Fallen Rainbow, Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
I wanted to share two images today. Both were captured in Valley of Fire State Park, an amazing area of colorful sandstone, monoliths and canyons, east of Las Vegas by about 1 hour. As with most locations, the best stuff is usually tucked away, hidden from obvious view. One must get out of there car, and walk across the landscape, into the washes, up and over the hills to begin to really experience the true grander and depth of color and shape this place has to offer. The fist image below is the very first image i took over a 12 day trip this past November. I arrived in Vegas at noon, picked up my rental and got the hell out of Dodge as fast as possible. Vegas is really only good for one thing, flying in and out of it! I arrived in Valley of Fire under some really dramatic clouds and was hoping to catch some sweet light and nice clouds at the Fire Wave for sunset. I walked out into the sandstone and arrived at the wave like formation about 2 hours pre-sunset. I waned to spend some time studying the land and looking for the best composition. I noticed the clouds beginning to dissipate to the west, so I started shooting early knowing I was gonna convert the image to BW.
click on the image for a larger view
The color version is also very strong. This image was processed of of a single RAW file. I double processed the RAW file in order to achieve the color tone for the sandstone, and still maintain a rich, but not overly saturated blue sky. The clouds really pull the image together in both the BW and color renditions.
click on the image for a larger view
Finally on the last morning of the trip, I doubled back to Valley of Fire State Park, having an early morning flight the next morning I would be spending the night at a hotel of the strip in Vegas. I had spotted this incredibly colorful small wash while looking for the Fire Wave on my first day. When I passed through it the first time around, the sun was too far in the West to cast any bounce light. On my last morning I made a special trip to this location to catch the bounce light which is what is illuminating and painting the warm and cool tones into this image (just the same as shooting in a slot canyon). What was so interesting, and something that I had not thought would happen is the right side of the wash was catching a strong warm bounce light from the red and yellow sandstone wall above to the left and the sandstone on the left was in a deeper shade. This shifted the color tone cool. I shot two images for the final. The first set at daylight balance to record the warm tones on the right and the second shot at 3800K to render the sandstone a very cool blue/magenta on the left. The two images were later combined using Photoshop.
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Winter Wonderland, Blackwater Falls State Park, West Virginia
Early winter, when the snow is just beginning to blanket the mountains of West Virginia, is a great time to get out and shoot the waterfalls in the park. Wait to long into the season and the waters freeze up, rendering the waterfall as a solid block of ice. While these conditions are great for shooting ice formations and abstracts, it restricts you from getting falling water surrounded by freshly blanketed forest of snow. The best time to visit is early in the season right after the first or second big snowfall. This requires some advanced planning and flexibility. I watch the weather for the mountainous regions around Davis, Canaan Valley and Seneca Rocks and once I see a forecast of heavy snow approaching, I pack the car and hit the road. Beating the storm out is important. Wait to long, and the roads may be impassible getting into the mountains. Once your there, check into the lodge at the State Park and wait for the wonderful white stuff to arrive.
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The image above was made on a perfectly still morning under a heavy overcast. I drove down the day before in anticipation of new snowfall amounts. Over night it dropped about eight inches of new snow. The key to success here is getting the trees covered in snow. The next morning, after a windy night, and of of the snow had been knocked of the trees and pines.
Tech Details: Nikon F5, 80-200mm, Fuji Chrome Velvia 50, 6 seconds @ F16
Fall Cottonwoods along the Virgin River, Zion National Park, Utah.
Everything in Zion receives life from the Virgin Rivers scarce desert waters. A ribbon of green marks the path of the Virgin River as it twists it’s way through the deeply cut canyon that takes center stage in this desert park. In early to mid November, the ribbon of green is replaced by a colorful ribbon of yellow and red running along the Virgin River. On this day, I explored the banks of the Virgin River above the Court of the Patriarchs. Walking up and down the banks of the river, i was looking for patterns and repetition in color, shape and form. Shooting forest scenes is difficult and you need to find a way to create some kind of visual order from the chaos. The best way that I know how to do this is to look for relationships in color and shape, striving to create a visual rhythm of the landscape.
click for a larger version
In the image above, I have created an ordered and rhythmic image by using repeating line, color and shape. I used the diagonal lines formed by the layers to create rhythm, and the color of the blue and warm tones to help convey o sense of depth. As with almost all of my autumn forest images, I included several bare tree trunks to give the image texture. This also helps to break up the space in the image.
Tech details: Nikon D300, 80-200mm, Singh Ray LB Polarizer, 1/2 second @ f16, ISO 200
Looking for a great photography adventure next fall in Zion, then look no farther. We have schedule a Zion National Park Autumn Photography Workshop for next November with an optional “2 day Adventure Upgrade” that gets you into the Virgin River Narrows and the Subway Slot Canyon. For more info and to register, click here.
Rush of Color, Virgin River Narrows, Zion National Park, Utah
No great story or explanation on today’s image (taking a break for the weekend, family time). Just a wonderful display of color and form in the Virgin River Narrows of Zion National Park. Enjoy.
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Tech Details: Nikon D300, 12-24mm, Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer, 1 second @ F18, ISO 200
Looking for a great photography adventure next fall in Zion, then look no farther. We have schedule a Zion National Park Autumn Photography Workshop for next November with an optional “2 day Adventure Upgrade” that gets you into the Virgin River Narrows and the Subway Slot Canyon. For more info and to register, click here.
Three Cardinals, Hopi Lands, Arizona
Last March I had the opportunity to visit a remote canyon on the Hopi Reservation with my friend and amazing photographer George Stocking. George is an Arizona legend and one of the finest landscape photographers working today. I highly recommend you visit his website and spend some time cruising through his collection of image which are truly stunning!! This visit would be a first for both myself and George. We had an idea of where it was located, but not for sure. After checking several maps, we made a guess at it and after some driving and exploring found this place. It is amazing to say the least. The multi-colored hills, hoo doo rock formations with there red cap rocks and scribbled lines make it a photographers dream. The image I am sharing today is of a formation that has been shot before, but only by a handful of serious shooters.
The rock formation stands at the edge of the wash and I spent the entire sunset shooting it. At first I started below as the raking light of sunset cast it’s warm and directional light on the landscape. As the sunset approached, I made my to the top of a hill a distance off from the rock and used my Telephoto lens to isolate the rocks against a colorful sky. The use of my circular polarizing filter enhanced the clouds and pushed the contrast and saturation to more dramatic level. This was the first of many visits to the area. A few of the shots I made on this remarkable evening have graced Outdoor photographer and other magazines in the past year. Sitting here on a cold and dull winters day, I can’t help but dream of revisiting this magical place once again. Until the next time I find myself on the lonely plateau.
Tech Details: Nikon D300, 70-200mm, 1/2 of a second @ F14, Singh Ray LB Polarizer, RAW
Heart Rock Reflections, Grotton Woods State Forest, Vermont
For the fourth year in a row, I spent two weeks in October in Vermont shooting personal images and leading a photo workshop. The color change this year was strange to say the least with a rush of color change coming early and then quickly coming to a halt about a week early. even so, there were many areas of great color as there always is. On this particular day, I had my group up in the Grotton Woods State Forest and a small state park, Seyon Pond. When we arrived it was socked in with heavy dark overcast and the threat of rain. I decided to stay the course and we spent several hours exploring the shoreline of the pond and the woods around it. As time passed, the clouds began to clear to an almost blue bird sky. At this point, I moved down along the small stream pouring from the pond looking for reflections in the still pools of water.
I found this scatter of leaves around a small heart shaped rock. The reflections were amazing and always looking to lend Mother Nature a helping hand, I placed a single Maple leaf on the rock. i began shooting some standard images with my 24-70mm woking the rock and reflections. Then I switched to a lens that only comes out of my bag maybe three or four times a year, my Lensbaby selective focus 3G. After framing the image and playing around with the distortion and focus, I found an effect that I felt really complimented the scene and created a semi-abstract image. Using a small lens aperture allowed me to keep only the center rock in sharp relief while allowing the rest of the image to fall out of focus creating a strong Bokeh effect. I wanted to use a Circular Polarizing filter to increase the strength of the color, but the Lensbaby I had did not fit any of my filter. Easy fix, I just hand held the filter as close to the lens as possible to achieve polarization.
Tech details: Nikon D300, Lensbaby G3, RAW capture, 125 of a second.
Once again we will be conducting our annual Vermont Fall Color Workshop the first week in October. Spaces are limited, and we are already almost booked full. Get in your reservation today – http://vermontphotographyworkshop.eventbrite.com/
Earth Shadow Glow at Stud Horse Point, Utah Wilderness
On my last trip to the southwest, I spent an evening up on Stud Horse Point. The light that day was rather unremarkable with clear cloudless blue skies. Even still, I knew that the photo ops could be very good if I waited till ten or fifteen minutes after sunset in hopes of catching some glow light and the Earth shadow on the eastern horizon. I arrived with my group one hour before sunset and we wandered around the rim of Hoo-Doos taking in the scenery and scouting compositions. Most shoot the Hoo Doos from the sandstone rise to the west looking slightly down on the formations. With this in mind, I climbed down below the group of Hoo Doos and made my way out on to a precariously perched rock just slightly below the main Hoo Doo and waited for the peak of color on the eastern horizon.
click on the image for a larger version
My composition from this perspective dictated that I create a space based image as there were no dramatic leading lines, framing elements or exaggerated power shapes. With this in mind, I choose a composition that places both Hoo doos on intersecting power points, one in the upper left and the far in the upper right. In the immediate foreground, I choose to include a power shape rock that directs the eye towards the main Hoo Doo on the left. The beautiful pink and blue glow, the product of Earth shadow, provided a colorful and rich background to compliment the image.
Tech Details: Nikon D700, 16-35mm, Singh Ray LB Polarizer, 10 seconds @ F18, ISO 100, single exposure raw capture
By the way, we have a photo tour/workshop in Page, Arizona in May of 2011! We will be visiting many area including Antelope Canyon, WahWeap Hoo Doos, White Pocket, rim Rocks, Horseshoe Bend of the Colorado and of course this location, Stud Horse Point. Click here to register
New Website, check it out - http://www.josephrossbach.com/
Inner Beauty, Lower Antelope Canyon, Navajo Nation, AZ
Lower Antelope Canyon is a remarkable slot canyon just outside of Page, Arizona on the Navajo Reservation. I am quite sure that just about everyone who reads this entry has either been there or at least heard of this place. I first visited this canyon in 1998, back in the days when I was still shooting medium and large format. Back then it was pretty well known by most photographers. but not nearly as iconic as it has become in the past decade. I can remember a hot summer afternoon, spending 4 hours in the cool damp chamber, and only encountering 2 other individuals. These days you are at times neck to neck with hordes of tourists and shutter bugs. It seems as soon as you find your composition and wait for the light, there are a dozen people wanting to pass by you. This is of course not an easy task in most sections as the walls and canyon floor are just barely wide enough to fit a single body through. This often means asking folks to wait a bit before passing, or to move out of the way and reset your shot after they pass. Even still, this canyon holds a special place for me. It was the first slot canyon I ever visited, and even though I have explored many more over the years, it still leaves me speechless to witness the play of light and color of the walls.
Coming up with an original image in Antelope is at the least a challenge. Like in many other iconic locations, you must be open to new ways of seeing if you intend on coming back with an image that stands out from the crowd. For me it is important to slow down and focus my attention and energy on seeing shape , form and light. Only then will I have a chance of creating an original image. For the shot above, I was drawn to the color of the warm and cool tones of light, but mostly the sweeping wave like shapes of the walls above me. This is an image that would have been nearly impossible to record on film as the dynamic range of the light would have been far to much get in a single exposure. I also wanted to create a greater contrast of cool and warm tones. To achieve this effect I exposed one frame at daylight balance with an exposure of 1 second for the upper reaches of the canyon walls that were receiving a strong and warm bounce light. For the second exposure in the blend, I opened up the shutter to 10 seconds and set the White Balance to Florescent to render the shadows blue and purple. The two images were later combined in Adobe Photoshop CS4.
Tech Details: Nikon D300, 12-24mm, 2 exposure blend, no filtration, @ ISO 200. 1 second @ F16 & 10 seconds @ F16.
Cottonwoods, Virgin River Narrows, Zion National Park, Utah
Only one day in the Narrows did not seem like enough. I was fortunate that the day I choose to hike the river was clear and calm. Clear blue skies is usually a bad thing for us nature photographers, but in the Canyonlands of the southwest it is the perfect light for shooting slot canyons and bounce/reflected light inside the larger canyons. The Virgin River Narrows, while a challenging hike, rewards with the spoils of some of the most fantastic canyon scenery in the Southwest.
The water levels on the day we hiked were at moderate flow. This was perfect for making the stream wading, sometimes chest deep in areas, and the flow of the water a perfect match for good photography. The fall color came late this year to Zion and I was treated with peak Cottonwoods and the occasional red Maple at many of the bends in the canyon.
The shot above was captured only about 1/4 a mile down river from Orderville canyon, the first side canyon that you encounter from the bottom up hike of the Narrows. The Cottonwoods were at peak and had such a stately appearance that I knew right away there was potential for a great image. First I needed to find a good position in the river with the right flow of water to compliment the background. What drew me to these cascades was the visual flow of the water running into the frame and the way the shape of the water mimicked the shape of the tallest Cottonwood tree on the far left of the composition. The blue cast in the water is a result of a clear blue sky above the canyon reflecting in the water. I wanted to maintain that color as a juxtaposition against the warm canyon walls and yellow Cottonwoods, so I choose a White Balance of 5000K (a little warmer than daylight balance) to retain the cool tones in the water while still rendering a warm balance on the walls and Cottonwoods. Even still, I had to pull back on the Saturation in the Cyan and Blue channels in PS to give the image a more realistic result.
Tech Details: Nikon D700, 16-35mm, Singh Ray LB Polarizer, 1.3 seconds @ F16 ISO 250. single exposure RAW, PS4
Looking for a great photography adventure next fall in Zion, then look no farther. We have schedule a Zion National Park Autumn Photography Workshop for next November with an optional “2 day Adventure Upgrade” that gets you into the Virgin River Narrows and the Subway Slot Canyon. For more info and to register, click here.
Area 52: alien landscape
I battled deep sand, razor sharp rocks and reptilian shape shifters to get to this little know government base deep in the red rock desert of the American Southwest. Ran into Bob Lazar under an alcove, and had martinis before heading off to Groom Lake in a custom built UFO supplied by the DOE….
By the way, we have released a photo tour/workshop in Zion National Park in November of 2011 with an optional adventure upgrade that gets you two extra days of guiding up the Virgin River Narrows and the famous Subway slot canyon. http://zionnationalparkworkshop.eventbrite.com/
New Website, check it out - http://www.josephrossbach.com/
