Plans for 2025 - Photography by Brian Parton

2024 was a bit of a rollercoaster ride for me, which, let’s be completely honest here, is pretty much normal at this point in my life (or just in general). It started out with an amazing travel photography trip that took me from honky tonks to tropical waterfalls, and ended with being scheduled for my third back surgery, which is certainly a significant and daunting milestone. More on that in just a minute. If you’re interested in reading more details about my experiences throughout 2024, you can find more information here.

So. 2025. Let’s start off with the big cliffhanger from the 2024 season.

My 3rd back surgery is happening in late January in Birmingham, Alabama. I had two previous surgeries in Columbus, Georgia. One in 2006 and a second in 2014. I have degenerative disk disease from top to bottom in my back, in conjunction with degenerative arthritis pretty much everywhere else in varying degrees. I currently have a herniated disk that is impinging on my spinal cord and the nerve roots leading down to my legs causing me significant pain. The surgery will clean out. decompress, and fuse the L4-L5 vertebrae in my lower back, as well as remove the fusion hardware from my 2013 surgery from my L5-S1 and replace it with rods and screws that will cover from the S1 up to L4 vertebrae. Recovery from this is going to take a few months and be a considerably less than comfortable experience. However, as with my previous back surgeries it should provide me years of much decreased pain and increased mobility.

Despite the surgery, I am already making plans for after I get healed up!

The first thing planned, and one I’m already working on, is expanding my skills beyond solely still photography into the realm of video. This is not going to replace photography, but to complement it. In the time I’ve been (somewhat) down and out from my back injury, I’ve been watching hours and hours of YouTube videos about many different aspects of video and figuring out how I can use it in concert with my photography, I’ve been examining how the gear I currently owned can be applied to both, and how I might select new gear in the future with both in mind. A couple recent purchases I have made with this in mind are the GoPro Hero 13 Black and the Insta360 X4. In addition, I plan to upgrade from my Google Pixel 8 Pro to the Pixel 9 Pro XL. I’ll make a blog post about these cameras and why I picked them later while I’m recovering from the surgery.

I’m already making travel (and other) photography plans as well!

First stop, Columbus, Georgia! Well, it may not literally be the very first stop on my journey, but it is indeed the first travel photography trip for which I have made any explicit plans. Having lived in and around Columbus for many years, I developed a deep connection to the area, but since relocating to North Alabama more than 8 years ago, I have not had the opportunity to return for a visit. It’s definitely about time to correct this oversight. Over the years, I've kept up with many of the changes happening in the Columbus area through social media, but it will feel almost like an entirely new place to explore and discover. The real challenge of this trip, however, will be finding the right balance between catching up with friends I haven’t seen in years and indulging my strong desire to see and photograph everything in and around the city.

I plan on staying in Columbus for an entire week at the beginning of July, with a short stop in downtown Atlanta for a few hours each way as I travel to and fro. In addition to catching up with old friends, I am also excited to go whitewater rafting and ziplining on my birthday, which happens to be my 48th birthday (but I’d like to keep that age a secret, so please don’t mention it). I will be renting a bike to ride the riverwalk and explore other scenic trails in the area, discovering new sights and locations along the way. I also hope to attend some concerts and view various art exhibits while I'm there as well. When the date gets a little closer, I’ll dive deeper into more specific details regarding my itinerary and plans. Below are a few images from my time in the Columbus area

Columbus Georgia Convention and Trade Center

Independence Day Fireworks on the Riverfront

A Kayaker on Chattahoochee River Rapids

The stops in Atlanta before and after the Columbus trip are to create a couple walk around downtown street/travel photography type pov videos. It’s been years since I walked around downtown Atlanta as well, even longer than Columbus. I’d imagine things look much different since then. One day I’ll make a dedicated trip to Atlanta. Here’s a few of my shots from back then.

French Restaurant Window Menu

Detail of 25 Park Place Building

The second “trip” I have in planning is in mid-October. I put the word trip in parentheses, because the destination is only about 8 miles from where I live. That destination is the Talladega Superspeedway. On race days, if the wind is calm, I can hear the distant road of the engines and the military aircraft that make flyovers at each race pass directly overhead on their way to the track. I’ve lived here for 8 years, and in that time there have been 16 races, and I have yet to go see one. In fact, I have only ever been to a single NASCAR race in my life, the spring race in 2007 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, despite following it closely when I was younger. Here’s a few shots I took at that race.

Despite not being as interested in the actual race as I would have when I was younger, what I am more interested in is the experience of it. The reason I’m treat this as a major travel photography trip is that I am planning it and approaching it as I would one of my big trips like New Orleans, Las Vegas, or New York city. Talladega Superspeedway becomes a small city on race weeks, with sometimes 100,000 people or more in attendance I am planning to camp in the infield for the entire race week, walking around doing street style photography of the festival like culture of the temporary city. In addition, I will be doing behind the scenes and documentary style photography of the workings of the races, and of the races themselves. There are lots of add-on experiences that I intend to do, including concerts and ceremonies, and potentially I will try to secure a press pass to be able to get some otherwise inaccessible shots. It should be an entirely exciting and exhausting week.

That effectively rounds out the big, very intensive photography trips that are being planned for after I’m fully healed up. However, that’s not all I intend to get into during the course of 2025. I’d also like to plan and do several smaller day or weekend trips as well, particularly activities and excursions where I might be able to camp for a night or two under the stars.

One such place I know I’d like to visit is Cheaha State Park here in Alabama. There is camping available there atop Alabama’s highest point, Mount Cheaha, standing (somewhat) tall at 2,407 feet. While it may not be the tallest mountain in the country, it is certainly the biggest and most notable in Alabama. The draw for me here is the remarkably dark skies to the south of it, which can be observed from many scenic overlooks on the mountain. This setting would be an ideal location for night sky observation and astrophotography, and it is conveniently located only about 25 miles from my home. Camping at this park is relatively inexpensive, and its close proximity makes it a place that I imagine I’ll probably visit a few times during the year. Consequently, it’s pretty high up on my priority list of places to explore and photograph.

So as you can clearly see, despite the year starting off with a pretty significant surgery, I am fully committed to making the most out of the year ahead. I’m sure I’ll discover more opportunities and interests to get into as time goes on. I’ll always strive to engage in as much as possible, embracing new experiences along the way. And I’m certain that some aspects will change unexpectedly. Nothing ever goes exactly as planned, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to envision and plan big! Thank you so much for following along with my journey. Your interest and support truly mean the world to me!

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