Feb 6, 2013 | Landscape Photography
Which came first, the pixel or the chicken? Personally, I think it was the heart! I’m of the opinion that when you follow your heart and not your head in photography, things tend to turn out better more often. No, the photograph will not always be perfect but often, that’s not really the point. Perserving the memory is often all that’s required, and that’s all about heart. At the same time, we photographers want to put our best foot forward in the process. It’s just what makes us tick. And this is often where things collide!
The top photo is a single click made with the D4 and 18AF. To get there from the bottom picture which is the image straight from the camera, all I had to do was a couple of things. First, stand as tall as possible at a distance so the lighthouse isn’t tipping over. Next, wait for the clouds to partially obscure the sun. I know I’m not going to hold the detail and that’s just fine. Lastly, I had to know what I could do in post. The majority of the finishing was done in ACR which, after running my basic preset, I took the Shadow slider right, highlight slider left and clicked Open. I then selected just the sky and ran Nik’s Color Efex Pro 4 Detail Extractor on the sky. And with that, I was done so all I had to do was go click and then hit the digital darkroom and finish. Na, not the greatest but then not bad for shooting in the sun as we ran to the car. All of this and more is possible with heart!
Feb 5, 2013 | Landscape Photography
On 15-17 Feb, 2013 we’re pulling a couple of all nighters as we stare at the heavens and photograph the stars. We’ll be doing every sort of heavenly photography we can from trails to portraits, time lapse to stills. Set in the amazing and historic Alabama Hills, we have a great setting for the weekend. We’ll meet in Lone Pine, CA on Friday evening to go over strategies, gear check and howdies and then head to the Alabama Hills for our first all nighter. The next day we’ll meet up long after the sun is up and go through our images, look at the different methods of assembling our previous nights work and get ready for Saturday night shooting. After grabbing an early dinner, we’ll go out for sunset and getting into position for a fun night of shooting and ghost stories. We’ll finish up after breakfast on Sunday morning. The price is $495 which includes preclass materials, instruction and guiding only. Some have asked what if we have clouds? Then we suffer through with landscape photography in the hills. Either way, we’re going to have a great time! This is one workshop where bringing a sleeping bag might just be a must. Look forward to shooting the stars with you! 760.924.8632 / 661.204.1506 9-5 M-F.
Jan 24, 2013 | Landscape Photography
In the spring in FL, there is a species I seek out, the Double-crested Cormorant. A species that normally is about as ugly as the bird world has to offer up, comes to life in the breeding season. It’s plumage and especially the flesh around the male’s eye just ballistic with great colors even if just in the shades of black and blue. At the same time, it’s a Double-crested Cormorant! When you have though a basic color overall with a splash of color contrast and you use focus to select it, you can have your cake and eat it too. Shooting still with the D4 with 600VR2 with TC-20e3, this male on a lone perch could be optically selected and then it’s start of breeding plumage to the rest. Then with a dabble of light kissed it, well, it was a good afternoon to stand and watch the rookery.
Jan 24, 2013 | Landscape Photography
Birds on a wire, it’s just never been my thing. There is nothing wrong with it, it’s just as you know, I’m picky about perches and wire just doesn’t cut it. With that said, when you have an opportunity, do you pass it up just because you’re picky? In this case, this sweet Broad-winged Hawk was having a great time harassing the ibis at a rookery. No way it would take one, it just seemed like it was flying about making them flush just because it could. I watched it with a huge smile. Then it landed on this wire. I’d not photographed a Broad-winged for a long time, since film days! So when I have an opportunity to update my digital files with a new species, I’m off to the races!
Sadly, the hawk loved wires for perches so that was my only option. Using the D4 with 600VR2 with TC-20e3 I walked around so the light was on my back to get a shot. The little guy was funny as hell as it tried to keep it balance. I shot a video I need to post as I expected any moment for it to do a 360 spinning on the wire. But then it flew only to land on another perch. This one at least had a background better than gray skies. While not a killer shot and while on a wire, I have digital files now of the Broad-winged Hawk. Even better is a have a video that on a slow day in the office I can watch that will make me smile. What else can you ask for in life!
Jan 23, 2013 | Landscape Photography
Another way to win the uncommon challenge is knowing a little bit about your subject and waiting for the uncommon to appear in your viewfinder. Here a Royal Tern is busy preening and in that process will eventual get to the last two shots. To make this happen, you first get the physical distance you need to get to get the image size you want. Next, you look at the position of the subject in the frame leaving room for the hoped behavior to occur and not get clipped by the frame. Finally, watch for the behavior and when you see it coming, lay on the hammer and file some frames. The love the last two frames and that’s what I was after. The soft light, the white, black and orange and the shape of that bill all make what I love about Royal Terns. So another way to win the uncommon challenge is not only knowing your subject, but having a passion for it.
Jan 23, 2013 | Landscape Photography
The Snowy Egret is a great bird, gorgeous and thankfully for new wildlife photographers, the perfect patient subject. It is also a dirt common bird across North America. These factors all add up to making this gorgeous bird very common seen in photographs by the thousands. Does this mean you stop shooting it? Quite the contrary, you shoot it more! Why? It’s a challenge, an exercise a reward to get the shot of the common in an uncommon way. Do you always win this challenge? Hell no! Does it take much to win this challenge? Hell no! A couple of ripples reflecting the morning sun, a drip of water off the bill hitting the reflection of the bill in the water and you’re on your way. No, not a winner in the overall sense of the word, it is in the challenge of taking the common and making it uncommon. It’s essential training in the wildlife photography pursuit.
