Mar 12, 2012 | Landscape Photography
When you drive the loop in Monument Valley, half the time your subjects are front lit and the other half, they are back lit. Because your subjects are so large, if you’re on the backlit side, you have a whole lot of time with no direct sun to work with. Because your subjects are so large, you’re missing some large photographs. The rock of Monument Valley isn’t all red. It’s every shade of red with a whole lot of veins of gray and black sprinkled in. When you shoot the face in full sun, you loose a lot of those veins and to me, a lot of the character that is the Valley. So I do tend to haunt the shadow side thinking about bringing out the character that is the Valley.
Here’s two approaches I use when going to the shadowy side. They both have one thing in common, HDR. To pull out the character in the rock, I need that range of clicks while also preserving the detail in the sky. After that, I want something in the sky and this is typical, I’ll put either clouds or the sun. I want that element for both the white aspect of a B&W photo as well as space and visual depth. The sun can add drama when done correctly. I posted this photo of an example of it not being done correctly. What’s wrong with it? I forgot to clean the front element. That dust on the front element is what’s creating all those circular UFOs in the sunburst. What a pisser! Understand that if I didn’t use HDR, you wouldn’t see any information in the rock, it would be all black. While there are times when that is cool, when working the shadowy side of the Valley, I tend to want to bring out the character in the rock.
Mar 9, 2012 | Landscape Photography
I do enjoy greeting the day watching the sun rise. There is just something about that moment that all seems right in the world as the light comes up, the birds begin to sing and the clouds race to meet the coming sun. Last week in Monument Valley on our K&M Adventure, it was one of those mornings. We were out early heading around the loop to be in place in case the balloons launched (which they didn’t this morning). When I looked out of my room at the View, what you see in the top photo was what got me excited except the cloud had already changed alot by the time we got in place to shoot. I love clouds, they simply add a whole new dimension to anything subject. Kevin did his best to get us down in place but the same winds that kept the balloons from launching just scattered that beautiful cloud.
A classic case of chasing the light in the Valley. Just because there is pretty color in the sky, I don’t stop to shoot. The romance everyone associates with a sunrise or sunset if the very minimum that needs to be in our photographs. So with the color has to be the foreground, middleground and background and a lot more. You need shapes in silhouette as well and then finally, you need them clouds to take you eye and heart around the entire photograph. At least, that’s what I shoot for. So in the top photo for example, it’s no mistake that the break in the cloud rims the left side of Merritt Mesa.
These three photos were taken over a period of about 18min and over a distance of about 150 yards. The first photo we were at the bottom of a wash and as the clouds scattered and the sun rose, I didn’t like the foreground so I ran up slope to make the middle image and then to the top of the ridge to make the bottom photo. I like all three, each has a little something different but of these three, the top is my favorite. John Wayne rode over that dirt road and on the morning chasing the light in the Valley, I could imagine him doing it again.
Mar 7, 2012 | Landscape Photography
“Why do you feel you a need finish your landscape images?” I was asked this question today and it’s really a valid one. Because first and foremost, because I do anything doesn’t mean you need to do the same. To answer the question though, I feel I need to finish my landscape images because my camera has no heart. There are for sure some instances when the camera just can’t capture what the mind’s eye or more importantly the heart saw at that moment of click. There are the technical issues like light range, color and the like which can be dealt with for the most part in post. But then there is the romantic impression of that moment, something a metal beast can’t feel, capture or communicate. I can’t stress enough that I need my landscape images to say, “You need to be here” and not say “I was here.” My landscape photography is a direct off shoot of my wildlife photography. The critters I so love and fight to preserve will only do so if their homes aren’t bulldozed. I get you to love their homes, the landscape they call home, then I get you to preserve the critters. It’s really that simple for me, save the land, save the critters ergo, I need you to fall in love with the landscape. So my landscape images must grab your heartstrings and tug…alot!
In this case, the finishing was real simple. I started with ACR, the same version you’re now enjoying in LR4 and soon to enjoy in CS6 (it’s the same math, different UI). With that, I then used Nik’s CEP4 Tonal Contrast, Split Gradual and then Viveza to pump up the sand in the foreground and I was done. What you see at the top is the after, and the bottom the original image. You might be saying there is nothing wrong with the bottom image. And you’re be right to be honest with you, if there was I wouldn’t have gone click in the first place. Gotta start with the best capture possible to even think about finishing. I finished the image as described because of the reasons I described above. And you don’t have to do any of it. It’s just my preference for the goals I have for my photography.
Mar 5, 2012 | Landscape Photography
Light is such a magical thing! There are many times if you watch me, I seem to be staring out into space when in actuality, the light has simply caught me imagination. I’ve never seen or experience the same light twice which is probably why I’m always out chasing it.
One of the really sweet things about Monument Valley is it plays right into my love of light. No matter the time, day or night, the light loves to play in this valley of stone. And it plays in ways you can often not expect. On this particular morning of our K&M Adventure, we were out in position on the second morning of the balloon festival waiting for the Mitten launch. It was a windy morning to say the least. The balloonist pulled in mass where we had parked and launched a couple of helium balloons testing the wind. We watched them race away and thought it was too windy for the big balloons. But they seem to see what then needed and headed down deeper into the Valley.
The sun wasn’t up yet but was lighting up the horizon when the vehicles took north on the road to the launch zone. No sooner than the last vehicle made the crossing when the sun sneaked over the eastern horizon. Right then the dust cloud from the vehicles lit up and the magic of light once again delighted my imagination.
Here’s the photographic problem. Our cameras can only capture 5 stops, the difference in light between the lit up dust cloud and the Mitten in shadow had to be at least 9 stops. What I was seeing with my eyes was information in the deep shadow of the mitten and the glow of the dust. That’s what I wanted to share with you. That’s the subject, that’s the delight of the light. With that knowledge, the photography part was pretty darn simple. All that was required a simple handheld, 5 image HDR that when processed, was done with my Basic Settings in Photomatix Pro. The key was to not let the shadow go black or gray but keeping it just right. Sharing a shadow my mind’s eye saw.
While the vertical is THE image for me, I shot both just to share with you the possibilities. Why is the vertical image THE image for me? All that extra blue sky on the left of the horizontal image takes away from the brightness of the glowing dust. I wanted you to just see that and only that. Because after a very short period of time, the wind had dispersed the dust and the show was over. But that’s often the delight of light!
Mar 2, 2012 | Landscape Photography
Why is this one my favorite? It could be it was the moment the moment all clicked for me. It could be the informal balance. It could be the clear view of both balloon and mesa. It could be the way color moves the eye around the frame. And you know what, I don’t really care why it’s my favorite because, it’s my favorite. It has nothing photographically to do with the photograph, it is strictly an emotional response to the one image that for me, the one who experienced it all and photographed it all is summed up. Photography has given me many gifts, I’ve been very blessed. This photograph is just an example of that good fortune and the best part, I was able to share it with not just other folks with me, but all of you as well!
Mar 2, 2012 | Landscape Photography
I am one very, very, very lucky and very, very, very fortunate photographer! Someone likes me somewhere because the blessings that have dropped in front of my lens are at times just way too hard to believe true! I’m infamous for planning things using all the modern tools with old school traditions to make luck happen for me when I can. And with all of that said, I still get skunked. Be it wildlife, landscapes or aviation, many a time my best laid plans end up with not one pixel dying in the creation of a photograph. And when that happens, I tend to be just that more determined to make it happen the next time out.
When I selected dates for our first K&M Adventure in Monument valley, I did my usual schtick and went information hunting. Figuring out the phase of the moon as a snap. Where we’d stay, who we’d use for a guide and our destinations were pretty much in the bag. Then I saw the Hot Air Balloon Festival dates and my mind started to race. I mean really, how cool would that be! It just so happened the dates corresponded with the moon phase I wanted for star trails so it was a done deal. I don’t know what I read during this time, but somewhere in the back of my mind, the balloon thing was not a for sure thing. Time would tell.
We arrive at Monument Valley and the signs are up about the balloon festival but I didn’t see any of the telltale signs like vehicles with big baskets until our second day. It started the next day but information about the launch was pretty sketchy so I still had my doubts. The next morning we rose to a pretty overcast day, not the best light or background for a subject I think of as being airey and festive. No matter, off we headed to The Valley. We got down in time to see some of the balloons inflate, a couple were in the sky. This all happened when the overcast had cleared and gorgeous skies opened up with great light and backdrops.
To say it was magical is an understatement. The balloons started to dance around The Valley, going up and down, floating from mesa to mesa, riding the breeze and the romance for an hour. We shot and shot and shot! The opportunities were anywhere you wanted to point your lens.
Then from behind the mesa beside us there was that unmistakable sound of a heater blower. There were three launch sites for the festival. We were at the North Window, in front of us was the Mittens and behind us Artist. Floating in from Artist and now behind us was the balloon Skywalker. It was like a dream as they rose over the mesa, floated around and then landed just feet from us to the east. The nicest folks, they were talking up a storm with us as they launched again floating literally right over our heads.
As they floated overhead they call out, “Where would you guys like us?” I’ve never had a floating model before but this was great! They worked the breeze and the hearter unit the best they could to make our wishes come true. Little did they know that they didn’t have to do a thing to make our wishes come true. The sound of shutters slamming echoed off the mesas as 10 cameras on astroblast screamed through the pixels.
For these reasons and so many more, this is my favorite balloon and favorite images from that morning. Of these, there is one favorite. It comes next.
