NG's Iconic Places to Photograph

Ah, National Geographic.  You always know how to tickle my wanderlust.  Today in my email box up popped a regular message from NG (cause I over-subscribe to them, getting emails on just about anything they can dream up to send me), and lo and behold, out pops their Top 10 Iconic Places to Photograph.  I don't think there is a photographer alive who would not drool over any of these places:

• Antarctica
• Venice, Italy
• Machu Picchu, Peru
• Stonehenge, England
• Taj Mahal, India
• Rapa Nui (Easter Island)
• Ta Phram Temple (Angkor Wat), Cambodia
• The Serengeti, Tanzania
• Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

Looking over that list, I would have to pick out my few favorites.  Machu Picchu would be close to the top if not all the way there.  I would love the long trek up to the mountain, and then to stand amongst the ruins and see the immensity of what the Inca achieved there.  Rapa Nui would be another goal, out in the middle of the Pacific, seeing the moai as testaments to the failed culture.  And then there is the beauty of another ruined culture, the great temples of the Angkor kingdom in Cambodia, now swallowed up by the jungle.  And last, but certainly not least, the Serengeti, with its megafauna (and a lot of microfauna as well), through the Ngorongoro crater, the migrations of wildebeast.  (Though, in all honesty, I would prefer to see the Okavango delta in full flood, but let's not quibble).  Such a great list, I couldn't really narrow it lower than those 4, and in truth I'd love to see any of the 10; they are all such amazing adventure and photographic opportunities.  How about you?  Which would be at the top of your list??  Enjoy.

Destinations: Wat Si Chum, Sukhothai, Thailand

Destinations: Wat Si Chum, Sukhothai

Thailand
17.0211, 99.7036

This is the first Destinations File that I share where I have been, and would encourage others to go.  The city of Sukhothai, located in central Thailand, is a historical city of the first kingdom of Thailand.  As with most historical ruins, the dwellings of everyday people no longer remain, having long ago been ravaged by the forces of war, climate, and time.  What is left is a beautiful temple complex containing many beautifully restored Buddhist temples, or wats.  Of these, my favorite is Wat Si Chum, and the photography of this post will highlight that particular wat.

Wat Si Chum (The Temple Of The Bodhi Tree) is believed to be dated back to the 13th century. The Buddha statue sits 11 meters high, surrounded by walls that are 15 meters in height, also known as a Mandapa.  The width of the Buddha means that it dominates the small enclosure, and now it is open to the sky, though once there was a roof overhead. 










The temple was re-discovered by the archaeologist Louis Fournereau in 1891. Wat Si Chum is one of the most historically significant temples in Thailand, and is apparently the most studied of any Thai Temple. King Rama VI wrote about Wat Si Chum in a book written while he was the Crown Prince.





The walls are  about 3 meters thick, and conceal a small entry way with stairs to a corridor that rings about the small wat.  Inside the corridor ceiling are more than fifty engraved slate slabs, dating back to the mid 14th century, illustrating scenes from the Jataka tales, stories of the Buddha’s previous lives.  Unfortuantely this passageway is closed to normal tourists, I would have loved to get a peak inside. 

The hands of the Buddha are also covered in gold foil, put there by worshippers as offering to the Buddha.  Youc an see the squares on the hands, though since these photographs were taken on black and white film (pre-digital for me), you'll have to continue to imagine how they would look in real life.  Better yet, go see for yourself!  Enjoy.

Serene Cave

Serene Cave

THAI10D-32

November 23, 2010

On the outskirts of Khao Yai National Park, in Thailand, there is a certain cave under a monastery.  This cave was a refuge for Buddhist priests for centuries, as they would go down into the depths to be removed from the influences of daily life, to sit and meditate in the dark and reflect upon the teachings of the Buddha.  We were able to visit this cave and wander through the caverns for a short while.  The final room was this, where a 8-10' tall statue of the Buddha sat in lotus position, with an opening to the outside world above and to the side.  I like how this image has a luminous quality to it (the only lighting used was that which came from the open sinkhole) and how the Buddha, with his patina'd background, seems to be singularly lit by the light from above.  Enjoy. 

 

Technical notes:

Camera: NIkon D80

Lens: Sigma 10-20 mm f/3.5-5.6

Focal length: 10 mm

Exposure: 12 sec   f/16 ISO 400

Post-processing: Toning and curves adjustment in PS4

Stupas of Bangkok

Stupas of Bangkok

THAI040205

June 12, 2004

Continuing with the Thailand theme this week, another image from my first sojourn to that nation.  In fact, this was probably on the first day of adventure, after landing in the capital.  Wandering through the main tourist areas, the Palace and Wat Po, This stupa struck me.  These are small shrines (though sometimes not so small, you can see it towering over the roof tiles of the palace) where the remains of holy men are kept.  They are intricately designed and decorated, and are beautiful to admire.  I remember looking at this slide when it first came back from the lab, and immediately fell in love with it.  The wide angle approach, the off-center view with the storm clouds in the background (storm clouds are never far away in Thailand in the summer).  All of it spoke to me,  I hope you enjoy it as well. 

 

Technical notes:

Camera: NIkon N80
Film: Velvia 50

Lens: Nikon 28-105 mm f/3.5-4.5

Focal length: 28 mm

Exposure: 1/60   f/2.8 ISO50

Post-processing: Scanned on a Nikon Coolscan 5000, toning and curves adjustment in PS4

Reclaimed Wat

Reclaimed Wat

THAI040711

June 24, 2004

Jumping around a bit today, as I'm a bit distracted by big upcoming news and plans.  But I didn't want to neglect the post, and offer up a small treat from my first visit to Thailand, many years ago. This Wat, or temple, was found in the jungle near Si Satchanalai, Thailand, which was a major site of clay works and porcelain that was the supreme across the known world as early as the 14th century.  It is beautiful work.  The stupa of this wat had been partially reclaimed by the vegetation. You can see leafy greens growing along the brickwork, and the large bricks that were used back then, with pockmarks of centuries of rain and tropical heat (many of the restoration, more modern bricks were used, and you can see the difference). It gave the whole scene a more adventurous feeling, very Indiana Jones.  Enjoy.

 

Technical notes:

Camera: NIkon N80
Film: Fuji Provia 100F

Lens: Nikon 28-105 mm f/3.5-4.5

Focal length: 28 mm

Exposure: 1/200   f/4.5 

Post-processing: Scanned using a Nikon Coolscan 5000, slight texture,toning and curves adjustment in PS4

Spring Blossoms

Spring Blossoms

NCAR10D-236

April 10, 2010

Today's image comes because I am impatient for spring.  The winter here has been nothing short of disappointing.  It has been cool, but not cold, with no snow to speak of.  It is just a succession of chilly days with brown, decrepit leafless trees.  It can be quite a bummer.  I am looking forward to spring, when some semblance of life takes shape again.  This was taken at the Sarah Duke Gardens on the Duke University campus.  The Asian section of the garden has a lovely arrangement of small shrines by the water's edge, and on the far side the flowers were blooming.  I loved this image, as simple as it was, using the flowers as a veil over the stone shrine to frame the image and add some addiitonal complexity and mystery to the image, as that better conveyed my feelings on how the shrine and garden should be portrayed.  Enjoy.
 

Technical notes:

Camera: NIkon D80

Lens:Nikon 18-135 mm f/3.5-5.6

Focal length: 100 mm

Exposure: 1/200   f/4.5   ISO 400

Post-processing: Toning and curves adjustment in PS4 (the border edge is a bit much, but I couldn't find the original file in time to remove it, so you get a soft dropped shadow courtesy of late nights with PS4)

The Foggy Church

The Foggy Church

GUAT07D-135

May 31, 2007

It was a foggy day this morning, after a torrential storm whipped through the town.  During the morning run, the fog lay thick in the little creek that I run along, and it reminded me winding through the  higher mountains of Guatemala's Cuchumatanes Range.  This highland area in the northern stretches of the country doesn't see as many visitors as the popular East coast, and I was the only foreigner on the bus as we headed up to the town of Zunil.  Due to the weather, the market was shutting down early, but I was able to wander through the town, and came across this church.  They had just opened the doors, and the fog was flowing in past the pews, like something out of a horror movie, with a true eerie feeling.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 18-135 f/3.5-5.6

Focal length:  48 mm

Exposure: 1/13 @ f/8 ISO 400

Post-processing: Tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4

Flowers of Remembrance

Flowers of Remembrance

NOLA09D-118

April 21, 2009

A quite different panoramic composition today, found while wandering through the surreal and altogether serene graveyards of New Orleans.  These amazing vaults, built above ground to protect against floods and hurricanes, have withstood, in some cases, over a century of being in the hot, muggy south.  Lichen creeping up their facades, old stone tablets describing the inhabitants, and always flowers in front.  While a lot of folks in the south enjoy fake flowers on graves, these were actually real roses, left beside this solitary marker.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: 1/400 @ f/4.5, ISO 100

Post-processing: Minor contrast and tone adjustment, sharpening in PS4 & LR1.4

Dochula Pass

Dochula Pass

BHUT10D-182_HDR

November 19, 2010

In 2003, Bhutan was pushed towards war. Indian rebels were hiding in Bhutan, and the Indian government had given Butan an ultimatum of either driving the rebels out or the Indian Army would be forced to cross the border and do it themselves. Bhutan's traditions of pacifism and peace wanted to avoid a conflict, with an army of only 7,000 enlisted men, facing possibly tens of thousands of rebels, and so the proposed action was unpopular. So, the king made the mission voluntary for the soldiers, and personally took charge and led the campaign against the rebels. The mini-war was a success, and the rebels were routed with minimal losses to the Bhutan army. Some wanted to erect a monument for the victory, but the King responded that war is never a thing to be glorified, even if one is victorious. So instead he commissioned this monument honoring the dead soldiers and the dead rebels from the conflict.

The 108 stupas sit along the main road leading from Thimphu to the east, at Dochula Pass (an altitude of about 3100 m). These solemn constructions are colorful and decorative, and the forest adjoining the monument is festooned with prayer flags, swaying in the breezes. It is impossible to miss if you're driving east from Thimphu, and marks a beautiful area with a serious and touching reminder of war.  Image-wise, it is not my favorite ever; the HDR construction created a background that looks a little "off."  I believe this is probably due to the fog that was blowing through the region, and thus they might not have been able to line-up completely in sync when I was merging them.  But the colors pop, and the level of detail in the monuments is certainly enhanced by the HDR, which also gives some color to the prayer flags in the background.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6

Focal length:  22 mm

Exposure: var @ f/11, ISO 400

Post-processing: HDR photomerge of 5 images (+/- 1&2 EV) in Photomatix, slight contrast and tone adjustment, sharpening in PS4 & LR1.4