Desert Drive

On our recent road trip across the west, we had some long days on the road between locations.  Driving through southern Utah and northern Arizona we were pressed to keep on schedule, but still took some time for shooting on the drive between Monument Valley and Sand Hollow Park.

Monument Valley

Monument Valley was near the top of my list of places to visit on our camper trip.  I've rarely been anywhere so iconic and yet full of history.  I was very excited to introduce Sarah to it.  I had not been there since a road trip i took close to twenty years ago.  It was even more spectacular than I remembered.  I wanted to try and take photos that aren't the typical shot you see from this heavily photographed spot.

Take a Hike

While in Red Rock Park we went on a lovely hike and were followed every step of the way by our little canine pal Rosie.  We were trying to get up to Church Rock, but we found some patches of snow and ice thwarting our progress.  We did, however, get some great views of it from the next butte over.

Red Rock Park

One of our favorite accidental discoveries was Red Rock Park in Gallup NM.  After an aborted attempt to camp at another park that left a lot to be desired, Sarah's keen eye caught a sign for Red Rock from the highway.  The folks running the park were friendly and full of stories and the setting among the, you guessed it, red rocks was spectacular.

Not So New Mexico

Driving through New Mexico we saw old desolate abandoned buildings everwhere we looked.  If we had stopped to see them all we wouldn't yet be past Albuquerque.  But we couldn't resist stopping for a few.

Lake Meredith and Beyond

We finally got away from the snow and salted roads.  The first real leg of our trip started with a car wash and then took us through some amazingly beautiful country, including a wind farm out in the boonies and the stunning Lake Meredith National Recreation Area.

Seattle Waterfront

While visiting our good friend Dan in Seattle we made a trip down to where city and sea meet.  Being that this leg of the trip was so short, this was our only touristy activity, but it was enough to get some great shots.

Glacier National Park

We had an incredible time staying at the Izaak Walton Inn just outside of Glacier National Park in Montana.  Essex MT is a flag stop along Amtrak's Empire Builder line.  We spent a fantastic New Years trying both snowshoeing and cross country skiing for the first time.  The latter we found much more difficult because gravity and a lack of friction make staying upright a difficult thing.  We made good use of our Think Tank Shapeshifter backpack to keep all of our gear safe from the snow and weather (and falling in the snow) while we were out and about.

Up The River (Snake)

The Lewis Clark Valley is on the border of Washington and Idaho and is where the Snake and Clearwater rivers confluence.  We went for a drive "up river", which is to say up the Snake River to where it meets the Grand Ronde River.  It was very peaceful and I wish we had had more time.  Next time we are going back in the summer.

Out The Window of the Empire Builder

We are traveling westbound on the Empire Builder, Amtrak's train from Chicago to Seattle/Portland.  There are some wonderful snowscapes to view this time of year from dawn til dusk.

Stuck in Sandusky

After shooting an ad for Subaru in New York a couple of weeks ago (which was delayed by severe weather) Sarah and I started to drive from NYC back to Chicago.  En route we hit even more severe weather.  35mph on the freeway with poor visibilty is not my favorite way to travel.  Once the sun went down we got off the road.  Welcome to Sandusky OH.  While stuck in Sandusky we did a quick rewrite of our upcoming travel plans.  The holidays would now be filled with a railway adventure. After that we will be taking our trailer Timmy on the road (if once again the weather doesn't thwart us).  Stay tuned here as well as follow our travel blog Eric & Sarah Go Places for more about this adventure.  In the meantime, here are some beautiful stark landscapes from our layover in Sandusky.

Hudson Scout

Our holiday travels were put a little behind schedule due to weather in the NE.  We were in NYC shooting a new ad for Subaru and Ad Asia.  We needed a snow free environment, but meteorology was not on our side and it snowed like crazy.  While the snow on the ground didn't work for the Subaru shoot, it made for some very pretty scouting shots in the Hudson Valley.

Vermont Quarry

I had a resort shoot in Vermont recently.  When the shoot was over I explored around the area a bit.  I found out about an amazing quarry where huge slabs of marble are cut from the earth and scraps are left in pile next to murky puddles of water.  It was incredible to see.  Here are a few shots.

Outer Banks Utility

I had been wanting to visit the Outer Banks of NC for quite a while.  When I was finally able to take a trip there, wouldn't you know it, it was pouring the entire time… for 4 days straight.  So I got in my car and drove around exploring the wet, grey, saturated island.  As a side note, I have a real thing for utility poles.  Here are a few shots of the best utility poles a horribly stormy Outer Banks has to offer.

DC At Night

I love walking around a city at night.  The contrast between the bright lights and the deep shadows is compelling.  and every light is a different color.  It's so much fun to find a great scene and do really long exposures in what would otherwise be a fairly dark environment.  Here are a few shots from a trip to Washington DC.  Whereas I of course shot some of the famous landmarks, here I wanted to show more normal, albeit beautiful scenes.

Roosevelt Island at Night

Here are some fun night imags of the Queensboro Bridge and power plant taken from Roosevelt Island in New York.

Warren Dunes

Warren Dunes State Park at dusk.  Pure Michigan.

Colgate College

Sometimes a building or a scene will grab my attention and I have to pull my car over and get out my camera.  I was shooting in Upstate New York recently and ended up driving through the campus of Colgate College.  There were two identical arched metal buildings that caught my eye.  They are part of the athletics department.  The the bright greens of the grass and fall colors of the leaves looked great against the cool grey of the corrugated metal.

Maine Seaside

Here is a beautifully stormy/overcast autumn day on the seaside of Maine.

Logging in Oregon

I'd never seen the modern machinery of logging up close before.  While driving through Oregon en route to my hometown on the Washington/Idaho border, I passed an area that was being clear cut.  The trees had already been felled.  The machine that would pick up the trees, strip it of all it's bark and small branches and cut it into manageable pieces was mezmerizing to watch.