Two Years of #PhotoJambo

On October 16, 2015, I challenged myself to post a new photo every day for a year. Today marks two years of daily #PhotoJambo photos.

Today also marks a new beginning for PhotoJambo. Rather than focus on the method of creating and sharing something new every day, I'm going to take more time between posts so I can get those edits perfect and create more feature-based work. 

Thanks to everyone around the world for their support over these past two years. If you want to throw a little more support my way, please spend 5 seconds to vote for my entry in the Triple Aught Design Fall Film Festival. Every vote counts and I really appreciate your support!

THANK YOU!

This photo is a panorama of three photos captured with a DJI Mavic pro drone and a PolarPro Cinema Series filter.  

360° Sunrise on Beech Mountain

Just another beautiful morning on Beech Mountain! One of my favorite features of the DJI Mavic Pro is that you can rotate the camera into portrait mode while it is in flight and then shoot super high resolution panoramas. This photo captures exactly 360° to the pixel. 

If you'd like to visit Beech Mountain this fall for leaf season or this winter for ski season, check out Slopeside!

This photograph was captured with a DJI Mavic pro drone. 

Cloudy Solar Eclipse

A band of clouds briefly passed over us during the solar eclipse. We were worried that the show was over but they moved on pretty quickly. In hindsight, I kind of like the photographs that I captured during that period. I was using a makeshift solar filter that made the clouds almost look like some far-off galaxy. 

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300 and a Sony E PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS Power Zoom Lens, which happens to be my go-to lens 90% of the time. 

Birth of PAC-MAN or The Big Beep or Waka Waka Waka

Each frame in this series of images of the solar eclipse were taken roughly ten minutes from one another. I shot them with an in-body filter that I created from a pair of solar eclipse glasses. I realized that the shape of one lens would perfectly fit over an APS-C sensor, just like a Fogal Net from the golden age of film. Luckily, I generally subscribe to the Navy Seal mantra of "Two is one. One is none." because I melted a perfect pinhole in the filter in my first attempt. The focal length of the lens I was using (210mm) was just right for turning my camera lens into an instant firestarter. They should bring those things on Survivor! I backed off a bit to a 105mm lens and everything went perfectly after that. 

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300 and a Sony E PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS Power Zoom Lens, which happens to be my go-to lens 90% of the time. 

Beech Mountain Alarm Clock

This was my alarm clock yesterday on Beech Mountain. The mile-high sunrises are spectacular up on the mountain. It pays to be the highest town east of the Rockies, as the fog rolls through all of the valleys below.

This photograph was captured with a DJI Mavic pro drone. 

Watercolor Sky

The sunrises on Beech Mountain never stop surprising me. As the sun peaks over the back ridge of the mountain, it colors the light haze every color you could imagine. It usually starts a warm pink and then turns bright orange before giving way to the blue skies of the day. 

This is the view from the back deck of our mountain chalet, Slopeside. Book a weekend at Slopeside and experience it for yourself.

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.

Blue (And Pink) Ridge Mountains

It would be hard to beat the sunrises from Beech Mountain. Every day brings another technicolor surprise. On this occasion, the sky turned pink to complement the smoke-colored Blue Ridge Mountains. At 5,506', Beech Mountain is the highest town east of the Rockies. The height often results in rivers of clouds flowing through the valleys on cool mornings. 

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300 from the back deck of Slopeside. 

Mountains in the Mist

The mile-high sunrises on Beech Mountain are always stunning. This photograph was taken from the back deck of Slopeside. 

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.

Tree with a View

I never get tired of this sunrise! This is the morning view off the back deck of Slopeside on Beech Mountain. We were up there last weekend and the leaves were just beginning to start changing colors. It's a great time of the year to visit the mountains!

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.

Blue Ridge Layers

I've never been one to get up at first light but the sunrises on Beech Mountain have made me a believer. It seems like we are greeted to a spectacle like this just about every morning that we're in the mountains. I can't wait to see the view when the leaves start changing colors! I read yesterday that the super hot summer will likely result in a really brilliant and extended fall season in the Blue Ridge Mountains! If you'd like to experience it for yourself, check out Slopeside, our Beech Mountain chalet that we occasionally rent out when we're not visiting.  

This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.