Yonder
A Photobook by R. Todd Slawson
The unique thing about my Yonder book is that there is no text - other than the title of course. Readers or better yet viewers try to guess where the photo was taken and what animal or bird is the subject. Thus, I will not state here where I traveled to this year but it was definitely to some interesting and unique places. The photos presented in Yonder, which is my third book, are a compilation of not only places traveled to this year but also some places in years past. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did taking them.
Rainbow Lorikeet. The Rainbow Lorikeet is one of the prettiest birds I have ever photographed. They are native to Australia. However, I photographed this medium sized parrot in Tanganyika Wildlife Park near Wichita, KS. No matter where you find them, they are still a treat to photograph.
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Black Wildebeest. These black wildebeest were enjoying to day frolicking in Etosha National Park in northwestern Namibia. Etosha is one of Africa’s largest parks at 8,600 square miles. It is known for its abundance of diverse wildlife as well as a very large salt pan – the biggest in Africa. In fact, Etosha means large white area in reference to that salt pan which fills up with water in the rainy season and attracts hundreds of thousands of flamingos.
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Etosha National Park - Wikipedia
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Neist Point Lighthouse. This 1909 lighthouse sits on the western coast of the Isle of Skye Scotland UK. There we many photographers there the evening when I visited, and we were all fighting 55 mph wind gust. It was a challenge.
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Neist Point Lighthouse - Wikipedia
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Fire Fall Yosemite. The leftmost photo on this page is of Horsetail Falls in the Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park California. For two weeks in February each year, the angle of the setting sun is just right so that it illuminates the water with a glow that makes it look like it is on fire. It was a treat to capture this photo.
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Ousel Falls. This 100’ water fall was captured with a long exposure to blur its motion. It is at the end of a 1.5 mile hike just above Big Sky, Montana. The trail follows the ravine carved by the Gallatin River – actually this is the south fork of the west fork of the Gallatin. The Gallatin originates in the Yellowstone National Park and flows north to converge with the Jefferson and Madison Rivers near Three Forks, Montana (apply named) to form the Missouri River. The Ousel Falls Hike is very popular being an easy hike with a beautiful scene at the end.
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Haifoss. Haifoss means high waterfall in Icelandic. This is the third tallest falls in Iceland and is located in its Highland region in the Fossardalur Valley. Iceland is spectacularly pretty with beautiful waterfalls everywhere. I hope to explore more of Iceland soon.
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Giraffe Silhouette. Sometimes you get lucky. We were observing a journey of giraffes at dusk as they moved up the ridge. Then one summited the ridge line just so I could photograph it with the perfect backdrop of the setting sun. This is a photo from the 21,000 acre Amakhala Game Reserve an hour north of Port Elizabeth on the Eastern Cape of South Africa. I loved it especially for its unique topography. By the way a group of giraffes is called a “journey” when they are moving and a “tower” when they are standing still.
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Tulip Festival in Skagit Valley. Skagit Valley holds its annual Tulip Festival April 1-30. So I dropped in. What a cute area, especially the town of La Conner on the Skagit Bay. There are fields of multicolored tulips in abundance. I found this yellow field of tulips particularly photographic.
Skagit Valley Tulip Festival - Wikipedia
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Grass Hut. This grass covered hut was found in the Highlands of Iceland. It was a very stormy and gloomy day as you can see in this photograph. This was not a home but appeared to be a storage hut of some sort. Whatever it was, I found it perfect to photograph.
Giraffes Fighting. This photo of two male giraffes fighting for dominance in the social hierarchy was also taken in Etosha National Park in Namibia. This scene went on for about 30 minutes and allowed me to capture numerous good photos of them. I have seen many giraffes over the years but never was lucky enough to witness this scene before.
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Etosha National Park - Wikipedia
Blue Wildebeest. You saw the three black wildebeest earlier in this book, but this one is the blue wildebeest which is slightly bigger, has bigger and different horns plus has a lighter colored mane and tail. Also, a big difference between the two is that the black wildebeest is territorial staying within a small acquired territory for its entire life while the blue wildebeest are migratory throughout the year. This blue wildebeest was in Amakhala Game Reserve.
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Castle at Night. This is the picturesque Eilean Donan castle in the western highlands of Scotland. No, it is not named after a woman as the name might suggest but rather Eilean Donan means Island of Donan in Gaelic. This little tidal upon which the historic castle sits is between three converging lochs. I found out upon my visit that a loch is not only a lake but can be a sea inlet or arm. The Eilean Donan was on such type of loch and thus accessible by the sea. Built in the 1200s, it protected the area from the Vikings that occupied much of northern Scotland at that time. However in 1719, the castle was involved in a skirmish between the English and the Jacobites who were supported by the Spanish. Three English heavily armed frigates bombarded the castle and when finally seized, the English used the rest of the gunpower to blow it up as best as they could. The castle lay in ruins for 200 years until it was rebuilt from 1911 to 1932.
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Quiver Trees. The quiver tree forest exists only outside of Keetmanshoop, Namibia where it is endemic. However, they are not trees at all but an aloe plant on steroids that can grow over 30 feet tall. The biggest quiver trees are several hundred years old. The San people (bushman) used its branches to make quivers, thus its name. To me, these look like an upside down tree where the branches look more like the root system.
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Quiver Tree Forest - Wikipedia
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Castle with Sheep. This ruined castle is Kilchurn Castle in Scotland, built in the early 1400s. Like most castles, it was built on a loch and now is a favorite of photographers. I find that Scottish castles always look better with some sheep in the foreground, especially a couple black sheep mixed in.
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Mud Bubbles. These bubbles are from one of the many thermal hot pots in Yellowstone National Park in northwest Wyoming. One of my beauty in simplicity photos.
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Yellowstone National Park - Wikipedia
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Antarctica Landscape. The mountains of Antarctica are spectacular with hundreds of feet of marshmallow snow and icebergs floating about. The water is usually smooth and very blue. I was surprised by the beauty of this land when I arrived. Yes, the penguins are fun to photograph also but the landscapes were amazing.
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Lilac Breasted Roller. These two photos are of a lilac breaster roller in Etosha National Park in Namibia. As you can see from both photos, this roller is a very beautifully colored bird. He has appeared in a previous edition of my photo book but in a sitting pose. I finally got him photographed in flight. It was not easy and I was excited to finally capture it. As his name suggests, his flight is not uniform as it rolls from side to side. A very happy day for me.
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Lilac-breasted roller - Wikipedia
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Braided River. The braided rivers in Iceland are magical. This is difficult to understand what it really is which I like those types of photos. The braids are underneath a flowing river and formed during the heavy spring runoff. This photo was taken from a helicopter.
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Sand Dunes. These gigantic sand dunes in the Namib desert in western Namibia are so pretty with their very fine reddish brown sand. I set up waiting for dusk so that the shadows were pronounced on the dune. It made a great and almost surreal photo.
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Tulips. Another photo of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washington State. This one is at Roozengaarde farms which has the most amazing tulip garden displays. Of course, they also sell tulip bulbs online in case you were wondering.
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Skagit Valley Tulip Festival - Wikipedia
Zebra Line. On the top of this page is a line of Burchell’s zebras from Etosha National Park in Namibia. One can tell they are Burchell’s zebras because they have a brown shadow stripe between their black strips. Grevy’s and mountain zebras do not.
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Etosha National Park - Wikipedia
Cheetahs. This pair of cheetahs were in a game preserve in Namibia. Cheetahs are one of my favorite animals and many Africans have them as pets including the owners of this game preserve. When I say pets, I mean the cheetahs even sleep on their beds at night. The mouth of a Cheetah is too small to kill a human as it only preys on smaller animals like a gazelle. Lions kill cheetahs in the wild to eliminate competition for food but this leaves orphaned cheetah young which are then moved into private game preserves and cannot be reintroduced into the wild.
Waterbucks. This female waterbuck has her two young ones with her in Amakhala Game Reserve in South Africa. These furry animals look like they belong in Norway or Sweden and not in South Africa. I love their markings with the horse-shoe-shaped, white marking on their rear end. Below is a better photo of that from a previous trip to South Africa.
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Lake Moraine:
This aerial photograph of Lake Moraine sitting in the Valley of the Ten Peaks was taken from a helicopter. Lake Moraine in my opinion is the prettiest lake in North America. Not only is the backdrop the incredible range of the Ten Peaks but the water is an amazing turquoise color from the glacier silt suspended in the water. The best way to visit it is to stay at Lake Moraine lodge for a night or two. It is a small lodge with cabins overlooking the lake. Otherwise, the parking lot fills up quickly and you will not be allowed to drive the eight miles to see it. Here is a photo of the lake from another vantage point that I presented in one of my earlier photo books.
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Deadvlei. This is in the Namib Desert in western Namibi. Deadvlei means dead pan or dead marsh. The trees in this old marsh are now dead and are surrounded by 1,000’ high sand dunes. What makes this photo so unreal is that the early morning sun has just risen over the “Big Daddy” sand dune behind me and has illuminated the sand dune in front of me. However, the sun is not high enough to illuminate the white dead pan or the trees. I only had a few minutes to take my photos.
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Lone Flamingo. Walvis Bay, Namibia is home to a very large flock of flamingos – up to 250,000 in the summer months. I took this photo of one stretching its wings at dusk.
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Baby Great Horned Owl. A baby great horned owl was keeping a keen eye on me as I photographed him from below. He was in Cherry Creek Park area in south Denver, Colorado.
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Bald Eagle. I have photographed bald eagles in Minnesota for decades but I rarely find them in a Norway pine. I usually find then on top of a barren tree. I like him on the Norway pine better; it makes a pretty photo.
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Hogwarts Express. The Hogwarts Express does exist and here is proof. It leaves Port William, Scotland for a two-hour journey through the countryside only to return back to Port William. However for the purpose of this story it left Kings Cross Station on Platform 9¾ and traveled to Hogsmeade Station to drop off the little witches and warlocks at Hogwarts. As this train passed me, the passenger cars were filled with children dressed in their Harry Potter costumes. So cute.
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Hogwarts Express (disambiguation) - Wikipedia
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Leaky Falls. This is one of the prettiest waterfalls in Iceland. This relatively new series of waterfalls also goes by the name of Lava Islands Falls and Beautiful Falls. I did not write the Icelandic name for each as you would not even be able to start to pronounce it.
Tawny Eagle (sitting and flying). This is a Tawny eagle. Don’t worry, I had never heard of it either until I photographed it. I found him in Etosha National Park in Namibia.
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Etosha National Park - Wikipedia
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Deadvlei Trees. This of the dead trees in the Deadvlei white pan with the Namib sand dunes behind it.
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Zebras Drinking. A line of Burchell’s zebras are drinking at the local watering hole in Etosha National Park in Namibia.
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Etosha National Park - Wikipedia
Northern Lights. The northern lights are always a treat during the darker months in the northern latitudes. I have photographed them in the Yukon territories as well as in Iceland and Minnesota. This photo was taken just outside Sitka, Alaska in early April 2022. It put on a great but short show as we quickly rushed to a perfect setting to get its reflection in a nearby pond. The mountains were still snowcapped which made this one of my favorite northern light photos.
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Egret in Beach Surf. This snowy egret was wandering the Florida gulf coast at dusk. They are pretty birds. I love the touch of yellow on its head.
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Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. These two photos are of the Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge train in Southwestern Colorado. The first photo is of the train winding through the Cascade Canyon on its way to the mountain town of Silverton. The entire route is 45 miles and the 3 foot narrow gauge rails allows the train to navigate the sharp turns in the Cascade Canyon.
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Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad - Wikipedia
Cheetahs. This cheetah pair is overlooking the field to determine what’s for dinner. This is in Amakhala Game Reserve in South Africa.
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Kolmanskop. This is the abandoned diamond mine town of Kolmanskop not far from Luderitz (as if you know where that is either). This is in the Namib desert. Once a prosperous diamond mining town it was abandoned in 1956. The diamonds would just be picked off the ground so not much mining involved. The wind swept sand has retaken the village filling up many buildings with piles of sand. We walked through the village at 6 p.m. one evening with our footprints deeply embedded in the sand. Upon returning at 6 a.m. the next morning, there was no evidence that we had been there the evening before.
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Icelandic Horses. Do not call them ponies. I learned that lesson quickly even though they are the size of a pony and only 800 lbs on average. Their size is difficult to tell from these two photos. I picked these photos to show the long manes these very friendly horses have. Fun fact: they were brought to Iceland by the Vikings in the 800s A.D. They sell these horses all over the world but once they leave this Island nation they are not allowed back in.
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Aspens. I laid on my back and took this photo of the golden fall aspens in Telluride Colorado in October 2020.
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Moss Trees Oregon Coast. I love the mossy coastal forests of the pacific northwest. I photographed this unique tree on the Oregon coast just south of Gold Beach in September 2020.
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Bridge in Scotland. This is the Sligachan Old Bridge on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. This a long exposure on a tripod.
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Himba Tribe. The school boy and the tribal girl are from the Himba tribe in northern Namibia. The Himba women dye their skin with a red ocher powder mixed with cow fat that gives the skin a reddish-brown glow. It helps to protect them from the harsh sun and the insects. Upon reaching puberty, they braid their hair and cover it with a red waxy paste known as otjize and use goat hair extension below. They do not take baths but rather cleanse themselves with smoke. It was a very interesting day visiting this tribe. Click on the link for a very interesting read.
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Rocky Coast Namiba. The sand dunes of the Namib desert in Western Namibia meet the Atlantic Ocean. It is a 1,000’ drop off to the ocean. The black areas on the coast line are colonies of seals.
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Bears. These three photos of bears were taken while in Katmai National Park in the southwestern portion of Alaska in September 2021. The experience to be so close to the bears that are feeding on salmon before their winter hibernation was truly amazing. I ended up with so many “keeper” photos. The backlit photo of the Grizzly sow with her cub is one of my favorite ones.
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Katmai National Park and Preserve - Wikipedia
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Lighthouse in the Bay. This is Sitka Bay in Alaska. Sitka is a coastal town on the south east peninsula of the state. The bay is beautiful. I photographed this lighthouse on my way back in from whale watching in April 2022. The lighthouse is actually available to rent to stay in.
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Harlequin Duck. This colorful duck is a Harlequin. I found him on Lake O’Hara in Banff National Park in British Columbia, Canada. From a distance, the white spot on his head is often mistaken for its eye but as you can clearly see here it is not.
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Canadian Loon with Baby. This is a common loon with its baby in the Jasper area of Alberta Canada. I think loons are the most interesting water birds in North American. I love their red eyes in the sunlight. They probably are the inspiration behind the word “looney” due to their antics and varieties of unique calls that reverberate across the glassy waters of the North America lakes. I have photographed them for years in central Minnesota where they are dearly loved and are in fact are the state bird - no it is not the mosquito. In my recent travels to Canada, I have stumbled upon many common loons. I always love photographing them with their babies, which usually numbers two. The second baby of this family was just outside this composition. I chose this photo for the look on the baby loon’s face. The parent (difficult to tell if mom or dad here) dives down and catches minnows to feed the offspring. They were not afraid of me in my kayak with my telephoto lens. I am hoping to get a photo of a Pacific loon on the Canadian or Alaskan pacific coast someday. If I do, you will see it in a future edition. Fun facts are that loons are not ducks. They are bigger than ducks but smaller than geese. Their webbed feet are far back on their bodies making it almost impossible for them to walk on land without doing a face plant. They dive for their food and can stay down for five minutes. They do not propel themselves like a duck with back and forth leg strokes but rather with froglike strokes. Before the northern lakes freeze, the common loon will molt into its drab winter plumage and migrate to warmer coastal sea waters only to return in the spring to build a nest in the reefs, lay eggs and raise their young.
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Foggy Road. This foggy road is on the Oregon Coast. I always love mysterious photos like this.
Spirit Island. This tiny island in Lake Maligne in Jasper National Park is one of the most photographed spots in Canada. Honestly it is pretty but Canada is filled with majestic vistas.
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Spirit Island (Alberta) - Wikipedia
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Cobblestones. The sidewalks and plazas of Lisbon, Portugal are made up of black and white cobblestones. There are all different patterns on different sidewalks. It is truly a work of art and had to take forever to complete. Lisbon is a beautiful city especially during the Christmas holidays when I visited. I will definitely be back to Lisbon and other places in Portugal.
Warrior Chimneys. Before going to Barcelona Spain, I did not know gaudi was actually a person. I always understood it to be a term to mean over the top and extremely different in possibly a bad way. But gaudi is actually the famous architect from Barcelona named Antoni Gaudi whose avant-garde style was ridiculed in his time but considered a masterpiece today. These warrior faced chimneys were his design on top of one of the three houses he built in Barcelona. This one is La Pedrera (Casa Mila), built from 1906 to 1912 and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Gaudi’s genius was way ahead of his time and he incorporated nature into his designs. His La SagradaFamilia Cathedral in Barcelona is out of this world.
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Big Horn Sheep. This set of female bighorn sheep with their babies was photographed in the winter of 2022 in Yellowstone National Park.
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Yellowstone National Park - Wikipedia
Braided River. This braided river in Iceland’s highland area shows how wide the river truly is which is probably full during the spring snow melt. One can see the glacier that feeds it in the back ground.
Highland Cows. These highland cows of Scotland are incredibly friendly and very photogenic. It as raining that day when we found a herd. They photograph better when wet. However, it is always raining in Scotland. Fun fact: the Scottish breed of Highland cows is the oldest breed of cattle in the world.
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Blue Iceberg. This is an old photo from 2010 on a voyage through the inner passages of Alaska. This iceberg was in the Endicott Arm on the way to see Dawes Glacier. I like how blue the ice is from its lack of oxygen. The photo looks like it is in black and white expect for the blue iceberg.
Bison. This bison is shedding its heavy winter coat in the spring in Yellowstone National Park. Their winter coats are so thick and such great insulators that the snow that falls on their coats will not be melted by the bison’s body heat.
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Yellowstone National Park - Wikipedia
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Bahama Sunset. This sunset was taken in Dunmore Town, Bahamas on Harbour Island.
Sitka Bay. Another picture of Sitka Bay as I took off from the runway below. It is a beautiful bay full of small islands. As you can see the runway is an island in the bay which makes for a fun landing.
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Quiraing. This beautiful site is Quiraing on the Isle of Skye Scotland. This ridge was formed by land slips. I thought capturing a local sheep in the photo would make it more Scottish. Also one of my favorite photographs of 2022.
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Bears - Black and White. These two black and white photos are also from the grizzly bears at Katmai National Park in Alaska.
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Katmai National Park and Preserve - Wikipedia
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Sandbars. The water in the Bahamas might be the prettiest water in the world. I flew low over some places in the Bahamas that I had selected on Google Earth. They did not disappoint me and made for some beautiful photos. These are underwater and are clearly visible from above. I was at 7,500’.
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Oryx on Sand Dune. This is one of my favorite photographs of the year. It was taken in the Namib Desert in Namibia. The dunes here are the prettiest color of reddish brown. I have shown another photo below that gives you more of a concept on how steep the dune is. The only concept of the slope of the dune is the sloughing of the Oryx’s hoof prints at is was climbing up the dune. He saw the helicopter and started heading down quickly.
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Red Fox Selfie. I’d like to end Yonder with a humorous photo of this red fox. A friend had a red fox and its kits living under his porch in Big Sky, Montana. I came over one evening and set up my cell phone on video to record them as they came out to play in the evening. However, the mama red fox was way more interested in what was showing on the screen versus getting in front of the camera. Then one of her kits visited the phone and tried to eat it. Photos below.
