Zoetic Icons

Most Popular Photos

Thanks you all for the comments. This was shot on Ha Long Bay in Vietnam during the evening. The entire time I was there we had no sun so I made the best of the fog and cloud cover. On this day, during a short time in the evening you could discern a slight pink hue coming through the cloud cover. It was shot with my Canon 5D Mark II with the 16-35mm f2.8L lens. During post production (Lightroom only) I reduced a slight amount of noise and applied a faint vignette to draw everything in. Again, thanks very much for the praise!

Balance this!

03 April 2012: Todays picture is a macro shot of a python I found making its way through a jungle in Koh Chang, Thailand. The picture came out well in color but currently working on my B&W skills I converted it. The B&W came out nicely but just playing around I tried a selective color version. The bigest flaw in the B&W was the noise created during conversion. It really took the nice shinny reflection on the scales. Noise reduction took care of that but it also subdued the detail in the eye. Long story short this is a composite of the eye without noise reduction and the rest with... hope you enjoy!

P.S. Thanks for all the comments yesterday!

Ha Long Bay, Vietnam: This shot was taken early in the morning to try and capture a small amount of sunrise working its way through the cloud cover.

Ha Long Bay is a body of water of approximately 1,500 square kilometres in north Vietnam with a 120 kilometre coastline, in the Gulf of Tonkin near the border with China, and 170 kilometres east of Hanoi. Ha Long Bay means Bay of the Descending Dragon in the Vietnamese language.The bay consists of a dense cluster of 1,969 limestone monolithic islands, each topped with thick jungle vegetation, which rise spectacularly from the ocean. Several of the islands are hollow, with enormous caves. Wooden stakes Cave is the largest grotto in the Halong area. French tourists visited in the late 19th century, and named the cave Grotte des Merveilles. Its three large chambers contain large numerous stalactites and stalagmites (as well as 19th century French graffiti). There are two bigger islands, Tuan Chau and Cat Ba, that have permanent inhabitants. Both of them have tourist facilities, including hotels and beaches. There is a number of wonderful beaches on the smaller islands.

Local legend says that long ago when the Vietnamese were fighting Chinese invaders, the gods sent a family of dragons to help defend the land. This family of dragons descended upon what is now Ha Long Bay (hence the name “Bay of Descending Dragons”) and began spitting out jewels and jade. These jewels turned into the islands and islets dotting the bay, linking together to form barriers against the invaders. The people kept their land safe and formed what later became the country of Vietnam.

This myth is in line with the Vietnamese myth of their origin Con Rong Chau Tien. This myth describes the union between a king (representing the dragon) and his bride (representing a goddess) giving birth to 100 children which are the ancestors of the Vietnamese people. The Ha Long myth illustrate the Vietnamese belief of their origin and the fact that throughout their history, they are aided by their ancestors, the dragon and the gods, in the defense of their land.

Vinh Ha Long or Bay of the Descending Dragon is often touted by proud Vietnamese as the world’s Eighth wonder. One of the main attractions of Ha long is the bay’s calm water and the thousands of limestone mountains dotting the seascape. The Bay’s water is clear during the spring and early summer. Some of the islands are quite large and there are small alcoves with sandy beaches where swimming is possible.

05 April 2012: In memory of those needlessly murdered (Excavated remains of Cambodians slaughtered by the Khmer Rouge)..

"The only thing necessary for evil to succeed for for good men to do nothing" ~ Edmund Burke

Today's image is very much on the macabre side. While in Cambodia I was able to visit the Killing Fields. I think most people know about the genocide committed by Pol Pot's regime but in case you want a refresher there is a Wiki excerpt at the bottom of this post.

It astounds me to find out that the United Nations literally endorsed the Khmer Rouge turning a blind eye to the genocide. Pol Pot targeted the educated and affluent of Cambodian society to include artists... this hit me hard as being photographers we are all artists... by luck of being born inside different borders is the only thing that stood in the way of the same fate happening to us.

When I left the Killing Fields my driver and I sat at a roadside restaurant for some lunch. What he told me about his life horrified me. My driver was 10 years old when this started. His parents were school teachers and thus both executed by the Khmer Rouge leaving him an orphan. He was forced to join the Khmer Rouge and was responsible to walk through mine fields ahead of adult soldiers to provide them safe passage... not because he had any particular skills in detecting land mines, but because he would lead far enough ahead to where a land mine explosion would only kill him and not the following soldiers. It is only a miracle that he survived.

To see the Killing Fields is hard enough, but to hear the stories from this very kind man left an impression on me I will never forget.

Wiki excerpt: Saloth Sar (19 May 1925 – 15 April 1998), better known as Pol Pot, was a Cambodian Maoist revolutionary who led the Khmer Rouge from 1963 until his death in 1998. From 1963 to 1981, he served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Kampuchea. From 1976 to 1979, he also served as the prime minister of Democratic Kampuchea. Pol Pot became leader of Cambodia on April 17, 1975. During his time in power he imposed agrarian socialism, forcing urban dwellers to relocate to the countryside to work in collective farms and forced labor projects. The combined effects of forced labor, malnutrition, poor medical care, and executions resulted in the deaths of approximately 21% of the Cambodian population. In all, an estimated 800,000 to three million people (out of a population of approximately seven million) died under his three-year premiership. In 1979, after the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia, Pol Pot fled to the jungles of southwest Cambodia, and the Khmer Rouge government collapsed. From 1979 to 1997, he and a remnant of the old Khmer Rouge operated near the border of Cambodia and Thailand, where they clung to power, with nominal United Nations recognition as the rightful government of Cambodia. Pol Pot died in 1998 while under house arrest by the Ta Mok faction of the Khmer Rouge. Since his death, rumors that he was poisoned have persisted.

01 April 2012: On a 3rd class train in Thailand. I had to hang way out of the gap between cars to snap this shot. No aircon for 6 hours but the experience was great... plus it only cost 48 THB ($1.60 USD).

Working with soft diffused light and shadows.

Wiki Ref: Plumeria (common name Frangipani; syn. Himatanthus Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.) is a small genus of 7-8 species native to tropical and subtropical Americas. The genus consists of mainly deciduous shrubs and trees. P. rubra (Common Frangipani, Red Frangipani, Champa), native to Mexico, Central America, Colombia, and Venezuela, produces flowers ranging from yellow to pink depending on form or cultivar. From Mexico and Central America, Plumeria has spread to all tropical areas of the world. In Hawaii, it is grown for the production of leis.

No tears... just a devilish grin grin.

Wiki Ref: The Siamese crocodile (Crocodylus siamensis) is a freshwater crocodile native to Indonesia (Borneo and possibly Java), Brunei, East Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam. The species is critically endangered and already extirpated from many regions.

Hong Kong Harbor at sunset.

15 April 2012: Paragliding over the island of Phuket, Thailand... my new hobby!

A bit of old meets new architecture in Hong Kong.

02 April 12: sticking with my B&W trend I thought I would attempt to turn a very brilliantly colored picture and try and bring out it's radiance in a very bright B&W. Hope it worked. Thanks for all the great comments on yesterday"s train pic!

P.S. I just printed this on pearl gloss photopaper for framing... it absolutely pops off the page now. I had never used this type of paper before but it was well worth trying.

Galleries

D'Pict : A daily picture... I have been away for a while... but now back and hopefully on daily again.

A daily picture... I have been away for a while... but now back and ho ...

Updated: Apr 15, 2012 5:35am PST

Icons of Monochrome : Monochrome photography.

Icons of Monochrome

Monochrome photography.

Updated: Apr 10, 2012 3:32am PST

High Dynamic Range : I'm drinking the Kool-Aid now... a collection of HDR images.

High Dynamic Range

I'm drinking the Kool-Aid now... a collection of HDR images.

Updated: Mar 21, 2012 4:13am PST

Selective Color :

Selective Color

Updated: Apr 04, 2012 7:24am PST

Floral Icons :

Updated: Apr 11, 2012 1:21am PST

Thaicons : Images of Thailand.

Images of Thailand.

Updated: Mar 09, 2012 10:14am PST

Icons of Cambodia :

Icons of Cambodia

Updated: Apr 03, 2012 5:06am PST

Icons of Vietnam : It was a whirlwind tour completed in one week. We spent 2 days in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), 1 day in Hanoi and 3 days in Ha Long Bay. I decided to take a guided tour since my time was limited. My thanks to Indochina Legend Travel & Paradise Cruises for the great tour and seamless service. Thanks to them I have a very good overview of the major areas so next time I can spend more time capturing the essence of a truly interesting and often breathtaking country.

I shot approximately 11,000 photos during this trip and I am working hard to get them processed. Please come back often as more are being posted almost daily.

If you like these please check out my Artistic Icons gallery as there are "painted" renderings of these photos on display also.

Enjoy!

Icons of Vietnam

It was a whirlwind tour completed in one week. We spent 2 days in Saig ...

Updated: Jan 29, 2011 4:30am PST

Icons of Hong Kong : Favorite shots of Hong Kong

Icons of Hong Kong

Favorite shots of Hong Kong

Updated: May 17, 2010 1:05am PST

Icons of Constantinople : During a 10 hour layover I was able to run around and snap a few...

Icons of Constantinople

During a 10 hour layover I was able to run around and snap a few...

Updated: May 16, 2010 1:05am PST

Icons of Babylon : Images from Iraq.

Icons of Babylon

Images from Iraq.

Updated: May 05, 2010 5:16am PST

Icons of Bulgaria : A quick ski trip with my mate Casey to Bulgaria... didn't take too many pictures while there... too busy racing from slope side bar to another to avoid paying for the next round... lol.

Icons of Bulgaria

A quick ski trip with my mate Casey to Bulgaria... didn't take too man ...

Updated: May 19, 2010 12:54am PST

Puerto Gallera - Philippines :

Puerto Gallera - Philippines

Updated: Aug 21, 2010 12:52am PST

Immersed Icons : Underwater photography.

Underwater photography.

Updated: Apr 10, 2010 12:20am PST

Artistic Icons : Photography kicked up a notch.

Photography kicked up a notch.

Updated: May 20, 2010 3:45am PST

Lunar Icons :

Updated: Apr 03, 2012 4:38am PST

Icons of the Wild : Wildlife in nature.

Icons of the Wild

Wildlife in nature.

Updated: Apr 03, 2012 4:49am PST

Zooetic Icons : Zoo animals at play.

Zoo animals at play.

Updated: May 03, 2010 1:32am PST

Architectural Icons : Images of architecture.

Architectural Icons

Images of architecture.

Updated: Jan 31, 2010 11:48pm PST

Icons of Me : The few rare times I am caught in front of the lens!

The few rare times I am caught in front of the lens!

Updated: Apr 10, 2012 12:32am PST

Available Feeds

Recent Galleries:

Atom |

RSS |

Google Earth

Recent Photos:

Atom |

RSS |

Google Earth

Popular Photos:

Atom |

RSS |

Google Earth