A big rock with a view

El Capitan ... over 3000 vertical feet of solid rock. Most of the photos you see of El Cap do not include this road, the cars, or the people. I love this photo because of the road, cars and the people. They brings context to the image. I normally don’t like to include ‘man-made stuff’ in my nature landscape photos, but in this case, I think it makes for a better photo. 

What you don’t see is the view behind me. Bridalveil Falls is a short hike away, and not far from here you can see Half Dome, another amazing ‘rock’.

These three natural monuments are most frequently mentioned when someone talks about Yosemite National Park, and perhaps are the most photographed. It’s an amazing place. 

~ Rick

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Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Turkey for dinner?

I have been waiting to share this photo for a few days now. This is a wild turkey and it comes with a great story.

We had gone out for a drive, and were headed back to the lodge. I really can’t describe the road .. remember, we were in the mountains of Yosemite, and the roads wind through the mountain like a noodle in a pile of spaghetti. Winding roads for miles, trees, and not much margin for error. There are spots where the edge of the road end, and then there is just a clift .. a large drop off. I was just focused on my lane so as not to hit an oncoming car, or drop over the edge. My fear of heights didn’t work with me.  

As we come around a curve in the road, I see this very large bird in the road. Right in the middle of the road. My 1st reaction was, “Pheasant”. I really knew better .. it didn’t look like a pheasant. It turned toward us and started this turkey trot, trying to get out of the way. I stopped in the middle of the road as we both scrambled to get a camera. The funny thing is, I was holding my iPhone. But there we were were, two phones and still looking for a camera. Teresa snapped a couple of photos. This was the best one. 

The Turkey was so surprised: We were so surprised. I guess it was almost turkey for dinner.  

~ Rick

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Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Relaxing views

Yosemite: It seemed like there is a postcard waiting at every turn. We are home now, and I have had some time to digest our trip, and mentally process everything. There is so much to see at Yosmite. It reminded me of Yellowstone .. large, beautiful and overwhelming. I am so grateful that we were able to visit, and hope to return someday. 

Now for something more general. I have been struggling with how I can share more photos from the various places we visit and photograph. I am considering creating an ebook from some of the better photos. Perhaps a separate ebook for each destination. I would publish it as an iBooks (Apple users), and if I can figure it out, for Kindle. Maybe a PDF too?  The numbers of photos will be limited by how large the book becomes. I believe the book will cost about $5 to $10, enough to offset the cost of publishing and such.

What do you think? Is there any interest in ebooks like this. I would start with Yosmite, but if it goes well, I will create several. It will not be just photos, but include a short description or natative, and maybe some tips for those that visit the same locations. I am not trying to create a travel guide .. it’s a story in pictures. 

If you have any thoughts, and especially if you would be interested in this, please IM me on FB, text (937-214-3590), or in the comments on FB.

~ Rick

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 Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

A Giants’ playground

The volume and velocity of the water from Bridialvale Falls is amazing, and the sound is overpowering. A photo really does not do it justice. The above photo was a time lapse shot, taken with my iPhone. The second photo is a black and white of the scene. Look at the all the dead timbers. It looks like a ‘Tonka Toy’ playground ... for giants. (I used Snapseed to create the B&W effect). 

~ Rick

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Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Many Moons

I took a series of photos of the moon early Monday morning. The pre-dawn photo above was taken on my iPhone. I was out for a walk, trying to get in some exercise.  When I looked up, this was the view.

I used Halide, a photo app. It allows manual settings, and I think it gave me the best photo possible on a mobile device. (Disclosure: affiliate link to a really great app). 

The next two photos were taken after an early breakfast 🙂. I used my DSLR and a 600mm lens for both of these photos. The sun rise was behind me and behind the mountains. A blue sky and a full moon at Yosemite National Park. I guess the exposure settings were slightly different for these two photos.

~ Rick  

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Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright