Category Archives: HDR Photography

Beautiful HDR Pictures from Around the World

Welcome to The Sears Tower

Posted on August 15th, 2016 by

DA BEARS

When I was in High School we (the band) took a trip to The Windy City. SNL was one of my favorite things back then so Chicago held a particular fascination simply for the accent people sometimes have in the home of da bears. I was to my disappointment that MOST people I encountered had not one iota of the accent…until I went to the Sears Tower. The lady who hosted the film on the building’s construction sounded like she WAS the original Super Fan! “Welcome to Da Sears Tower. Please watch your step,” she intoned. It stopped me dead in my tracks in the door of the theater. I looked at her opened mouthed and finally asked if she could please say “DA BEARS” for me. She didn’t skip a beat and in the same wonderful accent said, “No…Move along sir! Welcome to Da Sears Tower.” Somehow that was even better than I could have anticipated and something I will never forget.

P.S. To me, it will always be The Sears Tower!

Welcome to The Sears Tower
Welcome to The Sears Tower

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 28 October, 2011
  • Focal length: 50mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/200s
  • Title: Welcome to The Sears Tower

Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Posted on August 8th, 2016 by

Master Architects

Frank Lloyd Wright is one of those architects I would drive out of my way to see. Price Tower is an extremely unique in that it is to my knowledge the only “sky scraper” Wright ever created. On a trip to Oklahoma City for a basketball game, Pamela and I decided to make a detour to see this wonderful building. Sadly it was amazingly strong sun when we were there. Photos of the inside are off limits (BOO). Even in the strong sun, even denied interior photos, the building is still amazing. Everywhere you look you see more and more little details that on first inspection you miss. If you love architecture like I do, and you are even close to Bartlesville, OK stop by and take the tour (be sure to check for times)!

Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/640s
  • Title: Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Posted on July 25th, 2016 by

Looking Back

Hiking up the mountain at Fushimi Inari-taisha brings to you a near endless expanse of torii gates. This view is more simple, but still expresses the vast infinity you feel hiking through the mountains. This is early on and the deeper into the mountains you get the more the gates begin to thin out. The more too does nature take over and you less and less see other hikers. This is one of my favorite places in Japan, but please go early and be prepared to hike a long way to find some peace this wonderful place has to offer visitors.

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan
Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/4
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 15 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 3200
  • Shutter speed: 1/80s
  • Title: Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Posted on July 18th, 2016 by

Locals

It’s hard to encapsulate my feelings on Peru, hard to sum up how I felt visiting this beautiful country. Perhaps most, it was the feeling that we are so incredibly privileged. There is poverty so pervasive and so insidious it will be an insurmountable force for untold generations. I was constantly confronted with guilt and humility seeing local people from our transport (getting to Machu Picchu is a serious JOURNEY). Yet, in spite of it all you find and equally pervasive humanity and joy. In this case, a small child waved to Pamela and I sitting in our comfortable train to the ruins. Just after this photo, I waved back to the small child who in turn smiled.

Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar
Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2015
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 1000
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Funk!

Posted on July 14th, 2016 by

Eating at the Bar

When I solo travel (and other times with Pamela) I have found it super helpful when going to busy restaurants to get a seat at the bar. Most places serve their full menu at these easy to obtain seats, plus you get the benefit of all the goings on of the bar. Many restaurants soul flows through this hub and it’s a fun place to have a conversation and see what really happens in this place. This is one of the bar stools at Flatbread Company, one of my favorite places to eat in Maui. While you might find cheaper fare on the island, you will be hard presses to find better pizza most anywhere.

Funk!
Funk!

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 26 July, 2012
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 1600
  • Shutter speed: 1/250s
  • Title: Funk!

Under London Bridge

Posted on July 11th, 2016 by

Walking Under Bridges

We were headed for a different bridge (and a museum), Millennium Bridge while visiting London when we passed under what would be a famous bridge. There have been a number of London Bridges, including one sold to Arizona. This version was built in 1974 and is actually not the bridge I was singing about the whole day after seeing the marker.

“London Bridge is Falling Down, Falling Down, Falling Down…”

Under London Bridge
Under London Bridge

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2013
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/400s
  • Title: Under London Bridge

The Gerkin Askew

Posted on July 7th, 2016 by
The Gerkin Askew
The Gerkin Askew

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2013
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: The Gerkin Askew.CR2

Image of a Tree in the Sun

Posted on June 30th, 2016 by

Skeletal Tree

I almost missed the Washington D.C. Mall sculpture garden of the National Gallery of Art. I happened along it after visiting the National Archives and was headed at near the end of the day to the Metro station that pops out in the Mall. As I walked by I was immediately drawn in wondering how on Earth I had always missed this fantastic stroll! This tree sculpture is called “Graft” and it is by the artist Roxy Paine. It’s always interesting to see artists other works when they are this iconic. I noticed on my first visit, another of Paine’s sculptures adorns the entry to Crystal Bridges in Bentonville, Arkansas. This D.C. trip I found the skeletal tree at just the right time of evening for a fun shot, playing off the sunset.

Image of a Tree in the Sun
Image of a Tree in the Sun

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 28 May, 2012
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/1250s
  • Title: Image of a Tree in the Sun

Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji

Posted on June 27th, 2016 by

Zen Rock Gardens

I have come to realize something about myself in this life. I deeply appreciate and love gardens. I love nature in general, and find a peaceful place where I can still my mind as I wander the natural world. I also realized I deeply dislike the actual art of gardening (and I strongly believe this is an art form). This is something I gave year after year of effort too when Pamela and I purchased our home, but the older I become, the more I realize you need to spend more time doing the things you love, and less time doing the things you do not love. That seems like common sense, but for so many of us, such a difficult thing to master. I know I was deeply moved by the gardens at Tenryu-ji, but raking this zen garden is not the same as communing with it.

Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji
Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/5.6
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 14 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 1000
  • Shutter speed: 1/200s
  • Title: Japanese Gate at Tenryu-ji

Red Japanese Maple Leaf at Tenryu-ji

Posted on June 23rd, 2016 by

Falling Maple Leafs in the Rain

I sat on a small bench, the rain that had been falling my entire trip out of Kyoto to Tenryu-ji had mostly stopped, but a humid sheen cast odd colored light glares all over. I sat taking in the Kyoto fall scene. I was a bit too early for the truest expression of color the city is capable of, but the beauty of Tenryu-ji’s gardens were not lost. Suddenly and in near slow motion, this near perfect maple leaf fell from a nearby tree. It floated gracefully to rest next to me on my wet bench. I took this as a sign and snapped this photo. I often try to find meaning in the small occurrences like this that happen on my travels, but perhaps this time, I will leave this leaf’s message for you to decipher.

Red Japanese Maple Leaf at Tenryu-ji
Red Japanese Maple Leaf at Tenryu-ji

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 14 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 800
  • Shutter speed: 1/200s
  • Title: Red Japanese Maple Leaf at Tenryu-ji