Category: Uncategorized

Gear Review: Klymit Intertia O Zone Sleeping Pad

A couple of years ago I did a review on the Klymit Inertia X-Frame, an extremely lightweight, packable sleeping pad. In January I bought the new version, the O-Zone. It has more coverage, but is only 2oz heavier (11oz) and only slightly larger when packed. 
As my friends get winded filling up their full size sleeping pads I laugh as I blow up my pad in 5-7 large breaths. There’s a pillow that’s attached but blows up separately in 2-3 breaths. I like to keep the pad in my sleeping bag. I find it keeps me warmer and I don’t ever “fall” off of it in my tossing and turning. 
Photo from outtagear.com
This is how small it packs, only slightly larger than a 12 oz soda can. 
When you want to go lightweight but still be comfortable, this is a great option. When I car camp I do use it in tandem with a basic Thermarest for the feeling of being in a queen size memory foam bed….
So, if you don’t like spending 10 minutes and 300 breathes filling up your sleeping bad check out the Klymit Inertia O-Zone! ($99)

Jansport 15″ Right Pack Sleeve

I just came home from two and half weeks on the road. I was tired and ready for a shower, but there was a box from Jansport on my bed. I opened it to find the 15″ Right Pack Sleeve, a laptop cover in the style of Jansport’s classic backpack.

My 13″ Macbook Pro fits securely in the sleeve, but there’s room for my charger and a few accessories. It’s great and I love the style! Comes in many different colors. 

New Website Design

For the past few weeks I’ve been redesigning my website. I went through a few different avenues when I thought I was going to change to a prefab site such as Squarespace.com, but when I found I didn’t have the control I wanted over the design I looked into other options. After scouring the web for a Javascript plugin that would work I finally found a photo slideshow carousel that I could manipulate to my needs.

Hopefully you will find this easier to navigate and all around a better user experience. I’d love to hear what you think!

www.dscottclarkphoto.com

Camera Giveaway! Canon 5D MKIII or Nikon D800

The wedding photography directory SnapKnot is giving away either a Canon 5DMKIII or a Nikon D800 to a lucky someone! I’ve been eyeing the MD MKIII (3)for a while because it fixes several of the issues I have with the MKII(2), namely the autofocus. The MKII’s terrible autofocus has been killing me on trail running and skiing shoots. It, for a long time, hasn’t been an issue with shooting climbing because it’s mostly slow paced. But when you’re having to track moving subjects it’s pretty piss-poor. The nine-point autofocus is almost no improvement over my 7 year old 20D! The MKIII(3) has a 61-point High Density Reticular autofocus that is lightyears ahead. My only initial complaint about it, having not tried it out, is that the autofocus points do not extend far enough to the edge which is where most of my subjects tend to be.

But anyway…enough rambling.  Big thanks to the SnapKnot wedding photography directory for offering this great camera giveaway! Click this link to take you to the giveaway.  

Featured Artist in the Access Fund’s Vertical Times

This month has really flown by, and a lot has happened since my last post. I spent a week in Salt Lake City photographing with skiers and snowboarders at Snowbird and Brighton, and I got some images I’m psyched on: just what I needed. I had a bit of an accident on Sunday that I’ll get into later, but I’m healing well.

BUT the big news is I’m the Access Fund’s Featured Artist in their quarterly magazine Vertical Times! You can see the full PDF By Clicking This Link!

Jamie Gatchalian swinging on Head Like a Hole (5.13a) Clear Creek Canyon, CO

I’m going to get this out of the way.

I’ve been a bad blogger, most of this year. It’s been a strange year, work wise, and I haven’t had a lot of time to update this. But I need to make it more of a priority. Right now I’m doing a number of jobs, from working at a ski shop in Boulder, to substitute teaching at a private school and shooting Google Business Photos, all while climbing and shooting outdoors regularly. I’ve been busy.

Happy Fall everyone.

A Photo in Trail Runner Magazine – Finally!

I found out through Facebook that I had a photo published in Trail Runner Magazine. Not only was it published, but it’s a two page spread with a write up about the photo on page 5 of the magazine! I had submitted the photo to them way back in February. They had told me it would be published in the next couple of issues, but nothing had happened for months and I forgot about it. 
So, finally, here it is: 


Trail Runner Magazines can be found in running specific stores and some Barnes and Nobles if you’re interested in locating a copy.

Abby & Chance Wedding

I think this has been the longest interval between posts since I’ve started this blog…life has been bit crazy, but I haven’t forgotten about you. I’ve been shooting a lot and getting out into some great climbing areas. There’s a lot I wish I could share with you, but some companies have asked me not to yet.

Last month I had the pleasure of shooting a friend from high school’s wedding. Abby & Chance were great to work with. I never knew that Lafayette, IN was so nice! I have to say I was impressed.

Here are a few selections from this wedding.

The People of Bonnaroo

Last week I made the journey across the country to the town of Manchester, Tennesse. Once a year it’s population explodes, a population of, well, interesting people. Every year the Bonnaroo music festival brings in some amazing musical acts like Radiohead and the Avett Brothers, and some 80,000 fans withstand the heat of humidity for four days to enjoy the spectacle. 
I had never really considered going before, but when a friend was going to volunteer, it sounded like a swell idea. Free ticket. A little bit of manual labor. (long story, but didn’t really work but still got free ticket.) 
The festival has a rule that no one can bring in professional photography equipment into “Centeroo,” where the bands play. So I decided that I wanted to do a portrait series of all the people around me in the campgrounds. I got a few no’s, but people were generally up for it. 
I used a white reflector for a background and my speedlite with the Lumiquest LTp softbox for my light source. It worked out beautifully (though the softbox is starting to sag a bit. I need a way to keep it upright on my flash so it doesn’t look so sad.) 
Enjoy.

More Photos Inside the Post! —> 

Greg really didn’t know what was going on.

Railroad Ryan. Or Captain Jack according to Anna Lea. 

Mike. Mike is awesome. And knows how to camp at festivals. 

Alvaro

Washington Test Shoot

One more post today. I had a lot to catch up on.

While out in Washington I wanted to work on more of my running, lifestyle and backpacking/hiking portfolio in an environment that I don’t really see in Colorado (or Indiana for that matter).

Alicia met me near Deception pass, one of my favorite spots in the area. We climbed up Goose Rock Trail on the Whidbey side of the pass, and found some great locations to shoot. I love the dense forests of Western Washington as well as the foggy weather.

The forests were quite dark, and the sun was not helping much, so I used my to supplement. Not having an assistant made working with the strobes difficult, but we made due.

I tried a new technique to capture my runner in motion by running along side them, which gives me the added benefit of always having them at the right distance and I can motion blur the background while keeping the runner mostly in focus.

On top of Goose Rock, there was much more light, so I no longer needed to use my strobes. But it rained on us even more.

Alicia with her beautiful dog, Alba. 

Alba, Say Hi.
It was extremely difficult to capture this shot. Alba would not stay still for an instant. 

I had a great time with Alicia and Alba. I got the photos I was looking for and rounded out my trip. I also put my equipment through a lot of rain. Hope the radio slaves are fine. 

Mt Erie, Washington

When I was in 8th grade I came out to stay with my uncle on Whidbey island in Washington State. While I was visiting I connected with a childhood friend from Indiana that had moved out to the island a couple of years before. He wanted to climb the south face of Mt. Erie. At that point I really didn’t have much climbing experience other than trees. But I had a blast. 
I decided I wanted to climb it again while out for the Penn Cove Water Festival. 
The photo below shows my approximate route up the south face of the 1,200 ft mountain. The route I took was at most 5.6, but it was raining on me the whole time. Fun.
Photo taken from wikipedia.
At the top I met a Russian couple that offered to give me a ride back to my car. I’ve been on Mt. Erie multiple times, but never really stopped to look at the beautiful rain forest on the slopes of the mountain. I had a bit of time before a test shoot with a model on the island, so I drove back up and stopped to appreciate it.  

I love fog. And mossy rain forests. 

Penn Cove Water Festival

Last weekend I shot the Tribal Canoe Races for the Penn Cove Water Festival on Whidbey Island in Washington. I always love getting to visit my family on Whidbey Island, it’s such a beautiful place. More from Washington next.

Cinco de Mustache

A little catching up. This last month has been a bit different. I’ve been working some moving jobs: moving students out of CU and moving families into large houses. Last week I traveled to Whidbey Island in the Puget Sound in Washington State to photograph a Native American canoe race. While there I was able to connect with a model on Whidbey and did a test shoot.

But before all this was Cinco De Mustache, an annual tradition among my friends  here in Boulder.