Uploads from Aaron Eakin, with geodata

Rocky Shores

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:43:48 -0700

Here's one from last summer over on the Olympic Peninsula. I haven't done a proper seascape in way too long....

www.aaroneakin.com

The Calm Before The Storm

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 19:25:14 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Another one from the pier arguably known as "My Pier". :) I think my favorite thing about this one is the red streaks caused by taillights going across the I-90 bridge. It was so calm and quiet in the serene little Mount Baker neighborhood, with the buzz of activity in the distance.

www.aaroneakin.com

In the Meadow

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:53:05 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

One day last Summer, with Aaron and Dene' in the meadows of Sunrise, at Mount Rainier National Park. Just one that I never got around to sharing.

www.aaroneakin.com

Electric Feel

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:40:02 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

I went out shooting twice the other week...something of a record for me lately. Both times, the sunset didn't quite pan out, but on this night, the clouds were pretty great. And I love these blue hour shots, and how they just seem to pop with color, particularly how they make the blues just electric.

For those of you not keeping track (I think I'm the only one keeping track), this is the same spot where I took one of my all-time favorites, Dreaming in monotone, so this spot has a special place in my heart. I'd almost go so far as to call it "My Dock". :)

I think it could make a pretty sweet spot for a great sunset, so I'll probably head back here from time to time to see. Anyone care to join me? :)

www.aaroneakin.com

The Creeping Fog

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 19:18:45 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

A shot of the fog creeping over the mountains up at Sunrise, one morning last summer. One thing I like about this one is that if you don't look too closely, it could almost be a closeup of a wave crashing over some rocks.

Just wanted to take a short break from the portraits! Thanks to everyone for your kind words on the portrait experiment so far. :)

A New Dawn

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:40:22 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's a rare (for me) sunrise view of Seattle from the Jose Rizal Bridge, taken several weeks ago, on a cold morning with Lisa. We were both on a cold streak when it came to sunrises and sunsets, which I'm sure she has broken since then. As for me? Not so much.

www.aaroneakin.com

Silver and Cold

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 00:25:57 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

A recent photo of the skeletal pier that has inspired me so much, taken during my Thanksgiving trip to the beach. I like the cool blue tones of the color version too, but I was really shooting for a minimal B&W here, so I went with that.

Sorry I've been such a bad neighbor lately. One of these days...

www.aaroneakin.com

The Blue Hour Tower of Power

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 22:52:27 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's another take on Dragon Tiger Tower in Kaohsiung. I like the comp of this one a bit more, even though the towers are kinda small.

www.aaroneakin.com

It's past your bedtime

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 22:05:57 -0800

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

It's been a while...things have just been extremely busy lately. But here's another one from Taiwan, an attempt at street photography.

Hope you are all doing well, and that those of you in the US have a happy Thanksgiving. I'll catch you after the holiday, hopefully with a little more free time and with a new toy or two that I just got. :)

At the Night Market

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 00:27:35 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's a candid of Amy out at the night market in Taichung. One of the coolest things about Taiwan was their night markets. Every night of the week, these places would go from empty streets to jam-packed street fairs, with booths selling everything from stinky tofu (yum! seriously) to furniture made entirely from paper. The sheer volume of shops was astounding, and it seemed like every fourth one was selling the same stuff...it really made us wonder how they all stay in business. But like clockwork, they would open up every night of the week shortly after dark, and stay open until 2 or 3 am.

Arachnis Deathicus

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 00:27:15 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

So, this isn't a great picture or anything, but I had to share one of the giant spiders we saw in the mountains of Taiwan. Amy wanted me to point out that they don't have these all over the place, just in the mountains, so don't be too afraid to visit. :)

It might be a bit hard to tell scale, even though I tried to give an idea by including my hand in the photo...I was too afraid to get it too close to the spider though. His body was about the size of my thumb (in length and thickness), and with his legs, he was about the size of my hand. At the time of this photo, he was happily munching away on a giant wasp. So, I guess they aren't all bad if they eat the wasps.

This is a golden silk orb weaver, a cousin to the much smaller orb weavers we have all over Washington state. And this one had the decency to stay outdoors in his web, where he belongs.

The one we saw in the bathroom was a whole different beast entirely. That one was a brown huntsman or "laya" spider. It was about this same size, but they don't use webs to catch food. They out run and out jump them. Fun thing to run across in the shower. Luckily it was Amy who ran into it first. :) She came running out of the shower (after battling it with the shower head for several minutes), telling me to go kill the big spider. I, of course, had to be the man, and go strutting into the bathroom with Amy's cousin's boyfriend to take it out, not believing her tales of a spider the size of her hand. We couldn't find it though, so we figured the little guy had scampered off into some little crack or something. So, we gave up and Amy's cousin's boyfriend went to use the shower. A few minutes later, I hear him yell "Oh hell no!" or something and he comes running back out. That's when I spotted it....and started yelling and possibly crying a little...Luckily, Amy's uncle came to the rescue and squashed the spider...otherwise I might not have lived to tell the tale and share the photos. :)

101 reasons to visit

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:33:51 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's a night view from the base of Taipei 101, the tallest building in Taiwan. In fact, at 1,671 feet, it is the second tallest building in the world. Quite a sight to behold and definitely worth checking out the next time you are in Taipei. Of course, at 101 stories, it is hard to miss. We ate dinner on the 85th floor and I got a shot out the window that I'll share later too.

www.aaroneakin.com

Shangri-la

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 19:29:18 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Okay, maybe not, but Sun Moon Lake, in the mountains of central Taiwan, certainly was a beautiful, peaceful spot. We visited one major temple on the lake and a pretty amazing all-you-can-eat buffet (that's my kinda religion), but never did quite make it to the somewhat famous one you see in the distance here. But the view of it from afar with the low clouds made this spot worth the journey. Oh, and did I mention the buffet? :)

Okay, I've got some serious catching up to do, but I wanted to get another one of these up for all to see. As always, don't feel obligated to comment or even look at this...though if you read this far, it is probably too late for the looking part. ;)

www.aaroneakin.com

Dragon Tiger Tower

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:20:50 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Really, how can you go wrong with a dragon AND a tiger for your tower's official mascots? They might as well have named it Super Awesome Tower.

Well, I'm back from two fun-filled weeks in Taiwan. And honestly, I had an absolute blast. I spent around 10 days with Amy's family, and they are truly wonderful people. Many didn't speak English, so there was a lot of smiling and nodding, but we got on great. And I ate and ate. And ate. A lot. I tried lots of crazy foods, including snake, snake's blood, frog, ostrich, pig's feet, and more. We saw snakes and spiders as big as my hand (I have pictures to prove it), toured temples, went to a wedding, and explored several night markets. The last 5 days were more sight-seeing, shopping, and partying in the capital city of Taipei.

People have asked me what my favorite part was, and I have trouble saying exactly what it was. Probably just getting to know Amy's family and getting a truly authentic view of Taiwan that most tourists never see. I didn't get to take as many photos as I would have liked (it was super hot and humid there, and I didn't always want to lug my camera around, especially when I was the only photog), but I know about a ton of spots I want to hit next time I'm there. And I will definitely be back.

Anyway, this was taken one night in Kaohsiung, on the southern coast. On my birthday, in fact. If you look closely between the two towers, you can see the tiger's and the dragon's hind ends. Yeah, I didn't realize until after I took this that this was the back. :)

www.aaroneakin.com

First Light

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 20:52:14 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's another one from my night up at Mount Rainier. It wouldn't be complete without the sunrise photo from the morning after my car camping/star shooting adventure.

Well, I'm off to Taiwan. My flight leaves at 2 am and I'll be gone for a couple of weeks, meeting more of Amy's extended family and just relaxing and exploring and trying some crazy new foods. Oh and celebrating my birthday on the 1st! As always, if you feel the need to send gifts, I prefer cash and expensive things. ;)

I apologize for the post and run (or fly), but I need to finish packing! Take care everyone and I'll see you again soon, hopefully with some new and interesting photos.

www.aaroneakin.com

Starry Night

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 18:38:09 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's another one from my car-camping night up at Sunrise. After Aaron and Dene' left, I ventured down the mountain to the little town of Green Water for a bite and a beer at the Naches Tavern. Got back up to the top at around 11 and went out for some star photography.

Now, you hardcore folks will probably laugh at me, but it was kind of spooky being out there all alone. It was SUPER dark, with no moon that night, and I kept hearing sounds, half expecting a bear to come up and make me his midnight snack. Even spookier was when I heard what I thought was a little girl crying...until I realized it was just me. I may have wet myself once or twice that night too...

But I digress. This was my first attempt at star photography, and it took me a while to get the hang of it. Didn't get any that I really liked, but thought this one with the bare trees was pretty cool. And I think next time will be much more successful, now that I have a clue. And there will be a next time...it's very addicting!

www.aaroneakin.com

Sunset at Sunrise

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 22:56:14 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

I'm skipping past a bunch of photos I like that I shot with Dene' at Seiku and with Pierrick around Seattle to get to these. But who really cares about chronological order? The fact that I even mention it shows just how OCD I am. :)

As I mentioned on an earlier post, I went up to Sunrise to shoot Mount Rainier one night the other weekend. I met up with Dene' and Aaron and shot the sunset. It was great to get out with them because it had been way too long (excluding that one morning in Seiku with Dene'). And then after they went home, the hard-core folks (me) did a bit of car-camping and shot the stars. More on that later, but it was a definite learning experience, and I finally got the hang of it by about 1:30 am. So next time they hopefully won't suck. I'll post one later anyway. :) Then up at 5:30 am for sunrise. I'm shooting away and up walks David, who I hadn't seen in months and was a lot of fun to catch up with too.

So, I've decided that the next time it has been too long and I want to meet up with some photographers, I'll just sleep on a mountain, and they'll come to me. :)

Oh, and I have to give all credit to Aaron for finding this spot. I just shamelessly comp-stomped him....but when you need a comp, he's not a bad one to stomp.

www.aaroneakin.com

Hanjin

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 16:16:30 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

A couple of weeks ago, I met up with Pierrick, who was in town from France on business. I had originally been hoping to show him some sights outside of the city, but it coincided with my fishing weekend, so we had to settle for a weeknight in the city. A rainy weeknight, unfortunately. But we had a few breaks in the weather, like this upload shows, and it ended up being a fun night out.

If you have a chance, check out Pierrick's stream. He has a lot of great photos with a cool mix of street photography and scenic views. Definitely worth checking out.

I've been bad about making the rounds...I'll try to get around a bit more this week. Hope you all are well!

www.aaroneakin.com

Foggy Nights

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 16:32:50 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's one of Seattle from the 12th Ave Bridge. Nothing new or dynamic or exciting, but I kind of liked the fog laying low over the city.

Remnants

nobody@flickr.com (Aaron Eakin) — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:31:35 -0700

Aaron Eakin posted a photo:

Here's another one of my favorite old, decrepit boat launch and pier. One positive of not shooting as much anymore is that some older photos finally get some love. Although, I'd rather be shooting. :)

On a fun note, my views went through the roof today, for no obvious reason. Turns out my photo, Supersized showed up on the "A year ago today" section on FP. Very cool!

www.aaroneakin.com