maryland

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Its been a couple of years since it’s been built and guess what. I still haven’t been on the Capital Wheel. I should really put that on my to-do list. I bet the views from there are real nice. For some reason every time I’ve been to the National Harbor, it’s closed. But then again, I’m usually there just to eat and not really anything else. Have you had Grace’s Mandarin? OMG so good. LOL.

I captured this image about a year ago just by luck. I happened to be driving home from my friend’s house in Maryland and noticed how insanely foggy it was getting outside. But when I crossed over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, I noticed how the fog was effecting the colors of the ferris wheel. It was like something I had never seen before. It was sooo foggy that the fog was actually carrying the colors from the lights. I had to make a quick U-turn to check things out. Luckily I had my camera and tripod with me. Oh man, I would have been so upset if I didn’t. But as I got closer to the ferris wheel, the cooler it looked. The fog blocked everything else out and the only thing visible was the wheel. If I shot this without the fog, you would have probably seen so much many more lights from the National Harbor or even the roads leading up to it. I’m so grateful that I had my gear with me.

My camera settings for this image is F4.0 at 0.8 seconds at ISO 125 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm camera.

Hope you all have a great weekend! Can you believe it’s already December 15th? Luckily I finished all my holiday shopping earlier this week. Thank you Amazon! I’ve never been so prepared 🙂

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Flowers are my favorite. They make me so happy. Especially when you see a whole bunch of them growing like these sunflowers in southern Maryland. This image was taken last year and I’ve heard the ones this year are just couple weeks away from blooming. Can’t wait!

So if you’re in the DC metro area and interested in shooting these sunflowers, google or click this link for McKee Beshers. It’s hard to give an exact location to where they are but on their website, they’ll have a map of where the sunflowers are blooming. That will be your best bet.

If I can offer you any tips on shooting these sunflowers, it would be BRING BUG SPRAY. Not even joking. I’ve never had so many bug bites in my life. Two years ago, I went with my friend Ryan to go shooting and at one point we decided there were way too many mosquitos and we started running back to the car. Tell me how I swallowed 2 of them!!! It’s absolutely nuts how they just swarm you. I’ll never wear shorts out there. I rather be hot in long pants and a shirt before I even think about going there with too much exposed skin. If you haven’t noticed yet, these bugs are for real. Definietly take precautions. The mosquitos and I are not friends.

Other than that, sunset is probably your best time to go too. I’ve tried sunrise a few times but where these fields are located, sunset is definietly the time with the best light. I’ve seen people bring ladders and that’s probably a cool point of view as well. If you have any other questions about these sunflowers, don’t hesitate to ask 🙂 I know a lot of people were asking me about them on instagram so I think that answers the majority of them.

My settings for this image was F7.1 at 1/13th of a second ISO 125 shot at sunset while a storm was approaching.

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This past Wednesday I had the amazing opportunity to visit the Roni Horn exhibit at the Glenstone Museum in Potomac, Maryland. First of all, this space is amazing. I had no idea that such a modern museum was located in MD. As soon as I drove on to the property, I was super impressed.

The best part of the whole experience was touring the Horn exhibit. First of all, Emily Wei Rales, Director and Chief Curator of Glenstone led the tour which was so thought-provoking and interesting. I felt like I could listen to her talk all day. She explained how Horn’s art explores the idea of a person’s identity, differences between pairs and the use of words, colors and phrases to create art while being influenced by places such as Iceland. This immediately resonated with me since I just got back from Iceland and I’m already ready to go back.

The biggest take away I got from the exhibit is to be mindful and stay true to who you are as a person (whoever that may be). I really got inspired to learn more about myself, how I’m perceived by other people and to learn more about how other artists view the world. I just bought this book. Let me know if you read it. I’m really interested in reading more about current artists and how they think.  So if  you’re in the area and you’ve never been to Glenstone, it comes with my highest recommendation. I’ve already booked another ticket to go back in a couple of weeks.

You know what’s funny? If you asked me a couple of years ago, I would of never called myself an artist. I was never comfortable with the label even though I loved taking pictures. I just saw myself as someone who loved photography but as I grow and learn more, I’m beginning to feel comfortable with the identity and it feels good <3

roni horn, american artist, photographer, painter, sculpture, glenstone museum, potomac, maryland, gallery, exhibition, exhibit, emily wei rales, director, chief curator, thought-provoking, interesting, iceland, identity, self awareness, mindful, inspired, book, art, artist, photography

Here’s a photo my friend, Jenn (Instagram: jennrightmeow) took of me while in Glenstone museum. I was learning so much that I felt like I had to sit down and get it all down on my phone before I forgot.

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DC isn’t just the monuments. It’s a beautiful place with so many things inside the city and surrounding states. Here are a few of my personal favorite images from this past year.

Part 3: Around DC

In no particular order… Click the image to find the original blog post and the story behind it.

chinatown, washington dc, blizzard 2016, jonas, snowzilla, street, black and white, snow, winter,This year started off with a crazy snow storm. Crazy but beautiful.

capital ferris wheel, national harbor, maryland, md, to do, potomac river, fog, sunset, night, ferris wheel, visit, ride, reflection, fog

The Capitol Farris Wheel in the fog on a warm February evening

smithsonian gardens, smithsonian institution, washington dc, landscapes, interior scapes, horticulture, collections and exhibits, national mall, constitution ave, outdoor gardens, magnolias, pink, trees,

Smithsonian Gardens is definietly the hot spot for springtime. I mean C’MON!

flowers, pink, tree, magnolias, smithsonian, garden, look up, dream,

A little close up for all you flower lovers.

newseum, news and jounalism, northwest dc, nw dc, musem, washington dc

Standing outside of the Newseum, creeping on people walking by. I mean watching people walk by.

national portrait gallery, exhibits, modern, contemporary, museum, exhibits, bones, skeleton, shadows, walk with locals, washington dc

Inside the National Portrait Gallery. I had never been to the very top floor. Very cool! Highly recommended.

Electronic Superhighway , america, neon lights, tvs, Nam June Paik, national portrait gallery, washington dc, exhibit, art, modern,

A modern take on America in the National Portrait Gallery.

sunflower, sunflower fields, sunflower seeds, maryland, ms, mckee beshers, yellow, sunset, poolesville, summer, clouds, storm

Beautiful sunflower fields in Southern MD. My favorite summer time flower.

fall leaves, great falls, yellow, golden, sun burst, virginia, autumn, fall foliage,

Great Falls Park is the perfect place to go in Virginia to catch the fall leaves changing colors.

Thank you all so much for tagging along with me on all my crazy adventures this year. It was definietly a blast, but I know 2017 is going to be even better! Cheers to you! <3

In case you missed the previous two posts:
My favorite images from travel
My favorite images of the DC monuments