Preparing

Yesterday my friend Deigh sent me a link to a website featuring long exposure, black and white photography.  He’s good at pointing me (and others) to places I would miss if left to my own devices.  I’m fairly sure that the opening image on the site, a shot from Iceland, was a lot of the incentive to share the site with me. He also knows that I love this type of image… glassy water surfaces, clouds in motion, high contrast.  Since we are on our way to Iceland soon I am trying to figure out what camera gear to take if my hopes, perhaps too high, are to come back with shots that show the stark beauty of Iceland that I’ve seen so many times in others’ photos.  It isn’t necessarily easy for me to reach these decisions.

Some thoughts so far:

• We will be day hiking anywhere from 2-8 hours.  My gear, including a small laptop, will be on my back.  Weight matters.
• We will be in Iceland in July when the sun stays out most of the day.  No northern lights this trip.
• We can expect wind.  Traditional advice is to take a heavy tripod if you want to get long exposure images.  I admit to being totally on the fence about what tripod to take but bought a little Siuri carbon fiber tripod and ball head with hopes that it will make do.  Initial tests say that I’m dreaming but I have not given up on it yet.
• Waterfalls everywhere.  My hope is to come back with image files that can be made into something other than postcards.  I’m operating on the assumption that we will be able to have time to actually linger at some locations rather than just hike through. I’m studying famous waterfalls in Iceland so I can be somewhat prepared for compositions that I can avoid due to their popularity (ease?). Time will tell.

The gear so far:

• D700 without the add-on battery pack.
• Nikon 28-300 f/3.5-5.6 lens (same one that went to India)
• Nikon 20 mm f/2.8 lens
• 2 and 3 stop graduated neutral density filters with 77mm adapter and holder
• 8 stop variable neutral density filter
• cable release
• diGPS camera unit
• CF cards (1-16 gb, 4 -8gb)
• Toshiba Ultrabook laptop with Lightroom 4
• Card reader
• 2 Western Digital Passport 500 gb external hard disks
• Siuri T1250SX carbon fiber tripod
• Siuri ballhead
• Lowepro Photo Sport 200AW back pack (love it)

My biggest concern is tripod stability and shake due to the anticipated winds and my generally crappy technique.  So I’m training myself to the degree that I can.  Today I ventured down to the Portland waterfront to see if I could get a sharp photo from the gear if I expose for 20-30 seconds or more.  Joints on the tripod tight?  Check.  Cable release? Check.  Mirror lock up?  Check.

It’s a start.  I’m thinking that another neutral density filter may be needed to get the real sense of cloud movement (and water) that I want.  My friend Eric uses a 10 stop filter to great effect.  The image from Iceland that Deigh pointed me to was made with a 13 stop neutral density filter in place.  Filters are light but not cheap.  I’ll keep experimenting and hope to land in Iceland with a lot more confidence than I have now.

Super moon and much more to come

We traveled to Bozeman, Montana to celebrate our youngest grand daughter’s first birthday last Friday and Saturday.  This is a BIG story that deserves to be told in a proper way.  Since we spent 12 hours on the road yesterday driving home I have many photos to edit and prepare for sharing.  The birthday story and photos will come soon.

I did not want to lose any more momentum on the “super moon” theme though so I processed a few frames from our experience.  A short story to go along with this photo.

Friday night we were seated at the dining room table in the house we had rented between Bozeman and Belgrade, MT.  We’d had a great family day involving both or our sons, 2 grand daughters who share May 4 as a birthday, one daughter-in-law, my 97 year old Mother and my sister.  The word “wonderful” keeps coming up as the most appropriate adjective for that day.  We were just sitting and talking when Chad pointed out the window and noted that the full moon was outside.  I turned around and jumped up from the table to grab the camera and tripod.  About a half hour later I rejoined the table group. I knew that the super moon was coming but, honestly, family was THE priority… until I saw the moon outside.  Luckily, my family understands me and tolerates my camera habit.  I shot several versions of the moon rising near some trees in the front yard.  Not ideal but better than nothing.

Saturday was the big birthday party at the rental house.  After the crowd thinned down it was back to our family members at the onset of dusk.  I really wanted to get a shot of the true “super moon” with snow capped mountains in the foreground.  Derek and I jumped in the car and headed toward Bozeman and a higher elevation viewing spot in a neighborhood.  We cruised the development looking for the best vantage and ended up back at the main road.  I checked The Photographer’s Ephemeris (TPE) on my phone and found that the moon would rise further down the ridge than what I wanted but I was committed to the spot and didn’t know of another, better place.

As Derek and I settled in to wait for the moon to rise a truck drove past us and turned around, came back and parked by us.  Now it was me, Derek and Chad sitting and waiting for a moon to rise.  Frankly, my evening was complete before the moon showed.  Having the opportunity to be with both of my sons when they were relaxed and able to just sit and talk without any distractions of work or, pardon me, family, was a great moment.  We watched and enjoyed the stares we got from passing motorists who must have thought we had some wildlife sighting or such.  I kept visiting the camera on the other side of the road to check exposure and framing but my heart was with the guys sitting on the tailgate of Chad’s truck.  This is the type of experience that reinforces how fortunate we are.

The guys were torn by being there or back at the house with their grandmother and mother  though.  They took off to return to the house but I hung in there for another 20 minutes until saw the moon rise right where TPE said it would… behind a cloud and way too far away from any suitable composition.  I flamed out on the whole shoot.  Such is life.

Yesterday morning we woke early for the long drive home.  Derek and Gina were traveling in their car and Dianne and I in ours but we had a few minutes over coffee and cereal as the new day began.  Of course the Super Moon was setting in the west over what I think is the Madison Range.  The camera and tripod came back out of the car and I set up on the back porch of the rental house.  My hope was that the moon would set over the snow capped peaks but I shot it for about 30 minutes as it came into the frame with the mountain range.  Of the shots there are two that stand out for me.  Of the two, this is my favorite.  The Super Moon, snow capped mountains and a weekend of totally rewarding family immersion filled me with thoughts and warm feelings as we packed and drove away.

 

A trip south

It’s great to have friends…especially those who will open their homes to you and share their time and interests.  We’ve been fortunate lately to take advantage of visit good friends Steve and Suzanne in Pasco, WA, Jon and Barbara in Medford, OR and John and Alice in Walnut Creek, CA.  We’ve put a few miles on the cars and the miles were our ticket to our time with these friends.

We adjusted our trip schedule last week to beat a snow storm that was invading southern Oregon and northern California.  That meant one less day with our friends in Medford and one more day in California.  Friends will let you visit.  GOOD friends will adjust a visit on the fly and at short notice.  We were glad to get over the Siskiyou Summit before the storm hit and the doors opened to us when we arrived in Walnut Creek.

We enjoyed our time at both locations (Medford and Walnut Creek) but felt badly about visiting when Jon and Barbara were both a bit under the weather.  I know that when I feel sick I’m not really into playing “host” for visitors.  Cutting our visit here short was a bit of a bitter-sweet decision. I’d like to think that our departure allowed our friends to recover more quickly since they didn’t have to talk or “be on”.  At least I hope so.

Our time in CA was wonderful.  We wandered around Walnut Creek a bit and I finally got to see where John volunteers time to the Monument Crisis Center.  I get a phone call each Tuesday as he prepares to go to work here and I’d always wondered about the place. No I know.  Full of nice people doing meaningful work.  Good on ‘em.

The foothills of Mt. Diablo, Walnut Creek, CA

We headed out to spend a couple of days in the Monterey Bay area… actually a bit north in the town of Watsonville, CA.  The area is a huge agricultural area growing a wide variety of crops…strawberries, raspberries, artichokes and who knows what else.  3 crops a year… all very labor intensive.  One of the benefits of being in an area like this is the inevitable access to authentic Mexican food.  Oh my!  Great food prepared and served by happy and enjoyable people.

We stayed in a condo in Pajaro Dunes.  Our friends have been coming here for 35 years and know the area well. We were given so many options of things to see or do that it was a challenge to make a selection.  Our first outing was to the Monterey Aquarium since it was kind of a snotty, rainy day.  The place is huge, the displays are really well done and interactive and the variety of animals on display is wonderful.  For me, the jellyfish and sea horses were the high points among the wonders we saw.  It was an unexpected answer to the question about taking photos inside the aquarium… the answer:  “the rule is that you should take as many photos as you can”.  Flash?  “sure, anywhere but with the octopus”. What a breath of fresh air in today’s usual restrictive practices.

We hurried back to Watsonville with hopes of catching a sunset on the beach.  Hey.. you really have to be near the beach at sunset don’t you?  The few remaining clouds gave us a bit of a show.

Sorry about the bit of lens flare in the above shot.

The next morning broke clear and calm.  The ladies of the house decided that a yoga session was in order and headed to the beach to “practice”.  I set up to take photos with hopes of catching them at a moment of still posing that would last long enough to blur out the waves behind them.  It worked… sort of.  Lots of blurry lady shots bit the dust but the ones we kept are pretty nice.  I’m always amazed at how much strength and flexibility it takes to perform what looks so calm and simple to a casual observer.  Nice work ladies.

After breakfast we headed south to Carmel via the “17 Mile Drive”.  This is chance to see how “the 1%” live as you drive through multi-million dollar homes and golf courses along the coast.  Does the name Pebble Beach sound familiar?  Just one of the many golf courses in the area… it’s the keystone course but, still, just one of many.  How many do we need?  It was interesting to see the houses even though their size is a bit irksome in today’s age and when contrasted to the homes of the people working the fields near by.  No doubt that the mansions are beautiful but I have to say that they seem more than a bit out of place in an age when resources are limiting and there is so much need.  Just saying.

We stopped to view the “solitary cypress”.  I’m not sure that is the correct name but the tree is famous as the logo for Pebble Beach.  There’s a sign in the area that declares that the tree is trademarked and any photos taken can’t be used for commercial purposes.  Whatever.  It’s a beautiful view.

If you look hard enough you’ll see cables holding the tree up and together along with decorative rock work that stabilizes the cliff face and tree base.  Honestly, I wish the tree were more of a wind-swept curved cypress.  You have to admire the tenacity of the tree though…. it’s been through a lot of storms.

As we moved around we stopped occasionally to take some photos.  One area gave Dianne another chance to do a bit of yoga posing.  I love watching her do this anywhere but it really made me happy to see her strike a pose in such a beautiful area.

We wandered the streets of Carmel and visited shops long enough to remind us that the area caters to the wealthy.  We bought some food for dinner and went to visit the Carmel Mission.  This is a great facility to visit to learn about the history of the church and religion. Built in 1721 it still serves as a parish church and has the original bell tower in place.

From there we headed back to Pajaro Dunes with hopes of another sunset on the beach.  Yes, the sun set but the blank sky didn’t give the color anywhere to really mature.  No worries… there were curlews and godwitts and sanderlings feeding.  Backlit birds are not the best photos but every once in awhile the sun angle actually showed the birds in good form.

We spent the evening with good cheese, bread and salami before heading home the next day.  What a wonderful way to close down a visit with friends.  Thanks so much dear friends.  We await your arrival!

Thanksgiving treat

Di and I got invited to spend Thanksgiving with Devri’s family in Twin Falls, Idaho.  We knew that it would be a quick trip with 2+ days of driving and 2 days with family.  It felt a bit weird to break tradition of sharing Thanksgiving with Derek, Heidi and family but we just couldn’t miss a chance to see Devri, Chad and Kendyl again.  Off we went.

We got to Devri’s aunt Caroline and Uncle Wes’ place about an hour before Chad and family rolled in.  Just enough time to relax and get ready for what ever the next day and half brought our way. When the kids arrived we all started jockeying around to hold Kendyl. We got a bit of priority being grand parents but everyone got their turn and Kendyl just took it all with a smile and open curiosity. She’s almost 7 months old now and is making the anticipated progress toward crawling.  She is extremely tolerant of people poking at her, dressing her and generally trying to get time with her.  We have photos of so many expressions that we will come to know as Kendyl’s but for now I’ll post just one simple smile from a beautiful little girl.

I’m just guessing that you got a grin on your face too when you looked at the photo.  Perfect.  And, yes, she is looking at her Grandmother Dianne who has a way of coaxing a grin that lights the room.

The best laid plans…

A couple of years ago Dianne and I found a wonderful location on the Oregon coast that we thought would be nice to use as a stage for some yoga poses.  Di is almost always ready for a challenge and willing to try something new and different.  The location is in the Beverly Beach area north of Newport.  When we first saw the area I was really intrigued since there were some really unusual toadstool formations and bedrock exposures that had great geometry.  Di ventured out onto one of the flatter spots and began going through a series of poses as I photographed.  Trouble is the tide was coming in and our session was shortened when one wave slapped her about calf high.  As we left we thought it would be great to go back when the tide was below 5 feet and receding.  We also hoped for a nice sunset to shoot against.  We planned a time to go when there was also a full moon that we hoped to use in the early morning after a sunset photo session the evening before.  Well… best laid plans.  We walked into the area yesterday and saw nothing but sand.  There are exposed bedrock formations scattered randomly but the toadstools are buried by sand as are the great leading lines of the bedrock.  Dang.

Where are the toad stools?

We wandered around the beach for about a half mile or so and finally gave up searching and just started enjoying the beach that was all but our own.  We found a few little items on the sand that warranted a shot with the iPhone as we walked back to the car and headed to Newport for the night.

We pulled into the Yaquina Lighthouse to walk the beach there.  We had a great time there years ago with Di’s sister Mary and we both remembered the tour, the hikes and the sunset.  The beach was crowded with people when we arrived but the waves were really working so we hung out for about an hour and shot waves and some seals.  Once again a good time.

This morning we got up to find clouds and wind and drizzle.  We wanted to hang around Newport long enough to watch grandson Riley run in a cross country meet in Boise.  Sounds weird but they (someone… not sure) was streaming the race live.  Since all we had with us was Apple products that don’t do Flash, we headed for the public library to borrow a PC for the race.  Before we did that we went down by the Oregon Aquarium and found a nice location to shoot the Newport bridge.  Definitely a shot that has been done many times before but not by us.

We watched the race but are not sure we ever saw Riley.  We can honestly say that we gave it a good try.

Now we’re home and I’ve discovered that I had the dirtiest lens I’ve had in… well, maybe, ever.  Nasty!  Lots of specks to remove on all these images if they are to be used.  Lesson learned… again.  T’was a good time but now it’s time to go watch the Oregon Ducks play Stanford.  Should be a great way to end the day.

More color

It’s that time of year and I’m seeing all sorts of wonderful images of fall colors experienced by friends who are roaming the Northwest.  Good on all of you!

I was heading out of Leavenworth, WA with a destination of Cle Elum Monday afternoon and I knew that there was a good chance that the hillsides would be colored up as I drove down the Wenatchee River canyon.  The Wenatchee National Forest never disappoints and has always left me wanting more time there to experience the seasons.  Monday was no different.  As I came around a corner I saw a bunch of cars parked in a turnout.  As I looked up I saw a hillside that had burned in the recent past and seemed alive with fire again.  The bright yellows seduced me and I pulled over with the crowd… something I tend to not do.  Since I was traveling without my color checker (aka, Dianne) I rely on the obvious… if others think it is worth stopping to look at or photograph then there is probably something there.  I pulled in and set up the camera and tripod.  The crowd was concentrated at the edge of the parking lot… as expected.  I jumped the guard rail and walked a path along the edge of the road until I was alone and had a view that showed reflections in the still water of a side channel.  Ten minutes later I was being jostled by others who wanted my view.  Darn that tripod… a crowd magnet I guess.  I shot my shots and visited with a few nice folks on their way to Spokane.  After the crowd thinned I worked my way out of the remaining few and headed back to my car and on to Cle Elum. A nice little stop in what had been a very busy day.

Layers of light

I am reading Alain Briot’s book Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity and Personal Style.  It isn’t exactly an easy read but he’s meticulous about his images and works hard to “optimize” them before release.  I enjoyed his section, albeit a bit long, on how many people think it is the camera that gets him or Ansel or Galen the great images they create.  Anyone who shoots with purpose knows that this is simply not true.  The optics in cell phone cameras and small digital cameras tend to be vastly more capable than many of the operators who own them.  It’s the light that matters most and what the camera operator does with it follows along right behind.

Alain’s description of how image capture is only the start of the work of making the image for print and presentation struck me as particularly relevant to my current situation.  I admit that I spend what seems like too long on a file to make adjustments to contrast and such.  Alain’s description of optimization not only gives me license to do this but makes me feel like I’m slacking off. I have a lot to learn about how to optimize a digital file for presentation in print or on the web.

As I was cleaning some images off the iPad to make room for others I re-discovered a few images I took recently while at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge south of Burns, OR.  As the sun was setting on my last day there I was stationed outside the Refuge border and had been admiring a huge eagle nest clinging to a cliff.  My friends Deigh and Dave are responsible for my being there to see this huge structure.  It was impressive.  But then I turned around and looked in the distance.  Great towering cumulus clouds were forming and moving.  I love clouds like these and miss them where I live.  When ever we visit Montana I probably drive Chad and Devri crazy with my comments about the beauty of the area and “their clouds”. So I took a few shots and headed back to Burns for yet another uneventful evening.

Briot’s words made me open this file today and work toward “optimizing”.  I’ll continue to play with it to see about some local contrast and brightness but for now it captures the sense of awe I felt at the moment.

A moment of calm

I have some really good memories of the Sparks Lake area west of Bend. We used to canoe camp there as a family when the boys were young. We’ve hiked and floated all around the area. The memories all center on beauty and a sense of calm. It was no different as I watched the sunrise from Atkeson Point yesterday morning.

I arrived there about 20 minutes before the start of civil twilight. I walked to the viewpoint and watched as the light came up enough to see clouds and a still lake. There was no breeze and the lake was a mirror. As sunrise time came closer a slight breeze began and the crisp mirror reflection was dimmed by some ripples on the surface. The sky to the far east lit up beautifully but the color did not transfer as far west as I had hoped. It crept into the frame a bit but, as usual, I had hoped for more.

As I left the area to head home I was greeted by a tripod-toting lady heading into the viewpoint. She asked if I had given up on getting some sunlight on the mountains. I told her I was happy with the sunrise I’d seen and wished her well. I hope she got what she was after. For me, the hour of being alone and watching sunrise in one of Oregon’s best locations was more than enough.

A trip to the desert

I took a whirlwind trip down-valley to give an India presentation in Eugene and do a short job for the US Forest Service out of Medford.  After the “work” was done I said good bye to friends Jon and Barbara and headed for LaPine.  Good grief… LaPine?  Yup.  I was hoping that the rubber rabbit brush was coloring up in the desert and I’d imagined a picture of Fort Rock, sunset and rubber rabbit brush/sage.  When I looked at the area on Google Earth I was disappointed to see pivot irrigation fields right next to the Fort Rock area.  I’d hoped for a large expanse of desert.  None the less, I checked into a room in LaPine and headed east to Fort Rock to see what might happen.  It had been about 20 years since I was there last and I had no concrete impressions of what I’d run into.

As you approach Ft. Rock on Highway 31 and County Rd. 10 you can see Ft. Rock in the distance.  The rubber rabbit brush was colored up nicely in places and not so much in others. This is a shot looking east toward “the rock”.

I turned into the parking lot and hiked around the rock looking at views.  I learned that it was entirely possible to omit the pivot irrigation and buildings with careful camera placement.

The driving force behind my desire for such an image is a photo of the eastern Sierras taken by Galen Rowell years ago.  I love the brightness of the rabbit brush and the brilliant colors of the sunset over the Sierras in his photo.  I’ve always wondered how he got the rabbit brush to be so bright and colorful while shooting into the sun.  As I wandered around I observed the brush and saw that the color is most vibrant when it is back lit.  Hmmmmm… Then I remembered that Galen pioneered the use of split gradient neutral density filters and it all came together in my head.  I am confident that he took his photo using a 2 or 3 stop grad filter to hold back the sun and to be able to expose the rabbit brush to show it’s brilliance and color.

I headed into Ft. Rock and had a beer and chili cheese burger at the local restaurant/bar.  Since I was the only customer there I got to know the bartender/owner pretty well.  The staff was preparing take out dinners for fire crews and I couldn’t really tell if they welcomed my order or not.  I was just waiting for sunset so there was no real rush.  Darn good burger, BTW.

As sunset drew near I headed out onto the access road to the Rock.  I pulled off and set up the camera and started taking shots as the light matured. I did not use a split grad filter but should have.  This is a 5 image HDR version of what could have probably been done in a single frame with the split grad.

OK, it’s not the Sierras but it is a distinctive Oregon landmark.  I wish that the color had bounced off clouds in the upper frame but overall this is as close as I’ve come to getting this type of image after many attempts.  I’ll be carrying the split grads in the future to give some options for exposure.  For now, I’m quite content with the image and enjoyed being out in the desert with the wind.  Next time I’m hoping that Dianne can come along.  She always adds to the experience and let’s me take my time doing what I want to do.  Some day we’ll retire, eh?

Couldn’t help myself

While I am processing images from a high school senior shoot today (thanks Brianna) I started tinkering with some images of Kendyl.  The images in the header were taken during a photo shoot in which she got put in a variety of settings and “worked it” for us. I have to say that our time with her was exceptional and we came away with a set of images that only make us miss her more.  OK… her parents are also on our list of people we miss but I’m still remembering the feel of Kendyl as she slept on my chest.

And what may be my favorite image from the trip….

Lest you think that the trip was all about Kendyl… think again.  Meet Fischer the wonder dog

Fischer is a labradoodle and is well trained to respond to Chad and Devri.  He loves to sniff Kendyl but goes no farther than that.  It will be interesting to see how his patience develops as she gets older and a bit more aggressive with his ears and nose and tail.  Let the games begin.

I will post some images soon that were taken on our day trip over the Beartooth Plateau (a first for us) and through Yellowstone’s northern edge.

Now.. back to work for me.