Jan 21, 2016 | Landscape Photography
Simply put, I love the white stuff! I realize at the same time that not everyone shares the same passion for snow, that being cold thing. With that in mind, I’m always looking for photographic opportunities where I can give the viewer the feeling of snow without them having to get cold. Whenever it’s actually snowing, the flakes are falling, my mind turns to this challenge. On our adventure in Yellowstone last week, had a number of opportunities to explore this challenge and one time in Hayden Valley was the best!
What were the conditions that made it great? The first was the light which is always essential. The light was sidelight and spotty which means it was playing dodgeball with the clouds. Next, the clouds themselves were dark and ominous in the west. This combo, the light on the white snow and the dark cloud in the background provided the contrast to see the snow in the photo. Lastly, the snowflakes themselves were large and blowin pretty hard. This combo gives them some density which is important to the final photograph. With all that in place, just had to go click.
Capturing these images took a little thought behind the camera. First was using a longer lens, in this case the 300PF. Why a longer lens? Snowflakes are small to start with and if you use a wide lens, they often look like dust spots in the frame. With the longer lens, you can take a slice out of the sky and in sense, compact the density of the flakes so they show up in the frame and snowflakes. Then to make the photo no look “so cold” I over exposed by +.07. I shot at a fast shutter speed, 1/800 and lens closed down a tad, f/8. Yes, some of the detail in the photo is gone, paper white but I don’t feel you need to see that detail there to know it’s snow. I mean, if you do, then the whole photograph is a failure. Finishing was real simple, ACR and then Nik’s Pro Contrast and done. Now I realize you’ve gotta really bee into snow to go after these kinds of photos. I hope that these simple tips might give you the strength to go out in the cold and brave the elements for those not so willing so they can experience the winter through your photos. Here in the Sierra, we love snow and this time of year, all we say is let it snow!
Jan 20, 2016 | Landscape Photography
The vast underground plumbing at Yellowstone provides a lifetime of fascination watching it in action. The geysers, something like 1400 strong, have a life of their own, each being very unique based on hydrology, geology and ologies over my pay grade. But that doesn’t stop my watching them in amazement as they put on their shows. One of the reasons why I love being in Yellowstone in the winter and want it cold is because the geyser steam takes on a life of its own once caught in the wind. You take that and add great light and skies, and the photographic possibilities are really limitless!
How to tell this story of site and sound in a still image? The first thing I think is key is the light. I prefer sidelight and a little diffused. Too diffused and the ripples in the steam cloud are lost. Too strong and the same thing, the shades of gray are lost. It’s the shades of gray the help give texture and shape to the steam clouds. Then you need the right background, darker than the steam is my preference. So this day Fountain Geyser was erupting at the perfect time, we were there, the light was great and the skies near perfect. Last thing was to capture the detail in the eruption to give it life. I shot with the D750 / 18-35AFS and once I say/heard the next burst of water, hit the shutter release and shot off a series of 5-9 frames. I then selected back at the computer those eruptions that communicated the power and emotion I felt standing there. The one thing the still image can’t bring to life is how cold it was standing there in the wind nor the tremendous sound. It’s so very cool to listen to the earth and hear the explosion!
Jan 18, 2016 | Landscape Photography
I’m back at home watching the snowfall after an amazing week in what is truly a winter wonderland, Yellowstone NP. Most go there for the critters which is understandable. Personally, I love being in Hayden Valley which, while it can have critters, it’s its vast expanse of white that grabs my imagination. The snow blows in from the west and blankets the landscape in white, molding and sculpting the hills and valleys, the creeks and draws into seductive forms and shapes the wind howls through in an unique call of the wild. That chill of the wind bites at your cheeks and numbs the finger making the whole experience personal and very real. It tells you that you’re alive and witnessing Mother Nature at her finiest.
We had the opportunity to shoot in Hayden twice when the sky added the needed backdrop of speak of the drama. For me, just any old sky doesn’t work for this white sculptures. Nor does any old finishing, here one is in color and one is B&W … tell which is which? The shooting is pretty straight forward, D4s with +.07 dialed in to minimize shadows. The 24-70VR at 28mm nailed all the detail which is so important as there is little and without it being sharp, the softness of the shapes wouldn’t come through. The real key ingredient though is being lost in the silence of the experience, embracing the cold and taking those feelings and incorporating it all when you go click. It was a rich, full week of experiences, views, emotions and insights that are good for the soul of a photographer. None as special though as being in such an environment and enjoying the silence of snow.
Dec 31, 2015 | Landscape Photography
It’s that time of year when we reflect on the year past. I’ve always found it a kinda funny tradition because for myself, I try everyday to reflect on what I learned the day before to improve on my photography of tomorrow. I’ve never really been one to rest on my laurels, always pushing forward to the next day, year, constantly incorporating lessons learned. In the creative world and the business world, the future is more important, more exciting than the past because improvement is just a heartbeat away. In this pursuit there is one question I like to ask photographers when they seek words of wisdom from my photography. “Where do you want your photography to take you in the next five years and where do you want to take your photography?”
There is no doubt that our past directly and indirectly influences our craft. Our life experiences go into every click. But the spark of imagination and passion is what drives our photography into the future. So as that clock nears the bewitching hour on New Year’s eve, perhaps you can use the moment to challenge yourself and your photography by looking forward and coming up with a photographic project worthy of the new year. When I say project, I’m talking about going beyond your comfort range and really pushing yourself and your storytelling. I would encourage you to incorporate in that project the sharing of those photographs to influence your audience into action. Whether you hang your work on the wall of a coffee shop or some grand gallery, use your talents, passion and photography to impact just the life of one viewer. As they say, it is a new year bringing with it the promise of change. With that challenge, with that goal, in a year when New Year’s eve rolls around again and it’s time to look back, you’ll actually be looking forward when it’s comes time to reflect.
Nov 30, 2015 | B&W Photography, Landscape Photography
Kodachrome Basin which is now a state park is a pretty cool unique little piece of Utah most never visit. That’s because it’s overshadowed almost literally by Bryce. You can seen Kodachrome Basin from Bryce and visa versa. While it’s not all red rock, it has some really cool shapes and forms that makes photography really fun. Kodachrome Basin requires a couple of things in finding the photographs, walking and imagination. It’s not a place where the photographs are real obvious, it takes a little of exploration.
Kodachrome Basin exploration is a combination of feet and focal length. These photos were taken with the Df / 80-400, using longer to optically extract a select group of elements to tell the story. The top frame is a massive formation that against the bald sky is so striking, I tend to shoot lots of the same thing cause I’m so taken with it. The bottom shot is self evident, the moon sucked me in. Running back and forth to capture the rising moon, to “unrise” it and then shoot it, move and “unrise” it to get the shot took the better part of an hour. Combined with that was doing handheld double exposure to to get sharp rocks and a sharp moon. Been easier if I had just grabbed the tripod but when I set out to shoot sunset, the moon wasn’t on my mind. What was though was the B&W aspect of the photos. The arrangement of elements was based on B&W. They were finished as mentioned here so I could target the rock and sky differently creating the tones you see. And the whole time, I tend to chuckle to myself because of the irony. It’s almost sacrilege, shooting Kodachrome Basin in B&W.
Nov 4, 2015 | Landscape Photography
While fall color is on its way out, I pose this question to give you a year to think of YOUR right answer. I do love saying, “less is more” and in this instance, it might give way to a better photograph. I shot all three images with a Df / 24-70AFS and used my favorite tool, my feet to change the photograph. But before you move your feet or change your lenses, you gotta answer the question, “can you see the trees from the woods?”
What are the factors that might help you answer this question? For me, it’s the light, that’s the biggest factor. With fall color, you have the “color” that sucks the viewer into your photograph. Be it yellow, red or a combination thereof, those colors help the mind’s eye see into the frame and travel about. Next then are all the vertical lines, the trunks. Light does help here but what if there is no magical beam of light, how does the eye move through the frame to experience the same feelings you had being amongst the trees? This is where less is more comes into play.
You see here three photos, the same grove that I simply moved physically closer to as I zeroed in on the one grouping that I liked from the start. Any one of the photos might or might not be your seeing the trees from the woods. The bottom image is mine. There’s an old saying, your tripod has legs, so do you. In seeing the trees from the woods, not planting but moving might be the best way to finding the photo that expresses best for you what you’re feeling in that beauty. Just yourself if less is more and go looking.
