Stephen Oachs Summer Photography Tour

I recently returned from a two week road trip that took me from home in San Jose, California, up to Grand Teton National Park, through Yellowstone and to one of my favorite destinations -- Glacier National Park. I had been to Glacier National Park a couple times in the past but always in through the west entrance. This time my goal was to photograph the east side of this amazing National Park -- a park created by the repeated creation and retreat of glaciers over thousands of years that left rugged, towering peaks behind. Nestled at the bottom of this amazing mountain formation is St. Mary Lake, nothing but a mere puddle in the midst of this oversized photographer's playground. St. Mary Lake is rich in mineral sediment stripped from the surrounding mountains by rain and snow. These minerals create an amazing teal color that is really enhanced when struck by direct sunlight. Truly one of natures most beautiful spectacles.

After three days of hiking, exploring and photographing in and around St. Mary Lake, I made my way east to the small town of Usk, Washington. Usk is nothing more than a gas station, a small diner and a string of abandoned buildings that echo memories of more prosperous days in the past.

Usk also happens to be home to a very large concentration of Osprey, most often building their nests on the tops of old piers that dot the shore of the Pend Oreille River. I was lucky enough to find a great vantage point that not only put me close enough for good, detailed, wildlife photography, but also allowed me to be hidden enough as to not disturb the Osprey and thus capture images of natural behavior. Over the course of three days, I spent many hours sitting, waiting... and waiting.

In this image, I observed this nest for five hours, and finally the male Osprey returned to the nest with a fish he had just plucked from the river. He landed, turned the fish over to the female, waited a few moments and then returned up the river, presumably for more fishing. The mother Osprey began tearing the fish into small, bite-sized pieces and carefully fed her chicks that were tucked safely down inside the nest.

With my fill of Osprey photography and the number of days remaining in my trip winding down, I decided it was time to start heading back south, toward home. After a brief look at a map, I headed toward Oregon's Columbia River Gorge. I had been there just two months prior, but the water level at the time was pretty high and there were a few waterfalls I was unable to access. So, this was my chance to revisit the Gorge and capture some additional images.

I spent two days hiking the trails above Oneonta Gorge, and even the gorge itself, where I waded through chest deep snow melt run-off water, to access the back of the canyon. I wasn't disappointed! These places may be challenging to get to, but the reward is both visually, and photographically, rewarding.

From the Columbia Gorge, I made my way down through the Willamette Valley, the Three Sister Wilderness and then back into California. I then turned around just a few days later and made my way back north to the Mt. Shasta area, where I conducted the 2009 Mt. Shasta Photography Workshop. We had 13 students on this trip and it was a really good group. We photographed many areas with the highlight being a 1.5 mile hike up above Castle Lake, which provided a perfect sunset vista of Castle Lake with Mt. Shasta in the distance.

Upcoming Photography Workshops Include:

- Aug 23rd, Sep 19th, Oct 10th: San Francisco/Marin Headlands Photography Workshop

- Oct 24th-25th 2009: Yosemite Fall Color Photography Workshop

- Feb 6th-7th 2009: Death Valley Photography Workshop

- Mar 6th-7th 2010: Yosemite Winter Photography Workshop

- May 15th-16th: Oregon Columbia Gorge Photography Workshop

- Aug 28th-29th: Bodie Ghost Town & Eastern Sierra Photography Workshop

- Sept 25th-27th: Desert Southwest (Arches & Canyonlands NP) Photography Workshop

- Oct 1st-3rd: Grand Teton Landscape & Wildlife Photography Workshop



That's it for now...stay tuned and happy shooting!

Desert Southwest Shoot Over Memorial Day Weekend

I spent the last 5 days on the road...my first stop after driving through the night...and most of the next day...Monument Valley. Last fall I spend a week in the Desert Southwest but the furthest south I got was Mule Canyon and so this was a return trip to pick up where I left off.

This photo of "The Mittens" is a tourist shot, for sure, but no matter I wanted my own take on it. This was shot late in the afternoon on the day I arrived. About two hours later, close to sunset, the sky turned scary dark and a giant wind storm kicked up. I was standing there one second, everthing was fine and the next moment sand began pelting me and it was like being...no joke...sand blasted. It HURT!! I ran for the RV, trying to protect my camera gear from the fine dust that was pelting me relentlessly. I get in and Tucker, my Beagle, looks at me as if to say "You wimp. Now can you feed me?"

Finally, safe from the wind and sand I realized my chances of another shot were over. Not more than two minutes later it started to rain, and I mean RAIN. it POURED...and as I drove away the red sand that had collected on the windshield combined with the rain and I had giant clumps of mud being flung off by the wipers. It was NUTS! I retrieted to the campground in a nearby canyon that provided a bit of shelter for the night.

After getting chased away by a giant dust/rain storm in Monument Valley we decided to spend the next day hiking into a very remote spot named Falled Roof Ruin, about an hour north of the valley. I don't know why but I am captivated by these old Anasazi Indian Ruins, built into the side of alcoves carved out by river flow through Mule Canyon over thousands of years.

This particular ruin got it's name from the obvious "Fallen Roof", where the layers of rock gave way to gravity, and collapsed. The exposed surface is amazing...the patterns and colors in this high desert red rock is quite a stunning sight and there are parts of the roof that look as if they could give way at any moment.

Hiking into this Canyon is quite a journey. In typical fashion, I got a little lost...the cairns are far and few between and I was unable to find GPS coords for this location so I ended up going about two miles our of my way before I figured it out. The light was shifting and I was cursing "Damn it, the light is getting too bright, damn it, where the hell is this place?!?" Real mature of me...HAHA

All in all, now that I've been there, it's really pretty easy..I guess I'm just not the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to directions. I even had the beagle (Tucker) with me but he was more intersted in chasing rodents and birds than helping me find the right path.

Beyond the great time I had photographing this location, the next best part was knowning that my wife, for the first time in her life, pee'd in the outdoors. It's a long story...I'll sum it up best I can...we have a motorhome but I have this strange thing about not using the toilet. Something about driving around with human waste sloshing about and then the task of dumping it out through a hose just doesnt sit well with me. So I told her "NO using the toilet...if you have to pee, pee outside!" So she was ok with that, oddly she agreed with my thoughts on this matter. Now, the issue is, she wants to camp where there is a bathroom yet the best places to park and RV for the night dont involve plumbed toilets. So finally, during this hike she broke down and did her duty, outside!

Her comment was "It's hard not to pee on your shoes...it's not fair, you have outdoor plumbing..."

I'm still laughing!

Jurassic Discoveries - A Week in Oregon's Columbia River Gorge

I recently spent a week in Oregon's Columbia Gorge, with a quick side trip to Palouse Falls, located in Eastern Washington. I loaded up the motorhome and headed north for the 12-hour drive from California. Tucker, my beagle, road shotgun the whole trip and napped just about the entire time. He did stick his head out the window a few times to bark at the cows we passed, standing in the many fields along the highway.

This time of year the green in the plant life is off the charts and just amazing to see, as well as photograph. I hiked many of the well known waterfalls up and down the Columbia River Gorge, as well as a few not so well known, in pursuit of waterfall photography. I was not disappointed -- all of the falls were flowing strong from the spring run-off from nearby Mount Hood.



Hiking back into the deep forest areas felt like stepping back into time, like the land of dinosaurs. I remember standing at the banks of the creek fed from the beautiful Ponytail Falls, looking at all the bright green moss and foliage, thinking it felt like a scene out of Jurassic Park.



The last day in the Gorge I hiked up to Elowah Falls again, as I had enjoyed it so much the first day. This time Tucker stayed in the RV (because the last time, he got soaked and wasn't thrilled with being anchored to a rock while I photographed). I grabbed my gear and started across the parking lot toward the trailhead. I looked up to see a dog running down the path with what looked like a big stick. He ran right toward me and as he got closer I realized, "that's no stick, it's a DEER LEG!" Yes, the leg of a deer....half bone, half fur and foot. He dropped it at my feet and wagged his tail, "uhhh, good boy?" I pondered out loud. He had a harness on, so clearly he was with his master...as I reached for his tags, he stepped back, not interested in me touching him. I tried a couple times to get him to come to me...my plan was to tie him up, because the freeway was only 50 yards away and he was running around pretty wild-like.

No dice.



So, I headed up the hill calling him, "here boy...come on, let's go!" and he actually did run after me...then he'd run ahead of me...this dog could run! So about half way up to the falls he disappeared off in the dense forest. I had done all I could, so I proceeded up to the falls. About 30 minutes later I headed back down and ran into a couple, "have you seen a dog...?"

"Ohhhhh yes, have I." I responded..."When I first saw him in the parking lot he had a deer leg..." they looked at me like I'm totally crazy, or joking... "a DEER leg?" I nodded.

So we hiked down together. "That stupid dog..." the man was muttering. He was clearly not happy the dog had run off, for what seemed to be a repeat event for them.

We got to the parking lot, no dog. But, we did find what was left of the deer leg...the skin, fur and foot that once was...was no longer. The dog had eaten it all...what remained was just the bones, oh and the toe nails.

Finally, after a few minutes of calling, here comes the dog, down the hill, happy to see his owners and he jumped in the car. Another happy day hiking at Elowah Falls for him!

EWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Press Release: My collaboration with the Snow Leopard Trust

Recently, a representative of the Snow Leopard Trust contacted me about using my photo, Endangered Beauty, for their organization. They have been dedicated to awareness and conservation of the endangered snow leopard since 1981, and they are a cause I whole-heartedly support. I was delighted to work with them and as a result, I will be donating 10% of product sales of Endangered Beauty to their fine organization.

I've posted the official press release below. (Please feel free to repost it on your blog or site, or link to it!) And, I want to thank everyone who has sent me their comments and feedback on Endangered Beauty. I appreciate hearing from all of you!

Photographer to Donate Proceeds From Award-Winning Snow Leopard Photograph To The Snow Leopard Trust, To Help Spread Conservation and Awareness

Proceeds from "Endangered Beauty," the snow leopard portrait by acclaimed Fine Art Photographer, Stephen W. Oachs, will be used to promote awareness of this remarkable endangered species through an artistic partnership with the Snow Leopard Trust.

San Jose, CA/Seattle, WA–March 17, 2009–Photographer, Stephen W. Oachs, is honored to have his photograph contribute to the important mission of the Snow Leopard Trust, an organization dedicated to protecting the endangered snow leopard.

Oachs is a passionate nature photographer, so it was a tremendous honor for him when Endangered Beauty won voter's choice in the National Geographic 2008 International Photography Contest. "But it means even more to be able to offer the photograph to help spread awareness through an organization as honored as the Snow Leopard Trust," said Oachs. "What I have learned about the endangered snow leopard is a tragedy. To be able to contribute to bringing awareness to their situation means a lot to me. I was excited when the Trust approached me about use of my photo, and I am dedicating 10% of all product sales of Endangered Beauty to the Snow Leopard Trust."

To view the photograph, Endangered Beauty, visit www.stephenoachs.com/gallery-endangered-beauty.php or www.snowleopard.org/news/currentnews/stephen-oachs-winning-photo

To learn more about the Snow Leopard Trust and their mission, visit www.snowleopard.org.

About Snow Leopard Trust

Founded in 1981 and based in Seattle, WA, the Snow Leopard Trust is the oldest and largest organization working to protect the endangered snow leopard. The Snow Leopard Trust manages programs in five countries representing roughly 75% of the world’s snow leopard range, and is conducting the largest and most technologically advanced snow leopard research project to date. The Snow Leopard Trust protects the snow leopard and the mountain ecosystem on which it depends by using a comprehensive approach that combines scientific research, public education, and on-the-ground conservation programs that give people an incentive for protecting rather than poaching the cats. Learn more about the Snow Leopard Trust at http://www.snowleopard.org or by calling 206-632-2421.

About Stephen W. Oachs

Stephen W. Oachs is a successful entrepreneur, technology veteran and award-winning photographer working from San Jose, California and the San Francisco Bay area. Oachs' photography has won numerous awards and photography contests including National Geographic, Popular Photography Magazine and the National Wildlife Federation Photo Contest. His photo of the Fly Geyser in the Black Rock Desert will be in the Singh-Ray national ad campaign. His work is sold online and through art shows and galleries. He holds on-location photography workshops, and is available for presentations and speaking engagements. To contact Oachs or learn about his workshops, visit his Website and online gallery at www.stephenoachs.com, and his blog at stephenoachsphotography.blogspot.com.

# # #

Editorial Contacts:

Stephen Oachs Fine Art Photography
Stephen Oachs
408-829-7668
stephen@stephenoachs.com

--

Snow Leopard Trust
Siri Okamoto
206-632-2421
siri@snowleopard.org

I need your VOTE! Smithsonian Photography Finalist

Hello Everyone! As I recently announced, I was chosen as a finalist in the Smithsonian Magazine Photography Contest...now I need your VOTE!

Please click here to vote!: http://photocontest.smithsonianmag.com/finalists/PCA

(To vote, find my image at the very bottom left, click the round button, then enter the code at the bottom of the page and click the "Submit Your Vote" button.)

You can vote once per day, through March 31st. If you feel so inclined, you can leave comments or share the story on this page: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/photocontest/6th-annual/6th-travel-6.html

This would be a big honor for me and I really appreciate your support!

Dear Friends, I have a big annoucement! I just recieved this letter:


Dear Mr. Oachs:
On behalf of Smithsonian Magazine, I am pleased to inform you that you are one of the top ten finalists in the "Travel" category of our 6th annual photo contest. Your photograph of "Ancestral Pueblo Ceremonial Kiva" was among
more than 17,000 entries we received from all over the world.

On March 2, 2009, your photograph, along with those of the other 49 finalists, will appear for a limited time on Smithsonian Magazine's Web site at www.smithsonian.com. It will also be considered for publication in an upcoming article on the contest in a summer 2009 issue of Smithsonianand for a photography exhibit, "World View: Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest," scheduled to appear in the Smithsonian Castle from July through January 2010.

Within the next month, you will also be notified as to whether you are a category or grand-prize winner.

Congratulations!

Sincerely,
Jesse Rhodes
Editorial Assistant
Smithsonian Magazine




Thank you to everyone who supports me and drives me to try harder!

There's a funny story behind this image...

This was taken in Mesa Verde National Park in the Spruce Tree Ruins...it was mid day and there were quite a few people cycling through. This Kiva is open for people to climb down into and it was a big draw for kids. I was down there for nearly 30 minutes waiting for it to clear out so I could capture the scene. It was dark so I knew I'd need a good 15-20 second exposure.

I decided to shoot it with a fisheye to capture the roudness of the room and get the great light beam that was piercing the darkness. I had my tripod down very low and I was plastered up against the wall as tight as I could to get my feet out of the field of view of the very wide 15mm fisheye lens.

As I waited, peoeple kept coming and going and I grew frustrated that I might not get the shot so I asked my wife, who was still up top, to ask people to wait about 30 seconds so I could get the shot. She felt wierd doing that and so, irritated, I crawled out and figured there was no way I was going to get the shot. She sensed my frustation and caved to become a human "hold up a moment" machine...I quickly climbed back down, temper tamtrum still in full swing, recomposed my camera, re-contorted body and took the shot.

I'm so glad I pulled a classic 5 year old stunt and got my way! LOL

Stormy Death Valley

Well I took a chance on this last trip -- the weather forecast for Death Valley looked hit or miss...either I could catch amazing light as the storms came and went or it would be too thick and all I would see were gray skies with rain and cold.

Well, I got both! The first two days were pretty nice...some very dramatic skies and high winds which made for some nice photography, especially at the Mesquite Dunes (pictured below) where the high winds the night before reset the dunes to a smooth, silky, perfection erasing the footprint evidence of recent visitors.



During the second day in the valley the storms got the best of us and we retreated back to the north in hopes of better weather, which never came to fruition. In hindsight though, it was good we departed when we did as we later learned that many roads flooded that day, washing them out and trapping many visitors in the valley floor. Shewww!

I plan to return next month for Part Deux!

2009 Photography Workshop Series with Stephen Oachs

Welcome to 2009! Yes, I realize I'm a bit late since it's January 25th already. I have a good excuse for such a tardy post and that is that I've been extremely busy. A wildlife shoot in Montana in early January was cold but fun and I came away with some new images for the wildlife gallery. This Arctic Fox being one of my favorites. You can see more here!



I've also been very finalizing the details of my 2009 Photography Workshops to be held in some of the most beautiful and amazing places in California. This years series is larger than last years with more locations and I'm also being joined this year by award winning photographer Brian Rueb. By adding Brian to the series will allow even more one-on-one individual attention for each student as well as bring his creative and unique insights to the group.



To learn more about these 2009 Photography Workshops please visit my website at http://www.StephenOachs.com

2008 ending with a bang, including a couple great magazine profiles!

This past year has shined some warm light on my photography adventures, and highlighted some incredible firsts. I had my first art shows and public exhibits; I won several notable awards by such prestigious organizations as Popular Photography Magazine, Apogee Photo Magazine, MSNBC, and the pinnacle for nature photographers, National Geographic; I was honored by having one of my photos selected for a national ad campaign; and the year ended with terrific profiles of my work and career by Gentry Magazine and San Jose Mercury News.

Of course, these are just a few of the great things that happened in 2008. I met some wonderful people and fellow photographers, was able to travel and get photographic opportunities that I will never forget, and I stepped out of the title "amateur" and "hobbyist" and walked through the door as a professional, with online sales, art exhibits, teaching workshops, and sales of my first photography book.

It has been a remarkable and whirlwind year, and I've been fortunate to have the support of my adventurous and patient wife, many dear friends and relatives, and the weather!

I look forward to an even more adventurous new year, with more photos, more opportunities and more wonderful memories! Won't you continue to join me in my journeys? I hope to see you along the way!

Thank you all for your support and interest in my work. Please keep sending your comments and questions, and I hope you all have a healthy, happy and bright new year!

~ Stephen W. Oachs
www.stephenoachs.com
www.lighttheexpedition.com

Keep current with my newest posted images at my Flickr photostream.

2008 National Geographic International 1st Place Photography Contest -- Viewer's Choice Winner!

Hello all, I am extremely proud to share with you that I am the 2008 National Geographic International 1st Place Photography Contest Winner!

My photograph, of the endangered Snow Leopard, was selected for 1st place.

I can't thank you enough for your vote -- without your support this would not have been possible. Thank you!!

Here is the link to the winners gallery on NatGeo: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/photo-contest/2008-winners (select "English Edition Viewer's Choice")

(There were a total of 102,565 entries to this contest)

Stephen W. Oachs
http://www.stephenoachs.com
http://flickr.com/photos/stephenoachs

MSNBC Photo of the Week

I entered my Emerald Bay "Sunset Before the Storm" photograph a couple of months ago to MSNBC and it is featured this week in their Travel category. You can view the article here.

ALSO...

This photo is also a finalist in the PCPhoto Magazine's 2009 "My World" photography contest. The winner is chosen by public vote so if you like this image, please vote!

Click here to vote!

Hello Everyone...I NEED YOUR HELP! I NEED YOUR VOTE!

I have just been notified that my Snow Leopard photograph has been selected as a finalist in the 2008 National Geographic Photography Contest!

The winning image will be selected by public vote (1 to 10, 10 being the best). Here's how you can vote and I would be grateful for your "10" vote:

How to vote:

• Click this link: ngm.nationalgeographic.com/photo-contest/photo-contest

• Please vote for each image, but PLEASE save your best vote for me!

I really appreciate your vote and will update everyone on the final results, to be released December 5th, 2008. Let me know if you have any questions!

HERE IS THE PHOTOGRAPH THAT IS A FINALIST: