A Chapel in Chicago

New Journal 32 – An American Road Trip

“Uh, I forgot to mention that your car’s a pickup”

“Hmm, how big?”

“Big. It’s a Chevrolet Silverado”

I pretended like I knew what this meant.

I’m not used to big cars. I’m not used to driving in America. I’m not used to automatic drive or sitting on the left hand side of the car. Our day was due to be an interesting one.

We didn’t have a map or GPS, but we were fairly confident of our route. The I70 would take us most of the way there. In fact, we’d be on the I70 for more than 370 miles.

As we navigated the roads of Denver and I learned my way around Jolene (that sounds odd – at least it’s not a bloke’s name), we immersed ourselves in the same relaxed road trip atmosphere that we enjoyed in France, with Betsy.

Country station after country station filled the pre-programmed car radio – a reasonably fitting soundtrack to our road trip, I suppose. We were, after all, driving into the country.

There’s something about setting out on a long journey, food packed, cold drinks at the ready, that holds some form of excitement. We sit for long periods doing nothing, yet the asphalt that we’re rolling on leads to something new, an unknown place waiting to be explored.

Soon the buildings along the road became smaller and spaced further apart. The land became more and more barren, more and more alien. My left arm became more and more burned.

It’s great driving along a straight road sometimes, but not when the sun just sits there, making your body an uneven colour. My right arm is still pale. I look ridiculous.

As we expected, we skirted into Moab without any problems. Our campsite was even easier to find. Since we’re tent-less, we booked into a cabin. I won’t find any pesky mice on my chest this time!

Last night, after the lengthy(ish) drive, we sat on our porch with some cold Coronas and enjoyed the warm breeze.

Today is when the exploration and photography takes over. First, I have to buy a hat.

Today’s Photo –  A chapel in Chicago

Over the years, as most photographers do, I’ve refined all that I’ve learned and created a style that I believe is uniquely mine. There have been a few photographers who I’ve taken inspiration from since day one. I’ve moved away from some of those photographers, but still enjoy the work of a handful. One particular inspiration to me was Klaus Herrmann. In fact, I’d say he is one of only a few HDR photographers who I actually still follow today.

His work on vertoramas is unparalleled. I encourage you to check it out.

He also just released a new ebook on how to create compelling HDR vertoramas. I’m not affiliated with his products and receive no payment for promoting his book, but I’ve always made the commitment to promoting the excellence of others in this wonderful field of HDR photography.

I haven’t read his book, but if it’s by Klaus you can be certain it will be thorough, precise and value for money. Here it is – Vertorama ebook

Before the Joys of Post-Processing

Before Photomatix

After Photomatix/before vertorama correction

Final image