Photo of the day (2.10.09)

by Grant Martin on

I happen to be in Chicago this Tuesday evening, en route to an extra special Virgin America event and visiting our Editor at Large, Justin Glow.

Since I grew up only a few hours east of here, I spent a lot of time growing up in the city, wandering around thrift and army surplus stores on Clark and Belmont, shopping around Michigan Avenue and running around Navy Pier. Buckingham Fountain, located in Grant Park has always been a trademark landmark that reminds me of the city and all of the fun that I used to have there. Flick user mce323 captured the fountain against the Chicago skyline here perfectly.

Have any cool photos you’d like to share with the world? Add them to the Gadling Pool on Flickr and it might be chosen as our Photo of the Day. Make sure you save them under Creative Commons though, otherwise we can’t use them!

Photo of the Day (2.7.09)

by Brenda Yun on


I’ve been to Alaska twice and not once did I see the northern lights. Maybe it was the wrong season or maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough, but I’m sure when I do see them (and I will) I won’t forget the sight.

That’s what one of our dedicated and intrepid adventuring photographers, localsurfer, discovered on a trip to Norway four years ago. He writes, “It’s impossible to really take a picture of what the lights look like. This was like a pulsing river of light from horizon to horizon.”

The eerie green color reflecting off the water and the purple-brown night sky are nature’s way of saying what human words cannot.

If you have some great travel shots you’d like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!

Photo of the day (2.3.09)

by Grant Martin on

Here in the Midwest, we’re in the midst of an unholy winter. Record snowfall, wild ice storms and weeks of subfreezing temperatures are starting to weigh heavy at this point, and as we drag ourselves out of the darkness into snowy daily rituals, it’s easy to repeat and repeat the phrase “I really hate winter.”

Only in times of warmth, reflection and patience do we sometimes get to enjoy the beauty that comes along with a fresh snowfall. Naked branches covered with sleeves of white, icicles dangling off rooftops, smooth silent landscapes. It almost makes you think “Maybe I could spend just one more winter here — Right?”

BluePeak‘s photo reminds me of those times. Times where I’ve been on top of a mountain, bundled up in three jackets, warm, comfortable and at peace with winter. If only I could bottle that feeling up and use it every day.

Have any cool photos you’d like to share with the world? Add them to the Gadling Pool on Flickr, and it might be chosen as our Photo of the Day. Make sure you save them under Creative Commons though, otherwise we can’t use them!

Photo of the Day (1.31.09)

by Brenda Yun on

There are so many reasons why I love Hawaii: for the weather, the surfing, and the people. But this photo captures yet another facet of Hawaii that mostly locals can appreciate — the native culture and food. Long before Captain Cook “discovered” Hawaii, the islands’ natives were living off the land and cultivating taro from farms just like this one. Taro is one of the main starches in the Polynesian diet, and yesterday I tried to explain to my students how Hawaiians like to pound the taro to make poi, which is best described as a bitter purple pudding.

This lovely photo by konakoka, a fellow kama’aina (a “child of the land” or resident) from the Big Island, is a great reminder of the rich resources that makes Hawaii such a green and sustainable place. I adore the shiny lime glow of the taro leaves, which are framed so nicely by the other plants in the foreground.

If you have some great travel shots you’d like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!

Photo of the Day (1.17.09)

by Brenda Yun on


It really is no wonder why we say, “We’ll cross that bridge when we get/come to it.” For me, crossing a bridge symbolizes a journey from one state of mind to another.

Wherever it is you travel in the world, bridges are some of the most beautiful sights. Take the London Bridge, the Bridge of Sighs in Venice, or the longest teak bridge the world, which can be found in Myanmar. Robert James Waller’s famous novel, The Bridges of Madison County, also speaks to the nostalgia of bridges.

Sometimes, the bridges in our own backyard are the most beautiful, which is what cgrubbs captures here in this breathtaking photo of bridge, nature, and sky. This photo reminds me how you don’t have to travel across a bridge in order to be transported to another world. Sometimes just seeing one that blends in so perfectly with its surroundings is enough.

If you have some great travel shots you’d like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!