Lost in Time

I just returned from a 72 hour trip to the California coast, to visit friend and photographer Jared Atencio. We spent the three days running up and down the coast from Big Sur to San Francisco. Despite the unusually clear and sunny conditions for this time of year, we spent most of that time out shooting. I think in that time I managed to get about 12 hours of sleep, but for me those are the type of trips that I love.

Although I drove down the coast when I was a kid on a family trip, at the time I really did not appreciate the beauty of the California coast. This was one of the reasons why this trip was so special to me. It really opened my eyes to how incredible the coast is, and how many fantastic photography spots there are.

This shot of the ever popular abandoned pier near Davenport was shot as a sunrise, rather than the typical sunset. This meant hiking into this already steep and crazy location in the pitch black of night. I am by no means afraid of heights, and I have done some rock climbing in my past, but I can honestly say it was one of the more sketchy hikes I have done. The main issue was the loose shale type rock mixed with extremely steep decline. This stuff literally crumbles away when you grab it, so there is really not a ton of solid hand or foot holds. At one point I managed to pull off a chunk of rock that started a mini avalanche on top of Jared who happened to be below me. Fortunately everything worked out and we made it down in time to shoot the sunrise. I have yet to process the actual sunrise shots, but I shot this shortly after sunrise, knowing that the lack of clouds and somewhat bad light was there, I tossed on my Big Stopper and tried to use the conditions to my advantage.

I always appreciate your critique on any of my images, as it helps me to improve.

Canon 5D mark II
Canon 24-105L lens @45mm
120 sec. @ F8
ISO 100
Lee Big Stopper Filter
Hitech 3 stop GND
Single RAW file processed in Lightroom 3
B&W conversion with Nik Silver Efex Pro
Noise reduction in Dfine 2
TIFF file processed with Photoshop CS4

I don't know, everything is kind of centered. Very static.
Are you kidding me, Koveh? This is fine art, my friend.

Oooooooo, very cool comp! Absolutely fine art. Reminds me of the Recognizers in the first Tron movie which, sadly, were reduced to people movers without the cool sound in the new Tron Legacy http://tron.wikia.com/wiki/Recognizer_(Tron_Legacy) Are you going to post more from that trip (please?)

Hmm...picture isn't showingup on my monitor. I just get a small box with a red X. is there a link i can check out?

I agree with Pam, definitley reminiscent of the Tron movie and the long exposure creates a unique feeling to this.

Thanks! Pam, it does kind of remind you of Tron huh? =) I am still processing through the images from the trip. I will be posting some others, but they may be in some of the galleries, so keep your eyes open.

Ghostly and moody! Love it! More please

This is simply excellent, Koveh. Ghostly and moody were the first thoughts in my mind. I absolutely love the symmetry and the effects of the long exposure. The b&w conversion helps narrow this down to the piers and environs with no distractions whatever. At first I thought the exposed rebar was a distraction, but it really helps give this an abandoned feel.

This is truly fine art photography, Koveh.

OK...now, what is a Big Blocker?

John, thanks a lot for your feedback. It really helps me improve as a photographer knowing what people are attracted to in certain photographs, so I really appreciate it. You always seem to provide excellent details on your feedback.

As far as the filter goes, the Lee Big Stopper filter is a 4X4 solid glass 10 stop ND filter. This thing is so dark that in bright daylight you can't see anything through it. I had a ton of fun with this filter on this last trip, mostly shooting in the middle of the day with as much as 4-5 min exposures in some cases. Very cool stuff and fun to experiment with, but the filter is a bit hard to come by. I had mine on order for 4-5 months before I got it. I'll try to post some more examples of uses for this puppy.

Why repeat it when John put it so well?

Fantastic work here, Koveh. Your comp and technique really brought this all together. I bought a B&W 10x for these long exposure images, although I wish I had easier access to big water. You should check out the work of Cole Thompson (a local BTW).

Classic shot, Koveh! Excellent job!

Yep, exactly what John said. Fantastic photograph, Koveh.

This is really outstanding, Koveh! Very surreal.

One coooool shot!!!

Great work Koveh. Great comp and love the color.

Great shot and PP, I like the mood.