Welcome to Friday Foto Flogging, a place to share your photos and photography news. We were inspired by the folks at European Tribune who post a regular Friday Photoblog series to try the same on this side of the virtual Atlantic. We also thought foto folks would enjoy seeing some other websites so each week we’ll introduce a different photo website.
This week’s theme: Roads, Rails, and Trails. Show us some paths you’ve taken … pictures of.
Website of the Week: From National Geographic Adventure Magazine, Steve Casimiro’s Adventure Photography Tips.
AndiF's Roads, Rails, and Trails
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4th of July Creek Trail, Idaho
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Houserock Road, Utah
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Van Buren and Jackson Streets Drawbridges, Chicago
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olivia's Roads
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Path near the Ottawa River
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The roads in Carcassonne
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Train tracks at Walden Pond
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- Next Week’s Theme: Happy Holidays. Share your celebration of the season, whether it’s a religious holiday, secular festivities, or just pleasure in the passing of time.
Info on Posting Photos
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Previous Friday Foto Flogs
Andi: nice angles.
Olivia: nice perspective.
Agree w/ you on Andi’s angles — that path is fantastic, esp w/ the flowers.
Plank section of the James Irvine Trail in Prairie Creek / Redwoods State Park, CA
Click for larger
Roadside sunflowers near Arco, ID
Click for larger
Catalina Highway to Mt. Lemon, Tucson, AZ
Click for larger
Corrected link to the larger Mt. Lemon photo.
I love the Mt. Lemon one … wow, that’s a gorgeous view. And the angling of the plank walk makes me want to be there. 🙂
many thanks to all the contributors of this photo session here on this blog.
it is something I look forward too all week,
such a nice break from all the other crap we live in..; )
peace, and keep them shutters click’n
It’s great to see you … hope you’re doing well.
Thanks for the feedback. If you have any theme requests, feel free to leave ’em too … 🙂
Thanks IP. It’s nice to know that people enjoy the
FFF.
An angel in the Zurich train station:
Waiting for the train to Lugano:
The view from the train window:
Cool pics. They do know how to do train stations in Europe.
The Lugano shot is especially nice — great perspective.
Love all the colour in the train station. And I’m in agreement w/ Andi – the second photo is wonderful – love the almost b&w of it, w/ the red colour.
I like the way all the lines in the train station lead to the vague unknown off in the distance.
The blue angel looks like something Matisse might have imagined.
Here’s a road in southern Utah, summer 2008.
Is this Utah 12 (the road Outside Magazine declared “God’s gift to car potatoes”)?
I’m not actually sure. I’ll have to check the map.
Ah Utah roads — I love the way they seem to go on and on … until they run into a wall.
Hope everyone had a nice holiday.
Lush doesn’t even come close.
These make a great antidote to the brown-and-gray that currently surrounds me.
two lane highways:
somewhere in kansas
and south dakota…approach to mt. rushmore
The Mt. Rushmore shot is a great use of leading lines. I didn’t notice the monument at first and let the sweep of the road and guard rail take me up to it. I think it is much more effective because of this in b/w than it would be in color.
You are the genius of guard rails — you really know how to use them to accentuate the lines of the picture.
it’s all about the “edges”…which, ims, you’re rather fond of.
for me it’s part of setting up the composition of the shot; perspective, framing, etc., and thinking about how all those pieces will influence the perceptions/reactions of the viewer, esp in the 2 dimensional realm of photographs. those shots would be boring as hell without the “leading lines” as jim calls them.
but l’ll not belabor the subject, instead let’s just ask the obvious leading line:
“come here often?”
a classic, eh.
:{)
The seasons of southern Indiana roads
(Late) Spring – Soggy
Summer – Steamy
Fall – Dressy
Winter – Chilly
Those are a nice vignette of BC roads. I particularly like the winter scene — the way the bright blue interrupt the b&w mood.
My two favorites are the summer and the winter ones. The light in the summer shot seems to swirl around the old road. The winter one reminds me of the Frank Hohenberger shots of Nashville.
Wow! Thanks very much! Useless trivia – I mowed Hohenberger’s lawn when I was about 12 yo. He lived and had a studio at the Bartley House then, corner of Van Buren & Franklin Sts.
The flooded road looks like our summer after a tropical storm.
Good morning from the day after the day after xmas.
A really large panorama shot of the trail between Lake Lilli and Dove Lake at Cradle Mountain National Park. Cradle Mountain is the one in the background with the saddle and its peak in the clouds.
View from the Trans-alpine train on the South Island of New Zealand. You can just see the edge of the train car I was standing behind on the left-hand side.
The pano is spectacular but I’m really taken this one — I love view out the train. I’ve always wanted to take the train through the Canadian Rockies.
Not as spectacular as the Canadian Rockies, but a bit easier to get to is the Cumbres and Toltec scenic RR between NM and CO. It’s an old narrow gage rail road with a coal fired engine – which is only run as a tourist train now. I enjoyed it.
The walk from Cockle Creek to South Cape Bay. It’s very marshy, so there’s a slightly raised (and very narrow) boardwalk for much of the way.
Which leads you here, South Cape Bay. This is southern most point in Tasmania. The only land south of here is Antartica.
The Fern Tree shaded trail to Charlotte Falls (taken earlier this week).
Oops. Imogen informs me this Fern lined trail is actually to
Columbia falls.
The road through “The Pinnicles” in West Australia.
That is wonderfully freaky. I think I’m in love.
It is wonderfully freaky, and goes on for miles – until you finally get to the Indian Ocean.
I’m especially fond of the use of rocks as road edge markers.
This shot is westward, with the afternoon sun creating a glare over the Indian Ocean.
The trail along the north coast of Maria Island.
Great set of photos! Thanks!
That’s a beautiful shot.
Beginning of the Corniche in Mutrah
Sculptures along the Corniche
Looking back toward Mutrah
View of Corniche from Riyam Park looking back toward Mutrah
End of the Corniche, heading from Mutrah toward Old Musqat, views from across the road in Riyam Park
A few hundred metres after the end of the Corniche, heading toward Old Musqat, and – a surprise
The sculptures are wonderful — so full of joy that I think it would be almost impossible to be among them and not feel happy.
And I was really drawn to the sidewalk design picture — partially because of the dhow in the background; I have a thing for wooden boats.
I have a few more photos of dhows in Mutrah harbor in which the dhows are the main characters instead of in the background. I returned to Mutrah several times and walked from the fish market to the Sultan’s palace in Old Mutrah. That is where I first chanced upon Riyam park and that pretty little blue mosque.
I think I can predict Olivia and I will be coming up with a theme sometime in the not-too-distant future that will give you an opportunity to post those. 🙂
The car as viewed from my seat
The train passes through the coastal mountains, and then through this vast agricultural valley
I wish the trains around here were half so nice. Looks like a wonderful trip.
The trains were recently upgraded from 30 year old soviet models. They pass out “light refreshments” at the beginning of the trip, as well as earphones in case you want to watch the movie. Of course, there are photos of Bashar Al Asad all over the place. First class fare from Latakia to Aleppo was 150 SL, or about $3.
Unfortunately, I took a late train, and so missed a lot of the scenery as it got dark. It was also hard to get good snapshots through the window due to the reflection, as you can see in most of the photos, but some of them came out nice enough.
The social aspect of train or bus travel in Syria is also very nice. People bring food along, and will share with you, and especially in my case as a non-Syrian female lone traveler, people show a lot of interest and kindness and are very helpful, whether you need it or not. Another lovely thing about Syrian people is how honest they are. Theft is very rare, and I simply left my suitcase by the train door when I boarded, and when I got off the train, there it was exactly where I had placed it.
Very lovely images Hurria,
A friend of mine from Syria, told me many years ago about theft there. He told me if you dropped your wallet, that if you retraced your steps upon realizing you`d dropped it, it would most probably be right where it fell. People would not take it, since it was not theirs. It seemed strange to hear that, but he explained that it was theft if you took something that did not belong to you, & the punishment for theft, was quite severe.
Look, look over there, a man with one hand.
“Look, look over there, a man with one hand.“
That would be Saudi Arabia. They don’t cut off body parts in Syria.
I am sure one of the reasons that theft is so rare in Syria is the severity of the punishment, but I am equally sure that is not the whole story by any means. If it were, then theft would be as rare in other countries that have penalties as strong, but it is not. People all over the Middle East and the Muslim world tend to be very friendly and hospitable, especially toward visitors, but there is a different “flavour” to it in Syria that I am not sure I can explain. I find the Syrian people to be among the most simpatico among an already exceptionally simpatico group of people. If a Syrian saw you drop your wallet it is quite likely that they would pick it up and chase you down the street to give it back to you.
Hurria,
I am most sure you are correct, & was not attributing the lack of theft, other than to the heart & soul of the people.
What you mentioned about it, only brought to mind what my friend had told me.
I enjoy all your images & accompanying text, a most valuable learning experience.
Sorry if I did not make myself more clear.
Thank you Hurria, for another fascinating and lovely group of photos!
This being a very busy time for me with a huge crowd at my place, I still would like to take the time to post an image of how I often traveled on the paths to my numerous destinations. Titled, “KNUCKLE TOW”, I captured this image with it`s reflection in a rainy back alley out in Sunland, while looking for a part for my truck, which let me down two days before Christmas.
I have it all put back together, after taking apart the steering column & replacing the broken parts.
I`ll be back later, when everyone is not stirring, not even a mouse.
Coconut sends wishes for a White Christmas.
The paths I`ve taken in my life were mostly without specific destinations & many times specifically without destination.
The following images depict frequent stops leading to a change of course to the next unknown.
What a long strange trip it is.
Enjoy
METALOVE
SUNSHARE
FLIGHT SCHOOL
As always, an interesting collection with lots to ponder and enjoy. The flower-drenched driveway is especially appealing.
“…mostly without specific destinations & many times specifically without destination“
This describes so well my approach to travel. It drives most other people crazy, but my favourite thing to do is just wander around and see what happens. And in this way I discover so many minor, and a few major delights, such as that pretty little blue mosque, or a pleasant human encounter, or a rare Hawaiian thrush, or… I decide ahead of time on a starting-out place and a direction, and just take it from there.
Did I mention that I nearly always travel alone?
For you and KNUCKLEHEAD too.
For some reason that poem always makes me feel sad for what I miss forever by choosing something else.
The exact same sadness sometimes entices me to visit the other path not taken. The fantasies of invitations declined, & the what if`s of unconsummated love.
Those paths were never meant for me.
I had another destiny.
Indianadem,
Thank you for a poem I`ve always admired, for it`s simplicity, yet with a sadness that is much more complex.
Most of us do, really.
I must have met you many times.
It was always a pleasure, & those are the times memories are made of.
It`s also astounding that some little diversions can account for such major divergences.
If your way drives people crazy, then you are on your proper path.
I`ve written essays on those ships that pass each other by, & why we are there to witness them.
I will see if I can locate one that reminds me of you, or how I think of you.
It is specific, & not that I`m trying to find one. I know which one it is.
This is what I was talking about down-thread, when I mentioned an essay that reminded me of how I see you.
Only a few people can drive others crazy. They are the lone travelers, or ambassadors.
This is in response to someone, also a traveler, who was having doubts about the paths taken.
“Before I read any of the other comments, I thought I might say what I think, without any influence from others opinions.
The way I see it, you,,, no, one,,,, who, I think you are, can have a very important & special place in this world. One who can see the things that you seem to yearn for, without being influenced by having achieved it. We all still are, or have been children. We will all proceed through the stages you talk about, but you did not mention the sages, the wise ones, those who can help others in need of counseling or advice. These wise ones, some of which have been, or are still going through the mentioned stages, are there to help also , a result of their accumulated experiences. But what of those who, unburdened by the fetters of responsibilities, attached to these stages you mention, go about the earth, gathering knowledge & insight by simple immersion, as ambassadors. These people have a very special responsibility, & to me are very fortunate. They are the ones who must teach others from the book of their travels, the book of shared experiences with fellow ambassadors, who are likewise tasked to spread knowledge. When at a gathering, these are the ones who regale adults but more so children, with the fantastic tales that only they can know. You have a special mission because of who you are & what you do. Embracing the life you live will usually end up with you being embraced by the love of your life. Worrying about it, stiffens the embrace.
The only flake you are is a snowflake. Unique.”
12:35 AM