I've been a pretty faithful user of HDR over the last several years. HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. In HDR photography, I take a bracketed set of shots of the same image. Bracketing means changing the exposure time while holding the F-stop constant, thus getting a series of images that capture different amounts of light with the sensor. The idea is that camera sensors don't have the same dynamic range as the human eye so you make this series of images and then 'blend' them together to get the final image. In reality, you don't really extend the dynamic range of your image ... you compress the dynamics of the image to match the limited range of the display you are using. This is called 'tone mapping'. So the HDR image you see is really a false representation of the true dynamics of the picture. You can always tell you're looking at an HDR image by the way it seems to be over saturated. HDR is OK ... a lot of famous photographers have used this technique to make their images more dynamic and attractive. But I get the feeling this technique has run its course. I find myself still using the same software but applying a much lighter touch to the controls so my images aren't nearly as intense as they were before. I've also been spending some time exploring a different technique ... image blending ... to get what I want. I've just started doing this and haven't really gotten good enough to show the results. But I like the technique. The results appear much more natural and less forced. I think I'm going to start heading that way in the near future. I just need to spend some more time getting familiar with the methods and figure out how to get the results I want. Stay tuned.
Cholla Cactus - Joshua Tree NP
I've already commented on how difficult it is to take photos in Joshua Tree NP. Most of the living entities are just not that photogenic. Certainly not the Joshua Trees which are down right ugly. You need to look very carefully to find shots that are exciting and nice to look at. Such is the case with this blog's photo. This is a Cholla Cactus. There's one spot in Joshua Tree where they appear. You're driving along Pinto Basin Road and suddenly there they are. Ugly things on the whole but, if you look very carefully, you can find some very intriguing compositions. I was coming from the south, right around sunrise, when I got to this location. I wanted to shoot there before the sun got too intense and washed out everything. That's how you shoot in a place like Joshua Tree. I found a cactus that was just starting to flower and was able to get very close so the flowers were basically the only thing you could see. I also wanted to get some sky which was very blue at that moment and I wanted the background to be out of focus. Notice the f-stop of 4.0. The lens is wide open.
You also have to be very careful around these cacti. They are barbed on the end and will do some serious damage to any exposed skin. While I was there a park ranger was attempting to extricate some of these nasty thorns from a guy's leg and it wasn't going very well. He was using a pair of needle nose pliers but the spikes are very fragile and hard to get out without breaking. The guy was in some intense pain. He was advised to visit a hospital emergency room to finish the repair. Was his fault as there are signs everywhere warning about how dangerous these cacti are. He was wearing shorts! Not a good idea in this place.
Anyway, this is made from 5 bracketed images, run through Photomatix and then finished in Lightroom. I really like the contrasts and the composition came out pretty good too. Joshua Tree NP ... definitely a place to visit but not in the summer. It's really hot and dry. Bring plenty of water and arrive early. And watch out for the cactus thorns.
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| Cholla Cactus - 35mm,f/4.0,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0 |
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