Cinque Terre Italy is one of my favorite places in Italy and Europe. You are right on the water with only the sound of waves, church bells and roosters. The food is amazing and the views equally match the food. I took my wife on this hike as it’s been on my bucket list and it didn’t disappoint. We got an amazing view of Vernazza and the coast from above. I’ll never forget seeing all the lemon trees and getting to explore with my favorite person on earth. After the hike we got to enjoy a fresh seafood lunch at the next town over. I miss the carefree days we had there enjoying the people, food and our company.
Half Dome Yosemite National Park Prints for Sale
I’m remembering the long days and wondrous experiences in Yosemite Valley. This was just one example of the river that runs through Yosemite Valley with Half Dome in the background. The colors and scale is breathtaking in photos but even more so in real life. My experience in Yosemite Valley can only be described as magical. I’ve never been to a place with so much beauty at every turn. I long for another trip to Yosemite and hope to go back sometime soon!
Yosemite from the Hiking Trails
My first day in Yosemite I was on my own so I decided to hike from Yosemite Valley up to Glacier Point. It was a long hike but I was rewarded half way up with this shot of Half Dome in the distance. I’ve never seen such a place as Yosemite. It is one of the most magical places on earth. Every turn are these famous and wondrous scenes to take in. I highly recommend visiting and witnessing the grandeur and beauty.
Yosemite - Olmsted Point
Before I went to Yosemite I thought all the photos were over processed and fake looking. After a day in Yosemite Valley I realized that not only were the colors and images real to life but Yosemite is one of the most magical places I’ve ever been. One night we took a trip to Olmsted Point to watch the sunset over Half Dome. From Olmsted Point you can see directly down Yosemite Valley and we watched as the sky turned a magical pink and purple. I’ll never forget my time in Yosemite and I hope to go back soon.
Iceland Travel
Iceland shows it’s magic at every twist and turn. Just to the left of this image is an amazing gold colored valley. We drove almost the entire country on our last trip in a sleeper van for 10 days. I don’t camp much but waking up in front of a fjord with an otter welcoming you is not a bad way to spend your vacation. This shot was from a drone on the main ring road of Iceland. The car in the frame gives you a sense of scale of how large this rock formation was. After seeing my photos my kids have aspirations of going to Iceland with me and showing them around. I still dream of the norther lights and all the sights Iceland has to reveal for it’s visitors.
Vestrahorn Photography | Iceland Coast
There are only a few places that I feel like you have to experience in your lifetime. Cinque Terre Italy and Vestrahorn in Iceland are the two on the list. Iceland will always hold a special place in my heart because of the beautiful vistas and the northern lights I saw there. Vestrahorn is on the Eastern coast of Iceland is is worth the drive. The surroundings are amazing. I wish we could have seen the northern lights from here or gotten the drone in the air but it was way too windy that day. One day I will spend the night there and witness the northern lights again.
Vestrahorn Mountain | Iceland
Iceland Northern Lights
Iceland is a magical place. I spent 10 days there with 3 of my good friends riding around in a van and exploring most of the country. I’ll never forget this night when we sat under this magical display of the norther lights while eating a fresh caught bass for dinner. On this night we watching as the Milky Way presented itself across the arctic sky and then minutes later the northern lights came out and gave us a magical show. I just applied for a 3 week residency back in Iceland to capture the northern lights. I can’t wait to get back there one day to witness the magic of the northern lights.
The northern lights on a magical night on just another random lake in Iceland.
The Pandemic of 2019 / 2020
Like most the pandemic of 2019 / 2020 / 2021 has been a rough year for my photography business. Not from a monetary perspective but from a creative perspective. I’m used to getting out at least once a year on a photo trip and September 2019 was my last trip to Iceland. I’m not complaining here I’ve just been in a rut creatively because of my lack of travel and inspiration. Since that time I’ve worked on a few things to keep me busy. I went back through my portfolio and either remixed some of my favorite shots or re-processed shots with my update skills. It’s kept me busy and allowed me to day dream of all the places I still want to travel to. I even installed this fun vision board to help me remember the places I’ve been and where I want to go. During this time I’ve also set up an Etsy shop to sell my work. I used to sell limited edition prints but I’ve come to realize that I’d rather sell digital prints so that my work is more accessible and that more people can enjoy my prints. It’s been a lot of work but also a lot of fun and I’ll soon be migrating my store here to the Etsy platform.
I hope you’ve been able to make it through this challenging time with you and your family and we can all see some silver linings at the end. There is finally light at the end of the tunnel and I look forward to bringing you more creative images in the second half of 2021 and into 2022.
I'm on Etsy!!! 🎉
It’s official! I’m technically a millennial with technically an Etsy shop. After looking for some quotes for my office I realized I can sell my photos digitally on Etsy. After a couple of weeks of research and about 12 hours building the store here we are. This is a great option for people who just want to print and frame their own stuff (or order it online). Heck we might move the site’s store over to Etsy at some point. Either way, check out the store and let me know what you think.
The Chicago Playpen
I love a lot of things about Chicago but one of my favorite things to do is to spend time in the playpen in the summer. The playpen is a spot where all the boats anchor and enjoy the Chicago summers and the lake. I’ve been wanting to shoot this shot that captures the Chicago skyline at dusk so I brought my DJI Mavic Air on my last trip on my friends boat. As the sun started to set I got the bird in the sky and took it out for a spin. We got lucky as the sun lined up just off of the John Hancock tower. For as many issues as we’ve had this year, it was a perfect day in Chicago.
