by tmoffett | Jun 23, 2010 | Color, Landscape, Photo tips
Sunset Silhouette
As a landscape photographer I am always watching the sky. An interesting sky can really add to an image. Sometimes it is the image. Such is the case here.
Something I have learned through the years is to always be prepared. If you don’t have your camera, you can’t make the photograph. I was on vacation, staying at my brother-in-laws house when I stepped out on the balcony and saw this incredible sky. Fortunately I had learned to keep a camera with me. I quickly set up and captured this scene.
When photographing the sunset, one tip is to make sure to not overexpose the image. Your in camera meter will ofttimes tell you to do just that. You must be in control and tell the camera what to do! To get really rich colors, I will often reduce my exposure by one to two full stops. That will also create the silhouette in the foreground which helps to simplify the composition. I am often asked if I manipulated the color in this photo, and the answer is no. It was all done in camera. Shooting the scene correctly will allow you to print larger and higher quality prints. The more you manipulate an image in Photoshop, the more degradation that occurs to the image, thus reducing the overall quality of the finished print. That is why it is so important to master your camera before learning Photoshop.
by tmoffett | Jun 22, 2010 | Color, Composition, Landscape, Uncategorized
Sunbathing Allowed
A crisp Saturday morning at sunrise brought calm and empty waters at Lake Lowell. Just an hour later and the lake would be bustling with watercraft and fishermen. And little later than that and this dock would be filled with swimmers and sunbathers of all ages. I just happen to catch the calm before the storm!
While walking along the shoreline near the boat ramp I found this view of the dock. The blue sky at dawn reflecting on the water seemed to give a cool feeling to the whole scene. What really makes the image for me, though are the string of orange buoys leading from the dock to the trees on the left. They provide just enough pattern and complimentary color to break up the smooth cool tones throughout the photograph. I love the feel, the texture and color. It all works together for the good of the image.
by tmoffett | Jun 21, 2010 | Color, Landscape, Photo tips
Washed Ashore
I began photographing this log that had washed ashore as an example of an assignment I give some of my classes. I have the students find a subject and make at least 30 completely different images of hat subject. I want them to look at different angles and lighting. High, low, left, right, front lighting, back lighting, early morning, afternoon, etc. After about 20 images I really started having fun looking for new angles. I ended up with about 50 shots to pick from. I had close-ups of the water dripping from the decayed wood near the base, images of the 10 foot log that is hidden on the backside of this end, shots from eye level that show this in its true size (it is actually less than 3 feet tall), wide shots that de-emphasize the log and many other options.
This is a great exercise in vision. It helps develop vision in the beginner as well as keep the seasoned pro sharp. Any time I start feeling a little flat in my work, this exercise helps to get me out of the rut. It is even more effective when you do this exercise with another photographer and then critique each others images. Learning to see and developing your personal vision is vital to becoming a successful photographer. There is so much technical stuff in photography that we can easily get caught up in that we forget to let our feelings and instinct get involved in the process. If we can’t get to that point-letting feelings into our image making, then our photos will be lifeless. I really saw that happen in the series of photos that led up to this one. I was at first thinking about getting 30 images that I was thinking too hard. After about 20 shots I began to just go with the flow, whatever I felt I shot. That is when the “good stuff” began happening. I was no longer thinking about the technical things, they were taking care of themselves (comes from many rears of shooting!). I was having fun composing in the viewfinder, watching the waves and timing them as I waited at beach level to shoot another shot, moving around the log and looking from different directions, watching how the clouds moved and framed the log as I moved positions,…
This is what photography is all about. Having fun and sharing my vision of the world with others.
by tmoffett | Jun 19, 2010 | Black and White, Landscape, Photo tips, Uncategorized
Winder Reservoir
I love going to new places. I was out with some friends a while back over in South-Eastern Idaho and we decided to find somewhere to go fishing. We ended up at Winder Reservoir mid morning and wet our lines. The sun came out and it got hot and the fish were not biting. I decided to get out the cameras and make photographs. The light was pretty harsh, so I focused on the clouds that were drifting by. I have found that during the day when lighting is less than ideal, the clouds often look wonderful. That was the case that morning.
I also love black and white. In my formative years in photography that is all I shot. Very rarely did I even consider color as an option. This was an ideal time to load the camera with black and white film, put on Wratten 25 filter and shoot away. The trouble was I had no film camera with me. So I shot away with my Canon 5D, visualizing what the image would be in black and white, then when returning home converting the original color to the pre-visualized rendering of the image. By minimizing the foreground and emphasizing the sky and clouds, I was able to create a visually pleasing image in the harsh light of the late morning sun.
Photogaphs can be created any where and anytime. We just need to know where to look. Recognizing what we can do in different lighting conditions is a skill that takes much practice. I am still learning. Shooting and evaluating are both necessary to learn this skill. Many times we forget the evaluation step, but without it we will keep doing the same things over and over and never learn. Take the time to review what you do. Show others and get feedback. That is what really helps.
Happy shooting!
by tmoffett | Jun 18, 2010 | Black and White, Composition, Landscape
John Day Fossil Beds, Painted Hills Unit
On our way home from the Oregon Coast last week, one of the reasons we nearly ran out of gas was because we stopped at the fossil beds to photograph and by the time we got back on the road and into a town with a gas station they were all closed. I am working on a panoramic image form here that I will post later, but this one I have grown to like as well. It really looks good as a larger print, so I hope you get the effect here.
The sun was setting and skimming across the surface of the hills causing them to really stand out against the brush around them. The diagonals flowing from left to right, top to bottom and then the lighter hills moving in the opposite direction break up the composition just enough to keep it interesting. This is one of those photographs that I was pulled into and started shooting, although I didn’t know exactly why. It was after I started working on it to get ready to print that I began to fall in love with it. It sort of grows on you. The more I look at it, the more I like it. The light, the line, the repetition, the movement of the brush in the foreground due to wind… I’m not sure what I like most. Maybe it is the whole experience.
Technical info: Canon 5D, Canon 24-70 2.8L @ 35mm, f22, 1.3 sec., ISO 100
More images at MoffettGallery.com.
by tmoffett | Jun 17, 2010 | Color, Composition, Landscape
Aspens, Jackson Hole, WY
Not everything that I photograph is water. I love nature and spend a lot of time in the outdoors. I have learned that wherever you are images can be made. If the light is right then you can find a composition that will be nice.
I was in Jackson Hole, Wyoming a while back for some meetings and found some time to go our photographing. We (Christeena and I) had been out photographing some barns and other old structures when it started raining, I mean really raining. We found shelter in the car and decided to wait out the storm. As the rain slowed, the sun peeked through the clouds and its diffused light fell on this small aspen grove that was right in front of where we had parked the car. I got out, composed and shot. It doesn’t happen that easy very often.
The dappled, soft light falling on the aspens and wet grass create and almost painterly look here that is wonderful. The soft color, the repetition of the trees, and all of the elements in play here add to the beauty in nature that we often find right after a rainstorm. Everything feels and smells so fresh. It was that feeling of freshness that I was trying to capture.
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