One memorable occasion that got Matt delightfully sunburnt was our hike to the top of Clingman's Dome, the highest peak in Smoky Mountain National Park.
The Appalachian Trail passes over the top of this peak and intersects a couple other trails - the most notable to us was the Mountains-To-Sea trail, which does indeed wind its way across North Carolina to the Atlantic Ocean. We followed this trail for a ways out of curiosity.
Long story short - the forest was pristine. And it was insanely, unforgettably inspiring.
One thing I like to do in general with my photography is to manipulate the "eyes" by forcing new perspective and in the process creating new landscapes that were always there. Macro is my friend.
Often when I'm drawing, I hit a block trying to come up with interesting but natural landscapes, and I've found that often all I have to do to find inspiration is to lie down on the ground and pretend that I'm an ant.
Playing with perception up in the beauty makes me think of Andy Goldsworthy and his natural sculptures (there's a wonderful documentary about him called Rivers & Tides).
So... Anyway. I know many other people do similar experiments, and I'm sure most of them are better than me. But I guess the reason I don't mind is because... this is for a different purpose.
Woo, cameras. :D
