Gersh Photo Post | Max Gersh | Multimedia Photojournalist

It has been many years since I’ve been able to take a real vacation. So after years of just talking about a road trip, a few of my good friends (Gavin Culbertson and Yuefeng Deng) and I decided to take off and head south.

I left Rockford and picked them up in St. Louis. From there, we made the first leg of the trip to Louisville, KY where we were able to mooch a free nights sleep and plenty of food from my family. Once well rested, we headed to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. After a quick tour, we got back in the car and kept moving. We needed to make it to Walland, TN by the end of the night.

You see, Walland was the base camp for much of our trip. One of my trip companions and good friends, Gavin Culbertson, has an uncle and aunt that lives there in the foothills of the Smokey Mountains. Yes, another free place to stay. But more importantly, they were full of what I like to call mountain wisdom that can’t be found in books or on the internet. Who else do you trust to draw roads on maps when you’re driving into areas with no cell phone or GPS service?

The first day, we followed them in our car straight into the mountains. We were headed to Max Patch in North Carolina. With a few stops on the side of the road of course for photo ops.

Shadows on a road in the Smokey Mountains. ©2011 Max Gersh

Since all three of us are photographers either in profession or hobby, it didn’t take long before cameras were photographing cameras.

Gavin Culbertson at Max Patch in North Carolina with his Canon 1D Mark IV video rig. ©2011 Max Gersh

And since I had just stared learning how to play the banjo, it was only fitting that I bring it on the trip to the south. Gavin’s aunt just about melted the strings when she played it on top of Max Patch. I aspire to be as musically talented as she is some day.

Gavin's aunt smoking the strings on my banjo at Max Patch in North Carolina. ©2011 Max Gersh

It might have been the next day that we drove the Foothills Parkway to Look Rock. It is just one of those places that is incredibly scenic and you can’t help but linger around just … well, looking. As you go up a foot path, you come to what appears to be an old fire tower. Although the hike is short, it is uphill at a decent grade. It reminded me how out of shape I am!

A road seen from the tower at Look Rock. ©2011 Max Gersh

That wasn’t our only trip down the Foothills Parkway. A day or so later, we found out why the Smokey Mountains are named as such.

The Smokey Mountains as seen from the Foothills Parkway near Wallad, TN ©2011 Max Gersh

We continued to Townsend, TN where we did a hike to Abrams Falls. Again, found out I’m way out of shape.

Roots in the ground on the hike to Abrams Falls. ©2011 Max Gersh

Yuefeng Deng at Abrams Falls near Townsend, TN. ©2011 Max Gersh

The problem with driving around in this part of the country is that there is so much to see. It seemed we were stopping regularly to hop out and photograph a stream or small waterfall.

Near Bald River Falls ©2011 Max Gersh

When we finally left Walland, we starting heading west towards Nashville. Gavin had more family just west of Nashville in Clarksville, TN. But there would be no fun in a drive straight there. We stopped at Fall Creek Falls State Park to do some more hiking (still out of shape) and camp.

Water shoots out of the side of a rock wall at Fall Creek Falls State Park. ©2011 Max Gersh

Fall Creek Falls is the tallest waterfall west of the Rockies at 256 feet.

Fall Creek Falls is the tallest waterfall east of the Rockies at 256 feet. ©2011 Max Gersh

Of course we had to hike to the bottom.

From left, Gavin Culbertson, Max Gersh and Yuefeng Deng at Fall Creek Falls. ©2011 Max Gersh

After a nights rest in tents, we continued on with a slight detour to Rock Island State Park.

Rock Island State Park ©2011 Max Gersh

And yes. We tasted the water running down the rock face. Wonderful.

After making it to Clarksville, we were ready to get some food and a little bit of rest. But a little bird had to sit on a wire right in front of the moon. One more photo before dinner.

A cardinal sits on a power line outside of a home in Clarksville, TN. ©2011 Max Gersh

All in all, we drove 2,500 miles in one week. Well worth it. I only wish I had more time to explore.

I’ve always been a supporter of the idea that it is the photographer that makes the image and not the camera that he/she uses. While my close friends constantly hear me praise Canon and bash Nikon (jokingly, of course), a good photographer can make a dynamite image with a disposable film camera.

That being said, I had an opportunity to shoot with a fantastic camera - the Pentax K-7. This is Pentax’s ultra-rugged flagship camera. Considering that I learned photography on a Pentax ME Super, this was a very welcome homecoming to Pentax for me.

While I didn’t get to test the dust, weather or cold resistance of this camera, I did get to shoot a handful of portraits with it. I paired it with a Pentax 50-135 f/2.8 DA* lens and a Pentax AF-540FGZ flash used in wireless mode off camera. For a few shots, I even used the kit 18-55 WR lens. I had no trouble picking up the entire system on the fly and sincerely enjoyed the results.

The 14.6 megapixel files aren’t given any justice on this blog, but take my word for it that they are stunning.

Gavin Culbertson and Yuefeng Deng - Shot on the Pentax K-7 with the 50-135 DA* lens. © 2009 Max Gersh

Gavin Culbertson and Yuefeng Deng - Shot on the Pentax K-7 with the18-55 WR lens. © 2009 Max Gersh

I got the chance to test my DIY beauty dish this morning. It worked like a charm!

I once again had my friend Gavin Culbertson stand in for a few quick portraits.

Gavin Culbertson lit by my DIY beauty dish.

He was standing in the shadow with a sun-lit wall behind him. This picture could be improved with a back light but I only have one Speedlight, a Canon 550EX.

I love the circular highlight that shows up in the eyes of the subject.

Gavin Culbertson lit by my DIY beauty dish with circular highlights.

I will need to play with it more but it certainly gives off a nice quality of light. Not bad for a $20 DIY light modifier.

Over the last week or so, I have found myself working closely with my good friend Gavin Culbertson. It started when I told him how much better I could make his Web site.

You see, Gavin is a cinematographer. When you work in a visual field, the presentation of your portfolio is just as important as its contents. He had a really poorly designed i-Web Web site with great content.

After working for a few hours over the course of two nights, his old site was obliterated and the new and improved site was all that existed.

I did this for him free of charge.  While it was mainly because he is my good friend and his old site was atrocious, it was also my way of thanking him for directing photo work to me.

Gavin is the broadcast assistant at the premiere talent agency in St. Louis, TalentPlus. When actors come in, he can recommend me for head shots.

While Gavin had seen a lot of my work (we have known each other for five years), I wanted to reassure him that directing traffic my way was not a bad idea. I proved that to him by giving him a complimentary portrait session.

Portrait of Gavin Culbertson in Tower Grove Park ©2009 Max Gersh

Portrait of Gavin Culbertson in Tower Grove Park ©2009 Max Gersh

He was happy with the results.