Photography in Dallas and Texas ?

[Mechoption]

I'm off to Dallas, Texas at the end of June for a business trip, and was wondering if anyone here has any good suggestions for scenic areas for landscape or nature shots in Texas? My intent was to drive around and do some hiking/camping in some of the parks near Dallas.

Also, anyone know any good stores in Dallas where I could get a Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens for a good price? With the Canadian dollar still relatively strong over the US$ it seems camera gear is chaeper down south right now.

[Sparky98]

I am not from the Dallas area so I can't be of much help but you might try this site TexasPhotoForum.com and I am sure someone there can help you.

[Mechoption]

Thanks - that site looks like just what I was looking for

Have some Karma

[Sparky98]

Just be prepared for the heat. The temps are nearing 100 right now and may well surpass that by the time you get there. I have 2 daughters living in the Dallas area so I get occasional reports about the heat. You can find just about any type of photo op you want there except for mountains or coastline. Enjoy your trip and post some great pictures of what you find.

[Songman45]

If you are going to be in Dallas, proper there is a Wolf Camera store on Harry Hines Blvd. They have a wide selection and a fairly large Pro section.

The Dallas skyline is generally best shot from the West Side of Stemmons (I-35) along the Trinity River. A lot of people like to shoot "golden hour" studies from there. If you like urban, check out the West End hostoric district. Its a tourist trap as well as having many renovated old buildings. Downtown has the Old Red Courthouse whicn is now a muesum. It was refurbished a few years ago to its original eplendor on the outside. There aren't tons of picturesque areas around Dallas. Check Old City Park, also near down town and Thanksgiving square also downtown. There are some pretty places within the Fairpark, getting there is sometimes scarey but the buildigs are great subjects and there is the botanical garden there. One last place of interest to me is the campus at SMU.

Beware of going downtown at night. Every wineo, begger, and street person in the county seems to gravitate to the sidewalks. Aside from private businesses not much is prettied up about Dallas itself.

Just outside of Big-D is the city of Irving and an area known as Las Colinas. There are good places there. Ft. Worth's Zoo is better in my opinon than Dallas' and is not nestled in a ragged section of town. Headed north of Dallas an hour is interesting. There are old small towns with some charm in interest. You'll find reflected in the scenery the harshness of life in the area that has existed since the late 1800's.

Enjoy your visit. I wish I was going with you. Ugly, flat, and barren as it is; its home and I miss it.

[poor paul]

Another good store is Competitive Camera on Irving Blvd. There are some botanical gardens in both Dallas and Ft Worth, and a rather large lake on the east side of Dallas that will put the skyline in the background. In Ft Worth you can find the Stockyards with plenty of photo opportunities. A wonderful place in downtown Dallas, next to city hall, is a cattle drive in bronze. There is a hill, waterfall, natural grasses, and about a hundred head of cattle with attendant cowboys, all in bronze, a bit bigger than lifesize. A wonderful place to shoot. Just east of downtown is an area called Deep Ellum that has some interesting street life after dark. Just west of town (find Jefferson Blvd) is a section that could be somewhere in Mexico with its colorful shops and buildings.
Send a pm when you're here and I'll buy you a cup of coffee.

[Narsuitus]

Arlington Camera (Near the University of Texas at Arlington)
544 W. Randol Mill Road (Near the intersection of Cooper Street and Randol Mill Road)
Arlington, TX 776011 (Arlington, Texas is West of Dallas)
800-313-6748
817-261-3131

[Songman45]

Originally Posted by poor paul

Another good store is Competitive Camera on Irving Blvd. There are some botanical gardens in both Dallas and Ft Worth, and a rather large lake on the east side of Dallas that will put the skyline in the background. In Ft Worth you can find the Stockyards with plenty of photo opportunities. A wonderful place in downtown Dallas, next to city hall, is a cattle drive in bronze. There is a hill, waterfall, natural grasses, and about a hundred head of cattle with attendant cowboys, all in bronze, a bit bigger than lifesize. A wonderful place to shoot. Just east of downtown is an area called Deep Ellum that has some interesting street life after dark. Just west of town (find Jefferson Blvd) is a section that could be somewhere in Mexico with its colorful shops and buildings.
Send a pm when you're here and I'll buy you a cup of coffee.

Paul,
When I come home can I buy you a cup of coffee? Another dallasite, what a small world.

[poor paul]

Originally Posted by Songman45

Paul,
When I come home can I buy you a cup of coffee? Another dallasite, what a small world.

(Begin thread hijack) Always up for a cuppa joe and conversation (End thread hijack)

[Mark McCall]

Originally Posted by Narsuitus

Arlington Camera (Near the University of Texas at Arlington)
544 W. Randol Mill Road (Near the intersection of Cooper Street and Randol Mill Road)
Arlington, TX 776011 (Arlington, Texas is West of Dallas)
800-313-6748
817-261-3131

Ditto on that.
I buy all my equipment from Bill Porter, owner of Arlington Camera.
If you buy a body from him and it need repair sometime during it's lifespan, Bill will send you a loaner, free of charge while yours is being repaired.

Largest selection of equipment in the Dallas area.
They are locted one block from University of Texas, Arlington, and about a dozen blocks from the new Cowboys stadium being built.

[Mechoption]

Was an awesome trip Here's a few pictures pre-editing !

[Sparky98]

I am glad you enjoyed the trip to Texas. Now post a few more pictures and tell us about your adventures.

[Songman45]

Those aren't from Dallas, Ft Worth that's for sure.

[Mechoption]

Originally Posted by Songman45

Those aren't from Dallas, Ft Worth that's for sure.

The red flower is the botanical gardens (Ft Worth), the people walking is the sculpture centre in Dallas. The rest are various places in Texas - I must say I love the Texan speed limits, 130kph (80mph) at one spot on the highway - let me get all over the place (Dallas - Amarillo - Palo Duro Canyon State Park - Caprock Canyon State Park - Odessa - Monohans - Jal (New Mexico) - Fort Worth - Canada )

Sparky98 and others, if you're interested in more pics, I put some good ones here: Picasa Web Albums - Mechoption - 2008-Texas

The wild tarantulas and millipedes were cool - I'd only ever seen those in zoos ! If anyone can name any of the animals/bugs in my pictures please let me know.

[Songman45]

Glad you enjoyed your visit to Texas. You covered a lot of territory. I thought the Maximum speed limit in the state was still 70 MPH. Man, I got to get home soon.

[Sparky98]

I enjoyed your pictures and it looks like you covered quite a lot of territory. I hope you enjoyed your visit to Texas and I hope it wasn't too hot for you.