Multnomah Falls

Too Many People...

I've written about this before but it needs to be talked about a lot. There are too many people in these venues and they are causing lots of problems. This is pertinent to my image today because this particular falls, in the Colombia River Gorge, is literally overrun with people. They come by car and by bus and it's getting more and more difficult to take pictures with them all over the place. The bridge in this picture was constantly filled with people and their presence spoils the mood I'm trying to create. I'll talk more about this later but I do want to make some points now. First, there is a striking lack of reverence toward the venues being visited. This is particularly a problem with foreign visitors, many who show absolutely no respect for either the venue or the other people who are there to see it. They swarm the place like ants, talking loudly, standing in front of the other photographers and just making asses of themselves. Some just can't resist vamping for pictures which is disrespectful in the extreme. I remember last year when I was in Arches NP, at Delicate Arch, and there was this woman who insisted on dancing in the middle of the arch with a huge purple scarf while her husband/boyfriend took pictures. Delicate Arch is a very special place and this stupid behavior was not right. Certain nationalities seem to have this idea that the venue is nothing more than a backdrop for their selfies. They are in every picture, hogging the spaces where serious photographers need to set up and take their images. I've had confrontations with these people on several occasions and it's really irritating. This leads to the second point which is just about volume. My generation, unfortunately, has this idea that the ideal retirement involves a huge RV and driving all over the country. These monstrosities take up lots of space and are very noisy. I use generators for my computers but I always respect the hours posted as I know how irritating it is to listen to a noisy generator when you are trying to sleep. But I've had that happen all too often when people park next to my truck in the middle of the night and fire up their generators. They literally don't care if it bothers you. This last trip was especially bad for some reason. I've almost always been able to find a campsite in the national parks but this last trip I had major problems finding places. When you look at the campgrounds all you see is these big RVs and camp trailers. They have satellite dishes and ATVs ... hell, one guy even projected movies on a screen and invited everyone to come watch. All the comforts of home. But the bedlam they create is hard on everyone around them including the animals. I don't have an answer unfortunately. They have the right to do whatever they want but the impact on these places in major.

Multnomah Falls

I'm sure most of you have seen a picture of this waterfall. It's part of the Colombia River Gorge NP. What an amazing place. Because it's so popular there is a major issue with crowds. I talked about this above so I'll keep it short. Too many people spoils the mood of a place like this. You really want to just stand quietly and drink in the beauty and serenity of this location. Almost impossible because too many loud, obnoxious people are swirling around. The parking lot was almost full. And because this is a popular spot there are signs everywhere about taking your valuables with you so no one can steal them. I always laugh at that because my truck is filled to overflowing with valuables and there's no way I can take even 10% with me. I have a suggestion for the local authorities ... if this is such a big problem, why not station law enforcement around the lots to keep people from breaking in. You make a lot of money off this traffic and maybe you should spend some of that on keeping people's valuables safe. Maybe?

Anyway, there's always a problem with photographing such a venue. It's been shot millions of times, often by professional photographers and the basic image is well known. How do you shoot a place like this in such a way as to be different? No photographer wants to take a "me too" shot. Well, in my case I wanted to really capture the serenity of this place. That's best done without people. People spoil the shot. I also wanted to take a very long exposure so the water took on a soft, almost dreamy quality. That required me to use a 10 stop neutral density filter and that lead to exposures of 3 minutes or more. Keeping the bridge empty for 3 minutes was almost impossible so I had to take many shots of the same scene, hoping at least one would be sans people. I got lucky with this one shot.

This is a single exposure of almost 3 minutes. I ran it through Lightroom to bring out the colors and that's about it. There's very little done to "fix" this image. I really like how it came out. I understand why this place is so special. It just grabs you and won't let go. It's on my bucket list for another visit, early in the morning before the crowds arrive. I just want to shoot this place over and over. It's that special.

Multnomah Falls - 35mm,f/18,151 seconds,ISO 100, license CC BY-NC 4.0

Yosemite Valley

Russian Drinking...

I talked about Russian drinking in my last post and just wanted to touch on a ancillary issue that's become a big story in the press here. Last week 48 people died from drinking methanol laced solutions ... all in one town. Turns out the cost of legit (really not legit but at least drinkable) alcohol has gone through the roof lately, mostly due to increases in taxes. The state is trying, laughably, to cut down on the huge issue of alcoholism in this part of the world. Of course, the ever resourceful Russians just move to other 'alcohol' based solutions, some of which are deadly. This latest incident involved bottles of 'skin tonic' which was basically all alcohol. 93% according to the label. In the past the alcohol was ethanol but, for some reason (probably because methanol is cheaper), the maker made a substitution to the toxic alcohol. There were warnings on the label but no one here pays any attention to the warnings. They all 'know' that the contents are safe. For a significantly reduced price people are able to get plastered. But this time it was very fatal. The government is making all the usual huffing noises about regulations and whatnot but the fact is there isn't much they can do. The people who make these elixirs will just move on to some other delivery vehicle. It was reported that people were actually buying 'legit' bottles of Jim Beam and Jack Daniels which were bootleg and made with methanol. Imagine paying a huge price for a bottle of Jack only to have it kill you. That's how bad it's become. Some reports say up to 70% of all the liquor sold in Russia is bootleg and a lot of it is very dangerous. No wonder people load up with alcohol at the duty free shops before heading home. It's just common sense in this place.

Yosemite Valley

If you take the road to Glacier Point, the first stop is Tunnel View, just before you enter the long tunnel heading west. There's a grand view of the valley and the overlook is always crowded with photographers doing their thing. I really was happy this day because the sky was loaded with low storm clouds and the valley was aglow in the most beautiful diffuse light. The clouds were just below the mountain peaks so there was some added mystery to be experienced. I spent several hours at the lookout, taking a huge batch of images. I know I won't use most of them but pictures are cheap these days and I want to have a large selection to choose from.

In this image, I'm looking to the east as the sun gets low in the sky behind me. The bright glow mid-image is the sun hitting some high clouds and reflecting back. To the left, the large granite monolith is El Capitaan while to the right is Cathedral Rocks and Bridalveil Falls. One thing to notice is the large number of dead pine trees. I heard an estimate that up to 100 million pines are dead in the High Sierras due to the 5 year drought and the number is growing at a frightening pace. Not only are they unsightly but there is a real fire hazard from all the dead wood. Really hope they get some relief this winter or things could get real dicey come summer.

This is a 5 image sequence minimally processed through Photomatix and then finished in Lightroom. I'm really happy with how it turned out. I take back an earlier comment about how Yosemite was better seen as B&W. This is really an amazing image and I wouldn't change a thing.

Yosemite Valley - 35mm, f/6.3,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point

Some Ideas for Cycle #2

I'm in the planning stage for cycle #2 which starts, unofficially, around the end of January. I'm intending to spend all of February in and around LA, shooting timelapse and video for my project and taking pictures for my portfolio. I expect lots of rain as El Nino is building to a historic level so plan to see lots of wet views and images. Hopefully I won't get too sick while there but who knows. I'm also looking at visiting as many parks in CA as I can, depending on the snow load and how well they are kept open. I'll then spend some time in AZ/UT, visiting places I went during cycle #2, including Zion, Vermilion Cliffs, Grand Canyon and maybe a few more. Depends on how much snow they have and how much time I have. I'm considering applying for a permit to hike into "the wave" which is something I really want to do given time and a favorable outcome of my application. I'll finish up with a few locations in NM. Expect to return around the end of April although that could adjust depending on how much I still want to do and how much energy I have. I'm hoping I can take upwards of 3-4 terabytes of data which should keep me busy for the rest of the year. It should be an exciting trip.

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point

One afternoon, about the middle of my stay in Yosemite, I took the long drive up to Glacier Point. From this overlook one can see the entire valley and the view is spectacular. Most of the park is visible from this high vantage point and there is so much to see. Of course, you can see half dome and the waterfall but you also see the high Sierra mountains. The view really does take your breath away.

I took this as the sun slid below the horizon and only half dome and the high mountains are still illuminated. Yosemite village is in the valley below, to the left of the picture. At the center bottom you can just see the parking lot for one of the hotels. Yosemite Valley is straight ahead, to the left of half dome. This is a glacial valley, it's sides polished smooth by the massive glaciers from the last ice age as they slowly slid down the valley and then melted. It has the classic "U" shape although the bottom has been filled in over the years with wash and landslides so the valley is flat but scientific studies (using oil exploration rigs) found the rounded bottom a glacial polished valley must have. This is an HDR panorama shot from the extreme corner of the overlook facing to the northeast.

As I pointed out in a previous entry, it's difficult to get really stunning color photos in Yosemite because the granite is all gray. Compare this with my pictures from Zion or Bryce and you see what I mean. The iron rich sandstone from the Great Basin gives the whole area a very warm and inviting hue that is lacking in Yosemite. Only the amazing rock formations and the high mountains make Yosemite really special. And it's close proximity to LA and SF guarantees a steady stream of visitors.

For comparison, I've included both a color and B&W image. You can see why so many iconic images from Yosemite are done without color. By removing all color you're forced to see the amazing shapes and contours that define the valley. Maybe I should leave this image B&W. What do you think?

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point - 16mm(1.6 crop),f/18,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point(B&W) - 16mm(1.6 crop),f/18,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Vidae Falls at Crater Lake

The TPP and our Doom

This isn't nominally a political blog but sometimes events happen that are politically driven and impact me (and you) in such a way that a protest must be lodged. I'm talking about TPP, the "Trade Pact" between the US and 11 other Pacific Rim nations. The text of this mess was released yesterday and it's a disaster. This clown (or should I say crook) Obama has produced an agreement that will, pretty much, destroy us all. It's all about corporations and their power. He's basically given them everything they want and more. Forget laws and the rights of the citizen to any protections. If a state legislature passes a law that a corporation objects to, they can take the dispute not to the courts but to a private arbitration board comprised of ... wait for the drum roll ... corporate lawyers. Who do you think these people represent? Do you think for even a second that their allegiance lies with the citizen and the state? Of course not. They make their living serving the needs and desires of corporations so they will always decide in the favor of their bread and butter. So any protections that threaten the profits of our corporate masters can and will be shot down. Forget environmental protections, forget worker's rights, forget any consumer protections ... they are all subject to this special, private court. Sovereignty is gone. For all your conspiracy types, this is your feared one world government coming in through the back door. Any country that signs on to this agreement will be compelled to do whatever the corporations want. Even simple municipal regulations can be thrown out and there's no recourse to correct even the most egregious outcomes. Corporations will have tremendous power to influence how government works. Is this really what you want? This is the moment when you need to get up off you ass and scream "ENOUGH". Write that worthless congressman and tell him that he'll be seeking employment somewhere else if he votes for this piece of crap. We need to make it very plain to these corrupt morons that we will not accept this sellout without a fight.

Vidae Falls at Crater Lake

I didn't know there was a waterfall at Crater Lake. It's not all that big or impressive but it's there. Take the rim road to the east (before you get to the Visitor's Center) and you'll see the signs for the waterfall. I like to use my 10 stop ND filter whenever there's moving water as you get such a creamy, almost misty effect. However, this technique tends to eliminate any structure in the water and that's not always a good thing. So, I've developed a technique where I combine a long exposure with a very short exposure (one that freezes the individual drips). I bring both images into layers in Photoshop and then use a simple adjustment of the opacity on the top layer to bleed through just enough of the underlying image to get both the creamy and stark together. I also did some contrast adjustments around the edges so I made the moss and rocks stand out and some Lightroom adjustments to bring out the colors. A nice image overall. You should try it if you have the filters.

Vidae Falls - 70 mm(1.6 crop), f/18, 50 sec,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0

Zion Virgin River Dream

Sony Takes a Gamble

I've been contemplating a new camera body this summer. I've grown frustrated with how easily my sensor gets contaminated when I switch lenses all the time. By the time I finished the last cycle my Canon 60D took images that looked like they had chicken pox. I had to spend a small fortune to get it cleaned but I know that the dirt will return as soon as the next cycle begins. The only way to keep a camera clean is to never open it. But since I have several lenses (with another one being contemplated for astro photography) the only solution is to buy more bodies and commit each one to a certain lens. I'll do that for my 2 main lenses (the Canon wide angle and telephoto) and only swap in the astro lens when I'm doing night shooting. I'll have to set up a system for making those changes as clean as possible (maybe inside a big plastic bag to minimize environmental contact) and keep them to a minimum.

Anyway, I've been watching the camera market intently since January and it's become very interesting. Canon opened the bidding with their 5D SR, a 50 megapixel monster that sells for almost $4K. It is an interesting offering but has one serious drawback ... the same noise issues that plague my 60D. Canon sensors are just horrendously noisy and there's no getting around that. I'd need to get seriously dedicated to noise reduction and to buy some not so cheap software to help mitigate the issues this noise creates. But I'd at least not have compatibility issues with my lenses.

Sony offers the only serious competition for the Canon bodies. Their mirrorless design leaves room for adapters that allow the use of almost any lens from any manufacturer but, up until now, there were big issues. Auto focus was painfully slow and often failed so manual focusing was almost a given. That's OK most of the time but when you're trying to take candid photos (like on the street) it's a huge problem. And the image stabilization systems in most lenses didn't work very well either. It was a mess and, quite frankly, the first version of their high pixel count camera, the A7R, had some serious issues with shutter noise, vibration and lifetime. I know a lot of pro photographers made the switch but they were not all really happy with it. But, just this month, Sony introduced the next round ... the A7R II, and it looks like a game changer. It has a big sensor, 42 megapixels, so it competes directly with the new Canon but the really exciting ideas involve 5 axis image stabilization in the camera (by moving the sensor) and auto focus is now fast because they have 399 phase detection sensors spread across the sensor and they work with Canon auto focus lenses. I've seen several videos and the system is very fast indeed. They also seemed to be listening to their customers and made major changes in the software so HDR shooters have more bracketing options and video shooters can now shoot 4K internally to the camera. This last item is a huge advance ... a small camera that shoots ultra HD to the internal memory card (not everything is great ... only 8 bit and the color space is somewhat limited but still...). And the new sensor is very low noise so I can do my HDR thing and my star photo thing and even my video thing all with the same camera. Price is an issue ... $3200 ... and $399 for the adapter, but it's still a major step for them and for me. I can now get the resolution I want, a full-frame 35mm image and some really nice features that will make my life a whole lot easier. Now, all I need to do is find that $3600 and I'll be set to go ... hmmmmm.

Zion Virgin River Dream

Take the Zion park shuttle to the very last stop ... the Temple of Sinawava ... and take the path toward the narrows and you find the Virgin River. This river made the Zion Canyon and the narrows and pretty much the whole park so it's a big deal. In this area the river runs through a lot of rock fall, stuff sloughing off the nearby canyon walls, which makes for many turbulent pools and small waterfalls. It's an extremely picturesque area so I spent most of a day there. One place, in particular, caught my attention. Many rocks had pushed together to create an elevated pool which cascaded over the resulting dam and waterfall. I'm always looking for moving water as it gives me a chance to work with my 10 stop neutral density filter (here and here and you'll need an adapter ring to fit your lens). You've seen the effect I'm sure ... cascading water turns into the neatest mist. You achieve this by using this really dark filter which pushes your exposure times out to 30 seconds or longer. The result is an exposure that obliterates all evidence of individual drops and shows only a ghost of what's actually there. You get an image with some really sharp features (rocks mostly) and everything else is so ethereal. It's a really interesting effect.

Anyway, I spent quite a while at this waterfall and took many images. This one is probably the best of the lot although I'll develop all of them to make sure. This is a single exposure, extensively processed in Lightroom. I used several radial filters to highlight the rocks (especially the one in the middle) and worked with the colors to pull out the water and rock colors. Very dramatic I think.

Zion Dream - 106mm(1.6 crop),f/22,30 sec,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0