Looking Back at 2017 part 7

Looking Back at 2017 part 7.

 

I always love photographing flowing water and waterfalls. I didn’t get to do it nearly as much as I would have liked in 2017, but I did still get a day or two in with some friends. This was in Rabun County, GA at Lower Crow Creek Falls. We had hoped for some fall colors but it was still a week or so before peak colors. This past year involved so many trips around the country, I am hoping to set a few days aside to do some local workshops and photo tours. I’ll keep you posted!

 

Tamron 10-24mm Di-II VC HLD lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f16, ISO 100, shutter speed of 10 seconds, Sirui 4 stop ND filter to slow down the shutter speed, Sirui Circular Polarizer, Sirui W2204X waterproof tripod and K20X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed in Lightroom CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

My thoughts are with the people of NYC

My thoughts are with the people of NYC.

 

I was very shocked and saddened at the terrorist attack yesterday in NYC. My first thought was for some of the wonderful people I met last week, hoping none of them were victims. I then started wondering if any of the victims were people I crossed paths with on the street during my short 3 days there. Sadly the victims were simply people just riding their bikes or out enjoying the weather or on their way to shop, or to work. Random people who had their lives ended for being in the wrong place when a terrorist decided to kill. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the victims, and to the people of NYC.

 

I mentioned last week was my first opportunity to try a bagel from a street vendor. I feel bad, but I didn’t even get his name as I placed my order and talked very briefly with him. There was a fairly long line waiting for his food. I had the opportunity to watch and observe him as he helped those in front of me. He smiled and talked with each and everyone of them. He was simply doing his job, but doing it well. He made each and every person feel they were his one and only customer. He was extremely personable in a city of millions, he is NYC. I’m not a New Yorker, I’m just a country boy, but one thing we can all agree on is to keep these wonderful folks and their healing in our thoughts, prayers and actions.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Aperture Priority, f2.8, ISO 400, shutter speed of 1/30th of a second, handheld utilizing the Vibration Compensation feature of the lens, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed and converted in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge.

 

One of those “iconic” images you have to take is the skyline of Manhattan with the Brooklyn Bridge in the foreground. The last place our little group of friends shot was from the park at the base of the bridge. I chose Black and White for my presentation of the image simply because it just looked like a BW image to me as I processed it. There is a challenge going around on Facebook about posting BW images and encouraging others to do so as well. I have received a few messages asking if they could challenge me and have been nominated a few times already. I would love to see lots of folks posting images for everyone to see even if they aren’t challenged, but instead just to share and hopefully someone learns and is inspired with their image. If I accepted all the nominations and challenges, I would never get to share my regular images, but I try to at least participate in an effort to inspire or encourage others to try new things and to see different ways. Seeing a world loaded with colors in black and white is something that is not an easy task. However when you learn to do so, you learn tones and shapes very well. Get out and shoot at least one image every day, process it, and post it, that is my challenge to everyone. It will keep you sharp and help you with your workflow as well.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f16, ISO 100, shutter speed of 30 seconds, Sirui T2205X tripod and G20X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed and converted in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

NYC Panoramic

NYC Panoramic.

 

After doing several images from the area with the pylons, one of our group suggested we walk out to the end of an old dock area to see if we could do an image of the Brooklyn Bridge as well. From the corner of the dock, I could see it was just calling for an attempt at a panoramic of the Bridge and the Skyline. I decided to shoot with the camera in “portrait” or vertical and then I would stitch those images together using PS. I should have mentioned yesterday, but will do so today, to give a much more desirable look I remembered the numerous times I have heard one of my teachers, Bryan Peterson, instruct his classes to put the camera in “Fluorescent” White Balance. It makes a huge difference. I then adjusted the zoom to 46mm, made sure my tripod, ballhead and camera were all level, then shot image after image overlapping about 25% to make it easy for the software to stitch. I did 7 images for this image. This was the initial stitching and processing so a little fine tuning is needed before printing, but I am impressed with the job the software did on its first attempt. I will eventually print, probably a metal print, and will offer this image for print sale as well. The full sized image is almost 400 megabites! You have to love the resolution of that full frame camera and incredibly sharp Tamron 24-70mm G2 lens!

 

All 7 images were shot with the Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f16, ISO 100, shutter speed of 30 seconds, Sirui T2205X carbon fiber travel tripod and G20X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L, stitched in Photoshop 2018 CC, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

The Manhattan Skyline

The Manhattan Skyline.

 

So this is my third trip to NYC in the past 5 years or so, and it marked many first for me. Yesterday I had my first bagel and coffee from a street vendor. Good stuff, I know there is better in the city though at some of the deli’s, but I was in a rush. I also took my first ride on a subway train. During the ride back, I got to listen to a traveling piano man on the train who supported his piano around his neck with RG59 cable and duct tape. Actually he was very entertaining. I saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time. Awesome, even from the distance I saw her. I saw the Brooklyn Bridge for the first time. And I photographed the Manhattan skyline from Brooklyn! I had been scouting images for a while in hopes to go shoot it this trip. So along with some of the folks from Sirui and a couple other friends, we made our way over to the Promenade Park and to the pylons near the piers. I was mesmerized just seeing the incredible view that was before me. It is a great thing to see and such a iconic image of what makes America.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f5.6, ISO 400, Sirui 6 stop ND filter, shutter speed of 114 seconds, Sirui T-2205X tripod and G20X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L, processed in Lightroom Classic CC, #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

“You looking at me”?

“You looking at me”?

 

The only thing more mesmerizing than seeing the orange eyes of a Eurasian Eagle Owl would be to have them staring through you like this one did to me. She was fascinated by the sound of the camera and the feet on my Sirui monopod. The great thing about using a long lens, like I did, was the minimum focusing distance of the Tamron is close enough that I could fill the frame with the owl’s face almost with very little post process cropping and be far enough away not to scare the owl. The owl was moving so I had to move back a little to leave room in the frame as it shifted left and right slowly. I think people see an owl like this and don’t realize how strong it can be. This owl is over 2 feet long and almost 6 pounds. One person asked if they could move in beside the owl to get a photo with it. The falconer replied, “only if you don’t need that ear”. I thought that was the quote of the day for me.

 

Tamron SP 150-600mm Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-800E, Aperture Priority, f8, ISO 800, resulting in a shutter speed of 1/60th of a second, Sirui EP204S monopod and L10 head, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed in Lightroom Classic CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

Upper Crow Creek Falls 2

Upper Crow Creek Falls 2.

 

All 4 of us shot this view of the falls, but it was interesting how each of us approached this composition. Each of us started in different areas working our way left, right, higher and lower. It seemed though that we all ended up with the same composition or very similar. Our difference in our images is how we ended up handling the image. Some used a smaller aperture (f16 or 22) to slow the water down, one even did a pano focusing on the top, then the bottom, I used a Circular Polarizer and a Neutral Density filter to slow the water down while maintaining the focus, sharpness and depth of field I needed for the image. Which one is right, which one is wrong, they all look good, so they are all right. It just goes to show, it isn’t always how you arrive, it is the fact you make it there in the first place. Experiment with compositions until you find what is visually the most pleasing to you and then decide how you want to present it to your viewer.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f11, ISO 100, Sirui Circular Polarizer to reduce glare, Sirui 4 stop Neutral Density (ND) filter to slow down the water, shutter speed of 10 seconds, Sirui carbon fiber tripod and K40X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L Backpack, processed in Lightroom CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

Upper Crow Creek Falls

Upper Crow Creek Falls.

 

I shared the image of Lower Crow Creek Falls a couple days ago, but if you continue hiking a couple hundred yards up the trail you will be rewarded with the Upper Falls. Rabun County Georgia is loaded with great waterfalls, many of which are easy hikes. When we arrived we noticed 2 trees down in the scene. To me it makes me work harder to find a composition that works with the trees included in the image. Walking around and viewing the scene without your camera is a great first step. When you find an angle that is pleasing then you start to work the scene with different focal lengths. In this case I set the lens at 24mm to bring the foreground into the scene and lead the viewer’s eye to the falls. In doing so, it tends to minimize the log, which I positioned in a darker part of the scene.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f11, ISO 100, Sirui 4 stop ND filter and Circular Polarizer, shutter speed of 10 seconds, Sirui carbon fiber tripod and K40X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed in Lightroom CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

Minnehaha Falls

Minnehaha Falls.

 

There are two Minnehaha Falls that I am aware of, surely there are more, but I know of and have visited two. One is in Minnesota and the other in Rabun County. Since I live in Georgia, I tend to visit the one in Rabun County more often. Minnehaha was the lover of Hiawatha immortalized in Longfellow’s poem. It is also a Dakota word meaning “waterfall” or “rapid water”. Since the Minnehaha Falls in Georgia more closely resembles a cascade where the water travels rapidly, we will go with the rapid water translation. I have been photographing the falls since I was a young adult and love going there each chance I get. It is peaceful and relaxing. I prefer it with about the water flow it has at this time, because with too much more and it becomes a little more “powerful” and loses that relaxing feel. I love photographing it most during spring and fall. The colors around the falls add to the scene so much more as well.

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens on a Nikon D-750, Manual Exposure mode, f11, ISO 100, Sirui 4 stop ND filter and Circular Polarizer to slow down the water and remove glare, shutter speed of 4 seconds, Sirui carbon fiber tripod and K40X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L backpack, processed in Lightroom CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear

Lower Crow Creek Falls

Lower Crow Creek Falls.

 

On Sunday I got to spend the morning photographing a couple waterfalls with some good friends. I always love photographing waterfalls and the hope of a little fall colors to boot made it more enticing to me. So along with my teaching partner Cecil Holmes, Rob LeRoux, and Max Hester, we set out before first light. We stopped first at Minnehaha Falls and were rewarded with some great images, of which I will share in the next days. Then it was off to Bad Branch Falls, but after a brisk hike lead by our speed hiker Max, we arrived to find the fall’s view were blocked by 3 downed trees probably from Irma as she worked her way across the state. Finally we went to Crow Creek to photograph the lower and upper falls. Conditions were really nice and it wasn’t until late in our shooting the sun started breaking through the fog and clouds. The image today is of Lower Crow Creek Falls. Photographing the waterfalls was really nice, photographing them with some good friends made it a great morning.

 

Tamron 10-24mm Di-II VC HLD lens on a Nikon D-500, Manual Exposure mode, f16, ISO 100, Sirui 4 stop Neutral Density Filter and Circular Polarizer, 10 second shutter speed, Sirui Carbon Fiber tripod and K40X ballhead, MindShift Gear FirstLight 20L Backpack, processed in Lightroom CC. #WithMyTamron, #TamronUSA, #TamronLensesUSA, #TamronImageMaster, #Sirui, #SiruiUSA, #SiruiProfessional, #MindShiftGear