by tmoffett | Jul 11, 2010 | Color, Family, Random images
Bayhorse, Idaho
Just up the road from the kilns that I posted yesterday is the city of Bayhorse. In its day it was a booming mining town. The first miners moved in hoping to find gold, but it was silver that was in abundance here. Now there is nothing left here, but just upstream there is a little lake that has some terrific fishing. That is where we were headed when I stopped to photograph for a while. I love to fish, but if I have to choose between fishing and photographing, the camera nearly always wins out. Just ask my kids! They often get tired waiting for me to get the shot. Instead of hearing “Are we there yet?” on a family trip, it is “Hurry up dad, we’ll never get there at this pace!” This day was no exception.
We still got to the lake in time to catch some fish.
by tmoffett | Jul 7, 2010 | Color, Photo tips, Random images
Tunnel Vision
This image brings back great memories! I was with a couple of friends out photographing in Eastern Idaho and we hiked down to this tunnel. It was light when we arrived and the scenery in the area was great. We shot until dark, and then some more. We then realized that none of us had flashlights and it was pitch black. No moon out and away from the lights of the city. We stumbled our way out and finally made it back to the truck. It would have been quite funny to watch us. It was all worth it, though. I also learned to keep a light with me at all times, because you never know when you might need it.
Back to the image. As it was getting dark, the tunnel became quite interesting. I could see a faint light at the other end and the wood trusses created an interesting pattern. The only light available was my Canon 580EX camera flash. I decided to send one of my friends into the tunnel and pop the flash. I ran a test and determined where and with what power to use the flash, then I locked the shutter open and we went to work. We used 8 flashes inside the tunnel and when my friend returned we popped the landscape twice, skimming the light across the surface instead of blasting the light directly into it. In all, the exposure was about 3.5 minutes.
Learning to use and control the light that is available to you is very important as a photographer. It will allow you to make creative images in places and at times that others cannot because they lack the necessary knowledge and skill. It will open new doors for you to explore, and if you are at all like me, you like exploring new ideas.
by tmoffett | Jul 4, 2010 | Color, Random images
Blossoms of Fire
Happy Independence Day! Enjoy some of my fireworks images from past Fourth of July celebrations. I try to shoot with a little different twist than others do. All of my fireworks images are in camera effects. I do not add any Photoshop effects later.
Up until just a few years ago, I had never photographed fireworks. I loved watching a good show, but had no desire to duplicate what everyone else had done. I thought that most images of fireworks were predictable and boring. Then during one show I got an idea, so I took my camera to the next fireworks display that I had a chance to see, tried out my idea and was very pleasantly surprised at the results. There is more depth and dimension to these than most. Here are a couple more images. I hope you enjoy them.
Thing 1
Spinner
by tmoffett | Jul 3, 2010 | Color, Composition, Random images
Concord Leaf
I remember while in school years ago, Ruth Bernhard chewing a bunch of us students out for traveling a distance to make our photographs. She referred back to her famous teapot image and told how she picked the teapot up off of the street, all beat up and smashed. She took it to the studio and created a masterpiece. She then told us that we should be able to make images in our own backyards.
I pulled in the driveway one evening and saw the new grape leaves on our vines right next to the driveway. The evening light was skimming across them and seemed to highlight just this one leaf. It was beautiful. Ruth’s words flowed through my mind. I grabbed my camera and began shooting, and this is what I came up with.
The light was nice, highlighting the texture, however the color in the background seemed to get in the way of the image. I have often told my students that if anything in the frame does not help the image, then get rid of it! So I eliminated the color in the background. All I see now is the new life that comes every Spring to the vines. Eliminate and simplify, two concepts that if mastered will surely help create a more powerful image.
by tmoffett | Jun 8, 2010 | Color, Landscape, Photographic Philosophy, Random images
Shoreline, Seaside, Oregon
The first couple of days here on the Oregon coast we did not see the sun. It was cloudy and rainy, but that has not stopped me from making photographs. It has been great to get away with Christeena and recharge our batteries. We both love photographing, so this has been a perfect vacation so far.
This image is one that will be a part of a series of images that I have been working on for quite some time now dealing with water in motion. It is evolving into a set of work that has a bit of an abstractness to it. That abstractness generates a feeling of mystery or wonder. It adds a dimension to the work that straight photography sometimes lacks. All of the motion in these images are created in camera, none of it is photoshopped in, as some tend to believe. I have been working on getting more feeling into all of my work, and this set of images has helped me to do that.
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