Up On The Rooftop

Last weekend, I decided I needed to head out to take pictures. It was perfect conditions - it was nice and cool outside, and there were some nice clouds in the sky. If my timing was good, there might just be a neat sunset out there.

So I decided to head to downtown Little Rock and visit another parking deck. This one provides a decent view looking off towards the west, which would hopefully provide some nice views of the sunset.

And indeed, it did turn out to be a nice sunset. But I wasn't in the best spot to get a good view of it. This is the view I had, looking towards the Metropolitan National Bank Building and the spire of the Cathedral of St. Andrew.


And then I waited for dusk to settle in over the city. The view from this parking deck overlooked the top of a row of buildings (which front Main Street), with a scattering of some of Little Rock's taller buildings.


While this isn't the best place around to see the modest Little Rock skyline (that would be the Junction Bridge or Fort Roots), it would make for a perfect shooting location for an action movie. It would be great for a scene where the hero cops (one who plays by his own rules and always getting in trouble with the commissioner, and his partner who is just weeks short of retirement) are chasing a bad guy through downtown. The scene would start with a car chase - where the bad guy's car would improbably smash through a randomly placed fruit cart vendor, and then through a large piece of glass that two guys are trying to carry across the street. Somehow the bad guy would escape and make his way up to the rooftop, where the hero cops would give chase.

The bad guy would run across the rooftop, seen above, with the downtown skyline in the background. But then, he would jump across a narrow alley, rolling to a stop just as the two cops come to the edge of the roof. The two cops would see that the jump is too much for them and hesitate. Then the older cop would say that he is just too old for this sh#t.

Flatside Wilderness

Last week I was in deep discussions with Zack about a possible photo expedition over the weekend. Eventually, we decided to visit Flatside Pinnacle, which sits in the Flatside Wilderness of the Ouachita National Forest. Once that was settled, the debate then turned to what time to head out. I, naturally, opted to depart in mid-morning - the better to sleep in some. But Zack, for some bizarre reason, wanted to leave early enough to catch the sunrise from Flatside. He thought that there might be some nice fog that morning. So I reluctantly agreed to be awake before sunrise on Saturday morning.

My alarm clock went off at 4:45 am, and it took me a few confused minutes to remember why I was supposed to be awake before noon. But I slowly got around and grabbed the camera and headed out the door. Flatside is a great place to take pictures. It's conveniently located to both of us - only about an hour's drive from Little Rock. And it's amazingly scenic. The view from Flatside Pinnacle is of countless rolling hills, all covered in trees.

So I met Zack and we set off into the wilderness in the dark. To reach Flatside, you drive down part of the Winona Scenic Drive. This is all a dirt road, but it's in fairly good condition with just a few bumpy spots. I was driving, so I cringed every time a rock would shoot up and bounce around the undercarriage of the car like it was in a pinball machine. I imagined the rock hitting the fuel tank, the engine, the transmission, the flux capacitor, or whatever else was vulnerable in the car.

But we made it there safe and sound, just before sunrise. The trail at Flatside has recently been fixed up, and re-routed so it gradually works its way up the mountain. But the steepest part of the hike remains, and it quickly reminded me that I haven't done much of any hiking in several months.

The new trail wasn't the only change at Flatside. There was a fire there, which burned off a lot of the undergrowth along the trail. Even on the top of Flatside, there were places that had been scorched. We weren't sure then if the fire was from a lightning strike or from a Forest Service controlled burn.

But we got to the top of Flatside just in time for sunrise. My pictures didn't really turn out, so when the sun disappeared behind some clouds, I went and took some pictures of the view.

And it's a great view - this is looking west across the Ouachitas.

From there we decided to go and explore a nearby bluff, which we thought might provide another good view. This area had also recently burned. The ground was still a blanket of black ash, and it was littered with the charred husks of burned trees. But amongst the scorched ruins was new life - mostly in the forms of bright green ferns. We pushed our way through the burned area, and I managed to get a good deal of soot and ash on me.

But it was worth the hike (and dirty clothes). The view was awesome. And it would be a great spot to catch the sunrise again.


There wasn't as much fog as we had hoped for, but there was still enough to add some character to the scene.


We did stop to get a few shots of the bright green ferns that were growing up in the blackened and seared landscape.




From there we got back to the car and continued on the Winona Scenic Drive. We passed a few signs saying that there were going to be prescribed burns in the area, so that must have been what happened at Flatside. We made a few other stops, but I don't think either of us got any good pictures. We drove around aimlessly while trying to find a good view of Forked Mountain, then explored a few places along Hwy. 7 south of Russellville. After getting lunch in Russellville, it was time to head home. After having woken up at 4:45, I was looking forward to a nice nap.

Small Works On Paper 2012

I'm very pleased and humbled to report that one of my pictures was chosen to tour the state next year as part of the 2012 Small Works on Paper exhibition. SWOP is part of the Arkansas Arts Council, and it will visit ten cities across the state. The opening will be at Laman Library in North Little Rock.

The picture chosen was taken in January of this year, during a very cold and foggy night at the Big Dam Bridge:


The 2012 Small Works on Paper is scheduled to visit 10 cities in Arkansas:
January: North Little Rock - Laman Library
February: Hot Springs - National Park Community College
March: Bentonville - Northwest Arkansas Community College
April: Fort Smith - Fort Smith Regional Art Museum
May: Forrest City - East Arkansas Community College
June: Helena - Delta Cultural Center
July/August: Pine Bluff - Arts & Science Center
August/September: Conway - UCA Baum Gallery of Fine Art
October: Stuttgart - Arts Center of the Grand Prairie
November: Hamburg - Ashley County Museum

This will be the fifth time I've had a picture included in Small Works on Paper, and the fourth year in a row (I imagine they're getting pretty tired of me there). This is the shot currently touring the state as part of the 2011 tour:

Taken along Route 66 in Newkirk, New Mexico.

And the one from 2010:

Taken at Collins Creek...

The one from 2009:

Also taken at Collins Creek.

And the shot was in SWOP 2006:

Taken at Petit Jean State Park.

Friday Night Lights

Last Friday night I went to downtown Little Rock and met up with my friend John. The plan was to try to take pictures of the International Space Station as it scooted along, high above the sky over the downtown skyline. We decided that the best place to set up would be along Riverfront Park in North Little Rock, so we drove over and parked by the I-30 bridge.

The Space Station plans were ruined thanks to some clouds moving in, which blocked the view. But luckily, they did look pretty cool right after dusk. This is the view of the Little Rock skyline, framed under the I-30 bridge.


There were a few flashes of light in the clouds off in the distance, which meant that a storm was on its way. A quick check of the radar showed that a pretty massive storm was making its way towards the city. So the plans then quickly changed into trying to get some pictures of lightning. Since the storm was coming in from the west, we debated a few possible shooting locations.

We ended up staying downtown, and going to a bridge that runs above I-630. This is an ideal shooting location - since you get some decent views of the skyline and of the state capitol. So we set up the cameras and tripods, and waited for the storm to move closer.

It would end up being a pretty big storm. The dark clouds making their way over the horizon were lit up like fireworks by the lightning. As the storm got closer, we were greeted by heavy winds. I read later on that there were wind gusts of 60 miles per hour reported during this storm. They were definitely strong. As the winds rushed down the freeway, pieces of random trash and debris floated along the road. A piece of cardboard drifted across the freeway as if it had a mind of its own.

It wasn't the best conditions for taking pictures. I took a lot of pictures while up on that bridge, but most of them turned out blurry because of camera shake from the wind. But as the storm got closer, so did the lightning. I got one shot with some lightning in it, which somehow ended up being in focus. This is two bolts of lightning, with the I-630 and the dome of the Arkansas State Capitol:


And then the rain hit, which meant it was time to head back to the car. By the time I reached the safety of my Pontiac, the rain was coming down in buckets. In the dry safety of the car, we drove through the soaked streets of downtown in the midst of the heavy downpour. We drove back over and went under the I-30 bridge again. I hoped it would be a good and dry spot where I could maybe just perhaps get some pictures of lightning over the skyline. But the rain was coming down too hard, and the wind too strong, that it never really worked out.

We then drove back over the river and ended up in the parking deck by the River Market. The worst of the storm had passed, but there were still plenty of lightning up in the sky. We both set up the cameras and tried to get a few more pictures. None of my mine turned out, no surprise there. But I ended up getting at least another shot of downtown:

A little lightning in Little Rock

Last Monday evening, I was trying to take my usual after-work nap. But I was rudely awaken by some loud claps of thunder. Because I live in an apartment complex, anything loud like thunder results in a loud chorus of car alarms to break out. The thunder and car alarms weren't all that conducive to napping, so I gave up and went to watch the storm pass by.

My poor apartment complex was battered by the storms, with heavy rains and lightning. It has been extremely dry here this summer, and the rain we got that day was more than triple the amount that we had gotten all summer. The storm was also strong enough that the power in my apartment went out, around 6:30.

A bit of panic set in, where I wondered if the loss of power was due to the storms, or because I forgot to pay the electric bill. But a quick look out the window showed that my neighbors were also without power, and they were all now standing on their balconies watching the rain fall down (there isn't much else to do when you lose electricity).

After the worst of the storm had passed by, I was still without power. So I went across the street to get dinner (at Firehouse Subs, yummy). I took my time there, with the distant hope that when I returned the power would be back on. Which, of course, it wasn't. I went up the stairs of my apartment building in darkness, and decided that I didn't really want to just sit in the dark for the rest of the night. I grabbed the camera and tripod, and slowly made my way down the pitch-black staircase and started driving towards downtown.

The storm was still producing massive amounts of lightning. I tried to think of a good place I could quickly reach that would just maybe have a good view of downtown and the distant storm. I decided to visit one of my favorite parking decks, which has a decent view looking towards the east (where the storm was).

I parked on the ground level and took the elevator to the top. I've been busted a few times by security guards while out taking pictures on parking decks, so I'm always a bit nervous. When I got the top floor, I saw someone leaning against the wall, smoking a cigarette. I don't know if it was security or not, but whoever it was didn't turn around when I quickly walked by. It was probably someone out trying to watch the lightning too...

I quickly set up the camera and started taking pictures. Trying to get a good photograph of lightning is a matter of luck. You have to hope that the storm you are trying to take pictures of will produce lightning, and that it will have lightning in the exact area that you are pointing the camera at. Then you have to hope that the camera is actually in the process of taking a picture during the very brief few seconds when the lightning strikes.

There were some large and bright lightning strikes that hit while I was out taking pictures. But of course, they always hit while the camera was not taking pictures. I did manage to get a few strikes, but they weren't very big ones. Here is the best lightning strike I got...

There is a streak of light in the shot, from a plane taking off from the airport. The storm was already well past downtown and the airport when this was taken, but the lightning still seemed pretty close. I don't know what I would do if I was in a plane taking off, and saw a lightning strike from the window. Probably crap my pants...

I was a bit torn, I wasn't sure where to point the camera. There were still a few good bolts of lightning coming down. But in the sky behind me, the storm had broken up. The sky was a deep blue, with the clouds carrying the last remnants of the storm. I moved the camera over for a few shots...


And then went back to try to get some more lightning pictures. None of those turned out, so I then took a few more pictures from the top of the parking deck.


I drove back home and found that the apartment was still without power. I was displeased to see that a truck from the electric company was parked across the street at the IHOP. Apparently they decided to give up on restoring our power, and went in for some smiley-face pancakes instead.

But I was reminded of the sometimes serendipitous nature of photography. I was pleased with the pictures I took out there (and hoped they were in focus). But if my power hadn't gone out, I wouldn't have even bothered to go out and take pictures of the lightning. Instead I would have just lazily watched a few hours of It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia re-runs, and then called it a night.