In Focus: “Santa Fe Blue Door” by Rudy Lopez

Santa Fe Doors, originally uploaded by RudyLopez.

Ask anyone that has been to Santa Fe, and they will tell you it is wonderful. Ask them to define what is ‘wonderful’ about it, and they cannot. It is that intangible feeling that makes Santa Fe a special place.

In Focus: “Amsterdam street scene” by Rudy Lopez

The streets of Amsterdam are rich with photo opportunities. This scene was in an alley not far from the Red Light District.

In Focus: “Interior debris”

This image was created as an HDR. FIve shots over two stops. The HDR process shows details in the highlights and shadows that do not exist in traditional digital photography.  Shooting HDR without a tripod in low light conditions can be tricky, controlled breathing is key.

In Focus:”Robben Island prison cell, South Africa” by Rudy Lopez

Enforcement of the rules by the caretakers of the Robben Island prison was pretty lax. I was able to roam around the old prison completely unsupervised. The sounds of a tour group echoed through the empty halls as I explored.

In Focus: “East Village sidewalk” by Rudy Lopez

East Village Sidewalk

A have walked for hours through Greenwich Village.  Each block, every corner, is unique in it’s aesthetics as well as in it’s indefinable qualities.

In focus: “London Street Musician – 2006″ By Rudy Lopez

A street piper exchanges change for songs as the London Eye turns slowly behind him.
This was the only clear night during my time in London. I was rushing from shot to shot, not wanting to miss a moment of the good light. It was on my way back to Notting Hill that I came across this man playing bagpipes on a bridge. It is a very harmonious instrument, you seem to feel it more than hear it.

Road Trip: Nov 22 – A lucky find

gps-trackpic

Apple iTunes

It happens more times than can easily be explained.  Once again, I came upon the most incredible location randomly and at just the right time.  This time I was heading south on a narrow country road in eastern Colorado near Kirk, just around sunset. As I was driving, I caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye, turned the car around to take a look.  It was an old house/farm combo.  The farm was standard, pretty but not extraordinary.  The house, on the other hand, was about one big snow storm away from collapsing.  I have seen many old properties, and they all have their own personalities. But this place is unique simplybecause of it’s teetering quality.   A pretty sky and a great location made an otherwise dry day very gratifying.

Shooting Info:

  • Nikon D300
  • Sigma 12-18mm, Nikor 18-70mm
  • HDR, 5 frames over two stops, processed by PhotoMatixPro

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On the road – Nov 22, 2009

Road trip – Hitting the road on a Sunday afternoon.

Providing live updates with images and maps via the website is proving to be a challenge.  So, in the mean time, I will be updating photos and locations via the Twitter feed below.



“A worker cuts bananas in South Africa” by Rudy Lopez


A worker deftly uses a knife to remove banana bunches from the stalk at a plantation near Mtuba, South Africa,2005.

This was a very sophisticated banana harvesting operation. The bananas are moved by overhead wire from the fields into the processing plant. The bananas are then cut, sorted, packaged, then shipped to markets in southeastern South Africa.


“Dancing farm worker” Photo by Rudy Lopez



A Zulu woman breaks into dance during her shift at a small banana plantation in Monzi, South Africa in 2005.

The farm workers live near where they work, in huts either close to the banana fields or the cane fields. The daily cycle is: eat, work, sleep. HIV rates soar in this part of South Africa, and life can be very difficult, but I was struck by how many scenes like this I encountered. I left Africa knowing that people are capable of experiencing joy even in an crushing atmosphere of despair. It re-calibrated the tolerance levels for the challenges in my own life.