Many Tasks – Big and Small…

I often neglect this blog (bad habit, sorry!), only to suddenly say – wow, for how long I didn’t post anything new? So, forgive me lacking in this department, but life here is so engaging, pulling you in different directions… not always enough time to sit on front of computer.

Fruits of our labour…

We are safely off the hurricane season, and now can really enjoy living in Paradise without checking weather so often. Delightful! We are literally picking “fruits of our labour” in our garden. Grapefruit and mandarin jam is in the making, oranges, lemons, and so much more. I experiment with grafting, we planted so many new trees and other things…

I did some more short nature movies, posting them on Youtube. One of them – a documentary about Dominica recovery after Maria – actually won couple of international awards, also being presented in Sweden, UK and India, Check them out! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbd8t2aqFAF2af0uqSl1BOA

Speaking of videos and films – the beautiful nature TV series about smallest creatures, titled Tiny World has been released, and it was delightful to see it. Great production, and filmed in large part in Dominica! Watching it, I felt honoured that I was invited to work with that team, contributing to this fine production. Thank you, Plimsoll!

Now I work on a new batch of photos and videos for Nature Picture Library, my stock image agency in UK. And that includes photographing of one of our garden’s tiny pests! So, at least they paid this way for messing up our tomatoes! Here are some of my nature photos…

Leaf-Footed Bug (Leptoglossus pyllopus) nymph in a garden. Dominica, Eastern Caribbean. (eating our tomatoes)

My new, modern, mobile-friendly website DerekGalon.com is up, thanks to my friend from Azed Marketing. Thank you!

What else? Quite a few other things of different caliber. Several smallish jobs, some videos for Government of Montserrat, photographing back at my favourite Dominica place Secret Bay, and a major job for another fine place here – Rosalie Bay eco-resort and spa. That was quite a nice work. Flying drone over Atlantic shore, between palms, inside rooms, photographing and filming it all. I also did a drone map of property, which will be used for all guests. Drone mapping is something I recently perfected, actually.

I love coming back to Secret Bay. Such a fine place…

Thing with drone mapping is, that it is more often done by engineers than pro photographers. Mapping software requires genuine untouched JPG images straight from the drone. This way all GPS and other location data can be used for a map or 3D model creation. Engineers and photo amateurs are OK with that. However – using JPG image straight from the drone means average quality at best. And, I am not interested in average, never been. And, not only it’s not looking so good – but also with missing detail! Often details are unsharp, or blown whites lose all details they would otherwise have. And, with mapping for safety inspections, constructions, and so on – details are crucial!

So, I spent quite a bit of time finding my go-around it, and now I can do it in a totally different way, but still feeding all required info to mapping software. Quality is drastically improved, and the map can be created with all Geo-location info. A win-win, happy to say…

Drone map of Rosalie Bay resort, made of 140 separate photos.

Ah, another thing I am quite focused on these days. We’ve meet a new friend. A determined lady running animal rescue center in Dominica. With a small group of volunteers they rescued hundreds of animals last year. And being a medical doctor, she takes personally care of injured or handicapped dogs. And, she has lots of success stories, with paralyzed dogs walking again, difficult rescues with help of fire brigade, and so on. If you know how tough Dominica can be, you know they are working really hard. Lots of personal respect for her made me dedicate many hours of work towards her cause. So, I did some photography and marketing, we donated some food, and plan to do much more in the close future. Check out their new, beautiful site created by their new sponsor, and if you feel like making even a small difference – I know it will be appreciated! Here is their Facebook page.

Well, let me finish this post with belated wishes of Happy New Year! Look at this photo – it was taken around midnight on New Year – a night rainbow created itself just to welcome new year. I just had to photograph it – straight from our patio!

All the best, I hope to see you here soon again! Cheers!

Derek

All photos copyright of DerekGalon.com Text Derek Galon and Margaret Gajek.
ArtPhotographyServices.com

#caribbean #dominica #discoverdominica #rediscoverdominica #adventure #hiking #holidays #drone #mavic #derekgalon.com #exploration #west indies #landmarks #documentary #4K #relax #healing vibes #relaxation #peace of mind #nature

Latest few weeks in Paradise – new video series

When filming Dominica’s most remote nature locations for last couple of years, little did I know that I will use this footage for my new Youtube nature series dedicated to all under lock-down, self-isolation, sick, overworked, and otherways affected by this virus pandemic. And yet, this seems to be the most perfect purpose for years of my work – to share it for free, spreading “good vibes” and sharing moments of relaxation we all badly need these days. After all – as we are under various movement restrictions – a virtual journey through the Nature Island is exactly what we may need!

While we both are safe in self-isolation high on hills of Dominica, it is easy to imagine the strain and desperation of all medical personel around the globe doing more than their best – often trying to make it up for their liders’ blunders. Therefore, this series is also for them – all medical staff working countless hours to bring help and relief to others, and also for all essential services’ workers.
I take my hat off to your efforts, and I hope that in a small, humble way I am able to bring you a moment of peace and relax.

This series started in a natural way as it also helped me put my mind at peace, and focus on things I love. I decided to create episodes about rich Dominica’s beauty, each highlighting a different aspect of it.

So, Dominica being an island and surrounded by blue waters just demanded to showcase its diverse coastal lines.

Next, I decided to show small things in nature. I don’t know about you, but I always prefer nature movies about tiny creatures rather than lions or tigers. So, this one is my take on small things and creatures.

I noticed that this episode has less favourable views with couple of “thumbs down” on Youtube. Whatever – I do it my way, from my footage, and with strong belief than nature would be incomplete without small, sometimes hard to notice things. I do hope you will like it, as I bring these small elements closer to your eye.

My third episode is more “epic” in style. Grand waterfalls, tall old trees, high cliffs – all things VERTICAL.  These are what Dominica is famous for, after all…

As I write this, next episode is just being finished. Give me two or three days, and enjoy Dominica in Bloom. It is not just about wild flowers, but also tropical flowers one can grow here – in a pefrect climate and on reach volcanic soil. It is not epic, I know. So, don’t be disappointed if you are after drama, wide drone shots and cinematic music. Flowers can give you a joy too. At least – they bring joy to me and margaret, who – as many of you know – is an experienced and keen gardener. And worry not – next  episode after this one will be again more “epic”!

So, if you want to see next episode, and a next after this one (coming soon!) –  I suggest you may want to subscribe to my Youtube channel, and get notified when my next flics are ready for viewing. And, while at my chennel, you can also see several new videos I created to share hiking epxerience in Dominica. These videos include such amazing places as Victoria Falls, Middleham Falls, and many more – also the famous Boiling Lake.

We do hope you will enjoy these videos, and thank you for watching. Subscribe not to miss any further episodes and clips. And feel free to SHARE this post and Youtube channel  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbd8t2aqFAF2af0uqSl1BOA
– lets share moments of peace among our friends and strangers!
Happy Easter, stay safe and well!

Until next time!

Derek and Margaret

www.DerekGalon.com
@derekgalon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#volcano #caribbean #dominica #discoverdominica #rediscoverdominica #adventure #hiking #holidays #lakes #boiling lake #active volcano #drone #mavic 2 #derekgalon.com #exploration #west indies #landmarks #documentary #4K #covid-19 #relax #healing vibes #relaxation #peace of mind #nature

Boiling Lake, Dominica. My photography hike. PART 3

Written from a point of view of pro photographer/videographer in hope to give others some insight about shooting there.   PART 3

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In just fifteen minutes or so, we at last arrived at the Boiling Lake. At first we could not see a thing. The whole place filled with hot, smelly and thick steam. I just heard strong sound of big water pumps working at maximum speed. Bubbling and hissing, huge amounts of water pushing out in the centre of the lake. With a sudden twist of wind, all became clear. Thick grey boiling water circulating in the lake at a crazy speed. I could only imagine enormous power stirring it all.

That’s no place for boiling eggs. It demanded respect. From a distance, we were watching it in silence. Then, I had to work again. The hot steam was so thick, like a wall. My drone got disoriented and gave me contradicting reports – it is landing in one second (with nothing to land on, except hot steam!), then an obstacle is on its path and drone can’t continue, then sensors just went all crazy. To fly close I had to disable all collision sensors, and only then I could fly through this thick, hot steam. But it was when I flew much higher, than I could really appreciate the whole scene.

A big opal-white hole full of splashing dark water and steam blending with nearby clouds. A strange looking, steaming hot river flowing down the hill from the lake, set between orange and white rocks. It is the White River, leading to the beautiful Victoria Falls, one of my most beloved spots in Dominica. The whole area does not have much green, I guess it is way too hot for that. Raw rocks, sulphur steam and white water fill the large area around the lake. Definitely a very unique experience, all together more than worth the long hike.

While my friends were resting, I tried to squeeze as much filming and photographing as only possible, knowing that soon we had to go back, to arrive in Laudat before darkness. And, we did. Having rather short time for return, I had no time to do any more filming or taking photos, not even for my lunch.

We went back rather quickly, and just as we approached back the Valley of Desolation, I realized suddenly that – without even five minutes to sit down and relax since early morning – I became a bit tired. Many hours of hiking in tough terrain, and work in-between took its tool. Just when I needed most energy, getting up the tricky and slippery path from the Valley – I had my senior moments. I ran out of steam. I just had to stop a few times, as I started to feel like I am really sixty-three old man on a tough hike. But my friends with their patience allowed me to relax for a few minutes here and there, and once out of the most difficult part, I recovered enough to continue in a better manner.

We arrived at the parking spot just before dark. What an amazing hike. Definitely longer and a bit tougher than most around here. But still within reach of most, and packed with beautiful moments and views. We are already planning to go back – this time with tent, to stay overnight and take early morning photos of the lake and surroundings. It will be my big treat. Another amazing hike. This is why I am here in Dominica, the beautiful Nature Island.

Thank you for stopping by!
Parts 1 and 2 can be found on right side menu.
If you enjoyed this story, please see my other posts, and check me on YouTube channel.

Derek

Thank you to Nahjie from JustGoDominica.com for all assistance.

All photographs copyright Derek Galon.

#discoverdominica #dominica @derekGalon @JustGoDominica.com

 

 

Boiling Lake, Dominica. My photography hike. PART 2

Written from a point of view of pro photographer/videographer in hope to give others some insight about shooting there.   PART 2

 

Indeed, our path became narrower and went sharply down, exposing rocky hills of our mountain.

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Indeed, our path became narrower and went sharply down, exposing rocky hills of our mountain. A bit muddy, as it was – I was told we are really lucky that several dry days kept this place really tidy and less slippery than it often is. I had to watch my step, and Nahjie leading our group had to point me to the safest steps and stones. Still, even there we had to stop, unpack my camera, and – selecting proper lenses – I took another series of photos. Amazing deep red rocks, rugged terrain and deep green flora created yet another amazing view.

In Valley of Desolation

Soon after, passing another bend of our narrow and very exposed path, I noticed a remote and constant, unusual sound. A sort of deep hiss. A bit of a gargle too. Not really a stream, not wind – what is it? All became revealed to me after another bend. The Valley of Desolation! Deep under our path, it steamed with hot water splashing from under white volcanic rocks.

Quickly forgetting that I started to feel a bit tired, I followed Nahjie through some slippery and exposed boulders, and we descended to the valley.

Time for a break. At least for Nahjie and his friends. For me, it meant start of my real work. Unpacking equipment, photographing, filming, and flying my drone. Scenery indeed looked worthy my efforts – hot steam, hiss, splashes of boiling water – all around me. Remarkable intensity of nature’s powers.

Face painted with volcanic minerals like a native warrior, Nahjie demonstrated how useful these hot pools can be. A dozen minutes or so – and his lunch eggs were boiled hard. Delicious!

Face painted with volcanic minerals like a native warrior, Nahjie demonstrated how useful these hot pools can be. A dozen minutes or so – and his lunch eggs were boiled hard. Delicious!

Time flew fast, and we had to continue on our path. And just now – at least to me – the real wonders started to appear. While we had amazing views and the Valley definitely made strong impression on me, little gems started to appear now on our way to the Boiling Lake.

Colourful mineral pools with yellows, oranges and whiles, blended with the black of liquid carbon oozing through the surface. Like little pools of jewellery were greens of lush moss blended with emerald deposits of volcanic minerals in another pool.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Another spot brought to mind beautiful dwarfed world of Fairy Glen from the Skye Island in Scotland. A miniature waterfall splashing to a tiny pool below, full of opal-white volcanic water. Set in deep orange rocks and some greenery, it seemed a perfect place for a gathering of elves.

I just had to keep my cameras out of backpack, which proved tricky at some points as the hike here had its moments. Nothing drastic, but a bit more challenging and often requiring both hands.

But hey – “look back” – called Nahjie. I did. And – another surprise. A miniature wall of cracked rocky wall between two streams. It looked like a tiny miniature of Colorado mountains, but with a twist of the hot white water. Soooo cute!

To me, the biggest hike’s highlight was just that – these little gems between Valley of Desolation and Boiling Lake. I would spend there a whole day photographing and filming. But – we had to push on.

 

third part of this story is coming very soon, check back for more.
Thank you for stopping by!

Derek

Thank you to Nahjie from JustGoDominica.com for all assistance.

All photographs copyright Derek Galon.

#discoverdominica #dominica @derekGalon @JustGoDominica.com
My new personal site DerekGalon.com

Boiling Lake, Dominica. My photography hike. PART 1

Written from a point of view of pro photographer/videographer in hope to give others some insight about shooting there.

Boiling Lake, Dominica. Second largest in the world after one in New Zeeland.

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We started early, just after sunrise. The idea was to have plenty of time to stop on our way and take photos. Walking through the forest, four of us felt refreshed and happy. Subtle early light filtered through jungle’s canopy as we were leaving behind the Titou Gorge. We were on our way to the Boiling lake, perhaps the most famous, but also one of toughest hikes in Dominica.

On trail with my friends.

Nahjie, my friend and a legendary adventure guide from JustGoDominica.com, along with his two young and brisk colleagues, dictated the pace of our walk. As the hike is quite long, it is important to manage speed and energy, to have enough for safe return. As we approached the Breakfast River, I heard long song of a Thrush high in hills above us. How delightful – I didn’t hear these birds since the hurricane Maria! Clearly the mountains of Morne Trois Pitons National Park are doing well. Once we reached the horseshoe shaped top of the hill and had a look around from the narrow ridge, the magnificent view confirmed that forest is indeed doing well. Flickering river deep under our feet, lush trees and tree ferns all around us. Rich, deep greenery as long as you can see – up to the coast of the Caribbean sea.

It was a good idea to start early. The views were far too nice not to stop and take elaborate photographs. While I photographed and flew my drone, we were passed by two small group of French tourists speeding towards the Lake. Express teams, I thought. As for me, I much preferred to have time to look around, film and photograph than hurry to the destination. Day was unfolding beautifully, and wide vistas were simply breath-taking.

Roseau far and down below us, and endless green mountains at every angle.

After another hour or so, we arrived at the small plateau at the top of mountain. Surrounded by short, dense vegetation which seemed to be a cross between tropical and alpine, I had another chance to look around. The most amazing view I can remember. A 360 degree panorama, with Freshwater Lake area on one side, Roseau far and down below us, and endless green mountains at every angle.

Taking more photos, I couldn’t resist also shooting wide panoramas made of many overlapping images, in hope they will give the justice to these magnificent wide-open views. A first glimpse at the Boiling Lake far away on right side.

Taking more photos, I couldn’t resist also shooting wide panoramas made of many overlapping images, in hope they will give the justice to these magnificent wide-open views. Nahjie pointed me to one direction. “Can you see that cloud in the forest? – he asked. “It is the Boiling Lake and it’s steam”.
Ouch, while it looked intriguing, it also seemed to be quite far away, and meant only one thing – lots more of the hike ahead of us. And – as I was told – the easy part just finished now, with things getting a bit more tricky from now on.

Photographing landscape, about half-way (the easier half!) to the Boiling lake.

Second and third parts of this story are coming very soon, check back for more. Most interesting photos about to come!
Thank you for stopping by!

Derek

 

All photographs copyright Derek Galon.

#discoverdominica #dominica @derekGalon

 

The Deed Is Done

Our home after rebuilding. Acid stains visible on walls and floor.

Funny to remember we expected to have a slower life in Dominica, being tired with the speed and pressure of things in Canada. Here actually our life goes faster in many aspects! Well, all together it is more harmonious and peaceful – but so much things happen to us, we are badly short of time.

Anyway – the deed is done! Our house destroyed to the ground by hurricane is up, and we are in it already! About two years to the date – the process was slow, plagued by builder mistakes, and slowed further by various improvements to the structure.
Now we work overtime on decor, various fixes, and on landscape. Margaret is busy planting hundreds of plants she propagated in last years in anticipation of this moment. So, the place starts to look like our home, and we are quite happy with it.

Margaret applying acid stain

The concrete acid stain we used extensively on floors and walls added to unusual and warm look. It was great decision to go for it. We are totally relying on rain water, and it proves a reliable and comfortable solution, specially with the efficient solar water heater recently installed on our roof. The concrete roof itself is covered outside with special white sealer which also acts as sun heat barrier, and even on hottest days our home is cool inside.

Victoria Falls, Dominica

We are so focused on home work that we don’t feel like going anywhere, even for quick shopping. But we have to, as we have plenty of other work. Past months saw me working for a large nature film company (can’t talk about it until project is finished – so stay tuned to learn more about this later on!), filming series of short flicks for our friends at JustGoDominica.com and other such tasks. This work sent me to beautiful places such as Victoria and Middleham Falls, Wavine Cyrique, and I am soon to go other places.

Wavine Cyrique, an unique waterfall ending on a beach.

In the meantime we keep photographing and filming various real estate properties and hotels here, occasionally shooting on other Caribbean islands. Latest one a fine boutique resort in Grenada – was really fun to visit. Another trips (Barbados and Grenada) are on the plate.

Photo from my recent job, photographing Fort Young Hotel in Dominica, after extensive renovations.

We will try to keep you posted, although it is not always possible as finding a free moment is tricky these days. But we want to share with you more news and stories, so please stay tuned for more.
Until next time, cheers! And if you like this post, share it and subscribe!

Derek

PS
All photos by Derek Galon, please respect copyright.

Revisiting Papillote Gardens in Dominica

While life keeps us extremely busy with rebuilding our home after the hurricane Maria (we hope it will finish in about 2 months! Hurray!), we try to work on photography and video as much as we can. And there is lots of work to be done. Just recently our XL sized prints were placed on walls of S-Mart supermarket, adding a flavour of local nature to the store.

our prints on walls of S-Mart

 

Mounting my huge print inside Dominica International Airport

Soon after -in collaboration with #EliteEvents –  International Airport in Dominica had been decorated with even bigger size prints. We are working on a series of wall-decor nature prints available in several retail locations, and – same as these above projects – we do it in collaboration with the best printers in Dominica – Campbells.

Then, I had a creative photo-video session with a professional model and a friend – Nicole Morson. We worked together before. This time it was a horse-riding theme, courtesy of fantastic Brandy Manor Riding Center near Portsmouth.

I am now preparing for a short trip to Grenada, to do photography and video for promotion of a new luxury boutique resort – I should have more about it soon.

So, as you see – there is quite a b it of work we are tackling on top of our everyday lives.

Nicole Morson during our photo session

 

But during all these activities we also revisited the Papillote Gardens in Trafalgar – one of our most favourite Caribbean gardens. It is always  a pleasure to meet Anne, garden’s creator. She helped me filming several agouti feeding before sunset, and we were shown all recent changes and improvements.

During these visits we did what we always try to do – filmed and photographed, and Margaret had a short interview with Anne. The result is now available for you to see – a short video presenting Papillote Gardens. Have a look. We hope you will enjoy!

 

So, that is all for now, we will be in touch soon.

Don’t forget to like and share the post if you enjoyed it. All the best!
Derek and Margaret

Experience the Island Reborn – video

In our previous post We shared our experience from producing a short movie for #DominicaFilmChallenge – a clip that won one of their awards and enjoyed 160,000 views in just one month. We also mentioned then that we have another video ready – and now we are happy to share it to you.

As we in Dominica just remembered 1st anniversary of hurricane Maria, here is our little contribution to it. It basically is similar to the video which was awarded at Dominica Film Challenge 2018, but with more nature footage. I hope you will enjoy – and hopefully visit Dominica soon as it looks better and better. Enjoy the flick!
Until next time, cheers
Derek and Margaret

Dominica Film Challenge

The last three months saw us crossing our island of Dominica back and forth, filming some amazing places. Now that all the work is already done we can sit down and tell you about it.

Margaret starting our drone in Scotts Head

For the last few years Dominica Tourism Authority (DDA) organizes Dominica Film Challenge to promote the island as a nature destination. So far it were teams of avid travellers from abroad who got invited to participate. But this year for the first time the concept changed, and only local Dominica filmmakers were invited to apply.

Nahjie securing our way in canyon

We offered ourselves to participate and were among the six teams selected to create a short movie on a given theme. Our theme was “hiking”, but we decided that we should expand over this theme, taking advantage of being both local and also foreign. I mean, yes – we live here for five years and know Dominica for much longer. But we also spent half of our life in Europe, then many years in Canada – travelling a lot – including various off-the-usual-path places, also in the Caribbean. That gives us a different perspective. We thought we could see what visitors may find most thrilling in Dominica, but also how the post-hurricane recovery and all the changes it caused may create an added attraction for them.

Margaret in the canyon

That gave Margaret a nice start to write her script, beginning with a short introduction of Dominica as a beautiful Nature Island, then reminding of last year’s hurricane and then going on a trip to re-discover Dominica and see the changes. We had some nice pre-hurricane footage and also documented Dominica soon after it. So, now we recorded recovering nature and visited some amazing locations, also filming short interviews with tourist guides.

Trafalgar Falls 6 months after hurricane

The trip we both remember as the most unusual was the canyoning with our friend and a fantastic guide from ExtremeDominica.com, Nahjie Laflouf, and his climbing partner, Junior. They brought us to a beautiful rock formation at the bottom of a canyon. Beautiful and amazing place to film. However, dragging the equipment through a rough path often changing to a vigorous stream, then through high river waters was not exactly easy for us, and without their help it simply would not happen! But the reward for this hike was amazing, and the footage shows it well.

on hiking trail over Freshwater Lake

Our favoutite locations such as Freshwater Lake or Trafalgar Falls were surely nice to revisit, but I also filmed in the bush, taking close-up shots of recovering nature and re-growing forest. The last on our list was a boat trip through the Indian River with “Fire”, a great guide we know for years. We found Indian River changed but really beautiful – as “Fire” said – we could see “a different kind of beauty” around us. We saw the nature bouncing back, a heart-warming assurance that soon it will regain its old glory.

Derek on boat with “Fire”

Being on boat with “Fire” is always great. Whenever we had visiting friends we made sure they go with him exploring Indian River nature reserve. But this time – although this is how he makes a living – when “Fire” heard we make a film to promote Dominica – he refused any payment for the trip. What a guy! Respect, man!

With all material in hand we spent quite a time editing it and crafting as a super-short movie.

We actually decided that requested length of 3 minutes did not have proper chance to tell our story the way we wanted – so we delivered… TWO movies! One is officially entered to the Dominica Film Challenge, and another one is a bonus. Two-for-one, well – you know – like a pizza. This version extended by two extra minutes shows more of nature recovery process which we find fascinating.

What really adds to our video is the voice-over. We were in luck to “discover” a great talent in the person of Kevin Francis who recorded Margaret’s narration in a single take, bringing out every flavour of this short text. Combined with fantastic music by our Polish friend, a guitarist Andrzej Chochol, it added a really immersive sound layer.

Indian River nature reserve

All work is done and delivered, now progressively launched by Discover Dominica along five other videos.

We surely hope you will this short film. We had a blast doing it, and thanks to it we visited places we did not see before. So, all is well. Now, click the link, have a look, and “like” and “share” the clip if you find it nice. Your clicks will help selecting the winning video!
Please use headphones if watching on a tablet or small laptop.
Dominica – Hike an Island Reborn

Enjoy!
Derek and Margaret

Please remember all photos are copyright Derek Galon and Ozone Zone Books. No usage without written authorization. Thank you.

#DominicaFilmChallenge,  #rediscoverDominica, #DiscoverDominica

 

Our 5th International Photo Salon

Dear friends,
To break with our routine and hurricane related things, this post is about something else – although surely hurricane Maria still plays its role in many aspects of life – this one included.

Some of you may remember that every year we organize international photo competition under patronage of such important organizations as RPS, FIAP, PSA and others. This year was no exception – although it was totally different and we will remember it for a long time.

The hurricane Maria made our 5th edition of Ozone Zone International Photo Competition much harder to run. Originally scheduled for November, judging of submitted photos had to be postponed.

One juror had to be emergency evacuated to another island as her family member required immediate medical treatment of hurricane inflicted injuries. Another juror had to bring family out of Dominica – also due to hurricane impact. And another juror along with Salon’s chair person – Derek and Margaret (which is us) lost their newly built house, many personal belongings, and were living in their Subaru car for several weeks after. Not the perfect scenario for finalizing a prestigious photo salon.

We rescheduled closing of the Salon to end of March, but even that proved to be a real challenge.
Although all jurors had a chance to meet and work together after sorting personal matters, it wasn’t exactly smooth.

Eight months on we still have no internet (to post this or deal with online salon submissions we need to travel to another town in hope of finding a spot with reasonable connection). The house we used for judging is badly damaged and leaks with every rain. We reviewed photos on a smallish monitor and a laptop (computer and big screen used before were damaged) using generator as the source of electricity, without running water or any other conveniences.

Reviewing all photos submitted from all corners of the planet while we felt cut-off from the rest of the world had been almost surreal experience. Seeing so many really fine photographs was uplifting and inspiring, reminding us that there is still room for creativity and beauty in our world – and that daily chores do not need to always end with using chainsaw or any other tools we used so extensively to survive the past months.

It was a good edition of our Salon although we nicknamed it “the Hurricane Edition”.
Now we are just finishing off all related duties such as sending medals and awards, reports to FIAP, PSA and other photo organizations, and so on.

We want to share with you a few best photos in hope they will give you lots of viewing pleasure.
You can see much more on competition’s website www.internationalphotocompetition.com on page WINNERS. This year’s categories were OPEN, LOVE, PORTRAIT and NUDE, MONOCHROME.
Enjoy, and until next time.

Derek and Margaret

Please note – all images are copyrighted, no usage without authors’ written authorization.