Nature
This is a good example of something as prosaic as wild grass growing in a country ditch becoming more interesting with the right lighting. In this case I was heading to an old farmstead I like to photograph when I noticed how the low sun seemed to bring the heads of the grass to life.
Like the gold oak leaf posted here several days ago, this grass wouldn't have caught your eye if you had seen it from the sunny side.
By Scott Shephard
I'll let you in on a secret: I sometimes play the role of Mother Nature. In this case, I misted the flowers with a spray bottle. The beads of water add interest and I'll bet I'm not the only photograper who does this.
NOTE: I'm going where there is no wireless and because I am behind in my photo a day project, there will be no commentary on the next few photos. I have a feeling no one reads this stuff, anyway. :-)
I took this photo in Mexico a few years ago. I don't have much to say about it other than I like the the geometry of the palm leaf. The paradox of nature is that there are so many things that seem random and chaotic. And then there are things that are precise and ordered - as in this leaf. Scientists and philosophers have certainly written about this. I just took a picture.
Canon 5D f/4.5 1/80 Canon 24-105 4.0L 67mm ISO 320
One oak leaf back lit by the morning sun - it doesn't get much simpler than this. Since I was shooting into the sun, the challenge was to find shade for the lens to avoid lens flare. From the sunny side, this leaf looked dull. But with the sun shining through it, the leaf came to life - which is a bit of an irony for a leaf about to fall.
Canon 1D II f/5.6 1/250 lens unknown 240mm ISO 100
The first line in the poem by Dylan Thomas "The force that through the green fuse drives the flower. . ." came to mind when I took this photo. Chives about to bloom are pretty mundane but I caught them at the right time, with their soft purple color contrasting nicely with the deep green of the foliage.
Depth of field is tricky on a shot like this given that my goal was to try to get several of the "flowers" in focus while blurring the rest. I took 10 or 12 pictures but ended up liking this one.
Canon 5D f/5 1/60 ISO 400 Canon 70-200 2.8L (200mm)
By Scott Shephard
In our part of the world, we get more snow than freezing rain but in late November, 2005, we got rain and then cold temperatures. Everything was coated in a layer of ice. School was called off, trees broke and driving was difficult. But there was a silver lining - the clear, icy coating.
I took this photo late in the day after the storm had passed and the sun had come out - you can see the sun glowing in each of the out-of-focus ice-cycles in the back of the photo. I took about 20 pictures during the short time I was outside but this is really the only one that turned out.
Canon 5D f5.0 1/640 iso320 Canon 70-200 2.8L (135mm)
By Scott Shephard
Iron Creek is only a few miles from our cabin in the Black Hills of South Dakota. This small pool has been the subject of my attention many times and this photo was taken in April of 2007. It had rained the night before, which increased the volume of water running through the creek. The rain also gave a wet look to the rocks, which helps create the atmosphere in this photo.
For this picture I put my camera on a tripod, which is standing in the water. I'm balancing precariously on rocks, trying not to let my feet slip into the icy stream. The secret to getting the milky look of the water in a photo like this is a timed exposure - in this case the shutter was open for 4 seconds. If I get a good photo when I come to this place, I'm happy. But just spending time in this serene place is enough for me. Can you hear the sound of the creek, the breeze in the branches of the trees and the birdsong?
Canon 5D f22 4s Canon 24-105mm 4.0L (35mm) iso100
By Scott Shephard
This photo was taken about 20 miles south of the "212 Bridge" photo that was posted yesterday. In this photo I am looking west across Lake Oahe towards the confluence of the Cheyenne and the Missouri Rivers. The wind had died and I was bathed in the lingering warmth of the sun. And, aside from the creaking of the tiller in its fittings on the back of the boat, I was engulfed in near total silence. When the wind blows hard, this place can be very intimidating. But on an evening like this, it is spiritual.
By Scott Shephard
This is the Highway 212 bridge across the Missouri River in South Dakota. There are some who would say that large parts of South Dakota are barren and unremarkable. But, of course, I disagree. I think there is true beauty in the openness and expansiveness of the plains. This is especially true at sunrise, when this photo was taken. On this morning I was on my way to the Little Bend area of the Missouri River for another sailing outing. This view of the river is the first view I get when I am on a sailing trip. At this juncture, I don't cross the river but turn south along highway 1804. I am only 30 minutes away from picking up my boat. And only 60 minutes from casting off on the third largest reservoir in the United States - Lake Oahe.
Canon 5D f18 1/50 iso250 43mm Canon 24-105 4.0L (Photo taken August 16, 2005)
We were visiting our son Jon, who lives in Kona, Hawaii, in March, 2008, and ended up driving to the famous Painted Church, which is about 30 minutes from Kona. Though Kona is on the sunny side of the island, it had just rained, which was fine, because the overcast skies created a very soft light and the rain left all of the vegetation sprinkled with water. This is a very simple photo: the green stripes, the random arrangement of the leaves and the rain drops create the interest. I shoot a lot of vegetation and find that dark green is especially hard to shoot because in trying to expose the dark part of the photo, the highlights are easily blown out. Maybe this photo appeals to me right now because as I look out my window, I see snow.
Canon 5D, 24-105 4.0, f7.1, 1/125, 400 iso
