ANGELA B. PAN

While exploring the top of Mt Fløyen, Andrew and I ran into some furry friends! If you know me, I get really excited when I see animals especially if I was not expecting to see them at all. I definietly didn’t expect to see goats on the top of a mountain so I was double-ly excited when there were at least 10 of them.

They mostly kept to themselves eating the grass all around the ground so I kneeled down to switch lenses to try to capture them in their own environment. I looked up and I saw this perspective. Granted taking picture of a goat butt isn’t the most glamourous situation but I thought that the framing was really cool. I love how it’s almost like they’re touching but in reality they’re a couple of feet away from each other.

At one point, one of the goats must have thought Andrew was their keeper because he kept on following him around. It was actually kinda funny and a little scary because of those horns. But then when their actual keeper showed up and they all “ran” (as fast as I’ve seen a goat run) to their shelter to eat.

It must have put them in a good mood because after that they were all over the mountain. Some were even knocking horns with each other. I couldn’t really tell if they were playing or actually fighting. Either way, I’m glad me or Andrew weren’t anywhere near them while they were doing that. LOL. So thank you goats for providing even more entertainment while on top of Mt. Fløyen. Not only the views were spectacular but it made the trip even more memorable.

My camera settings for this image is F7.1 at 1/320 ISO 1250 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom lens.

One of the first things we did when we arrived in Norway was head over to the Fløibanen funicular in Bergen. Luckily our hotel was really close by and it was only a 10 minute walk to the station. I was happy to see that we were able to purchase either one way tickets or round trip tickets. Andrew and I decided to do the one way because neither one of us wanted to hike up the mountain but we thought it would be cool to see the views walking down.

Well, it was stunning to stay the least. It was raining on our way up which wasn’t too bad since we were covered by the tram but once we arrived to the top of Mt Fløyen I didn’t even notice the rain anymore. We spent some time walking around the 180 degree semi circle which provided amazing views of Bergen and the surrounding area.

While we were walking down the mountain, the rain was off and on but mostly on. We stood under some trees hoping that the rain would pass quickly but it didn’t. So we just kept it moving. But during the times when the rain was off, the sunlight would come through the clouds and it would create this gorgeous light on the buildings below us. It was like the whole world was glowing. So if you’re ever in Bergen, I’d highly recommend the Fløibanen funicular. It’s a great ride up and an easy walk down. I just hope it won’t be raining like it was when we went.

Quick tip: While walking down Mt Fløyen, I noticed that any scenic view had a bench right by it. It’s like a little sign saying sit down, relax and enjoy the scenery. But it wasn’t just in Bergen that they had that. It was all over Norway. So if you ever had a doubt you would see something nice, look for a bench!

My camera settings for this image is F5.0 at 1/2000 ISO 500 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom lens.

Have you ever gone on a trip for a week and it seems like you’ve been gone for a month? That’s what I’m feeling now but in the best way possible. I think it feels like we were gone for so long because everyday Andrew and I were in Norway there was something thing new and exciting to do and see. To be honest, I didn’t know much about the country before I left. Now I can’t wait to go back. We only got to see a little portion of the massive country and there’s so much more I need to experience and photograph.

This image was taken on one of our last stops on our road trip around Norway in Ålesund. It was one of our first views of the city and had to immediately pull over. The water was pristine and the reflection was amazing. Andrew and I walked all around this water when we decided we wanted to cross the bridge to see what the view looked like from the other side. I tend to walk slow in general but if I have a camera in my hand, I walk even slower. Andrew, on the hand, walks fast. So it’s not uncommon for him to walk about 10 feet ahead of me whenever we’re going somewhere. I love how it worked out though. The scale of this 6 foot guy compared to this massive mountain makes him look so tiny. Next time I just have to get him to wear a more colorful jacket or something. We both tend to wear dark colors all the time.

My camera settings for this image is F5.0 at 1/4000th of a second at ISO 500 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide angle lens.

PS If you’re interested in learning more about how I planned the road trip, all our stops, and things I would do again, let me know! I think it would be fun to write a guide to share all my experiences. Plus this was one of the best trips ever and I think a lot of people would enjoy it.

So excited to see that fall has FINALLY arrived in Shenandoah National Park. I’ve been waiting for all of October for the leave to change. Except the visibility was very low while we were there.

Yesterday my friend, Larry and I met really early in the morning to head to the Thorton Gap entrance at Shenandoah National Park. As I was pulling out of my neighborhood I could see that it was already a little foggy  where we live but the more west we went, the foggier it got. It was so exciting. Y’all know how much I love shooting in the fog. It’s my favorite weather to shoot in! But once we got there, it was SUPER foggy. Like whiteout. Sunrise is around 7:20 but we couldn’t really see any kind of daylight until 7:25a. The visibility was probably less than 100ft. At some points it looked like cars were coming out of no where because you couldn’t even see their headlights until they were really close by. It was kinda nuts but totally awesome. I’m pretty sure we said “wow, crazy” about 200 times each as we were driving through the park.

The best part was that it smelled like fog. You know that smell? Yea, the smell of happiness.

Luckily, Larry is a sony man as well and just recently purchased the 100-400mm lens. He was kind enough to let me use it for a little while, even after knowing my tripod story. I was shooting it handheld. It was a little bit heavier than I am used to, but it was still very easy to capture sharp images. I felt like a sports photographer the entire time. LOL.

My camera settings for this image is 1/60th of a second at F5.6 at ISO 1000 with my Sony A7II and Larry’s 100-400mm. The focal length of this is at 282mm.

If you guessed Iceland yesterday than you are correct! This was shot last time I was there. I was with a group of people who weren’t photographers. This time I hope to spend more time photographing this beautiful country. I can’t wait to explore!

Andrew and I were watching Anthony Bourdain’s Layover: Taipei edition the other night. It was so fun to watch because it brought back great memories from my trip last year. Memories of food and places I’d visited. At one point, Anthony brought up Maokong gondola rides. As soon as it came up, Andrew asked if I had any pictures from there. YES I do! So this is to prove to Andrew that I rode up the mountain side.