Stories and pictures about our travels, our photography and the outdoors.
Paroxysm is defined as “a sudden attack or violent expression of a particular emotion or activity.” The onset of desert blooms is certainly sudden. The “Super Bloom” of 2019 certainly is a violent attack on the sensibility of some that the desert is a bare and boring place. The foot soldiers of this attack were the multitudes of flowers in many shades of yellow, gold, blue, violet and other colors. Millions of bright spots, each competing for attention, to show that the desert is not bland, monotone, boring or bare. In these images we used intentional movements of the camera to blur, yet focus on the colors of the bloom. We hope this paroxysm of color imparts a sudden attack of a pleasant emotion in your day. It certainly captured us.
Super. Synonyms include: superb, superlative, superior, outstanding, remarkable, dazzling, marvelous, magnificent, wonderful, splendid, fine, exquisite, exceptional, glorious, sublime, and more. In this post we include some of our images from Joshua Tree National Park made during the 2019 “Super Bloom”. We hope you will agree that many of those synonyms are applicable. Clearly the bloom was exceptional. The riot of colors was remarkable. The density was magnificent. The scent of millions of blooming flowers was sublime. All together it was glorious. We hope you concur. [You can click on each image for a larger version.]
A couple of weeks ago we found ourselves in Southern California. And just like in 2017, we were there during a “Super Bloom” event. Fortunately we had time to go make some images of the blooms. Unlike 2017, the best blooms were not on the Carizzo Plain. We found dense blooms in the vicinity of Anza-Borrego State Park and Joshua Tree National Park. We also did a drive-by of the poppy bloom near Temescal/Alberhill along I-15. We didn’t stop at Temescal/Alberhill because it was crazy. There were hundreds of people trying to get to the poppys at 9AM on a Monday. We can’t imagine how crazy the weekends must have been. But Joshua Tree in particular, was incredible. The density and diversity of flowering plants was overwhelming. The scent of blooming flowers almost overpowering when we got out of the vehicle along the south Entrance Road. We tried to make images of the mass but all of our attempts seemed to fall short of relaying the intensity of the bloom. Instead we tried to make images that captured some of the details of this incredible floral outburst in the desert. Here in Part 1 are images from the Carizzo Plain and the area around Anza-Borrego State Park. (Click on the photos for a larger view.)
Sometimes we have posted our favorites from the prior year in a blog post. Last year we changed the whole website and devoted it to our trip to Alaska in 2017 (See the Land of Salmon pages). This year I (Boyd) was digging through the archives and had a thought: (Reader inserts wisecrack here) I should share some of the images that were my favorites of all-times. These would be images I had made, and I would not constrain the selection by subject or date of origin. Shortly after I had this not so novel idea, I read a blog post that said everyone should have their “10 best” as an opening gallery. Although I thought that was too restrictive on every photographer’s web design, I thought it might be a fun exercise to try and pick out 10 photos.
I was wrong.
(I purposely left that sentence as a single paragraph as some people may say I have never concatenated those three words together. They would be wrong.)
It turns out selecting only 10 photos was very hard. Getting the top 150 wasn’t too bad. Cutting that in half to 75 was a lot tougher. After that it started to become an exercise in rejecting images that I liked for a lot of reasons. Eventually I got to about 35 photos and got stuck. Do I have too many flower pictures? Where is the air tanker photo? Should I use the puffin photo or the Lincoln’s sparrow? Which bear photo - cute? fierce? What about the hyenas? Probably too graphic. What about the seashore? Water abstracts? Leave out composited images? Put in composited images? How many in any one category? Some color? Some black and white? You get the idea. In the end I settled on 15. Kathy gave some input when I was stuck but ultimately the choices, as are the images, are all mine. So I picked 15, slept on the project, rearranged and picked a slightly different 15, and eventually settled. I doubt you would think these are my 15 best, but they are my 15 favorites. At least as of today. Tomorrow? Well the weather forecast is interesting, maybe there will be a new image to add to the mix soon.
Note: These are not in any particular order as to my number 1 favorite, or age of image, I just thought this order flowed well. And if you click on the photos you should get a larger version.)
Suppression
This is the image that really gave me hope for my photography. This image won Honorable Mention in the LA Times Home magazine photo contest back in the 80s.
Clearing Storm Over the Colorado
Majestic clouds, the texture of the sandstone walls, yes Ansel Adams influenced me as he has millions of other photographers. I still love his work, and I love this classic view of southern Utah.
Through the woods
Another classic monochrome, this one is at Wormsloe State Historic site near Savannah, Georgia. It’s a classic location, with wonderful textures and a ton of history hidden behind those amazing trees.
Waiting for the Call
P3 Orions, and a Douglas DC-7 (I think ,based on the four-bladed prop) wait on the ramp at San Bernardino Tanker Base during the Old Fire. I saw so many jaw dropping sights that I didn’t have time to catch when I was working, but this is still one of my favorites for how T-25 is framed between the props.
Blue and Orange Buoy
The Orange. The Blue. The texture of the rope in the crab pot. Do inanimate objects wait? Does it long to go back to work? Does it miss the kiss of the cold Oregon Pacific?
Blue Diamonds of Jökulsárlón
This location has become a cliche for Iceland. But the ice and the black sand draw you in. The fleeting nature of the ice means every day is different, the scene changes often, I could go back again and again.
Cascade detail, Mt. Robson NP, British Columbia
I love the curve of the water, the blue from a rainy day sky, and the texture of the rock. Although the water looks soft, we know the rock eventually loses to the river. Liquid defeats solid. But for now it is a battle.
Wild Rose and Raindrops
The soft pink of the petals with the last drops of rain, against the dark greens of the forest floor. Two months later this area was in or near extensive wildfires. But in this image, the rose and two rain drops live on.
Kelp and Sea Lettuce Still Life
This is another image where the textures are palpable to me. Can you feel the roughness of the kelp leaf? Do you want to pop the flotation bladders? Can you smell the salt air? Maybe hear a Western Gull squwacking in the background?
Embrace of Ancients
The redwood twig provided shade for the fern. Both are remnants of an ancient world. I like the contrast of the brown twig with the green fern. All the lines in the twig and the fern leaf that mirror each other, are nice too.
King of the Plain
An African Lion gazes out of frame. What does he see? Lunch? An interloper he is going to go chase away? The future? Yes I also like the texture. I am a sucker for a good texture.
Focused
There is no doubt what the gaze of this Alaskan Brown Bear is focused on. Lunch. Sushi. Salmon. I didn’t realize it until I started this exercise but so many of my favorite animal images have the animal looking out the left side of the frame. Don’t know, don’t want to know, what that might mean about me.
New Hampshire on a Stormy Afternoon
I love the filtered light beam that highlighted this little stream and its waterfalls. The light is soft; there is no one around. To me it feels like something from a fairy tale. Or maybe a painting by JWM Turner or from the Hudson River School of painters.
Storm approaches Ward Charcoal Ovens
Kathy and I watched this thunderstorm for several hours. And we had a plan for capturing these ovens in the evening under the stars. I think it came together wonderfully. In this image some might say there is too much sky, but in Nevada, there is almost always a lot of sky. And texture. I’m detecting a trend here.
Canadian Rockies’ Sunrise at Pyramid Lake
More textures, more beautiful light on magnificent clouds reflected in calm water with spots of bright colors on the boats. This one was an easy pick.
So those are my currently favorite 15. I hope you stuck through this long post and enjoyed them all.
Boyd
I write this in early January of 2019. Like many people, we take time as the year rolls over to look at what we have done and what we hope to do. Last year our photography wasn’t as prominent in our priority list as previously. (See the entry from October 2018). As we start a new calendar year, Kathy and I are hoping to reinvigorate this set of stories/blog/journal with fresh content on a regular basis. Our first goal is at least once a month. We would like to get to at least twice a month. We shall see whether this works as planned or falls by the wayside like so many New Year Resolutions to improve.
Part of having more stories to tell is gathering new images. Being in a new area we have lots of opportunities to do that. A few days ago we took a short hike to visit Steelhead Falls on the Deschutes River. Although it was a cool and overcast day we found the falls to be an interesting place to spend some time looking. Here are some of the things we saw. Boyd.
We both were fascinated by the zigzag of water over this rock within the main falls.
We’ve been away from this blog/website for almost a year. We returned from Alaska last fall (2017), posted pictures, Boyd finished the movie of our adventure, and then … nothing. Or at least that is what this website would have you believe.
We didn’t really lose interest. Our priorities changed. We decided to leave our home of 30 years and move to Central Oregon. This was not a small task. Look around where you are. How much stuff have you acquired since your last move? Exactly. Not to mention all the bureaucratic tasks associated with moving: a loan, new insurance, re-register vehicles, find a new doctor/dentist/repair person, find the best place for a cold/hot drink. You get the idea. Well, we are settling down and have started to get back into the groove of photography. Expect to see some new stories soon. We are excited by what our new location provides for photographic opportunities.
So bear with us as we get back in the seat of this photographic sharing machine. We hope to have some new stuff (and maybe some old stuff) up soon. If I can just find that 5/16 in long socket and a pair of wire cutters….
Sometimes this website works for us in providing an excellent venue for displaying our photography. The Land of Salmon has been the theme of the website since we returned from our summer "expedition" last Fall (2017). We hope the website has done a good job of showing some of what we experienced. But sometimes the story tells us it wants to be told differently. This trip needed something more dynamic (although we hope you find our still images dynamic and exciting in their own way). So we put together a 15-minute movie/video. We hope you enjoy the Land of Salmon.
During summer in the Land of Salmon, water often seems to hurry along as if to avoid being captured again by the chill breath of winter. But we have the ability to slow the passage with our cameras. By lengthening the period of time the camera takes to record the scene, we can see the more sinuous, more sensuous curves of movement. A ballet of curves, gravity, foam and air bubbles. The flow becomes softer, yet still intricate, more intimate. The dance between air and water becomes more supple, more of a caress between the liquid and the gaseous. All too soon, ice will form as night captures the landscape. But for now, the dance is on, and the water flows.
What? a new Turner web site?
Time for a change
After being on the road 95 days and 12,000 miles we have returned from BC, Yukon, and Alaska. We gathered some images and stories over the course of the summer. And this is where we like to share the best images and some of the stories. Since we haven't changed the basic design of this site in about three years now it seemed like the time to try something new. We hope you like this design that organizes our photos a little differently. This is a scrolling based system instead of clicking around. Although we would love it if you saw our work on a 27-in 5k color corrected monitor, reality is most people use a mobile device. So hopefully the new design will be intuitive enough. Let us know through the "Talk with us" link what you think. So go scroll through the pages and enjoy. We did.
