This video was all captured with my DJI Mavic 2, which unfortunately sustained a bit of heat damage from the inferno below, despite my staying at an altitude of 500 ft for most of the flight, and my Canon R5.
My little niece from a few Christmases Past
Merry Christmas - A Call-out - And Some Pretty Pictures
First off, let me begin by wishing everyone the merriest of Christmases! This holiday season will undoubtedly be a challenging one, as family traditions and gatherings are interrupted to mitigate the risk of spreading COVID-19. Perhaps we can find comfort in the confidence that by making sacrifices now, we will be rewarded later by coming through this world-shattering tragedy with the knowledge that we did all we could to protect our loved ones and ourselves.
For so many, this holiday season will be marred by the empty chairs around the dinner table. Every day in the U.S. right now, over 3,000 families are receiving the devastating news that a family member has died. To everyone who has suffered a loss during this time, let me offer my heartfelt condolences and love. There is surely no comfort to be found after the loss of a loved one from COVID-19, especially when families are unable to be with those loved ones at the time of their passing. All I can think to do is honor the memories of those who have passed by continuing to be vigilant and do what we can to protect our communities as best we can from further losses.
This Christmas, I would also like to honor and thank all of those working in the healthcare system on the frontlines of the battle against COVID-19. Your sacrifices are being noticed around the world, and we can not thank you enough for all that you do. If you know anyone who works in healthcare, reach out, thank them personally for what they do. They are undoubtedly exhausted and frustrated by the ever climbing numbers of new infections and the inaction of our government. That thank you could provide the boost they need to continue their invaluable work a little longer.
To our government, I would like to say that the time of inaction and paralysis has got to end. Our country has been ravaged by this unrelenting disease, both in terms of deaths and the economic impact. How many millions of Americans have seen their paychecks disappear? How many are experiencing food scarcity? How many children’s parents cannot afford to buy them Christmas presents? While our government sits and argues, families are suffering. Our people need help now, and a $600 check will not pay the bills. Not even close. It is an insult to the citizens of this great country.
To all our elected leaders, hear this call to action. In a time of great tragedy such as this, the stage is set for heroic and selfless actions, to cement your place in the history books as the one who stood against the hypocrisy, who stood against the greed, who made a personal sacrifice of power and influence for the sake of helping the people that truly make this country great, the regular folk whose lives have been disrupted or destroyed by this disease and the disease of a power hungry government that is more interested in protecting their corporate sponsors than the people who voted them into office. But who am I? I’m a photographer, a wildlife guide, a teacher sometimes. I am no expert, but I believe that history has shown that heroes are forged in the fires of adversity, and those flames burn hot now.
Now, rant complete. Let me get back to wishing everyone good tidings and joy during the holidays. Let us hope and pray that next year will see the tireless work of our healthcare workers, scientists, and those who have been instrumental in developing medicine and vaccines, will pay off with the beginning of the end of COVID-19. As Winston Churchill famously said, “Now, this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end, but it is perhaps the end of the beginning.”
So, how about some pretty pictures? I find that looking nature is often the best antidepressant one can find. So to that end, I’d like to share some new work I’ve been able to complete this year and have yet to share. And as always, should you love any of these and want a print, you can contact me directly here.
Sunset Over the Smoky Mountains from Clingman’s Dome - October 2020
A Pretty Little Autumn Stream in Great Smoky Mountains National Park - October ©2020
Panoramic of the Smoky Mountains from Clingmans Dome - October ©2020
A Lone Bull Bison in Yellowstone National Park - October ©2020
A Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Cub Following His Mother - October ©2020
The Mormon Barns in Front of the Grand Teton - October ©2020
Castle Geyser Erupting in Yellowstone National Park - October ©2020
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone - October ©2020
Bull Elk in Silhouette - Yellowstone National Park - October ©2020
Again, have a merry, merry Christmas, and stay tuned for more photographs of our natural world! in 2021!
The Return of the Colorado Gray Wolf
On November 3rd, 2020, one of the most historic elections in United States history took place, with the highest voter turnout in the history of the country. But, in Colorado, another piece of historic legislation was passed. Winning by a slim margin, Colorado Proposition 114, the Gray Wolf Reintroduction Initiative, was passed. This represented the first time ever that a state used the ballot box to decide whether to reintroduce an extirpated species. Proponents of the bill pointed to the success of the wolf reintroduction programs in Washington, Idaho, and most famously, in Yellowstone National Park as evidence of the benefits for reintroducing the apex predator to their historic range. Opponents call it biology by ballot box, and insist that the potential economic damages created by wolves outweigh the ecological benefits of their reintroduction.
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Grand Teton and The Snake River
Big Announcements and Dreams of Travel - Print Sales Open!
As the global travel market remains at a standstill amidst the seemingly unending spread of COVID-19, many of us remain at home, dreaming of exotic destinations and a break from the monotony. And though it will largely remain up to the individual as to when it feels appropriate to begin traveling again, this may be the perfect time to surround yourself with natural beauty in another way, by adorning your home or business with images of wildlife and wild places taken from the world.
Since March of this year 2020, my work guiding and traveling has ground to a halt. Like many others in the travel and guiding industries, I feel like a refugee in my own country, unable to return to my Costa Rican home due to travel bans. A time of forced rebuilding has been thrust upon me and many others during a time of great uncertainty. But, one cannot wait forever, and with that in mind, I am putting one step forward at a time, anticipating that the big break will come eventually.
Read MoreA Photo Guide Life
Hello and happy new year to all my readers, and apologies for a long absence! I’ve been working over the past year as a photography guide and instructor, in addition to my freelance work. This has proven to be a real joy for me, and I wanted to share with you just what it’s like to experience Costa Rica through the eyes of a photography guide making a living down here, as well as share some new photographs from my journeys. I hope to continue to share these experiences with you. So, should you enjoy it, drop me a line or leave a comment so I know! Thanks and Enjoy!
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Green Parrot Snake - Osa Peninsula February 2020 - ©2020 Ben Blankenship
Chainsaws in Paradise - Plus New Photos
In everything there must be balance. And living in a developing country reminds me of that regularly. I love when people call Costa Rica paradise. Sure, in the photos, the tropical beaches and mountainous jungles look like heaven. But, you can’t see the heat in the photos. You can’t see the mosquitoes, and you certainly can’t see the regular frustrations that come with living in a developing country. Like today for instance, one of the hottest days of the year, in a year that has been the hottest since 2014 on the Osa, some idiots with a chainsaw took it upon themselves to take down a tree that was growing alongside the road just a stone’s throw from my house. They didn’t cut a wedge out of the trunk to control its fall, nor did they tamp a metal wedge into the cut to push the tree’s fall away from the power lines. Instead, they cut the trunk straight across, and you guessed it; the tree fell directly onto the power lines.
Read MoreReturn to the Osa (With a New Job, New Documentary, and New Photos)
With 2019 fully under way, I am returning to my blog to update everyone on what has been happening in my life. The last post I made was about arriving in Uganda for my assignment with Photographers Without Borders (PWB). Though that experience deserves a post in itself, and will hopefully receive one, for now I am content with saying that it was eye-opening, challenging, and absolutely an incredible experience. I will write a full description of my time there, as well as my experience with PWB soon, assuming my life remains somewhat calm for the foreseeable future.
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Cell Phone shot of touchdown at Entebbe International Airport in Uganda
From Costa Rican Paradise to Ugandan Village Life
It didn’t become real until I walked outside the Dubai International Airport for the first time. I was hit with an oppressive combination of heat and humidity, the first tangible sensation I’d yet felt that told me that I was far from home. For the first time, I was in the middle east, and one day from flying into Entebbe, Uganda.
Read MoreA Wedding in Paradise - Osa Peninsula Style
I love a good wedding. It seems to me, with the proliferation of social media and technology, opportunities for true candor, face to face, between people are becoming more and more rare. That is why weddings can be such a special moment for all those in attendance. They provide that rare opportunity for people to truly express how they feel for one another. And not just for those getting married. Loved ones expressing their appreciation and love for the bride and groom (or bride and bride, or groom and groom) seem to experience a level of truth seldom, if ever, felt in day to day life. And this was something I witnessed take place a few days ago on an isolated black-sand beach on the Osa Peninsula.
Read MoreCosta Rican Castration Party - Part One // WARNING, GRAPHIC
Located along the road from Puerto Jimenez to Carate is the sprawling Finca Bijagual (pronounced Bee-Ha-Gwahl). Both a tourist destination, offering guest cabins, a restaurant, and horseback riding, Bijagual is also a functioning cattle farm. Bijagual is owned by the always pleasant Don Trino. A towering and elderly Tico, he is bespectacled and always clad in a Hawaiian style button down. Instead of floral patterns, his shirts feature images of cowboys roping steers, fisherman battling marlin, or scenes of Daffy Duck and Goofy sipping cocktails on a beach. He can always be found hanging in the restaurant, an open-air pavilion located just adjacent to the road. The Bijagual restaurant also serves as a venue for the occasional dance party, events that draw attendees from all the nearby villages. Beer and cacique guarro (Costa Rican-made sugar cane liquor) flow freely while partiers couple up to dance the merengue, salsa, and bachata. These events go late into the night, and almost always go on without incident. The same, however, cannot be said for one Bijagual party that occurs but once a year. Coinciding with the birthday of Don Trino’s son, this event is the annual castrating of the bulls.
Read MoreThe Cute and the Creepy...
This week on Living On The Osa, I am sharing some of my latest and favorite wildlife photographs from the Osa Peninsula. Last year, when I first arrived in Costa Rica, my wildlife photography portfolio was virtually nonexistent. And it was a priority of mine to really begin developing my abilities in this area. I had a fair amount of experience in portraiture, landscape, and photojournalism, but had not yet pushed myself to begin creating, what I hoped would someday be, publication-quality photos of wildlife in natural settings. And Costa Rica has been the absolute perfect location for me to develop these skills. Wildlife here is not only abundant; it is also incredibly beautiful and unique to anywhere else in the world.
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Hunting for Gold in Ringworm River
The experience is tough. With the intense bouncing comes waves of exhaust filling the passenger area as the driver downshifts to make it up the steep inclines. The clatter of the truck with its makeshift implements is near deafening. Dust is everywhere, coating everything. And, for those of us born with testicles the colectivo can be particularly painful, as genitals are pounded by the hard benches if not sitting in just the right position. The smartest travelers on the colectivo use bandanas or buffs to cover noses and mouths, sunglasses to protect the eyes, and loud music playing in ear buds to help muffle out the ear-splitting racket as the truck smashes down the rocky path.
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The Osa Peninsula - Taken in Corcovado National Park - Photo by Ben Blankenship, 2018
Arrival-Choosing My Own Reality
Today I have arrived back in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula after leaving it over 8 months ago. Many forces drove me back here, but the two that pushed hardest were, one, the disconnection I feel from my own society in the U.S., and secondly, my desire to live a life motivated by something more powerful than a paycheck; a sense of wonder and purpose.
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