I'm excited to announce that my photo, Winter Window, is featured in a two page spread in the February 2009 issue of Popular Photography. I made this photo during the winter of 2006 after a dicey scramble up slippery and snowy ledges to achieve a view of Turret Arch framed by North Window during a snowstorm. It was well worth the effort!

A Nightmare on Lightroom Street

I'm writing this at the end of a very frustrating Lightroom ordeal with the hope that it will save you from experiencing the same dilemma.

For the second time since I started using Lightroom I turned on my computer one day, opened LR 2.2 and my heart sank as the "This photo is missing or offline" error message sprang to life at the top of an image. I started checking other images and found that the entire catalog of images was "missing or offline."

I posted my issue on a Lightroom forum and began reading everything I could about the error message. In theory, it's an easy fix. In reality, it isn't. Even the Lightroom Queen (www.lightroomqueen.com) couldn't figure out what had happened. After exhausting every resource I could find, and spending several days in the process, I finally removed the entire folder of images and re-imported every image.

No big deal, right? Wrong! Doing so means that every edit I'd made to those images was lost. Gone. Ka-put. In the crap-ola. Starting from scratch, folks.

How could I have prevented such a tragedy? The answer is ridiculously simple - BACK IT UP! I always clicked "Skip Backup" each time I started Lightroom. As a result, I had no backup files that could be used to replace the corrupt files, saving hundreds of hours of processing work.

I have now set up Lightroom to ask me if I want to back up my files EVERY TIME I OPEN IT. Fine and dandy, but if you click "Skip" when the message pops up you're not doing yourself any favors. It is safe to say that I no longer click "Skip." It takes only a few minutes each time for the back up to be completed. Call it a good time to freshen up your stale coffee, use the restroom or respond to an email.

During my investigation into this issue I also learned a few interesting tidbits about LR. It doesn't like to be left open on your computer. When you're done for the day, close it. It also doesn't like it when you mess with your image files while it is open, unless you are working directly in LR. For instance, before you back up your image files to an external hard drive be sure to close out of LR. I now take it a step farther and do a complete shut down/restart before doing an external HD back up. Call me crazy. You wouldn't be the first.

If you never learn anything else from me please, please, PLEASE back up your Lightroom files uber-frequently. You'll be glad you did when LR informs you that your files are "offline or missing."

An Exercise in Pre-Visualization

While wandering around the La Sal mountains in late fall of 2007 I saw these beautifully curved oaks whose trunks were a stark contrast to the arrow straight aspens residing behind them on a distant hillside. With winter only a day or two away, the barren trees had already shed their leaves for the season. I immediately recognized the potential the scene presented for a photographer lucky enough to arrive while the leaves were at their vibrant peak. Curved oaks dressed in warm hues of autumn foliage standing before the white trunked, golden aspens filled my imagination! I made one image of the scene, sans leaves, to store on my hard drive as a reminder of the potential image.

Fast forward a year and I found myself once again exploring the La Sals, in awe of the autumn display of brilliant foliage. Surrounded by yellow aspens, orange and red oaks, and vibrant maples I felt a rush of adrenaline course through my body. At times like this I feel like the luckiest man on earth.

I followed a steeply climbing dirt road to a small, unmarked turnoff where I parked my motorcycle at a familiar spot. I walked up a hill and turned left into a small meadow. Turning around, the scene I had pre-visualized appeared before me like a gift. There they were, red and orange oaks below the golden aspens. The scene was even more amazing than I had imagined!

Sunlight filtered in and out of puffy clouds passing overhead. I worked the scene until I found the composition I had visualized almost a year ago. When the scene fell into momentary shade I tripped the shutter, checked the LCD and let out a big ol' redneck "Yeeeee haaaaaa!!!!" There it was, the photo I waited a full year to make. I made a few more insurance exposures, packed up my gear and started back toward Moab in the brisk autumn air. I don't see how life could possibly get any better.

As you explore your favorite areas to photograph it pays to keep an open mind. Imagine what a scene might look like in different light, or a different season and remember to re-visit the area when the conditions are right. You never know what gorgeous images await!

Baby Sale!

No, I'm not talking about any black market sales of infants! Rather, I'm announcing that Melissa and I are well on our way to becoming parents. She's 20 weeks pregnant and due on April 18, 2009. We think it's a boy although the little turd wouldn't cooperate at the last ultrasound and didn't show his stuff long enough for any definitive views.

As any of you who are parents can attest, having a child ain't cheap. Cribs, diapers, strollers, car seats and such add up to a mound of cash. To help fund the new addition to our family all proceeds from the sale of any print at Bret Edge Photography will be applied toward the purchase of a baby item. Won't you help us fill the nursery with stuff for the littlest Edge by buying a gorgeous print? They make lovely presents, and with the holiday season upon us this is an excellent way to avoid the overcrowded malls.

2009 Workshops

With 2008 winding down, it's time to start planning our workshop calendar for 2009. Our first offering is an ambitious and exciting one. Over the course of five days we'll photograph Arches and Canyonlands, learn an efficient digital darkroom workflow and create several stunning prints of your favorite images that will dazzle family and friends at home.

We're finalizing all the details and they will be available at the Moab Photo Workshops website soon. Join us March 18 - 22, 2009 for this exciting workshop!

Welcome to Moab Photo Workshops blog!

If you're reading this it would appear that you've found my new blog. I intend to use this space to share my thoughts on nature and adventure photography, tips and techniques, upcoming events and more exciting stuff. Stay tuned, bookmark the page and drop me a line if you have ideas for topics you'd like to see me cover.