Vahé Peroomian Landscape Photography

Oh what it’s like to live in the shadow of its “greater” brother… Mt. Sis, or “lesser” Ararat, would dominate the landscape anywhere else… Consider this, Sis is nearly 200 m taller than the iconic Mt. Fuji in Japan. Fuji-San, standing tall on the island of Honshu, is worshipped and revered, but Sis only shares its reverence with Masis, or Greater Ararat, and never by itself. It is the muted autumn to a glorious spring, it is the fading light of evening to the brilliance of the crescent moon, it is Maria Anna to Wolfgang Amadeus… But yes, there are days when Greater Ararat conceals itself in thick clouds it invariably attracts, and then, Sis stands tall and without compare, ever the object of my adoration… Edition 1 of 5, signed by artist. Photograph printed on canvas. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between cloud...

Title: Sunset on the Merced Location: Yosemite National Park, California Edition: 2 of 5, signed by artist Description: It's refreshing to find yourself away from the deluge of tourists and photographers that descend on Yosemite every weekend, and even more refreshing to find a view that's not on some list somewhere that every photographer obliges to shoot. No, I refuse to camp at Tunnel View with a hundred others staring into a cloudless Yosemite Valley. I'd much rather hike my way to seclusion and a fresh view... I present for your enjoyment last light on El Capitan, and its reflection in a Merced River becalmed by a 5-second exposure. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between cloud...

Title: Nuclear Fusion, Iceland Location: Iceland Edition: 1 of 5, signed by artist Description: Nuclear fusion powers the Sun as its last rays reflect from the frozen lakes of Iceland. This was photographed as I was standing on the brittle ice of a frozen lake, wary of each footstep I took toward the setting Sun. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between cloud...

Title: South Tufa Swirls Location: Mono Lake, California Edition: 2 of 5, signed by artist Description: The shoreline of the lake is never the same... The wind-whipped water forms swirling pools, deposits layers of fluffy froth on the shoreline, and can’t help but reflect the light show of sunset in its mirrored surface, whether the clouds that have gathered participate or not. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between...

Title: The Sound of the Falls Location: Shirak, Armenia Edition: 1 of 5, signed by artist Description: The nightly Trchkan Waterfall in the Shirak region of Armenia roaring in its springtime might. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between cloud...

Another cloudless sunset at Yosemite National Park in California found me shying away from Tunnel View and its crowds... Here, on one bend of the sinewy Me...

The summit of Mt. Ararat, the ancient symbol of everything Armenian, peeks above the clouds that had enshrouded it from view, if only momentarily... Edition 1 of 5. Photograph printed on canvas, signed by artist lower right. Vahé Peroomian is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Southern California (USC). He received a Ph.D. in Physics from UCLA in March, 1994, specializing in numerical simulations of space plasmas, and carried out research in that field for 25 years before transitioning into a full- time teaching and innovative pedagogy position at USC. Vahé’s love of photography as a child and young adult blossomed into a passion more than twenty years ago. Since then, he has taken every opportunity to pursue his fascination with photography and the beauty of the Gaian landscape. He is a self-trained photographer, and prefers a hands-on approach and independent experimentation with photographic styles and techniques. He has found that the same off-the-wall approach that works in solving physics problems helps him see landscapes in a new light as well. The self-similar shapes in landscapes, and the play between cloud...

Title: A Landscape Aglow Location: Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah Edition: 1 of 5, signed by artist Description: The Sun kisses the horizon, and then quickly departs that embrace to climb the sky. Shadows shorten, golden light fades, morning arrives. In that brief instant between...