Can New Jersey Pinelands Swamp Compete With Alaskan Swamp?
Alaska…
Alaska Swamp by Richard Lewis 2014
vs. New Jersey
Along the Wading River by Richard Lewis 2012
Dead In The Water 6 by Richard Lewis 2014
I’ve been told that I am a master of swamp photography. Is this a distinction that one should be proud of? Maybe. There is a very mystical and strange charm about a swamp, especially the Cedar swamps of the Pine Barrens, that is worth the effort to capture with a camera.
One of the most surprising things we saw in Alaska was how a river running off the Mendenhall glacier created an Alaskan version of a Cedar swamp. I don’t know if the trees in the first photograph are actually cedars, but the scene is surprisingly similar to the Pines Barrens, sans the glacier and mountains.
So, here is the question… Is a dark, misty New Jersey swamp more attractive than a swamp framed by the dramatic Alaskan landscape? What do you think?
Fuhggetaboutit! Jersey wins!!!!
Thanks for your opinion. I’m inclined to agree with you.
Beautiful, eye-catching landscape can be found in surprising places, no matter where you are…it is all in the eyes of the beholder. Out of the three images above, I LOVE the Dead in the Water image from the Pine Barrens. Its so delicate and unusual in its simplicity. I’m sure I won’t see anything similar in magazines (unless, of course, if Rich Lewis put it there 😉
Season, that is one of my all time favorite images. The image won 3rd place last year in the Appalachian Mountain Club’s annual photography contest and was published in their magazine. Score one for the Pine Barrens.
lol “master of swamp photography” that is funny
What’s even funnier, Kenneth, is that I was actually honored to be called that.
Scene for scene I go for Alaska. The mountains and the blue glacier are tough to compete with.
This is the problem we New Jersey photographers have to face. We just don’t have those majestic mountains or glaciers. The light for the Alaska photo could have been better which really would have made it more of a grand landscape.
In New Jersey you have the flexibility to be at a place when the conditions are just right. It is always difficult to be at the right place at the right time when traveling. Alaska has enough other outstanding features … I think they should let New Jersey have the swamps!
Denise, you are so right about timing. It is the biggest problem when traveling. It’s good to know that New Jersey can own one great landscape environment, even if it is a swamp.