Transition or Transformation

img_5709_dxo11silvfxThe year has been productive as far as changes within my style and understanding in what I am doing with photographs. It’s been an interesting display, for me, at least, between the right and left sides of my brain. The right side seeking form and creativity, and the left side begging for order and direction. Luckily there has been an amicable compromise between the two and my shooting and processing has taken on more of a creative direction, which was aimless in the recent past.

I have revisited several of my photos of years past and have tried to look at them afresh and see what I would do with them in my current state of creative flux. The current post is of Sanary-sur-Mer, France  where I was dining at the time a few years ago. Of course I had on my de rigueur  Panama hat which I bought in Sorrento, Italy, so I felt quite International (although I doubt this is how I actually appeared).

The south coast of France on a sunny late Spring Day. This is what I imagined I wanted to capture in my photo. I had tried to do this in the past and had failed, but with my last attempt I believe I came close to the mark, if, nothing more than with nostalgic, halcyon type of overtones.

The photo was taken on a Canon 30D, 24-105mm, f/4L IS lens @ 24mm, f/22, 1/400, ISO 1600. It was an unusually noisy and dirt prone camera which I have since parted company. However, I always wanted to capture that special sense of place there in France at the sea port. This I believe I approximated using DxO Optics Pro 11 and Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 (Antique Plate preset) in post processing.

Was it Endórë or Iceland?

This is an image of Kirkjufell Mountain, west of Grundarfjordur, in Snaefellsnes, Iceland. But it easily could have been from J.R.R.Tokien’s mythological land of Middle Earth or using his language from the myth, Endórë, because it presented as quite alien and unusual as compared to the work a day world in which we all live.

My recent adventure to Iceland in July was productive albeit challenging due to the weather. Because of the many water falls, volcanic activity or remnants of it, and the utter ruggedness of the countryside, there were multiple opportunities to capture winning photos, of which I did. Since that time I have spent time learning new post-processing technique to let my original raw photographs come to life.

This present posted photo is obviously a panorama, shot with a Canon 5 DS, a 24-105mm L lens, at 24mm, f/16, 1/640, and ISO 800. Post-Processing was accomplished with DxO Optics Pro, Adobe Camera Raw, and Photoshop.

Land of Dreams

This post of a most beautiful and dramatic place, namely Lucerne, Switzerland, is offered as a challenge. You see, Switzerland has always held an exalted place in my subconscious for  the purest and most unspoiled place on the planet.  The photo is of Mount Pilatus taken from the city of Lucern on a day of dramatic weather changes,IMG_0379_DxO occurring in early May with a Spring snowstorm.

I had planned to ascend Mt. Pilatus on this day but Nature thought otherwise. So, I stayed in Lucern and was content to view it from afar, simply because if I had ascended Mt. Pilatus I would have been in a fog or snow storm without any vision at all. The best I could count for my stay in Lucern was this photo from across Lake Lucern, which, when one thinks about it is not that bad. Of course, or unless one realizes that the dramatic view could have been increased a hundred-fold if one were at the top of Mt. Pilatus itself.

The photo of Mt. Pilates was taken with a Canon Powershot G3 X, 126.4mm (344mm, 35 mm format equivalent), f/11, 1/320, 125 ISO, using DxO Optics Pro 10, and Photoshop for post processing.

 

Keukenhoff: Chance Encounters

IMG_1907_DxO11aOn my most recent trip to Europe down the Rhine Valley in the spring, it would have been remise not to visit Holland in all its glory, namely tulips in bloom in aeternum. This I did with my wife, and the whole experience was a bit overwhelming in many ways. For approximately two months this area of Holland, specifically Keukenhoff Gardens is visited by millions of world travelers. That means if one is interested in photographing tulips, these shots will inevitably have people in them. That is the challenge I faced.

Secondly, the size of the gardens and arrangements are beyond description, either visually or in words.

Some luck was on my side, since I was at the gardens in the early part of the day. There were people but not the crowds which amassed a couple of hours later.

The challenge was also before me of the particular light of the day. Sometimes harsh, but not always. I was constantly looking for that window or edge of soft light. Hopefully in the photo I approximated that special sense of beauty which is called Keukenholl — Holland in Bloom.

Der Schwarzwald In Transit

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The title to this post is not as enigmatic as it appears. It is in the flavor of my recent posts of light and darkness, black and white. In my just finished visit to the Rhine Valley I was fortunate enough to catch a spring snowfall on the very morning that I was approaching the Black Forest (viz., Der Schwarzwald). This was such a contrast in not only the visual but also the experiential terra firma where the unexpected was suddenly upon us.

Unfortunately, I was in a bus traveling along a narrow road with magnificent scenery around me. I was spell-bound, but I wanted to take a picture to capture this transcendent moment. My first impulse was that it was not possible traveling in a bus with a camera that was not my best (simply a small tourist camera), but my wife stated emphatically, “Yes, indeed, take the photos!”  As an obedient spouse I compiled, not having much hope of success.

Needless to say, my wife was right. I was able to salvage several quite extraordinary moments. Whether these moments translated into good photos was another matter. This photo of a farm on a mountainside in the midst of a sudden spring snow storm is my attempt to relay a very transient moment. On reflexion, this appears that many great photos are all about these transient moments (hence, “in transit”), that try to capture the ephemeral but also the equally eternally transcendent.

The shot was taken with a Canon Powershot G3X, 24 mm, f/8.0, 1/800, ISO 125, enhanced with DxO Optics Pro, with tonality adjusted in Photoshop.