There is nothing like setting out to see Indian wildlife from elephant back on a chilly morning.
Here I am in Bandhavgarh National Park again. It is such an honor to be among these big cats in the wild. To travel on the backs of elephants into the bush is to travel back in time. Coming upon a tiger is like nothing else and each time it is still immensely exciting.
I love India and will be posting images throughout my travels, so stay tuned.
Here is a previous post with photos of tigers from a visit to Ranthambore National Park. >>CLICK HERE
If you are considering some international travel in 2013 allow me to share with you two of my favorite destinations that will not be the same for very much longer.
During the final weeks of 2012 I traveled to Cuba with a good friend to explore the streets and culture one last time before the inevitable wave of change crashes over this isolated island culture.
Cuba has been largely cut off from the rest of the world due to a US imposed embargo enacted in October 1960 (el bloqueo) in response to the nationalization of some US citizen and corporate held properties in the country. It has been further reinforced over the years even into the 2000s citing humanitarian reasons for maintaining the embargo. Many of Cuba’s wealthiest families left the country at the time of the original embargo and settled in Florida, this is a powerful state when it comes to US presidential elections and their influence has been cited as being largely responsible for maintaining the embargo.
So essentially you have a culture and a country that has been largely frozen in time. If you owned an American made car in Cuba, you purchased it in the 1950s. If you are still driving a car today it’s because you have managed to keep that old Chevy running over 50 years later. You don’t see advertising and billboards when you walk down the streets. You won’t find the ever present Starbucks coffee shop on every street corner (2 per corner if you’re from Seattle). The people are beautiful and welcoming and on the precipice of major change.
The headlines are already running; “Time to End the Cuban Embargo”, “Waiting for a new Dawn in Cuba”, “Obama acts to Ease Embargo on Cuba”…. and many others. My previous trip to Cuba cost me an extra 1500 dollars when I returned to the US via Canada but today US citizens can travel to the country with the blessing of the US Government under the “People to People” program. Yes there are a few hoops to jump through and yes it is worth the effort. By going now, before the country is fully opened to US tourism you will have an opportunity to see the “old Cuba”, before the inevitable changes that are to come.
Likewise my second recommendation for your consideration is Myanmar also known as Burma. It is another example of a land with wonderful, beautiful people, rich in culture and history who have been under the thumb of a horrible oppressive government who through horrific human rights violations and oppression have isolated the country from the outside, and again, all that is about to change.
Over the last several years Hillary Clinton has laid the ground work for opening up talks with Myanmar and President Obama has even made a trip to visit the country and like Cuba the headlines are stacking up citing improved relations with the country, greater amounts of trade, and an inevitable watering down of their culture as western influences flood the country.
I will mostly likely make my last trip to Myanmar in January 2013. I, along with Gavriel Jecan, will be leading a small tour to see the beauty and rich culture I have known for years. I would like to keep my memories of their ancient traditions intact. The smoke from the morning fires as people wake up and begin the days cooking their meals over an outdoor fire. I don’t know that I could bear seeing giant golden “M”s sprouting up in the major cities as McDonalds and fast food and internationally recognized symbols of American comfort and conveniences begin to take hold on the landscape.
I have photographs I created in the 1980s when I joined the US Everest expedition via Tibet, photographs you simply can not replicate today due to the sprawl of commercialism and buildings that where once there was an open plain leading to a monastery today you find crowded streets and a thick layer of pollution from the exhaust of motorcycles and cars between you and that same ancient building.
Many of you no doubt have seen the castles in Europe still standing today – surrounded right up to the very castle walls with apartments and shops and restaurants and the ubiquitous modern footprint. Now imagine seeing those edifices frozen in time, standing has they had for millennia, untarnished by “progress” and time.
You can still find the local people in Myanmar fishing on Inle lake as they have for generations balancing at the end of long wooden boats using their curious and traditional netted cones to surround the fish for harvest. The cone is carefully lowered over the schooling fish and then tapped with a stick to excite and tangle the fish in the fine net as they try to escape. Witnessing this first hand is like watching a ballet telling the story of life for these people across time. Photographing the scene will provide you with treasured memories and a glimpse into the past. Such are the scenes throughout Myanmar in the streets, the markets, among the temples and the beautiful people who call the country home.
A hot air balloon provides the idea vantage point to photograph the stupas in Bagan. Between the 11th and 13th centuries, over 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were constructed in the Bagan plains and today the remains of roughly 2200 temples and pagodas still stand. Photographing early in the morning not only provides you with the best possible light but the added texture and drama of the smoke from the morning fires serve to enhance the scene.
Change is on the horizon as I have said, we have already seen the hotels we have booked for our tour double in price in just the last several months. While the government has a horrible history of crimes against humanity a change in their government in 2011 shows promise for the people of Myanmar and with that will come improved relations with western nations, increased tourism, trade, investment and a westernization just as I have seen many times before in other countries.
So if you have had an itch to see some foreign lands these are two I recommend seeing first if you wish to see them as they have been, unique in an isolated culture on the precipice of change. As it so happens I have one spot that just freed up on my Myanmar tour in February. Please inquire to info@artwolfe.com. See the details here: >>ITINERARY (PDF)
2012 was fraught with change and endeavor, sturm und drang. Now is the time to try to remember it all and thank everyone for their support and interest over the last year.
In January we started moving to our new location in Seattle’s Pioneer Square. As everyone knows, moves take longer and cost more than one can ever plan! Needless to say, we love our new location and are happy to be more a part of the art community. It has been great being a part of the popular First Thursday Art Walk.
At nearly the same time, The Natural Wonders Gallery opened in Las Vegas. This stunning gallery, featuring the work of Art Wolfe, Robert Rotella, and Robert Park, is located in The Shoppes at the Palazzo.
As always Art was on the road for a good part of year, photographing for various projects and leading photography tours and seminars. Destinations included Australia; South Africa, Tanzania and Rwanda; Brazil’s Pantanal; Ireland, France, Italy, and Croatia; and many locations stateside, such as Alaska’s Lake Clark, the Carolinas, Utah, Washington, California, Pennsylvania, and Oregon; as well as a brief foray into Canada. Art also collaborated with legendary nature photographers Frans Lanting and Tom Mangelsen for a Masters of Nature Photography seminar.
On the fine art print and publishing front, we launched the Human Canvas, Art’s masterwork of painting, the human figure, and photography. This is both a limited edition print collection and book. www.humancanvasproject.com
Europe was good to Art as well; Germany’s Frederking & Thaler published Animal Art and Landschaften Zwischen Himmel und Erde. WWF Netherlands published Wereldnatuur (Art’s first book in Dutch!) and used it as a donation premium in celebration of their fiftieth year anniversary of saving wildlife around the world.
It is always an honor to receive accolades. The University of Washington, Art’s Alma Mater, honored him with a Timeless Award based on outstanding service and achievement since graduation. Landschaften Zwischen Himmel und Erde was named the Most Beautiful Science Book by Bild der Wissenschaft.
Giving accolades in return is gratifying: The 2012 renewal of the International Conservation Photography Awards came off without a hitch. Art founded this invitational in 1997 and it has spun off into its own orbit with the incredible support of the Burke Museum of History and Culture. www.icpawards.com
2013 already shows much promise as yet another memorable year for Art Wolfe, Inc. Stay tuned!
Dear Friend of iLCP,
If you’ve ever read a conservation article or seen a presentation with vivid and compelling photographs, and found yourself wanting to do something to protect that place and its people, then you know the power and influence of high-quality imagery. This is the International League of Conservation Photographers’ niche, and our strength. It’s a conservation niche we hope you will want to support…..
As the year comes to a close and you are looking ahead to what kind of GOOD you can support this year, iLCP is a quality organization that does important work. The stories they cover and show are important to the planet.
Not everything that happens in Vegas should stay in Vegas. The Natural Wonders Gallery, featuring the works of Art Wolfe, Robert Rotella, and Robert Park, has a sparkling selection of new prints! If you’re in Vegas, take a look and take home a spectacular souvenir!
The Natural Wonders Gallery
The Shoppes at The Palazzo
3327 Las Vegas Blvd, Suite 2750
Las Vegas, Nevada
David Hallis a photographer and author specializing in marine life subjects and underwater photography. His photographs have won numerous awards and have appeared in most major magazines in North America and Europe. David’s latest book, Beneath Cold Seas: The Underwater Wilderness of the Pacific Northwest, was recently awarded the 2012 National Outdoor Book Award for best “Design and Artistic Merit”.
Beneath Cold Seas is the first large format photographic book to feature the marine life of the Pacific Northwest. Critics have noted that it is one of the few books of underwater photography to focus on a cold/temperate water ecosystem, successfully challenging the widespread misperception that cold water marine life is dull and uninteresting. Beneath Cold Seas is published in the U.S. by the University of Washington Press and in Canada by Greystone Books and the David Suzuki Foundation; it has also been published in the U.K and in Germany (as Kaltwasserwelten). It is available at Amazon, and in many Barnes & Noble and independent bookstores; it retails for $45.
For more information, including critic’s reviews, a slide show and the link to a four-minute video, visit www.beneathcoldseas.com For more of David Hall’s photography, visit www.seaphotos.com
Beneath Cold Seas cover: a lion’s mane jellyfish – the world’s largest – swims just beneath the surface
Seaweeds above and below the surface at low tide
Migrating sockeye salmon in the Adam’s River at dusk
An Irish lord sculpin resting in a bed of plumose anemones
Goose-neck barnacles endemic to Nakwakto Rapids, British Columbia
Steller sea lions are among the largest pinnipeds; males may weigh a ton or more.
A northern kelp crab clings to seaweed near the surface
Orange sea pens – a type of soft coral – will retract into the sand if disturbed
The giant Pacific octopus is the worlds’ largest; it may have an arm spread of 20’ or more and weigh over 100lb
