Posted by Marc Adamus on December 24, 2008 at 12:13 PM
I've spent most of this cold snap in the eastern side of the state. It's only been getting up around 0 during the days in a lot of areas, but the roads are in way better shape than around PDX or the gorge! I spent a couple frigid but beautiful mornings at Smith Rock last week. Hours and hours of scouting for various compositions over a couple days here didn't yeild anything better than this for wide angle landscapes - it's a really tough spot to capture well. I'd like to get your thoughts.
1Ds III, 16-35 at 16mm, blended exposures, 6-stops Singh-Ray ND's for extra color, 8 seconds at f/14. -11 degrees.
Posted by Drew M Wright on December 24, 2008 at 12:26 PM
Love it Marc; so much to explore and fantastic light. Kudos for shooting in -11, it was well worth the effort. Happy holidays!
Posted by Ryan Dyar on December 24, 2008 at 12:49 PM
this is the best Smith Rock shot I have seen yet. The snow really adds uniqueness to it, something that is hard to capture at this spot. Great work!
Posted by Nick Lazazzera on December 24, 2008 at 1:21 PM
Marc,
It's hard to believe that anything you shoot turns out badly. An elegant shot with good detail and tantalizing light.
Posted by Nick Lazazzera on December 24, 2008 at 1:21 PM
Marc,
It's hard to believe that anything you shoot turns out badly. An elegant shot with good detail and tantalizing light.
Posted by Bryan Spahr on December 24, 2008 at 1:55 PM
Wonderful color and glow on those rocks. What a great warm contrast from the cool of the snow. I have found Smith Rock tough for compositions as well. Your perserverance never ceases to amaze Marc. - 11F, wow.
-Bryan
Posted by Inge Johnsson on December 24, 2008 at 3:18 PM
This is indeed one of the best images of Smith Rock I've ever seen too. The sky, light, and composition are beautiful.
My only nit pick would be that the lower left looks a bit unnaturally dark and more purple than the bottom center; maybe it's dodging but could also be my monitor.
It would also be very interesting to learn more about the technique you used for this shot. You say "blended exposures, 6-stops Singh-Ray ND's for extra color, 8 seconds at f/14"; so is it one exposure for the sky with a 6-stop ND to lengthen the exposure? And then another exposure for the shaded foreground?
- Inge
Posted by Marc Adamus on December 24, 2008 at 3:29 PM
Inge, yes the LLC is darker. I did burn that area a tad. Now that I really look hard at it, I can see it does appear a bit more red/magenta...very slightly. I'll look into that. The foreground areas in the trees were 'painted' in from another exposure at +2 stops at varying opacities.
Tip of the day: Singh-Ray graduated filters, when combined at 5+ stops will add considerable red/magenta color to warm highlights, sunsets, magic hour light, etc. I covered the entire image with 6 stops just for that reason, but it can vary somewhat based on your white balance settings - auto usually works for me. Below is an example I did recently for a tour client.
Above you will see a crop from a completely unaltered RAW file taken in the Columbia Hills near sunset with no filtration at all.
Posted by Marc Adamus on December 24, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Here is an example of exactly the same scene taken with 6-stops of Singh-Ray ND stacked on there.
Posted by Inge Johnsson on December 24, 2008 at 3:40 PM
Wow, that extra exposure really does bring out that glow! Thanks for the tip I might get myself a Christmas present from Singh-Ray. Do you recommend the "George Lepp Solid ND" filter or the "Vari ND" one?
PS. Yes, I did mean "burn" not "dodge". Sorry about the confusion.
Nice. I stood in almost this exact spot on New Year's morning this year and it was 7 degrees with a brisk wind. I can't imagine -11. I will agree with just about everything said so far, both good and bad. This is probably the most appealing SR shot I have seen, but the lower left FG is a little dark and distracting. It would be nice to have a little light on the trees, but I know that it's not really possible to get color in the sky and light in the canyon at the same time. This is right up there with your usual high quality, nonetheless.
"Nothing better than this." How tragic! Well, all your hard work paid off.
Posted by Geoff Shapiro on December 25, 2008 at 12:51 AM
Yeah, I'm with Catherine...
"Nothing better than this" is way better than any of my landscape images! I think I have the "eye" but my technique is definitely lacking and without a doubt my perseverance for standing in the cold to compose and take the shot would be hard to come by.
Awesome image, Marc!
Posted by Cliff Dodge on December 25, 2008 at 1:30 AM
Love the contrast between the trees, snow and light on the hill and the little bit of color in the creek.
Posted by Jack Graham on December 25, 2008 at 2:21 AM
Marc;
My 09 resolutions includes getting over to the eastern part of Oregon. Why didn't I move here sooner.
This is a really nice image, I know that the sky has nice color and that's what we look at 1st, but I rally think the foreground really makes this something special. No doubt you worked for this one, probably as much as any other.
Have a great Xmas Marc and a productive 09!
JG
Posted by Marc Dilley on December 25, 2008 at 10:43 AM
Beautiful image, Marc. A treat to see while I wait for everyone to rise this morning.
-11..., sheesh, and I thought Leavenworth was cold.
Posted by Joseph Campisi on December 25, 2008 at 2:18 PM
Just beautiful Marc, with that signature luminous light you capture so well. I don't think I've ever actually seen a shot of Smith Rocks in winter. I've always wanted to visit this place, it's one of the unsung scenic gems of the West, IMO.
Posted by John Lehmkuhl on December 26, 2008 at 11:09 PM
Really a nice shot, imo - if the river was not frozen that would be an added bonus but that's not reality given the weather temp !!
Dark LLC is distracting to me also. I see what you are going for with the shape of the river but it's too much imo.
Us photo-heads ohh and ahh at these shots of yours, Mark, but FYI, my lovely wife looks at them and says they don't look realistic - a tad too processed looking (she says this about some of my shots, too !!)
Different strokes, I guess
Posted by Marc Adamus on December 27, 2008 at 11:19 AM
People would always say that about Velvia film and black skies in B&W renditions too. I think most people understand a photo isn't supposed to be perfect documentation in all instances.
Posted by ABICIRIDERBACK on December 28, 2008 at 12:48 AM
Very nice image Marc. And yes I'm sure the roads are better on the Eastern side. Headed down to in laws In Florence, OR from Seattle on Tues 12-23. You talk about ridiculous from Portland to Salem 36 miles took 5.5 hours on the 5. just pathetic. The coast was horrible everyday heavy rain, winds, and fog not a good trip photographically.
Ray Still
Posted by Austin Booth on December 29, 2008 at 11:42 PM
Great shoot Marc, I really love this location. I was in bend during the holidays and really wanted to make a side trip to smith rocks to shoot it in the snow but unfortunately I carpooled there and didn't have my own car. Christmas day really would have been my only opportunity though, otherwise the conditions were mostly overcast during sunset.
Posted by Stew Evans on January 10, 2009 at 1:40 AM
Discussion
21 replies1Ds III, 16-35 at 16mm, blended exposures, 6-stops Singh-Ray ND's for extra color, 8 seconds at f/14. -11 degrees.
It's hard to believe that anything you shoot turns out badly. An elegant shot with good detail and tantalizing light.
It's hard to believe that anything you shoot turns out badly. An elegant shot with good detail and tantalizing light.
-Bryan
My only nit pick would be that the lower left looks a bit unnaturally dark and more purple than the bottom center; maybe it's dodging but could also be my monitor.
It would also be very interesting to learn more about the technique you used for this shot. You say "blended exposures, 6-stops Singh-Ray ND's for extra color, 8 seconds at f/14"; so is it one exposure for the sky with a 6-stop ND to lengthen the exposure? And then another exposure for the shaded foreground?
- Inge
Tip of the day: Singh-Ray graduated filters, when combined at 5+ stops will add considerable red/magenta color to warm highlights, sunsets, magic hour light, etc. I covered the entire image with 6 stops just for that reason, but it can vary somewhat based on your white balance settings - auto usually works for me. Below is an example I did recently for a tour client.
Above you will see a crop from a completely unaltered RAW file taken in the Columbia Hills near sunset with no filtration at all.
PS. Yes, I did mean "burn" not "dodge". Sorry about the confusion.
"Nothing better than this" is way better than any of my landscape images! I think I have the "eye" but my technique is definitely lacking and without a doubt my perseverance for standing in the cold to compose and take the shot would be hard to come by.
Awesome image, Marc!
My 09 resolutions includes getting over to the eastern part of Oregon. Why didn't I move here sooner.
This is a really nice image, I know that the sky has nice color and that's what we look at 1st, but I rally think the foreground really makes this something special. No doubt you worked for this one, probably as much as any other.
Have a great Xmas Marc and a productive 09!
JG
-11..., sheesh, and I thought Leavenworth was cold.
Dark LLC is distracting to me also. I see what you are going for with the shape of the river but it's too much imo.
Us photo-heads ohh and ahh at these shots of yours, Mark, but FYI, my lovely wife looks at them and says they don't look realistic - a tad too processed looking (she says this about some of my shots, too !!)
Different strokes, I guess
Ray Still