National Geographic “Around the World by Private Jet” 2103
Near Cusco, the archaeological site of Sacsayhuaman sits above the city. Here, a llama is seen in profile-Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Greetings from Cusco, Peru. I’m on the National Geographic “Around the World by Private Jet” Expedition, as the National Geographic Expert. I’ve had the good fortune to have accompanied two other World trips as well as a Central and South America by Private Jet trip for Geographic. As you can imagine, the photographic opportunities here are almost endless.
We flew out of Dulles Airport in Washington, DC yesterday, arriving in Lima about seven and a half hours later. As on all these trips, the camaraderie starts building almost immediately—with the common experience of adventure and extreme travel, the 77 aboard the 757 aircraft start bonding quickly. Becky accompanied me on the trip in 2009, and we still have deep friendships from that experience.
From Lima, we took a smaller charter flight into Cusco, as the airport here is not certified for the 757. It’s always beautiful making the approach to Cusco with broken clouds providing glimpses of the rugged terrain below. At around 11,200’, a long runway is a must.
We’ll head out early tomorrow on the Howard Bingham train for Machu Picchu-the ride is very photogenic, as it runs for some distance alongside the fast flowing Urubamba River.
For some time, I’ve been speaking of the benefits of the Micro Four Thirds camera system, and I’ve been shooting the Olympus OM-D E-M5 since it’s release. On this trip, I’ll be primarily photographing with the newest Olympus release, the OM-D E-M1. I’ve been using this camera for a few short weeks, and I’m really impressed with all aspects of this pro-level camera system. The next couple of weeks will test many aspects of the camera, as I’ll be putting it through several equipment-unfriendly situations: rain, dust, banging around in safari vehicles, and a constant shooting process.
Hope you enjoy these early images from this amazing trip…
Final approach into Cusco
Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Fountain in town square of Cusco
Olympus OM-D E-M1, 9-18mm 40 second exposure
With the stonework of the Sacsayhuaman site in the background, a merchant’s child is seen here. Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Around the town square in Cusco, I walked upon a children’s parade
Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12mm f2, 3200 ISO
Sacsayhuaman site near Cusco, a vendor with her child. Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Often the beauty is in the detail. I was amazed at the beautiful color of this llama’s eye
Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Late afternoon at Machu Picchu, as a Llama grazes in the grass
OM-D E-M1
Brazilian students at overlook of Machu Picchu
We did a fly-by of Easter Island pre-touchdown Olympus OM-D E-M1, 9-18mm
Light-painting of Moai heads on Easter Island Olympus OM-D E-M1 12mm, 60 Seconds @ f4
The Quarry on Easter Island Olympus OM-D E-M1, 12-40mm f2.8
Samoan fire dancers on American Samoa Olympus OM-D E-M1, 17mm f1.8
