• Home
  • Services
    • Portraits
      • Senior Pictures
      • Family Portraits
      • Maternity, Babies, and Kids photography
    • Wedding/Engagement
    • Commercial/Advertising
    • Fine Art/Travel
    • Photo Classes
  • Blog
  • About
    • Areas Served by Detroit Michigan Photography Studio Arising Images
  • Contact

Muks out west 2019 (Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana)

August 28, 2019 by Prem Leave a Comment

In July 2019 we had an amazing family trip out west.
Here is a short highlight video that really shows off the trip:

7/3/2019
We drove up and over the Alpine Loop rd and made our way to the Olympic Park where we got to watch some ski jumpers practice by jumping and flipping into a pool. We then got to meet up with our friends Emily and David and spend some time in downtown Salt Lake City. Emily showed us around the famous Temple Square and then we got to see their amazing photography studio a few blocks from there. Their kids and our kids are the same age so they got to hang out today too.
Here’s some iPhone shots from today. Thanks for the extra pics Emily!

This evening we went out to Saltair on the edge of the Great Salt Lake. It definitely lived up to the hype of being stinky and kind of gross with bugs everywhere.
The bonneville salt flats are a bit too far out of the way, so in lieu of that, the boys had an epic (not epic) race here.

7/4/2019
We started off with a long drive from Salt Lake City up to Bear Lake in Idaho. It’s just like Torch Lake in northern MI with the beautiful turquoise water.
Next we drive up past the Palisades Reservoir with a stop at Fall Creek Falls on the Snake River which is a gorgeous multi-tiered waterfall.

During the afternoon we drove a few hours from Bear Lake up to Yellowstone Bear World which is a drive through nature park where the animals walk right up to your car in some areas.
After that we went to check in to our hotel which I had prepaid through Hotwire. Unfortunately I had booked and prepaid for yesterday which we no-showed for and now the hotel was booked so that left us scrambling to find a new place at 8:00 at night in an area with limited options and high prices. Thankfully we found some cabins nearby. During that process we drove by signs for the rodeo which was a fun find. We had never been to one before so that was a unique experience for all of us!! Kole and Reid even got to run with lots of other kids to see who could pull a tag off of a running calf.

In the evening we ended up at a rodeo (Driggs, ID) with a backdrop of the Grand Tetons! The boys even got to go down and run around and chase a calf.

7/5/19
Today has been awesome. Absolutely perfect weather. We drove around the Tetons into Grand Teton National Park where we did a hike out to Taggert Lake. The cloudscapes today have been amazing.
One of the highlights was seeing a giant moose near the road.
The day hasn’t all been perfect though. We started the day leaving our cabin very early in the morning where I dropped our room key into the locked key box. About 30 seconds later, Cheridy got pooped on by a bird and she wanted to wash her hair but there was no way back in the room. Later in the afternoon, she left her phone inside the porta potty at the trailhead and we didn’t realize until many hours later. Thankfully it was still there when we went back!

So…this evening was incredible. We drove back into the park late on the day to catch the sunset and look for animals and we got both. We had a herd of buffalo crossing the highway so they were super close which was amazing. We also got to see some antelope way off in the distance but thanks to my iPhone on a digiscope, we got a nice closeup.
The sunset with the Tetons over the Snake River surely didn’t disappoint either!

7/6/19
Today we started out at Mormon Row which is one of the most iconic scenes from the Grand Tetons. We then made our way to Jenny Lake which is a really popular spot to start a hike.
We took the boat across to the other side of the lake and then hiked to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. It was an absolutely perfect morning for it.

This evening we started at the Jackson Lake Lodge where we had dinner. The panoramic view of the whole Teton range through the lobby windows is incredible!
After dinner, we headed out looking for animals again. A storm front blew over the mountains giving us some dramatic skies. We saw more buffalo tonight today along with a lot of horses.
The moody skies over the mountains made for an excellent sunset.

7/7/19
Made it to Yellowstone. The cheapest hotel we could get was $430 per night and it has zero amenities. Not even WiFi. I wish we would have stayed outside the park. We stayed inside because we wanted to be close to stuff but the park is so big, we are still an hour drive from a lot of the stuff.
We started our day with a relaxing sleep in day which felt fantastic. We then drove up to Yellowstone National Park. Our first stop was Old Faithful which we learned was not very faithful after all. It is supposed to blow every 70-90 minutes but ended up going off almost half an hour early which was then confusing for everyone because we didn’t know if it was the full eruption or just a quick spout. It was still neat to see.
The park was insanely crowded so we decided to just make our way up to the hotel and come out later in the evening.
We had a quick stop at Gibbon Falls and the Artist Paint Pots on the way. The Paint Pots has a bubbling mud pit which was really cool.
Our hotel is right by the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone so we took advantage of that and went to view the 300ft Lower Yellowstone Falls.

Our hotel was really close to Hayden Valley. We took advantage of that this evening. Hayden valley is known for having tons of animals. First we saw a grizzly bear from far away. Then it was a couple of bull Elks followed by herds of Buffalo with their calves and herds of elk as well. There were animals around every corner!!

7/8/19
Driving around Yellowstone during peak season in the middle of the day is not a fun experience. Some of the turnoffs you have to park half a mile down the road. So for our second day in the park, we woke up at 6:00am and went to some of the popular spots long before they got crowded. We started at the Grand Prismatic Spring. Unfortunately the weather was much colder and with the hot water coming from the ground and the cold air temperature, there was a lot more steam which was masking the color of the water. However, it did provide a dramatic backdrop for a silhouette picture of Cheridy and the boys walking together.
We then walked around the Bisquit Basin area followed by the Upper Geyser Basin which is where Old Faithful is.
After that, we started to loop back around and stopped at the mud volcanoes. There was a bubbling mud pit with a Buffalo sitting right next to it. There is nothing that says “Yellowstone” like a bubbling mud pit and a buffalo.

In the evening we drove up to mammoth hot springs for dinner. On the way, we saw multiple black bears which was amazing.
Reid yelled out “bear, I saw a bear!!” So we had to turn the car around and go back. What he thought was a bear was actually just a burned out tree stump. The crazy part is that near the burned out tree stump, there actually was a bear!
We then went into Lamar Valley and saw a coyote, antelope, and LOTS of buffalo.
Some of the photos and videos are not super clear because they were shot with my iPhone from 100+ yards away using a 60x spotting scope. Having my phone attached to the scope drew a crowd because the it was hard to see the bear from so far away but the scope brought it real close.

7/9/19
We headed out of the park to Bozeman. We’ve been spending so much time out in nature that it was time to mix things up for the boys.
Our hotel had an indoor pool so the kids got to do some swimming. We then went and watched the new Spiderman movie.
After that we met up with cousin Paige and her boyfriend Ryan for a yummy dinner followed by some time at the climbing gym for some bouldering. Paige and Ryan do a lot of mountain climbing so it was fun to be able to go with them to their local climbing gym.
Reid is like a spider monkey and really took to the walls well. Kole and Mayz has fun with it too.

7/10/19
Time to head home!

Filed Under: Blog, Fine Art Travel Photography, The Brothers Muk

An Epic Dubai Vacation!

April 11, 2019 by Prem Leave a Comment

Traveling to the Middle East, I never expected to say that Dubai was probably the safest and cleanest city I’ve ever been to and there was more amazing things to see and do here than anywhere else I’ve ever traveled to.  Here is a short highlight video that really shows off the trip:

4/1/19

We had a long day of flying connecting through Amsterdam and arrived at our AirBnB at 2:00am.
The first thing I did was checkout the view which was incredible!!!  Seeing the Burj Khalifa at night is a jaw dropping site!

The next morning, I got up just after sunrise again to check out this view.  During the day, you could even better appreciate the 30 acre lake they created at the foot of the tower.

After waking up, we walked over to a grocery store 5 minutes away and got some food to stock our refrigerator.  It was then time to go for a walk and check out the area which of course led to some more images of the Burj Khalifa.


We were a little disappointed that we couldn’t actually go inside the tower unless we paid a lot of money to take an elevator to the viewing platform at the top.
We then walked around the Dubai Mall which had all sorts of interesting artwork and sculptures.

We were fighting a bit of jet lag so we went back to our apartment to relax for the afternoon, let the boys swim, etc.
During the day, it gets really hot and there aren’t a lot of people out, but at night, it’s hopping and was way busier!
We walked back to the mall to have dinner and watch the water show which starts at 6:00pm and runs every half hour.



At night, we went back up to our room and watched the water show from our balcony.

4/2/19
The next day we drove out to Abu Dhabi in the morning to check out the Grand Mosque which is absolutely breathtaking architecture.

Later that evening, I did some more images from our balcony at the apartment and then we headed back out to the mall and to see the water show again.  This time we took one of the boat rides around the lake to really experience it up close.

4/3/19
Today we were transferring to another airBnB.  Before checkout, went to the Miracle Garden which was a jaw dropping display of flowers.

In the afternoon, we made our way over to our second AirBnB which was right on the Jumeirah Beach Marina.
We went for our walk around the area, had dinner, and walked back along the beach at night.

4/4/19
This morning we went over to the beach which was an interesting experience.  There were some women that were covered head to toe for their beach wear and right next to them would be a woman in a thong bikini.
And there were also camels…so that was different!

This evening we did a dessert safari trip.  It had it’s pros and cons but it was definitely a unique and fun experience which included dune bashing in a 4×4 vehicle, quad biking in the sand, along with dinner and some shows including belly dancing and fire spinning.

4/5/19
Today we went to the Wild Wadi water park which was a great time.  It was not nearly as crowded as we had expected.  It was a small park and probably overpriced for what it was but we had a great time and it had amazing views of the Burj Al Arab which is another beautiful piece of architecture.

In the evening we went to Jumeirah Public Beach which was absolutely insanely crowded.
I had the chance to do some beautiful pics of the changing light with the Burj Al Arab.
The boys played soccer on the beach with some other kids.
After that we went to Souk Madinat Jumeirah which is an indoor/outdoor mall with lots of shopping and restaurants. It reminded a little bit of the San Antonio river walk. We had a wonderful Italian dinner with a warm breeze on the terrace. We talked a bit with our waiter who was from Uzbekistan. He said that the 95 degree days right now are perfect but in summer it will be 125 degrees. Ugh!!

4/6/19

This morning we went to the aquarium in Atlantis.  It was enjoyable but very small compared to the Bahamas counterpart.

In the evening we went to Global Village which is a 364 acre park that represents different cultures from all over the world. It’s a melting pot of cultures in an open air mall blended with a theme park.
Each section of the globe included shopping and food from that region. There was a large carnival section, a stage where every 15 minutes they had dance performances from different countries, a live stunt show and so much more.
It was truly unique!!

4/7/19
Today was departure day and it was be a long day. Our flight wasn’t until 12:40am so we needed to occupy 14.5 hours. The boys took advantage of the pool with a late checkout time.


After that, we headed to the Emirates Mall and visited Ski Dubai.  This was probably the only regret that I had from the trip because it was really expensive and since the boys hadn’t skied before, they would not have been able to pass the ski test required to actually go on the slope so there wasn’t much for us to do there.  We still had fun on the toboggans and tubes and stuff.

In the evening we went to the Dubai Glow Garden which was the largest in the world. It was really pretty and fun to walk around at night. From there…off to the airport!!

On our way home, we had a long layover in Amsterdam so we decided to explore the city.  Shortly after sunrise, we walked around downtown to see all the canals.  We also made a stop at the home of the famous Anne Frank which was a great history lesson for the boys.  One of my favorite things to see was all the bikes!  BIKES EVERYWHERE!!

Next we took an Uber to go visit the Kuekenhof Tulip gardens which were blooming.  Unfortunately we only had about half an hour left so it was WAY too short!!

We then went back to the airport and flew home to Detroit.

Filed Under: Blog, The Brothers Muk

Family Trip to Las Vegas and San Diego

January 22, 2019 by Prem Leave a Comment

At the end of Christmas break this year we took a family trip out to Las Vegas and San Diego to explore a different part of the country.
Based on our flight times, we had 5 full days which was perfect for what we wanted to do.

12/30/18
We had a smooth flight to Vegas and arrived after dark so after getting our rental car we drove up the strip to enjoy the lights and colors.
After that we had dinner and then checked into our hotel for the night.
12/31/18
We started the morning with a drive out to Hoover Dam which is always an impressive site.  It was too early for any of the tours so we just got to enjoy the area together.



Next, we drove to the Mojave National Preserve through a fresh snow storm which was really pretty to see the lifting clouds over the mountains.

Next we drove to the Kelso Dunes where the kids could run around and have fun.
With the government shut down, the bathroom and garbage situation was pretty bad. There was a group of hikers in a pick up truck that came and emptied out all the trash which was really neat to see.
Kelso Dunes are 45 sq miles of sand and 600 ft tall which is pretty impressive!

Next, it was on to Joshua Tree National Park. Joshua Tree is a really beautiful dessert park.
The boys did rock scrambling near Skull Rock and LOVED it there.  We then went for a nice short hike around Hidden Valley.




1/1/19

First thing in the morning, we drove to the Salton Sea.  We were surprised just how dumpy the area was.  Lots of garbage and abandoned buildings with graffiti everywhere.

We then went up into the mountains to the old mining town of Julian. It was straight up winter there. There was ice everywhere which made walking around the town a bit treacherous. We really struggled to get the car out of our parking spot which was parallel parked on an icy hill…yikes!!

After that we drove down to sunny San Diego. I was shocked at how cheap the hotels are here. I was expecting everything to be super expensive but we are staying at the Hilton for $100 per night with a beautiful view of the Coronado bridge.
Our first adventure in San Diego was to explore the USS Midway.  It’s pretty amazing that this ship was still in service in the early 90s. One of the best parts about it is that they have lots of vets on board who give talks about different parts of the ship.

1/2/19
Today we had some perfect weather and decided to spend the day out at the San Diego zoo which is one of the best zoos in the world.
The animals were out and about and it was fantastic!







That evening, we went over to the coast to catch the sunset at the Sunset Cliffs.  A wonderful finish to a wonderful day.

1/3/19
Today we had to drive back to Vegas.  On our way back, we stopped off at the Calico ghost town which was pretty cool to see. It was restored back to its original condition and very neat to see all the old buildings and train and mining stuff.


”

We arrived at the Palazzo Hotel mid-afternoon.  The Palazzo is attached and connected to the Venetian so it was fun to just walk around and see the beautiful architecture and design.



We spent a few hours out, then got a break and headed out again at night to see the buildings all lit up at night.  Ceasar’s Palace, The Bellagio Fountains, Paris…all amazing!

1/4/19
This morning we started the day exploring the Neon Museum.
It was pretty neat to see but it was much smaller than I expected. There were basically two small rows of signs and you could walk through it in just a couple minutes so paying $85 for the family to go through was a bit much.
After that we headed over to Fremont st and had a walk around and some lunch. Then we went to Circus Circus to catch the quick Ladderman show.

This afternoon we went to the Forum shops at Caesar’s Palace. Absolutely amazing design and architecture and some fantastic photography galleries.
We caught the Atlantis show at the end. That was super cheesy but fun for the kids.

Earlier this year, Cheridy and I had gone to the actual Trevi Fountain in Rome so it was neat to compare the two.

Our last night in Vegas, we saw La Reve at the Wynn hotel.
That was one of the most amazing experiences of my life.
The physical abilities of the performers is mind blowing but what is equally amazing is the engineering that went into it. The moving platforms that made the pool go from 1” down to a pool deep enough to dive from 60’ up was crazy. I’m not even sure how many different pieces there were but it was a lot. The lights, the fountains, the acrobatics and aerobatics were mesmerizing.
The theater was also incredible. With only 13 rows of seats in a circle, everyone got an amazing view. We paid a premium for our seats to be in the back row which also included tv screens which gave us behind the scenes views for the prep work before the show along with many different camera angles that showed us what was happening from up in the rafters down under water. It was really neat to see how the scuba team was assisting the performers from underwater.
I had never heard of La Reve and some of the other cirque shows we looked at were sold out so we are very thankful to have been able to do that.

1/5/19
We flew home and had an uneventful flight back.  Desert, mountains, ocean, and cities, it was a packed 5 days!!

 

Filed Under: Blog, Fine Art Travel Photography, The Brothers Muk

Colorado 2018 – Family Trip

July 27, 2018 by Prem Leave a Comment

This past June, our family flew to Denver and then did a road trip around Colorado. I wanted to share all the pictures and locations in case it helps anyone else plan a family trip to Colorado.
About 80% of these were taken with my iphone 7+ and then my favorite scenes were shot with a Fuji XT-2.

Day 1
We took an early flight into Denver, rented a minivan, picked up a cooler, some ice, and some food and then hit the road for Estes Park.
By the time we got there, found our hotel, etc. it was time for dinner and then we headed into Rocky Mountain National Park to enjoy the evening in the mountains.

We drove part way up the main mountain road for some nice views and then came back to Moraine Park where there were lots of deer and elk roaming around.
It was the most amazing weather this evening. 75 degrees and a soft breeze. It was perfect weather for elk watching. We must’ve seen at least 50.
3 of them ran across the road right in front of our car.

 


Day 2
Woke up at 5:00am, headed into Rocky Mountain National Park for a hike to Dream Lake and Emerald Lake. Passed a bunch of elk on the way. We were done with our hike at 10:00am and as we were leaving, the parking lot was filled with hundreds of cars. Perfect timing for us!!

In the afternoon, we crossed the the Rockies on trail ridge road. Check out the big bull elk we saw at the end of this photo set.

Next, we ended up on the west side of the park by Grand Lake and did the short walk to Adams falls.

In the evening, we drove up to the top of Mt Evans to catch the sunset at 14,000 feet. It didn’t disappoint. It was cold but gorgeous!!
We even got to see 6 mountain goats including a couple of babies.
We were right by the bathrooms at the top and they were right there. They were a bit too close for comfort but it was still really cool
If you are deciding between Mt. Evans and Pike’s Peak, I would strongly recommend Mt. Evans because you dont’ have to pay the $45 toll and you don’t have to worry about when it opens and closes.


Day 3
We drove up over Loveland pass then through Keystone and then on to Breckenridge.

In Breckenridge, the boys got to practice panning for gold, then they had their first gondola ride up to peak 8 where they have the Epic Discovery Adventure Park. The first adventure was the alpine sleds. We took the ski lift up even further which Reid was not a fan of. When we got on the ski lift it was 75 and sunny. By the time we got to the top 15 minutes later, it was raining and they closed the sled run. We had to wait for jeeps to drive everyone back down the mountain.

By the time we got down, the rain stopped so they did a giant maze, then some mini golf and by then the sun was out so we did the alpine sleds a couple times.  We all had a blast!

Next we drove to Aspen and spent the evening at Maroon Bells which is the most photographed spot in America!

Aspen was crazy expensive so we stayed in the neighboring town of snowmass that was 1/3 the price of Aspen.  Our hotel neighbor had a motorcycle which just had to be used for a photo.


Day 4
We drove out to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It was very rainy but still led to some incredible views.

We then drove out to Great Sand Dunes National Park. The drive with the storms was really cool and when it was time to play in the sand, the skies cleared up and the kids had a blast rolling down the sand hills and wrestling.
It was definitely the most photogenic spot on our trip due to the amazing evening light.

 


Day 5

This morning we did a high ropes course just outside of Salida. Mayz and Reid were both a bit scared at first but by the end, they wanted to do more!

Who would have thunk that our cheapest hotel of the trip would be a 4* Marriott with an indoor/outdoor pool. Not bad for $95. Thanks Hotwire!
We had a nice evening stroll in Garden of the Gods.

After dinner we went for a short walk around Garden of the Gods.  What an amazing place to have in the middle of a city like C-Springs!


Day 6

Today we started the day going way above the clouds up to the top of Pikes Peak at 14k+ feet.  Personally I found it to be super expensive and overly touristy. I guess I shouldn’t complain since we were also tourists, but Mt. Evans was much nicer.
However, it was a rainy day in Colorado Springs so with the low rain clouds, we were able to get WAY above the clouds up on Pike’s Peak.

Next we headed back down and did a tour of the Cave of the Winds. It was really cool learning about how the caves were formed.

Next we had a great lunch with Aunt Dawn and Uncle Jay who live in Colorado Springs.

From there it was on to Denver where we went to the Capitol building and then a quick visit to Mile high stadium but there were no tours left in the day so we didn’t get to go in to the stadium.


Day 7

Last night from our hotel, we had a beautiful sunset and this morning, these boys were champs with a 3:45am wakeup.
They held up pretty good today!!
Now it’s Home Sweet Home!!

Filed Under: Blog, Fine Art Travel Photography, The Brothers Muk

Reynosa, Mexico Mission Trip

January 12, 2018 by Prem Leave a Comment

This past Christmas, our family had the opportunity to go on a mission trip to Reynosa, Mexico to build a small home for a family in need.
Here is a quick highlight video that summarizes our trip:

Our family met up with a group of 16 other people from a church in Kansas and headed down to Texas where we crossed the border into Reynosa, Mexico.
There, we met up with a much larger group of another 160 people made up of various teams from around the country.  This was all organized by an amazing orginazation called Strategic Alliance (www.StrategicAlliance.org).  The founders, Roland and Carolyn, have been going to Reynosa for 25 years.  They’ve built up relationships in the community and go there to help build houses in this extremely poor part of the world.  The community we got to serve has a large infrastructure built up around the nearby garbage dump where people scavange most of what they own.  Most shelters are build from old pieces of plywood, bricks, tires, tarps, anything they could find.
The houses that are getting built would be considered sheds in America but to them, they are huge upgrades.  They are 12’x20′ wood walls built onto a concrete slab.  They have windows, a door, a loft, and a metal roof.
When we arrived on site, the foundation had already been poured and there was a pile of lumber, metal, and screws for us to work with.
The materials had to be counted to make sure we had what we needed and then separated for what parts would be used for trim, walls, studs, roof purlins, etc.
It was then moved to an area where a team could start painting.  Unfortunately it was misty rain and cold all day so the paint was not drying properly and with the muddy ground, the freshly painted pieces got dirty very quickly.
By the end of the first day, we were able to get one of the walls put up.

  

The hotel that we were staying at was much nicer than we were expecting.  Other than not having hot water, it was actually a very comfortable room.  Their cafeteria provided our meals and drinks and we were well taken care of to make sure nobody would get sick from eating or drinking the wrong thing.
The hotel was a 20 minute drive from the worksite so on some of the days that were really long, some of the people could bring some of the younger kids back to the hotel to rest/relax.  The kids all helped out with painting and stuff and they also were able to play with some of the local kids down there.  The only problem was that every day we were there, it was cold and rainy so many of the kids didn’t come out in that unusual weather.  After we left, it was back up in the 70s and 80s.

By the end of day 2, we had all the walls up.

By day three we got most of the roof and loft done and then the 4th day we had to finish the house, decorate it, and hand over the keys.

After lunch, all the teams walked through the area leading to the dump and the dump itself where lots of people live and we handed out rice, beans, and tangerines to all the locals.  It was an amazing experience.  This little house that we built will be a home for grandma Marisella and her husband Saul along with potentially 13 other people (kids and grand kids).  I hope that it helped all the kids to realize just how blessed we are to live where we live and have the opportunities that we do.

If you are interested in going on a trip here, we will probably be going back over Thanksgiving with a group from the Detroit area so please reach out if you are interested.  To learn more, you can check out StrategicAlliance.org

Filed Under: Blog, Fine Art Travel Photography, The Brothers Muk

Next Page »

Categories

Search Our Blog

Contact Us

Phone or Text (248) 690-8040
Privacy Policy
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Return To Top
Copyright © 2004-2023 Arising Images Inc.