B&W Made Me Do It

The day before, we’d just finished filming my latest class for KelbyOne on photographing Yosemite. Sharon & I spent the morning reminiscing about our decades walking the valley floor with a walk along the Merced before heading towards the airport. It wasn’t a photographic walk, just a simple pleasure walk, recounting the thousands of memories Yosemite brings back. We’d walk about two miles when we came upon this scene. The spring runoff had made this large pond, and Sharon instantly found Wood Ducks tucked in the corner. While she was enjoying them, I took notice of the reflection, and I knew I needed to photograph it. That was the quickest two miles I’ve traveled in a long time, going back to the car for a different lens.

We parked in a different locale, so the walk was only a half mile as we boogied over to the same spot. The light hadn’t changed, so I was in luck. The light was luscious, the view, spectacular! I went with the “anchor” in the foreground shot first, what you see below. It was that classic taught technique, and for a minute, I liked the photo. And then, I didn’t as it didn’t speak Yosemite to me and definitely didn’t sum up our walk and memories. With a couple of steps to the right, the fix was at hand. The cure was obvious and simple. I set the Z 8 to Dark Tone and made a simple click with simple elements. Now that’s what I’m talkin about!