NIKON WORLD ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Road Show Diary

Goin' South                                      
Eddie Soloway's Road Show Diary

Eddie Soloway is an experienced nature and outdoor photographer and a skilled photo instructor whose schedule calls for lots of travel.

Not long ago Eddie told us about an upcoming trip to Argentina, a place he'd never been, and we asked him if he'd like to keep a "voyage of discovery" diary that we could pass along to you.

He said he'd be happy to.

Entry 1: The Rationale

Two autumns every year. Once that thought entered my mind, I could not let go. I love autumn, and I always scramble to be in it and photograph it as much as possible. It has always been a season I want to stretch into at least another month. Crisp, frosty mornings, the sound of a light rain on fallen leaves, geese overhead, apples in a bushel and laying in a thick carpet of leaves dreaming up into a rainbow-colored canopy. Why wouldn't I want this to last? Sometimes I dream about following autumn south. I would start in Canada's tundra in late August, then end up at the end of the year in the southern Appalachians or maybe the bayous outside New Orleans.

I had heard some stories about autumn in South America, and the idea that I could go south of the equator and see autumn in spring was intriguing. I set my sights on Chile and Argentina. Both seemed full of possibility, but when the recent earthquake hit I moved my attention to Argentina. I called some friends, called some national parks. My broken Spanish proved more comedy than help as I got patient lessons from information officers that autumn was in April and May, between summer and winter.

I have learned from the past that forecasts of great color can fall short, hoping for a reasonable chance of color I narrowed the time and place down to late April in the area of Patagonia surrounding the city of Bariloche, tucked into the east side of the Andes. Lakes, cascades, new trees and the chance to be immersed in wild country. I  bought my ticket to Buenos Aires, and now off I go.

Entry 2: The Flight

I don’t sleep well on planes. The guy next to me looks to be getting a very deep, very sound, very loud, full night's sleep. His snoring aside, I am thinking about Argentina. Am I seeing photographs? Not exactly, but I love to work with the places where color and light, and water and movement come together. I am thinking about new trees, new qualities of light, different color palettes. My work right now seems split between intimate landscapes where I think about the essence of a place, and new interpretations inspired by impressions, abstractions and emotions. I need time in a place, and I know a first-time immersion can often be a beginning. Still, I am excited about something I do not know very much about.

Entry 3: "Uruguay. Really?"

Expect nothing, be prepared for anything. I try to live by this wise saying. Case in point: I landed in Buenos Aires, spent the day exploring, catching up on much needed rest, then met a friend who said I had to see her brother's beautiful property in Uruguay, I would love it. What should I do? Trusting someone's advice about where to photograph is like asking a stranger where to eat. You will learn what they like to eat, regardless of how well it matches your tastes. "It is a very short flight," she said, "Just 45 minutes. You say you have been very busy, well this place is muy tranquilo. You will love it." So off I went to Uruguay.

When I enter a new place, I am looking for magic. Simple as that. My camera is away, but my eyes are busy. I think about being a curious detective of cool things. After many days in a place I will start to grow ideas to work on, thoughts about how light falls and how it might be at different times of day. With just a short two nights in a place I do the same, but more intensely.