Under the Pier

The fishing pier in Belmar Beach is a popular photography location in New Jersey. Indeed, it is a beautiful place to spent your day in the summer. Last Saturday, I took a trip to Belmar Beach to shot the sunrise at the fishing pier. I start driving from my house at 3am and it took me an hour to arrive. Although I am not quite satisfy with my sunrise shot, I do have some shots of the beach and the fishing pier that make my day. 

This is one of my favorite of the day. I was standing under the pier. With the incoming tide and fast moving cloud, I decided to use the 10-stop ND filter to capture their movement. This ends up in a 100 seconds exposure which smooth out the tide and create radiant pattern of the cloud. In addition, the low angle sun casts some nice shadows on the beach and the soft morning sunlight cast some warm light on the rim of pillars.

Exhibition in SohoPhoto Gallery

 

My image "The Polygon Land" (Badwater Basin, Death Valley National Park) was selected for inclusion in 2014 SohoPhoto Gallery National Competition and Exhibition. The exhibition will be held at SohoPhoto Gallery, 15 White Street, New York, NY 10013, from July 2 through July 26, 2014. The opening reception will be on July 1, 2014, from 6 to 8 PM. 

If you have a chance to visit Manhattan, welcome to see my work in SohoPhoto Gallery:)

Exhibition in Gallery 14

Here's come another photographic exhibition! Three of my images were selected for the 5th Annual National Juried Photographic Exhibit at Gallery 14 (New Jersey, USA) from June 27 to July 27, 2014. This time I am thrill to show you my recent seascape taken at Sandy Hook and Cape May, the northernmost and southernmost part of New Jersey, respectively. The above picture shows the framed images ready to deliver to Gallery 14.

I will be present for the opening reception on June 27, 2014, 6-8 pm and I would love to meet you there to show you my works. Hope to see you soon in Gallery 14!

Highlights from NVAL 2014

I would like to share a few pictures (with permission from show chairman, Charlotte Bryson) from "The Full Spectrum", International Juried Photography Show at North Valley Art League (April 29 - May 31, 2014, California, USA). One of my work "Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park" was chosen as a Gold Selection for exhibition. You may click on the link above to see the works of other talented artists around the world. 

Despite I wasn't able to attend the show, it is always a great pleasure to see my work display in public. A picture is worth a thousand words. Perhaps photographic exhibition is one of the best way to tell the audience about the artists themselves and how they feel the surrounding world. That's why I enjoy participating in photographic exhibition.

Exhibition in BelmarArts

 

My work "Trajectory" was selected for the "Art on the Edge 2014" Annual Juried Exhibition and will be exhibit in Belmar Arts Council (New Jersey, USA) from June 11 to June 27, 2014. More information about the gallery and activities can be found on the website of BelmarArts.

This is one of my favorite shot, which was taken on the trip to Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Utah. Check out the story behind in the previous post. Worth mention, this is the first exhibition image printed with my new Epson Stylus Pro 3880 on Epson Ultra Premium Presentation Paper Matte. The 14"x9.3" image on 18"x14" frame looks pretty elegant!

Different Faces of Dante's View

Dante's View at Death Valley National Park is a place with full of surprise. To the west, you can see the best panoramic view of Badwater Basin and the Panamint Range, as shown in the previous post. This is not all you can see! Move your feet! To the east is the beautiful mountain range - the view is magnificent at dawn, where back-lighting make the silhouette stand out. To the south is another lovely view - the soft light at dawn cast beautiful contrast on the hillside as well as golden rims on the grasses.

BTW, there is a cool article on USA Today - 20 reasons to visit dazzling Death Valley. Check this out, Death Valley maybe your next trip! I am sure you won't regret, this place is truly awesome!

Gateway to Atlantic Ocean

Sandy Hook, a part of the Gateway National Recreation Area, is a large barrier spit, and it is the extension of a barrier peninsula along the coast of New Jersey. There are plenty of lovely beaches along the coast. We spotted a nice place in the east coast with plenty of rocks that looks quite photogenic.

Despite a rewarding photographic trip, while searching for composition, I was splashed by a sudden incoming tides - my gear and I were bathed by the salty water. I tried to clean up the gear on the spot, although with a wet body throughout the rest of the day. What's a good and bad day:P

Dusk at Cape May Beach

We had a short but rewarding trip to Cape May last weekend - in both photography and sightseeing. Cape May is a lovely little town located at the southern tip of New Jersey, with beautiful Gingerbread-type houses, magnificent lighthouses and charming beaches. 

This is my first trial on the long exposure seascape photography using the B+W 10-stop ND filter, which is also a practice toward my upcoming trip to Acadia National Park. This picture was exposed for about 200 seconds under the overcast sky before sunset. I really love the misty appearance of moving tides and clouds that render the pictures surreal and artistic look. 

Although it doesn't appear in any of my shots, we spotted a group of dolphins passing through. What's a lucky day!

Heavenly Light

Located just 260 miles from my home, Shenandoah National Park is a fantastic place to visit. In particular, the 105 miles long and narrow Skyline Drive that runs along the Blue Ridge mountains, offer you some of the most spectacular mountain landscape in the world. Many visitors travel exclusively by driving, as the highway itself is the park, and it is often associated with deer and black bear sighting along the way! We spotted 3 black bears and countless of dears in this trip.

We found this fantastic viewpoint after some driving and decided to stay for the sunset photography. While enjoying the majestic landscape and preparing the gear, a cloud was passing over the sun and the light rays piercing through it, creating the mix of warm and cool tints on the invading mist. All these combined created a magical moment - one of the most charming moment imprinted in my mind and my camera "mind".

Waves of Imagination

We visited Canyon X after an awkwardly trip to Upper Antelope Canyon. I have to emphasize that Upper Antelope Canyon is a charming location but with hundreds of people jammed into this confined space is not a pleasant photographic experience. We had a wonderful trip to Canyon X. With only 5 of us in the tour lead by Overland Canyon Tours, and plenty of time, creativity is limited only by our imagination. 

What makes the slot canyons so incredibly beautiful to photograph is the breathtaking interplay between the reflected light and colored sandstone. With the infinite selection of form, texture, color, contrast and light, composing all these elements harmoniously in a single image is a challenging yet rewarding task. Perhaps this explains why slot canyons are so alluring for photographers.