This is continued from Part 1, which you should probably look at first…
More Dodge City. Boot Hill is a reminder of the most lawless town in the West.
Another HDR, but I tried hard to make it look realistic. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
COLORADO – The Garden of the Gods
This was my first go at HDR… I’m not sure how I feel about it.
Eagle Mountain
Somewhere along the road, probably in New Mexico.
ARIZONA again – the Desert Museum
The raptors were amazing…
I wouldn’t want to be a rodent of any kind around this guy.
Wile E. Coyote
Stars
This river otter was sucking on his tail while he was sleeping…
By the way, the Desert Museum features all plants and animals that live in the American deserts… it’s amazing how full of life the desert is!
The Mission San Xavier del Bac in Tucson
My grandfather used to call the saguaro cacti “the old generals.” They stand on guard all around Tucson.
For another way of looking at my favorite travel photos, check out the Places Gallery on my site. (When you get there, hit F to go fullscreen!)
Want more Southwest by Midwest? View the whole gallery.
It’s been a crazy last few months. We’re settling in here in Malawi, and greatly enjoying our new home. Things have slowed down a little since we left the US, and we’re finally catching up on sleep. But there are many other things to catch up on… including posting photos.
In January and February, Rachel and I traveled across a good portion of the USA, sharing about our ministry in Malawi and saying goodbye to friends. While the goal of the trip wasn’t photography, we couldn’t pass up some of the most beautiful parts of America without making a few quick stops!
It may still be a little while until I have time to take some Malawi photos and put them online. In the meantime, enjoy a glimpse of wintertime in the heart of America!
ARIZONA – the Grand Canyon…
This size doesn’t do the wonder of this place justice. Check out a bigger version here.
I had John Piper’s quote in my head: “Why do you go to the Grand Canyon? Why do you go to the Alps? Do you really go to the glories of creation to see how great you are? …You go there to see, behold, and enjoy greatness; and the Grand Canyon is nothing compared to God.”
I played with exposure blending on this one to capture the detail in the shadows. What do you think? Does it look unnatural? Sound off in the comments.
ARIZONA – The Petrified Forest
Brr…
Petrified pebbles?
The Flattops. To me, they looked like elephants marching under a giant bedsheet.
TEXAS
Route 66 fans will recognize Cadillac Ranch.
A fitting tribute to GM’s recent bankruptcy…
Everything’s flatter in Texas.
KANSAS -Â Just in time for a Midwest sunset.
Rachel’s hometown library.
Gettin’ outta Dodge.
Wyatt Earp’s statue. “You skin that smoke wagon and we’ll just see what happens.”
To be continued in part two…
Hello photo friends!
It is with mixed emotions that I officially announce that I’m not booking any new work. I’ve loved these last few years as a photographer, for all that I’ve learned, and most of all, the people that I’ve met along the way. I think I will always smile when I look back on this stage of my life.
(My photo radar going off at Inna and Jared’s wedding… photo by Josh Premako)
However, the day has come to move on to bigger and better things. If you haven’t heard, Rachel and I are moving to Malawi, Southern Africa in about 19 days. Yes, moving. Yes, to Africa. We’re going to be serving at a church in that very needy country. You can read more about it here.
(That’s NOT me and Rachel… it’s the chief and his wife in Gulule, a village in Malawi I visited in 2007)
(It’s always a race to see if I can take the picture before there are too many kids to fit in my frame. The kids won on this one…)
(Fishermen’s children jumping off the boats. That’s a fishing rod in the background, not a spear… though they have those too.)
The only difficult part is saying goodbye to all the friends I’ve made along the way. I recognize that my business has grown because my past clients have trusted me and referred me to someone else. Thank you, each of you, for your support of me and my photography.
But I know I’m leaving you in good hands. If you need photos in the LA/OC area, I’ve updated my site with a list of photographers I recommend.
What direction will my photography take once I’m in Malawi? I’m as curious as you are. The best way to find out is to watch this blog. You can subscribe to the RSS feed, or sign up to get my latest posts by email. It might be a while before I figure out how to post photos via the African internet, but when I do, I’ll put them here.
Until then, as they say in Malawi:
Zikomo kwambiri!
(Photo by Josh Cook)