Category Archives: The Grand Landscape

The overview of the natural landscape.

Starting Up Again

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170302_Central CA CoastFuji X-T1, XF 18-135mm @ 89 mm, f/11, 1/350 sec, ISO 400

It has been several months since I entered my last post.  It is time to get started again.  I was motivated to do so by two photographers I went on a photo shoot with along the Central California Coast.  These two, Karen Hall and Vicki Moro, took me on a quick introductory trip along the California coast line above Morro Bay.  They encouraged me to start sharing my images again.  Thank you Karen and Vicki for a great day and the stimulus!

This image is of the hills above Morro Bay.  What caught my eye was the layers of shadows across the emerald green hills, the water, the distant hills, and the clouds.  The shot was at mid-day, so I combined several images to create a balanced exposure.

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Welcome to the Palouse

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160923_sunset-on-palouseCanon 5D MkII, EF 24-105 f/4 L @ 58mm, f/11, 1/15 sec, ISO 200

This is what greeted me as I drove up to the Palouse in SE Washington State for a week of exploring and photographing.  The brilliant pink and orange lasted for only a few minutes.  I rapidly looked for a place to pull off the highway.  By the time I got out and pulled out my camera, the magic was just about over  In less that a minute the glow was gone.  Too bad it is illegal to stop in the middle of a highway to capture a shot.

I was really excited about the clouds and what I expected to see during the next few days.  However, the clouds did not come back during my stay.  So I focused on the rolling hills, unique lines, and architectural elements.  This trip was for scouting anyway.

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Old-Barn-1 Wheels Old-Barn-2 Red-Roof-Barn Curving-Road-Hill Steep-Hill-Fence Old-Grain-Elevator

Star Gazing

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160714_Milky WayMilky Way in Central Oregon

The skies were clear and dark with a new moon.  We were out in a remote area in Central Oregon near the Prineville Reservoir. The skies were brilliant with stars shining everywhere.  I had not been in such a site since I was in Boy Scouts over 50 years ago.  I stared, stared, and stared, totally engrossed in the beauty and the enormity of the heavens above me.  I dreamed about all the possibilities out there for other forms of life.  It was a wonderful, amazing night that I will never forget.

 

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Badlands Sunrise

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160614_Badlands SunriseFuji X-T1, XF10-24mm @24mm. f/22. 1/13 sec, ISO 1600

The sky was very dark and covered with clouds. The landscape was very dark and covered with shadows.  Then for a few seconds the sun popped out in a small gap in the clouds.  The landscape opened up its arms for me to enjoy.  The three hour drive starting at 3:00 AM to catch the sunrise was worth it!

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Badlands National Park

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160604_Badlands 2Fuji X-T1, EF 18-135mm @ 31mm, f/16, 1/110 sec, ISO 800

I walked down into the basin of the Badlands and looked up to see the towering, eroded hills behind me.  I processed this image to separate the foreground from the background by adding a touch of NIK’s Color EFEX Pro graduated fog to the background.  I should have shot this image at a wider aperture to produce a natural effect.  Lesson Learned:  Take my time, work the image from different settings and exposures to create the effects that bring out specific elements of the subject.

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Badlands National Park – Burns Basin

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160602_Badlands 1Fuji X-T1, EF18-135mm @ 18mm, f/11, 1/175 sec, ISO 400

During a 2,880 mile, 4 day drive from Philadelphia to Washington State, I made one stop to photograph the Badlands National Park.  The Badlands has been on my photography “bucket list” for years.  I got up early at 3:00 AM and drove 200 miles to catch the sunrise at the park.  I spent only 5 hours driving and taking short walks to capture the typical sights.  It was more of a quick scouting expedition rather than a planned photo shoot.  I will be back!

The light was rather poor, even at sunrise.  But that did not alter my enjoyment of the park.  I anticipated that I would end up processing the images in B&W, so I focused my shooting on trying to capture tonal contrasts.  During the next few days I will post additional Badlands National Park photos.

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Yakima Arboretum Early Spring IR

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160406_Yakima ArboretumCanon XT-IR, Tamron 18-270mm @ 65mm, f/11, 1/500 sec, ISO 400

Cherry trees are in bloom and brilliant green leaves are emerging at the Yakima Arboretum.  It is a great time to get out my old IR converted Canon Rebel XT and try out some IR imagery.  It was a beautiful spring day and I had a little time in the middle of the day to get out and explore.  I chose to work in B&W using Infrared.  The Arboretum was showing its early spring pink and white blooms of the cherries and pears as well as a few trees with emerging brilliant light green leaves.  Tomorrow I will go again with my normal camera.

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