Since I am on the topic of my favorite things this month, I must throw a mention out to Kansas City.  We were hesitant to move to the Mid-West as we were surrounded by beauty in California.  Not to mention several cities within arms reach, San Francisco, San Jose and some of the less popular Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Los Gatos.  These are all beautiful cities to visit and really are difficult to compare any other city in America to, however, I have found a special place in my heart for Kansas City.

Kansas City has a lot to offer, well beyond the stretch of the imagination of anyone who has frequented many of Americas major cities.  There are a few things that set Kansas City apart from the rest, though.

1. Accessibility:  I will use accessibility as an all encompassing term for how simple it is to navigate Kansas City, how easy it is to find FREE parking, and how very little traffic there is in the surrounding area.  I was shocked to go into Kansas City with my wife for the first time and not have to pay for parking anywhere we went.  I was also pretty dumbfounded the first time I drove into the city on a Friday night at 6 o clock, there was absolutely no traffic!
2. Always Something To Do:  Like many major cities there is always something to do in Kansas City, from the Public Market to Union Station there is always something to do and see at a relatively cheap price mind you.  I am stoked that we moved out here to find we can always retreat somewhere when we are bored.
3. Photography?:  Kansas City has a lot to photograph as well.  It is known as the Fountain City for its abundance of functional sculptural fountains.  It also has several historical monuments like Union Station that are highly photogenic.  Let’s not forget about the powerful Panoramic view from the top of the World War I museum (the highlight headlining photograph for this post).
4. Last But Not Least…Barbecue:  The best damn barbecue in the country is here and my wife and I decide to go vegan….  Well, modified vegan, we eat meat once a week so we can still enjoy the fine barbecue cuisine of Kansas City.

Photo Tip:

No matter where you live in the world there is always something interesting to photograph.  Embrace your surroundings and go scouting for locations.  Even if you have been in your city or town 10 years and think you know all there is, I will tell you that you will be shocked to find more if you look in the less likely places.  I scout through Kansas City often and have photographed many things that locals of the area have completely overlooked.  As I stated last week, be vigilant as you drive through your city or town and scope out new locations to photograph frequently!

Blake Rudis

f.64 Academy and f.64 Elite are the brainchildren of Blake Rudis. While he is a landscape photographer, he is most passionate about post-processing images in Photoshop and mentoring others.

For Blake, it's all about the art and process synergy. He dives deep into complex topics and makes them easy to understand through his outside-the-box thinking so that you can use these tricks in your workflow today!