. This is how Brenda looked in 2011. <br />
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<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-R9rpVBM/1/M/i-R9rpVBM-M.jpg" alt="Brenda, aka Face Rock located along Whitney Portal Road in the Alabama Hills, California"><br />
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We can't even say that we accept some graffiti due to the artistic qualities. We all rightly expressed fury at the self-proclaimed Instagram artist who last year decided to leave her art in several western U.S. National Parks and post the evidence to social media. We were horrified that someone would think it acceptable. And yet when well-intentioned volunteers cleaned the graffiti known as Fish Rocks in Trona, locals were furious and insisted that the rocks be repainted. <br />
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<center><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-qTXhZG4/1/M/i-qTXhZG4-M.jpg" alt="Fish Rocks in Poison Canyon near Trona,California"><br />
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<b>The Desert Foxes</b><br />
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Which brings me back to the Desert Foxes. I photographed the etching again in 2015, still wondering who this mythical group of desert explorers were, and I included it an article for DrivingLine magazine on the Black Mountain/Inscription Canyon jeep trail. I used it as an example of how over the years man hasn't been able to resist leaving evidence of his passage while I lamented all of the new graffiti and vandalism since I had last visited the site. <br />
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Fast-forward to December 2016 and I was wonderfully surprised to receive an e-mail from Dan Reeder, who was eight years old when he accompanied his father on the Desert Foxes jeep trip through Black Canyon in 1961. Mr. Reeder's nephew came across my photo online and recognized the logo. They were hoping that I could provide information about the location because they want to put together a family trip back to the site this spring. Mr. Reeder read my blog post about my mixed feelings when I found it and as we e-mailed back and forth he told me the story of how it came to be. <br />
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Douglas Reeder, who passed away in 1988, was a WWII vet who served as a fighter pilot with the U.S. Marine Corps. His wife was also a veteran who served as a combat nurse, and they met while in Sydney on R&R. Like many vets in the 50s and 60s, after he came home he enjoyed spending time with Jeeps and off roading. He was the President of the Desert Foxes Jeep Club in Long Beach, California and also the President of the state off road vehicle association during the mid-1960s. Desert Foxes was one of the very first Jeep clubs in California, dating back to the early 1950s, and is no longer in existence. Dan Reeder has one of the original club logo plaques in the garage workshop his father built, and he kindly sent me a photo of it along with permission to share it here. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-VqhdJ8L/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-VqhdJ8L/0/M/i-VqhdJ8L-M.jpg" alt=""></a></center><br />
Dan Reeder told me that even though our country hadn't yet realized the need to legally protect our wilderness and important cultural sites, as early as the 1950s the Jeep clubs were focused on conservation and stewardship. In addition to same rules we follow today about staying on designated trails, packing out trash, and making sure camps and fire pits were cleaned, they would typically do at least one larger conservation project such as a clean up every year, just like most clubs still do today. When the club leaders noticed someone scratching the club logo into one of the rocks at Black Canyon it caused a bit of a scandal. Damaging the site wasn't illegal at the time - it wasn't legally protected until 2000 when it was named a California Historical Resource (BLACK CANYON--INSCRIPTION CANYON--BLACK MOUNTAIN ROCK ART DISTRICT), but the club still recognized the historic significance of the location and the leaders were very upset that one of their members would do such a thing. The person who did it didn't realize that it was wrong because it wasn't until a few years later that our country even began to understand the need the protect these culturally significant sites. The etching was half done when they caught him, and after some discussion they agreed to let him finish it so it wouldn't look as bad as an unfinished piece would. None of the existing petroglyphs were damaged, it's all by itself off to the side on the same canyon wall. <br />
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Mr. Reeder assured me that the club was horrified when it happened, and since I've used it as an example many times in the past I wanted to share the story of how it came to be. A big thank you to Dan Reeder for reaching out and sharing the story and photo with me. I hope your family has a wonderful time retracing the trip you took with your father back in 1961 and that you enjoy revisiting that area as much as I do. <br />
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<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-wpnSh46/1/M/i-wpnSh46-M.jpg" at="Desert Foxes 1961"></center><br />
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Now 56 years later it is a little piece of California history that will always brings a smile to my face when I see it, even though I recognize it for what it is. The next time I visit it I'll think of Douglas Reeder, home from the war and spending time with his young son Dan out adventuring in the desert, and my smile will be even bigger. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-68024308800081908442016-12-24T18:43:00.000-08:002016-12-24T18:43:23.630-08:00Happy Holidays!<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-FjqWXmg/0/M/i-FjqWXmg-M.jpg" alt="Camping under the Milky Way in Panamint Valley"><br />
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<center>Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my friends, fans, clients and sponsors! You've all helped make 2016 a wonderful year of adventure for me. I greatly appreciate your friendship, support and inspiration. and wish you all the best in 2017!</center><br />
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ABOUT THE IMAGE: I've had many people comment that they thought this photo was done with Photoshop. It was, in a way, but not the way they thought. It's not separate elements composited onto a shot of the Milky Way (a "fake" shot), this is our camp exactly as it looked during our Thanksgiving week trip. It would be impossible to properly expose this scene in one frame. It required three frames - it typically requires a 20-30 second exposure for the Milky Way. A long exposure would overexpose the tent, so I shot another frame exposed properly just for the tent, and yet another (actually several until I thought I had a good frame) to light the Jeep. I didn't have my lighting kit, so I used a flashlight to light the Jeep. My Jeep is silver so it doesn't take much to light it and I needed to keep that exposure short, but it's hard to avoid a hot spot when using a flashlight. I then layered the three frames in Photoshop and "masked in" each properly exposed element to get the look I wanted. If I was doing this for a commercial shoot I would've taken more frames of the Jeep so I could really take my time and light all of the Jeep evenly, but this was just a spur-of-the-moment shot done with limited gear. I also used Photoshop to clone out the extension cord running from the tent to an inverter in my Jeep. So yes there is a bit of Photoshop magic, but it's a very real scene. And it's a good example of why I tell beginning photographers that learning to see the light and understand it is the key to moving your photography to the next level. In order to shoot an image like this, you need to pre-visualize the final image and understand how to handle the exposure and lighting for each element in the scene. <br />
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I don't usually shoot the Milky Way this time of year. I don't even bother to look for it. The galactic core - the bright and colorful part of the Milky Way- isn't visible in the Northern Hemisphere from November until late February, so it's not nearly as spectacular as it is during the summer. But it still is something to see! My husband joined me on a few Milky Way shoots this summer and picked up a few things, and he was the first to notice it. We didn't have a campfire so there was no ambient light to ruin our night vision, and the moon didn't rise until many hours later. The lights were already strung on the tent (using duct tape!) in hopes of a beautiful desert sunset that never happened. It was an exceptionally clear night, and this is the first time I've noticed the Milky Way in an autumn/winter desert night sky. As soon as we spotted it, I grabbed my camera and and tripod and started shooting. It was just a stroke of luck that the Milky Way happened to be positioned directly behind my tent and Jeep. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-86852162209478823122016-12-22T16:16:00.000-08:002016-12-22T16:16:18.741-08:00Living the Life<center><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-tNbVG7x/0/M/i-tNbVG7x-M.jpg" alt="Rainbow in Johnson Canyon, Death Valley National Park"><br />
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When I read other blogs about outdoor adventure, I'm always impressed at how they make things that I take for granted seem so daring and adventurous. I remember one guy spent three blog posts describing the night he spent in a cabin in the Mojave, filled with fear of noises in the night and hantavirus. I had been to the cabin and I couldn't stop laughing at how he described defeating what he was sure was his certain death. The thing is, he sucked me in and I kept reading, even though I thought his worries were ridiculous. <br />
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My articles in DrivingLine don't leave any room for embellishment, as it is I struggle to stay within my word count limit just to give basic information about the trail. The real stories are always left out. I write some awesome stories and poems in my head as I huddle over a campfire trying to warm my bones, staring at the stars or waiting for the sun to bless me with it's amazing warmth. I suppose I should put those thoughts down on paper while I'm still out in the field and feeling the emotions, after all I have pens and notebooks stashed in my backpack, my camera bags, and my Jeep. But the idea of writing - working - at the end of the day ruins the idea of just "being" for me. I think it's important to just enjoy the moment once in a while, especially for me because what used to be my time to relax has evolved into my time to work, and my days in the field are long and tiring. Once in a while I need to put everything down, let it go, and remember why I first fell in love with being wet, bleeding, too cold or too hot, dirty, and exhausted in the middle of nowhere where every decision could mean life or death. <br />
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Sometimes I think about what I could to make it really come to life. I'd love to live-feed from the trail but I never have an internet or cell phone connection. <br />
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"Maybe I should do videos. Video is really big right now." I mused out loud one day. My husband asked how much a good video camera would cost, and I shook my head. Good video is an art all on its own, and there's no way I could juggle serious videography in addition to still photography at the pace we've been covering, especially since I'm usually climbing up rocks and sliding down slopes, braving the elements as he relaxes behind the wheel of my warm and cozy Jeep. I don't even have enough time to do all of the still photography I want to do, which breaks my heart some days. We have to stay on the move and cover a lot of ground if I hope to make the trip profitable, there's no time to wait around for the light to change. <br />
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On our last trip I started using my phone to shoot some short video clips, thinking maybe eventually I could accumulate enough clips to do something with them. I'm the kind of photographer who practically never thinks to use her phone to take a photo (and when I do, it's pure crap because I can't see the screen in the sun), so actually remembering to dig it out once in a while was a really big accomplishment for me. (Note to self: my dSLRs are perfectly capable of shooting video, they are already in my hand, and would produce much better quality than my phone!). <br />
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I was hoping to have a relaxing holiday out in the desert and not put so much pressure on myself during our recent extended Thanksgiving trip, but I ended up pushing hard and working non-stop, bell to bell every day. We had been running trails for several days with base camp set up in Panamint Valley on the edge of the dry lake. The overnight temperature hovered around 25° F every night and wild burros tormented us with loud braying all night long. <br />
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<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-Th9Dstf/1/M/i-Th9Dstf-M.jpg" alt="Wild burro in Panamint Valley"><br />
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It had been an amazing trip so far, but I was cold and tired and in need of a shower when I woke up before dawn to another bitter morning. We had completed the trails we set out to do and reached the "Where now?" portion of our journey on Saturday morning. Bill started a small campfire to take the edge off of the brutal cold and I put water on to boil for coffee (our water was only partially frozen. That's why we switched from a metal jerry can to a plastic one for water - we learned the hard way several years ago). We debated heading home and relaxing for the rest of the holiday weekend, a small part of me dreaming about that hot shower, but Bill wanted to do a trail in Death Valley that we read about in one of my books. I showed him on the map that it wasn't as close as he thought, Death Valley is huge and the trail head was about 120 miles away by pavement. There was a chance of rain in the forecast and I thought maybe it would be better to save that trail for our next trip. He was determined and it didn't really take much effort to convince me. <br />
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I spent the early morning hours with my camera, cursing at the fact that I never think to grab gloves before I head out from camp. It's unbelievable how cold a hunk of metal gets after a 25° degree night. It stings like a b*tch and I could only hold it for a few minutes at a time. I wondered if I was going to get frostbite on my fingers. After a quick breakfast we packed up camp, loaded up the Jeep, and set out for the other side of the mountains. We took our time and did some sightseeing along the way since we rarely see the areas along the paved road. Death Valley proper, in the tourist areas, was a complete mob scene. We stopped at Furnace Creek so I could pick up a new map and book and I was overwhelmed by the noise and the chaos. I couldn't wait to return to the back country. It's hard to readjust to civilization after spending time in the solitude of nature. <br />
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The trail didn't meet the expectations that our guide book built up, and we were getting restless. The sun was getting low in the sky and we knew it was time to start thinking about where to settle in for the night. I chose Johnson Canyon because it was nearby and the trip to Hungry Bill's Ranch would make a good article, so we started heading toward the mountains. And then BAM! a storm blew in. The sky darkened, the wind started raging and we could see a sandstorm creating total whiteout in the valley not far from us. We raced toward the mountains hoping to find shelter but the trail was rough going and it seemed like it was taking forever to travel a few miles up the alluvial fan.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-vvjvtH8/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-vvjvtH8/0/M/20161126-1I8A2919-M.jpg" alt="A storm blows in at sunset in Death Valley National Park"></a></center><br />
We crested a rise and discovered another couple packing up their vehicle. We stopped to make sure they were okay, and they told us they had decided to head to town because conditions were too bad. They offered us their spot, but we thought it was too exposed and decided to keep going. When we reached the point where the trail drops into the mouth of the canyon, we eyed the angry storm clouds and realized that it wouldn't be a smart idea to camp down in the narrow canyon. I didn't want to be awakened in the middle of the night by my Jeep being washed away in a flash flood, especially if I was inside of it. We found a flat spot on high rocky ground to park for the night. We weren't happy about how open and exposed it was, but it would have to do.<br />
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The wind was blowing at 50+mph and there was no way we would be able to set up a tent. It was about to get dark, and we had no choice but to sleep in the Jeep. It's not the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last time, but the front seats of the Jeep aren't very comfortable and it's not much fun. I wasn't looking forward to settling in for such a long night. It gets dark way too early this time of year. That's not a problem when I can fill my time with night photography or enjoying a camp fire, but twelve hours squished in the front seat of a Jeep is a long, long night. It's even longer when the Jeep is rocking back and forth, buffeted by gale force winds. <br />
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It's a lot harder for a woman to pee in 50 mile an hour winds than it is for a man, especially when there are no rocks or trees around and the wind is swirling in all directions. <br />
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I needed hot coffee before I could bring myself to settle in. While Bill kindly unpacked half the Jeep to dig out the camp stove, some sandwiches and our sleeping bags, I decided to use my phone to shoot a quick video explaining what was going on for all of the people who always tell me that I'm "living the life" haha! I could hardly stay on my feet, and you can barely hear my breathless voice trying to shout over the wind. I was trying to explain that we were setting up for the night near the mouth of Johnson Canyon because a storm was blowing in, and that I wasn't looking forward to spending the night in the Jeep, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do. Subconsciously I may have been thinking to leave some evidence behind in case we perished and people wondered what the hell we were thinking being out there in those conditions! Even though the video wasn't the best quality, I posted it on my personal Facebook page when I got home. I was honestly surprised at the reaction to it. Despite the poor quality of the video, people who have never spent time in the Mojave and experienced the winds were amazed, and I'm sure the Death Valley scenery, or what you could see of it through the blowing sand, helped too. So despite the fact that it doesn't meet my "professional standards", I'm sharing it here. <br />
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I used one of my big tires as a wind block so I could boil water for my coffee. We settled in with our sandwiches and a movie on my Kindle while the last light died from the sky, and we pretended that we were at the drive-in theater. A hour or so later the sand storm engulfed us. We turned on all of the Jeep lights and watched in amazement. I tried filming it from inside the Jeep but by then it was pitch dark and even eight lights from Jeep couldn't penetrate the darkness and sand enough for my phone. Soon we we were napping on and off out of boredom, and when the wind suddenly died around 10pm it woke us both. Bill used the opportunity for a bio break, while I decided it wasn't worth trying to untangle myself from my sleeping bag. The reprieve didn't last long; a few minutes later the wind started up again and didn't stop until the morning. Our only saving grace was that temperature was reasonable and it didn't rain. We both managed to get a few hours of restless sleep. <br />
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The next morning the sky still looked threatening but the wind had died down to a manageable level. After a quick breakfast of leftover cornbread and coffee, we followed the trail into the canyon and made it all the way to the end at Wilson Spring before it started raining. Rather than make the mile and half hike to Hungry Bill's Ranch we decided it was time to get out of the canyon. I can't say it often enough, you do not want to be in a canyon when there is a chance of a flash flood. As we were making our way back down the rocky trail, we spotted the rainbow behind us. <br />
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We tried to race the rain home but it caught up to us while we were on Harry Wade heading toward Baker and it was brutal. We stopped at Denny's for a hearty breakfast and some much needed coffee. Other travelers hiding out from the storm told us that the Cajon Pass was treacherous ice and snow. If they closed the pass we would have a tough time finding a route home, but I was not looking forward to driving over the pass in those conditions either. I don't think we got over 10mph for the first 100 miles of the ride home, and the Cajon Pass had melted by the time we reached it well after dark. <br />
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<center><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-pVkBt9b/0/M/i-pVkBt9b-M.jpg" alt="Jeep outside Johnson Canyon during windstorm, Death Valley National Park"></center><br />
AFTER THOUGHTS: I know this is a long blog post, but a Twitter conversation I had with a friend right while I was working on this post seemed relevant. I had thought to make this part a follow-up post, but you know me - it would be months before I found the time to hit the "Publish" button and by then the point would be lost. My apologies to the tl:dr crowd, I know that attention spans are shrinking and sadly few people are interested in taking the time to read any more. I'm a voracious reader, so I can't relate. Consider this a bonus - a two-for-one post. <br />
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My friend and I were discussing an article by a female social media "rock star" involved in the outdoor industry. The article was a long whiny rant about how fake it all is, she pretends to be having a great time but the truth is that most of the time she is cold, scared, tired, hungry or something else. She said she spends 99% of the time crying because she's so miserable. Crying! The comment section cheered her on. I cannot believe how many people agreed that they were only pretending to have a good time but were actually miserable and crying. I wanted to smack her, and then smack her again because I felt it portrayed outdoor women in a bad light. <br />
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I could tell that my friend didn't understand why the article upset me so much, especially the gender connection (my friend is a man). Maybe he even thought I was exactly what she meant about women not supporting each other. But here's the thing - Mother Nature is a merciless bitch, she seduces you with her beauty and then when you least expect it she smacks you upside the head to remind you of her power. If you spend a lot of time in outdoor pursuits, especially in remote locations, there are times when things are going to happen, when you are going to be too cold, too hot, hungry and thirsty, so tired you don't know how to go on, you might get injured, and sometimes you might be afraid you that could actually die (once so far, a valuable lesson learned about dehydration a long time ago). It comes with the territory, get used to it. Most of us who spend a lot of time in the wilderness thrive on the challenge of overcoming the difficulties. That's what gives us stories to tell. If you are completely miserable every time you're out there and find that you are always crying, maybe being an outdoor adventure social media rock star isn't a good fit for you. The truth is, this woman is not an outdoor adventurer, she's a Digital Media Manager at a ski magazine who found social media popularity by posting photos of herself doing outdoor activities that apparently make her miserable. She became popular because she's attractive. Look, I get it that outdoor adventure women are very trendy in marketing right now, but if you don't really embrace the outdoor lifestyle you are just a model, not a role model. And in all honesty, companies disappoint me when they use this type of content marketing to try to appeal to "real" outdoor adventure women because we see right through it. There's a big difference between being a marketing prop and being an outdoor adventure woman. We want authenticity, not glamour. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-wHtXPCk/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-wHtXPCk/0/M/20161126-1I8A2992-M.jpg" alt="Autumn cottonwood trees at Wilson Spring in Johnson Canyon, Death Valley National Park"></a><br />
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She then went on to claim that we're ALL lying about how much fun we're having. There are a lot of real women doing real outdoor adventure who love every minute of it, that is why they do it. I know this because many are my friends. It angers me that one woman claims we are all just pretending to have fun and people cheer for her honesty. It's not glamorous. It's hard work, especially if you're trying to make a living from it. It's dirty. We don't always look cute on Instagram. One of the hardest things for me to learn in the beginning was that my friends would still accept me when I'm not wearing make-up and no matter how bad my hair looks after four days without a shower. But a lot of us really are having a great time even in rough conditions and we don't have to pretend. We'd rather be toughing it out in the worst that Mother Nature can throw our way than be stuck inside a cubicle staring out the window. <br />
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And since I'm often contacted by men who want my advice on how to get their wives outdoors and make it fun and comfortable for them, articles written by women that proclaim we are all lying about having fun and that we often cry because we're so miserable don't make it any easier. <br />
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I shared my favorite saying on my Facebook post and a friend told me it should be my be my motto. Maybe she meant my business motto, because it's certainly my personal motto. <br />
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<font face="verdana"; font size="4"; font color="red";><b>The only difference between an adventure and an ordeal is your attitude!</b></font> <br />
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I also mentioned on Facebook how lucky I was that my husband has the same "roll with it" attitude that I do, because if either of us were the type to get whiny (or God forbid, start crying) when things don't go our way, our adventures would be miserable. Dealing with whiners makes everyone miserable, and it could be dangerous because the whiner is focused on themselves instead of dealing with the situation at hand. I don't spend much time around whiners. <br />
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I didn't realize how ingrained this attitude had become in me until The Waterfall Incident. In a soon-to-be-published article about hiking Surprise Canyon I mention slipping on the rocks while climbing back down the seven waterfalls. There was this huge, slick, round slab of granite, maybe eight or so feet tall. I had successfully climbed up the boulder, but while attempting a graceful slide back down I slipped and landed hard on my butt in the stream. As if that wasn't bad enough, when I tried to get my feet under me I again slipped on the wet rocks and landed on my back, soaked from head to toe. I burst out laughing and laid there while first making sure my camera was okay (it was on my Spyder Pro Holster and if the camera or lens took a hit, there was no sign of it), then mentally checking to see how badly I was hurt (just my pride, thank you). As my husband came running over to see if I was okay, I heard him explain to our friend that when I laugh hysterically it means that I'm seriously injured! I realized that it's true, I do laugh when I'm badly hurt. Guess he hasn't yet caught on that when I'm really injured, I also curse like a sailor in between the bouts of hysterical laughter. If I'm only laughing and not cursing, I'm okay. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-4jj5jbR/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Desertscapes-1/i-4jj5jbR/0/M/20161127-3634-M.jpg" alt="Sand storm in Death Valley"></a></center><br />
So maybe I am a hard, mean person without a nurturing bone in my body and I show little support for women (or men) who whine and cry, but if you ever get stuck in a tough situation out in the wild you're going to want me on your team, because even though my hair will be a mess, I won't be wearing makeup, and I might have a rip in my pants because I fell down a waterfall, I'm the one who is going to make it fun and we're going to have awesome stories to tell. <br />
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Unless you whine, and then I might smack you. <br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-7894360829736502802016-11-29T15:36:00.000-08:002016-11-29T15:36:01.645-08:00DrivingLine Articles<br />
<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-jFQXtQZ/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-jFQXtQZ/0/M/20160326_3336-M.jpg" alt="Jeep Wrangler on Bird Spring Pass trail"></a><br />
</center>It's been a while since I've posted an update on my articles published on Nitto Tire's DrivingLine, most of which are trail reviews. Frankly I've been putting too much focus on generating content for DrivingLine and not paying enough attention to the rest of my business. That is biting me in the ass in more ways than one so my goal for 2017 is to find a better balance. We've been to many beautiful and interesting places in 2016, and I have lots of stories and beautiful photos to share that don't fit into the DrivingLine format. I'm looking forward to sharing them with you going forward. <br />
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I also decided a while back to stop shooting off road motorsports. Young kids half my age are taking great images for half of what I charge to walk out the door. It's not worth my time and effort to pursue it, and I won't work 18 hour days hiking up and down waterfalls for peanuts, money that barely covers my gas expense. If the business model works for other photographers, more power to them. <br />
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If you haven't been following my adventures on DrivingLine, here are the articles that have been published since I last updated the <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Articles">Published Articles</a> section of my website (which I apparently haven't updated since 2014). Now that I look at it, I think it's about time I start organizing my trail reviews by geographical area. Actually I think it's about time I start working on a book. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-PdKQzd9/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-PdKQzd9/0/M/20160730-1I8A1200-M.jpg" alt="Jeep Wrangler on Berdoo Canyon trail, Joshua Tree National Park"></a><br />
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<b>Trail Reviews</b><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/going-off-road-in-the-borrego-badlands/">Anza-Borrego Desert State Park - Inspiration Wash and Fonts Point</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/exploring-the-el-paso-mountains/">Exploring the El Paso Mountains</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/rock-hounds-black-canyon-and-scouts-cove/">Black Canyon and Scouts Cove</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/trail-riding-inscription-canyon-and-rainbow-basin/">Inscription Canyon and Rainbow Basin</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/grapevine-canyon-trail-anza-borrego-desert-state-park/">Grapevine Canyon Trail - Anza-Borrego Desert State Park</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/surviving-the-nadeau-trail/">Surviving the Nadeau Trail </a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/holidays-hunting-for-the-kopper-king-mine/">Holidays Hunting for the Kopper King Mine</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/last-ride-for-2015-the-bendire-canyon-trail/">Last Ride for 2015 - The Bendire Canyon Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/exploring-the-mine-wash-trail/">Exploring the Mine Wash Trail - Anza-Borrego Desert State Park</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/fissure-mountain-the-original-hammer-trail/">Fissure Mountain: The Original Hammer Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/scenic-sierras-the-bird-spring-pass-trail/">Bird Spring Pass Trail </a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/the-dove-spring-pass-trail/">Dove Spring Pass Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/counting-jeeps-on-the-sheep-spring-trail/">Counting Jeeps on the Sheep Spring Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/stranger-than-fiction-the-trona-pinnacles/">Stranger Than Fiction: The Trona Pinnacles</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/mangled-metal-monuments-and-windy-memories-on-the-grass-valley-trail/">Mangled Metal and Windy Memories on the Grass Valley Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/the-tortoise-and-the-jeep-koehn-lake-trail-hunt/">The Tortoise and The Jeep: Koehn Lake Trail Hunt</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/geology-touring-in-joshua-tree-national-park/">Geology Touring in Joshua Tree National Park</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/berdoo-canyon-trail-review/">Berdoo Canyon Trail Review - Joshua Tree National Park</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/mining-for-history-in-the-mojave-deserts-kessler-peak-trail/">Mining for History in the Mojave Desert's Kessler Peak Trail</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/volcanic-wheeling-in-the-mojave-aiken-mine-trail-review/">Volcanic Wheeling in the Mojave: Aiken Mine Trail Review</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/wheeling-at-death-valley-mine-trail/">Wheeling at Death Valley Mine Trail</a><br />
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<center><br />
<a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-sm2tqL8/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Jeeps/i-sm2tqL8/0/M/20160730-1I8A1036-M.jpg" alt="Jeep Wrangler on Geology Tour Road, Joshua Tree National Park"></a><br />
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<b>Events</b><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/tierra-del-sol-desert-safari/">2015 Tiera del Sol Desert Safari</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/sdjc-urban-poker-run-draws-a-full-house/">SDJC Urban Poker Run Draws a Full House</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/kmc-wheels-summer-jeep-bash/">2015 KMC Wheels Summer Jeep Bash</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/2015-lucas-oil-off-road-expo/">2015 Lucas Oil Offroad Expo</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/wheeling-with-sol-the-54th-annual-desert-safari/">'Wheeling With Sol: The 54th Annual Desert Safari</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/2016-kmc-jeep-bash-the-long-beach-invasion/">2016 KMC Jeep Bash: Long Beach Invasion</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/trucks-were-king-plus-other-trends-at-the-2016-off-road-expo/">2016 Off Road Expo: Where Trucks Are King</a><br />
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<b>Lifestyle</b><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/jeep-debuts-seven-new-concept-vehicles-at-easter-jeep-safari/">Jeep Debuts Seven New Vehicles at Easter Jeep Safari</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/its-a-jeep-thing/">It's a Jeep Thing</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/top-ten-reasons-to-take-your-top-off-on-national-go-topless-day/">Ten Reasons To Take Your Top Off on National Go Topless Day</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/7-great-android-apps-for-your-off-road-adventures/">7 Great Android Apps for Your Off Road Adventures</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/8-great-ios-apps-for-your-off-road-adventures/">8 Great iOS Apps for Your Off Road Adventures</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/why-body-on-frame-off-road-vehicles-matter/">Why Body on Frame Off Road Vehicles Matter</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/off-road-basics-axle-articulation-got-flex/">Off Road Basics: Axle Articulation - Got Flex?</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/creative-license-some-of-our-favorite-vanity-plates/">Creative License - Some of our Favorite Vanity Plates</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/9-ways-to-ensure-fire-safety-while-off-roading/">Nine Ways to Ensure Fire Safety While Off-Roading</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/upgrading-to-a-genesis-off-road-dual-battery-kit/">Upgrading to a Genesis Off-Road Dual Battery Kit</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/custom-jeep-storage-solutions/">Custom Jeep Storage Solutions</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/6-ways-geocaching-can-improve-your-off-road-navigation-skills/">6 Ways Geocaching Can Improve Your Off Road Navigation Skills</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/10-tips-to-surviving-desert-wheeling/">Ten Tips for Surviving Desert 'Wheeling</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/great-campfire-meals-pie-iron-recipes/">Great Campfire Meals: Pie Iron Recipes</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/trail-finder-tips-for-planning-out-your-next-off-road-adventure/">Trail Finder: Tips for Planning Your Next Off Road Adventure</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/barbie-jeep-racing-the-koh-race-you-didnt-hear-about/">Barbie Jeep Racing: the KOH Race You Didn't Hear About!</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/pack-mule-how-to-fit-overland-essentials-in-a-compact-4x4/">Pack Mule: How to Fit Overland Essentials in a Compact 4x4</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/go-topless-its-a-jeep-thing/">Go Topless: It's a Jeep Thing</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/two-to-travel-a-wrangler-with-serious-trail-tales/">Two To Travel: A Wrangler with Serious Trail Tales</a> - write-up on my Jeep build<br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/snorkeling-in-the-desert-get-your-jeep-breathing-better/">Snorkeling In The Desert: Get Your Jeep Breathing Better</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/putting-optimas-digital-battery-chargers-to-the-test/">Putting OPTIMA's Digital Chargers to the Test</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/articles/trail-testing-the-magellan-explorist-trx7-off-road-gps/">Trail Testing the Magellan eXplorist TRX7 Off Road GPS</a><br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-48665434045162058222016-08-01T11:30:00.000-07:002016-08-01T11:37:54.815-07:00Milky Way and Dusty Skies at Joshua Tree National Park<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Nightscapes/i-QdmPg8r/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Nightscapes/i-QdmPg8r/0/M/20160730-1I8A1068-Edit-M.jpg" alt="Milky Way in Joshua Tree National Park"></a><br />
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I took four people out to Joshua Tree National Park to teach them how to shoot the Milky Way Saturday night. I was originally thinking to do a "Girls Night Out Under the Stars" with some adventurous Jeep friends and I posted an invite on my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/loricareyphotography">Facebook page</a>, but the timing didn't work out for most people and I had guys asking to come, so we ended up doing a couples thing and I actually managed to convince my husband to join me in the desert in the middle of summer. The spouses had company while the shooters were busy, and I think it worked out really well. When we were finished shooting, we grabbed a few hours of sleep right there under the stars before heading home. <br />
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The galactic core of the galaxy is directly facing the earth this time of year, so if you want the best Milky Way photos this is the time of year. Saturday night/Sunday morning the moon was just a tiny thumbnail, it didn't rise until 2:57am and was only 12.1% illuminated; perfect for shooting the Milky Way. But as all outdoor photographers know, sometimes conditions don't work in your favor. As we were heading out to the park, when we crested the mountains and dropped into Riverside, the sky turned a dull gray and visibility was practically non-existent. We could barely make out the mountains. At first I thought it might be due to one of the wildfires raging in California, but as we continued toward Joshua Tree it only got worse and it didn't smell like smoke. I couldn't figure out what was going on - it didn't seem to be smog (and I've never seen smog that heavy way out in the desert, and although it was low to the ground it didn't seem to be fog either. I couldn't figure out what was going on because I had never seen anything like it. <br />
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It wasn't until I got home the next day that I learned from The Press-Enterprise it was due to a storm in Arizona - <br />
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<i>"Across portions of the Inland area Saturday, the sky was filled with a smoky, grayish haze and many residents were scratching their heads and wondering why.So what caused the sky to look this way? National Weather Service meteorologist Dan Gregoria said you can blame a powerful storm in Arizona. He said the storm — which moved in over Arizona Friday night — not only produced rain and lightning there, it also kicked up lots of dust. That dust was then carried by down draft winds and pushed west as the storm moved west. It made its way across Yuma, into the Coachella Valley, through the Banning Pass and the rest of the Inland area. The storm eventually traveled into Baja California and dissipated. It didn't deposit any rainfall in Southern California on its way out -- just the dust, National Weather Service officials said.<br />
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Gregoria said it's a rare occurrence to have such dusty skies."<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-cmC3txB/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-cmC3txB/0/M/i-cmC3txB-M.jpg" alt="The view from Keys View during a dust storm event. Joshua Tree National Park"></a><br />
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Just how bad was it? Here's the view from Keys View - above is how it looked on Saturday and below is from a previous trip on clear day. Normally you could see the San Andreas Fault, Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley, Mt. San Jacinto and Mt. San Gorgonio, and on really clear days you can see all the way past the Salton Sea into Mexico. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Nature-and-Landscapes/Joshua-Tree-National-Park/n-HDBRV/i-CN7fnqT/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-CN7fnqT/3/M/i-CN7fnqT-M.jpg" alt="Keys View, Joshua Tree National Park"></a></center><br />
I knew that there was a monsoon blowing into Arizona, but it wasn't supposed to reach this area until Monday. Who knew that a storm in the next state could have such a drastic affect on us? We were hoping the wind would blow it out by sunset, and although much of it had dissipated by evening there was still a lot of low-level haze and the Milky Way, although visible, couldn't be seen in all of its glory. Disappointing for sure after we had all driven several hours, but we're all outdoors people who would still enjoy a beautiful evening under the stars even if it was a bust for the photographers. Knowing that the camera sees more light than our eyes do, I decided we would give it a try anyway, and as I had hoped my camera picked it up much better than I thought it would. We had a lot of fun shooting for several hours, playing around with some light painting, and enjoying the desert. <br />
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I did use much heavier processing than I normally would on the photo above in order to bring out the galactic center. That's always a judgement call and up to your own personal style. I usually prefer a more natural look, and I remember when everyone was shocked a few years ago when several photography heavy-weights were disqualified from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest due to excessive processing of the Milky Way. When post-processing an image I always keep in mind the intended audience and usage of the image when deciding how far to go. I love creating art but I also pride myself on doing spot-on documentary work. You can really see how hazy it was from all of the dust in the air. The ambient light from Palm Springs doesn't bother me much as it helps emphasize the silhouette of the rock formation. I've only processed one Milky Way shot so far; I shot material for several DrivingLine articles while I was in J Tree and as soon as I get those articles put together I'll come back to my Milky Way photos. <br />
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I have several people asking me to do another "mini workshop" so I'm going to try to do another one this month. Hopefully we'll have better weather conditions! Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-31791661186764844192016-07-28T14:22:00.000-07:002016-07-28T14:22:44.207-07:00Exhibition: A Sense of Place<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Carrizo/i-q2Wtfvj/A"><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/Portfolio/Carrizo/i-q2Wtfvj/2/M/20140426_4668-M.jpg" alt=""></a><br />
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I'm incredibly excited that my photo is one of 35 that have been selected by juror Jane Fulton Alt for exhibition at The PhotoPlace Gallery's "A Sense of Place". I've been spending so much time lately photographing Jeeps to pay the bills while my heart is really in fine art and struggling with finding balance, and since I like to photograph strange things I find in the desert it can be hard to find a good fit for my images, so this is a great mental boost for me on many levels. I'm doubly excited because of the qualifications of the juror - <br />
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Jane Fulton Alt’s photographs explore universal issues of humanity and the non–material. She is the three-time winner of Photolucida’s Critical Mass for her Katrina and Burn portfolios, recipient of the 2007 Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award, and multiple Ragdale Foundation Fellowships. She has authored two books; Look and Leave: Photographs and Stories of New Orleans’s Lower Ninth Ward,and The Burn. Her Crude Awakening portfolio was published worldwide.<br />
She received the Photo District News 2011 Curators Choice Award and the 2012 Humble Arts 31 Women in Art Photography award. Alt’s work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Smithsonian National Museum of American History, New Orleans Museum of Art, De Paul University Art Museum, Southwest Museum of Photography, Beinecke Library at Yale University, Centro Fotografico Alvarez Bravo in Oaxaca, Mexico, Center for Photography at Woodstock, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, and the collection of William Hunt.<br />
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The Call for Entries:<br />
Photographs that convey a “sense of place” blend the physical characteristics of a scene, landscape or object with the mysterious essence that emerges from gradually and perhaps unconsciously inhabiting a place over time. The photograph ceases to become an objective document. Instead, it takes on a particular feeling that is invested with something that is often intangible, revealing a deeper understanding of what lies beneath the surface.<br />
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A special thanks to photographer Marc Briggs for his personal guided tour of Carrizo Plain, mostly in the rain! Marc shoots there often and he helped me feel the Sense of Place in a way that I wouldn't have discovered so quickly on my own. I hope to be able to join him out there again one day, and I can't wait to take my husband out there one day and show him around. Carrizo Plain is a large grassland where the antelope (and tule elk) still roam and it boasts some amazing landscape...mountains, forests, wildlife, petroglyphs, the San Andreas Fault and the brilliant Soda Lake (a dry lake, but not the same Soda Dry Lake of the Mojave Preserve). It's a wildlife and nature photographer's paradise, but Marc also showed me many of the old homesteads and ranches from when this was a thriving farm community. <br />
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...the funny thing is, I've been so busy with Jeeps that I haven't even finished processing all of the photos from this trip or made the gallery public on my website yet. You can view eight other images from the Carrizo Plain by clicking on the photo above, it just isn't listed in the menu. We had such weather extremes that I have one set that is dark and moody, and another that is bright and bold and colorful. I haven't decided yet whether to combine them in one gallery. I always prefer dark and moody<br />
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And don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't enjoy photographing Jeeps, off road events, and trail adventures. I love every minute of it and I'm incredibly fortunate to get paid to do it. But it does get hard sometimes when I want to remain in a location and wait for the light to change for the "perfect" photo, or take the time to set up some lights to make the exact image I want, but I have to keep moving because I have a schedule to keep. For the most part, it's "taking" photos not making them. They are both satisfying for different reasons; it's just a completely different mindset.Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-8616588474317835052016-05-31T15:45:00.000-07:002016-06-03T15:34:19.541-07:00Western wabi-sabi<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/i-PqNpJ6r/1/M/i-PqNpJ6r-M.jpg" alt="Abandoned quonset hut in the Mojave Desert, wabi-sabi"><ALT="Abandoned quonset hut in the Mojave Desert"></center><br />
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Ring the bells that still can ring<br />
Forget your perfect offering<br />
There's a crack in everything<br />
That's how the light gets in.<br />
~ LeonardCohen, "Anthem"</i></center><br />
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Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-5231229713067695822016-03-30T14:15:00.000-07:002016-03-30T14:15:17.822-07:00Mean Mojave Green<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-DC5grwG/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/photos/i-DC5grwG/3/M/i-DC5grwG-M.jpg" alt="Mojave Green rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus)"></a><br />
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This rattlesnake decided to get in a standoff with my Jeep the other day while we were prowling around the outskirts of the El Paso Mountain Wilderness in Kern County. The Northern Mojave Rattlesnake is more commonly known as the Mojave Green because it often is a silver-green color that allows it to blend into the creosote scrubland it inhabits. It is considered to be the most deadly of all pit vipers because its venom contains a neurotoxin in addition to a hemotoxin. The venom of a Mojave Green is estimated to be as much as 16 times more potent than that of the Western Diamondback. Immediate treatment is required if you are bitten, so you don't want to mess around with this snake. <br />
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They are also more aggressive than Western Diamondback rattlesnakes (crotalus atrox). While other snakes will usually slither away if you give them a chance (stomping on the ground can help), the Mojave Green tends to prefer to stand its ground. This one refused to budge from the center of the trail for more than 15 minutes despite our remaining a good distance away once we spotted it. The upside is that I had more than enough time to grab a telephoto lens so I could photograph it from a safe distance. We didn't want to take a chance trying to drive over it, so we carefully chose a path around it where we would cause minimal damage to the plants. <br />
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The Mojave Green looks similar to the Western Diamondback. If it doesn't have the characteristic green color, the Mojave Green has a light stripe that extends from behind its eye to behind its jaw while on the Western Diamondback the stripe goes from behind the eye to intersect with the jaw, and the Mojave Green has 2 large scales between the supraoculars while the Western Diamondback has multiple scales, and near the tail where the diamonds fade the Mojave Green has narrow black rings that are often offset while the Western Diamondback has broad black and white rings that are fairly equal in width. <br />
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My husband had never heard a rattlesnake in the wild before. "That's not how I expected it to sound," he said. It's a buzzing sound, not unlike a large swarm of cicadas. It doesn't sound at all like a "rattle" if that's what you are expecting. You can listen to a Mojave Green rattle <a href=http://www.californiaherps.com/sounds/mojave.mp3>here on the California Herps website</a>. <br />
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The snakes are out and about on warmer days this time of year, so be careful out there! Wear boots, watch where you're walking, and be especially careful when scrambling on rocks. Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-42480924612367442142016-03-15T15:10:00.002-07:002016-03-15T15:10:59.052-07:0054th Annual Tierra del Sol Desert Safari<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-rLxCbJS/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-rLxCbJS/0/M/20160305_3198-M.jpg" alt="The Cheeto, Randy's Off Road"><center>The Cheeto, Randy's Off Road</center></a><br />
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I guess it's fair to say that I took an extended hiatus from blogging, although it wasn't intentional. Writing for DrivingLine has made it a bit harder to find time to write for myself, but I think the biggest mental hurdle I need to overcome is that I don't want to post photos on my blog or upload them to my website before they are published on DrivingLine. There is nothing in my contract preventing me from doing so, but it just didn't seem like the right thing to do. I would never share event photos to my social media sites either, for the same reason. By the time the photos and article are published on DrivingLine, I've already turned my attention to the next thing on my plate and and honestly just haven't been making time to go back and even upload the photos to my own site. The reality is, that doesn't help me or my business. DrivingLine has a niche audience, so I know that I've been limiting my audience when I only rely on them to get eyes on my work. And I realized that I haven't even been blogging about all of the other client work and places I've been published, which frankly is pretty stupid of me. And to top it all off, I've put very little focus on any photography outside of the off road world. I need to find a way to make all this work better for me, which probably means making up a strict schedule of days to review my work from the previous month, a schedule of social media days, a schedule for blogging...Or something like that, I'll get it figured out. So if you don't read DrivingLine, don't give up on me yet please!!<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-c7Z6SWb/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-c7Z6SWb/0/M/20160305_3247-M.jpg" alt="Texas Pride at the 2016 Tierra del Sol Desert Safari"><center>Texas Pride</center></a><br />
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I covered Tierra del Sol's Desert Safari at the beginning of the month. It was held at a new location on the Salton Sea and there wasn't an official trail run this year, so I concentrated on all of the fun at the new obstacle courses. My article on DrivingLine explains why they had to find a new venue and why the new trails weren't open in time for the event. There was a storm coming in, and the beautiful cloudy sky was a nice change from the typical solid blue sky we usually get here in Southern California. Overcast skies give a nice softbox effect with even light, none of the dreaded harsh light and bad shadows that I usually have to deal with when shooting natural light in the middle of the day in the desert. And you have to love those moody skies for some drama! The late afternoon light was so gorgeous that I really wished I could sneak away to do some personal photography. I only stayed one day this year; I had the flu and was miserable, so I went out shooting for DrivingLine in the morning and afternoon when the light was best, and I worked at the 4 Wheel To Heal booth the rest of the day. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-sjM3Hpx/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-sjM3Hpx/0/M/20160305_3195-M.jpg" alt="Red Jeep on obstacle course, 2016 Tierra del Sol Desert Safari"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-crDh6TT/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari/i-crDh6TT/0/M/20160305_3202-M.jpg" alt="White truck on obstacle course, 2016 Tierra del Sol Desert Safari"></a><br />
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Without a trail run I didn't shoot nearly as many photos as I normally would at this event. Since I was sick, I shot what I needed for the article and went home. Here is a slideshow with some of the images:<br />
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<center><iframe src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/frame/slideshow?key=qvpHgs&autoStart=1&captions=1&navigation=0&playButton=0&speed=3&transition=fade&transitionSpeed=2" width="600" height="450" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe></center><br />
Or you can view larger images in the <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2016-TDS-Desert-Safari">gallery on my website</a>. In the gallery just click on any of the images to enter the lightbox where you can view them larger. <br />
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I didn't even stick around for the fireworks show this year, which I was looking forward to seeing in the new location. My photo of their fireworks show in 2014 was used on the Tierra del Sol website to promote this year's event. Prior to the event it had a countdown clock overlayed on it, and it looked really great on mobile devices. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-T49FDtC/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/photos/i-T49FDtC/0/M/i-T49FDtC-M.png" alt="Tierra del Sol Desert Safari fireworks countdown clock"></a><br />
</center>Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-6523238148489102122015-09-08T21:24:00.000-07:002015-09-08T21:24:26.783-07:00SOARA ARRL Field Day<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-fc7H8PN/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-fc7H8PN/0/M/20150627_0823-M.jpg" alt=""></a><br />
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It might surprise you to learn that I am a ham radio operator, as in full-on geek! It started with getting my Technician license so I could use a dual-band radio out on the trail. CB radio just doesn't cut it in some of the areas I travel, more Jeep clubs are moving to ham radio, and I wanted to be able to call for help if I ran into trouble when traveling in a remote area. After getting licensed I became fascinated with the technology, and I'm an autodidact; I can't stop learning new things, and when I decide to learn something I'm driven to learn it to a certain level of competency. I decided to study for my General license, which would give me HF privileges, and I joined the local ham radio club. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-TmvWB7w/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-TmvWB7w/0/M/20150627_0716-M.jpg" alt=""></a><br />
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Somewhere along the way I found myself "involved"; I got certified by the National Weather Service as a SkyWarn Weather Spotter, and then I became a VE (Volunteer Examiner), which allows me to be a part of the team that administers licensing exams. Then it was just natural to go all the way while the information was still fresh in my head and prepare for my Extra exam. I haven't sat for it yet, but I plan on taking the exam in the month or so. I now know more electrical engineering, circuitry and antenna theory than I ever thought possible, as well as some pretty cool stuff like space weather. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-59XBMBP/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-59XBMBP/0/M/20150627_0698-M.jpg" alt=""></a><br />
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Many people think only grumpy old men enjoy ham radio, but the South Orange Amateur Radio Association has nearly 250 members of all ages and about half of them are younger than I am! It's a great group of people and they are very helpful to new comers.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-rLqS8df/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-rLqS8df/0/M/20150626_0660-M.jpg" alt="Setting up a tower for ARRL Field Day with SOARA"></a><br />
</center>Every year the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) hosts Field Day at the end of June. Amateur radio operators across the country make contacts for a 24 hour period under simulated emergency conditions. It's part practice to keep up with skills, and part demonstration to the community how amateur radio is used to provide communications when the grid is down. Of course since I live in earthquake and wildfire country, this event got my interest on many levels, and since I spend so much time off the grid I knew I would learn skills that I might need in the future. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-TWHn47n/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-TWHn47n/0/M/20150626_0666-M.jpg" alt="Setting up the tower for SOARA's ARRL Field Day"></a><br />
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We set up operations at Gilleran Park in Mission Viejo, California. We were allowed to take 3 hours on Friday for set up, and the time was used to set up our portable towers and communications tent.<br />
Entry classes are determined for the event by how many radios are used and their source of power. We were 3A, which meant we would have 3 radios operational for the duration of the event. One was dedicated to voice contacts, one was dedicated to CW (Morse Code), and the third was for whichever the operator preferred. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-js48NHC/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-js48NHC/0/M/20150627_0825-M.jpg" alt="Field Day comms tent at night"></a><br />
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We took turns in shifts working the radios and assisting with logging. We also had a GOTA, or Get On the Air station, for newly licensed operators and members of the public to make radio contacts under the supervision of a mentor. <br />
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Mission Viejo RACES was there demonstrating their radio technology, including television and mesh networks. They also had a table of emergency preparedness information for the community. We had a food tent to keep people fed throughout the 24 hour event. We had an educational session led by MV RACES, and we held an exam session for 20 people, including a 12 year old girl who passed her Extra exam!<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-vsmNTtp/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-vsmNTtp/0/M/20150627_0728-M.jpg" alt="K6LMR Lou"></a><br />
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The turnout was fantastic. I have seen so many clubs complain about how few members show up for Field Day but we had over 100 people participate, a real testament to how well SOARA is run. It got a little hectic for me trying to work the event, attend the test session, and take photos. I was glad for some down time when most people left for the night and only a few of us stayed to work the overnight shift. I put the camera down and got to spend some time on the radio. And then our comms tent started flooding around 2:30am. The park forgot to turn off the sprinkler system for the night and we had to shut everything down while locating the sprinkler controls and turning them off. We had close to an inch of water on the concrete slab where our tent was located by the time we managed to get all of the sprinklers turned off. Water and electricity is not a good combination! There is no better way to practice operating under emergency conditions than to handle a real situation. We found a broom in someone's motorhome and swept out most of the water, set up the big fans to dry it out, and dried off all of the equipment. We were back up and running in an hour and half, not bad considering. I laid my head on a table to close my eyes for "just a minute" and was out cold until 5:30am. <br />
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I was absolutely exhausted the next day but I had such a great time with good people that I wish Field Day took place more than once a year.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-RX9zS3g/A"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/i-RX9zS3g/0/M/20150627_0749-M.jpg" alt="SOARA Field Day"></a><br />
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Wish me luck on my Extra exam, I'm hoping my head doesn't explode from trying to memorize the mathematical calculations!! I'm ready to be done with it and put the studying behind me so I can concentrate on the learning.<br />
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Many more photos of <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/2015-SOARA-Field-Day/">SOARA's ARRL Field Day in this gallery</a>. Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-16113114438214162872015-08-05T09:09:00.002-07:002015-08-05T09:09:49.652-07:00Auto Enthusiast Day at Angel Stadium<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-87hQZKc/A" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr and Tanner FaustDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLineAngel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-87hQZKc/0/M/20150801_1321-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr and Tanner FaustDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten Jr and Tanner Faust Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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Yeah I know I've really been slacking off on the blogging. I am trying to get back on track!<br />
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Last weekend I attended the Nitto Tire Auto Enthusiasts Day at Angel Stadium. The event was presented by <a href="http://www.drivingline.com">DrivingLine</a>, the automotive enthusiast magazine I shoot and write for. I spent most of the day in the DrivingLine booth handing out copies of the magazine (it was crazy hot and the crowds were unbelievable!) but I managed to sneak away to shoot some of the drifting demos that were going on all day. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-sCqNNjB/A" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr.putting on a show for the crowds at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-sCqNNjB/0/M/20150801_1347-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr.putting on a show for the crowds at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by Driving Line Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten Jr.putting on a show for the crowds at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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Whenever you shoot something new you should always spend some time thinking about what you want to accomplish and what shots you want to get. Since I had never photographed Formula Drift, I gave myself two goals. The first was to capture as much tire smoke as possible while still keeping the sponsor logos visible, which is much harder than you can imagine if you've never shot it before. All of the best track action occurs when you can hardly see through all of the smoke. I love this shot of Vaughn Gitten Jr. completely engulfed in tire smoke. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-sM34D8z/A" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr., Tanner Faust, Odi Bakchis, Mad Mike Whiddett, and Matt PowersDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-sM34D8z/0/M/20150801_1355-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr., Tanner Faust, Odi Bakchis, Mad Mike Whiddett, and Matt Powers Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten Jr., Tanner Faust, Odi Bakchis, Mad Mike Whiddett, and Matt Power sDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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The second was to get an action shot with all five cars in it. I was shooting from elevated position, so I had the luxury of being able to see and shoot the entire track. It was wild trying to constantly zoom in and out to compose shots as I was panning with the cars as they drifted around the track, but I managed to get the shot I wanted. Vaughn Gitten Jr., Tanner Faust, Mad Mike Whiddett, Odi Bakchis and Matt Powers drifting together as a group around a pole. <br />
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I would have loved to be the one lone cameraman I spotted inside the track to get the shots showing how close the cars come to each other and the wall, but after <a href="http://www.loricarey.com/2015/04/hazards-of-job.html">my close call at King of the Hammers last February</a> I was probably better off shooting from the platform this time! <br />
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All the rest was gravy, enjoy!<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-xKfbrNN/A" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-xKfbrNN/0/M/20150801_1161-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten Jr Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-cNGHv3f/A" title="Mad Mike Whiddet, Tanner Foust and Odi BakchisNitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-cNGHv3f/0/M/20150801_1356-M.jpg" title="Mad Mike Whiddet, Tanner Foust and Odi Bakchis Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Mad Mike Whiddet, Tanner Foust and Odi Bakchis Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-FqNwT7B/A" title="Vaughn Gitten JrDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLineAngel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-FqNwT7B/0/M/20150801_1213-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten JrDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLineAngel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten JrDrifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLineAngel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-P9NRhXc/A" title="Tanner FaustNitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-P9NRhXc/0/M/20150801_1206-M.jpg" title="Tanner Faust Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Tanner Faust Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-Qf8WN3x/A" title="Odi Bakchis leads the drift around the pole, followed by Mad Mike Whiddett, Tanner Foust and Vaughn Gitten Jr,Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine,Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-Qf8WN3x/0/M/20150801_1166-M.jpg" title="Odi Bakchis leads the drift around the pole, followed by Mad Mike Whiddett, Tanner Foust and Vaughn Gitten Jr,Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine,Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Odi Bakchis leads the drift around the pole, followed by Mad Mike Whiddett, Tanner Foust and Vaughn Gitten Jr,Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine,Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-zPxNxjk/A" title="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-zPxNxjk/0/M/20150801_1243-M.jpg" title="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-WR83fXB/A" title="Vaughn Gitten JrNitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-WR83fXB/0/M/20150801_1246-M.jpg" title="Vaughn Gitten Jr Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Vaughn Gitten Jr Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-NnbjQWK/A" title="Mad Mike Whiddett Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-NnbjQWK/0/M/20150801_1272-M.jpg" title="Mad Mike Whiddett Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Mad Mike Whiddett Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-8NVGRTR/A" title="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-8NVGRTR/0/M/20150801_1315-M.jpg" title="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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I'm not sure who was driving the Ford Mustang RTR-X that made a few appearances out on the track. I know that Vauggn Gitten Jr. owns the RTR (Ready To Rock) brand, but the driver was wearing a different helmet than the one Gitten was wearing while in his race Mustang. It sure is a gorgeous vehicle!<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-8LfD9fZ/A" title="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-8LfD9fZ/0/M/20150801_1295-M.jpg" title="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by Driving Line Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-x3DjwXH/A" title="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day/i-x3DjwXH/0/M/20150801_1302-M.jpg" title="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015" alt="Ford Mustang RTR-X Drifting Demo at Nitto Tire's Auto Enthusiast Day, presented by DrivingLine Angel Stadium, CA 1 August 2015"></a><br />
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Bigger versions can be seen in this <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Events-1/Nitto-Auto-Enthusiast-Day">gallery</a>. <br />
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The toughest thing about shooting drifting is dodging the smoke and debris. Even on an elevated platform I had to often turn my back when the cars drifted right in front of me because the smoke was so thick and filled with bits of rubber from the tires, and I still managed to get a piece of debris in one eye. The track I was shooting had no dirt, which would make things even messier. For a good look at what it's like from a photographer's perspective to shoot an actual race with smoke and debris plumes heading directly at you, take a look at this video!<br />
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VKpIx94vSfc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-77487014440652045202015-05-15T13:13:00.000-07:002015-05-15T13:13:10.629-07:00R.I.P. B.B. King<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Music/Doheny-Blues-Festival-2006/i-w587cMP/A" title="BB King at the Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, California on May 21, 2006"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Music/Doheny-Blues-Festival-2006/i-w587cMP/3/M/2142BBK-M.jpg" title="BB King at the Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, California on May 21, 2006" alt="BB King at the Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, California on May 21, 2006"></a><br />
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Rest in Peace, B.B. King and thank you for all of your wonderful music!<br />
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I had the pleasure of photographing and watching B.B. King perform at the Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, California back in 2006. It was a few months before his 80th birthday and he was celebrating by going on tour, with Lucille of course! He was an amazing performer. I'm a huge blues fan and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to see the legend perform live.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Music/Doheny-Blues-Festival-2006/i-x884BDv/A" title="Blues legend B.B. King performing at the 2006 Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, CA"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Music/Doheny-Blues-Festival-2006/i-x884BDv/3/M/BBK3-M.jpg" title="Blues legend B.B. King performing at the 2006 Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, CA" alt="Blues legend B.B. King performing at the 2006 Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, CA"></a><br />
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There are more photos from that performance in the <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Stock-Images-Older-Work/Music/Doheny-Blues-Festival-2006">2006 Doheny Blues</a> gallery on my website. Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-55532552848111506462015-04-06T16:17:00.001-07:002015-04-06T16:18:15.819-07:00Exploring California's Mining History in the El Paso Mountains<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/El-Paso-Mountains/i-sKsHHZ2/A" title="Jeep on trail in El Paso Mountains, Mojave Desert, California"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/El-Paso-Mountains/i-sKsHHZ2/1/M/20150125_8831-M.jpg" title="Jeep on trail in El Paso Mountains, Mojave Desert, California" alt="Jeep on trail in El Paso Mountains, Mojave Desert, California"></a><br />
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We camped with some friends at Dove Springs in January and couldn't pass up the chance to hit the beautifully scenic El Paso Mountains. This wilderness area in the Mojave Desert is located at the far southeastern end of the Sierra Nevada Range and has a wealth of mining history. Several old mines, cabins and mining camps can be found. Seeing the Burro Schmidt Tunnel and learning the story behind it alone is enough to justify the trip (I've visited the tunnel many times just because it's so cool!). We tried to convince our friends, who all had Jeeps of their own, to join us on the trail, but they weren't motivated. <br />
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You can read about it, and they can see what they missed, by reading my latest article on DrivingLine - <a href="http://www.drivingline.com/2015/03/mojave-el-paso-mountains-off-road-trail-review/">Exploring El Paso Mountains: Mojave Off-Road Trail Review</a><br />
I'm still trying to figure out the best way to integrate my work on other sites with own website and blog. I realized that I've been so focused on getting photos and stories to clients that I've hardly even bothered to upload photos to my own site for far too long, let alone keep my blog updated. Kind of makes it looks like I haven't been doing anything, when the truth is the exact opposite. I've been trying to keep the list of my <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Articles">published articles</a> updated on a regular basis, but if I don't tell anyone that the page has been updated, you don't know to look. So I hope you'll click through and read the story on DrivingLine and leave me a comment either here or there! <br />
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Some of my <a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Portfolio/Nightscapes/">Milky Way photos</a> were done at the Holly Cleanser Mine mentioned in the article. The mine is a very cool place to visit after dark and it was a lot of fun to play around with lighting the old mining equipment to create an alien-looking landscape. <br />
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I previously wrote about three other trails in the El Paso Mountains many years ago here on my own blog - <a href="http://www.loricarey.com/2008/04/northwestern-mojave-last-chance-canyon.html">Last Chance Canyon, Sheep Springs and Nightmare Gulch</a>. Nightmare Gulch has since been closed on a <strike>temporary</strike> permanent basis, so I feel fortunate that I was able to visit this area while it was still open. We had hoped it would re-open some day, but it doesn't appear that it will happen any time soon. <br />
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Have you done any of the trails in the El Paso Mountains? Which one is your favorite? Any good ones that I have't hit yet? Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-15757532630306543412015-04-01T09:07:00.000-07:002015-04-01T09:07:15.757-07:00Hazards of the Job<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rnbbs5zWXTk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
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If you follow my other social media accounts you probably know that I was just a few feet away from Mel Wade III, owner of <a href="http://www.offroadevolution.com/">Off Road Evolution and EVO Mfg</a>, when he rolled his #4451 EVO1 Jeep JK during the qualify round at the 2015 Ultra4 King of the Hammers race in February. He miraculously landed on four tires and got the vehicle back under control to finish the run. I knew that I was close enough that I had to be in footage somewhere, and here it is. Watch closely at the end for the blonde in the hideous neon green vest! My husband decided that he needs to increase my life insurance after seeing this video. <br />
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There's a very good reason event organizers make media sign those liability forms! When a vehicle is moving that fast, one little misstep can cause it to fly through the air and you are not going to win that battle. Even photographing slow rock crawling can be dangerous, especially if you don't know what you're doing. It's important to understand where a vehicle might run into a problem and to know which direction a vehicle will roll/fall/flop/slide on a obstacle so you don't put yourself in harm's way, while still trying to get the best angle and light. I've been photographing off road long enough that I believe I have a very good understanding of what and where the problems can be, and how the vehicle will move if it finds trouble, but I still remember <a href="https://youtu.be/ogNm8QbxhxA">Kevin Sacalas of Big Ugly Racing doing cartwheels across the course</a> in 2014 and how I had been shooting in that very location earlier in the day. This is also why I prefer to use my Canon 7D for shooting off road; the crop sensor allows me to keep a reasonably safe distance while using my Canon 70-200mm lens. A full frame sensor would require me to carry a much bigger and heavier lens, which would reduce my mobility. <br />
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Mel is a personal friend so my first thought as it happened was to pray that he would be okay. As I watched his vehicle fly up in the air and do a barrel roll, crashing into boulders as it bounced and rolled down the hill, my mind went back and forth between worrying about his safety, worrying about getting the shot, and worrying about when I needed to move to a safer spot. As you see in the video, the vehicle didn't just roll to the bottom and stay there, it kept moving. After seeing this video a couple people mentioned to me how casually I appear to stroll away. Make no mistake, I was watching every move that EVO1 made as it rolled down the hill, I could see the exact second that Mel had it back under control, and I could envision the arc the rig would take as he circled back around to complete his run. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-CtV9tZs/A" title=""><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/photos/i-CtV9tZs/1/M/i-CtV9tZs-M.jpg" title="" alt="Mel Wade III in EVO1 midair doing a barrel roll during the Qualifying round at the 2015 Ultra4 King of the Hammers, Johnson Valley, California"></a><br />
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There were a few gaps in my sequence because I had to remove the camera from my face to mentally calculate speed and distance of the vehicle, but I got some great shots. One of airborne shots is going to be used in the new EVO Manufacturing catalog. <br />
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Dave Cole yelled at me when I moved back to the same spot for the next vehicle, "You just almost got *#&*@ killed, why the *#&*@ would you go right back to the same spot?!!". I told him I figured what were the odds it would happen again? I guess I gave him a good scare, and he made all media move back another 20 feet for the rest of the Qualifying round. <br />
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When I caught up with EVO1 at the recent Tierra del Sol Desert Safari, I loved seeing the badass stitches holding it together!<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Other/OtherHosted/BlogUploads/n-J4WQm/i-39DZhSr/A" title=""><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/photos/i-39DZhSr/1/M/i-39DZhSr-M.jpg" title="" alt="Mel Wade's EVO1 stitches"></a><br />
</center>Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-62396993903328403692015-02-16T09:37:00.000-08:002015-02-16T09:37:01.360-08:00Randy Slawson wins King of the Hammers<center><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/photos/i-LrtJD5M/0/M/i-LrtJD5M-M.jpg" title="Randy Slawson takes the checkered flag for his second King of the Hammers win, Johnson Valley, California February 6, 2015" alt="Randy Slawson takes the checkered flag for his second King of the Hammers win, Johnson Valley, California February 6, 2015"><br />
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Randy Slawson taking the checkered flag to win the King of the Hammers off road race on 6 February 2015 in Johnson Valley, CA. Known as the toughest off race in the world, only 17 of the 132 drivers finished the 215 mile race before the 10pm cutoff this year. This was Slawson's second win; he was also crowned King in 2013 and is now one of three two-time winners. <br />
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On a personal note - the sun was sinking low when we heard that the leaders were just a few miles out from the finish line. We had that gorgeous golden light and I was picturing a beautiful backlit rooster as Randy came around that final bend to the finish. As we all stood shoulder to shoulder waiting to see if it would be Randy or Erik Miller to cross the line first, the sun slipped behind the mountains. Light fades fast in those first 15 minutes or so after the sun sets and there was only one (very) small light over the finish line, so I was checking my settings every 30 seconds...I'm losing shutter speed, open the aperture, too slow again, raise the ISO, oh no too slow again, raise the ISO a bit more, car coming in to the pit, test shutter speed, then I realized that the rigs have their lights on now...that's going to affect my exposure! ...still loosing light fast, keep that shutter speed up, still thinking about those lights coming right at me...I was just about to give up hope of getting a sharp shot at a respectable ISO when in comes Randy flying to the finish. When 2nd place Erik Miller crossed the line a few minutes later, it was hopeless. Low light action photography is nerve wracking! <br />
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More from King of the Hammers coming soon...Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7020934455301720942.post-62940246472628265822015-01-30T11:24:00.000-08:002015-01-30T11:24:49.683-08:00Triangle Intaglios<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-PSV9mxL/A" title="Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-PSV9mxL/1/M/20141128_8224-M.jpg" title="Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert" alt="Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert"></a><br />
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Intaglios are one of the best kept secrets of the southwestern desert. They are geoglyphs created by ancient people by removing the dark stones from the desert pavement to reveal the lighter colored surface below. Sometimes the glyphs are further accentuated by piling the stones around the edges. Intaglios can be found in countries all over the world, but almost all of the intaglios in the United States are located in the desert region along the lower Colorado River. Most of the intaglios are very large and can only be recognized when seen from a plane flying over them, which explains why no one noticed them until Army Air Corps pilot George A. Palmer discovered the <a href="http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/cultural/intaglios.html">Blythe Intaglios</a> in 1931. The Blythe Intaglios consists of several of anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and geometric figures, the largest at 170 feet long. A total of six glyphs were found in the Blythe region, and many believe that they tell the story of creation. Jay von Werlhof was one of the principal researchers of the intaglios and of the few who actually discussed the intaglios with the local Native American tribes. He determined that the intaglios are located along a Trail of Dreams, the path a boy would follow during his spiritual Visionquest to become a man. The intaglios are at the locations of important mythical events, and many of the sites have associated rituals. <br />
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The art is almost impossible to date and estimates range from 200 to 8000 years old. The Mojave say that the glyphs have been there "forever". Interestingly enough, while it might seem to be common sense to most of us to consult local tribes about art that was created by their ancestors, it has been said that for many years the scientific community ignored Native Americans for much of the 20th century, stating that ethnography was irrelevant to its study. (Jay von Wherlof's Trail of Dreams, Whitely, PCAS Quarterly 50) <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-zMr9f3s/A" title=""><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-zMr9f3s/1/M/20141128_8222-M.jpg" title="" alt=""></a><br />
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Other than as a curiosity, not much attention was given to the intaglios for several decades until National Geographic did an article on the Blythe Intaglios in the 1950s. It wasn't until the 1980s that scientists began to pay serious attention and started to locate and document other geoglyphs along the lower Colorado. Eventually over 300 intaglios were located in the American Southwest and neighboring Mexico, and my research indicates that there may be 600 or more currently documented. The Blythe Intaglios are the best known, the locations of most of the others are kept secret within the scientific community. The Triangles are one of the few whose location is published. I still wasn't able to find any additional information about them other than what is said in the Mojave Road Guide - that they were created by an ancient people who we know nothing about. I was hoping to find some suggested interpretations of what they might signify, but have had absolutely no luck. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-VBwvsFN/A" title="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-VBwvsFN/1/M/20141128_8223-M.jpg" title="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert" alt="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"></a><br />
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Not much has been done in the way of preservation of the intaglios. The head of one of the giant human-like figures near Blythe was destroyed when General Patton was conducting tank training. A nearby spiral or coiled snake was almost obliterated by off road drivers who did not realize they were driving over ancient sacred artwork. The Blythe intaglios were eventually fenced to prevent further damage and vandalism. Nearby another set of geoglyphs was damaged when a road was widened for a solar project, and local tribes are now getting involved fighting to preserve this rarest form of rock art by organizing to file complaints and lawsuits. At least five geoglyphs and cultural resources are within the project boundaries of the solar project at Blythe, and a total of 19 are located on the land immediately surrounding the project site. Other areas of the desert where intaglios are located are being targeted for large scale solar projects and there seems to be very little outside interest for preserving this ancient art, undoubtedly much of that is because the general public isn't even aware of their existance. High Country News has a <a href="http://www.hcn.org/issues/46.4/the-geoglyph-guardian">fantastic article</a> about the fight to preserve the intaglios. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-jS7xgjJ/A" title="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-jS7xgjJ/1/M/20141128_8226-M.jpg" title="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash, Mojave desert" alt="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"></a><br />
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A very small number of the identified intaglio locations have been fenced, according to my research it is approximately only a dozen. The Triangle Intaglios seen here are protected by a post barricade to prevent vehicles from driving over them. Archaeologists are concerned that fencing will create awareness of the location of the remaining hundreds of glyphs. But since most people would not recognize a large intaglio from the ground, people may inadvertently cause damage by driving or walking over them without realizing they are there. It's a Catch-22. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-JkdqgTD/A" title="The Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-JkdqgTD/7/M/20141128_8225-M.jpg" title="The Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert" alt="The Triangles intaglio site in the Mojave desert"></a><br />
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The Triangle Intaglios are easy to recognize from the ground. Located high on top of a mesa, most are only a foot or two across. From up here it's easy to see why this was considered a sacred place. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-bDpvwN2/A" title="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-bDpvwN2/1/M/20141128_8227-M.jpg" title="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert" alt="Triangle intaglio above Manix Wash, Mojave desert"></a><br />
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There are a few located outside the barrier and I assume these are not original, but created by modern day people in attempt to replicate the intaglios. <br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-D5vNvPw/A" title="Probably fake geoglyph at the Triangles intaglio site in Manix Wash, Mojave Desert"><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-D5vNvPw/1/M/20141128_8220-M.jpg" title="Probably fake geoglyph at the Triangles intaglio site in Manix Wash, Mojave Desert" alt="Probably fake geoglyph at the Triangles intaglio site in Manix Wash, Mojave Desert"></a><br />
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Likewise with this intaglio in the shape of an arrow, which is behind the barricade. Since there are no other arrows in this location, I assume that someone vandalized one of the triangles to create the shape of an arrow.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-wH2hSSp/A" title="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash in the Mojave Desert."><img src="http://www.loricareyphoto.com/Rock-Art-Petroglyphs-Pictograp/Geoglyphs-Intaglios/i-wH2hSSp/1/M/20141128_8228-M.jpg" title="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash in the Mojave Desert." alt="Triangle intaglios above Manix Wash in the Mojave Desert."></a><br />
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Since this type of art is so difficult to date, even for the experts, it can be very frustrating when I find something in a remote location and can't be sure if it is an archaeological site or something created by modern man. One time when exploring a remote location I came across what I believed was some type of ceremonial circle intaglio edged with rocks. It was in the right location, located on a raised point of land overlooking a spectacular desert landscape. It certainly felt like a sacred location to me. But I noticed evidence that someone had recently camped nearby, and it was impossible for a layman with no formal training to tell if this was a sacred site or just a large circle of rocks created by people who had camped here recently. Attempting to research the location on the internet proved futile. I've read countless scientific white papers on California's rock art but have yet to find anything specific to that location. <br />
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The plight of the intaglios gives me mixed feelings about the need to keep their locations a secret. While I've seen way too much destruction and vandalism at significant locations across the desert, especially in recent years with the easy access to information on the internet and people's desire to share, if people don't know about such places they won't be aware of how special they are and why they deserve to be protected. Surely something so sacred to our ancestors deserves to at least be protected from destruction by large-scale solar projects. <br />
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Have you come across any intaglios in your travels? I'd love to hear about it! <br />
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I visited the Triangle Intaglios on a recent adventure along the historic Mojave Road, a 130+ mile trail through the remote Mojave Desert. If you missed it, you can read my three-part series on DrivingLine - <br />
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<a href="Holiday on the Trails: The Historic Mojave Road">Part 1 - Holiday on the Trails: The Historic Mojave Road</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/2015/01/historic-mojave-road-trail-review-part2/">Part II - The Historic Mojave Road: Soda Lake to Marl Springs</a><br />
<a href="http://www.drivingline.com/2015/01/historic-mojave-road-trail-review-part-3/">Part III - The Historic Mojave Road: Marl Springs to Goffs</a>Lori Careyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13987315307249973650noreply@blogger.com2