As an aspect of truth in advertising nature photographers are now supposed to denote when publishing whether wildlife captured by camera are actually already captive. This is as it should be. Although the viewer doesn't always know from a photograph whether it was taken in a zoo or on the Serengeti it does a disservice to the profession for a photographer not to designate if the picture is of a managed animal.
For those of us who have traveled great distances at some expense and a lot of patience, heat, cold, frustration, etc. it matters. The thrill of the hunt is part of the appeal of wildlife photography and it's mind-blowing to get a really good shot after all that effort. Viewers of wildlife photography generally expect what they're seeing to be shot in the wild so it's only fair for them to be made aware when it isn't.
I've personally gone three places to photograph managed animals. You usually pay for a workshop that provides animals in natural settings. However, in one location I've paid a sitting fee for an hour and a half to photograph a couple of big cats. This is a great way to learn some of the "how to" parts of nature photography.
But it can't begin to approach the thrill of witnessing the everyday interactions of wild life where they live…whether it's your backyard or Botswana.
Ah, Spring! Such a welcome season. Is there anyone who doesn't feel their pulse quicken with the light breezes spreading the scent of jasmine, freshly cut grass and, yes, I know, pollen, from all the glorious flowering trees and shrubs with which we in the South are abundantly blessed.
If you go to the woods you find the wild azaleas and dogwood competing in the sylvan beauty contest for subdued colors.
In the gardens and yards of the cities and towns the competition is even greater as hybrid plants are much more flamboyant in their attire.
And then, if you're lucky enough to live near lakes or ponds you get to witness the waterfowl nurseries afloat. New beginnings give such hope.
Yosemite National Park: Ansel Adams helped make it famous. Most nature photographers, professional and amateur, make pilgrimages there entranced by the play of light on its famous monumental rock faces and its myriad waterfalls. Capturing it in different seasons is a goal of its many devotees. It is a stage on which the Creator parades some of the most memorable scenes of nature in our country.
El Capitan may be the most iconic of its images, rising high above a meadow. Its craggy face challenges rock climbers who come from all over the world to test their mettle.
Half Dome sits up in the clouds presiding over the rock strewn valley.
The Merced River wends its way through the park capturing bright reflections of the surrounding trees and massive boulders.
Few places in the world can claim the geologic splendor found in Arches National Park in southeastern Utah. The Entrada Sandstone that forms most of the 200 arches located in the park was created 140 million years ago. When the sunlight of dawn or dusk saturates the reddish orange of the sandstone it leaves an indelible picture in the minds of all who are fortunate to view it. Balanced Rock is very impressive, in part because of its isolation on the plateau: a stone exclamation mark.
Delicate Arch is the iconic logo of Arches. It commands a beautiful view of the La Sal Mountains and perches above a natural amphitheater.
Double Arch is the showpiece of The Windows section of the park and is huge, worthy of a Master Engineer.
Not far from Arches lies Dead Horse State Park. Dead Horse Point provides the perfect vantage place for viewing the Colorado River winding through the canyons.
Thirteen time zones from home is about as far away as one can travel and Cambodia is a world away from the Western comfort zone (fried tarantula being a specialty at one restaurant). The resilience of its people after about one third of its population, (primarily the educated) were exterminated, is reminiscent of the Rwandans. Tuol Sleng prison which was originally a school in the middle of Phnom Penh had 20,000 go through its horrors. Only 7 survived and today only 2 of those are still alive. This photo is of the women's building.
The warmth of the Cambodian people with their almost perpetual smiles belies the brutality of their past and poverty of their present. Peering into the eager faces of young college students, observing their dedication to learning and determination to make a difference in their country convinces you that their future will be brighter than their ancestors. The Russian Market is near Russian Road and there you can find food, silk, pipes, opium pots, souvenirs, etc.
Cambodia is home to the largest (77 square miles) religious complex in the world: Angkor Wat which was constructed and lived in from AD802-1432. There are over 70 separate sites to be visited in the complex. Ta Prohm is one of the most exotic with the massive spung trees (Tetrameles Nudiflora) draping their roots over the walls, smothering temples as though to drag them down into the earth. As you would imagine there is a large collection of Buddhas to be found throughout Angkor, a truly spiritual site, whether you are Christian, Jewish, Muslim or Buddhist.
Feeling twice blest, I made two very different trips through the Swiss Alps last year. My husband and I drove through both the French and Swiss Alps after spending time with friends near Grasse. However, later in the year I put my backpack on and walked part of The Haute Route that runs from Mt. Blanc to the Matterhorn. Though I only did the last half of the 12-day trek it was spectacularly beautiful and sufficiently difficult that I felt I earned a notch on my walking sticks. Most of the friends who climbed Kilimanjaro with me journeyed through the Alps, too, so there was a lot of laughter and renewed camaraderie. This time we also got to add wine to the meals at the end of the day: a definite benefit after some of the tough, rocky passages.
There was great variety in the terrain. Some mornings we started in a heavily wooded area and watched as the vegetation gradually dwindled until we were in high meadows with lakes and occasional herds of sheep or cattle with their huge bells. Other times we trekked across piles of boulders and loose rocks. We spent more time looking down than out in those situations. Typically we slept in a valley, hiked 3000 to 3500 feet up each day, went through a pass and hiked 3000 or so feet down again. One reward was seeing the magnificent Matterhorn as the end goal of the trip. A few of us took the train to Lucerne and added a few more memories together.
In years past I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to explore many areas of France: Paris, Normandy, Provence, Cote D'Azure and the Loire Valle, each of which was lovely and had its own charm. Recently I encountered the French Alps for the first time and was awestruck by its vistas, quaint villages and sheer genius of the engineering feat it took to traverse those mountains.
As a cautionary tale I would advise any who make that trip to allow twice as much time for the drive as you think necessary. It is very deceiving to look at a road map and think the short mileage from point A to point B can be traveled as quickly as one would on flat, straight highways. You want to allow time to stop and drink in the views or have coffee or tea at an outdoor bistro. You'll also want a break from having to pay close attention to hairpin curves on a narrow road that often does not have side rails to break your fall should you get to close to the edge!
Briancon was founded by the Romans and then became a medieval walled city. It's the highest town in Europe. We spent a morning walking around, discovering its many treasures and reveling in its quiet atmosphere. It has a gargouille, what they call a canal but is simply a very narrow trough of water you can step across that runs down the center of two different streets in Briancon. There's only one other town in France that has gargouille.
The spectacular part of the Haute Alpes that you drive through is the route of the Tour de France and it is hard to believe that all this gorgeous scenery is wasted on the cyclists. If they are looking at the beautiful views they're likely to run off the road into oblivion! Those roads are full of switchbacks and the grade is punishing, even in a car. It gave me a new appreciation of the athleticism of the cyclists.
Having tilted with a few windmills of my own, I enjoy returning to the land of Don Quixote. He was an inspirational, and still relevant, character from the 17th century writer, Miguel de Cervantes. We get the word "quixotic" from him as a descriptor of someone exceedingly optimistic and idealistic.
Southern Spain abounds with exotic examples of the Moorish Empire which reigned from the 8th to the 12th centuries. One of the two sites that most exemplify that culture is La Mezquita in Cordoba, famous for its 856 jasper, onyx and marble arched columns. It has served as a mosque and as a Catholic cathedral.
The Alhambra, introduced to American readers by Washington Irving, is an amazing complex perched on a rocky hill overlooking Granada. It was primarily occupied from the 13th through the 15th centuries and at the peak of the Moorish power as many as 40,000 people lived and worked there. One of Northern Spain's answers to the exotic is exemplified in Barcelona by the fanciful creations of Antoni Gaudi. The architect, who predates the creativity of Walt Disney by more than a century, has a similar playful approach to building fantasy worlds.
Years ago when I was a stewardess for Pan Am I had several flights to Lisbon. Although it was a senior route I was able to bid the line because I had a year of intensive Portuguese and could make the announcements and modest conversation. It seemed so picturesque in the countryside yet cosmopolitan where we stayed in Estoril with its high rise hotels dotting the Atlantic beaches.
Last year I returned to Portugal for the first time since those early days of my flying adventures. Lisbon is now quite grown up and sophisticated but offers a feast to eyes that love color, with its myriad shades in tiles on walls and varied crayon hues shading buildings.
The Monument to the Discoveries and the world map set in marble below that memorializes the many places first visited by Portuguese sailors was very impressive. This relatively small European country became the first of the great maritime world empires by the early 1520's. Even the swirling patterns found in sidewalks recalled the waves that beckoned these intrepid sailors to cross the seas seeking the unknown.
Namibia is a country of surprising contrasts. It is about half the size of Alaska. The Namib Desert probably attracts more attention because of its stark vastness and lack of vegetation. It was a shock to see the undulating sand dunes snake their way to the lapping south Atlantic waves. It was equally astonishing to observe the canvas of sand stretching east. The myriad patterns left by the wind and designed by a playful Creator were breathtaking in their variety.
The northern portion of Namibia is somewhat kinder in its topography to its inhabitants. Etosha National Park is home to a less dense wildlife population than East Africa, but still evokes interest as you realize what animals such as this lioness have to do just to survive.
