Volterra And The Tuscan Countryside

Just like that we were back on the train being whisked away as we headed south to Pisa. Trying to make the most of our time we lugged our gear to the leaning tower for the quintessential "prop-up" photo opportunity. Unfortunately this blog is not about quintessential photos, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Hertz was our next destination as we bravely took a seat behind the wheel on the roads of Italy. With the lack of signs, narrow roads, hairpin turns and lead-foot drivers, driving in Italy is like a video game. Except you only get one quarter. But we knew exactly where were going. At least for the first 10 minutes. Then we were lost. Eventually we righted ourselves and made our way to Agriturismo Santa Vittoria, situated just north of the small town of Volterra.

The quiet streets of Volterra were vastly different than the towns we had experienced so far. During the afternoon we explored small shops and laughed with the locals as we shared their wine and cheese. When we arrived back at the Agriturismo (a rustic farm with guest lodging) to watch the sunset, we discovered we were all alone and that the workers did not spend the night there. As night fell, we enjoyed the peacefulness of the country with the occasional crow-sized bat flying overhead. Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration... but seriously not by much.

Cinque Terre: Vernazza

Two plane rides, a taxi, three trains and then a short walk landed us in Vernazza. Smack dab in the heart of the Cinque Terre on the north west coast of Italy. Between the hiking trail with spectacular views that led to each of "The Five Lands," to a dip in the sea, this was the perfect place to begin our adventure. These hillside villages are cramped against the shore and are amazing places with fantastic food and wonderful people. It was great to finally visit this place after passing by it 10 years ago.

Don't Stop Believing! Journey, Foreigner and Night Ranger rock Xcel

  

On July 28th, the Xcel Energy Center became a time machine set for the 80's with Journey, Foreigner and Night Ranger making a stop in St. Paul. I was lucky enough to have this be my first experience shooting for Jam Magazine. Hopefully I will be able to shoot many more shows for them in the future.

Night Ranger was up first and they definitely did not mind us photographers leaning against the stage as they shredded their guitars and gave us their best rock star pose. Next up was Foreigner followed by the headliner, Journey. It really was amazing to hear how great these bands sound after all of these years. They played all the hits you would expect to hear and no one left disappointed. Being there to capture it all was a real treat.

You can see the full set of photos of Journey, Foreigner and Night Ranger by visiting these links. If you "Like" Jam Magazine on Facebook you will get continuous updates on all shows Jam Mag covers.

Nikon Features Joe Ringus Photography

And I thought I had made it to the "big stage" with my last post... If you by chance receive emails from Nikon, it is likely that recently your inbox had an email featuring one of my photos. Possibly seen by over 1 Million people, this shot from Charm Churee beach in Thailand was used to promote the Nikon Coolpix S9100. Hopefully more of my photos will be used in Nikon emails in the future. What a great honor!

   Original Photo:

Phish at Blossom

I finally made it to the "big show" and was able to photograph one of my favorite bands, Phish. Thanks to Scott Bernstein at Hidden Track for giving me this opportunity. You can read a full review of the show here.

Blossom Music Center is a gorgeous venue tucked into the hills of a national park just outside of Cleveland. The band has a history of great shows at this shed and this one was no slouch. There was a strict 15 minutes that I had to shoot. Then I was able to find my seat in the pavilion and enjoy the rest of the show.

This was a perfect way to kick off an amazing weekend with some great friends. Thanks to all of you who made this happen and shared these great times with me.

A Visit to Palm Springs

This spring we were lucky enough to spend some time with family in Palm Springs, CA. This is a truly beautiful place, but with 80 foot rock faces a mere hour and half away, we couldn't resist getting out of town for a day.

We made the trek into the mountains and headed to Joshua Tree National Park. The reason for naming this park is no mystery as Joshua Trees blanket the entire landscape. Our guide, Erik from Vertical Adventures was the best guide we could have asked for. The 3 of had a great time scaling granite and enjoying the peacefulness of an amazing afternoon.

The following day in Palm Springs, we took a horseback ride through the desert. Our guide, Miguel was a true cowboy and was great showing us the ropes in the Agua Caliente Indian Canyons.

Thanks to our wonderful family for helping make this trip possible. We had a fabulous time.

Thailand Part 8: One Night In Bangkok

Unfortunately the good times finally had to end. It was time to leave the beautiful island of Koh Samui and head back to Bangkok for one more night of craziness...

One more hotel. One more terrifying cab ride. One more trip to Khao San Road. One more heaping plate of pad thai. One more white knuckle Tuk Tuk ride. One more stop in Patpong. One more night of no sleep. 

One more night in Bangkok.