Chicago-based photographer Shane Welch recently traveled through El Cocuy National Park in Colombia and shares some beautiful photos.

This trip is insane! Jay and I did a 5 night 6 day trek through El Cocuy National Park in Colombia. We covered around 50 miles of backcountry trails, 8 mountain passes, and some ridiculous elevation. It was definitely the hardest backpacking trip I have ever done. I loved every second of it, well… not really, but damn am I glad I did it. The first day of the trip was so hard we actually talked about not going through with the rest of the hike. I know, I’m not proud to say it, but you weren’t there so stop judging me. In my defense, I had actually been in a car accident just 4 weeks before the trip. The car was completely totaled and I was in a knee and a back brace throughout the entire hike. The next morning we felt like we were getting over the elevation sickness and decided to give it go.

Continue reading and see more photos on Shane’s blog.

It took a degree in Economics, a M.B.A. and five years sitting under corporate, fluorescent lights for Lisa to really figure out what she wanted to do in life; take photos.  After studying photography at Boston University’s CDIA, she started her business and is now an emerging freelance editorial, commercial and documentary photographer and assistant in Baltimore, Maryland and beyond.

 

After a year of planning, practicing Spanish, researching, talking to others who have gone, reading books by Yoani Sanchez and David Alan Harvey, studying other photographers’ work, and an interview with a local Cuban restaurant owner and escapee, I felt ready. I felt ready to pack my camera bag and make the not-so-legal trek from Baltimore, Maryland to Havana, Cuba with my friend and very talented fellow photographer, Alison Harbaugh. Aside from the planning and research, we also covered also our bases from a logistical and safety perspective. I made reservations at multiple casa particulars, had the address and phone numbers of the U.S. Consulate and ally embassies, arranged for a fixer, and wrote a detailed contingency plan for our husbands to execute if they didn’t hear from us in 72 hours. From a photography perspective, we planned to work on an inspiring joint multimedia project along with our own side projects. We were ready and excited to fly to our destination under the radar and begin the adventure. The adventure, however, didn’t go exactly to plan, and for that I’m very grateful.

Things got interesting when we arrived in Cancun. We had to buy our flight to Havana in cash and we came prepared with hundreds of Canadian dollars. The Cubana Air kiosk, located outside of the international airport annex, however, was conveniently only accepting Mexican pesos. We had to sweet talk a security guard to let us back into the international annex so that we could exchange our Canadian Dollars for Pesos at a horrible exchange rate. Luckily, we made the flight to Havana as they were boarding.

When we landed in Havana, things continued to get interesting. Havana customs was dimly lit with fluorescent lights, had multiple non-moving lines packed with gorgeous Danish girls, and just had a generally eerie feeling to it. After running our bags through security, the customs agents asked to see our passports, had a hushed conversation, an eventually let us through to get in line. The customs agent checked my papers, stamped my visa and let me though to the second x-ray machine. They checked our passports again, had another hushed conversation, and let us by. We thought we were home free until a agent in a mini skirt and fishnet stalkings stopped Ali and escorted her to a table. Oh no. The fixer is waiting for us outside, they might detain my friend, what if they take her gear, and what if we get deported, were all thoughts running through my head. After an hour and a half of questioning our motives and if we were there to shoot “political events”, they documented every piece of Ali’s gear and let us go. We were exhausted, hungry and relieved. To no surprise, the fixer was nowhere to be found outside, so we had to make our first of many negotiations with a taxi driver.

Even though we were prepared, it was very challenging to process the sights of the city as our taxi drove us to Habana Vieja. Many areas looked like a war zone. The buildings were crumbling and looked as if they would collapse at any moment. Many of them are original Spanish builds from the 1800s and have barely held up due to makeshift bandaids over the years. The simultaneous feeling of sadness, confusion, awe, anger, happiness and appreciation coupled with hunger and a days worth of travel were enough to legitimize an almost silent cab ride.

The first few days were spent wandering Habana Vieja and from a visual and cultural perspective, it was sensory overload. It didn’t take long to throw the multimedia project idea out the window, and it definitely took some time for me to adjust, get comfortable and get photographically creative. The Cuban people are very poor, have monthly rations of food which lack nutrition and substance, are politically oppressed, essentially trapped on the island, and many of them, especially the younger generation, are ready for change and access to information. It’s a very interesting time for Cuba and there are many economic, social, and political factors that are evolving and influencing the future of the country. We didn’t get to travel outside of Havana as originally planned, but I think it’s safe to speak for both of us when I say that we had an unforgettable experience and really grew as people and as photographers. We watched the sunrise, watched the sunset, met people from all over the world, heard incredible stories and music, and documented every second of it. It was clearly evident where socialism failed the Cubans (i.e. the existence of extreme gaps in social class, the food crisis, reliance on the black market, the condition of infrastructure, and willingness to risk their lives on a raft), but the people are doing what they need to do to make things work and live another day. That is was what truly inspired me.

I could write about the details of this trip for days, but I really wanted to conclude with some advice for photographers, or anyone for that matter, when traveling:

1) When sh*t hits the fan, stay calm so you can think logically and rationally about your next move
2) Lower your expectations and don’t put too much pressure on yourself – relax and just be
3) Listen, observe and absorb – you’ll be surprised how much you learn and how much you see when you do
4) When things don’t go according to your itinerary, keep a positive attitude and just go with it – you might discover something amazing
5) Talk to everyone you can, make friends, share stories, and stay in touch
6) If you have a travel companion, it’s extremely important to make time to shoot solo
7) Ask permission before taking someones photo – - make a connection with your subject
8) Keep an open mind at all times
9) Keep a journal of what you do every day – its almost impossible to keep every detail of every day in your head
10) Be smart, be aware of your surroundings and stay organized, but most importantly plan for the unexpected – or better yet, welcome it.

LA-based photographer Dan Krauss shares photos of the Leyenda Eterna festival in the Mexican desert.

Fourteen hours of driving to get to and from this hot spring oasis in the middle of the Mexican desert to spend 32 hours at the best party of my life. I think it was worth the headache.

See more photos on Dan’s blog.

Ridgefield, CT-based photographer Michael Cali shot a camel farm in the middle of the Dubai desert with a Rolleiflex 2.8F.

It’s not very often that you find yourself at a camel farm in the middle of the desert. During our recent adventure over to Dubai, Drew Gurian, John Keatley, and I decided to trek out and location scout at one of these farms.

After an hour drive toward the middle of nowhere, parking our car on the side of the highway, and hopping in the bed of a random pickup truck, we finally made it to our destination. To say that a beautiful picture could be shot any way you turned would be a complete understatement. I absolutely regret having only brought 3 rolls of film, but I had to make due with what I had.

A special thank you goes out the wonderful farmer that offered to take part in my pictures! I’m already looking forward to next year, in which I can have myself a proper shoot at this incredible farm!

See more photos on Michael’s blog.

Photographer Jamie Thrower is visiting India and took some photos and portraits of early morning at the Golden Temple in Amirstar, Punjab, India.

Shining in the early morning light, the gilded temple left me speechless at first glance. Many pilgrims who come here talk about a transcendent vision as they first set eyes upon the golden monument as well as miraculous cures by the touch of the water in the pool of nectar in which the shrine stands. This water is purified and filtered and many Sikhs drink, wade or immerse themselves in the holy water, a cleansing and purifying ritual.

See more photos on Jamie’s blog.

Seattle-based photographer Keith Daigle traveled to India and took portraits of villagers in the northern state of Haryana.

On a recent trip to India I went to the northern state of Haryana, taking portraits of villagers who make their lives there. Haryana is one of the richer states in India, its economy based primarily on agriculture. The livelihoods of the people I photographed was related to farming in one way or another. No one ever turned down my request for a photograph, and often times I had to field multiple requests to take peoples photos at a time. I was amazed at the generosity and the willingness of people to literally bring a stranger into their homes and treat him as part of the family.

See more of Keith’s work on his website.

Atlanta-based photographer David Walter Banks recently traveled to Florida for work and has decided to start a personal project documenting his own view of the state.

This most recent trip led me throughout the state, from the magical world of Disney to a small town’s big parade to the sunny shores of South Beach with a great little circus thrown in to top it off.  These early visits on this new project have been broad swaths, whereas the next couple trips will be based around specific events and gatherings.  I feel as though I’m just now beginning to gain an understanding of the topic I will be grappling with, but I’m excited with the nearly endless prospects of images out there waiting to be found.

Continue reading and see more photos on David’s blog.

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Honolulu-based photographer Elyse Butler Mallams shares some beautiful photos from 2012.

I’ve seen a lot of amazing sights this past year, feeling blessed and excited for what’s to come in 2013. Just got home from a holiday trip to the mainland, reflecting on the year and looking through photos, I wanted to share a random assortment of some beauty seen in 2012.

See more photos on Elyse’s blog.

Wallace, Alaska

Underwater Makaha

Diamond Head Drive-by

Wild Horses, Waipio Valley

New York-based photographer Robert Caplin put together his favorite Instagram photos of 2012.

With 2012 coming to an end, I thought it’d be fun to take a look back through all those iPhone photos I took and posted to Instagram over the past year. It was a daunting task to wade through over 1000 photos and narrow it down to the 60 I’m presenting here because every snap was a great memory. I saw many trends in my mobile pictures, the most prevalent were those of my cat, snaps in my picturesque backyard of Central Park, pics taken from windows of the various offices I visited for portrait shoots, and many taken from my window seat on my various flights around the world. If 2013 is only half as awesome as 2012, I’ll be a happy man. Let’s hope Instagram clarifies their terms of service so I can continue sharing my photos with you all through the platform!

If you don’t already follow my feed, you can do so from my Instagram homepage! Here’s to all of you and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

See his more photos on his blog and follow Robert on Instagram!

Atlanta-based photographer David Walter Banks shares photos of Sapelo island off the coast of Southern Georgia.

Last week I spent a day on the small barrier island of Sapelo off the coast of Southern Georgia.  My senses and awareness of my surroundings seemed to heighten the second my cell and internet connection wafted away somewhere over the Atlantic aboard the small ferry.

The grandson of the woman whose trailer I rented picked me up from the ferry and shuttled me down the dirt roads through forests of live oak, coated heavily in Spanish moss, to my temporary home.  The next day I set off at dawn in my rusted, yet trusty F-250 extended cab pickup, rented from the same kind family I stayed with.

I explored the small bumpy roads, their deep ruts a tale of those before me.  I hiked the trails, walked dangerously far out with the receding tides, and even poked around Reynolds Mansion where the ghosts of plantation owners past reside.  When the few people and infrastructure slipped out of site in the rear-view, the island seemed simply Jurassic.  And when you are all alone, you can hear the island whisper its secrets, steeped in history and culture and pleading for a savior.

Continue reading and see more photos on David’s blog.