Bayou Sunset

Sunset on the Bayou. It's been a really interesting few days exploring New Orleans and cajun country. It's a region that surely doesn't lack in character and soul. We visited some of the wealthiest areas in the Garden District to the areas hit hardest by Katrina in Lower 9th Ward. We visited the touristy spots such as Bourbon Street and also found ourselves deep in the swampy rural areas filled with eye opening poverty. We drove along the Mississippi amazed by the number of refineries and chemical planets. We walked the plantations and felt a bit sick of the thought that people used to be 'owned.' We merely scratched the surface as we often do via travel, but we were able to open a new chapter in the book of life of understanding that was left unwritten before. Travel is such a critical tool...especially within our own country...even if it's just in our figurative backyard. If we want to understand ourselves and each other a bit better, we have to put ourselves out there.

Forest Minutiae

Forest Minutiae. Frequently, the grandest shots 'stem' from the smallest wonders. With a certain intensity of commitment and penchant for observation, you receive abundance of gratitude. Nature photography continues to truly teach me how freezing a moment reveals how truly stunning our world is. It's not about getting Instagram likes or checking off bucket lists, it's about feeling the world around you. Here, clovers give new life to a fallen ancient tree in Fern Canyon, Redwoods National Park.

Grand Falls

Grand Falls, Arizona. A desert waterfall that comes alive only a few months out of the year during snowmelt.

Dawn Patrol

Spectators taking in the magic of the dawn patrol ascension at the International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 10-14-17. Thousands look up in pure sensory overload. There's no way to capture the magnitude or all of the balloons filling the skies. My views were akin to a specific window seat on a train or in a car. It's my fleeting window that only I experienced. Each person who attended will have their own vantage point. Chasing their own moments and stories...all in awe.

White Sands Poetry In Motion

My girlfriend Lindsay and I took a little weekend getaway to New Mexico. It was a really hazy and dusty day, but we decided to check out the sunset at White Sands with no plan. I saw a ridge and told her to run over to...she asked me, "What should I do?" I replied, just be you...just embrace how you are feeling. She magically danced away, and I could hear her laughing with pure joy. I was fortunate to capture this soulful poetically magic moment. These precious moments feeling alive/

Black Friday.

The best way to spend Black Friday. Narrowsburg, New York.

Cornhusker State

Remnants of a recent corn harvest in the fields of Nebraska

Teton Spring

Spring Flowers blooming among the Grand Tetons.

Shoshone

Niagara of the west. Spring flow and golden hour at Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls, Idaho. The sheer power of water is literally and figuratively moving. Canyon walls carved out over millions of years makes you feel like a blip on the radar.

Enchanting Yellowstone

Sunset at the painted pots (5/28/17) in Yellowstone National Park. Just stunning to see the pools and steaming vents in the background as the sun fell behind the horizon. Thanks to my dad for patiently waiting for a few hours, so I could capture those fleeting moments.

Supervisors of Selma

Selma, Alabama . A center of the Civil Rights movement. Such a powerful place to be. These two brothers were sitting outside one afternoon just watching the day go by and according to them, 'supervising' as their buddies washed clients cars at an auto shop. They were salt of the earth men who spoke to my soul. Gregarious, amicable and present. They shared a bit of history with us and smiled ear to ear when they chatted about when President Obama visited. It's people like this when traveling that make an experience all the richer. This is what true wealth looks like. Thank you gentleman, and keep on supervising.

Red Willow

On a recent visit to Taos Pueblo, New Mexico, I had a wonderful conversation with Red Willow. He served in the United States Navy for many years in the Pacific with pride and dignity. He now focuses much of his energy on crafting drums and traditional artwork. A self-proclaimed "Jack-of-all-trades." We chatted about indigenous spirituality, connection with the land, and the recent passing of my dog. I referenced several parallels to my experiences with cultures in the high Andes in Peru and Bolivia. It was fascinating to see the same symbols in his artwork and worldviews that reflected the same ideologies found thousands of miles away. Red Willow stoically yet affirmatively stated...."We're all connected. We share the same soil." I wanted to capture a certain intimacy in this photo that illustrates this man's humble yet cogent personality. This is a man who's fellow native people have too often been cast aside in the United States...yet he still fought for our country. He is a man connected deeply to the earth and offered continual words of wisdom and optimism that I needed to hear. Here lies the true beauty of using my photography to engage with the world and its people. True, change isn't made from this image or story alone, but it reinvigorates my inner flame to get out there and learn, listen and observe. In the end this awareness will foster real change and meaningful conversations and respect for each and every one of us.

Spring In The Tetons

Spring in the Tetons. I waited for sunset at this pond just enjoying the solitude. A beaver swam across multiple times, baby ducks learned to navigate the waters, birds chirped, the grass rustled, the clouds were dynamic creating all sorts of lighting...it was beautiful to just stop and soak it all up. One of my favorite parts of landscape photography is the patience necessary. You end up really appreciating a place more and notice the complexities of the ecosystem going on every moment.

Cadillac Ranch

Outside of Amarillo, Texas sits a unique art installation. Cadillac Ranch was built by a group called Ant Farm from San Francisco. Stanley, Marsh, a local billionaire commissioned the art and wanted to create something that would confuse the local and attract a certain attention. Ten Cadillacs ordered in the year they were built were brought to the fields and dug nose deep into the Texas soil in 1974. Over the years, the cars were de-faced and painted and eventually moved 2 miles down the road. Today, the smell of spray paint smacks your nostrils from 100 yards away as you approach the cars. People are encouraged to paint them as part of the fun that keeps these cars from rusting away.

Fern Walls

This is my type of wall. Ferns adorn the canyon walls in Fern Canyon in Northern California.

Sedona Sandstone Sunset

A few of the critical things photography has taught me is to do your homework, forge your own path, be patience, insatiably curious and to just ask. Sedona, Arizona is a landscape photographers dream. The dynamic skies, shifting light on the red and orange colored sandstone towers juxtaposed with a "lush" desert environment unequivocally leave your lower jaw dropping and succumbing to gravity as you utter "WOW." Many flock to Sedona to experience these views and after studying lots of photos and "where to" shoot articles, I thought I had it all mapped out. For sunset, I headed up to the famed airport mesa, which lends itself to sweeping views of Sedona valley below. It was crowded. Very crowded. I appreciated everyone getting out there and chasing that sunset, but it wasn't my scene. I headed down the hill and saw another higher hill nearby. I thought, how could I get there? I noticed a road heading to a neighborhood that seemed somewhat close to where I wanted to go. I kindly asked a homeowner if I could park in their pullout area above their driveway. They said sure. I thanked them and then trudged up a pretty steep cacti laden slope for the next 25 minutes. No trail, just up. The mesa at the top. It greeted me with stunning 360 views and solitude. I felt like I was removed from Sedona's crowds and had the desert landscape to myself. I scouted for the next half hour and studied where the sun would hit as it faded towards the horizon. My homework of sorts. I found my spot and then just waited and watched the movie of light shift for the next hour. By forging my own path and simply asking a friendly homeowner, I came up with a shot of Sedona that felt unique. If anything, I felt at ease in this stunning desert landscape away from the crowds and in tune with my surroundings. I won't share this exact location because it's up to you to go find your own special spot.

Ancient Redwood Floor

A fallen Redwood limb embedded in a cloverfield in Redwood National Park, Califonia. These humbling giants have lived as long as 2,000 years. There really are no words to aptly describe walking among them and to feel their energy and presence.

Ancient Sedona

Ancient trees, ancient rocks, ancient soil. Amazing the masterpieces mother nature creates over millions of years.

Taughannok Falls

I see why the adage Ithaca is Gorges exists. Taughannok Falls.

Hemingway

The unassuming grave of the great Ernest Hemingway in Ketchum, Idaho. Fans have adorned with some of his favorite hobbies.

Sedona Spring

Sunset in Sedona in Spring creates a beautiful color pallete

Chimayo

Beads decorate an alter at the El Santuario de Chimayo, New Mexico. The sanctuary receives over 300,000 visitors a year and is one of the most famous sites of Catholic pilgrimage in the United States.

Morning Feed

Cows in rural Nebraska on a frigid morning chowing down on breakfast