Welcome to my blog! Read about photography, film photography in 35mm, medium, and large formats, pinhole photography, about darkroom printing, alternative photographic processes, and more. Thank you for visiting!
Under Water
I saw this scene on Green Lake many times in the past and either did not have the camera with me, or the weather was not right, or … Bottom line, I never took the photo before.
Then I finally could not resist, went to get the gear, and showed up to photograph this flooded walkway from across the inflow. It turned out though that I underestimated the distance and my 24 - 85mm just was not enough to get the head on view. I could have done it under an angle from the banks along but I wanted this view that I kept seeing from the road. From that angle it looked like it was a railing on water, and a lot of the debris remained hidden behind the walkway.
It was very windy. Windy was good, it created ripples on the water and long exposures had a nice effect. But it was so windy I could not keep the camera steady even when I weighed the tripod down. All photos were soft and given the need for a significant crop the softness showed a lot.
So back I went one more time, in between downpours and storms, with my 80 - 400 mm. There was almost no wind making long exposures less effective. Even the little bit of a breeze gave me some trouble to keep the camera steady enough for this 90s exposure at 270 mm.
Flooded Green Lake BridgeOrchard Park, New York
It is the photo I had in mind though, so another one off the list. Have fun making you visions a reality!
Nikon D600, Nikon 24-85mm Nikkor Lens, Manfrotto tripod (055MF3, replaced by 055CXPRO3 with the convenient Q90 column) and head (496RC2), B+W 77mm Neutral Density (ND) Filter 1.8 - 64x, Think Tank Speed Demon Waist Pack, Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Headlamp (always in the bag just in case), SanDisk Extreme 32GB SD Cards, Nikon Capture NX2, B&W conversion in Silver Efex Pro 2, including a hint of selenium toning.
Using my links to buy your equipment keeps me going and costs you nothing. You can also use the Amazon search box in bottom left for anything not mentioned here. Thank you very much, I really appreciate it!
Spring at the Museum
First Touch of LightHistory Museum, 2014
I returned to the Japanese Garden and Buffalo History Museum a year later to get a little different view of the spring season there. Last year I visited at the beginning of April, this year in early May. Even though the spring season was a bit late in Western New York this year (2014) the difference was clear as nature had more time to wake up from the grip of winter. The colors of spring are not as wild as those of autumn but their subtle beauty is a wonderful sight nevertheless.
Spring ColorsBuffalo History Museum
I was happy to catch the cherry trees in the bloom despite visiting a bit late. The belated spring helped me out. This year, Buffalo held its first Cherry Blossom Festival, planned as annual going forward. My morning visit was couple days after the festival's end with the blooms still plentiful and slowly starting to fall. You can spot them on the left side of the photo between the museum and Mirror Lake. It was not just the cherries that got dressed in a colorful coat. The willow tree on the right-hand side was wearing a beautiful yellow dress, and the various grasses were rich green. I really enjoy watching the changes and they become so apparent with a side by side comparison like this one.
I went for a wider view this time too and the almost windless morning helped keep the reflection like a perfect undisturbed mirror. I wanted the wider view to get all of the blooming cherry trees into the scene on the left, and the willow on the right. I felt the end result ended up nicely balanced including the 50/50 split between reality and reflection.
Have fun watching your world change!
References:
Buffalo Cherry Blossom Festival - Japanese Garden in Delaware Park - Friends of the Japanese Garden of Buffalo - The Seasons (at the Buffalo History Museum)
Equipment used:
Nikon D600, Nikon 24-85mm Nikkor Lens, Graduated Cokin ND Filter (ND4), Cokin P Holder with a 72 mm Adapter, Manfrotto tripod (055MF3; replaced by 055CXPRO3 with the convenient Q90 column) and Manfrotto Ball Head (496RC2), Think Tank Speed Demon Waist Pack, Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Headlamp (always in the bag just in case), Jackery Bar 5600mAh (usually o hand to keep the smart phone going), SanDisk Extreme 32GB SD Cards, Nikon Capture NX2.
Using my links to shop on Amazon.com, whether to buy your equipment or any other merchandise, keeps me going and costs you nothing. You can also use the Amazon.com search box in bottom left for anything not mentioned here. Thank you very much, I really appreciate it!
Road Trip: Colorado National Monument
Colorado became the 38th state to join the United States on August 1, 1876. The capital city is Denver. The highest point is Mt. Elbert at 14,433 feet.
Wedding & Monument CanyonsColorado National Monument
Road Trip 2013 - Day 8 - June 18 - Colorado (Previous road trip 2013 posts: Indiana Dunes, De Immigrant, Amana Colonies, Des Moines, Madison County Roads, Bridges of Madison County, White Pole Road, Great Platte River Road Archway Monument, Golden Spike Tower & Union Pacific's Bailey Rail Yard, Loveland Pass, The Resting Day at Powderhorn, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Cimarron)
Each stop along the way on the 2013 road trip provided its own reasons for excitement. Road trips just provide such a cool variety. Just look through the list above: nature, architecture, history, movie sets, trains, outlaws, and so much more.
Our 8th day led us to Colorado National Monument. I was really anxious to see the place. While in Colorado, what we were to see was to look more like the canyons of Utah or Arizona. It rises about 2,000 feet above the valley of the Colorado River. It is a part of the greater Colorado Plateau, the same plateau that is a host to the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Arches national parks. And since Utah was still ahead of us in days to come, this was going to be a nice preview of a similar environment.
DesolationColorado National Monument
With each of the canyons of the American Southwest, an arrival is different. With the Grand Canyon, you very gradually drive up in elevation without ever noticing and then the canyon appears as a surprise and giant hole in the ground. With Bryce, it is similar. In ZIon, you enter the park in the valley and the peaks are around you. And here, in the Colorado National Monument, you start low and climb your way up the Uncompahgre Uplift while enjoying the scenery behind and below you as well as ahead of you. There is no dull moment driving on the Rim Rock Drive.
Soon after you finish your climb you reach the visitor center. Right from across the street, you can enjoy the beauty of the Wedding Canyon down below and see into the Monument Canyon leading far into the Monument. There are countless rock formations and as far as photography goes, it's easy to employ lenses from wide to telephoto.
Canyon Rim Trail and Window Rock Trail provide gorgeous views both along the upper edges and also down into the canyon. And yes, I always fall into the trap of looking for dead or at least dead looking vegetation, whether laying on the ground or reaching for the sky. And you know what, this park had plenty of those too. Just get on some of the trails and I am sure you will find some too.
Coke OvensColorado National Monument
As you drive further into the park on Rim Rock Drive the roadside viewpoints and several trails offer views into different side canyons leading to the sides of the main Monument Canyon. You can also enjoy the views to the east and be fascinated by the abruptly different scenery. It's amazing how the Monument and the whole Uncompahgre Uplift raise completely out of nowhere!
Not completely tired after a day at the Colorado National Monument? Still some energy and curiosity left? Plan your visit for a Tuesday! That way, as you drive back down into the valley you can have your GPS navigate you back to Fruita and enjoy a rodeo! It's every Tuesday in June - August 4:30 - 9:30 PM, with the main event kicking off at 7:30 (please, search the web and confirm before you go). But that is a story for another day!
Have fun on your summer trips!
Sources:
Colorado on 50states.com, History and Culture of Colorado National Monument on nps.gov, Colorado National Monument Map on nps.gov, Colorado National Monument on Wikipedia, Coke Ovens Trail on Hikespeak.com, Cole Coke on Railcraft, Nature and Science of Colorado National Monument, William Howard Taft on Wikipedia, North American Deserts
Equipment Used:
Nikon D600, Nikon 24-85mm Nikkor Lens, Induro Carbon 8x Travel Tripod (CT-014) and Manfrotto Ball Head (496RC2), Think Tank Speed Demon Waist Pack, Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Headlamp (always in the bag just in case), Jackery Bar 5600mAh (usually o hand to keep the smart phone going), SanDisk Extreme 32GB SD Cards, Nikon Capture NX2.
Using my links to buy your equipment keeps me going and costs you nothing. You can also use the Amazon search box in bottom left for anything not mentioned here. Thank you very much, I really appreciate it!
Restful Deliberation
Moody Branch MazeRestful Deliberation
A simple one today. Yet so complex. A maze to get lost in ...
Several fairly active months of running and other sports, then a week of slacking, couple weeks of vacation spent on a road trip, another lazy week of resting, and then a denial of losing the edge, an attempt to dive right back in full force in a day, followed by another day of futile trying to keep up but being forced to admit a different but slower approach will be needed.
An evening on the couch looking out of the window following the branches of a still bare maple tree. Not completely bare, just still devoid of leaves, yet, full of helicopters. Those could be seen in a color photograph but not really in a black and white. And color here would not demonstrate the point, the mix of simplicity, yet endless complexity of the branch system of this maple tree.
After many minutes of quiet observation I could no longer resist. Off to my feet I went again, reached for the camera and tripod, and headed out to search for a vantage point as similar to the window view as possible. No, I did not succeed. It started to rain and since I needed to tilt my camera and lens steeply up I left that composition for another time and kept searching for an alternative from a dry place. I wanted a frame with a variety of branch thickness yet with nothing too dominating the frame. A frame with just about equal balance throughout.
As pointed out above, while shot in color, it was intended to be black and white from the beginning to put focus on the structure, the maze, without distractions. Overexposed by over a stop to render the cloudy sky as a blank background to further aid simplicity, bringing back the true blacks during the black and white conversion.
Different paths lead to different photos. Some are more about their contents, some about the mood. Here, I've shared a story about how I got to this photo and what I tried to depict - a feeling of relaxation, resting, and getting lost in the maze and in thought.
Have fun finding scenes matching your moods!
Equipment used:
Nikon D600, Nikon 24-85mm Nikkor Lens, Manfrotto tripod (055MF3; replaced by 055CXPRO3 with the convenient Q90 column) and Manfrotto Ball Head (496RC2), SanDisk Extreme 32GB SD Cards, Nikon Capture NX2, Nik Collection Silver Efex Pro 2.
Using my links to shop on Amazon.com, whether to buy your equipment or any other merchandise, keeps me going and costs you nothing. You can also use the Amazon.com search box in bottom left for anything not mentioned here. Thank you very much, I really appreciate it!
A Different View (of Watkins Glen)
Before you go screaming at me that we barely made it through winter and it's definitely not fall yet, trust me, I know. This winter was long, even for those enjoying winter sports. It started in November and did not let go until April. And that depends on how you look at it. Some might say it did not really leave yet. So yes, I know it's not fall yet and despite that being a wonderful season I do not want it yet - that would just mean we're in for another winter. However, I am looking forward to some colors showing up, even if it is just the spring subtle yellows and greens.
Exploring new places is exciting and I love doing that. That's a big part of my appetite for travel and travel photography that comes with it. However, it often feels more like location scouting than serious photography due to the very limited time on site. That's where going back to the same places over and over again fills the gap. And yes, I've mentioned that in the past (Revisit Your Locations, Revisiting Locations Revisited, The Changes at Eighteen Mile Creek, Winter's Turn, Back to the Pier for a Winter Look, The Seasons at Emery Park, a Year-Long Photo Project, Back at the Elevator for a Different Take).
Watkins Glen WindowNot the Typical View
When you go back to a place again, you know what to expect, you have some photos from before and know what worked and what did not, you know how the light looks, you know the angles, you know where a wide angle can be used and where a telephoto is better. Yet, there is always something new to see, something new to try. And most of the times it's something you can be in charge of. Just change your point of view, your angle, your lens, time of the day, weather ... There are so many variables!
Other times, luck steps in. That was the case with me and this photograph. I loved walking through the Watkins Glen State Park on this rainy autumn day. The foliage looked even more colorful being wet (with a little help from a polarizing filter you can cut the glare and be left with pure saturated color), the sheen on the rocks worked great for my taste too, and people don't like bad weather much. Combine the rain with being late in the day and there was barely anyone there.
We usually walk the gorge trail up the creek, then the stairs up, and the woods trail back down to the parking lot. But since it was late, we just turned around and backtracked our steps through the gorge again. It was a whole new world! You can think that by turning around once in a while you can spot the sights in both directions but this instance clearly showed me that is not the case! By turning around, you miss out on how everything changes as you approach from faraway, you miss out on fine tuning the angles and perspective. Remember how it felt looking at a blank white paper in a developer and the image slowly coming to life, first very faint but gradually becoming crisp and bold? That is what you miss out on by just turning around!
As we walked the gorge this view shaped up in front of me and I knew I had something new from a good old place. No waterfall in the scene, not really even the creek! Now tell me, have you seen a photo from Watkins Glen without a waterfall? There you have it, and here you have the photo. Even the canyon is barely in it, just as a silhouette framing the window overlooking the seasonal show of color. I stood there and stared. It took me a while to wake up from my dream and put the camera down on a tripod. Now I can blow up this photo, grab a mug of tea, stare, and dream (of being in Watkins Glen).
Have fun dreaming your dreams!
Equipment Used:
Nikon D600 (replaced with D610 but the D600 saving you about $500 as of now), Nikon 24-85mm Nikkor Lens, Induro Carbon Fiber 4-section Tripod (CT014) (my travel tripod; its four sections give it smaller collapsed size and it's also lighter than my standard workhorse tripod. It has been through deserts and oceans and is still going strong after 4 years), Manfrotto ball head (496RC2), Hoya 72mm NXT Circular Polarizing Slim Frame Glass Filter, Think Tank Speed Demon Waist Pack, Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Headlamp (always in the bag just in case), SanDisk Extreme 32GB SD Cards, Exposure delay mode of 2 seconds, no remote release, Nikon Capture NX2