Taking a break from the Canada images, here's one from a quick getaway this weekend to the Snowy Range. I got up there Friday afternoon and met up with Brett Deacon who has the most impressive and comprehensive collection of Snowy Range images you'll find. We took a quick hike around some of the higher lakes near the Sugar Loaf Recreation area, and then shot sunset at a couple of the overlooks along Hwy 130. Sunset is a tough gig up there; it's mainly a sunrise location. After a nice cool night (high 40s) camping along the Brooklyn Lake Road, I went back up to the lakes that Brett showed me to shoot sunrise.
For the most part, it was cloudless. But this little spit of a cloud started moving left to right through the scene just as the light was getting nice. It only stayed for a few minutes before moving out of the scene, but it was long enough to capture a few images with something of interest in the sky.
I looked for a higher perspective to get the whole reflection visible in the lake, but the only spot was so far to the right that the majority of the lake would have been reflecting blue sky, so I opted for the partial reflection.
A big thanks to Brett for showing me around. The Snowies have a lot of the character of the Beartooths, but without the 9 hour drive.
Nikon D2X, 17-35mm @ 17mm, f/11 @ 1/5", 2-stop and 3-stop GNDs stacked and slightly offset to mitigate the grad line. Also captured on 4x5 (but without the cloud).
edit: I should back off the saturation in the sky a scoche. The cloud should have a warm, orange color, but this has it looking battery-powered.
Very nice image - the clouds look fine to me, and they add nice balance.
5 stops of GND!? That alpen glow must have been extraordinary.
Posted by Jody Grigg on August 12, 2007 at 4:23 PM
Rick, I love it! I wouldn't touch a thing.
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 12, 2007 at 5:09 PM
I like the cloud and the comp Rick. I wouldn't change a thing either, especially the orange glow. Then again, I'm notorious for liking saturated colors.
Chad - the filters were for brightening the foreground as opposed to darkening the alpenglow. The alpenglow looked pretty much like it does in the image, but the lower 1/2 of the image was in deep shadow due to the mountain right behind me. So the foreground was almost completely black when exposing properly for the sky and the alpenglow. Based on how the grads were positioned (the strongest parts were probably not in the frame), I'd guess that there's more like a total of 3-4 stops of ND effect. The image posted in this reply was snapped with my p&s without any filters - a good indication of the natural range.
Posted by Doug Andrews on August 12, 2007 at 5:14 PM
Saturation look fine to me Rick. Of course saturation is a matter of personal preference so feel free to knock it back. I agree that the Snowy's are very reminiscent of the Beartooths.
Posted by Todd Caudle on August 12, 2007 at 6:11 PM
I think the sky looks fine, too. It's amazing how one little wisp of cloud can help an image. Great stuff! Thanks for the link to Brett Deacon's site, too, there's a lot of good stuff there.
Posted by Scott Bacon on August 12, 2007 at 9:56 PM
Beautiful! I love the Snowies and am seriously bummed I couldn't join you this weekend - looks like it was very nice up there.
Posted by Kalin Wilson on August 13, 2007 at 12:28 AM
Nice work with the light dynamic range. Great color too! I like the cloud. I'm always a little disappointed with cloudless sunrises but seem to get plenty of them.
So bummed that I couldn't make it there this weekend either! Glad you hooked up with Brett though, I can vouch for how good a guide he is!
Looking forward to seeing more!!!
Posted by Brett Deacon on August 13, 2007 at 11:45 AM
Nice shot Rick! That little cloud on the upper left definitely helps to balance out the image. It's really difficult to select a sunrise spot up there and I like your choice. I had a great time meeting you and hiking around the Sugarloaf area. Sorry you didn't get more clouds on Saturday. Let's do it again sometime (unless you move to Oregon this fall!).
Discussion
12 repliesFor the most part, it was cloudless. But this little spit of a cloud started moving left to right through the scene just as the light was getting nice. It only stayed for a few minutes before moving out of the scene, but it was long enough to capture a few images with something of interest in the sky.
I looked for a higher perspective to get the whole reflection visible in the lake, but the only spot was so far to the right that the majority of the lake would have been reflecting blue sky, so I opted for the partial reflection.
A big thanks to Brett for showing me around. The Snowies have a lot of the character of the Beartooths, but without the 9 hour drive.
Nikon D2X, 17-35mm @ 17mm, f/11 @ 1/5", 2-stop and 3-stop GNDs stacked and slightly offset to mitigate the grad line. Also captured on 4x5 (but without the cloud).
edit: I should back off the saturation in the sky a scoche. The cloud should have a warm, orange color, but this has it looking battery-powered.
Very nice image - the clouds look fine to me, and they add nice balance.
5 stops of GND!? That alpen glow must have been extraordinary.
Very nice image - the clouds look fine to me, and they add nice balance.
5 stops of GND!? That alpen glow must have been extraordinary.
Chad - the filters were for brightening the foreground as opposed to darkening the alpenglow. The alpenglow looked pretty much like it does in the image, but the lower 1/2 of the image was in deep shadow due to the mountain right behind me. So the foreground was almost completely black when exposing properly for the sky and the alpenglow. Based on how the grads were positioned (the strongest parts were probably not in the frame), I'd guess that there's more like a total of 3-4 stops of ND effect. The image posted in this reply was snapped with my p&s without any filters - a good indication of the natural range.
So bummed that I couldn't make it there this weekend either! Glad you hooked up with Brett though, I can vouch for how good a guide he is!
Looking forward to seeing more!!!