photography by wasim.

Tag: portland

Young Scientists Growing Up Early and Embracing Ecology

I walked into a 3rd grade classroom to hear them asking their teachers if they had to worry about being shot by guns. An hour later, I found myself joining the school in a walkout to protest gun violence.

The next class I walked into had a list on their TV of steps to take to identify ‘fake news.’

While I haven’t been in a third grade classroom in decades, I was pretty sure this was certainly not the 3rd grade I knew…

I was here to shoot photos for Ecology in Classrooms and Outdoors (ecologyoutdoors.org), a non-profit I’ve recently joing the board of that’s dedicated to connecting children to nature, especially minorities and those in under-served areas.

There are kids that live 15 minutes from the great Columbia River Gorge that have never been in a forest.

I KNOOOOOWWWWW!

This had to change.

And I wanted to help.

I needed to help.

So when I was asked to join the board, I jumped on the opportunity, and so far it’s been a wonderful experience.

After the gun questions and the fake news detection reminders, the ECO educator was introduced and the vibe of the classroom shifted immediately to one of celebration. The kids couldn’t contain themselves that it was ECO day. As for me? Knowing that these kids are getting excited about learning about nature and ecology was one of the most hopeful feelings I’ve ever felt. And when the educator, Betsy Lattig Boudreau, referred to them as scientists, and that galvanized their attention, my heart felt fuzzy and warm.

They were taught the differecnes between native and invasive species, the difference between organic and inorganic material, and were giving the opportunity to plant native trees in a children’s arboretum in town.

I was home!

Anyhow, I had the opportunity to join them on 3 sessions so far, 2 in the classroom, and one in the field with Friends of Trees, planting and learning about native trees in a habitat just outside of town.

There’s plenty more to come, including some 360 Virtual Reality video, but I couldn’t contain myself any longer…I had to share a few images of the happy!

Nevermind the temporary nonsense, the future is looking quite bright people…

If you’re jonesin’ for more yackadaggadoos and wabayabahoos:
instagram: @wasimofnazareth
ello: @wasimofnazareth
google+: +WasimMuklashy

And if you enjoy these posts and support what I’m doing in bring ecology and science to new generations, please feel free to subscribe to my mailing list at top right of this page, and I’ll deliver each post to you as I publish them, and if you support the kind of work I’m doing and the things I’m sharing, please consider ‘subscribing to me’ on Patreon.com. Yup, subscribing to ‘me.’ You can even set the price. Literally, $1 per month if you want. No joke, I’m a poor bastard, so your little helps me a LOT.

March 29, 2018
800 Miles. 36 Hours. 17 Frames. Find New Roads From Portland To San Francisco By Camaro.

So last week was a bizarre week. I got a call last Saturday to see if I wanted to accompany a pair of journalists from Time Magazine’s The Drive website as their videographer in a new 2016 Camaro on a road trip from Portland to San Francisco for their Find New Roads campaign. The thing is, we had 36 hours to cover 800 miles.

Now, on the one hand, this was insanely exciting as an experience. Not to mention, that Camaro handles quite well in all the conditions we had it in, including at least 200 miles of nausea inducing twists and turns and curves. This is great fun for those in the front seats, especially the driver, but for me in the back seat…eh…I’ve never felt like puking from a car drive before this one.

And it happened 3 times.

However, I attribute that to the driver, not the car. He was certainly testing the limits of that beast, and the lack of ‘oh shit’ handles had my ‘oh shits’ unleashed more times than even I felt comfortable with, but judging by the fact that I’m still alive, he knew what he was doing, that’s for sure.

Now, on the other hand, as a photographer, this was pure and utter torture. We drove through the Redwood National and State Parks (NPS), the Avenue of Giants, Oregon’s insanely gorgeous countryside, the Pacific Coast Highway from Eureka and Humboldt and Mendocino through Fort Bragg, all the way down the coast to San Francisco. It was all insanely gorgeous country, arguably some of the most incredible in the world. But it was literally like being in heaven and then being kidnapped back to purgatory in a blur – a serious tease that would give any of Portland’s legendary strip clubs a run for their money – from golden fall colored vineyards to smoky Oregonian mountains to fall-colored tree-canopied one lane country roads and movie quality s-curves and riverside valleys laden with giant redwoods and legendary pines, to northern California’s pristine lost coast.

Just about ALL of this has been on my bucket list for a long long long long long time, so I was happy that I’d finally get to do it, HOWEVER, we only got to stop maybe 4 or 5 times, mostly for pee breaks, for a total of about 30-45 minutes through all this, so never got to set up for a single shot. Not one.

At all.

In the most beautiful spots of Oregon and California.

I, along with my cameras, were whimpering loudly and considerably.

Anyhow, save for some GoPro footage, the video portions were all shot on Samsung NX1 and Samsung NX500 ‬, both of which handled wonderfully under all the circumstances.

Click here for the article on TheDrive.com for the driver’s version of events.

And here’s a video of my version of what happened:

<br />

As far as stills, figured roll with the punches (and the hairpin twists and turns) and went with the mobile phone for the mobile pictures. Here is my 36 hour trip, from Portland to San Francisco, by Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and edited in Snapseed. It starts with my flight leaving Los Angeles to Portland, and ends with return flight back to Los Angeles from San Francisco.

For more of my shenanigans:
instagram: @wasimofnazareth
ello: @wasimofnazareth
google+: +WasimMuklashy

If you enjoy these posts, please feel free to subscribe to my mailing list at top right of this page, and I’ll deliver each post to you as I publish them, and if you support the kind of work I’m doing and the things I’m sharing, please consider ‘subscribing to me’ on Patreon.com. Yup, subscribing to me. You can even set the price. Literally, $1 per month if you want. No joke, your little helps me a LOT!

November 16, 2015
Turning Over A New Leaves – A Pacific Northwest Autumn Meditation

I recently spent an incredible week in the Pacific Northwest, the reasons of which will come in a more detailed post next week, but while I was up there, I couldn’t help but capture a few scenes of the foliage beginning to turn. Coming from Southern California, it’s always a treat to be able to capture some fall colors, and just wanted to share those with you here as a bit of a peaceful meditation. Best viewed if you click on one, a lightbox will open. I recommend scrolling slowly through them – at least 15 seconds on each. Hope you enjoy.

1. samsung galaxy note 5
2. samsung nx1 | 100mm | f4.5 | 1/60s | iso320
3. samsung nx1 | 150mm | f6.3 | 1/250s | iso640
4. samsung nx1 | 150mm | f6.3 | 1/160s | iso250
5. samsung nx1 | 150mm | f7.1 | 1/20s | iso100
6. samsung nx1 | 150mm | f6.3 | 1/60s | iso250

For more of the things and the stuffs:
instagram: @wasimofnazareth
ello: @wasimofnazareth
google+: +WasimMuklashy

October 16, 2015
DSLR? What DSLR? Oh How Quickly We Forget – A Mirrorless Camera Pacific Northwest Photo Trip – The Epilogue

So this is just a quick wrap-up post to the Pacific Northwest Photo Trip series. As you all know by now, I have been fortunate enough to be chosen as one of 50 Samsung Imageloggers, essentially, a brand ambassador for Samsung’s line of mirrorless camera systems. And as you know by now, this is the first trip in which I battled with myself beforehand on whether or not to bring the DSLR I’m so used to and that has been the crux of my work for several years. And, well, I was pushed by my peers to challenge myself…so I did.

Well, as the previous 7 parts to series have illustrated, I had absolutely NO problem adjusting to the Samsung NX30, and there was not a single moment on the entire trip that I had wished I brought my trusty Nikon DSLR system. As a matter of fact, a bit of the unexpected happened. The guy I was with, who had flown me out to help him on the video project, had an entire Canon 5D Mark III kit with a variety of L-Series lenses on hand, but as soon as he got a hold of the NX30, ended up spending the rest of the time envious of the lack of weight I was carrying and the results I was getting out of this thing. While he might start searching for other mirrorless options in the full-frame sensor range for his purposes, the point is, he is now considering a mirrorless system.

Anyhow what you see above, as you’ve probably noticed this time, is a video. It’s nothing special, there’s no narrative, no story. It’s just simply a series of clips from some of the various locations we were in that you saw the pictures in the last 6 installments of this series from. A small sample of the sights…the sounds…the colors – all taken on the Samsung NX30 mirrorless camera. Being an ex-video guy myself, I was curious to see the quality of the video feature set as well as the still image quality. I was not disappointed. (Make sure to click the little gear wheel and choose to watch in HD quality!)

As far as the pictures, I’ve dropped them all into the madness of one random scrolling gallery below. Enjoy. And thanks for following along with the series. In case you missed them and would like to read the words behind the pictures, here are the links from the beginning:

Part 1 – To DSLR Or Not To DSLR? That Is The Question

Part 2 – Going Green. And Greener. And Greenest

Part 3 – Guided By The Youth (And All The Purty Colors)

Part 4 – Cheez Whizzed In Stumptown

Part 5 – Flanked By Firs And Braving The Bridge

Part 6 – From The Majesty Of Mother Nature To The Glory Of The Human Soul

For more of my madness: Instagram: @wasimofnazareth Twitter: @wasimofnazareth Google+: www.Google.com/+WasimMuklashy Facebook: www.Facebook.com/WasimOfNazareth

May 28, 2014
Cheez Whizzed In Stumptown – A Mirrorless Camera Pacific Northwest Photo Trip – Part 4

So we decided that day 4 was going to be our “takin’ it ‘easy for all them sinners” day (extra points if you get that reference…). After charging it pretty hard the past 3 days from sunup to well past sundown, we were understandable a bit groggy this morning so decided to sort of ease ourselves into the day and let the day play out on its own, especially since we had already got more footage than we expected in the can. We decided to play it close to home and started off by heading into the Forest Hills Park that spoons the city of Portland from the west side. For what we were looking for, it was perfect. It’s a popular hiking, biking, and walking haven for the city’s residents and the morning’s precipitation gave it a polished saturated gleen that we used to our advantage. We were able to capture a few shots we had on the checklist for the video portion, and I managed to snap a few more stills on my new trusty sidekick, the Samsung NX30.

After that, we headed into downtown Portland for a much needed cup o’ coffee at the award-winning Stumptown Coffee Roasters, and, well, it was pretty apparent that whatever award it was…was well-deserved. An absolutely perfect cappuccino and a vegan Peanut Butter bar sidekick that came highly recommended by the staff, on a barstool at the window, looking out on Portland’s rainy Southwest Stark Street. Yup, that’ll do. We took the opportunity to lazily talk over the shotlist and a tentative game plan for the next few days before walking over to 10th and Washington, one side of a half block that is essentially a mobile food cart mall. I meandered a bit checking out the myriad of culinary offerings but once I noticed “we use real Cheez Whiz” on the ‘Steak Your Claim’ Philly Cheesesteak cart, I was sold.

Since we knew last couple of days were going to be just as full as the first few, we figured this was a good time to call it day and head back to home base and begin editing and sorting through some of the stuff from earlier in the week and, other than a few portrait snaps of our host’s insanely adorable daughter (can you blame me!?), that was that. I mean, after a Cheez Whiz drenched Philly Cheesesteak…well…there isn’t going to be much more physical movement going on…and we were SOOOO okay with that.

Click here to read the next post, “Part 5 – Flanked by Firs and Braving The Bridge.”

And if you missed the first three, CLICK HERE to start at the beginning…

For more of my madness: Instagram: @wasimofnazareth Twitter: @wasimofnazareth Google+: www.Google.com/+WasimMuklashy Facebook: www.Facebook.com/WasimOfNazareth

May 6, 2014
Guided By The Youth (And All The Purty Colors) – A Mirrorless Camera Pacific Northwest Photo Trip – Part 3

The second complete day of this thing was a bit of a lesson in just going with the flow and seeing where it takes you, even if it means thwarting your original vision and plans, especially when conditions that are beyond your control dictate those decisions.

The plan was to hook up with local photography phenom Lijah Hanley, the guy I mentioned in the last post (you MUST check out this guy’s work, and while you do, trip out on the fact that he’s still only 18…). The idea was he was going to take us to a hillside covered in cherry blossoms that was overlooking Mount Hood that he had scouted for us the week before. We had visions of pink petals falling with a snowy mountain top in the distance dancing through our heads. However, once we got there, what were ripe blossoms a week before, had already gone and morphed into white flower buds under a very gloomy sky, rendering the scene flat and unusable for our purposes. However, one innate skill photographers seem to have is relishing in improvisation, and even at age 18, Lijah led us on a journey to another location not too far away.

Since these were essentially his stomping grounds, we had Lijah take the lead and the backup destination he led us to was a field of balsam root, a variety of sunflowers, that apparently only bloom for a few weeks out of the year, so in this sense, we got lucky. We found ourselves wandering across acres of sunflower and wildflower laden hillside, capturing the very shots we needed for the project (and, of course, a few stills of my own…). After a couple of hours, we were approached by the owner of the property. Unbenownst to us, we were trespassing. (Oops. We thought that fence was to keep the elk out!) But thankfully, no one came chasing us with a shotgun, he simply expressed his wish that we ask next time, and then asked if we’d be kind enough to send him a few pictures. I snapped a quick portrait, and he was on his way. While the property owner was completely ok with us continuing to wander on his hillside, we were ready to move onto the next location, so packed up our gear and headed out as well.

After inhaling a damn tasty pepperoni and jalapeño pie at Andrew’s Pizza in Hood River, Oregon, the next stop Lijah led us to was Horsetail & Ponytail Falls along the Columbia River Gorge, essentially the borderline between Washington and Oregon. This was, not surprisingly, insanely gorgeous. Prime Pacific Northwest rainforest, replete with ferns and moss and waterfalls and pools and rivers and streams and slugs, was staring us right in the face. And it was overwhelming. Anything that was filmed in ‘The Shire,’ could EASILY have taken place in this lush chunk of Oregon country. Every single shade of green imaginable existed here, and as soon as we saw the destination Lijah was leading us to, we knew we weren’t going anywhere else today – Ponytail Falls – a waterfall that cascades over a cave that allowed you to walk behind the fall, in front of the fall, alongside the fall. The trail horseshoed around the backend of it, providing both shelter and an awesome view from the backend of a waterfall that few get to see or experience. And we certainly relished in it. Below are some of the images from this part of the journey.

If you’re ready for part 4, “Cheez Whizzed In Stumptown,” click HERE.

And if you missed the first few parts of this adventure and would like to catch up, here are the links:

Part 1 – A Pacific Northwest Photo Trip : To DSLR Or Not To DSLR? That Is The Question.

Part 2: A Pacific Northwest Photo Trip : Going Green. And Greener. And Greenest. (And Mirrorless).

Oh, and for those of you keeping tabs…another day goes by in which that Nikon kit wasn’t even thought of. This Samsung NX30 continues to kick butt!

For more of my madness: Instagram: @wasimofnazareth Twitter: @wasimofnazareth Google+: www.Google.com/+WasimMuklashy Facebook: www.Facebook.com/WasimOfNazareth

May 2, 2014
Going Green. And Greener. And Greenest. – A Mirrorless Camera Pacific Northwest Photo Trip – Part 2

So this was the first full day of this thing, and the weather forecast told us it was going to be 100% chance of rain. Not exactly what we wanted to hear, but, well, that part of things we can’t control. We headed out to our first location anyway to see what would happen, and the fact that it was hailing and there was ice induced accidents on the side of the road were not encouraging signs. However, once we turned off the main highway onto Lucia Falls Road towards Moulton Falls, our first destination, divine intervention stepped in and it started to clear up. Literally, the clouds parted, and the sun began to shine. And best of all, during moments that we wanted softer light, thin layers of clouds began to cover the UV and created what was essentially a diffuser across the sky, providing a soft light that helped saturate the greens even further thanks to the morning’s rain.

We spent a solid 3 or 4 hours at Moulton Falls, just at the bank of the river, admiring, shooting, and trying to capture the flowing water, the incredibly vibrant moss covered rocks and tree branches, and the details therein. We could have spent all day here, but per a recommendation from Lijah Hanley, the insanely talented 18 year old photographer we hooked up with out here in Oregon, we decided to head over to an old mill to try our luck for the rest of the afternoon and whatever light we had left. Figured if it didn’t work out, it was only about 30 minutes from where we were so we could always head back once we knew better.

But…as luck would have it…this place was an absolute goldmine! As soon as we got out of the car, we looked at each other and immediately knew…we were not going anywhere for the rest of the day. This was definitely going to be our home. I helped set him up for the video, and he jumped into his zone, I grabbed my gear, and I got into my zone, and we were each in our own little groove for the next 4 hours. This was a playground. The Cedar Creek Grist Mill. Couldn’t think of a more picturesque setting to close out the first day. I have never seen so many different shades of green in one place…heck, I didn’t even know that many existed! Anyhow, I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed making them.

Oh yes, and I must say…after my first proper full day of shooting, under several lighting conditions and situations, from rain to fog to sun to shade, across multiple locations, not a single time did I think to myself, “I wish I had my Nikon DSLR kit.” This Samsung NX30 is performing beautifully . As a matter of fact, due in large part to shedding several pounds of weight, It’s actually seemed to be conducive to freeing me up for more creativity. I truly thought it was going to be a lot tougher than it actually was.

Anyhow, the next part in this image adventure coming soon, and if you missed it, click here to read part 1, “To DSLR Or Not To DSLR? That Is The Question.”

And click here when you’re ready for Part 3 – “Guided By The Youth (And All The Purty Colors)”

For more of my madness: Instagram: @wasimofnazareth Twitter: @wasimofnazareth Google+: www.Google.com/+WasimMuklashy Facebook: www.Facebook.com/WasimOfNazareth

April 29, 2014
To DSLR Or Not To DSLR? That Is The Question – A Mirrorless Camera Pacific Northwest Photo Trip – Part 1

So when he called and said he needed a ‘wingman’ for a video and photography project, I was already in. When he said he’d pay me, I lost my frickin’ mind…literally…the gig I’ve been dreaming about for…well…ever. Yes. Done. Let’s go. Can’t talk too much about the project just yet, but essentially, the man behind bringing the world’s best magicians to the forefront, Murphy’s Magic’s Director of New Product Development Jason Brumbalow, who I also worked with at VectorMount for GoPro, was recruiting me to go help and guide him through making a series of nature videos and photographs in the Pacific Northwest for a personal project. I was humbled and I was immediately in.

My biggest decision was whether or not I was going to be taking my DSLR with me. Why was this a big decision? Well, I’ve never taken any sort of extended trip, let alone a trip designed for photography and videography, without the DSLR. And even a short 2 years ago, I wouldn’t have even considered it. But after playing with these mirrorless systems thanks to Samsung including me in their Imagelogger program, well, the decision became…real. And when it came down to it, I figured, one, these things are definitely capable, and two, if anything, it would add a bit of a challenge and excitement to what was already shaping up to be an epic journey.

Thanks to that program, they recently sent out their new NX30 body, and just last week, a surprise package that included a 30mm/f2, a 10mm fisheye, and a 50-200mm lens showed up at my door. I took that as a sign. So I went with the Samsung NX30. And I left the Nikon kit behind (*gasp*)!

Anyhow, figured I’d post here to take you along the journey the best I could. Here are a few images taken from Day 1. We flew into Portland at about10am, and were picked up by Jeremy, our host for the week, and Jason’s good friend. From the airport, he took us for a bite at one of his local haunts, Produce Row, where the taste and flavor absolutely matched the presentation. From banger plates to corned beef gruyere sandwiches, somehow it all landed on our table. Once were crawled out from under the coma, he took us to the house, we settled in, and then he dropped the keys to the truck in our hands and off we went!

We spent the remainder of the afternoon scouting the surrounding areas to see what were in for. Umm…in a word…perfect. Our first location was Moulton Falls, and literally, it was the first place we pulled off on the side of the road on the east fork of the Lewis river, a tributary that leads into the Columbia River, and it was immediately apparent it was the first location we’d set up at the next day. We then headed downstream just a tad further to the Lucia Falls, also on the Lewis river. At this point, the rain started up and the sunlight began to disappear, so we figured it was as good a time as any to head back to home base to work out our game plan for the week.

Some of the best pictures of the trip are in part 2 of this series, “Going Green And Greener And Greenest”…trust me, they’re worth it!!

(Oh, and yes, please excuse the vertigo…I went a little crazy with the new fisheye on day 1…all apologies…I’ve never had a fisheye before. I promise it tapers down in the coming days)

For more of my madness: Instagram: @wasimofnazareth Twitter: @wasimofnazareth Google+: www.Google.com/+WasimMuklashy Facebook: www.Facebook.com/WasimOfNazareth

April 23, 2014