12-10-13 Late Fall

It occurs to me that in the Black Hills of South Dakota, where this photo was taken, the ponderosa pine is visual white noise in that there are so many of them and, unless they are fallen or bug infested or on fire, they are rarely seen.

Good photography often involves being in the right place at the right time. But good photography also is about directing the camera towards things in ways that help people "see" scenes, events and objects in ways that make them worth noticing.

So today I present a detail of a lowly ponderosa pine which has probably been standing largely unnoticed for 50 years. And what is special about this tree branch? Perhaps nothing. But when photographed at the the right time with the right light, it is certainly interesting and, I think, worth stopping and looking at.

Canon 5DIII 1/200s f/2.8 ISO200 200mm

10-26-13 Dangerous Curves

This blog rarely editorializes. But today's post could have existential meaning. Rather than merely documenting damage from a recent heavy snow fall in the Black Hills, am I saying something about life in general by posting a fallen, twisted twisty road sign? As with all art (if that's what this photo is) you'll have to impose you own experiences and sensibilities in an attempt to answer this question.

Canon 5DIII 1/100s f/5.0 ISO400 80mm

10-23-13 Flow

Anyone who knows this blog knows that I often repeat myself. I have not yet tried to re-invent myself as a photographer and, at my age and inclination, I'm not sure that it is possible. Or worthy.

So here I am again at Iron Creek. But today, when I made the trek from our family's cabin to this spot a few miles away, I found a flow of water unlike anything I have seen in the many years I have been photographing the stream. I am at our cabin right now to clean up several fallen trees on our property. There was a major winter storm three weeks ago that dumped 4' of wet snow on the Black Hills and that caused significant tree damage.

The Hills are a mess - it looks like a bomb went off. But the up side is that the snow melt has caused significant run-off. And thus, my trek to Iron Creek.

Astute observers will not doubt see that this photo is not quite, "real." And they would be right. This is actually 4 separate exposures combined in HDR Efex Pro 2.

I hope you like it.

Canon 5DIII 0.8s f/20.0 ISO100 40mm

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09-24-13 Harvest Moon II

Yes, I'm a lunatic, though I don't howl at the full moon. I just try to take photos of it. This photo is chronologically misplaced in this blog in that it was taken about 12 hours earlier than the other full moon posted a few days ago. As you can see, the moon plays a much less prominent role in this photo. And I guess that was my intent. Here the landscape dominates and the moon just peeks in at the scene.

08-16-13 The Cathedral Spires (HDR)

I'll have to admit that I was trying to channel Ansel Adams when I made* this photo. Of course, Ansel used a view camera, filters and elaborate dark room magic to make his great black and white landscape photos. In the digital realm, all of those things are done using software.

I had taken my Black Hills Photo Adventure participants to the Needles Highway in the Black Hills and when we arrived at this vantage point, low clouds were skimming over the Spires, though you can't see it is this photo. It was the perfect moment to be at this place and I'm guessing that even Adams would have found it worthy of a photo or two.

Incidentally, what made Ansel Adams so good was that he didn't see the landscape that he photographed as geologic architecture. Instead, he worked hard to show the landscape as an environment. I try to do this in this photo, but I would say I fall a little short, though there is plenty of texture in this photo. And texture is a hallmark of Adam's work.

*Adams said, "You don't take a good photo. You make one."

08-01-13 Photographers At Work

In keeping with my "Working Photographer" theme from yesterday I post the second in a series. This time, the photo is of more mature subjects then Glenyce J. The subjects: Patricia, of Monterey, CA and Nicole of Houston, TX. The setting: Lakota Lake, the Black Hills, South Dakota.

And the event was my July Black Hills Photo Adventure, which drew participants from all over the US. (Well I'm exaggerating. The states represented were TX, CA and SD, which is almost the whole United States.) Anyway, we had a perfect morning to visit one of my favorite early morning photo locations.

It looks like Nicole and Patricia are having a good time, doesn't it? And they are smiling in spite of the fact that I made them get up well before 5am to enjoy the morning "golden hour."

Canon 5DIII 1/60s f/5.6 ISO400 200mm

07-18-13 Prickly Pear

Anyone driving along the forest service road I used to get to this photo location would have wondered why a man was lying prone near an old, dead tree at 5:45 am this morning. But nobody else was likely to do that. In fact I could lie prone for the whole day and not be seen.

My mission this morning was to photograph rocks and trees in an area I hadn't photographed before. But in my quest for the perfect shot, I discovered a small colony of prickly pear cactus growing by a weathered tree. And so my mission changed.

Fortunately, I had my 100mm macro with me and I was able to get up close and personal with a plant you wouldn't think would thrive in the Black Hills National Forest. What I liked about the subjects in this photo were the rich, monotone textures of the weathered wood and the spiny, crisp edges and lines of the cactus. I also liked the vibrant green of the cactus juxtaposed against the dull, gray tree branch.

Canon 5DIII 1/6s f/18.0 ISO250 100mm

07-17-13 Aspen Stand

This blog has be AWOL much of the summer but I guess I have been, too. As of the 17th of July I think I have been home for a little more than 10 days since the third week of May. I have also had little access to wifi. So that's my excuse.

But given that I am only two days away from the start of the July Black Hills Photo Adventure, I'm thinking I need to post something - especially of the Black Hills

So here's my selection: a grove of aspen trees that has appeared before in this blog. But, as I've said many times, I like to return to places I've photographed before largely because they are magnets to my eye and camera but also because I feel I am a little wiser: I see better, I understand my equipment better and I am better at processing images in my digital dark room.

Ansel Adams never talked about "taking" a photo. He said that he "made photos." I like that and now that I know the art and craft of photography better, I would say the same thing: true photographers make pictures.