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F. P. Dorchak

Speculative Fiction (New Weird) Author

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Nikon

Garden of the Gods Hike

May 13, 2017 by fpdorchak

Garden of the Gods Park, Colorado Springs, CO (© F. P. Dorchak 2017)
Garden of the Gods Park, Colorado Springs, CO (© F. P. Dorchak 2017)

I took a beautiful hike through Garden of the Gods (GoG) park yesterday evening, after my gym workout. I was going to stay and do my cardio at the gym, by my wife, whom I met at the gym, suggested I take a break from all my gnarly shit and just enjoy the evening–and I’m glad I did (sometimes I need her to tell me to take a goddamned break…). I took my Nikon with me and got some really cool shots! I spent about an hour-and-a-half hiking through it, and it was great—fewer people. Better shots without people in them—though one woman, admittedly, would have made an incredible shot, but the moment passed as soon as it’d presented itself. She had been wearing an incredibly bright, radiant blue one-piece tube-skirt (or whatever they’re called) and was walking toward me in the middle of a narrow section of red rocks, her blonde head down. It was so incongruous! Contrasting! It would have made a fantastic shot! But, I couldn’t get the camera up quick enough, and the moment had passed. You couldn’t see her face, which made it even better.

Anyway, I took my favorite hike, which is around the west side of the park, on the single track. It traverses all kinds of rocky terrain and goes up and down. I love it. Love the rocks, love the squirreliness of the trail. The view. Saw a Scrub Jay (I think they’re called), a rabbit, and a whole herd of some 11 or 12 deer. I’ll try to post some of the images where I can, but I’m using new software (Adobe Lightroom) and there’s a bit of a learning curve. I may just try to upload a few onto Facebook. That’s probably the easiest thing to do. We’ll see. I’m really behind on my short story work, so….

 

Filed Under: Animals, Fun, Health, Leisure, Nature, Photography, To Be Human Tagged With: Colorado, D3400, Garden of the Gods, Hiking, Nature, Nikon, Photography

The WYO Road Trip

March 13, 2017 by fpdorchak

Road Trippin' Through The WYO. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Road Trippin’ Through The WYO. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

This past week, my wife and I took a road trip up to God’s Country. Well, at least that’s what Wyoming and my wife think (and I may have slightly overstated my wife’s position, however…). As much as I love trees, Wyoming really doesn’t get the credit it deserves. Wide open spaces. Wind. Pronghorn. Wind. Cool rocks. Wind. Eagles. Wind. Snow fences. Wind. Wind River Canyon. Wind. Wind River Mountains. Wind….

As we drove up, along I-25 we counted 11 overturned campers and 18-wheelers—yes, 18-wheelers. A gnarly windstorm the previous day had actually closed down sections of roadways, and we were getting tossed about pretty good in spots (sections of Wyoming roads were still closed to light, high-profile vehicles). But on the way up and back, I took pictures. I love taking pictures! Some of those images are in this blog.

NOTE: Not all of these images are great quality (i.e., sharp), because we were moving, but I did stop and get out for a few of them. I’m still learning the ins and outs of the camera. Most of the images in this post have also been compressed, so click on them for better views.

Wyoming Golden Eagle. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Golden Eagle. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)

The first time I whipped out the camera was well into Wyoming, somewhere between Casper and Shoshoni. We’d come upon a large bird feeding on a carcass along the road. You’ll also find lots of carcasses along near every road you travel up there. And wind. anyway, we slowed down, turned around, and I got out my camera and tried to get a shot or two before the winged beast took off. Didn’t get very many good shots because the bird was spooked by our presence and had flown way out and I had to crank my 300mm telephoto and didn’t use a tripod. I initially thought it was a hawk…then had the funny thought that its shape also strangely reminded me of a pheasant—though I knew it wasn’t, it’s just what its profile body reminded me of at one point—but as we later looked at the photos on my laptop, my Wyoming cousin-in-law, Phil, blurted out that it was an eagle. It must have been a young one, because of its size. We’ve seen plenty of eagles before, so it was surprising it didn’t register on us that was what it was at the time! Anywho, back at our eagle/carcass visitation, we waited for a few minutes for the eagle to return but it didn’t. It just sat on its fence post and watched us. We continued on.

As we drove toward Riverton, we drove past some really cool rock formations. I love WYO (this is how the WYO’s abbrev their state name on signs) rock. They’re not Adirondack rock (or maybe they are, I just haven’t researched them—they’re in Wyoming v. my beloved upstate NY), but I still like em. They’re wicked looking.

Wyoming Rocks. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Rock. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
If Wyoming Were Antarctica. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
If Wyoming Were Antarctica. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)

There’re also lots and lots and lots of wide open spaces (and wind), and The WYO had just come out of a gnarly spell of snow, like a couple foot of it (have to sound “local”), so there were lots of “white caps.” That’s what all the remnants of snow reminded me of, all around the terrain. And as I watched the desolate landscape roll past, I noticed in the growing twilight how a light blue cast was falling upon the “white-capped” terrain. It looked très cool. Reminded me of the Antarctic (had I been there). So, I snapped off some shots as we sped by at some 80 mph—that’s The WYO’s speed limit (not stopping, just taking some “hip shots” out the windows, which is what a lot of what these images are). When I noticed this blue cast, I began messing with the camera settings until I got the blue I was shooting for (pardon the pun). Doesn’t the blue image remind you of the Antarctic (had you been there)? Took some more rock shots and sunset images…loving how the fading, golden light hit the rock faces. As we entered Riverton, Wyoming I took a couple of sky shots of aircraft.

The Approaching WYO Sunset. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
The Approaching WYO Sunset. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Riverton Skies. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Riverton Skies. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Riverton Skies. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Riverton Skies. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wyoming Americana. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Wyoming Americana. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

After we left Riverton Saturday morning, we drove out by way of Highway 135, towards Sweetwater Station. As you leave Riverton this way, you crest a high mesa with a breathtaking view of the Wind River Mountain Range that is part of the Rocky Mountains. It was somewhere south and past the Gas Hills Road (Route 136) where I spotted a weathered and abandoned (?) trailer. So, I hopped out and took a couple of shots. When I got back in the vehicle, my wife spotted…

The carcass.

Wow, all bones, no meat, a little connective tissue. I’m no expert, but it was probably a pronghorn, since they are so prevalent here. They are everywhere. Along with the wind. By comparison, we only saw two deer, up and back. So, of course, I had to take some shots of that. Don’t mess with Texas? Don’t mess with Wyoming.

Don't Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Don’t Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Don't Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Don’t Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Don't Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Don’t Mess With Wyoming. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

After we peaked the mesa (the name of which I either do not know or have forgotten…the Wind River Basin and its overlook?) I snapped some cool views of the Wind River Mountain Range and surrounding rocks. I wished I could adequately convey the depth-of-field of some of these images that looked cooler to the naked eye. If you look closely you’ll see there’s a ledge. And that it was really, really high. With lots of wind.

Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)
Wind River Basin Overlook? (© F. P. Dorchak, March 7, 2017)

We continued on. Stopped at Sweetwater Station, which is at the intersection of 135 and 287/789. Hung a left. Just over the rise there, is this long-assed snow fence. Had to get an image or two of that. There are a lot of snow fences in The WYO.

Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Snow Fence, Outside Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Snow Fence, Outside Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Snow Fence, Outside Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Snow Fence, Outside Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

Long story short, there were lots more open spaces, wind, and pronghorn…but another really cool photo op presented itself, and I blurted to my wife to Stop-stop-stop! (she was driving so I could shoot photos) as I sighted something really neat: a pronghorn sitting pretty-as-you-please atop a hill! At first as we came up on this hill, I was wondering if what I was seeing was one of those many sheet metal hilltop silhouettes—elk, jackalope, cowboy-on-bucking-bronco—but, nope, it was the real deal! We hooked a u-y and came back around. I managed to get a couple of shots as it remained “reclined,” but it spotted us and got up, showing me its white ass. For quite a while, actually. Its white ass. It just stood there…its white butt pointed toward me. I’m thinking this must be a pronghorn thing…showing your displeasure at being disturbed by showing the object-of-your-displeasure your white ass. After a while, it sauntered off.

King of the Hill. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
King of the Hill. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
King of the Hill. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
King of the Hill. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

The miles and the scenery rolled by…and as I looked out the side, my wife remarked about the beautiful clouds before us—and they were gorgeous! I switched to my 18-55mm lens and caught the images embedded. It looked so incredible! The pictures kinda capture it, but no picture can adequately capture what the naked eyes see….

Gorgeous! (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Gorgeous! (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

And this brings up a cool point: since I’d gotten back into taking “serious” pictures with my Nikon, my wife has also become more aware (or perhaps vocal is the better term) of photo ops. We were taking about this as we were driving. How photography has you look at life differently. I know I’ve always loved to just watch the scenery go by on road trips, but now, also getting back into photography with a really nice camera has changed how I look at the world. Besides all the “standard beauty” to be viewed, I’m now looking at picture composition and capture, and it was cool my wife was doing the same thing!

After the cloud shots, I then just started messing around…and took some monochrome (B&W) shots. It’s amazing how monochrome changes the whole “tone” (ummm, pardon the pun…) of an image!

Gorgeous! (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Gorgeous! (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Wyoming Noir. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Wyoming Noir. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Wyoming Windmills Sans Quixote. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Wyoming Windmills Sans Quixote. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

We then came upon a bunch of windmills. Yeah. The WYO. Wind. We eventually crossed the WYO/COLO border. A little bit inside Colorado, we passed this dual rock formation that we think must be part of a residence or something. Or a Colorado Rapa Nui cousin connection to Easter Island? As we drove on and through Fort Collins, I attempted an artsy shot or two. You be the judge. Or not. In any case, we were both back into heavily trafficed civilization.

Sigh.

THAT is something I do miss from The WYO…their drivers are nowhere near as stupid and in-a-hurry as they are in Colorado. And there are far fewer of them.

Colorado Rapa Nui. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Colorado Rapa Nui. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

Urban artsy:

Fort Collins Building. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
Fort Collins Building. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
513 Riverside, Fort Collins. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
513 Riverside, Fort Collins. (© F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

So, hello, home, it’s good to be back. We had a good family visit…and a good road trip. Hope y’all enjoy the photos. It was fun taking them!

The Photographer, Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© Laura and F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)
The Photographer, Sweetwater Station, Wyoming (© Laura and F. P. Dorchak, March 11, 2017)

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Filed Under: Nature, To Be Human Tagged With: Cars, D3400, Nikon, Photography, Road Trips, States, SUVs, Trucks, USA, Vacation, Wyoming

Wind and Snow

February 24, 2017 by fpdorchak

Wind and Snow (© F. P. Dorchak, Feb 23, 2017)
Wind and Snow (© F. P. Dorchak, Feb 23, 2017)

Yesterday we had respite from the fifty-, sixty-, and seventy-degree weather we’ve been having—it actually snowed! And it had come down pretty hard for a while there. Where I was at the time, north of Colorado Springs, we even had some accumulation. It was pretty fricking cool, pardon the pun.

As I later drove down I-25, I couldn’t keep my attention away from Pikes Peak. It was—simply stated—majestic!

Snow was being blown off the ridges of the Front Range and were beautifully backlit!

Damn it, but I hadn’t my camera with me, so I kept hoping the majesty that was Pikes Peak would remain to some degree (again with the puns…) so I could capture it.

I got home, grabbed my camera, lenses, and tripod, and rushed outside.

Below are some shots I managed to capture. I used UV and polarizing filters and my 18-55mm and 70-300mm lenses. Did a couple black & white images. All files are compressed using Coral PaintShop Pro X7.

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Frozen Branches

February 6, 2017 by fpdorchak

Frozen Branches (© F. P. Dorchak, Feb 2, 2017)
Frozen Branches (© F. P. Dorchak, Feb 2, 2017)

Thursday and Friday of last week we had a bit of an ice storm…in that I don’t know if it was actually termed an “ice storm,” but we had everything coated in a layer of frost and/or ice—and it was beautiful! Since I am a fan of taking shots of branches, I thought “Frozen Branches” would be a great compliment to my previous post!

Donnelly's Corners, July 14, 2015
Donnelly’s Corners, July 14, 2015
Know it. Love it. Donnelly's Corners Soft Ice Cream Flavor Schedule, 2015
Know it. Love it. Donnelly’s Corners Soft Ice Cream Flavor Schedule, 2015
Donnelly's Corners is a Very Special Place. Upstate New York Registry of Very Special Places, July, 2015.
Donnelly’s Corners is a Very Special Place. Upstate New York Registry of Very Special Places, July, 2015.

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Night Driving

February 3, 2017 by fpdorchak

Night Driving (© F. P. Dorchak, January 28, 2017)
Night Driving (© F. P. Dorchak, January 28, 2017)

I love driving at night.

I’d written a post about a particular night drive I’d taken years ago, when I was 27. It was a mystical cross-country drive I’d taken solo. My last such solo drive was from Wyoming to Colorado in November of 2015.

I’d taken this photo this past weekend as my wife and I returned from visiting family up north of us and were driving through Denver. I love the look and feel of this image. The lights of the buildings in the distance. Love the in-the-moment perspective.

Love the dark.

I love how my thoughts turn waaay inward in the night. I love the feel of the road. The passing of the night as I (we) plow on through it…are enveloped by it. Love how the imagination comes out in full force in the absence of light. Wonder where those lights in the distance are coming from and what’s going on at or around them.

Don’t get me wrong—I love daylight and all things associated with it! I’m not a Goth anything…I am a fan of both light and darkness. But…

Yeah, I really love driving at night….

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My First Nikon Camera Class

January 24, 2017 by fpdorchak

Crescent Moon (© F. P. Dorchak, January 22, 2017)
Crescent Moon (© F. P. Dorchak, January 22, 2017)

I love this shot!

I took it with my Nikon D3400 and 70 – 300mm zoom. This past Saturday, I took my first Nikon camera class, and it was great! I took about four pages of notes and it was extremely useful! In fact, it helped with the picture above. I had to adjust the white balance to bring out the blue of the sky. In class, the instructor, whose name was Greg, said that for every picture he changes something of the following:

  • Shutter speed
  • Aperture (how open the shutter is–large or small “hole” light entry)
  • ISO (light sensitivity)
  • White balance (the balance of color)

Greg also said that if you’re not yet good enough at all of the above, to set your mode to “P,” which is a semi-automatic (programming) mode that will automatically set your shutter and aperture, and you can mess with your ISO and white balance and everything else, so that’s what I’m doing. I took the above shot early in the morning, not sure, maybe around 5 or 6 a.m.—but the time hack is off—it wasn’t the “2:02” it says. I’d had to recharge my battery, so when you pull the battery out, it messes up the time stamps, dammit. Anyway, to show the difference the proper white balance can make, here is the original shot before I corrected for it:

Crescent Moon - No White Balance (© F. P. Dorchak, January 22, 2017))
Crescent Moon – No White Balance (© F. P. Dorchak, January 22, 2017))

You can definitely see the difference! So, thanks, Greg and Mike’s Camera, for presenting this Nikon class–it’s already helped me out!

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