Photo travel log (11/15 - Roadtrip Across America + NEW ZEALAND)

[Blkmage0253]

(Before I start, I'm planning to backpack through Taiwan for 4-5 weeks over winter break with one of my close friends that I met in Hong Kong (she's actually from Vietnam but is doing her undergrad in the U.S.). We're generally planning to go pretty bare bones on this trip -- hitchhiking and couchsurfing, hostels as a very last resort. This way, we meet a lot of locals. The problem is just that the flight is really freaking expensive since it's the holidays...about $1650 roundtrip per person. I'm working two jobs this semester as a teaching assistant and research intern, and she is interning for Fujifilm currently, but it's still quite a bit for the plane tickets. So we started a GoFundMe page in hopes of covering some of the flight costs. So if anyone has some change to spare, we'd be eternally grateful!

The current goal is to raise $1000, but once we raise $100, our page can be added to the search directory of the site and anyone can see it on the listings. I have $50 now, so we're halfway there?

LINK HERE

oh and here's a (maybe?) cute picture of us from almost 3 years ago now:

DSC_4416 by justindong, on Flickr

And a question: has anyone ever used gofundme or a similar site before? Any tips? I know it's not exactly a super charitable cause >_>)

Well, I'm back at school and it's honestly a little bit depressing...final year anyway.

I made some nice decorations to my room though. It's a big custom metro map of all my travels, so each stop is generally a different city I've traveled to or lived in. Also some miscellaneous music and TV posters I like. Makes me miss traveling so fucking much :(


The Mural by justindong, on Flickr

 

[faint]

kudos for updating this for the 2 people that read it. (i'm not one of them)

nice pics though

 

[Blkmage0253]

kudos for updating this for the 2 people that read it. (i'm not one of them)

nice pics though

:D

Here's an update: I'll be going to Taiwan in December for about 2 weeks, plus a few days in Hong Kong afterwards!

Anyway, I got some nice shots in NY this weekend.


Bookworm by justindong, on Flickr

the observation deck provides a surprisingly shitty view since everything on the level below

Top of the Rock (II) by justindong, on Flickr

inside view was better but I had to shoot up against a window, so my hands were a bit shaky. reflections abound too.

Top of the Rock (sunset) by justindong, on Flickr


Room with a View (I) by justindong, on Flickr

just after the sun dipped below the horizon

Top of the Rock (I) by justindong, on Flickr

 

[Blkmage0253]

So I spent four weeks over this winter break in Taiwan and Hong Kong. I think got some pretty good pictures if I do say so myself.

sunrise over HK

Victoria Peak (V) by justindong, on Flickr


Victoria Peak Sunrise (IV) by justindong, on Flickr


some from Taipei

Taipei (I) by justindong, on Flickr


Taipei (IV) by justindong, on Flickr


Taipei (II) by justindong, on Flickr

that's all for now. still tons of photos to edit and go through and my final semester in university starts this week so it's been a bit hectic. but the trip overall was really fantastic

 

[Steamroll]

Amazing photos man, now what happened to your i305 avatar?

 

[Cresselia~~]

Wow, you are such an amazing photographer.
They look very artistic.

Maybe you should sell some prints, haha.

Or maybe work with some travel agencies because the photos look so much better than the real thing xD.

 

[Bad Ass]

this thread fucking owns, your pictures are amazing

 

[Blkmage0253]

So long overdue for an update and really just bored right now.

In September I did a road trip across America and visited the following:

-Badlands National Park, South Dakota
-Grand Teton NP, Wyoming
-Yellowstone NP, a lot of states
-Glacier NP, Montana
-Mt. Rainier NP, Washington
-Portland, Oregon
-Three Sisters Wilderness Area, Oregon
-San Fran, California

We started at home in NY and drove out to Seattle, at which point my friends left since they have jobs now and I continued down the west coast for a bit. Then I had to do the grueling drive from SF to NYC alone. I was pressed for time so took the 80 all the way back...

Anyway, don't have pics from all of the places above. But this was a really enjoyable trip for me. Wish I could've hiked more, but oh well

1) Badlands NP Scenic Loop
Badlands NP by justindong, on Flickr

2) Teton Mountain Range from Snake River Overlook
Grand Teton NP (III) by justindong, on Flickr

3) Abandoned barnhouses or some such
Grand Teton NP (IV) by justindong, on Flickr

4) 18-mile loop to Lake Solitude in the Tetons (shame about the tree in the middle though...)
Grand Teton NP (V) by justindong, on Flickr

5) Glacier NP, Going-to-the-Sun Road
Glacier NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

6) Grand Canyon of Yellowstone (I hated Yellowstone btw, way too touristy)
Yellowstone NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

7) Somewhere above the Columbia River in Oregon
Columbia River Gorge (I) by justindong, on Flickr

 

[Blkmage0253]

Anyway, here's the real exciting part: I'm currently in New Zealand for about two months. My treat to myself after graduation and sort of part of my gap year before grad school.

I'm mostly hiking and camping, and it's been fantastic so far. I've done a few multi-day hikes as well, which have been exhilarating and exhausting, as well as rife with photo opportunities. So I still have about 20ish days here, and two major hikes planned. I've been sticking to many of the more popular multi-day hikes since I figure one day soon I'll be back here to do more. The backcountry hikes (less maintained trails, more navigation skills required, and generally less hand-holding) have been the best, but there's just so many of them to do it's a bit overwhelming. They're more satisfying on a personal level when you complete them, and the sense of solitude is much greater since these hikes are generally much less crowded (at least, right now in November).

On the other hand, the "Great Walks" are the very popular multi-day hikes in NZ and they have very modern facilities (flush toilets, gas stoves provided, bunks with mattresses) and well maintained trails. They also tend to have some of the best photos ops imo. Right now in November, they haven't been crowded at all so I've been pretty fortunate. I wouldn't call them a backcountry experience though. There I 9 (? I think) designated Great Walks and so far I've done the Routeburn Track and Kepler Track. I have two more planned before I leave, and the rest of my trip is pretty spontaneous.

Also just want to say that the weather on New Zealand's South Island is...interesting. On average, I'd say it has rained more than every other day here. I've experienced snow as well, especially on the alpine passes.

Annndddd...as of 3 days ago I broke my fucking camera. I've got a special strap that lets me sling the camera over my shoulder like a messenger bag, and it's a lot more comfortable than the strap that just hangs off your neck, especially when you're hiking 40 miles. It was a pretty reputable brand but somehow, the connection between strap and camera came loose and my camera fell about 3 ft (1 m). It's gone through far worse, but I guess I had bad luck this time as the secondary mirror got jammed, which fucked up the auto focus and focus mechanism for manual focusing. I can still take pictures from the screen though ("Live View mode" in camera speak) but due to the jammed mirror, about 60% of the bottom of each photo is completely black and unusable...but I figured if the top 40% of so is good, I can stitch together 3 crappy pictures to get 1 "normal" picture. #5 and 6 below are stitched together from broken pictures.

1) Hiking up Avalanche Peak in Arthur's Pass National Park
Arthur's Pass NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

2) Mueller Lake in Aoraki/Mt. Cook National Park
Aoraki/Mt. Cook NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

3) The Routeburn Track in Mt. Aspiring National Park - definitely one of the most breathtaking views I've ever seen
Mt. Aspiring NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

4) More of the same
Mt. Aspiring NP (II) by justindong, on Flickr

5) This is from the 40-mile Kepler Track in Fiordland National Park. It's slightly out of focus but I'm really proud of this shot and #6 because they took quite a lot of effort to capture and process. This one is 3 photos stitched together (would normally be 1 if my camera wasn't broken).
Fiordland NP (I) by justindong, on Flickr

6) Another from the Kepler Track. 16 photos from the broken camera stitched together (would normally be 3 or so).
Fiordland NP (II) by justindong, on Flickr

Anyways, I'm still tinkering with the camera to get the best possible shots with what I have in my remaining 3 weeks. Should be some cool photos to come in the next month or so!

 

[shaian]

Did you visit Minas Tirith on your journey? On the real though, the pictures are phenomenal, New Zealand is such an amazing country.

 

[Thund91]

This is amazing. I'm beyond jealous. It's something I've always wanted to do but will probably never get around to doing it.

 

[Hipmonlee]

Oh, I guess I missed you. If you're still around and gonna be in Wellington in January let me know, we can grab a beer some time.

Been wanting to do the Kepler for ages, but my knees are a bit dodgy..

But yeah, the weather in NZ in November and December was decidedly shit nationwide. Though, with moving to Wellington this year, its possible my assessment has been coloured by the fact that the weather in Wellington is decidedly shit all of the time.

 

[ginganinja]

Damn, he missed me as well.

Most of the walks I did recently are in the Nth Island, although I did the Great Walks like you on frequent return holidays to the Alps. Hip, the weather in wellington was good up until recently, maybe you blinked and missed it.

 

[Blkmage0253]

Did you visit Minas Tirith on your journey? On the real though, the pictures are phenomenal, New Zealand is such an amazing country.

Thanks. I didn't see Minas Tirith, but googling the filming location, it doesn't look that interesting imo...I didn't really seek out any filming locations, but wound up inadvertently seeing a couple on some of the hikes I did.

Oh, I guess I missed you. If you're still around and gonna be in Wellington in January let me know, we can grab a beer some time.

Been wanting to do the Kepler for ages, but my knees are a bit dodgy..

But yeah, the weather in NZ in November and December was decidedly shit nationwide. Though, with moving to Wellington this year, its possible my assessment has been coloured by the fact that the weather in Wellington is decidedly shit all of the time.

Damn, he missed me as well.

Most of the walks I did recently are in the Nth Island, although I did the Great Walks like you on frequent return holidays to the Alps. Hip, the weather in wellington was good up until recently, maybe you blinked and missed it.

Damn, I probably should've asked if there were any locals around before I started my trip. None of the cities in NZ were really on my itinerary though. I'd spent about 5 days in Chch at the beginning of the trip with a friend who lives there, but it was a bit dreary since (as I understand it) they're still rebuilding from the earthquake. Auckland was pretty lame too :/ but honestly the nature is so incredible that the cities don't really matter.

I've been back home since mid-December now. But I'd definitely like to be back in NZ before my 20's are over so I'll keep you guys in mind :)


---

So I did the Milford Track in late November and it was a hilarious experience. It rained moderately all day long on day #1. On the beginning of day #2, I slipped on the deck of the hut and fractured my wrist in two places (and didn't realize until the next morning...). It snowed hard that night so the pass was apparently unpassable. The said a helicopter would come bring us over, but due to terrible weather it had to turn back. So we were given the option to spend a second night in the hut or turn back to the beginning to take the ferry back to town. I think everyone on the track decided to turn back since it was supposed to continue snowing the next day. (also, an avalanche hit Milford Road that same day apparently)

I also did the Tongariro Circuit in early December. Probably one of my favorites since every single day of the hike was different and there was basically only a 1 km stretch under the bush line. I managed to get to the top of Mt. Nguarahoe (one of the filming locations for Mt. Doom) with a broken wrist -- it wasn't bad since it was just a steep hike without really requiring the use of hands.

There's a 20 km section of the hike called the Tongariro Alpine Crossing that was just downright dangerous though. It's a popular one-day hike and literally hundreds of people were on it that day (maybe even close to a thousand). I had been hiking the circuit in a counterclockwise direction, so basically the opposite of everyone else. For any of the locals here, there's a steep section right above the Emerald Lakes. Hordes of people in jeans, flip flops (!!), and converse were slipping on their way down and I was moderately scared someone would fall INTO me... this section was still spectacular but I really think the portions of the track that weren't part of the alpine crossing section.


Anyway, some pictures to follow very soon.

 

[MaxGlobal]

Thanks :)

Finally getting around to posting some old photos.

Here's a single shot from Shenzhen

It's sad but I literally have no good photos from Shenzhen. It's okay though because the city was kind of grimy...

Happy Valley by justindong, on Flickr

Hong Kong life

This is the mid-autumn festival in HK to celebrate the end of the harvest season. It was nice but we left the public park before the fire dragon dance even started since it was so crowded and miserably hot

Mid-Autumn Festival by justindong, on Flickr

Rush hour on the MTR. This is one of the most crowded stations in the system. These people are all about to transfer trains. Once they get off, all they have to do is walk across the platform to the train on the other side. Stampede...

Hong Kong MTR during rush hour by justindong, on Flickr

Everyone wants to be the first one to the other side, but you still have to wait anyway...and it's not like you'll get a seat. Even though this is a the second station from the terminal, the trains are absolutely packed already. And to think that the Hong Kong MTR recommends each person has personal space of 3ft x 3ft area...LOL

Hong Kong MTR rush hour (pt. 2) by justindong, on Flickr

Some friends and I playing around on Sharpe Island. When the tide is low enough, you can cross this sandbar to the other side. We had to turn back though bc it was rising really fast as we were crossing...

Camera Eyes by justindong, on Flickr

Shanghai at a glance

not bragging, but went I go through my old pictures i can tell that i've improved a lot. I only went to shanghai like 1.5months ago but didn't get very many good pictures. I would just point my camera and hope they came out nicely. But here are a few that are decent

I think this guy was selling roasted chestnuts, but it looked like coal...I just recently processed this photo, but I don't really like how it came out

Shanghai street life (angle 1) by justindong, on Flickr

Jing'an temple is older than the city of Shanghai itself. It's kind of odd since there are modern skyscrapers in the back, as well as greenery in the middle. I recently looked at this picture and laughed. It's a disaster in terms of pretty much everything, exposure, lighting, composition. But it's the only usable photo I had so I did a really rigorous edit of it. Looks fake, but oh well

Temples and Skyscrapers by justindong, on Flickr

Population explosion. Eventually, you just relax your body and let the crowd push you along because it's much easier than trying to fight it

DSC_1411-Edit.jpg by justindong, on Flickr

Shanghai skyline. The lights turn off promptly at 10pm every night. I left my friends early and raced back to the apartment to get some skyline shots since it was our last night in SH. I got there at 930pm, snagged like 2 shots, then the lights fucking turned off. But I wasn't leaving without some decent pictures so this one is ultra long exposure and tone mapped a bit.

Shanghai Pudong skyline at night by justindong, on Flickr

She looked confused in the metro...

DSC_1295_2-Edit.jpg by justindong, on Flickr

Nice pics! Keep it on man!
try out edititng software http://macphun.com if you have a mac os, its nice for hdr