Two for the road!

Recently, I was looking through my digital negatives from past photography trips and managed to find a couple of "keepers" that I had overlooked previously. Since I'm leaving on another trip tomorrow, I thought it would be a good time to show those new-found beauties now, before I'm inundated with all the new shots I'll have from the trip.

Fire and Ice (larger size)

This first one is from Hawaii back in '05. We were lucky enough to be up the summit of Mauna Kea just after the area re-opened after a snowstorm. This is an abstract of the red volcanic soil and the wind-driven snow and ice that was interlaced with it.

Teddy Bear Nightmare (larger size)

This one is from my road trip through the western US last fall. It was taken in a Teddy Bear Cholla cactus garden near Joshua Tree National Park. Despite being extremely careful, I still got stuck by one of these little buggers. OUCH! It hurts more than you'd think. Hence the image title.

So, where am I going tomorrow? The good ol' Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. I should have some treats to show you when I get back. Let's just hope the weather is decent -- last year I thought I was gonna see Noah's Ark pass by our campsite. ^_^

P.S. If you haven't heard, I entered a local photography contest and made it to the final 10 out of almost 600 entries! The voting for the overall winner ends at noon, so if you're reading this in time, you could help me out by casting a vote for me (mine is the one that says "K. Lidstrom"). By the time I return from the BWCA, the winner will be revealed. Wish me luck!

It's here!!

FINALLY! After what seemed like forever, my new camera finally arrived. I can't tell you how good it felt to have a camera again -- I almost cried when I saw it! I'm going to keep this blog entry short -- now that things are starting to return to normal, I want to spend more time taking pictures and less time talking about them. So, let's get on with it!

I thought the best way to break in the new gear would be to shoot one of my favorite subjects: butterflies. So, that's just what I did, and the camera performed flawlessly. I was able to capture several species that I hadn't seen before. Feast your eyes on these beauties, and remember that you can see these and many others in my Butterflies Gallery.

In the coming weeks, I have a Boundary Waters trip planned, among other things, so I should have more photos to display. Until then, take care.

A Paper Kite, also known as a Rice Paper butterfly or a Tree Nymph butterfly.

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An Atala butterfly, also known as a Coontie Hairstreak.

A Red Spot Diadem butterfly hangs beneath a coneflower.

A Dark Blue Pansy. (Not what I'd want to be called if I was a butterfly.)

A Malaysian Lacewing.

An Emerald Swallowtail.

A Julia butterfly.

A Cydno Longwing.

A Common Mormon. (Does that mean it doesn't drink coffee?)

I'm back! Let's catch up!

Whew! It's been about seven weeks since my last post, and things have been looking up. So, rather than starting with my usual incredibly witty jokes, I'm just going to dive right in and bring you up to speed. (I know, missing my zingers will most likely ruin your entire week, but you'll just have to carry on. Think happy thoughts!)

First off: my hip. I'm happy to say it's getting better all the time. I've been off of crutches for about a week now. I can't walk perfectly yet -- I still hobble -- but it sure beats the snot out of crutching. I'm still battling with my insurance company, but I *think* I'm going to come out on top. Famous last words, perhaps? We shall see in the coming weeks. They've won the battle, but the war will be mine, methinks.

Next: my camera. Nothing but positive news here. Unlike my health insurance company, my camera insurance company is being a total rock star and is replacing my ruined Canon 5D with a new Canon 5D Mark II!! It's on its way to me now. I can not WAIT to take it for a spin. Going from 12 megapixels to 21 (!) will be quite something. Not to mention being able to shoot HD-quality video. Perhaps I'll become a videographer as well? Oh, they're also replacing my ruined Canon 24-105mm lens. Not too shabby.

And now, let's get to the meat: the shots.

Last time, I mentioned a shot I took at Creque Dam. You will see that below, entitled, "Lost In Thought". Also, in my tree post from a couple months ago, I mentioned that I'd be posting a better version of that shot. And, voila, here it is, entitled, "Magic Tree".

Below those two shots, you will find a couple more shots from my Puerto Rico trip. These shots are just for fun, and can only be seen here on this blog post. They are not in my Fine Art Galleries.

Lastly, you will see a shot of an X-ray. Unlike the one I posted last time, this one is actually of ME. Yep, those are six titanium screws and a plate holding my hip together. Now, when someone tells me to "go get screwed" at least their comment will make sense. ^_^

Next time I post, I should have some images made with my new camera. Until then, take care!

"Lost In Thought" Click here to see and learn more.

"Magic Tree" Click here to see and learn more.

"Travellers Beware - Kaelly The Tonguer" (Only seen here.)

"Slice Of Life" (Only seen here.)

"My Hip X-ray" (Ouch.)

GIMMIE A BREAK! No, not that kind...

Hell.

That single word best sums up my last few weeks. Let's take it from the beginning.

After my last post to this photoblog on March 3rd, I finally started to kick my photography here in the Virgin Islands into high gear. I had a very productive shoot in the rainforest in which I stumbled upon a very rare butterfly hideout. Some Zebra Longwing butterflies were loitering in a small enclave and were unusually photogenic -- most of the time, butterflies in the wild are notoriously difficult to shoot as they never sit still for very long. These were incredibly docile and gave me what is probably the best outing I've EVER had shooting butterflies in the wild. Needless to say, I got some very nice images from the shoot.

Even better, my assistant and I had an incredible shoot at Creque Dam, a very special and rare body of water right in the middle of the rainforest. I created some beautiful, moody compositions in which some last minute, blood red clouds cooperated beautifully and put the images over the top. I came away with what I feel might just be the single best image I've EVER gotten in St. Croix in all the years I've been shooting here.

Furthermore, we had scheduled a photo shoot of something I'd always wanted to do: a sunrise shoot at the secluded Jacks Bay where I was going to do both some landscape shooting as well as some model/swimsuit stuff (no, not of myself, silly).

In short, things were going spectacularly. And then came Hell: Monday, March 3oth.

Most of the day was great. I sailed my boat to beautiful Buck Island National Monument and had a very fun, relaxing day. But then, on they way back to the dock, my dinghy suddenly took on water and ruined my camera. Yes, my Canon 5D. Yes, the very same camera that had JUST gotten repaired from water damage only a few months ago. Dear God, why me?!

Well, the worst was over, right? Wrong. Oh so unbelievably, horribly and utterly wrong.

Later that same night, a mere couple of hours after the camera incident, I was running down the steps of my house, when I fell, dislocated and fractured my left hip! Sweet Jesus, I have never felt so much pain in my entire 33 years. I literally laid there screaming in excruciating pain for 30 minutes until the ambulance arrived. I spent 14 days in the hospital, completely bedridden and unable to move my left leg. Two hospitals on two different islands, two surgeries, two cat scans, several X-rays, and a crapload of painkillers later, here I am, back home on St. Croix. I will be in crutches for the next 6-10 weeks. I will be returning to Minnesota at the end of April.

Until then, I will unfortunately not be able to post my latest photos. You can be assured that sometime in May, I will be back in business and will have them posted here. Please don't worry about me. I am keeping a good attitude, and am thankful that I have health insurance and that it wasn't my neck or back that was broken. I am slowly on the mend and will be up and running before you know it.

Before I go, I wanted to keep with my tradition of always posting at least one picture. This is a photoblog after all, right? Here is a picture of an injury roughly similar to mine, courtesy of howstuffworks.com. I know it's not a photo that I took, but given the circumstances, I think you'll understand and give me a pass this one time.

Thanks for reading and take care.

Tree-mendous!

I love trees. No, I'm not a "treehugger" (although my friends would probably say I look and smell like one), but I do have a great respect for them. "Respect? Huh?" Yep, you heard me: respect. Didn't your mom ever tell you to respect your elders? Well, if mom was right, then trees deserve oceans of respect. They live a heckuva lot longer than we do, and some of them, like the bristlecone pines in the western US, are the oldest living things in the world, many being well over four thousand years old. (I bet the Vikings still had a crappy quarterback even then.)

But it's not just their long life that deserves respect. Trees do an incredible service to the entire planet by converting carbon dioxide, a harmful greenhouse gas, into life-affirming oxygen. Furthermore, they provide habitat for a plethora of life forms, as well as building material and a heat/fuel source for people the world over since time immemorial. And, who hasn't had fun in a tree house at one time or another? Or swung from a rope tied to a tree limb and leapt into the water?

By now I think you get my point: trees are pretty darn nifty, and I love 'em.

For a photographer though, especially a nature photographer, there is another, even more beloved aspect of trees: they way they look. They are among the most photogenic subjects in nature. Browse through the gallery of just about any nature photographer, and you will see images of trees. Ansel Adams? Yep. Jim Brandenburg? You betcha. Marc Adamus? Naturally. And yours truly? Of course!

So you can be sure that I was tickled pink when I (or rather, my assistant) spotted this tree in the rainforest of St. Croix, in the US Virgin Islands. I had driven right past this tree countless times, but never did it look like this. For some reason, its bark displayed colors that I've never seen in any tree. Maybe it's something in the air? Beats me. All I know is that it's probably the most interesting tree trunk I've ever seen. I spent quite awhile trying different compositions and waiting for the lizards to stop in the right spot. This shot is the best of the bunch. I'm not posting a larger version to my main galleries just yet, because I plan on returning and getting an even better shot. I'll post the results when I'm done.

Till then, take care. And go plant a tree. ^_^

We're experiencing technical difficulties, please stand by... while I smash my equipment into smithereens.

"Where in the heck have you been?!?!"

I'm sure that's the question that you -- my billions and billions of adoring fans -- have been frantically asking every hour of every day since my last post over two months ago. You've no doubt been unable to sleep and are probably feeling near suicidal by now. Well, you can climb down off that ledge because I'm back!

Oh, who am I kidding. Let me rephrase: for all seven of you that noticed I was gone for a long while, I have an explanation. You see, my equipment hates me and decided to mutiny. Apparently I haven't been giving it enough rum.

A few days after I got back from my big road trip out west, my camera -- a tried and true Canon 5D -- started acting up. Upon taking it to the local pro camera shop, I was given the news most dreaded by any photographer: it would have to be sent to Canon in Japan for repairs. This meant a four-week turnaround time at a minimum. The "good" news, however, was that the repair appeared to be fairly minor and should only cost a few hundred bucks. So, I bit the bullet and sent it in.

You can probably guess where this is going. A few weeks later, I got a call from Canon informing me that the problems were much worse than expected, and the cost of the repair was going to be in the four-figure range. Luckily, I had had the foresight to insure the camera, so I gave Canon the go ahead to perform the repair. By the time the camera was fixed and ready to be returned to me, I was already on my yearly visit to the Caribbean. Of course, Canon would not send it there, so I had to have it sent to a friend in the states, who then sent it to me. By the time I finally had it in my hands it had been gone for nearly TWO MONTHS. Ugh!

However, all that was behind me. I had my camera back and was free to get shooting! And, I did. I went to San Juan, Puerto Rico and got some nice photos, one of which is posted below. But before we get to that, I have to finish my story. Yep, there's (unfortunately) more.

Right about the time I got my camera back, my computer decided that I hadn't had enough grief and started crashing repeatedly. Fast forward to today and my computer has pretty much passed on to the great cyberspace in the sky. (RIP, lil' buddy.) I have another one on order, but it will be a month or so before it gets here. Right now, I'm writing this on a friend's computer.

So, I hope that helped explain my absence, or at least made you laugh half as much as it made me cry.

But enough about that, let's get onto the photo, shall we?

This was taken near the beach of the El Condado region of San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was a very surreal spot with the solo light and two chairs, which is what drew me to it. As always, you can see a larger version of the photo by clicking RIGHT HERE and going to my Fine Art Galleries.

I'll hopefully have some more images from San Juan posted in the next week or two. Until then, take care and be sure to give your computer some love! ^_^

A new record!

Last week, I told you that my recently completed road trip of the western US was the best trip ever. For once, I wasn't kidding. The journey took me through Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and North Dakota in that order -- 7,500 miles in all!

Of course, the primary purpose behind the trip was photography. Being that it was the "best trip ever" it shouldn't surprise you that the whole adventure was very productive photography-wise. I came away with what I feel is some of the best work I've done yet. I picked out my favorites and came out with EIGHTEEN pictures to show you. That's a new record for the most photos in a single blog entry, completely decimating my previous record of thirteen.

The highlight of the trip, as expected, was meeting up with renowned photographer Marc Adamus. He and I hit it off immediately and became fast friends. Marc is quite the guy. He's bursting with energy and is a veritable encyclopedia of wilderness trivia, not to mention a gourmet chef. (The meals he can cook in 20 minutes using only a single pot are astounding -- I've paid $40 for entrees at nice restaurants that weren't half as good.) He tears down lonely gravel roads at 90 miles per hour, and on the rare occasion that he misses a turn, he hits the e-brake and does a 180. My kind of guy!

Marc picked out a gorgeous campsite -- very secluded, right next to a babbling stream beneath the rugged Steens Mountain Range in remote southeastern Oregon. The first day, he took me on a seven mile hike, much of it off-trail, with 3,000 feet of elevation gain. Needless to say, by the end I was fairly spent. Marc, on the other hand, hadn't even broken a sweat. He later informed me that he often hikes two or three times that amount in a single day, all while carrying a 70 pound pack, sometimes in sub-zero weather. Wow.

As impressive as all that was, it was Marc's knowledge of photography that wowed me the most. He taught me several useful techniques that I was able to start using immediately. He has an uncanny ability to "see" a potential shot. I've always considered that one of my own strong points, yet Marc helped to make it even stronger. Same thing with composition: he helped me improve something which I was already skilled at. Lastly, Marc has a remarkable knack for predicting weather accurately, which is obviously extremely useful for a nature photographer. He helped me understand how he does this, which I know will be a great boon for me in the future.

Best of all, I have gained a new friend, someone I'm proud to know. We're already talking about meeting up again this summer for some more shooting. I'll be sure to post about it here when the time comes.

In closing, I'd like to give a big "THANKS!" to Marc for a fantastic and productive time. Ditto to my assistant Kaelly for helping me greatly throughout the entire journey. And for putting up with me (no small task, I assure you).

And now, without further ado, it's time for the photos. Be sure and click the links below each photo. That will bring up a larger, more detailed version, along with the story behind each image.

The next time you hear from me, I will be in lands far to the south of the US. Until then, take care!

"Skyfire" Click here to see and learn more.

"Steens Mountain Sunrise" Click here to see and learn more.

"Lost Ladybug" Click here to see and learn more.

"Demons In The Sky" Click here to see and learn more.

"Soulmates" Click here to see and learn more.

"Elowah Falls Autumn" Click here to see and learn more.

"First Snow" Click here to see and learn more.

"The Chandelier" Click here to see and learn more.

"Underworld" Click here to see and learn more.

"Struggling Ant" Click here to see and learn more.

"Fall Color Cascade" Click here to see and learn more.

"Cycle Of Life" Click here to see and learn more.

"Lonesome Butterfly" Click here to see and learn more.

"Painted Hills Sunset" Click here to see and learn more.

"A Piece Of The Past" Click here to see and learn more.

"Long Shadow" Click here to see and learn more.

"Desert Grandeur" Click here to see and learn more.

"Desert Thunderstorm"

(This one is not on my site and can only be seen here. Marc taught me how to shoot lightening bolts and, for fun, I thought I'd post the results from my first try. Not bad, but next time, I'll do it much better to be sure, and I'll post the results.)