The Owyhees
I have had this image as the banner on the blog now for several months, but have never discussed it. It is one that I really enjoy, even though it is not perfect. I had just finished photographing a family at Celebration Park, which overlooks the Snake River just outside of Melba, Idaho. I was tired. It had been a long day and I just wanted to go home. However, as I drove out of the park, I saw this view of the Owyhee Mountains and had to stop. This is one of the few times that I didn’t use a tripod for a landscape image. I did, however, rest the lens against the open window frame of my car. I knew I needed a camera support, but was just too tired to get everything back out. The car did the trick. I have printed the image up to 44 inches and it is very sharp. I know that without some sort of support, though, it would have been soft and unprintable. This is one case where knowing how to get the support quickly and easily paid off.
Many of my students complain about needing to use tripods, so I try to show them different methods to accomplish the same thing. Even though there are other methods of supporting the camera, I find that most often a tripod is still the easiest method. I always carry a tripod. Even if I don’t have a camera, I have a tripod. It very rarely leaves my truck. I have just found that it is so important of a tool. When I don’t use it, I always find that I wished I had. I just cannot hold the camera as still as a tripod does.
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