Here’s what he had to say about it:

Snowshoeing is an awesome winter activity. It is even better when you combine it with camping, sledding and friends. In this 12min. exposure at least three people took a run down the hill with their headlamps on, and one of them ended up face first in the snow. The star trails from our rotating planet and the Mountain Hemlocks bathed in snow provide a frame for our winter wonderland. This image was made with a traditional 35mm film camera and was not manipulated from its original form.

Congrats, Erik! You just won an Ultima 65 Spotting Scope with Astromaster Tripod, courtesy of Celestron.

Want your own chance at winning? Submitting is easy! Just fill out this submission form and make sure to include a description of the photo you submit and the address of where you want your gear sent in the body of the message. Good luck!

You can submit photos from anywhere in the world, but we will only ship prizes to addresses within the continental United States.

Feel free to submit as often as you’d like. We choose a winner every Friday. And help us spread the word—we have a new theme (and a new set of prizes) every month.

This week’s Friday Photo winner is Ben Canales, who submitted several fantastic shots, including the one above.

Here’s what he had to say about it:

Glowing tent “backlit” by the Milky Way! 

Congrats, Ben! You just won an Ultima 65 Spotting Scope with Astromaster Tripod, courtesy of Celestron.

Want your own chance at winning? Submitting is easy! Just fill out this submission form and make sure to include a description of the photo you submit and the address of where you want your gear sent in the body of the message. Good luck!

You can submit photos from anywhere in the world, but we will only ship prizes to addresses within the continental United States.

Feel free to submit as often as you’d like. We choose a winner every Friday. And help us spread the word—we have a new theme (and a new set of prizes) every month.

Submissions are due by January 15, 2012. A jury-selected group of finalists will have their work displayed at the VIMFF from February 10th to the 18th. But the big kicker is the grand prize: a 2-week guided expedition in Northern Pakistan with Nazir Sabir Expeditions (airfare is not included). Climb For Change is also giving away an Arcteryx Venta SV jacket ($450 value) to the entrant with the most votes.

For more information on how to submit your photo, check out the Facebook event.

For more information on Climb For Change, be sure to take a peek at their website.

Cold has been making the rounds at film festivals across the globe and took the grand prize at the 2011 Banff Mountain Film Festival this year. Climber, photographer and filmmaker Cory Richards took a few minutes to tell me about his life now making movies on the highest mountains in the world.

JTP: What was it like to be able to be responsible for both climbing and surviving on Gasherbraum II, as well as taking pictures?

Cory: You know it’s funny a lot of people talk about just that fact: ”What’s it like to film up there?” And for me, coming from a photography background, coming from a film background, I don’t actually think of it like that because that’s why I get invited to go on these trips because that’s my job. So I think it’s an added aspect, but it’s something that’s sort of hard for me to describe because it’s not a tangible thought process anymore. This is what I’m doing here. This is what I have to do. So I’m doing it.

JTP: At the same time though you also have to have the presence of mind to set the shot, to be able to while Simone is puking on the summit you’re there holding the camera.

Cory: Yeah, it’s weird! You’re trying to be the fly on the wall. But what’s interesting is you’re also doing the climb. So at the same time Simone’s puking, I want to puke. But as a photographer and a filmmaker you realize that’s an important and special moment. You hate to see your friends suffering but you have to realize that’s pivotal. Something’s happening in front of you. And because you’re thinking about all that you’re realizing that your own sensations become muted. You put that on hold. You don’t have time for that. And now you’re in the moment with what’s in front of your camera.

JTP: Has this always been an aspiration of yours? Have you always wanted to be a high altitude mountaineer and photographer?

Cory: I think I have. I remember when I was 18 and I was I was training to go to Denali for my first time. I think I actually tangibly said at one point I really want to be on the North Face team one day. I realized too that I’m not a tremendous athlete. I think what I have is a sort of an innate ability to keep going in situations. So when I look back on the whole progression I think, “Did I always want to do this?” Yeah, yeah I did. But I found my way in it through photography because I wasn’t a great athlete. But over time I got better at the athletic side of it and certainly that’s why now I am blessed to live the life I live.

JTP: So where are you going next? You’re now an established high altitude photographer. You’re the first American to summit a Pakistani 8,000-meter peak in winter. So your trajectory has been launched. Where do you go from here?

Cory: It’s funny, you know the whole first American to summit an 8-thousander in winter is, I still don’t even register that, like it doesn’t compute for me. But when you put it in those terms It’s interesting to look at the next year, how it’s laying out and so I’ll probably go to Patagonia this winter and work, which will be a nice break. I can spend some time with my wife. We just got married and that’s going to be great. And next spring I’ll go with Conrad Anker and Jimmy Chin to the west ridge of Everest. And then after that, a year from now I’ll probably go back to Pakistan with Simone and Denis to try K2 in the winter. So that’s sort of where it’s headed. Who knows how that plan will pan out? Try to take it a day at a time but at the same time you got to make plans all that. And I find that  really the most challenging part of this whole thing is adapting to a new schedule that I’m not used to.

 Listen to the podcast for the rest of the interview.

Cold by Anson Fogel and Cory Richards is part of the Banff Mountain Film Festival World tour. Ask your favorite gear shop for local screenings and show times near you. You can also see Cold as part of the Reel Rock Film Tour now available on DVD and online download. Visit ReelRockTour.com

Music this week from the Cold soundtrack by Gustavo Santaolalla. Download his album of mountain music called Nanga Parbat on iTunes.

The Joy Trip Project is made possible with the support of sponsor Patagonia. Check out their latest new media and conservation initiatives on their blog the CleanestLine.com. And special thanks to the Walton Works whose underwriting of travel expenses to Banff helped me to bring you this and other great stories. Visit the Waltonworks.com

Thanks for listening. But you know I want to hear from you. So please drop me a note with your questions comments and criticisms to info@joytripproject.com

Here’s what he had to say about it:

Beyond awesome surf clips, this video from Rip Curl shows what they consider a technological world-first. The “30 camera array” (i.e., a line of cameras firing consistently as a surfer rides toward it) results in incredible frozen moments viewable from a number of different angles, almost Matrix-style. Oh, and they used GoPro HD video cameras to capture these moments.

From Yvon Chouinard setting routes and inventing dependable climbing gear, to advanced climbers scaling big walls and base-jumping, the culture of climbing is constantly evolving. Jimmy Chin is on assignment for National Geographic to study this evolution and document the climbing culture in Yosemite Valley, home to the most classic routes and dedicated climbers. He uses his photography to tell the stories of the Valley and those rare individuals who are living and breathing the climbing culture.

Behind his photos is an understanding of the passion and devotion it takes to embrace the climbing lifestyle. As a climber, he knows what it means to crawl out of a warm sleeping bag at 2am and hike several miles (full of gear) up thousands of feet, only to rope up and start that first pitch of a 10-pitch climb. As a photographer, he knows that’s what it takes to get the best shots.

“The most honest photos happen when both the subject and the photographer are in the moment. The rest of the world has fallen away,” he says.

It’s those moments climbers know too well, when your mind and your body are challenging each other on the wall—that’s the battle Chin tries to capture. His photos are an endeavor to represent the courage, determination, and heart of the climbing culture.

Check out this video for a taste of what Chin has been up to in the Valley.

Artist and climber, Doug Lloyd, has a distinct vision to pair expressive imagery with the prominent rock features of America’s most respected climbing sites. He will travel to 12 climbing areas, study the ancient art and iconography of the region and then create his artistic interpretation at the site of each feature. Using large canvases, vivid paints and heaps of climbing gear, Lloyd hopes to not only design a unique Native icon, but also raise it against the respected feature to express the lifetime of both the rock and the surrounding cultures.

Several supporters and climbers have realized Lloyd’s dream and are helping him to bring it to fruition. The One Light Night Project is an expression of gratitude to the walls that have given climbers countless stories, epic experiences and stronger vitality. Kyle Elmquist of Portland, Ore. says, “This is a collective effort from a bunch of people to push ourselves, and go outside of ourselves in order to create something beautiful.”

Following the construction of each graphic, the team will need to hike in the canvas (as large as 6,400 square feet) and find the most appropriate climbing routes to access the hanging area. Through safe gear placement and skilled climbing, the team will lift the image to meet the feature so photographer, Sean Oconner, can capture a raw shot of the icon blended into the rock.

Lloyd says his first graphic successfully created and raised at Smith Rock is “a mythological creature that gave man the ability to transcend what it was and become something larger.” If the One Light Night Project can reach its funding goals, it will attempt to do just that.

Watch the Kickstarter video here as the team hikes into the heart of Smith Rock, Ore. and decorates the picturesque “Monkey Face” with Lloyd’s first creation.  

Birds are one of those animals that you’ll find everywhere you go. In Africa, there are tropical birds. In Antarctica, there are penguins. In urban areas, there are pigeons. In rural areas, there are—well, I’m not exactly sure, really.

But that doesn’t mean they aren’t in trouble. Several bird species are, thanks to deforestation, climate change and a variety of other reasons—including domestic cats. Just this year, the New York Times, as well as several other major media, including The Daily Show, reported that the biggest killers of birds in the United States are likely stray and domestic cats. We may think we’re helping out an animal to leave food outside, or letting our feline friends dig deeper into their instinctual roots by letting them roam the great outdoors, but according to bird experts: we’re just feeding and housing murderers.

So keep your kitties away from our winged friends, grab your binoculars and prepare to take a visual journey through Birds, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: kiteboarding, clouds, bike lanes, lakes, sunrises, bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

This week’s roundup of photos is for both parties. Sit back, relax and prepare to take a visual journey through Kiteboarding, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: clouds, bike lanes, lakes, sunrises, bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Clouds. They’re everywhere. Even on nice, sunny days when “there’s not a cloud in the sky,” you can likely spot the whisper of one off in the distance. Whether they are just wispy and appear painted across the sky, they are large and foreboding cumulonimbus or they are flat and gray, symbolizing coming rain, they can be a fantastic sight.

Which is why today’s geographic roundup is devoted to the cloud, an important part of the earth’s water cycle. So sit back, relax and prepare to take a visual journey of Clouds, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: bike lanes, lakes, sunrises, bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Here in the States, bicycling as a method of transportation is becoming more and more popular. What with the health benefits (who couldn’t use a little exercise?) and the money cyclists save on gas to get from place to place, there are a lot of great reasons to get on the (bike) saddle and pedal to one’s destination.

Living in Portland, I have the luxury of not having to own a car. While I do take the bus from time to time, I mostly commute by foot and by bicycle. My three-speed commuter cruiser and I go 16-plus miles on most weekdays. It may be a “big honker,” as Kyle, our editorial director, calls it, but my bike works and I save quite a bit of cash that would otherwise be spent on car insurance, parking and gasoline. And it sure doesn’t hurt that I live in a city with ever-growing bike infrastructure.

This week, we pay tribute to such great bike infrastructure. So sit back, relax (don’t worry, not pedaling required) and prepare to take a visual journey through Bike Lanes, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: lakes, sunrises, bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

It’s July and it’s hot. Maybe you were one of the many that set up camp to cool off  last weekend for the holiday, but chances are, even if you were, you’ll be heading to the local watering hole again this summer.

Whether you ski, knee board, tube or just like to roast marshmallows by a late-night lakeside campfire, going to the lake each summer seems to be a tradition for most of the people I know. And this week’s photo roundup is devoted to that ideal. So why don’t you sit back, relax and enjoy this visual journey of Lakes, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: sunrises, bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Call me a sap, but I’m one of those people that, when traveling, finds calm in the fact that I at least know one thing about the place: the sun will rise in the morning and set in the evening (that is, unless it’s one of those polar places that has entire seasons of sun and similar stretches of darkness).

I am also one of those people that prefers the sunrise to the sunset, because I find power in being up before the sun—unlike the sunset, which I’m up for everyday. Whether I’m going for a morning jog, on my bike commute to work or just sitting at my window with a cup of tea or coffee, there is something so energizing about the blues, pinks, oranges and purples that the sky turns when the sun rises for the day.

Even though the sun is already up today, I invite you to take a minute to sit back, relax and find some calm in Sunrises, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: bees, rope, waves, from the top, plastic bags, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Earlier this week, the Oregonian posted a short article revealing a strange site in downtown Portland. A swarm of bees had followed their queen to a cherry tree. Within minutes, the cluster grew 2 feet long. They hung so low, apparently, that a skateboarder narrowly missed getting a “face full o’ bees.”

Also in the news this week was a report from NPR about New York’s growing bee problem, what with residents now allowed to keep bees. In the last week, police even had to divert traffic from Chinatown when 15,000 honeybees decided to make a stop.

Is it just me, or does this feel slightly apocalyptic? (Granted, if it were the end of the world, they would be locusts.) A YouTube video also made the rounds recently, showing a swarm of bees take down all of the players in a soccer game, one-by-one.

This week’s photo roundup is devoted to the bees of the world doing what they do: finding pollen, swarming and even getting eaten. So sit back, relax, try not to get the heebie-jeebies (and the associated psychological itching) too bad and prepare to take a visual journey of Bees, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: rope, waves, from the top, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning,unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes,coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga,treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’,doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer,authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods,silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Rope is: a 1929 British play by Patrick Hamilton; a 1948 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, based on the 1929 play; a song from the Foo Fighters 2011 album Wasting Light; a data structure used in computer science; a rhythmic gymnastics apparatus; a civil parish in Cheshire; (the Ropes) is an indie rock band from New York; a bartending slang for a straw.

The most common usage is for a length of fibers twisted together. Which is what this week’s roundup is all about. So sit back, relax and prepare to take a visual journey through Rope, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: waves, from the top, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning,unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes,coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga,treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’,doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer,authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods,silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

I’ll admit it, the inspiration for this post is that it’s supposed to be upwards of 80 degrees in Portland today and I’m starving for some sunshine. Since I won’t be able to make it to the beach anytime in the foreseeable future, this seemed like a good release.

Whatever it is you like about waves, from their surf potential, to the sound of them crashing together, I invite you to spend a few minutes on this gorgeous weekend (assuming, of course, it’s just as gorgeous wherever you are) taking a visual journey through Waves, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: from the top, alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

There’s something sublime about that moment you finally reach the summit of a mountain. You walk around and survey the world below from every possible angle. And you realize just how far (and how high) you’ve hiked. It’s like you’re on top of the world.

This week’s roundup of photos is inspired by the feeling. So take a moment to relax and rest your legs, and prepare to take a visual journey From the Top, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

“A place after a natural disaster is in the media for only a short period of time,” Skinner said. “Communities rebuild or don’t rebuild behind closed doors. Nobody really pays attention to how communities recover.”

A student of social work at the University of Wyoming, Skinner sees photography as way to help share stories that often go untold in a distracted media landscape. She spent time taking pictures and talking to survivors in Louisiana a few years after Hurricane Katrina. Recognizing that sudden tragedy disproportionately impacts people living in poverty, she wants to demonstrate that an earthquake, flood or any other disaster involves more than the destruction of property or even death.

“So much of what happens after a natural disaster has to do with classism, sexism and other social aspects,” Skinner said. “I want to bring attention to the injustices that are still going on in our world.”

Camera lenses typically focus on the dramatic events of sudden tragedy as they unfold. In an instant, photographs capture startling images of the devastation that shatters the lives of everyone around. But as a community slowly puts the pieces back together, the task of storytelling through pictures grows increasingly more difficult as defining images become few and far between. It’s only through painstaking observation with photographs taken over time that truly remarkable depictions can be created.

Hoping to illustrate the aftermath of the Sumatran earthquake, Skinner and Michael plan to reconstruct a series of photographs Balog took in 2005. Like the time-lapse images that speed up the progression of melting glaciers, through his Extreme Ice Survey Project Balog is encouraging the two students to snap pictures long after the event at Banda Aceh Province in order to demonstrate how things have changed.

“I’d like to make people aware that just because the media has stopped covering the disaster there are still people there rebuilding,” Skinner said. “They’re dealing with it every day. And I hope we can bring back some images that show what has happened since James took his pictures.”

Skinner and Michael received grants totaling about $17,000 from National Geographic as well as the University of Wyoming department of Art & Sciences funded in part by former Vice President Dick Cheney. They also received support from outdoor industry companies Camelbak and Lowpro. Heading out in mid July, the two will be in Sumatra for a month. Skinner said she’s both excited and apprehensive for the opportunity to see how circumstances have changed seven years later.

“Part of my excitement is finding people willing to tell their stories,” she said. “But natural disasters are associated with a lot of loss and a lot of grief. I know from my Katrina experience that’s going to be the hardest part.”

The Joy Trip Project is made possible thanks to the support of sponsor Patagonia.

Plastic bags are the poster child for mass one-use consumption. Because they are not easily recyclable, they make us more guilty than PET bottles, grocery containers and other items produced to have a very short lifetime. Bag ban legislation—successful and not—has been sparked in cities and states across the country, as well as the world.

But so far as our checkout stand goes, plastic doesn’t actually rank that much worse than paper bags on the environmentally-friendly scale. In fact, the production of paper bags can often be a much dirtier process than their polyethylene brethren; paper bags are just much easier to recycle and are thus, like soda bottles, less taxing on our post-use guilt. Especially since plastic bags are so ubiquitous.

For better or for worse, plastic bags are now a part of our environment. So, on this lovely Saturday, I invite you on a visual journey through Plastic Bags, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: alleyways, spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Alleyways are mysterious. Be they thoroughly lit, dark, empty or full, there is always a sense that something—though you may not always be quite sure what—is going down. Sometimes they feel dangerous and you might find yourself constantly looking back over your shoulder in paranoia because you feel as if you’ve heard something, like the ominous footsteps in Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much. Other times the alley is just another part of the adventure, and you look eagerly forward waiting for what—if anything—lies ahead.

Or, that alley may be nothing but a convenient shortcut. There’s no danger, no adventure; it’s just a way to get from where you are to where you are going faster. Regardless of the situation you may find yourself in (hopefully you stay relatively safe), I invite you to take a moment and bask in the mystery of the narrow passage that is the alley with Alleyways, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

It’s hard to think about reflections without getting metaphorical and sort of, for lack of a better word, gooey. And that’s because reflections are rarely just reflections. In films, when a character is shown in the same frame as his or her reflection it generally means that he or she has been duplicitous.

But sometimes, like in the real world, reflections maybe are just reflections. They are a mirror-view of a landscape, a building, a person, what-have-you through water or glass. Maybe they tell a deeper story about the image, but they might just be aesthetically interesting.

Whether you are a fan of digging for the former or you’d rather just see the latter, I invite you to sit back, relax and prepare to take a visual journey of Reflections, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: spiders, beaches, garbage dumps, running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving, sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Recently, Time, Wired, The Daily Mail and several other publications wrote about a bizarre phenomenon caused by last year’s unprecedented flooding in Pakistan. The monsoon, which began in July 2010, didn’t only disrupt the lives of over 20 million people, but also caused millions of arachnids to take to the trees in order to survive.

These trees now resemble something out of a low-budget horror flick, encased in spiderweb cocoons.

Apparently, there is actually a benefit to this frightening phenomenon: fewer malaria cases. This week we tip our hat to spiders and all that they do, good and bad. Sit back, relax and (if you’re anything like me) do your best to fight that psychological itch you feel every time you see something creepy or crawly, and prepare to take a visual journey of Spiders, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: beaches, garbage dumps, running,spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges,markets, skiing,toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn,costumes,coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest,yoga,treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking,trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding,surfin’,doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks,beer,authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess,foods,silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

If there’s anything we humans are good at, it is building. Skyscrapers mark our urban environments and rows of cookie-cutter houses line the suburban landscape. We have constructed communities in cities and towns. We have traversed the world via manmade vehicles specializing in air, land and even sea.

But perhaps our most infamous construction project lies in the garbage dump. As we continue to use more and more and throw away more and more, we are creating more and more landscapes composed entirely of trash.

We dig out craters to pile our waste into, letting them grow into mountains as we overfill them. We fill our oceans. We have more garbage than we know what to do with.

The only real way to combat our growing garbage crisis is to use less and toss less. And until that happens, we must be prepared to deal with the consequences of our actions. So I invite you to consider the gravity of our garbage while you take a visual journey of Garbage Dumps, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: running, spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Running is one of those things that sounds miserable on a cold, dark morning but is actually really great once you get your butt out of bed and go do it. For one, there’s something about how the air feels in the lungs and the power pulsing through your legs to keep your body propelling forward that is fantastic and uplifting.

But there’s also the fact that you feel like you’re in a little private club when you see familiar faces each morning, smiling and nodding as you pass each other. This roundup of photos is dedicated to the folks who run regularly and get to be a part of that special club of runners. So sit back, give your feet a little massage and prepare to take a visual journey through Running, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: spring, barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkeys, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

According to my calendar, spring starts Monday (in the United States, anyhow). And all I have to say to this cold, wet winter is good riddance. Not only did I never get the snow that was promised me here in Portland, but the rain and cold temperatures have continued—as per usual, I suppose—to drag on and on. That said, this morning’s sunshine gives me hope for the beautiful spring that lies ahead.

Spring, characterized by this very sunshine, warm rain and the blooming of flowers (and thus terrible allergies, but let’s keep this cheerful), signals that it’s time to get outside and have awesome adventures. So no matter where you are, be it Canada, Switzerland or even China, sit back, relax and prepare to take a visual journey through Spring, ‘Round the World (with 100 percent less allergens).

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: barns, wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees,ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkey, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms, lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking, climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles, windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming, sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Jason Magness of Team GearJunkie.com (US) runs the last few hundred yards of the 2011 race with a teammate's disabled bicycle. Photo by: T.C. Worley

As YogaSlacker Chelsey Gribbon put it in a recent article written for iWend, this year’s Patagonian Expedition race was considered “Redo Take 2 for Team YogaSlackers,” and it turned out to be even more significant than that; the YogaSlackers (Team GearJunkie in the 2011 race) took second place overall. Coming in at second place is impressive for any team; the race takes participants over 150 miles of mountain biking, over 90 miles of trekking and more than 65 miles of kayaking through river and sea.

But for the YogaSlackers, this achievement is even bigger, considering that last year they nearly missed the race altogether when, two days prior to departing for Chile, Chelsey learned that her I.U.D had failed, she was 16 weeks pregnant and was having a miscarriage. Despite her doctor’s warnings against it, she completed the race with her team. And, at the end of it all, Chelsey and teammate Jason Magness (her boyfriend at the time), got engaged. If you haven’t done so already, you can read the full, feature-length cover story, “Delivery in Patagonia,” that Chelsey wrote for Wend last spring in the free Wend Digital Edition here.

This year, adventure photographer extraordinaire, T.C. Worley, was there to witness the 2011 event in Patagonia, and has some incredible images to show for it. Below, you’ll see a short photo essay of the race, including one of Team GearJunkie kicking ass. Worley’s incredible images show the vast and varying landscape of Patagonia, giving people who aren’t superhuman enough to compete in the race itself an idea of both the intense difficulty and stunning beauty of the terrain.

All of the photos below were captured by photographer T.C. Worley at the 2011 Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race.

One of the things I love about traveling is that wherever I go, so long as I can escape the city, I’m bound to see some sort of farming operation. And most of those farms include barns.

A building in the middle of a field, surrounded by horses, sheep, cows and chickens, barns are signifiers of the pastoral, that you have left the urban landscape and are now in the country. Which I find pretty relaxing. So I invite you to put your feet up and join me on this agrarian visual journey of Barns, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: wine, lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkey, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms,lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking,climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles,windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming,sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

Besides beer, I think it’s safe to argue (I’m not using any statistics here, so don’t quote me) that wine is one of the top choices of alcoholic beverage across the world.

Perhaps you’re sipping some champagne—which, as we all know, is just carbonated wine—and you’re feeling classy. Or maybe you’re drinking the boxed kind and feeling the opposite. Chances are it’s probably somewhere in between. Either way, there will be vino available to you just about anywhere in the world.

That said, I invite you to sit back, preferably with a glass of wine, sip slowly, and prepare to take a visual journey of Wine, ‘Round the World.

If you like our ‘Round the World series, you might enjoy some of the previous themes: lightning, unicycles, rainy days, trails, canoeing, bridges, markets, skiing, toasts, santa, trees, ice, rainy snowy rides, caterpillars, turkey, fog, autumn, costumes, coffee, waterfalls, mushrooms,lighthouses, snowboarding, rest, yoga, treehouses, campsites, barbecues, scuba diving,sailing, slacklining, spelunking, trekking, water skiing, mountain biking, sand, gliding, kayaking,climbing, buses, skateboarding, surfin’, doorways, hats, boating, gas stations, bicycles,windows, truckin’, glasses, mohawks, beer, authorities, fanny packs, Jesus, swimming,sweaters, mustaches, stairs, chess, foods, silhouettes, donkeys, outhouses and cemeteries.

Click on the thumbnails to view the images. If you’d like to see more work by any of the photographers featured here then follow the link that appears below each photo.

Enjoy.

The worth of this image for surfers, and perhaps auction-goers, as well, lies in what it represents; the way in which Hawaiian surfers rode waves in the 19th century. The surfer wears a loincloth and is carrying a traditional finless, heavy wooden board known as ‘Alaia’, the board historically ridden by the commoners. From Club of the Waves:

There were two kinds of surfboard in these times, an ‘Olo’ (rode by the chiefs or the noblemen known as the ‘Alii’) and a ‘Alaia‘ (rode by the commoners). The wooden boards were made using the Wili Wili, the Ula and the Koa tree’s. And ranged from 10 to 16 feet long depending on social class… 10-12 feet for commoners and 14-16 feet for the noblemen and chiefs.

What’s more, if this photo’s suspected date (1890) is correct, it represents the resilience of surf riding in Hawaii. In 1779, when Captain Cook died, missionaries attempted to wipe out surfing entirely because of its “ungodly” nature. Historically, it wasn’t until 1905 that surfing came back to the forefront of Hawaiian culture, when Duke Kahanamoku and his friends started ‘The Club of Waves’. This 19th century image proves that this surfer, at least, was keeping up the long-established art of surfing alive.

[Via: Daily Mail, Surfers Village]

[Photo Via: Surfers Village]