I participated in a Scenic Hudson kayak trip last night to the Esopus Meadows lighthouse and other areas along the Hudson shoreline. It was lead by pro kayaker Ray Fusco, who provided equipment and training to those new to kayaking. I had a great time, met lots of new people, and of course brought along my camera for the ride.

With calm water and low wind, it was a perfect evening to drift along the river, taking in the sights of eagles, the shoreline forest, and the sun as it set behind the Catskill mountains…summer at its best.

Thought I’d share a few random images from my local travels the last few weeks…including some taken from my kayak. Enjoy…

Nice article today in the NY Times called “Hudson Valley Views” about several scenic hikes in the Hudson Valley, many of which I have hiked and photographed over the years. Included are Mt Beacon and Burger Hill Park, both of which are Scenic Hudson properties. They even mentioned my favorite breakfast/lunch stop in town, Homespun Foods!

These are all great family destinations, and I recommend them to anyone looking for classic Hudson Valley landscapes.

I would like to recommend an e-book I recently purchased (and downloaded) from fine-art photographer William Neill titled “Landscapes of the Spirit”. It is filled with magnificent images and intelligent, thought provoking essays. The original book has been out of print for a while, but William recently released a digital edition of the book with new scans of the original negatives, and updated information. While I own quite a few landscape books by many different photographers, this photo book has become one of my favorite resources for inspiration and motivation.

Here is my favorite quote from the book which really encompasses my own passion for nature:

“Seeing and feeling beauty is more vital to me than any resulting imagery. When the key elements of photography—light, composition, and emotion—are before me, I am fully engaged, yet detached, without expectations. The magic of my discovery—whether the dramatic light of a clearing storm or an intimate detail on the forest floor—recharges my spirit with a sense of wonder.” - William Neill

There is something in this book for every photographer, regardless of your favorite subject matter. I know that whenever I browse through it, I’m inspired yet again a to go out and find my own moment of wonder.

“Your photographs are your asset, much more so than your Photoshop skills. Those image-editing skills may well be critical to your craft, but they are secondary to your photographic vision”.- Stephen Johnson

All of the photography workshops being offered for the year have now been added to the schedule page, and they are filling up quickly. Up next is “Digital Photography with Adobe Lightroom” on July 26th, a repeat of the same class I gave back in March that was sold out. Also on the schedule is a classroom workshop for new DSLR owners, two field workshops in the fall, and a printing workshop in December.

I’ll be conducting the classroom portion of these workshops in my new private studio which is now under construction, but on schedule to be completed by the end of the summer. This will help the students get hands-on experience with the latest digital photography gear, and hopefully provide them with valuable experience they can apply to their own personal work. I also believe there is no better way to learn than by doing, so that’s my goal with a small, intimate, working environment catered to each student that attends. All in all a busy year for me, but I love teaching and sharing all I know about photography and its wonderful ability to capture both our emotions and imaginations. This is truly a passion for me, and I hope that comes across positively to everyone who joins me on these workshops.

I’m already thinking ahead to 2009, and have a few multi-day workshops already in the planning stages. Locations include the Hudson Valley, the Adirondacks, and Acadia National Park. Watch the blog for more info!

While I am primarily a landscape photographer, I do accept commercial assignments on a limited basis in other disciplines of photography, mostly in sports and the outdoors in general. Shooting something different is always a great way to expand your camera skills, and there is always something new and valuable to learn, from composition to post processing. It also gives me another opportunity to expand my stock portfolio.

I was recently asked to photograph the 2008 Liberty World Outrigger Canoe race, one of the largest sporting events in New York Harbor and one of the premier outrigger canoe races in the world. Hundreds of international paddlers come from all over the world to participate in this exciting race, including many from Hawaii, the capital of outrigger canoe racing. The images are used for media and promotional purposes, and the racers can also purchase prints from me for their own personal use.

It was a demanding 15 mile course which started at the Brooklyn Bridge, rounded the tip of Manhattan, went up the Hudson River to about 42nd st, came back down to the Statue of Liberty, around the back of Governors Island, and returned to the starting point at the Brooklyn Bridge Park. There was a dedicated “media” boat, which I shared with a videographer from Hawaii who was filming a documentary on the race.

I used two cameras, one for wide angle shots, and another for tighter shots of the racers and their canoes. Because I was in a moving boat, I chose to use my Canon 70-200 f/2.8 zoom lens with a 1.4 extender, and shot wide open most of the time to minimize camera shake and get the sharpest images possible. As the boat traffic increased throughout the morning, the water became rougher and made shooting that much more difficult. I really had to pick my shots carefully, and hope a wave didn’t rock the boat at the same time I pressed the shutter (which happened more often than I expected).

All in all, it was a great experience, and I was able to use the New York City Waterfalls as nice backdrops to the canoes. I will also be photographing the Mayors Cup kayak race in October, which also takes place in the same general area, so I’ll share those here as well.  Hope you enjoy the images!