Story Behind the Image 6: Medicine Bow Milky Way

This story is one for the books, truly, as I’ll also be adding this image to my book when I can finally get it complete. Taken within the Snowy Mountain Range in Eastern Wyoming, Medicine Bow peak stands tall at 12,018ft. The goal was to capture this stunning “wave-structured” peak in the Wyoming wilderness with the Milky Way galaxy shooting out of the top whilst showcasing the many alpine lakes below.

It took me two attempts to get the shot I had in mind. First attempt was quite wild while the second was more relaxed and much comfortable. The total hike was 4mi round trip with about 1,000ft of elevation gain. And of course this shot had to be done at night to get the milky way in prime viewing.

The first attempt (Image 1): After some research to get to the trail I had to get onto and the amount I’d be hiking, I arrived around 11pm and made my way to the trail. After adventuring on the trail for about .25mi my flashlights died. Yes, both my flashlights were useless surrounding in miles of wilderness that I was most likely alone in to only try and avoid the Mountain Lions, Moose, Elk, Cows and Bears! So after contemplating about moving forward for a few minutes, as I still had 1.5mi left of my hike to the get to the view, I decided to go ahead and use my phone flashlight as the only light which garnered me about 10ft of view distance. Using my ears and keeping my head on a swivel for stalking Mountain Lions and plenty of switchbacks. I made it to the spot, and although beautiful, there was one problem. I was late, the Milky Way had already made its way behind Medicine Bow and was tilting out of frame, and if you have noticed in my photography, I love symmetry and balance. So after taking a few photos I decided it was no longer worth it and trekked back down the 2mi and thankfully got back to my car without encountering any wildlife, that I know of. So that takes me to attempt two.

Attempt 2 (2nd and 3rd images): Two nights passed of clouds and I decided it was time to try again and see if I could accomplish the shot I wanted. This time I left a little earlier. At around 9pm I made it to the trailhead and started the 2mi hike. With new batteries in the flashlights and carrying my good ole 40lbs photography bag I made my way up the 1,000ft climb. This time it was a little darker out as the Moon hadn’t risen above the horizon yet. So after taking time to navigate and understand where I was I set up shop. After a little bit of trial and error with focus, I got what I had gone there for. The Milky Way, standing up tall, over Medicine Bow, with the alpine lakes below. This shot was super rewarding not only because of failing the first night but because my plan was exact. I was able to have plenty of time to get different views and different compositions below the stars. Definitely my favorite Milky Way shot from 2022 and I can’t wait to see what I can capture this coming year.

Attempt 1: The Milky Way can be seen behind Medicine Bow Peak with some crazy hues in the sky as well. And the ridgeline of mountains that reach out to the peak as well.

Attempt 2 Image 1: The Milky Way exactly where I had envisioned and even created a stunning reflection in the water of the lakes below. The long exposure brought out just enough detail in the mountains for this compelling shot.

Attempt 2 Image 2: A little rotation in the Milky Way but that’s better than it being straight up for this image. It had some balance to the alright right heavy frame and balanced nicely along the Alpine Lakes.

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Thank you for reading and plenty more blogs to come!

The Elements to the "Dreamscapes"

A couple months ago I shared a blog post about a photoshop project I did of “Dreamscapes”. These dreamscapes helped me see a different way in Photoshop. (I know my way around photoshop, have just never composited images to this extreme). When first starting this project I was just thinking about doing one of them, but that quickly turned into four more projects for a total of five. This group of composites took about 50 hours working in Photoshop. It really shows how powerful these programs are to be able to complete compositions with different photographs. In this series there are photographs featured from all over the world forming to create one. I hope you enjoy and your imagination grows!

Desert Sails - This was the first one I made, it included sand dunes, the milky way, and a sailboat. This creation was to fill it all with Irony. Sailing on sand, and Stars during Sunset. I mainly masked and then did some color correction to fit the mood and scenery.

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Used the Milky Way. Masked out the umbrella and clouds.

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Cropped this shot vertically and used it as the base.

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Masked out the boat. Photoshopped the people off the boat. Masked to use the sun.

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Lake House Moonrise - This image was created to bring the idea of a walk in pool. This image has the moody grass fading into a lake that is from Montana.

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Used the barn and the grass.

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Used the mountains and beautiful sunset light.

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Used this image to add a layer of stars

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Bridge to the Lights - This image was created to incorporate Northern Lights I was able to capture in Iceland. Then to have them placed about a gorgeous bridge that is in New York.

Northern Lights used for the sky. Masking and Layer Effects.

Used the bridge as the main subject.

Used the S-Curve river and the pine trees to add depth.

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Yosemite Dream - I wanted this to be a dream in Yosemite National Park. Having the Hot Air Balloons brings me the dream of the valley. If one day they released Hot Air Balloons I’ll be there. California made me think of hot so I added the ice to add the Irony.

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Used this ice image for the foreground.

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Used this image as the base layer.

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Looking to San Francisco - This image I wanted to incorporate my enjoyment of the city of San Francisco. And also add in the amazing landscape features to compliment it.

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Used the sunrise to lighten up San Francisco.

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Used this image for the gorgeous bridge.

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San Francisco Aerial image as the Base Layer.

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Masked and created a frame.

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Thank you for reading!

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Iceland

January I finally had my breaking point with wanting to go see Iceland. I finally booked my plane ticket to force myself to make it to my dream destination. February came along and it was time to travel to Iceland. Originally I wasn’t going to go to Iceland as a Solo-Trip. I scheduled it so quickly, I didn’t have any extra time to organize any travel buddies. So I landed in Iceland early morning and ventured to my rental car. Was able to get the rental car reasonably fast and off I was towards Reykjavik. The point of this trip was to discover a new destination, see the culture, landscape, and to hopefully have a chance at capturing the Northern Lights. To get around the country I rolled around in a Nissan SUV. While living in the car, I had to listen to the roaring Iceland wind at night. About 4 days into my 7 day trip there were 180km/h winds that prevented me from driving for half the day. I also got to explore a cave that was used in a scene of Game of Thrones. Along with meeting a lot of pleasant travelers on the way exploring the country too. The Ring-Road brought a lot of unexpected landscapes, I absolutely was stopping the car every 5 minutes to capture something completely different than the last 5 minutes. Well, here are my photos from my crazy cross-country Iceland trip.

Reykjavik - Leifur Eiríksson Statue

Crazy waves

Famous church in Vík

Iceland Horse Farmers

Ice and Stars

Vestrahorn

Game of Thrones Cave

Waterfall Rainbow

Stallion Mountain

S-curve River

Kirkjufellfoss

Northern Lights - Kirkjufellfoss

Crazy yellow landscape

Horse photo-bomb

Beautiful sea-stack on black sand beach

Glacial spikes

Mountain Peak

Snowy mood on farm house

Höfn

Stone pathway to Red Church

Northern Lights - Kirkjufellfoss

Thank you for reading!

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Upstate New York

At the end of the summer I decided to sleep and travel through central New York to North Western New York. Some of the most beautiful locations on the east coast are contained in this area. The locations I went to are Letchworth State Park, Chimney Bluffs State Park, and had a little fun of exploring in Rochester. While on this trip I wanted to sleep in my car so I found places to sleep each of the nights I was traveling. Many hours of driving and hard-work here are some of the images!

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San Francisco

After a lot of recovering and relaxation. I traveled back to San Francisco to enjoy the views and vacation there. Some of the cool locations were downtown San Francisco, V. Sattui Winery, along the Coast, and I met a sea lion. Here are some of the images!

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Cross Country

My Cross Country road trip was full of experience and amazing adventures. There are so many destinations I was able to set foot on and see for the first time and hopefully not the last. My favorite location is always Yosemite National Park or San Francisco, but I've been to both before. After this trip I think Joshua Tree was one of my favorite National Parks; the peacefulness just stuck out to me and the temperature was a perfect 100 (in May). Things I saw went from a huge slug, to a black bear. Or these amazing tree landscapes and then to see the red rock mountains of the South West. The uniqueness of the United States is impeccable with the different ecosystems and stories each place told. Here are some of my favorite images from this journey!

Chicago: Some high rises during golden hour.

Badlands National Park: Right after the sunrise, this light was giving a nice textural feel along the ridges.

Badlands National Park: Beautiful morning light casting on a tree.

Yellowstone National Park: Bison family crosses creek.

Yellowstone National Park: Looking for lunch in the snow.

Jackson, Wyoming: A smaller portion of the snake river weaving past Jackson.

Glacier National Park: Beautiful wispy clouds catching light above the mountainous landscape.

Banff National Park: A waterfall making way through a forest.

Jasper National Park: Light tipping the peaks of an amazing ridge.

North Cascades National Park: A beautiful view of an emerald lake, Mt. Diablo.

Hoh National Rainforest: This could’ve been a scene out of a Jurassic Park movie.

Seattle, Washington: Space needle behind the conglomeration of buildings.

Portland, Oregon: The city skyline.

Yosemite National Park: El Capitan being masked by the moody clouds.

Yosemite National Park: A black bear walking along the forest floor after eating a nice grass lunch.

San Francisco: The Golden Gate Bridge framing the large city.

Big Sur: A drone shot of a beautiful curved bridge during sunset.

Joshua Tree National Park: Moonrise behind a Joshua Tree illuminating a cactus in the foreground. Stars spinning above.

Death Valley National Park: Sunset over Zabriskie Point.

Grand Canyon National Park: The Milky Way across the cloudy sky.

Grand Canyon National Park: Horseshoe Bend, such a classic spot. But lived up to it’s hype.

Bryce, Utah: I’ve always wanted to see a rodeo. So this was my one time!

Bryce Canyon National Park: The tons of Hoodoos layered with the morning glow.

Zion National Park: Starry night over a crazy tree.

Monument Valley: Car drives past the amazing Monuments.

Chicago: The "L" snaking through the architecture in downtown.

Badlands National Park: Sunrise right above all the beautiful scenes in Badlands National Park.

Mount Rushmore: Holding my passport book in front of a great historical monument.

Yellowstone National Park: A geyser steams as a beautiful blue hot spring gives great color.

Grand Teton National Park: One of the fancy barns in front of the mountain range. A foggy sunrise was what I received.

Grand Teton National Park: Experiencing the Teton’s from a classic spot.

Glacier National Park: A beautiful island complimented with the gorgeous mountains.

Glacier National Park: Beautiful golden hour light cast on a calm rocky landscape.

Banff National Park: An amazing sight at this river byway.

Banff National Park: Mountains get swallowed in clouds.

Jasper National Park: A raging waterfall being fed by a beautifully shaped river.

Washington, USA: Every pine tree possible was in this amazing state.

Seattle, Washington: The space needle with the blue city behind it.

Oregon, USA: A beautiful group of rock formations along a sketchy cliff.

Multnomah Falls: Raging down to the lower levels where people can view.

Yosemite National Park: Half Dome controlling clouds as a beautiful red sunrise leaks in.

San Francisco: The Transamerica Tower leading the way for downtown.

San Francisco: Beautiful skyline behind the famous Painted Ladies.

Big Sur: A beautiful place to watch and listen to the ocean.

Mojave National Preserve: A beautiful sand dune being touch by the morning light.

Mojave National Preserve: Light shoots through a hole in this amazing cave.

Arizona, USA: A random horse along the side of the road wanted to say hello.

Bryce Canyon National Park: Sunrise over the layers of beauty.

Bryce Canyon National Park: Utah has the most amazing stars.

Zion National Park: A classic spot in the center of this gorgeous multi-tool of a park.

So here are all of my favorites from this awesome cross country road trip!

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Niagara Falls

I've only ever been to the USA side of the Falls until this past Summer when I was able to experience them from the Canadian side. Seeing how large scale and amazing this water fall is sure a motivator to push closer to where I want my photography to be. I love traveling so much it's all I can think about when I have time. I hope to be able to start traveling again soon to get some new landscape content for everyone. Been around Pittsburgh a lot and filling up my Pittsburgh Portfolio very quickly. But for now, enjoy these photos of Niagara Falls!

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