The road to the vineyards of Napa Valley stretches for miles and if you haven't driven it before, chances are that your first time will be a bit terrifying. But as long as you keep calm and just relax into those curves by the end of this stretch there is no way that all those picturesque views aren’t going to make up for any close calls.
Napa Valley Road at Sunrise
The Muir Beach is an amazing place to visit near the California Bay Area. The beach has a lot of natural beauty because it's surrounded by trees, shrubs and flowers that are native to this area. There are trails leading up into the hills which provide some great views of Mount Tamalpais on clear days where you can see all around for miles out over San Francisco through Golden Gate Bridge if conditions permit!
The vineyard is one of the many beautiful attractions that visitors can see in Napa Valley. Visitors are able to tour several wineries and sample their delicious wine, which makes up for nearly 85 percent of California's total production.
The vines stretch out into miles upon acres under rows upon rows across hillsides overlooking picturesque views over looking small towns nestled within valleys surrounded by mountains whose peaks reach high above foggy clouds obscuring them creating an atmosphere romantic enough for almost anyone.
Napa Valley
My past photo adventures have taken me all over the world. I actually began this photographic journey to capture the beauty in the world we live in. That is what drives me to travel and drives me to dedicate my time an energy to create these images.
A trip like Yosemite is amazing but requires a lot of planning and extra gear. I’ll be working with a photographer that has been shooting in Yosemite Valley for over 35 years so I expect to come home with some amazing images.
Historically I've planned a trip and then and showed the world my images months later. But this trip is a little bit different. I didn't realize the amount of gear I would need to undertake a trip of this size. Most of the time my travels take me to somewhat urban locations or locations not far from the modern amenities we have become accustom to. Although I'm not camping on this trip, it did require more resources and planning that I originally expected.
Due to the higher cost of the trip I wanted to find a way to involve my audience to help fund the project while providing value to everyone. At first I considered a Go Fund Me project but I quickly realized that this didn't provide the value I wanted to you (my audience). I quickly pivoted to the idea of selling discounted prints. This will allow you to help me fund this project while receiving a print at a heavily discounted price. You have been so great to me in the past with supporting my business and I want to find a way we can work together to fund more art from around the world. I can't tell you how much I appreciate your past support and I hope you will consider helping me fund this project!
Below are a few of the common questions that I anticipate you will have when considering participating.
I'm working with a guide that has been photographing Yosemite for over 35 years so I expect to come back with some amazing images. But If you don’t like anything I create from Yosemite I’d be more than happy to make a print of any of my portfolio images as a replacement.
I get it. I’m running out of space on my walls and will need to clear some room for this next wave of images too. Consider buying me a cup of coffee for the road and you’ll also be in the loop of seeing all the pre-released work.
If you are interested in helping me fund this trip click the link below and it will take you to the donation page. I'll have all the new images ready for the holiday season so if you are planning on giving one as a gift I can assure you it will be ready by early December. Thanks again for all your support!
Pricing
20x30 Paper Print - $125 (Normally $250)
12x18 Paper Print - $50 (Normally $150)
Cup of Coffee - $5
Napa Valley Rainbow
I recently vacationed in beautiful Napa Valley, California, where I enjoyed plenty of wine tasting, and more importantly, capturing the scenery in photos. My last trip to Napa this past spring was a whirlwind trip that left me with only a few quick photo opportunities between vineyard visits; this time I had four full days to drag myself out of bed each morning to shoot - and the lack of sleep was well worth it! Not shockingly, the pure beauty of Napa Valley gave me just enough energy to get up each morning to take photos.
Napa Valley Sunrise - Day 1
Napa Valley Sunrise - Day 1
We stayed near downtown Napa which gave me easy access to the entire valley. Our rental house had an impressive, picturesque view which I knew would be my first shoot, but I still had to figure out where else I was going to shoot. As we explored the valley I bookmarked each location that looked perfect for a sunrise shot and kept a tally on my phone. GPS makes for a great photo shoot assistant.
Napa Valley Sunrise - Day 1
Napa Valley - Silver Oak Vineyard
I'm in the process of buying a roller bag to accommodate all of my gear. In the meantime I've been packing up my Lowepro AW250 with as much as I can, which forces me to choose favorite lenses as I can't fit my Nikon 28-70 f2.8 , Nikon 80-200 f2.8 and my wide angle in the bag at the same time. I opted to bring my wide angle lens and my Nikon 28-70 f2.8 this time, which proved to work out. There were times I would have liked to have my Nikon 80-200 f2.8, but that's life. The moral of the story: stop being cheap and get a rolling bag!
Napa Valley - BV Vineyard and Domain Carneros
Napa Valley - Inglenook Vineyard
Anyway, back to the adventure..... Day 1 and I'm up (amazingly) at 5:00 am. The sun is not up and I realized I made a slight miscalculation. Due to the mountain range the sun doesn't peak above the mountains until after sunrise. Luckily, the extra 20 minutes gave me time to make sure all the settings were ready to go on my Nikon D800, which I had forgotten being my first time shooting HDR since I got my D800. Settings... Check. Now it was time to play around with my new Lee Filter Set and my 0.9 ND Grad. Looks like I needed that extra time anyway.
Napa Valley - BV Vineyard
Napa Valley California
In a place like Napa Valley you can't help but feel like one with nature as you are surrounded by this lush intense beauty. As the sun started to approach the mountain line I just sat there admiring the whole process in awe and of coursing shooting the whole time.
Napa Valley - Palmaz Vineyard
Later that day we headed out on our wine tour. We wound our way from vineyard to vineyard and stopped at some old and new favorites: Silver Oak , Inglenook, Beaulieu Vineyard and Palmaz Winery - bookmarking of course along the way.
Napa Valley - Palmaz Vineyard
Napa Valley - Inglenook Vineyard and BV Vineyard
Napa Valley California - Sunrise
Day 2 was definitely harder to get out of bed than Day 1, but today I had car keys and was ready to travel. I explored the north area of the valley, near Yountville and got some great morning shots. It's hard to look for locations while driving but luckily there aren't many people on the road at that time. Shooting in Napa is pretty amazing but it can also be a challenge since the light I prefer lasts only about 25 minutes this time of year.
Napa Valley - Palmaz Vineyard
Napa Valley California - Sunrise
The final two days I made my way over to the Domain Carneros area and explored the surrounding miles. Unfortunately, there was one location that I wanted to shoot but didn't have time to go to. Pride Mountain is breathtaking from what I hear so I was a little disappointing that I didn't get to see it or shoot any pictures. Judging from the shots I got and what will end up going in my portfolio I'd say this was a very successful trip. Now that I'm home I wish I was back; I see how people fall in love with California and never come home. I'll just have to hang some of my sunrise shots in my condo to remind me of those early morning adventures...
Napa Valley - Hog Island Oyster
Napa Valley California - Sunrise
Napa Valley California - Sunrise