A very tranquil scene taken at sunrise from Steptoe Butte. It seems like such a nice place to live.
One of the more prominent subjects from Steptoe Butte was the Whitman County Growers building. Being bright white against the green and tan fields it was hard to miss. Here's one of many shots I took of this Palouse icon.
To contrast the different color palate in the Palouse depending on the time of year, the above photo of this barn was taken about 2 weeks ago and the photo below was taken in August of 2011. Quite a difference a couple of months make.
Also, quite a difference in condition of the barn a few years make.
Yep, another barn. There are plenty of them in the Palouse. This one obviously has seen better days.
Found this interesting composition near the Dahmen Barn.
I enjoyed taking some detail shots of this barn. It had some nice geometrical shapes to contend with and I learned another lesson in composition with this shot. If you notice the peak of the roof lines up with the vertical window grid, allowing a nice balanced view. If it didn't line up, something would seem off and the photo would seem more ordinary.
John Barclay and Dan Sniffin called this old house, "Auntie Em's" from the Wizard of Oz movie, due to its similar appearance to the house that Dorothy lived in with her aunt and uncle. We were hoping for better skies to photograph, but at least we had some clouds.
On one afternoon, we were out shooting when the cloud cover started darkening and we started hearing thunder and seeing a lot of lightning in the distance. The longer we were there the closer it got to us. Finally, the decision was made to pack up and head to calmer grounds. But during God's show, it made for some fun photography. That's Steptoe Butte rising up on the horizon.
I just got back home after spending a week in the Palouse region of Washington State on a photo tour with a couple of the best photography instructors in the business, John Barclay and Dan Sniffin. Be sure to check out their websites. We also had a wonderful and talented group of photography participants in the tour, which made it all the more enjoyable and inspiring. It was a fun week.
The photo above was taken off of Steptoe Butte of a lone tree off in the distance. It was taken in the early morning in beautiful lighting. It's a good example of the terrain in the Palouse. There are miles and miles of low rolling hills planted with a variety of crops including wheat, lentils, garbanzo beans and canola.
Burano is another island city near Venice. The main industry here, other than tourism, is fishing and making lace. Most of the housing there seem to be painted in bright colors. One of the locals there said it makes for a "happy city". It also makes for some interesting photography.
The canals and photo opportunities are endless in Venice. This one grabbed my attention because of the red flowers. You know they say, if it's red, you must shoot it.
