Five-Years Ago (04-February-2014) — Florida

Gone to See America. February 2014 Florida Road Trip. Day 4: Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Sunrise at Playalinda Beach, then spent the day roaming Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Early morning spider web, lots of birds, and an alligator sunning. Many of the birds had captured a fish.

alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Surf Fishing at Dawn. Playalinda Beach, Canaveral National Seashore in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D700 camera and 28-3 00 mm VRlens (ISO 500, 85 mm, f/5.6, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)
alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Spider Web Coated with Early Morning Dew. Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 200, 300 mm, f/5.6, 1/40 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 8, Focus Magic, and Photoshop CC 2014. (David J Mathre)


Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.

alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Alligator Sunning Along a Canal at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D3x camera and 300 mm f/4 lens (ISO 250, 300 mm, f/4, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)

Five-Years Ago (03-February-2014) — Florida

Gone to See America 2014 Road Trip. Day 3: Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Birds and Sunset From Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.


Individual images from the slideshow can be viewed here.

Sunset From Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 200, 260 mm, f/16, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)
Sunset From Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 200, 260 mm, f/16, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)

Six-Years Ago (02-February-2013) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2013 Chasing the Northern Lights. Day 5: Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp Norwegian Coastal Voyage Northbound (Trondheim and Rørvik).

On the second full day of the northbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship only stops in two ports: Trondheim (06:00-12:00) and Rørvik (20:30-21:15). Having six hours in Trondheim allowed us to spend some time to see the city. Our first stop was at Nidaros Cathedral. The exterior of the cathedral is a target rich environment for religious statues and gargoyles. But it was cold outside. The last time I was here in 2007 I said I would love to go back with a perspective control lens to record all sides of the exterior of the cathedral. Well, I didn’t bring that lens along, so had to do with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and an older 180 mm f/2.8 lens. It was cloudy and still relatively dark in the morning, so the images are noisy. The statues can be identified here. After leaving Trondheim, we passed the Kjeungskjær Lighthouse.

Lonely bench in the snow. Trondheim overlook. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 10 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 800, 10 mm, f/2.8, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)
Lonely bench in the snow. Trondheim overlook. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 10 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 800, 10 mm, f/2.8, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)



Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.

Kjeungskjær Lighthouse in Norway on a Cold Windy Rainy Winter Day from the Deck of the Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 180 mm f/2.8D lens (ISO 400, 180 mm, f/2.8, 1/320 sec).Kjeungskjær Lighthouse (David J Mathre)
Kjeungskjær Lighthouse in Norway on a Cold Windy Rainy Winter Day from the Deck of the Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 180 mm f/2.8D lens (ISO 400, 180 mm, f/2.8, 1/320 sec).Kjeungskjær Lighthouse (David J Mathre)

Twelve-Years Ago (02-February-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Winter Vacation. Day 13: Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald Norwegian Coastal Voyage Southbound (Trondheim to Molde).

On the fifth day of the southbound Hurtigruten voyage the ship only made three stops: Trondheim (06:30-10:00); Kristiansund (16:30-17:00); and Molde (21:00-21:30). We were able to spend a couple of early morning hours in Trondheim. I wanted to get more images of the statues and gargoyles at the Nidaros Cathedral.



Individual images in the slide show can be viewed here.

Six-Years Ago (01-February-2013) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2013 Chasing the Northern Lights. Day 4: Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp Norwegian Coastal Voyage Northbound (Florø to Kristandsund).

In addition to transporting passengers, the Hurtigruten ships carry freight, mail, automobiles, and fresh food between several ports along the Norwegian coast. Many of these stops occur during the night, and only last for short (15 minutes to 1 hour) periods of time. The schedule for the first full day of the northbound voyage stops at the following ports: Florø (04:30-04:45); Maløy (06:45-07:30); Torvik (10:20-10:45); Ålesund (12:00-15:00); Molde (17:30-18:30); Kristandsund (22:00-23:00).

We were able to spend a bit of time for a walkabout in Ålesund. It was snowing so I didn’t have a chance to climb Mount Aksla for a view of the harbor like I did in 2007. We did hear the drone in the sky that the German TV crew was using follow us as we walked through the city. I was surprised that they would fly it with limited visibility.





Cargo stop in Molde. Image taken with a Leica X2 camera. (David J Mathre)
Cargo stop in Molde. Image taken with a Leica X2 camera. (David J Mathre)

Individual images in the slide shows can be viewed here.