Oct 28, 2009 | Landscape Photography
The gang rolled out at about, oh…Dark thirty this morning, guess they hadn’t heard about my reputation. We headed up to a locale that was new to me, but my very capable MMW assistant Brendan knew it very well. We headed up to Mt Battie which overlooks the small hamlet of Camden, ME. I wanted up us there well before sunrise because that’s when the best shooting occurs.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP4109.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
The capture was pretty straight forward, -2 exp comp, cloudy WB and simple arrangements of elements and click. I like that kind of photography so early in the morning.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/dlcmebt0073.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
On top of this mountain is this “tower” which is a memorial to WWI vets from Camden. It’s a kinda cool structure especially at sunrise. The one problem is that the sunrise didn’t come up and kiss the tower like I wanted. The light on the tower was all done in NX2, lightness, contrast and warmth all done with one quick and easy Color Control Point. I love NX2!
Photos captured by D3x, 24PC-E on Lexar UDMA digital film
Oct 27, 2009 | Landscape Photography
Man, what a really good day! It was the start of our Landscape Photography – Camera and Computer Craft at Maine Media Workshops and we had a really great group. It was a long day covering the basics, getting everyone on the same page so we could move forward with grander techniques and tools. We finished the day with a simple shoot, Rockport Harbor. What a gorgeous little harbor. As with most such situations, the light became best just seconds prior to sunset and then as the light wained.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3996.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP4041.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP4090.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
As the direct light faded and the bounced light took over, the scene took on a whole new life and the photographic possibilities were just any place you cared to point your lens. It was a really great finish to one really good day.
Photos captured by D3x, 200f2 on Lexar UDMA digital film
Oct 25, 2009 | Landscape Photography
There we were just cruising down Hwy1 when Sharon says, “You might want to turn around.” After doing a Bat Turn we were turned around an pulling into this small dirt lot next to the road. This really cool old building was standing there, what turned out to be a 150 year old Ice House. I shot it for a moment when I spied tucked away in the trees this very cool, old snow plow. Now we’re talkin cool!
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3729.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
What made the photograph happen is the rain, it was pouring! Why is that so important? The truck which is being held together with moss and lichens wouldn’t be that shinny or the color so rich if it weren’t soaked with rain. The deep overcast permitted shooting under the tree canopy without any deep shadows. And the opening in the trees to the right of the truck let light bounce in on the truck making it visually pop. I was lucky that Sharon said to turn around and the rain was pouring. The worst weather can make for some of the best photography. I’ve heard that somewhere.
Photo captured by D3x, 14-24AFS on Lexar UDMA digital film
Oct 24, 2009 | Landscape Photography
Sharon & I are in ME getting very psyched about our ME Media Workshop that starts on Monday. We’re out cruising the amazing and gorgeous ME coast in the rain and just loving it. After stopping at our new friend Warren’s Oyster Winery (picking a couple of bottles of Red) we headed down to Old Bristol. OMG, it’s right out of a Norman Rockwell painting!
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3649.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
This little shack on the side of the sheltered cove was just too cool not to stop to photograph. It has been pouring rain so everything is soaked and really full of rich colors. With -1 exp comp the colors really jump. You might be wondering how that can be when it’s raining. Color contrast is a very powerful visual and in the gray light, color jumps off the page.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3659.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
Turning around from the shack shot was a harbor of lobster boats. This one with its great red bow against the rich green forest with the sprinkling of fall color really caught my attention. Now it was pouring rain when I took the shot so I got out of the truck, ran to frame up the shot, took the shot and ran back into the vehicle. It wasn’t until just now when I was finishing the photo (had some water debris to remove) when I say the name of the boat. I ain’t making this up, it says “Master..Baiter.” Someone in ME has a sense of humor.
Photos captured by D3x, 200VR on Lexar UDMA digital film
Oct 23, 2009 | Landscape Photography
Lakes of The Woods is this simply spectacular little preserved stretch of MI forest that is THE place to shoot. It is out in the middle of nowhere but the locals know about it, they are the ones preserving it and sharing it with the rest of us. What makes the place so special? The trees, leaves, Barred Owls calling off in the distance, it’s seclusion, all of this and a whole lot more, more than likely. I’m just glad we were able to share it with the gang.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3548.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
I kept working on my fall color B&W at first. What attracted me to this was the three different trees have totally different barks, each with its own unique texture. Continuing on my retro minimum DOF look at my work, I shot wide open at f/2.8 and tilted the 24mm just a tad to make the one trunk as out of focus as the other.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3522.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
Still working with the same minimum DOF, I switched to the 200f2 and shot this at f/2. I knew I was on to something when my bud Joe wanted to plug onto the tripod and make the same shot. There’s hope for me yet.
Photos captured by D3x, 24PC-E / 200f2 on Lexar UDMA digital film
Oct 23, 2009 | Landscape Photography
After the Solon School house, we headed to a really cool barn on Hwy72. This is just a great structure. The one problem with the morning shoot was: great subject but suckie, suckie, suckie light. This means that while detail shots are possible and can be really cool, the overall landscape shots required some digital darkroom horsepower.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3358b.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
Yeap, this is it, straight shot. You might not even stop if you saw this kinda light but as you can tell, we did. This was in part because I knew that the detail shots without direct light would really be cool. I also stopped because of the cool clouds over the barn. How to make it all happen?
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP3358.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
The finished photograph was done entirely in NX2. First, W/B Point was done to remove the color cast. Then a Color Point was dropped in the sky to bring it down which brought out the blue. Lastly, a Color Point was dropped on the barn to bring out the contrast and color. It took less than a minute in post to finish. When you get everything done in camera that you can to make a finished image, finishing in post should be real simple and fast.
Photo captured by D3x, 24PC-E on Lexar UDMA digital film
