I would love to spend some time out west to photograph the diverse wildlife that lives there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2d0laFmSbQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Its been a long time

Well its been quite some time since I decided to write on my blog, I've been distracted with many things lately family, work, dreams, ambitions, and everything else. I sit back a lot and always think about what it would be like to be one of the great photographers in the world that actually live the dream traveling the world and creating beautiful images.

    Sometimes I wonder what sets me apart from every other photographer out there, is it my work is not good enough, is it I don't have the right equipment, or maybe I just haven't been able to put the time in to do what I love doing. Its very hard I work 2nd shift job which requires me to work most Saturdays so I'm always working mostly 6 days a week giving me one day off that one day I have to choose to either go out and shoot or spend time with my family. And I know it sounds bad and I love spending time with my family but deep inside my soul I really want to be out there in the woods with nature all by myself just enjoying the peacefulness and scenery, shooting nature.
Its just the love of the outdoors that calls to me.

I'm not sure who reads my blogs but maybe some of you remember me talking about more or less going on some adventures, well I never got a kayak. But I did have a chance to go to the Adirondacks with my family for a couple days during the summer. I took the opportunity to climb/ hike my first mountain on the 46r list which was Cascade Mountain at 4098ft. It was one of the most rewarding things I have dome for myself. The view was exceptional from the summit, I could see many of the high peaks along with a distant view of a range off in the distance in Vermont. I do plan to climb all of the 46 High Peaks in the Adirondacks, its a physical, and photography goal I have. So, one down 45 more to go. Here are some images I took while atop of Cascade, and Whiteface Mountain.
You can also see these images and more on my Facebook page Steven Wilson Photography  facebook.com/stevenwilsonphotography Feel free to stop by and say hello or even give my page a like. 

                                          

This image is from Keene  Valley, NY in the Adks

Me atop of Cascade Mountain

Approaching the summit of Cascade

Mt. Marcy, Hatstack, and Algonquin from the Cascade summit

Another view from Cascades Summit

Vermont Mountain Range in the background 

Shot from the top of Whiteface Mountain

This is a HDR shot from the summit of Whiteface

Hope you all Enjoy!
Next is a little treat from OBX North Carolina.
Thanks,
Steven Wilson
Steven Wilson Photography

Where it all began, the dreams of a young boy

I have been thinking allot lately about where my passion/ obsession for photography came from. More than likely it started with my father and grandfather, who were both avid outdoorsmen. That was just the seed that got me going, grandpa was the " family photographer" as he was the one that was always hiding around every corner waiting to get shots of anyone and everyone during family events regardles weather they wanted there pics taken or not. And I always said to myself, I wanted to be that guy, the one behind the camera taking shots and helping preserve memories. But then again my father worked for Kodak in Rochester,NY back when they were in there prime, I took pride in the fact that my father worked there. Now even though my father worked for Kodak, he was a Nikon guy.. I can't remember what camera it was that he had, but it was a SLR and  something that  had my attention. I guess its all part of the classic tale of a son/grandson wanting to be like grandpa or dad, in my case it was a little bit of both. Grandpa showed me how to appreciate rivers and lakes as he always took me fishing with him, dad showed me how to appreciate nature in the woods. I remember him telling me, when you can sit here long and quiet enough to take a picture of a deer, then ill let you bring a gun... Well, I never got any pics... Lol
    Now to ad to my obsession/ passion, my father had his shows we watched, and my favorite which still sticks in my head is " The life and times of Grizzly Adams", I grew up wanting to live like he did, do what he did and be the man he was but with a camera to capture the sights of nature. That's when my dream was born to want to become a photographer for National Geographic. It was calling to me so loud that I remember being home from school with chickenpox, and I was just about better, well I took off to Fays drug store to look around and came across a camera and really wanted it bad as my father was very conservative with his money and didn't believe in paying allowance to us kids. I was determined to have that camera, so I picked it up and tried to walk out the store with it, mind you I was just about 10 years old and never ment to be a menice, just a boy with a dream and one that was willing to do anything to attempt to achieve that dream. Well you know it, I got caught. And got in a ton of trouble over it. My father was a strict man and if you know old school upbringing you can guess what I got.

So for awhile that dream was crushed because I didn't have the money to buy a camera and shoplifting wasn't the answer either. But at the same time I still had the burning desire to travel the world, explore, and take beautiful images to share my experiences with the world. I have ran into many roadblocks in life, getting caught up in the now and putting my dreams on hold for "life".
Right now I'm 33 I have a beautiful daughter, and a beautiful woman who knows about my dreams and is trying to support me with them the best she can. I now have a Nikon DSLR and lenses that were bought and paid for by me and my lovely woman. Lol.
Now days I have my dream back in my sights, and I'm not letting go.. My better half paid for me to take travel photography classes and start truly start to pursue my dreams. We both understand the the initial sacrifice we will have to make, but its the long term benefits we are focused on. And that would be to eventually travel the world together as a family and experience all the beautiful places and things this world has to offer.
I used to worry, " maybe im too late". Well weather it is or isn't, I'm looking at it as " Nothing ventured, nothing gained".

I guess what it all boils down to is, never let life get in the way of your dreams and if you do always hold on to them tight. Its never too late. I'm not what you would call a successful photographer yet, but I know deep inside my heart it is still within my grasp.You see people everyday that are in their 40s, 50s, and even 60s going back to school to make something better for themselves and their families.
So if you believe in what im doing and would like to watch me grow feel free to follow and like my blog, as well as my facebook page facebook.com/stevenwilsonphotography, I'm also on Google+ which to me is better than facebook.

Before I go I would like to share a couple of my latest images that I took with the new Nikon D7100 which I plan to review on here soon, just so you know I'm very pleased with this camera.

Spur of the moment trip

This past Thursday I decided to make a little trip to the Adirondacks. It was very long trip about 6 hours from where I live. I have got to say it is 1 of the most beautiful places I have ever been, mountains everywhere fresh spring lakes, of course they were frozen. I went there with plans is to travel around and take some beautiful pictures of the beautiful scenery , I know this is the place I would like to spend a summer or two. The mountains were covered in a beautiful layer of untouched snow, peaks doing through clouds. When I get there I was in complete awe of everything around me. I drove to Whiteface mountain to see the slopes, spent a little bit of time in Lake Placid, and also traveled to Keene Valley, NY where Mount Marcy towers through the sky, as it is New York's tallest mountain.. I have plans to soon make the accent to the top of Marcy, as I think it will be a stepping stone to my passion of travel photography, and also for me to get back in the shape I wish to be in. I have some nice images I will post in just a minute.

Niagara Falls in the winter

Today was a good day, I got a chance to spend time with my family and get some nice shots for a change. We went to Niagara Falls, New York. I would say im quite lucky to have it at my fingertips, its a beautiful place to see. There is so much more to see, than just the falls. The Niagara Gorge is a sight to see, in my opinion, I think its more breathtaking than the falls. Surrounded by extremely hight cliffs, the Niagara River rushes through with a beautiful deep turquoise blue, with whirlpools and rapids. I have yet to get the shot though, as the sights I have picked out are from an area where you cant just get out and shoot.. I have to plan a route so I can park, load the pack and hike to my spots. But needless to say I did grab a few nice shots of the falls, and a few others. It was cold but beautiful with the falls flowing and the banks covered with snow.

Recent shots

This is a nice shot I got while we had some fresh snow

Travel photography

I would like to say first, I apologize for anyone that has started reading my blog to see that I haven't posted in quite a while. I have had a lot going to my mind lately mostly with travel photography. This year I'm thinking about being more adventurous with my photography. First and foremost I am adding more to my photography skills by taking up MatadorU travel photography classes. Also I'm looking into buying a kayak to travel up streams to the hard to get to places to be able to start getting them 1 of a kind shots. And another plan is sailing, I bought a sailboat last year and it needs work what I plan to do some sailing this year on Lake Ontario and again bring my viewers some spectacular shots. I also plan on buying some type of video camera so I can start doing tutorials so people that Follow Me and look work can also learn for me and start taking spectacular shot themselves. Right now I only use a Nikon d7000 but I am looking to upgrade to either nikon D 7100 or the Nikon D 600 I'm waiting for the 7100 to come out so I can compare the 2, as I am thinking that 24 megapixels would be more effective on the DX format opposed to 24 megapixels on the full frame FX format DSLR . So if you have any ideas or any input for me please feel free to comment on my post and we can discuss it.