Posts in Category: mountain
2/14/2009
About Fog
Not exactly a Valentines Day image, but…
Likely the last of the Jack London State Park series for Pic of the Day. Tendrils of misty fog across the pines and redwoods above the high terrace of vines. Atmosphere. I used the zoom on the H50 to crop in and make the fog the subject of the image.
Sony DSC H50 at about 100mm equiv. F8.0 @ 1/40th @ ISO 100. Programed Auto.
Processed in Lightroom to bring out the transparency of the fog, using the Recovery slider. Added Vibrance and Clarity. Landscape sharpen.
From Vallejo and Sonoma.
12/8/2008
Coronado National Monument: AZ
Coronado National Monument, south of Sierra Vista AZ, right on the Mexican border, is one of those little, lightly visited gems of the National Park Service. We visited twice in our 7 days in Sierra Vista, and on both trips had the visitor’s center to ourselves. We saw no other hikers either day on extensive hikes on the wonderful trails. This is a view from the actual monument, a short steep climb up from a parking lot at the top of the long, well graded road that runs up and over a high pass. Ours was the only car in the parking lot. We are looking north west here, along the west side of the Huachucas, on the other side of the pass. Mexico is right behind us.
It was a stormy day in the valleys around Sierra Vista, and there was a good deal of moisture…some haze…in the air, and that effected the shot. This kind of haze, however, is a natural part of the scene during the August monsoon in Arizona, and, to me, does not detract from the view.
Taken at the wide end of the zoom (31mm equiv.) of the Sony H9. F5.6 @ 1/640th @ ISO 80. Programed Auto.
In Lightroom, I did try to deal somewhat with the haze. Recovery was used, along with Clarity and Vibrance, and I reduced the luminosity of the blue color band (the most scattered by haze). Sharpen Landscape preset.
Some have criticized this shot as having no center of attention. What caught my eye, and still catches it, is the play of light and shadow over the foothills and mountains: the great dark mass of rock overhanging the slopes.
From the Cochise County Gallery.
12/2/2008
Trial Lake, Utah with Marsh Marigolds
I visited the mountains around Salt Lake City for the American Birding Association Convention in July of this year. We saw a lot of great birds, but, for me the most amazing part of the trip was the wildflowers. Everywhere we went in the mountains we found the meadows in bloom. This is Trial Lake, at about 10,500 feet in the Uinta Mountains to the west of Salt Lake City. The flowers are Marsh Marigold, growing in a boggy area where a stream trickled down to the lake.
I had a difficult choice in framing here. I wanted a carpet of flowers in the foreground with the mountain (Wilson Peak) dominating the background, but the tall tree on the left was an issue. I tried shots with the full tree, but that made the peak too distant, and I tried zooming in and cropping out the tree, but that left me with a compressed and unsatisfying spread of flowers. This was a compromise, with the tree cut off, but…
Sony H50 at about 31mm equiv. F5.6 @ 1/500th @ ISO 100. Programed Auto.
The image required very little Lightroom processing. A touch of Clarity and Vibrance, and the Sharpen Landscapes preset.
From the Utah Vistas Gallery.
11/17/2008
Kritchner Caverns SP, Sierra Vista AZ
We spent a week in Sierra Vista Arizona a year ago August, at the height of the second rainy season, which is just about the best time to visit for desert blooms and birds. Kritchner Caverns are live caves, only discovered 20 years ago, and only recently opened to the public. The surrounding desert has many hiking trails, and it is definitely a rewarding visit for the photographer.
For this shot, I was attempting to catch the detail of the blooming fish-hook barrel cactus against the majestic backdrop of the desert mountain skyline. Again the articulated LCD makes the low angle comfortable.
I actually worked this cactus and the view for about 10 minutes and took a number of images from different angles.
32 mm equiv. F5.6 @ 1/640 @ ISO 100. Programed Auto. Auto WB.
Post processed in Lightroom. My standard Recovery for cloud detail, added Clarity and Vibrance, Sharpen Landscape preset. I reduced the luminance of the blue slightly.
This was a good exercise on working the angles.
11/16/2008
Cadillac Mountain on a perfect sky day
I saw this day happening as we came back into Bar Harbor from a morning Puffin and Whale cruise, waited out the light, and then drove to the top of Cadillac just in time to catch an amazing series of shots. It is more and more rare to have days this clear on the coast of Maine.
I liked the way the fense lead out toward the horizon and added another texture to the rock, lichen, and sky. It is all but impossible to eliminate all people from a Cadillac summit shot as it is one of the most popular spots in one of the most popular National Parks. I don’t even try anymore. People are part of the Acadia experience now, unavoidably. I just try to catch them in interesting spots in the composition.
Sony DSC H50. 32mm equiv. F5.6 @ 1/800 @ ISO 100 (Auto). Auto Program. Auto WB.
Post processed in Lightroom. Recovery for the cloud detail. Added Clarity, Vibrance, and Landscape Sharpen preset.