Chile
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Unfortunately, a lot of tourist stops in the Atacama were closed for one reason or another when I visited, and I was often unable to find this out until I'd driven most or all of the way there. One such spot was Piedras Rojas (Red Rocks), which lies in the lower, right hand corner of this photo. The overcast skies made everything gray, but when the sun is out, I guess the area looks much different. Oh well, one more reason to return to Chile. Available in the following sizes (Panorama C): 30x10, 36x12, 48x16, 60x20, 72x24, 90x30, 90x30 Triptych (3 x 30x30), 108x36, 108x36 Triptych (3 x 36x36), 120x40, 120x40 Triptych Triptych (3 x 40x40), 144x48 Triptych (3 x 48x48).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) One fairly well known but hard to reach spot in the Atacama is Valle de Arcoiris – Rainbow Valley. Given the spectrum of colors in the rock and sand at Valle de Arcoiris, it is easy to see how it got the name. Available in the following sizes (Panorama C): 30x10, 36x12, 48x16, 60x20, 72x24, 90x30, 90x30 Triptych (3 x 30x30), 108x36, 108x36 Triptych (3 x 36x36), 120x40, 120x40 Triptych Triptych (3 x 40x40), 144x48 Triptych (3 x 48x48), 162x54 Triptych (3 x 54x54), 180x60 Triptych (3 x 60x60).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called. I was only granted one beautiful sunset while visiting the Atacama – I'm glad I happened to be at the Valle de Luna when it happened! Available in the following sizes (Panorama A): 20x10, 24x12, 32x16, 40x20, 48x24, 60x30, 60x30 Triptych (3 x 20x30), 72x36, 72x36 Triptych (3 x 24x36), 80x40, 80x40 Triptych (3 x 27x40), 96x48, 96x48 Triptych (3 x 32x48), 108x54, 108x54 Triptych (3 x 36x54), 120x60, 120x60 Triptych (3 x 40x60).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called. I was only granted one beautiful sunset while visiting the Atacama – I'm glad I happened to be at the Valle de Luna when it happened! Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48, 80x54, 90x60.
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called. I was only granted one beautiful sunset while visiting the Atacama – I'm glad I happened to be at the Valle de Luna when it happened! Available in the following sizes (Panorama B): 30x12, 40x16, 50x20, 60x24, 75x30, 75x30 Triptych (3 x 25x30), 90x36, 90x36 Triptych (3 x 30x36), 105x42, 105x42 Triptych (3 x 35x42), 120x48, 120x48 Triptych (3 x 40x48).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called – although I think Valle de Marte (Valley of Mars) would be a more appropriate name, given the orange and red shades to everything in the area. See all the snow on the mountains in the background? None of that was there the day before I took this photo. It is the snow from the random precipitation that occurred while I was visiting. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40.
Puesta de Sol en la Valle de Luna
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called – although I think Valle de Marte (Valley of Mars) would be a more appropriate name, given the orange and red shades to everything in the area. This is my personal favorite of all the Atacama photos I captured. Available in the following sizes (Panorama A): 20x10, 24x12, 32x16, 40x20, 48x24, 60x30, 60x30 Triptych (3 x 20x30), 72x36, 72x36 Triptych (3 x 24x36), 80x40, 80x40 Triptych (3 x 27x40), 96x48, 96x48 Triptych (3 x 32x48), 108x54, 108x54 Triptych (3 x 36x54), 120x60, 120x60 Triptych (3 x 40x60).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Perhaps the most popular tourist destination in the Atacama Desert is the Valle de Luna (Valley of the Moon). It is a big, empty, desert park that feels exactly like what it is called – although I think Valle de Marte (Valley of Mars) would be more appropriate, given the orange and red shades to everything in the area. Available in the following sizes (Panorama D): 40x10, 48x12, 64x16, 80x20, 96x24, 96x24 Triptych (3 x 32x24), 120x30, 120x30 Triptych (3 x 40x30), 144x36 Triptych (3 x 48x36), 168x42 Triptych (3 x 56x42), 192x48 Triptych (3 x 64x48), 216x54 Triptych (3 x 72x54), 240x60 Triptych (3 x 80x60).
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) This photo is a roadside shot I took while returning to my hostel from Laguna Miniques. I feel this shot is a fairly good representation of what the Atacama Desert looks and feels like. Although I think the skies are typically much less cloudy. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48.
My month-long trip to Chile and Argentina in late 2019 and early 2020 was split into two parts. I spent the first two-thirds of my time in Patagonia, at the south and southwestern portion of South America, and then spent my last week or so in the San Pedro de Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The contrast from Patagonia to the Atacama desert couldn't have been more stark. I got rained on quite a bit in Patagonia. The Atacama Desert, on the other hand, is the second driest place on the planet. The driest place? Antarctica. Seriously. (Interesting side note – I DID get rained on in the Atacama. At one point, it was coming down so hard I had to pull over because my windshield wipers couldn't keep up.) Laguna Miniques, shown here, is on the edge of the Atacama, so the precipitation here is a bit higher, but it is still high and dry. The elevation of the lake is a surprising 13,520 feet, and the average annual temperature is 36 degrees Fahrenheit. This whole part of the country looks like something from a post-Apocalyptic movie set. Available in the following sizes (Panorama C): 30x10, 36x12, 48x16, 60x20, 72x24, 90x30, 90x30 Triptych (3 x 30x30), 108x36, 108x36 Triptych (3 x 36x36), 120x40, 120x40 Triptych Triptych (3 x 40x40), 144x48 Triptych (3 x 48x48), 162x54 Triptych (3 x 54x54), 180x60 Triptych (3 x 60x60).
The “Marble Caves,” located on General Carrera Lake in Chilean Patagonia, are accessible only by boat, and I believe motorized boat traffic is restricted in some way. At least, I didn't see any power boats cruising around when I kayaked to the Marble Caves. And they remain something of a secret spot – as of mid-2020, the “Marble Caves” don't have a Wikipedia entry! Some of this has to do with how remote and inaccessible they are. But if you ever find yourself near Chile Chico, on the Argentina / Chile border in Patagonia, do yourself a favor and check them out! Truly a sight to behold! Available in the following sizes (Panorama A): 20x10, 24x12, 32x16, 40x20, 48x24, 60x30, 60x30 Triptych (3 x 20x30), 72x36, 72x36 Triptych (3 x 24x36).
The “Marble Caves,” located on General Carrera Lake in Chilean Patagonia, are accessible only by boat, and I believe motorized boat traffic is restricted in some way. At least, I didn't see any power boats cruising around when I kayaked to the Marble Caves. And they remain something of a secret spot – as of mid-2020, the “Marble Caves” don't have a Wikipedia entry! Some of this has to do with how remote and inaccessible they are. But if you ever find yourself near Chile Chico, on the Argentina / Chile border in Patagonia, do yourself a favor and check them out! Truly a sight to behold! Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48.
The “Marble Caves,” located on General Carrera Lake in Chilean Patagonia, are accessible only by boat, and I believe motorized boat traffic is restricted in some way. At least, I didn't see any power boats cruising around when I kayaked to the Marble Caves. And they remain something of a secret spot – as of mid-2020, the “Marble Caves” don't have a Wikipedia entry! Some of this has to do with how remote and inaccessible they are. But if you ever find yourself near Chile Chico, on the Argentina / Chile border in Patagonia, do yourself a favor and check them out! Truly a sight to behold! Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40.
Chile is a long, thin country that has a lot of mountains, fjords, and lakes, at least in the southern half. Accordingly, some drives with endpoints only a dozen or so miles away (as the crow flies) can be hours or days long. Such is the case when driving north from Chile Chico. Fortunately, the scenery in the area is spectacular, and if one is not in a rush, it's an area worth enjoying at a leisurely pace. Most of the roads here are dirt, such as the one shown in this photo, which I took at the beginning of my drive north from Chile Chico. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48.
After leaving Torres del Paine, I spent a few days in Argentina before coming back into Chile via the funky little town of Chile Chico. It's small, but colorful, and far enough away from the major tourist draws to seem authentic, but touristy enough to mean tourist activities were available. On my next trip to Patagonia, I'm going to try to leave myself some more time to enjoy Chile Chico. In the limited time I had available, I was able to get this photo of part of the Chilean shoreline of General Carerra Lake, the largest lake in Chile. Interestingly, the Chile / Argentina border goes through the lake, splitting it roughly in half. If I'd panned a bit further to the right, some of the water shown would have been in Argentina. Available in the following sizes (Panorama B): 30x12, 40x16, 50x20, 60x24, 75x30, 75x30 Triptych (3 x 25x30), 90x36, 90x36 Triptych (3 x 30x36), 105x42, 105x42 Triptych (3 x 35x42), 120x48, 120x48 Triptych (3 x 40x48), 135x54 Triptych (3 x 45x54), 150x60 Triptych (3 x 50x60).
I was lucky enough to spend a few days before and after January 1, 2020, in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. It is unquestionably one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and the highlight for any photographer is the eponymous Torres del Paine mountains. A visitor to the park can find endless ways to frame these spectacular peaks, and constantly changing weather, lighting, foregrounds, and seasons means one could spend a lifetime here and not see everything. This was the last image I took of these majestic mountains, and looking at it now, I'm already yearning to the day I'm able to return. Available in the following sizes (Panorama A): 20x10, 24x12, 32x16, 40x20, 48x24, 60x30, 60x30 Triptych (3 x 20x30), 72x36, 72x36 Triptych (3 x 24x36), 80x40, 80x40 Triptych (3 x 27x40), 96x48, 96x48 Triptych (3 x 32x48), 108x54, 108x54 Triptych (3 x 36x54), 120x60, 120x60 Triptych (3 x 40x60).
Who knew there were flamingos in Patagonia?! I sure didn't, so it came as a surprise when I saw these three beautiful birds at Lago Azul in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. I remember thinking, “...this can't be real...” when I hit the shutter and got this shot. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 8x12, 12x18, 16x24, 20x30, 24x36, 30x45, 40x60, 48x72, 54x80, 60x90.
I took this photo on January 1, 2020, and remember thinking that if I were to post it online, I'd get bombarded with people saying it must be fake. And I would understand people thinking as much. As if the mountains in the back of the photo weren't enough, there's a field of multicolored lupines in the foreground so thick that it's almost impossible to see the leaves and grass underneath. C'mon?! How can this possibly exist? Well, it does, and it can be found in one of the most amazing places I've ever been – Torres del Paine National Park, in Chile. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48, 80x54.
Who knew there were flamingos in Patagonia?! I sure didn't, so it came as a surprise when I saw these three beautiful birds at Lago Azul in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. I remember thinking, “...this can't be real...” when I hit the shutter and got this shot. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48.
Who knew there were flamingos in Patagonia?! I sure didn't, so it came as a surprise when I saw these two beautiful birds at Lago Azul in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park. I used my telephoto lens in this photo to zoom in and see these birds up close, but I have another photo (“Fantasy Land,” in my Chile album) that shows them inclusive of the environment. They look so out of place! Available in the following sizes (Rectangle A): 10x8, 14x11, 20x16, 24x20, 30x24, 40x30, 50x40.
I woke up before sunrise on January 1, 2020, at Lago Azul (Blue Lake) campground in Chile's majestic Torres del Paine National Park. Although the rest of the year didn't live up to how it began, it was probably the best start to a year I can remember. I started the day by photographing some landscape scenes with early morning light in one of the prettiest places on the planet. This photo was taken a stone's throw from a roadside pull out. I had to walk through a bit of swampy mud to get to this location, from which I was able to capture the majestic Torres del Paine mountains, framed perfectly with a mirror-smooth reflection in the foreground. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48, 80x54, 90x60.
Southern Chile's Torres del Paine National Park is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. And the crowds aren't terrible there, either. I was the only one here, at Cascado Rio Paine, on the morning of January 1, 2020, when I got this photo at sunrise. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24, 45x30, 60x40, 72x48, 80x54, 90x60.
One of the things that surprised me most about my visit to Chile and Argentina – primarily to visit Patagonia – in late 2019 and early 2020, was the number of opportunities for wildlife photography. I didn't think I'd get my telephoto lens out a single time while in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park, but I was thrilled when this turned out to be an incorrect assumption. On the evening of December 31, 2019, I was driving my rented camper van to Lago Azul (Blue Lake) to camp for the night, and came across another photographer. I couldn't tell what he was photographing, but eventually, using my broken Spanish, learned that he was photographing some baby foxes he'd seen on the road. I decided I'd stick around for a few minutes to see if any of them showed up. Lo and behold, eventually a few decided to make an appearance! It soon got too dark to continue photographing them, but I loved the 15 or so minutes I was able to spend with them. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24.
One of the things that surprised me most about my visit to Chile and Argentina – primarily to visit Patagonia – in late 2019 and early 2020, was the number of opportunities for wildlife photography. I didn't think I'd get my telephoto lens out a single time while in Chile's Torres del Paine National Park, but I was thrilled when this turned out to be an incorrect assumption. On the evening of December 31, 2019, I was driving my rented camper van to Lago Azul (Blue Lake) to camp for the night, and came across another photographer. I couldn't tell what he was photographing, but eventually, using my broken Spanish, learned that he was photographing some baby foxes he'd seen on the road. I decided I'd stick around for a few minutes to see if any of them showed up. Lo and behold, eventually a few decided to make an appearance! It soon got too dark to continue photographing them, but I loved the 15 or so minutes I was able to spend with them. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 12x8, 18x12, 24x16, 30x20, 36x24.
