Boston Getaway

We took a quick weekend trip to Boston for Canada day (and Independence day).  We tried to hit all the tourist spots; Red Sox game, pastries in little Italy, walk the Freedom trail, Prudential Centre observation deck and of course the Independence day fireworks.

I love visiting stadiums and Fenway Park has been on my must see list for a while.  We booked a hotel right by Fenway Park called The Verb.  It is a neat boutique hotel that is rock n roll themed.  We booked a pool view room which was pretty cool and decorated in a retro style.  The staff were very helpful.  The area does get very busy during Red Sox games but I think it just adds to the experience.  I would definitely recommend staying their, especially if you plan on going to Fenway for a Red Sox game.

Photo wise, I had envisioned a photo at Fenway of the Boston lettering on the top of the dug out.  To do this I thought it would be best to purchased tickets in the first row behind the dug out.  When we got to our seats I had not expected all the kids and fans trying to get autographs from the players, however once the game got started everybody cleared.  I brought the Rokinon 8mm fish eye to take the shot and I am happy with the results (seen below).  This was my first time watching a game in this good of seats and it was also the first time I actually watched an entire baseball game! It ended up going into extra innings making it almost four hours long.

Fenway Park

I had also planned on taking some fireworks shots.  The plan was to head over an hour or so before the show to the Cambridge side of the Charles river.  I was hoping we could walk across the bridge but to our dismay the police had blocked it off.  The only options we had were the crowded promenade or hang back along the freeway and watch through the trees.  We chose the later as it was fairly crowded and would not be conducive to setting up a tripod.  The fireworks lasted for 30 minutes so it gave me some time to try a few things.  I eventually went back to the Rokinon 8mm fish eye and put the tripod behind us to take some images.  It ended up being my favourite from the night.  You can see the rest of the Boston pictures on my Flickr site.  We both loved Boston and hope to have a chance to visit again.

4th of July!


Rio!

Our final stop in South America was Rio De Janeiro.  We stayed at the Porto Bay Rio Internacional hotel in Copacabana.  It was a great place to stay, friendly staff, really good breakfast and the upgrade to a ocean front room was greatly appreciated.  Best of all was the roof top pool/bar, it was perfect for taking sunset and sunrise photos.

We spent a fair amount of time at the beach or pool.  We did go check out some sites with a private guide (Bruno) and did a super cheesy jeep tour to a Favela and Tijuca forest.  Bruno was awesome and helped us out a lot the rest of the trip.  The jeep tour should be avoided.

The food was better than we were expecting.  The Brazilian BBQ at Churrascaria Palace is not to be missed!  We also ate at a great cocktail and tapas bar called El Born.

Photo wise there are lots of great view points of the city; Tijuca Forest, Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain are all spectacular.

Overall I was very happy with the photo kit I brought.  The Fujifilm 18-135mm was very impressive and was used in the majority of the photos.  The weather sealing came in handy at Iguazu.  I threw in the Rokinon 12mm F2.0 at the last minute incase there was a chance to try some astorphotography and glad I did as it came in handy at Iguazu.  The Fuji X-E2 and 27mm got some use in Buenos Aires when it was a little cooler and a jacket was necessary, but otherwise was there incase something happened to the X-T1.  No regrets since ditching the Canon SLR gear last year!

Here are my two favourite photos from Rio.  The rest can be seen on Flickr.

Cristo comes through the clouds.

Morning run along Copacabana


Iguazu!

We flew from Buenos Aires to Iguazu Falls for a three night stay.  The first night was spent at the Sheraton on the Argentina side followed by the next two nights at the Belmond on the Brazilian side.  Both hotels are on the pricy side but being inside the park and being able to tour around when the crowds are gone is priceless.

Location aside the Sheraton is nothing special.  Older rooms and the food is nothing great and expensive.  I somehow messed up when booking, thought I had booked a falls facing room but a few days before we left I realized it was only a jungle view room.  I was pretty bummed about my mistake but while we were there I stumbled upon a locked door to the rooftop terrace.  I quickly ran down to ask the front desk how I could get up there and they were more than happy to provide me with the key.  They were the best views you could get on the property and I tried my first astrophotography shots and woke up early to check out the sunrise.  Below are my two favourite photos:

Argentinian Iguazu Night.  Fuji X-T1 - 18-135mm

Argentinian Iguazu Morning. Fuji X-T1 - 18-135mm

The two days at the Belmond on the Brazilian side where amazing.  We spent the afternoons at the pool, the evenings along the walkways alone and the nights eating great food.  It was definitely better to spend more time on the Brazilian side.  Also the views in my opinion were more spectacular.  Only downside was rainy mornings so no sunrise photos, but still great.  Also you could go on the falls paths at any time, in Argentina the paths closed at 6pm.  Here are my favourite two from the Brazilian side.  The rest can been seen on Flickr.

View in Brazil. Fuji X-T1 - 18-135mm

Another clear night. Fuji X-T1 - 18-135mm