10 Years of X Mount: September Theme

As September comes to a close, this month’s theme for the Ten Years of X Mount is all about Travel Photography and showing off your favorite shot. This, for me, is rather difficult as I there are so many that I’ve taken while traveling and it’s hard to only pick one. Though, after some careful consideration, I believe I have settled on one, but I would also like to highlight my favorite shot from my recent trips over the last three years since I really began to travel.

Nashville

If you know me, you know I absolutely love a good double exposure shot. While exploring the downtown area this past June, Olivia and I discovered this little sweet shop in this alleyway and I found this spot really intriguing. I had a vision of this in my head and the execution turned out exactly how I imagined it. In the first exposure, I turned up the kelvin for the white balance, flipped the X-T3 upside down, turned the kelvin down, lined it up to give it that trippy effect and then took the shot. It’s one of my favorite double exposure shots and I hope to get more like this in the future.

Orlando

There were a couple I had in mind for my Orlando shot, but this is usually the first photo I show people when I look up my photos from Universal Studios. I’m a big fan of this ‘Dramatic Monochrome’ film recipe from FujiXWeekly and being able to capture this with the crowd of people as the Dragon roared, intimidating everyone with it’s flames - just a wild and magical experience that I always wanted to experience at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It sums up that enchanting moment while captured in one of my styles.

Las Vegas

This was a no brainer - while in Vegas, I headed out to Red Rock Canyon to go horseback riding, yet what I wasn’t ready for were these incredible views of the mountains. Something I’ve always been very fond of, the ideas of these towering mountains that felt larger than life, still, seeing it in person I was in awe. I felt so small seeing the size of these, and I know there are bigger ones which is definitely exciting, but being able to capture something like this that was completely new to me was so fulfilling. From the scope and size to the colors, I love this shot so much.

California

Alright, this one deserves a bit of an explanation. Yes, I photographed the Golden Gate Bridge, some of the Red Woods, beautiful landscapes in Burlingame, even getting to photograph Alcatraz Island - but this one stands out to me the most. While exploring Napa Valley, Olivia and I stumbled upon this large stack of hay barrels and she had the idea to quickly use them for some photos. From the colors to the lighting, this shot always looked like something straight out of a magazine to me. Was it someone else’s property? Probably. Did we still get the shot? Absolutely.

Massachusetts

The Sailboat. While production was ongoing for Olivia’s feature film, Hi., we were shooting a scene on the beach during golden hour. In between takes, I took it upon myself to keep shooting and keep looking around, as the east coast was something new to me and a place I have never explored before. This tiny sailboat out in the water looked so peaceful, reminding me of minimal photography, where there was one subject (perhaps small), in the entire frame. paired with the pink clouds from the sunset, its something that reminds me of that peace - a place I connected with as I really felt my career as a photographer start to take off. This is also the place that Olivia and I’s relationship blossomed. This photo represents those three things and will forever hold a place in my heart.

Aruba

My favorite image being one from Aruba may be no surprise to those who have followed my work for some time now. I mean, I only talked about this trip for like six months haha. Traveling abroad for the first time was life changing. Indulging in a different way of life and learning about the cultures on this tiny island opened my eyes completely. This photo was taken on one of the last nights of my stay on that happy island, which felt like a cherry on top. The sunsets there were always gorgeous, always full of color and life. It was the perfect way to close out my first adventure outside the country, where I learned many new things. It was also my first trip with my Fujifilm X-T3 which I had acquired only a couple months before. Still an amazing trip, and I hope to come back here one day to see these sunsets again.

These last couple trips were all wonderful. I’d include some shots from my trips back to Chicago, but I used to live there so I’m not sure if they totally count in my eyes. I’m glad that this month’s challenge was about Travel Photography, as it is getting me pumped for my next trip, which is right around the corner! I will be headed to Costa Rica and will be taking the brand new Fujifilm X-H2S with me and I cannot wait to share my captures and experiences traveling outside the country once again.

I’ll have another post up before I go on my trip, the next one being about what’s in my travel camera bag and what I will be packing for the X-H2S.