Stephanie Snyder Photography Blog » Travel

Our Trip to Napa

Stephanie — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 20:09:12 +0000

The last full day we we were in San Francisco, we decided to rent a car and drive to the NAPA Valley to check it out. I had researched it before we flew out to San Francisco, and was pleasantly surprised to learn it was only a little more than an hour away from San Francisco! Our hotel had a Budget car rental in part of the lobby, so our car was waiting for us when we walked outside. How convenient!

We drove our rental through downtown, then drove north across the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s a toll bridge, but only when you drive southbound into the city. There was no toll to go northbound.

We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge to Vista Point, where I hoped to take some photos of the bridge, Alcatraz, and the San Francisco skyline all together in one landscape, but the fog was so thick that we couldn’t even see the end of the bridge after we passed by it! The fog itself was beautiful, though.

The drive over to Napa was gorgeous as well. The rolling hills, low-lying thick fog, and country filled with trees and cows made for a pleasant and peaceful drive. I couldn’t have asked for more. We drove north on 101 toward Santa Rosa, passing Sausalito. After that, it was a nice little mountain drive to the town of Calistoga, where we enjoyed a wine tasting, and just breathed in the beautiful scenery! Here are some shots from the drive, and from Napa! Please leave your comments below the post! I read every one, and love hearing your thoughts!

I got these shots about 20 minutes outside San Francisco. The fog cleared up completely right after we passed this field. There is a wide difference in temperatures between San Francisco and Wine Country. Even twenty minutes away in Alameda, it was actually hot versus the chill we felt in San Francisco.

Pardon the gratuitous shots of these trees, but I fell in love with the contrast between their branches and the fog, and I think it created a haunting image. It was so quiet and still there, except for the highway traffic in the background. Something about these images makes me feel at peace.

We hit up the vineyards after driving several miles around a mountain. The sky was so blue, and each town was so small and intimate. The town we spent the most time in was Castiloga. The image below is what greeted us almost immediately upon entering the town.

I found out the yellow flowers between and around the vines were actually mustard flowers, and naturally grow in some of the vineyards. They are not planted there intentionally, and every year the area hosts a huge mustard seed festival.

A nice shot of our really nice rental car:

One thing I noticed about this area is that they love unique sculptures. I guess since all vineyards pretty much look the same, they use these sculptures to make theirs unique.

We stopped by a really neat and unique winery for the obligatory wine tasting. I mean – it’s Napa Valley. I’m not really a drinker, so I barely know the differences between the wines, but the guy inside was very friendly and knowledgeable. It was interesting to learn about some of the process, even if I didn’t understand the terminology. Otman and I split one tasting, since we really only did it because who doesn’t have a wine tasting in Napa? We did it for the experience, not the wine. LOL.

This vineyard is called the Clos Pegase Winery, and is actually one Napa’s most famous wineries. The building below was designed by renowned architect Michael Graves. We didn’t go into any of the caves, but this particular winery has over 20,000 square feet of caves. The owner is a HUGE art collector, and I think I had the most fun perusing the collection around the grounds than in the wine. He has spent millions of dollars on artwork that is displayed throughout the winery, and he has collections on loan to the SOMA Museums. You can see some of the collection of large sculptures below, and the building itself is a piece of art.

I loved this one. I want to stick a giant thumb in my backyard.

It was amazingly peaceful and quiet here. I would have loved to lie in the grass for hours, just enjoying the silence.

The expression on this statue’s face makes me laugh….

Another sculpture – this one was moving. The top pieces that cross over each other actually opened up and crossed again, over and over, like a sword fight.

This was a different winery that we stopped by, but didn’t go in. I just loved the architecture of the house.

On the way out, we had dinner with a good friend in Davis, CA, and drove by the rolling hills of Southern California. What a beautiful end to a beautiful vacation!!!

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South Carolina Wedding Photographer, Portrait Photographer and Boudoir Photographer
For more creative and interesting photography, please visit http://www.stephaniesnyderphotography.com!

San Francisco Photographs – Part 2

Stephanie — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 18:09:28 +0000

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s post. I know I loved sharing my experiences with you. Ready for some more? Here ya go!

Here are some of the first photos I took in 2012, starting with my birthday on New Year’s Day!

This was the view from our hotel room Monday afternoon, January 1st, 2012 in San Francisco. Room 719 Balcony. The first picture taken from that spot that year!

Another shot of the hotel lobby, just because it’s beautiful. They took those hanging lights down the next day. Otman and I watched and mourned a little, because we loved them. The food and service in that restaurant, The Eclipse, was fantastic, by the way.

We decided to take the day, since most everything was closed, to take BART (stands for Bay Area Rapid Transit – the Bay’s subway/rail system) to Alameda, to see where Wensi lives and hang out with her for a little while.

Wensi was nice enough to drive us around to see all the cool houses in Alameda, and she took us to the Naval Yard to see all the ships.

I love ivy-covered walls.

The view from the naval yard at sunset was spectacular.

Can you tell how tired I am from the night before? LOL

They needed some street repair, that’s for sure!

The next day, we took the Muni over to the Cable Car Museum. My dad STRESSED that we see this, since we didn’t get a chance to last time we were in San Francisco. It was super interesting.

These cables ARE the cables that control all the cable cars in the city, and they are constantly running. There is no way for the cable cars to stop while attached to this cable, so the grip man in charge of the clamp that “grips” onto the cable, has to release the clamp from the cable to stop the car.

Immediately after touring the museum, we hopped on a car and rode over to Union Square. It was fun. The cable car operators and grip men are real characters, and always make you laugh.

Union Square:

Couldn’t believe this when I saw it in the middle of Union Square:

We ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory – I had the most delicious lentil soup I’ve ever tasted, along with some mixed greens tossed in balsamic dressing. Of course, we HAD to get a piece of cheesecake, but we were good and split one piece between the two of us. It was a pineapple upside-down cake cheesecake. Yuuummmmmmmm…..

We took another Muni to Golden Gate Park and walked around, enjoying the nice weather. We walked through the area housing the de Young museum and the California Academy of Sciences, and spotted this fountain. We think it was done as a prank, because it was FILLED with really good smelling bubbles!

And of course, what is a trip to San Francisco without a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge? We went at the perfect time, too – just a little before sunset. I’m ordering one of these as a canvas for my home:

We then proceeded to walk across the Golden Gate bridge. What a beautiful view of the city there is from there! Especially at sunset, when the light is reflecting off the buildings.

This is the fence that is up at certain points of the bridge (not the whole bridge), to prevent people from jumping off and committing suicide. I heard that the Golden Gate is the #1 spot for suicide jumps.. I wonder why?

As the sun started to set, the sky got even more vibrant.

That’s Fort Point down below.

Right as we returned from walking back across the bridge, the fog started rolling in.

Wensi picked us up from the base of the bridge, and drove us down to Crissy Field, where there’s a beach. This is where I took this picture:

Wensi then gave us a ride to Twin Peaks, where you can see the entire city from the top of the mountain. The picture doesn’t do the view justice. It was gorgeous. I wish I had brought my tripod along for this shot:

Keep your eyes peeled for the last San Francisco post, with some shots from our drive out to Napa Valley!

San Francisco Photographs – Part 1

Stephanie — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:47:32 +0000

Here it is, as promised! I’m going to post my photographs from the Bay in two or three different posts, so that this one won’t be miles long! Otman and I had so much fun in San Francisco, and the time went by way too fast!!! The flight over there was kind of awful, but it was worth it.

We flew over the Wednesday after Christmas, and got there really late because of various flight delays…. so we did NOTHING Wednesday except check into our amazing hotel and sleep. Thursday morning, however, we took the city on full force. We woke up, grabbed breakfast, and since our hotel was right downtown, (right outside the Port of San Francisco, next to the Embarcadero) we were able to step out into the city!

I start this post from the day we arrived, and end right before we partied for New Year’s Eve. If you haven’t already, you can see that post here.

This is the view from our hotel room:

The lobby of the hotel (the Hyatt Regency in downtown San Francisco, Embarcadero Center) was gorgeous. It actually is in the Guiness Book of World Records as the largest hotel lobby in the WORLD. I was in love with this sculpture in the center of the lobby with all of the gorgeous lights hanging down from the top floors into the atrium:

Another view of the city from one of the windows from our hotel:

The traditional San Francisco cable car.

This guy was tearing it up! He sounded really good.

The architecture of this city is beautiful.

Wensi came over and hung out one night.

The carousel at Fisherman’s Wharf:

Alcatraz. I LOVE Alcatraz. So many layers of history together, and so many haunting stories surrounding it. We didn’t boat over there this time, but we did last time we were in San Francisco, in 2007.

Otman and I in front of Alcatraz…

Street performers:

This guy was hilarious. I liked his jokes more than his acrobatics.

This is the famous turnaround for the cable cars…

This top picture is at the top of the hill we climbed to get a good view. The bottom picture is after we went down the hill just one block. Hopefully that will give you an idea of how steep these hills are!

I loved this guy’s hat. It reminded me of Wensi, since she has a husky named Tenshi.

I’ll be back with more photos from San Francisco as we entered 2012!

Busy Day

Stephanie — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 06:06:43 +0000

It was a crazy day today – the kind of day that makes you amped up with excitement, and fall asleep as soon as you hit the pillow. I photographed two family shoots, one in Columbia, SC and one in Greer, SC, and saw my family and friends today. A very full, blessed day – and I’m grateful.

Below is a photo I’ve been meaning to take for a few years now. This scene is on the way to my parents’ house from Greer, SC. I pass by these towers and every time I think, what a striking and beautiful site – I need to take a photo of this one day. Today became that day. I actually passed the scene, thought the same thought I’ve been thinking for years, and then looked at my passenger seat. In it was sitting my camera I had just used to take photos with on the latest photo shoot. I did a U-Turn, pulled into the median of the highway, rolled down my window, and shot this photo from my car.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend! Stay tuned for tons more posts coming soon, including Rebecca’s amazing boudoir session, an adorable newborn session, and a fun family session!

I Heart Charleston

Stephanie — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 18:13:51 +0000

There is something about Charleston that holds a sense of magic. Maybe it’s the breezy sea air, or the delightful mixture of old and new everywhere you look. Maybe it’s the gorgeous gardens at every home or the eclectic mix of people roaming downtown at night. It could be that you can spend all day on the beach with your dog, and then you can walk up to a restaurant with that same dog, wind-blown and covered in sand, and be seated with a smile – and your dog gets a bowl of water and some love, too! I think it’s all of the above and more. There are so many parts of me that would love to move to Charleston – but then I’m afraid I would get used to it, and would grow accustomed to these things. And then where would I go to escape?

The pictures I took with my phone the other day had me looking through my galleries at some of the other TONS of pictures I’ve taken while I’ve been in Charleston, and I wanted to share some of my favorites. Enjoy!

Dexter Livin’ It Up In Tennessee

Stephanie — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 03:31:11 +0000

We took a trip to Tennessee a few months ago, and for some reason, Dexter wouldn’t eat his food when his bowl was on the floor in the hotel room. The only way we could get him to eat was if we put the bowl on the bed. Then he sprawled out like a king and looked at US like we were crazy!

Hawaii Photographs – Post #4

Stephanie — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:23:27 +0000

Hello everyone!

I am sorry to have disappeared for a few weeks – it’s been hectic! I’m working on a website for a fantastic new local business here in Columbia, and I can’t wait to show it to you! Unfortunately, my cats never came back – I am still hoping and praying – but Otman adopted a new little kitten from the no-kill shelter to cheer me up. He is so cute. We named him Sunnie, inspired by my friend Annette, because he “sure did brighten up my day!” Also, he’s an orange tabby and oh-so-cute! Stay tuned to the blog for a huge post on our new family member!

In the meantime, I wanted to post more of the Hawaii photographs that I finished editing. I am editing these photos in batches for a few reasons. First, there are so many, and I can’t possibly do them all at once! Second, every time I go through the photos, I relive those beautiful days, and I am able to feel that trade wind and remember the sights and smells as the images scroll in front of me! It’s tons of fun, and I LOVE sharing them all with you!

You can see the first three posts of our Hawaii Honeymoon here: #1 #2 #3 Please feel free to comment!

We rented a car for a few days in order to enjoy the rest of the island. We would wake up early, walk the strip along Waikiki, and then take the car to the rest of the island for the other parts of the day. For the rest of the time we were there, we mostly walked or took the bus to where we wanted to go. It’s the preferred mode of transport for pretty much everyone, including the locals.

A sweeping view of a section of Honolulu:

The view from our hotel room looking down from the 31st floor balcony – I was terrified I was going to drop my camera! I wrapped the strap around my wrist about a million times before attempting this shot!

Have you ever seen a double rainbow?

I was obsessed with this tree. The roots hung from the branches! There were trees like this scattered along the boardwalk. I just love how they look.

We feasted on the delicious, fresh pineapple almost every day.

These are some of the photos from our visit to the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park. This park is located at the foot of the Ko’olau Mountains on the windward side of Oahu. The cemetery’s gardens honor many faiths including Christianity and Buddhism. I was blown away by the beauty of this place, and can’t remember being so overwhelmed with such a sense of complete peace. It was breathtaking. I only wish my photographs did justice to the magnificence of the park.

The gravesites accomodate the extreme, rolling hills by creating a flat surface for flowers and remembrances.

Here is the description of the Byodo-In Temple straight from their website:

“It was established on June 7, 1968, to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii. The temple is built entirely without nails. It is a scale replica of a temple in Uji, Japan, that was constructed over 950 years ago.

The Byodo-In Temple is a non-denominational Buddhist temple which welcomes people of all faiths to worship, meditate or simply appreciate its beauty. The temple grounds are often used for wedding ceremonies for Hawaiians or visitors from Japan.

The Temple grounds are a lushly landscaped paradise nestled in a cleft of the pali and are home to wild peacocks and hundreds of Japanese koi carp. The beautiful grounds include a large reflecting pond, meditation niches, and small waterfalls. Visitors describe this destination as beautiful, peaceful, and restful.

The TV series Hawaii Five-O and Magnum, P.I. featured several episodes where the temple is incorporated into the plot. The temple and its gardens also appeared in an episode of the ABC series Lost, “House of the Rising Sun” in season one as the home of Sun’s father.”

Bon-sho (Sacred Bell)

“The Bell House, called kanetru-ki-do, contains a five foot high, three ton brass bell, called bon-sho (sacred bell), cast in Osaka, Japan, from a mixture of bronze and tin, by permission of the government of Japan. It closely resembles the bell hanging in an identical Bell House at the Uji Byodo-In. The original is said to be more than 900 years old and to have come from India. It is revered for its distinctive shape, and the tone of the bell sounds a message of deep calm and peace, cleansing the mind of evil and temptation.

The resonant sound of the bon-sho creates an atmosphere of tranquility for meditation that travels for some distance. A soft wooden log called the “shu-moku” is used to strike the bell.

The bell is customarily rung before one enters the temple to spread the eternal teachings of Buddha. Ringing the bell will purify the mind of evil spirits and temptation. It is said that ringing this bell will bring you happiness, blessings, and a long life. It is customarily rung before entering the temple.”

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see any wild peacocks, but there was a gorgeous black swan that I couldn’t stop photographing!

The gift shop sells fish food for the GIANT koi fish in the pond!

Hawaii Photographs – Post #3

Stephanie — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 11:40:27 +0000

I am absolutely in love with the photographs I am posting today. The island of Oahu is so diverse. One area is a bustling beach city with large amounts of tourist traffic and high-scale shops, but just a twenty minute car ride, and you are a world away. Every part of the island is a new gorgeous view.

Hawaii is known for its delicious pineapple. There is a huge Dole pineapple plant there, and, as you can see, fields and fields of pineapples for as far as the eye can see! The pineapple here is so sweet, with almost no acidity at all! We couldn’t get enough of it!!

There is something about the swirls and winding spiral patterns in the rocks that captivated me. The power and beauty of nature to create such exquisite designs is breathtaking.

If you look closely, you can see Otman filming the water crashing on the rocks! I was too much of a scaredy-cat to jump over the huge ravine that led to that cliff! Otman had no fear and I was afraid I was going to become a widow on my honeymoon! Thank goodness he was a careful daredevil!

The weather in Hawaii can change at the turn of a hat, giving warm raindrops and gentle thunderstorms. The strong trade wind is always blowing, so the storms never last long.

Different beaches in Hawaii have completely different cultures. Some beaches are full of tourists, some full of kayaks, some full of surfboards, and some full of all of the above!

You will never be on a more laid-back, friendly highway than in Hawaii. No one seems to be in a rush to get anywhere. This can be annoying if you are the one in a rush, however!

We were so blessed to have a wonderful guide take us around to some gorgeous spots on the island. He was so generous with his time, we won’t ever forget it. He took us to a shrimp shack that grows its own shrimp. IT IS SERIOUSLY THE BEST SHRIMP I HAVE EVER TASTED IN MY LIFE. Freshwater shrimp from Hawaii. Oh. My. Goodness.

He also owns a spa in Hawaii, and I took some pictures of his gorgeous business! If you know me, this is my weakness – gorgeous packaging, wonderful smells, and relaxing, soothing environment!

Vintage Car Lot

Stephanie — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 23:13:24 +0000

On our trip to Tennessee, Otman and I stopped in the very small town of Hot Springs, NC. As the sign at the entrance of the town states that it only has a population of 684! It’s one of those small towns where you imagine everyone knows everyone else. It’s a popular tourist spot because of the mineral water springs that reach over 100 degrees that are rumored to cure many ailments that even medicine can’t touch! The springs were first discovered by Native Americans. Very cool. Otman and I stopped at a vintage car dealership there, and browsed the treasures. I loved the look and feel of these cars, and imagined all of the dates and joy rides that were taken more than 50 years ago in these symbols of fun and freedom on the open road. I took some pictures of a particularly pretty Ford Fairlane that struck my eye. Enjoy!

: This is the engine. It looks so simple and basic compared to today’s computer-based models. The red bag is actually where the washer fluid was stored! I thought that was so interesting.

AM Radio!

For more creative and interesting photographs, please visit http://www.StephanieSnyderPhotography.com. Thank you!

Gatlinburg

Stephanie — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 02:06:40 +0000

For Valentine’s Day, Otman surprised me with a romantic trip to Tennessee. We grabbed Dexter, walked through the snow in the gorgeous mountains, and enjoyed the kitschy shops all up and down the main road. I even took Otman to the Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum, because I have memories of walking through it the last time I was in Tennessee when I was a child, and it was fun. We had a great time being kids again in a very friendly town, on a nice romantic weekend. Here is a little video I put together quickly with my Flip to give you a small peek into our trip.