Posted by Kane Engelbert on September 5, 2011 at 11:12 PM
Here's a few from my bluebird sunrise at Sky Pond last weekend. This place is easily one of the Parks best scenes. I was happy to have access to a 14mm, otherwise reflection shots wouldn't be possible.
Comments, Critique always welcome.
Thanks,
Kane
Posted by Kane Engelbert on September 5, 2011 at 11:14 PM
#2
Posted by Kane Engelbert on September 5, 2011 at 11:15 PM
#3
Posted by Todd Caudle on September 6, 2011 at 12:15 AM
Same basic subject, but all three are SO different! Really good stuff, Kane. I think #2 is my fave, then #3.
Very nice - #2 is the winner for me too. I wonder how common it is for the water to be so still at Sky Pond? (Have never been there, but every time I've been to the Loch, it's been blowing gale force winds.)
Posted by Bill Pelzmann on September 6, 2011 at 1:40 AM
Hard to pick a favorite from this batch, but I also lean towards #2.
Did you camp up there or just leave really early?
Posted by Jody Grigg on September 6, 2011 at 8:29 AM
Nice stuff Kane.
Posted by Paul Martin on September 6, 2011 at 11:40 AM
Nice series of images, Kane. I also am diggin #2 followed by #3, but really they're all quite close (and great).
Posted by Doug Koepsel on September 6, 2011 at 11:59 AM
It is between 2&3. I notice how the foreground rocks in 2 make a V. Maybe add a little more contrast to the far ridge/peaks.
In 3, I feel the reflection is preferable, along with the warmer rock and deeper blues.
Posted by Koveh Tavakkol on September 6, 2011 at 2:50 PM
Sweet stuff, all three of them. Glad you made it out here like you had planned bro. This place looks killer. Lets try to hit this up after a fresh early season snow! Keep me in the loop and I will make the hike with you.
Posted by John Mumaw on September 6, 2011 at 8:24 PM
Beautiful work, Kane! My preferences are for #'s 2 & 3.
#2 because the lay of the rocks in the water complement the jagged peaks so bloody well. I think that's what catches everyone's eye.
And #3 because of the fine reflection, gradient blue sky and composition.
I reckon that #1 just lacks that certain something that the other two possess.
How far of a hike was it to get here?
Posted by Kane Engelbert on September 6, 2011 at 10:33 PM
Thanks for all the nice comments. I know a few of you are interested in Sky Pond so here's my take. Sky Pond has incredible composition potential for us photographers, but I do think it deserves a recon trip, especially if you want to capture the scene at sunrise. It's about an 8 mile round trip. I'm just guessing it's about 2,000-ft; all in all not bad for such a striking alpine mountain scene.
Before I go into hiking details, understand there is no backcountry camping in the entire Loch area, which obviously includes the Sky Pond area. There are no designated camping spots to reserve for an early morning sunrise shot. The only possible way to camp up in the Loch area is to get a climbing permit (4 pitches of class 5) for the Petite Grepon, or Sharkstooth; thus you get a bivy permit for the north side of Sky Pond. As the ranger said to me "absolutely no camping for Lookie-lou's and photographers, and all climber must climb." I have to admit he pissed me off when he bunched us photographers in with "Lookie-Lou's."
I've been up there three times and I find my first and second trip (once in winter and once in summer: two different routes) experience to be VERY helpful, especially navigating the area from Glass Lake to Sky Pond. There's a very nice trail that will escort you all the way to the upper basin where Sky Pond resides. In the dark, a GPS will give you comfort navigating the different trails to the upper basin. However, the last cliff band the trail negotiates will leave you with some easy class 3 scrambling up a wet, rocky waterfall area to finally make the upper basin. Take caution here and be wary of ice if it's been freezing overnight. Once up in the basin, the trail fades away. Here's where your recon trip will expedite a sunrise opportunity. You first have to get by Glass Lake. The map shows a trail on the north side of the lake. I personally like the south side of the lake, considering that's where the photo opportunities reside once you get to Sky Pond. The lake is surrounded by steep granite slabs and krumholtz. Even in daylight, there are route-finding opportunities to keep the line to Sky Pond negotiable. Cross to the S side of Glass Lake and work your way around on the upper benches of granite and tundra. There are plenty of big boulders to slow you down.
Once at Sky Pond, you MUST hike to the southwest side of the lake to get the above composition. Just getting to the lake is not enough; you must keep hiking to the west end of the lake. Just understanding this fact will save you a lot of time on a sunrise run.
With a recon trip you're looking at a 4+ hr hike. Keep in mind we photographers like to research comp for at least a half hr. Without a recon trip, I'm not sure how long it would take to hike up there and locate this composition.
Lastly, I've been up there with a lens that went 17mm (full frame)wide and could not get a reflection shot. The peaks were too close. All of these new images were shot with 14mm; nothing else. When viewing the above images, note how close the reflection is to the bottom of the frame. This was a "top of mind" problem while composing the images. Yes, there's still plenty of excellent comp around for wider focal lengths, but just be aware of possible limitations for that reflection shot.
Posted by Dan Walters on September 7, 2011 at 9:44 PM
Really like the reflection in #3
Posted by Stan Rose on September 8, 2011 at 1:01 AM
Discussion
13 repliesComments, Critique always welcome.
Thanks,
Kane
Did you camp up there or just leave really early?
In 3, I feel the reflection is preferable, along with the warmer rock and deeper blues.
#2 because the lay of the rocks in the water complement the jagged peaks so bloody well. I think that's what catches everyone's eye.
And #3 because of the fine reflection, gradient blue sky and composition.
I reckon that #1 just lacks that certain something that the other two possess.
How far of a hike was it to get here?
Before I go into hiking details, understand there is no backcountry camping in the entire Loch area, which obviously includes the Sky Pond area. There are no designated camping spots to reserve for an early morning sunrise shot. The only possible way to camp up in the Loch area is to get a climbing permit (4 pitches of class 5) for the Petite Grepon, or Sharkstooth; thus you get a bivy permit for the north side of Sky Pond. As the ranger said to me "absolutely no camping for Lookie-lou's and photographers, and all climber must climb." I have to admit he pissed me off when he bunched us photographers in with "Lookie-Lou's."
I've been up there three times and I find my first and second trip (once in winter and once in summer: two different routes) experience to be VERY helpful, especially navigating the area from Glass Lake to Sky Pond. There's a very nice trail that will escort you all the way to the upper basin where Sky Pond resides. In the dark, a GPS will give you comfort navigating the different trails to the upper basin. However, the last cliff band the trail negotiates will leave you with some easy class 3 scrambling up a wet, rocky waterfall area to finally make the upper basin. Take caution here and be wary of ice if it's been freezing overnight. Once up in the basin, the trail fades away. Here's where your recon trip will expedite a sunrise opportunity. You first have to get by Glass Lake. The map shows a trail on the north side of the lake. I personally like the south side of the lake, considering that's where the photo opportunities reside once you get to Sky Pond. The lake is surrounded by steep granite slabs and krumholtz. Even in daylight, there are route-finding opportunities to keep the line to Sky Pond negotiable. Cross to the S side of Glass Lake and work your way around on the upper benches of granite and tundra. There are plenty of big boulders to slow you down.
Once at Sky Pond, you MUST hike to the southwest side of the lake to get the above composition. Just getting to the lake is not enough; you must keep hiking to the west end of the lake. Just understanding this fact will save you a lot of time on a sunrise run.
With a recon trip you're looking at a 4+ hr hike. Keep in mind we photographers like to research comp for at least a half hr. Without a recon trip, I'm not sure how long it would take to hike up there and locate this composition.
Lastly, I've been up there with a lens that went 17mm (full frame)wide and could not get a reflection shot. The peaks were too close. All of these new images were shot with 14mm; nothing else. When viewing the above images, note how close the reflection is to the bottom of the frame. This was a "top of mind" problem while composing the images. Yes, there's still plenty of excellent comp around for wider focal lengths, but just be aware of possible limitations for that reflection shot.