Merced River Reflections I recently listened to a F-Stop Collaborate and Listen podcast about photography education and creativity. The episode made me think about my own work and if I am being creative in the field. Guy Tal offered this definition of creativity; novelty, usefulness, and surprise. I found these to be great ideas to really mull over about photography. One example in how photography can not be creative is the shooting of "icons", the iconic scene from locations that everyone has seen. I have one of these shots hanging in my office. Tunnel View- Yosemite National Park Tunnel View The classic scene of Yosemite National Park is tunnel view. Emerging from a tunnel on Hwy 41 headed towards Yosemite Valley, visitors are greeted with a beautiful view of El Capitan, Bridelveil Falls, and Half Dome, all in one breathtaking scene. It is a glorious sight, which explains the large parking lot and hoards of people there every day. Yet I highly recommend v
This is part 3 of 3 of a series about landscape photography lessons from the desert. For more photography tips check out part 1 and part 2 . Sunset in Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, Las Cruces, NM Las Cruces, MN I use several tools to "visit" an area that I know I will be going to. I try to get a feel of the landscape and brainstorm ideas for photos. I had only drive through Las Cruces on a grueling 16 hour drive, so I was not sure what the area had to offer. Google Maps is an obvious place to begin researching and I was excitedto see desert mountains surrounding the city. My next step was to google the names of places I saw and learn more about the area. Then internet is an amazing tool! Photo Pills is another app I use to help plan trips. This app gives sunrise and sunset times, the direction of light (Lesson 2), and the phase and timing of the moon. This is a small list of what this app can show you. With a general idea in mind, it was tim