The next NRF members "getogether"…...

FreezeAction

Branson, MO is another great location for landscape photography and possible other wildlife. Possible great stay rates at the Westgate Resorts too on Table Rock, Lake. Airport 40 miles north in Springfield MO's third largest city. North of Springfield is Lake Pomme de Terre that is very photogenic. There is also a RV campground in Branson on Lake Taneyccomo. I know that there must be a shoe store there for the ladies and great trout fishing for the guys on Taneycomo. In addition for those who love a wide range of music, Branson is now competing with Nashville for Music City with many different fine music venues. It is central USA like the Black Hills which I'd love too. The Outer Banks, Black Hills, Branson, and one other I'll throw out is Colorado Springs, CO which has an airport and features the Garden of the Gods as will as Pikes Peak with its Cog Railway up the mountain. Rocky Mountain National Park is a day trip a tad bit NW of Denver. I would be driving as I would want to make prints while in the area as proof of what I actually captured so a campground would be good for me as well as maybe others who RV. A campground is not a deal breaker but no landscape venues are.

Photobug

Have not been to the Badlands & Black Hills in 20 years, so I like that destination. Never been to the Otter Banks, but do know you must avoid the seasonal work. The greater Columbus area (Hocking Hills) is not expensive and the number of photo opportunities are excellent.

One should not overlook the Grand Tetons National Park. It's an excellent area with lots of wildlife and scenery shots. If you like to hike, lots of trails. Early September or late August is a great time to explore Grand Tetons. So don't overlook this one.

drpeters

I vote for Louisville, KY. A somewhat centralized location with a large airport and cheap hotels. Easy driving distance to Mammoth Cave and to horse farms.

Photobug

Branson, MO is another great location for landscape photography and

My wife and I are planning a trip to Branson and the Ozarks for a week in June. She has just started planning so I sent a copy of your note for her to dig further in these areas. Let me know if there are any really good water falls or photo opportunities not well known.

Drpeters....Been to Louisville a few times, love the Louisville Slugger tour. So what is there to photograph in Louisville besides horse farms surrounding Louisville? Done that for a day. Do love Mammoth Cave.

FreezeAction

Branson, MO is another great location for landscape photography and

My wife and I are planning a trip to Branson and the Ozarks for a week in June. She has just started planning so I sent a copy of your note for her to dig further in these areas. Let me know if there are any really good water falls or photo opportunities not well known.

Drpeters....Been to Louisville a few times, love the Louisville Slugger tour. So what is there to photograph in Louisville besides horse farms surrounding Louisville? Done that for a day. Do love Mammoth Cave.

From experience Branson will be a big traffic jam after school is out in June. Fall is much better and rates drop also. Waterfalls, I don't know of any. Colorado Springs has a very large fall I think is called Seven Falls. Been awhile since I was there. Almost 11 years now. I think the Waldo Canyon Trail may have burned in the Waldo Canyon Fire. Will have to verify with my son who hiked it often. For the brave Pikes Peak has a hiking tail up. An ice storm in June stopped our planned hike up in 2003. There are also other sites of interest along I-25 between Denver and Colorado Springs. I could do Louisville also. Love to shoot horses at full speed. As for me I'm fine with what the majority would like. I will take all the time I need along the way home to shoot up a storm no matter where the main event is held.

Killerbob

As I think I have mentioned before, and even discussed in a separate thread, Iceland is extremely photogenic! It is easily accessible from both Europe and the US (Icelandair connects to some 12 cities in North America, and several in Europe.)

Iceland may seem a tad expensive, but if we book and schedule it all ourselves, with the financials in mind, it does not have to be. It is what you make it to be, but one thing I can promise you all; you would have GREAT scenery and locations for taking some GREAT pictures!!!

FreezeAction

I have it that the Waldo Canyon Hiking Trail did burn and might be closed as long as another ten years. Cripple Creek gold mining is near Pikes Peak as is the Seven Falls area I posted earlier. The Black Hills is on my bucket list as well as the Outer Banks and the Grand Tetons National Park.

A note about Branson. The most dear to me photograph of a landscape that I ever took was of Table Rock Lake the morning after a light snowfall. It was lost during Hurricane Charley in 2004 so that is a remake for me. Branson was a favorite hangout while I lived in NW MO for 12 years. We never went to Silver Dollar City considering it a tourist trap. From Lake Taneycomo there is shallow water that is wade-able to get a great shot of Table Rock Dam. For those with a D300s or the D4 series bodies there are many chances to catch rainbow trout airborne. Most of the sights suggested I'll do soon on my own. As said earlier I'm not picky...

Msmoto

Corning, New York…. the Finger Lakes region of New York State…… The Corning Museum is stunning… lots of landscape…. http://www.fingerlakes.org

Branson, MO… or Carthage…. do a Route 66 shoot….
https://www.flickr.com/photos/fantinesfotos/sets/72157635355281002/

henryvs

Moab looks amazing @proudgeek.

No one has mentioned Newfoundland and Labrador here yet, so I will. It is utterly astounding, and that's an understatement. Not that I've even been, but all images and unsponsored testimonials back that up.

http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/

It is within North America, reachable via a second flight from Toronto or Montreal (e.g. Los Angeles - Toronto - St. John's, NL), and has just outstanding harbour villages, and exquisite coastlines and place names that are hilarious http://members.shaw.ca/kcic1/places.html. And then there are the local accents and customs. Much to do and capture.

Newfoundland has two of Canada's 13 UNESCO world heritage sites. Both are absolutely stunning. Here is an itinerary for seeing them, as listed on the above website

http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/PlanYourTrip/HeritageSitesItinerary

- Gros Morne National Park http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/placestogo/grosmornenationalpark

- L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/PlacesToGo/LAnseAuxMeadowsNationalHistoricSite (Where the Vikings first arrived in North America)

This trip could get a bit expensive because of distance, or specialized transport costs within NL, but hotel costs within the province would likely not be as high as other spots in North America.

For the record, I am Canadian, but I'd happily go to several of the places we've been discussing here. I just think NL deserves some consideration.

Msmoto

Here is my Glacier/Kalispell idea…. the Triple D Ranch where one can be up close to the animals:

http://www.tripledgamefarm.com

And, the Kalispell Airport is apparently used to folks like we find on NRF:



We have had Colorado Springs, Freeport, Maine, and one would think, something closer to the left coast might be appropriate. While Triple D Ranch is not inexpensive, neither is the basic cost of going anywhere in today's world. A Glacier/Kalispell venue would allow an unlimited number of photo venues, particularly focused on landscape and animal images. Here is Glacier when I did a cross country solo bike trip in 2008…. this is from Going to the Sun Raod.

rmp

The Triple-D wildlife Ranch is impossible to beat for wildlife photos.

MikeGunter

Hi all,

Kalispell and Glacier National Park are great for a lot of shooting.

Triple D is owned by the father of D & D who are his daughters and our dear friends - I'm sure if it isn't high season we could get a decent price at the Ranch.

Over the weekend, I'll post links to some places and get discounts for hotels (The Kalispell Grand will give us a break). This isn't a Winter place for Going-to-the-Sun, and it is busy with tourists from Memorial Day though Labor Day. Traffic is a problem.

My best,

Mike

Msmoto

Thanks so much, Mike. I was waiting for your support of Glacier as the next NRF Getogether.

Photobug

Here is my Glacier/Kalispell idea…. the Triple D Ranch where one can be up close to the animals:

http://www.tripledgamefarm.com

I have seen pictures from this game farm and they were incredible.

Will post some pictures this weekend on another option.

FreezeAction

I like the TripleDGameFarm idea.

Ade

Dream NRF trip….

2015, Sendai, Japan.

PB_PM

Only if they let us go into the factory.

FreezeAction

And give away samples for beta testing

ptrmcky

Not that I'm biased, but there are some nice places to take photos in Ireland...

Gjesdal

OK. I´ll bite :-) Anyone for a Europe "gettogether"? If "yes", then where and when? I think it could be great fun.

Some cities in Europe are more accessible than others, London, Paris, Berlin, Prague, Copenhagen, etc.
It would probably be easiest and cheapest for most to go to one of those that acts like travel hub.
If my schedule allows it I wouldn't mind going.

MikeGunter

Hi all,

The Glacier National Park (The Crown of the Continent) lies mostly in the Northeast of Flathead Valley County.
The county is about 5 times larger than Delaware, yet Montana's population is smaller than that of metro Memphis, TN.

Glacier Park is visited by over 5 million people a year from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and that swells the population statistics in the Summer time.

From the looks of Msmoto's shot, her picture was taken short of getting to Logan's Pass by about 2 or three miles, roughly at Weeping Wall. There are various places to stop and see great sites. The map below is good. Terrific views are 'accessible' but not as one might think by looking at the map, include Polebridge, Bowman Lake, and Kintla Lake to the North East of the Park. You do not want to take the Inside North Fork Road in the Park. It is rough as a corn cob, many 4x4s have died young trying...

http://www.nps.gov/hfc/carto/PDF/GLACmap1.pdf

This is a summary of the 'Things to do in the Flathead' put out by our local paper. While it is a 2012 edition, it isn't dated.

What is troublesome is the road construction on 'Going-to-the-Sun'. I don't know this year's schedule. It might be published on the NPS website soon, and it will likely be a 3 week cycle of closure, with slow go throughout the Summer. It will either be 3 weeks late opening or closing or split both. The road is still covered with snow and lots of it. It might not make Memorial Day opening - I doubt that it will.

http://www.dailyinterlake.com/app/magazines/pdf_files/20120525_rec_guide.pdf

You've already seen the Triple D Game Farm link that is in Kalispell. Jay is pretty busy year round and I don't have a clue right now if his schedule could accommodate anything else. When and if a date is set, we could ask. His daughters are good friends - I shot one's wedding and the other teaches with my wife at a very, very small 8 classroom school.

The Kalispell Grand is an historic hotel that will likely entertain a small discount of 5-10% for the group. It's cool and they make cookies for the guests. There are other choices, too, such as the Hilton Garden, Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn, that offer modern services and convenience.

http://www.kalispellgrand.com/

Good news. There's a lot to shoot at Glacier National Park. It's a scenic place - picture postcards in any direction with a push of a button.

Bad news - it isn't the easiest place in which to get around. Once you leave the Trail of the Cedars, you're committed to get to Logan Pass, which could take 3-5 or more hours to return to the West Glacier entrance. And with Slow go work, that could be 8 hours.

Parking anywhere, anytime is another issue. These are just the world of a highly popular tourist attraction. Even the campground sites that the locals populate are now being reserved by a central system at the NPS (something that is getting some attention in the 'Letters to the Editor' here. ;-)

Yet, if you're willing to put up with all the inconveniences of what people bring, there are lovely pictures to be made.

This is the dock at Apgar Village.



My best,

Mike

EiTaro

Cologne 16-21 September 2014

adamz

If we gonna meet outside of US than I would second Henry with Newfoundland & Labrador - looks amazing, though I have nothing against Iceland not to mention Ireland, which is more than easily accessible.
You know my thoughts about US.

donaldejose

Consider this place for a focus on shooting birds. I have been there and it is really great for birders. You can drive though marshes on roads and shoot out the windows of your car.

http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Chincoteague/wildlife_and_habitat/index.html

http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Chincoteague/about.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chincoteague,_Virginia

http://www.chincoteague.com/

I can also recommend the Black Hills. There are not too many places where you can photograph both free ranging Bison and Presidents carved into a mountain.

And Glacier National Park: simply outstanding!! Awe inspiring views, beautiful wildflowers and wonderful day hikes, like the hike to iceberg lake (start very early if you want to have a chance at sun still on the lake). I think you could almost wear out a shutter there! Triple D Game Farm: how could you get any better access to animals?

For wildlife there is Yellowstone National Park; You can walk up on deer and elk but be careful about the moose and stay far away from any grizzly bears you see.

NSXTypeR

Wish you guys would still consider NYC, but I can't argue- I can imagine it could get quite expensive. Travel is hard to and from the airport too, unless you rent a cab it's not really direct.

Well, if you guys ever decide to stop by NYC, give me a holler.