Pyramid Lake, Jasper
Another favourite place to take photographs just 5 min drive from downtown Jasper. Didn't get any clouds on this visit but the sun lighting up the peaks of pyramid mountain was fine enough for me. We had just a hint of fog hovering over the lake...a bit more would have been nice.
The rock in the foreground was just a few feet away. I used the 24 TSE lens to get foreground and background in sharp focus.
-Vin Singh
Showing Scale
I used to hate having any human subjects in my landscape shots. I still don't like to. However, sometimes you need to include people (or animals) to add scale (and interest).
This photograph shows two hikers making their way up on the two biggest mesquite dunes in Death Valley. These dunes, while fairly large are quite a bit smaller than the Eureka dunes (also in the park but a little more remote) and the dunes found in Colorado. That being said, take a look at how small the two figures are...just dots on this example and barely detectable ( and hence the bright red markings I had to put to point them out). On a 13"X19" print they are easily seen and add interest and scale.
Photograph details:
Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Nikkor 70-200 @ 80mm
Shutter 1/300s @ f6.3
-Vin Singh
Infrared or Colour Capture?
If you've ever been to Banff National Park, no doubt this is one of the places you ended up seeing. It is one of the most photographed vistas in the rockies (lake moraine and the valley of the ten peaks). The old Canadian twenty dollar bill used to have this on one side.
Nothing new here to see but it doesn't matter much, I still go to this place every time I've been in the area because it is simply beautiful to see and hike around in. Hopefully one of my visits will give me some dramatic sky with some fog or snow so that I can get a more unique capture.
So what to do if the sky is just not cooperating and you want a little more mood? Pull out your infra-red converted camera (or an infrared filter for your camera) and voila...a completely different look.
With infrared photography, the greens take on a white, snow covered like look and the sky gets nice and dark. Sometimes the image is so drastically different that it doesn't even look like the same place. Not quite the effect here, but completely different mood. Take your pic, I like both for different reasons.
If you have an old DSLR kicking about, it may be worthwhile getting it converted. The cost is around $400. Alternatively, you can get an Infra-Red filter but the cost savings is not huge as they are over $200 for a 77mm size. In addition, you will not be able to hand hold one using a filter as it usually required long exposures. This is due to the fact that many modern DSLR cameras have a filter in front of the sensor to minimize infrared light.
-Vin Singh
Anticipate the Moment
This model was getting her make-up put on before she hit the runway. For the five minutes before this shot, she was looking down, allowing the make-up artist to get her eyes, cheeks etc. I wanted her to be involved in my photograph. So I waited...and waited...and waited. For a split second, she looked up, right into my camera lens. Because I was anticipating the moment (because this the scenario I had pre-visualized), I was able to press the shutter release and get the moment I wanted. A half a second later, the make-up artist moved over and she looked away. I only got to fire a single shot. But that was all I needed.
What was I doing before this moment. Making sure that my focus was locked on, exposure was at the optimal setting and most of all anticipating....
Settings:
1/640s; F2.8; Nikkor 70-200 2.8 @ 200mm; ISO 500
-Vin Singh
Into The Storm
Unusual weather conditions can help create dramatic scenes. In this image the lightning, moody clouds and the warm glow in the distance help keep the viewer's interest. The leading lines from the tracks into the storm also help.
We spent a few hours chasing this storm through various communities, hoping for a decent shot. We got lucky finding the lighting and the tracks just about an hour before the sun set and the storm diminished. The day paid off as this image ended up in the 2011 Calendar of CBC's the Nature of Things with David Suzuki :)
Now the more interesting details...How did I take this?
Lightning can be pretty tricky to shoot by trying to time it. Most are just too quick for the finger to trigger quickly enough (some strikes spread slowly over the whole sky and are doable). So the trick is the use long exposure (for evidence, check the clouds for movement). In this particular case I used 30 seconds at ISO 200 (base for D300) and f-6.
Since this shot was taken before the sun set - although cloudy - there was still plenty of light. The above settings on their own would have over exposed the entire scene. To compensate for this, I used a 12 stop Neutral Density (ND) filter (about $130 for a 77mm size). A neutral density filter is just a darkened filter that does not alter anything except the amount of light passing through it. This particular filter is so dark that you cannot view much through it. This leads to some issues. If you simply put this on your lens with autofocus and metering to anything other than manual, you will not succeed. IT's simply too dark for the autofocus or metering to work effectively. Here's what I do:
1) Manual or autofocus on the subject without the filter.
2) Turn off autofocus
3) Manually meter the scene (First decide on f-stop the adjust shutter speed until you get the exposure right)
4) Take a shot and make sure you get the result you want (not over-exposed or under-exposed)
5) Put the filter on
6) Adjust the shutter speed to compensate for the ND filter (example: metering before filter indicated 1/200sec -> final shutter speed should be 1/25sec. If you are confused about this please see previous blog: f-stop-iso-and-shutter-speed)
7) Take the shot!
Don't forget to use a tripod and remote trigger (wireless or cable). If you don't have a trigger, use timer. Although I used the 12-stop filter, this could have been accomplished with a 3 or 6 stop filter and bumping up the f-stop (some softness may occur if you go too high). In the end, if you have to choose only 1 ND filter a 3 or 6 stop is more versatile in your bag than a 12-stop.
Remember not to step on tracks if near lightning, even though as in this case, the lightning is a mile or so away.
-Vin Singh