Photo Walk Trinidad & Tobago

On Monday Cupcake Wench announced her pick for her Circles competition and I think she made a great choice. Congratulations to you, Darcel! (@trinireporter on Twitter if you want to beg her for cupcakes.)

Today I’d like to take a page out of Scott Kelby’s playbook* and share some of my favourites from our Ariapita photo walk in some rather unusual categories.

Favourite Ghost House photo

The colours and tilted angles really scream ghost house here. Photo by tommyreese.

Favourite Vertigo-Inducing photo

With the right angle and colour cast even a mundane brick wall takes on a whole new perspective. Don’t stare at it too long. Photo by inspiredmine (cupcakewench).

Favourite Portal That Looks Like An Entrance to Narnia photo

I don’t know where Darcel found this one. I suspect she really did sneak into an alternate universe. You’d think if it’s a hairdresser’s salon she could give it a bit of a makeover, ent? Photo by chasta24.

Favourite Playground Torture Device photo

Yes, you heard me right. Solid iron. Hard corners. Sharp edges. And the ability to spin and flail at high speeds. Three of us independently dubbed this the Torture Device. Parents, do not let your children near this thing! I love the creative angle this is shot from too. Photo by mischief room.

Favourite Graffiti photo

I wonder if the artist ever got what’s coming to him. Her? Photo by tommyreese.

…aaand Favourite Behind-the-Scenes photo

tommyreese caught in the act capturing the above photo by inspiredmine.

I also have to single out one of our first-time walkers, Krys, aka mischief room, for taking some very cool photos with her iPod touch. Proof that you really don’t need any fancy cameras to take great photos and enjoy photo walking. So stop making excuses, the rest of you! :)

Remember to leave some comment love for your fellow photo walkers. See you all at our next photo walk.

* Also don’t look now but photo number 28 in Scott’s post is from our first ever photo walk – Worldwide Photo Walk 2010. Trinis een everything eh!

Tired of the Christmas hustle and bustle?

If you’re anything like us I’m sure by now you’re yearning for a break from it all. Traffic on the road. TRAFFIC! People like ants cramming every mall and sidewalk. Wall to paint. Curtain to sew.

Nah. Take a break. Let’s get back to nature for a while.

That’s exactly why we chose the Wild Fowl Trust for our year-ending photo walk.

The Wild Fowl Trust is a 25-hectare wildlife reserve on the Petrotrin compound. (Don’t worry, we’re not going to walk ALL 25 hectares.) As the name suggests it’s a haven for several species of locally endangered birds. A haven for people who just need some peace and quiet too.

The photo walk is on Saturday 17th December. We’ll start at 12:00pm (noon if you’re not sure eh). We’d prefer if you try to arrive a little early. 11:45am would be great.

There is official end time, as usual. However the Wild Fowl Trust closes at 4:00pm.

Our visit to the Wild Fowl Trust will include a guided tour starting at 1:30pm. The tour lasts approximately one hour. We will be free to explore on our own before and after the tour.

Now, even in the middle of all this peaceful haven-ness, there are some ground rules:

1. The Wild Fowl Trust charges a $15 entrance fee per person. Donations are apparently also always welcome. Remember they are a non-profit, non-governmental organisation.
2. You may not use photos from this walk for any commercial purposes without approval from the Wild Fowl Trust. Please respect this.
3. We will need an accurate attendance count and your names to provide to the Wild Fowl Trust beforehand. I will provide the list of names to them on Friday 16th. Confirm with me beforehand please. If your name is not on the list you may not be allowed to enter with us.
4. There is no food on sale at the Wild Fowl Trust. There are drinks on sale. You should walk with, at the least, some light snacks and refreshments. You’re welcome to bring enough to share. :)
5. The Wild Fowl Trust suggests that you wear sneakers or sturdy shoes. Some of the trails may be muddy. If it’s rainy, umbrellas are also recommended.
6. Although they haven’t officially said so, I suspect currying of any wild fowl will be frowned upon. Act accordingly. :)

Ok, show of hands. Who’s looking forward to shooting some birds? With your CAMERA!

It’s photo walk time again, walkers. We know our regular walkers, all two of you, have been looking forward to another walk.

On Saturday 26th we’ll explore the eastern side of Ariapita Avenue including some of the nearby parks and side streets. We’ve done Ariapita before, but it’s one of those areas that never get boring. There’s a great mix of new and old architecture, parks, and usually ample opportunities for street photography.

There may also be a surprise contest and giveaway from everyone’s favourite purveyor of mouthwatering cupcakes.

The walk will start at 4pm with no specific end time. Sunset will be at 5:40pm so that’s probably the latest we’ll go. We’ll also find somewhere fun to hang out afterwards, either on the Avenue itself or somewhere nearby.

Please contact us for the meeting place.

As always, our photo walks are free and open to anyone. Fancy DSLRs, sleek point and shoots, and camera phones are all welcome.

We’re looking forward to seeing our regulars and some new faces.

Help us plan our November photo walk. We have four general ideas so far:

1. lower St. Joseph and environs
   some highlights will be the St. Joseph RC Church, one of the oldest churches in Trinidad and the Mohammed Jinnah Memorial Mosque.
2. Victoria Square and Ariapita Avenue
   lots of interesting old buildings and a couple parks on this route, we’ll probably go as far as Adam Smith Square on Ariapita and through parts of Woodbrook.
3. Macqueripe Road and environs
   there are the ruins of an old church and cemetery, and we can also take a walk to the Bamboo Cathedral and Macqueripe Bay itself.
4. Queen’s Park Savannah North
   starting near Stollmeyer’s Castle, we can explore the Hollows and the Botanical Gardens

We’ll tentatively schedule this walk for Sunday, November 20th in the afternoon/evening.

What are your thoughts?

We’re pleased to lead a photo walk to the lovely, historic village of Lopinot as part of Scott Kelby’s Fourth Annual Worldwide Photo Walk™ on Sunday 2nd October.

Worldwide Photo Walk is billed as the world’s largest global social photography event and it is exactly that — an opportunity for photographers to get out, meet other photographers, and shoot photos. Last year more 30,000 photographers walked in over 1,000 locations, taking 6 million photos!

Lopinot Walk Details

Lopinot is part of an old cocoa estate dating to the 1800s and several old structures remain including the great house and the cocoa house. Nature lovers will also appreciate the natural beauty of the valley, and may enjoy taking a walk down to the river.

Our Lopinot photo walk is FREE, but registration is required.

The photo walk will last about an hour to an hour and a half. We have not set a specific route through Lopinot. The village really invites a more open exploration.

We may meet up somewhere in Trincity Mall afterwards, depending on the time and any SOE considerations.

Getting There

We know some of our walkers may not be familiar with the route, so we will meet at the Lopinot Junction (pictured at left) on the Eastern Main Road for 2:30pm and drive up together. The drive takes about 20-25 minutes.

The simplest route to Lopinot Junction is Golden Grove Road from the highway (that’s the corner by Piarco/Bhagwansingh’s). Follow Golden Grove Road north to the Eastern Main Road (big KFC by the junction), and turn right onto the Eastern Main Road. Lopinot Junction will be on your left, about 2 minutes away.

The Main Road may be a little busy, so we’ll meet on Lopinot Road just after the bars on the corner.

After the Walk

By now you’re probably asking what do we do with our photos after the photo walk?

Share them!

On Flickr, Twitter, Facebook, Google+… you know the list.

Publish them on your personal website, blog, photo blog — this may even be the impetus for you to start a photo blog! We use Flickr to share our photos, and there are two groups for you:

1. Our Lopinot Worldwide Photo Walk group — this is our group, setup specifically for this walk. You can add as many photos as you like to this group.
2. The 4th Annual Worldwide Photo Walk group – this is the group for the entire Worldwide Photo Walk. Please read the rules and requirements before posting to this group.
3. After the photo walk, you will be able to submit your best photo (one only) on the Worldwide Photo Walk website to be eligible for the contest. Contest submissions open on October 3rd at 9am.
4. Upload your best photo for the contest now. Submissions close on Friday 7th October at noon. These are the prizes you can win.

About Photo Walk T&T

This is our second year leading a Worldwide Photo Walk, and it’s really what started this Photo Walk T&T project. In the past year we’ve done three more photo walks. Photos from our walks are on Flickr.

We look forward to seeing you in Lopinot. Please remember to register.

Update: This photo walk has been rescheduled to Sunday 14th August.

We’ve expanded our La Vega photo walk to include a trip to the Dattatreya/Hanuman Temple and the Temple in the Sea.

This is our proposed schedule:

2:00pm – Arrive at La Vega

4:00pm – Leave La Vega, head to Hanuman Temple

4:45pm – Arrive at Hanuman Temple

5:30pm – Leave Hanuman Temple, head to Temple in the Sea

5:40pm – Arrive at Temple in the Sea

6:25pm – Sunset – hopefully some lovely photo opportunities at the Temple in the Sea

Depending on the turnout we’ll decide whether to meet up somewhere afterwards.

Also note there is a $25 entrance fee for La Vega.

If you’re interested please let us know on Twitter @photowalktt or leave a note in the comments here.

Our first photo challenge, in honour of Emancipation Day, was Freedom.

Photo challenges are open to everyone. Like our photo walks, it’s another opportunity to practice your photography and often to try something new or different.

To share your Freedom photos, upload your photo to your own website or to a photo sharing site like Flickr then post the link to your photo in the comments below.

This challenge closes on Sunday 7th August at 11:59pm.

I first heard about photo walks in June 2010. Two Trinidadian photographers, @chennette_net and @empresslilandra were talking about Scott Kelby’s Worldwide Photo Walk and I was, well I was maccoing.

Of course, my first question was What is a photo walk?

Fast forward a little over a year and I’m writing this post to introduce photowalktt.com and answer the What, Why, How questions of photo walking.

What is a photo walk?

Easy. It’s a walk. And you take photos. And have fun liming and being social with your fellow photo walkers. I’ll never say never, but unless otherwise noted all our photo walks are free and open to anyone.

Why have a photo walk?

Photo walks are an excellent way to get out and spend some time taking photos and meeting fellow photographers. If you’ve become accustomed to a specific type or field of photography they’re also a great opportunity to try something different.

Who should come to photo walks?

Anyone who enjoys photography. You do not need to be a professional photographer, or have a big fancy DSLR. There are usually at least a couple quite experienced and knowledgeable photographers on a photo walk, so don’t hesitate to ask questions.

Remember, it’s a social event too.

How do photo walks work?

Photo walks take place at a set date and time. Usually there is a predetermined route. Our past photo walks have been between one to two hours long and we’re definitely casual amblers, not speed walkers — need to give everyone time to explore and enjoy the route.

After the walk, we’ll usually meet up someplace for refreshments and to maco everyone’s photos.