JessicaRicco.com » Nature

The Grand Canyon

jessieessiejay — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 00:25:15 +0000

Chris, our friends Leslie and Jaycen, and I spent last weekend at the Grand Canyon and in Sedona. The last time I tried to see the Grand Canyon it was raining and eerily foggy. For such a large natural wonder, it absolutely can be completely invisible under the right weather conditions.
Luckily, the weather was beautiful this time. I would highly recommend visiting the Grand Canyon in January or February – there are fewer visitors (who likes a wall of people to take pictures through and fight on the foot path?) and the weather is surprisingly nice. There was snow during out visit, but hiking during the middle of the day was quite warm, especially in the sun. We parked at the visitor’s center, took the free bus to Bright Angel Lodge, and then hiked around the rim to Hopi point.

How many goats (at least I think they were goats) can you find in this picture?

Leslie saved us from this giant boulder!

Chris actually jumped off of this ledge to freak me out. There was another ledge right under it.

Forty Shades of Green

Jessica — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 23:40:06 +0000

“Green, green, forty shades of green

I close my eyes and picture

the emerald of the sea

From the fishing boats of Dingle

to the shores of Donaghadee” – Johnny Cash

Green is the color of life signifying growth, healing, and renewal.

This past June I went on a wonderful tour of the UK and Ireland. Ireland really is as green and rainy as everyone says. But, it is in fact, this rain that influences the dramatic Irish landscapes. The influence of the gulf stream and the moderate climate combine to make Ireland well-balanced – no hot hots or cold colds. However, I did find myself with quite the unexpected sunburn after a day riding bikes on Aran Island.

Anyway, I decided to make a little project out of the proverbial wonderful Johnny Cash song, “Forty Shades of Green.” Below is my interpretation of Ireland’s many shades.

Hydrangeas, Etc.

jessieessiejay — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 02:48:11 +0000

I bought my mom some pretty hydrangeas for her birthday. I used the natural light from the windows as the only source of lighting.

Here are some fun pictures I took today while walking the dog. I like to call the first one “Reclamation.”

Making Nicole a Fairy

jessieessiejay — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 17:40:27 +0000

What girl doesn’t love playing dress up? Nicole brought her trunk full of vintage clothing over early one morning and we promptly disappeared into the woods. I think the golden colored dress nicely contrasts the dark, wet trees and bright green leaves making her pop out. In retrospect, I would have opened up the aperture more for a more blurred background, similar to Ashton’s portraits, but ultimately I like how these came out. This shoot was really enjoyable – if you have some fun clothes and a friend who’s willing to get his/her feet dirty – go outside! No, I’m serious, get some fresh air and some good practice.

Making the Forest into Fairyland

jessieessiejay — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:50:19 +0000

This morning I woke up to a backyard full of fog, dampness and random rays of sunshine. The morning/sunrise and the evening/sunset make for the most interesting light, so, forgetting my other obligations for the morning (finishing a report, going to the bank…etc), I grabbed my camera and ran outside.

I find that using a macro lens in the forest makes everything look like there should be Fae or little gnomes running around, sitting on mushrooms or laying on ferns. Something about the light this morning also enhanced this feeling for me. What do you think?

I love when the background is so out of focus that it is just soft colors that blend together…

Maybe this is someone’s home?

No matter how many photos of water drops I take, they never come out crisp. Maybe it has to do with the fact that my tripod was gently balancing on layers and layers of wet leaves = not so sturdy. Someday I will get the perfect water splash…but that day is not today…

That’s all for now!

~more later…

The Butterfly Garden in Montreal

jessieessiejay — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 03:40:08 +0000

Canada truly is like visiting a closer, mini Europe. Different signs on the road, different language (most people still speak English, thankfully), cool old buildings, etc. Well, Montreal and Ottawa are the closest cities to Clarkson University, where I went to college, in Potsdam NY.

One of the most impressive things to see in Montreal is the Biodome and the Botanical Gardens. For a couple of hours you can pretend you are in the rain forest, the arctic, or under the ocean. My favorite part though, is the butterfly garden and the greenhouses that lead up to it.

The butterfly garden is greenhouse style atrium that you can walk through. There are hundreds of butterflies that gracefully and playfully weave in and out of people as they walk by.

The butterfly garden is also covered in huge, beautiful hydrangeas.

Here are some of the flowers and plants in the greenhouses leading up to the butterflies.

That’s all for now…

~More later

If You’re in a Hurry, Don’t Drive with a Photographer

jessieessiejay — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 18:27:02 +0000

The drive from my house to college was about 300 miles through the Adirondack Mountains. For a semester I gave rides home on breaks to Kevin, a guy who lived in the town next to me. Poor unfortunate soul. There was one trip that took us an extra hour to get to school because I kept stopping on the side of the road to take pictures. If you’ve ever driven up the Adirondack Northway (I87n) and into the Adirondacks, you know it’s breathtaking. I felt my foot pressing the brake to pull over on its own several times. Here are some of the results:

I was so lucky to be driving by this exact spot while this lone man in a canoe was paddling around. Poor Kevin wasn’t lucky because he just wanted to get to school. He was a good sport though.

That’s all for now…

~More later