Foggy and Cold Morning

Sunday morning I woke to some of the heaviest fog so far this fall. Along with the fog the temperature had dropped to 26 degrees and a light frost covered everything. The conditions at the first location I went to were not favorable. A grouping pilings from an old bridge had little to no fog around them. And as part of our annual flood control the water level had already lowered several feet.

So slightly disappointed I looked for other compositions. The first was this barn. However, it was still early and I could barely see 50 to 100 feet in front of me. My plan was to visit Round Lake State Park to scout the conditions and then return to the barn after that in hopes the fog would have thinned out enough to make a photo.

Round Lake did not disappoint as I was greeted with fog on the water and the morning sun lighting the trees across the lake. I set up my tripod to do a long exposure pines and larches, but this grouping of trees kept pulling me to take another look. The sun now had broken through and backlit the trees in this area. The frost on the trees glistened in the sunlight and the remnants of the fog moved slowly across the water.

frostcoveredtrees.jpg

After making this photo I packed everything and headed back to the barn. The sun by now had burned through most of the fog at the lake as well as the route back to the barn. My hope was that the fog around the barn would not have thinned out too much since it was so heavy earlier. As I pulled up to the barn’s location I was gratified my plan appeared to have worked. The extra time allowed the fog to lift just enough to reveal the barn while still masking several unwanted parts of the composition. Of the shots taken this one seemed the most promising.

barninfog.jpg





New Photos

Just a quick post to announce four new photos were just added them to my site. All four are available for sale.

Also, planning a couple of outings to take photos of waterfalls in the area in the next several days.

Let me know if you have any photography or any hiking related questions.

Thank you,

Steve

Fall Colors

What a day it was today. Temperatures in the low 40’s, cloudy and rainy weather and overall not what one would expect as ideal conditions to photograph fall colors. However, I have learned the only guarantee in not finding something to photograph is to not go out and look.

So today’s expedition started a little after noon as my lovely wife Allison and I set out to explore some promising areas near home that we had noticed earlier in the week. After a very scenic and relaxing drive, we proceeded home without stopping for any photos. Oh, there were some beautiful colors along the way, but nothing that stood out as anything more than passing curiosities. The search for a compelling subject and composition can seem like an endless task.

When we were within a few miles from home, there on the hill stood a cluster of trees with orange leaves. This was not the first time I had noticed these trees, but this was the first time with conditions like today. There is something about a moody day with some low clouds weaving through the hillside that can change the mood of the landscape. This was a moment I could not let pass by without giving it a go and trying to capture this scene to share the experience with others.

Cluster of trees atop a hill. Image shot with a Nikon D850 with a Nikon 70-200mm at 200mm, f11, ISO 64 and a shutter of 1/15th of a second.

Cluster of trees atop a hill. Image shot with a Nikon D850 with a Nikon 70-200mm at 200mm, f11, ISO 64 and a shutter of 1/15th of a second.

There is a certain sense of calm and excitement one gets after finally captured your first image of the day. To end today with the photo above would have been a fitting end to the day’s activities, but after only driving a short distance up the road, this little gem revealed itself. Standing alone in the middle of field at a local Christmas Tree farm this lone larch displayed its fall colors.

Shot with Nikon D850 with a Nikon 70-200mm at 165mm, f10, ISO 64 and a shutter of 1/10th of second.

Shot with Nikon D850 with a Nikon 70-200mm at 165mm, f10, ISO 64 and a shutter of 1/10th of second.

Upon returning home I was eager to load these images on my computer and begin processing them. First, I used Lightroom to make some minor adjustments. Second, Photoshop was used to crop the images and to do some dodge and burning. Finally, I used a preset in ON1 to enhance the colors and mood of the day.

I always try to learn something each time I go out looking for photos. Today it was that even on cold and rainy days there are still images out there if you just stay open to seeing them.




Welcome

Welcome 

October 7, 2019

Hello from Northern Idaho and welcome to my photography blog. In the coming days I will be posting about my hiking and photography adventures . My goal will be two fold. First, to provide information about the planning and exploration of the various trails and natural wonders in this area. Second, to show the ins and outs of taking photos during these hikes. Each blog will have a selection of photos taken with information about the equipment used, camera settings and some post processing.

In the future I will be adding a workshop section for those interested in going on hikes and learning more about how to take photos in the wilderness. Expected timeline for this is the Spring of 2020.

Your comments and feedback are welcome and hopefully through this blog we can share and learn more about the wilderness and the wonders it has to offer