Calm Photos

A Visual Celebration of Spring 2008 in Ohio by Jim Crotty

Photo Competition-Shoot The Hills Home Page

Attention all Ohio photographer enthusiasts ! This coming weekend - April 18-20 - is the time to be in Hocking Hills for the 8th Annual Shoot the Hills Photography Competition. With all the rain and recent mild weather I can almost guarantee perfect shooting conditions - from flowing waterfalls to new spring green on the hemlocks and beech trees to blooming patches of Virginia Bluebells to all kinds of Ohio wildlife - April is what I consider to be the second best month for nature photography in Ohio’s Hocking Hills (October being #1).

I will be serving on the panel of judges for this year’s event. Photographers compete in several nature subject categories in both adult and youth divisions as well as film and digital. New for this year is a print competition. Participants have a 24-hour period of time to photograph in Hocking Hills, followed by a submission deadline on Saturday and an awards ceremony on Sunday. When I served as a judge in 2006 there were close to 150 participants. This year the number of photographers will probably be double that, many of whom now come from other areas outside of Ohio. Recently NANPA (North American Nature Photography Association) sent out an email alert to all members announcing the 2008 Shoot the Hills Competition. The secret is out regarding my favorite location in Ohio for nature and landscape photography.

Best of all the proceeds collected through the modest entry fee goes directly back to supporting, preserving and protecting Hocking Hills State Park.

It is a true thrill for me to see the visual treasures that all of the participants come back with after being set loose in the gorges, hollows and valleys of Ohio’s “Little Smokies.”

Even if you are not a photographer this is a great event to visit and view the amazing photographic talent that is on display, as well as support other local artists and craftsman, many of whom will have tables displaying their works at the Hocking Hills State Park Lodge building - the center of activity for Shoot the Hills.

I hope to see you there !

Yes, winter in Ohio is making one last, strong push before moving aside for spring. Right now it looks to be a snow storm on the verge of becoming a blizzard. What better time to start thinking about summer and where to go for some of the most incredible nature and landscape photography within the lower 48 - the San Juan Mountains of Colorado.

While getting up to speed on my recently installed upgrade to Aperture 2.0, I re-discovered several raw image files from a photo trip I took to Colorado in July 2006. Applying some the new editing features available with Aperture 2.0 I went through and selected some of favorite images from that trip. I thought it would be fun to re-post a few while providing some basic tips when visiting and photographing this incredible area of alpine scenery.

The San Juan Mountains - with an emphasis on the area between Ouray and Telluride - is one of those summer or autumn destination spots that should be within the top ten list of every nature photographer, both amateur and pro shooters, right along with the Smokies in spring, Zion and Southern Utah, the U.P of Michigan in fall, etc., etc.

A more spectacular display of alpine wildflowers I have not seen, yet. Yankee Boy Basin, which sits far above the mountain town of Ouray, is the most popular area for wildflowers and mountain vistas in the San Juan Mountains. But as always, the best shots are to be found by being a bit adventurous and driving the mountain road (sometimes more of a “path”) that leads upward from Yankee Boy to Imogene Pass then the old mining town of Tomboy and out the other side into Telluride.

   

                 

Here’s my tips for an incredible summer photo adventure in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado:

1) Base yourself out of Ouray. A fun, picturesque Colorado mountain town that is less expensive than Telluride.
2) If you fly in, you MUST rent a 4-wheel drive SUV or Jeep Wrangler. DO NOT - I repeat DO NOT - attempt the mountain road between Ouray and Telluride in anything less. You won’t get very far. I rented a Ford Explorer and it handled the boulders, rocks, mud and snow (yes, snow in July) beautifully.

3) Pack bug spray. At certain altitudes in the mountains you may run into flocks of ravenous mosquitoes and biting flies. Not often, but it does happen.
4) Dress warm with layers. You can start your trek in shorts and a t-shirt down in Ouray and by the time you reach Imogene Pass (13,000 feet +) you could be in long pants, coat and gloves.
5) Have a cover for your camera. I always recommend hotel shower caps. I’ve been using the same one for almost eight years now. Summer storms in the mountains are sudden, intense and unpredictable. The plus side is that all those alpine waterfalls are never dry or slow.
6) Camera body with spare batteries plus a wide zoom for your landscapes, tele-zoom for isolating scenes and macro for flower close-ups. Pro-grade tripod (extends to five + feet) with a solid ballhead, cable release, plenty of memory cards, circular polarizer, split-neutral density filter, detachable flash and hand-held reflector and diffuser are all items that I found to be very useful in photographing the mountains and wildflowers in the summer.
7) Good, sturdy hiking BOOTS. Not your cross-trainers, tennis shoes or Crocs, but boots. This is just as important as that 4-wheel drive.
Lots of extra water. High altitude hiking will dehydrate you quicker than just about anything else.
9) First aid kit, Balance Bars, Marathon Bars, etc.
10) If you go by yourself, make sure you tell someone where you’re headed and when you plan to return.
11) If you have any remote fear of heights, DO NOT drive this mountain road. There are sections where there is less than a foot of space between your tires and 1,000 foot drop-offs.

Though the winter winds, snow and ice are sill upon us here in Ohio, one can’t help but notice the promise of spring with the gradual changes in the light and the small flashes of color. Just last week I was stunned to see a small flock of Eastern Bluebirds fly past me while I was photographing an icy landscape of the prairie at Sugarcreek MetroPark. And then another Bluebird just this past weekend as my daughter Chloe and I were departing Hocking Hills. I’m hopeful for an early spring. Most of all I am hopeful for life renewed and positive changes. Sometimes the Eagle has to drop southward, with talons at the ready, in order to climb to “higher ground.”

Enjoy the following nature, wildlife and landscape photographs of winter waning in Ohio, captured at Sugarcreek and Hills and Dales MetroParks, Calvary Cemetery and as always, Hocking Hills.

A hope for spring . . .

Already you can see the light turning.

Please enjoy my latest slide show creation, titled “Simple Gifts.” I put this video together so as to serve as an inspiration and hope for the coming spring. Many of the images you’ll see have been used in previous presentations, however, I’m using them again because of how much these photographs mean to me and the message communicated. Listen closely to the notes and words of the old Puritan hymn, “Simple Gifts,” as performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Alison Krauss.

The first time I heard this tune was on a bright, sunny Sunday morning in May of 1983. After my first week of boot camp and the intense process of having my identity stripped away, our platoon had the opportunity to attend Sunday morning church services at Parris Island. It was there that I experienced the first moment of quiet and reflection, and this tune came to my ears as the revised hymnal “Lord of the Dance.” I am not embarrassed to say that I wasn’t the only bald-headed recruit who started shedding tears.

When all is taken away and all that is left is the spirit and soul within, then, and only then, can we appreciate the “Simple Gifts” of God’s light, grace and peace. It is this lesson that I try to apply to the photographs that I discover and capture.