Clear Water, Hudson River

I received a few emails with questions about this months wallpaper photo “Clear Water, Hudson River”, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to write a “Making Of” article for the benefit of all readers.

Planning

This photograph was very much planned in advance in the sense that I needed a very specific and limited window of conditions for the image I had in my mind. I wanted low tide for a strong foreground (the rocks are completely submerged during high tide), sunrise during winter for quality and direction of light, and optimally minimal wind. Because the sun rises much further south during the winter, it actually creates a nice backlighting condition when looking south on the Hudson. This creates a subtle but dramatic lighting effect which improves the sense of depth and dimension in the image. Notice how the rocks in the foreground (especially on the lower right) and the mountains across the river have a beautiful 3 dimensional quality to them as the light seems to flow around their shapes.

Of course we can plan for these conditions, but there is no guarantee that everything will come together when the time comes to set up the camera. After several failed attempts, I found myself standing on the edge of the river once again this year hoping for a chance to capture something special. The weather forecast predicted clear skies for the day, but the morning started off rather cloudy and somewhat foggy. Patience and perseverance paid off however, and all of the elements I look for in a successful landscape photograph came together for a few moments: light, color, composition, and drama.

Setup

Wanting to create a panorama, I setup my Canon 60D with a Canon 24L f/1.4 lens and shot 7 images in a vertical position. I leveled the tripod as best I could, and used reference points along the river to make sure each successive shot would overlap the last by about 25%. Camera settings were Manual, f/11, 1/250 sec @ ISO 200 with highlight priority turned on. I also used a remote shutter release with mirror lockup enabled to keep movement to a minimum and ensure the sharpest and cleanest image possible. No filters or multiple exposures used. (No bias here, just didn’t think about either at the time.) I especially dislike polarizers when shooting a panorama because of the inconsistent look you’ll wind up with as you change your angle to the sun – given the effect is most pronounced at 90° and least effective at 0° or 180° from the sun.

Notice the focus point in the foreground, which is about 12′ from the camera – @ 24mm, f/11 gives me a hyperfocal distance of about 9′, so I approximated the distance and focused there. This brings everything into focus from 5′ to infinity, plenty for this image. I used manual focusing to avoid any anything changing between the 7 images.

Post-Processing

I processed the 7 images in Lightroom, making slight brightness adjustments to each so that they would match up better when merged in Photoshop. Lightroom has a great feature which allows you to select several images,then export them directly to Photoshop for merging into a Panorama. (Control-click on a group of selected images, then select “Merge to Panorama in Photoshop” from the menu).

Once the process is complete, I flattened all of the layers in Photoshop, then saved the new panorama to Lightroom. I don’t crop in Photoshops because I would rather use the non-destructive cropping in Ligtroom instead. This allows me to experiment with different crops and sizes. Finally I added a graduated filter in LR to control the highlights (and sun) in the upper left, and added some subtle dodging to some of the foreground rocks.

The resultant image is the equivalent of 32 megapixels, enough to make a print 54″ wide a native resolution of 180ppi. I could probably go much larger using Alien Skin Blowup (my favorite plugin for re-sizing images).

Lightroom Print module showing native resolution and size.

Summary

The important points I wanted to share here are:

• become intimately familiar with your favorite landscape locations
• be aware of light at all times
• use a tripod
• don’t use a circular polarizer for panoramas
• patience is your best ally, time is your best investment
• think about what inspires you to make photographs

Finally, why this image and why does it work for me? The lighting was the critical element since it had to be made in winter, yet I didn’t want it to be a “winter” image. The calmness and clarity of the water, together with the overall mood of the image is what I wanted to capture –  that helps convey what I felt, and often feel about the Hudson Valley. It shows how I view the world, how it inspires me to appreciate the very basic and simple things in life, and most importantly how I want to share that with others.

Thanks again for your questions, and please feel free to leave any other questions or comments below.

One of the most common questions I get from students is how do I know when I’m finished processing an image?” A related question is how do I distinguish between processing and excessive manipulation? Of course these are questions that are difficult to answer in a general sense, and often depend upon the photographer, his experience, his goals, and ultimately his commitment to creating work that is worthwhile.

One of my favorite books, Art & Fear written by Ted Orland, puts it more succinctly -

“Simply put, art that deals with ideas is more interesting than art that deals with technique.”

This has been my guiding principle as long as I can remember, even when I was producing and arranging music. The toys always fascinated me, and still do to this day, but the ideas were always more important. The following is a real world example from a recent shoot in my hometown of Beacon, NY.

Stormy Hudson, Beacon, NY

To say that I have photographed this location on many occasions would be an understatement. Yet there are images in my mind that I have not made, and so there is always something new to learn from re-visiting familiar landscapes. On this particular morning, I knew there was something special brewing in the sky, and with a strong wind, conditions were changing very rapidly.

Inspired by many Hudson River School painters, I have wanted to try and capture the feel and mood of a stormy Hudson, and this seemed like a good opportunity. I positioned the camera as low as possible and used a wide angle lens to accentuate the size of the waves and push the very dramatic clouds into the distance. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the right waves and cloud formations to line up in a pleasing composition (to me).

The strange thing was that though I wanted to capture the “moment” and all of its drama, it didn’t feel foreboding or dark, but rather positive and inviting. I realized I might be able to make a different interpretation of the same scene, a long exposure, so I added a polarizer plus a 6 stop ND filter to the lens (a total of 8 stops), then adjusted the exposure to match the reduction in light – 15 sec @ f/18 ISO 100. 

Calm after the Storm, Beacon, NY

Both images were processed in Lightroom, with some minor dodging to bring out some of the foreground details, and burning down some very hot highlights in the sky using the local brush tool. The conversion to black and white for the second image helps to simplify the message and really emphasize the textures and shapes. I never considered HDR or double exposures due to the high movement of water and clouds in both images.

How did I know when I was finished processing the images? I guess when what I saw on screen matched both how I felt being there, and also the images I envisioned in my mind. Of course with two different interpretations, I needed to shift my mindset for each image. But the principle remained the same – nature provided the ingredients that I look for in any image: light, color, drama and mood. The rest is composition, which ultimately determines the final result.

My point here is that having a very basic idea and visualization of what I wanted to capture helped tremendously, and allowed me to focus on translating the scene before me in creative ways. Of course being proficient with the technical side of things also helps, but this is mostly a matter of practice and experience. The processing is done when the image feels right, conveys your feelings as effectively and simply as possible, and most importantly draws the viewer into the scene. A tall order for sure, and one I continue to pursue (with many failures) on each image I make.

I hope these examples serve as inspiration for you to focus on ideas and vision, and not worry too much about the prefect location. Your comments and feedback are always welcome!

Cold Sunrise - Lake Placid, Adirondacks

This was a very cold, early morning hike to a great sunrise location in the Adirondacks, and I really wanted to convey this feeling in the image “Cold Sunrise”. There are many cues that you can use to express how you feel when you’re at a particular location, and these involve all of our senses including sound, touch, smell, etc. Here I’ve tried to convey touch and feel by leading the eye onto the texture of frozen snow on these rocks in the foreground.

In addition, I think that the low fog in the valley conveys that stillness and silence that we often associate with these types of atmospheric events. When we can’t see very clearly, our other senses become more acute, and even though this is a photo, it triggers that sense in our minds to imagine what it would sound like to be there. Notice also the strong diagonals which guide the eye as mentioned before – cool to warm, texture to smooth, dark to bright, all contrasting elements.

Anyone looking at this photo will immediately understand what it must have felt like to stand on this frozen rocky ledge – at least that is my hope, and why it is important to continually practice the language of photography.

• Lightroom Workflow

As a bonus, I’ve included my Lightroom workflow so that you can get a better sense of how I processed this image with these ideas in mind in order to create the best interpretation of the RAW file.

1) Here is the original capture, with the default settings n Lightroom. Aside from a small amount of highlight clipping in the sky, the histogram looks good and I have maximized tonalities by exposing to the right. The image looks a little dark, but I wanted to make sure I didn’t lose any sky detail which was beautiful and adds the warmth to the image – a critical component to the overall feel and composition.

2) Next I made some adjustments in the Basic Panel, mostly increasing the Fill Light to bring out the dark foreground, Recovery to control the clipped highlights, and Clarity to bring out the texture of the ice and snow. I also added a bit of Vibrance for color. This works together with White Balance, which I increased from 6000k to about 6700k – this adds some warmth to the sky and removes some of the blue cast from the snow.

3) Next I wanted to try and increase the mid tone contrast – again with the idea that the textures in the image will help convey the feel – ice, frozen, rough, cold – even the trees appear like frozen statues, and adding contrast emphasizes this. I used the Tone Curve panel to added a tight S curve. This helps the midtones, but prevents the deep shadows or highlights from being affected. Adding extra points high and low on the curve prevents this from happening.

4) I decided I wanted to darken the sky to help bring out the soft cloud textures, so I decreased the Luminance value of the Blues in the HSL Panel. This will also darken areas of shadow that often have a blue cast, so care must be taken not to go overboard. I wanted to a subtle effect, so -17 felt about right.

5) Now we come to theDetail Panel – one of the most important aspects of this image, and here I used fairly standard settings - Amount=66, Radius=1.0, Masking=25. However the important setting here is Detail=100. The Detail slider in Lightroom acts as a halo suppressor, meaning it tries to prevent halos, the ugly glow around edges when high sharpening is used. While often useful, it can make an image somewhat softer as well, especially a high frequency image like this one. I didn’t want to compromise that, so a setting of 100 removes all halo suppression and gives me the sharpest image possible. Remember that this requires a very clean image (little or no noise), and a sharp capture to begin with.

6) Finally, I was still not happy with the overall mood of the image – I wanted to sky to play a stronger role in leading the eye and conveying a sense of depth. Up to now it just seemed to bright and washed out. I added a Graduated Filter to with a setting of Exposure= -0.15, Brighness= -49. The key here is not to lose the highlights, but bring down the overall brigthness of the sky and stretch the tonal values. Had I just used Exposure, then I would have lowered the whitest part of the sky only, which was not my intent. By using mostly the Brightness control, the sky becomes more dynamic and richer – the finishing touch to the image.

• Conclusion

I hope this is helpful in illustrating how I make technical AND creative decisions when processing an image in Lightroom. Having a clear idea of what you want to say with an image is extremely important, and aids the workflow tremendously. Thanks for reading and hanging in there through my explanations, and feel free to post comments and suggestions below.

PS- I teach this extensively in the Real World Lightroom 3 workshop where I go much more in depth and work through a bunch of images explaining how the creative process happens in the field, and continues in the digital darkroom.

Let’s face it, landscape photography is hard. However, I don’t just mean capturing great vistas, but the physical demands that you face, be it extreme weather, long hours on foot with a backpack, and the difficult terrain we must often deal with to get access to great shooting locations. Physical fitness and overall health has played a huge role in my success as a landscape photographer over the years. It has enabled me to make images with unique perspectives, and discover uncommon views of familiar subjects and locations. And you too can enjoy these benefits with just a relatively small investment in time – and yes, sweat.

Pitchoff Mtn, Adirondacks, NY

As a nature photographer, I like to visit locations that offer as much unique potential as possible, and more often than not, these are usually more difficult to reach. Being as healthy and fit as possible makes it easier and safer for me to explore these locations. I’m certain that without the commitment to keeping my body in as good condition as I keep my camera gear, I would probably not be working as a professional photographer today.

Most of the time I am hiking and sometimes backpacking to a location. But I’ve also kayaked, canoed, and cycled to reach locations that I could not get to any other way. Living close to the Hudson River gives me many opportunities to get out on the water, and the valley always looks and feels so different from that perspective. But most of the time I am on foot, and usually going uphill with a 20lb backpack and tripod. Add 10″ of snow and freezing cold wind, and the effort becomes extremely strenuous!

We can also gain inspiration from some of the worlds greatest landscape photographers. One of my favorites, and a legend amongst the photo community, is David Muench. Even into his seventies, students that have taken workshops with him lately have told me that he manages steep trails like a mountain goat, and is always in position before anyone else. The late Galen Rowell, another landscape icon, combined rock and mountain climbing with photography to produce a body of work that is still unrivaled to this day. He was dedicated to fitness, often running 8-10 miles a day while on photo assignments for National Geographic.

“My mountaineering skills are not important to my best photographs, but they do add a component to my work that is definitely a bit different than that of most photographers.” - Galen Rowell

By no means am I saying that you have to become an extreme athlete or spend 6 days a week in the gym in order to make better pictures. But a regular exercise program will provide enormous benefits that go beyond just being a photographer – it can change and improve your life for the better.

Penobscot Mtn, Acadia National Park, ME

How Physical Fitness Helps You Become a Better Landscape Photographer

• Access remote locations faster and easier – you’ll have access to more locations simply because you’ll be able to cover greater distances and reach remote locations that you might not have attempted before.
• Carry more gear – no question that we carry far less weight than photographers from the past, but being comfortable with a loaded backpack is an advantage, and allows you to carry non-photo gear as well, like food, water, and extra clothing.
• Tackle difficult terrain – many of the most unique viewpoints I’ve photographed required navigating difficult terrain, and having past experience and confidence helps you stay safe and sure footed.
• Stay out longer – if you can get to a location faster, then you can return faster as well, and this gives you more time to focus on photography.
• Recover faster – no question that being in shape, and improving your flexibility helps you recover faster and feel better the next morning, especially when that’s Monday morning!
• More endurance on multi day shoots – being able to get out day after day and feel fresh, especially on a week long workshop, is important for both the body and mind. Motivation is often a combination of both, and when you feel good physically, you’ll think and react clearer as well.
• Feel more positive physically and mentally – to me this is the key to being open to the moment and taking advantage of whatever nature has to offer.  When your mind and body are in sync, then you’ve given creativity the best possible environment to flourish, and that is so important to landscape photography.
• Spend more time off the beaten path – if you can navigate difficult terrain, especially at altitude, then you will make images that are unique and original because it’s difficult to get to.
• Improves your Fitness – the more you hike, the better you’ll get. This means you’ll lose weight, become leaner, and improve upon all of the previously mentioned areas -a win win situation.

The Basic Key Areas to Focus On

The basis of any fitness program for hiking and backpacking starts with cardiovascular endurance, core strength, and flexibility.  Each of these is important on their own, but together will form a great foundation to build on.

Below I’ll try and outline some strategies that have worked for me over the years.  At my current age of 44, I feel I am in the best shape of my life. As with all things, this has been the result of many years of hard work, commitment, and an obsession with health and nutrition. This may not work for everyone, and certainly is not an absolute prerequisite to becoming a landscape photographer. Even if you only adopt some of these practices, you will reap rewards that certainly go beyond nature photography.

My Personal Fitness Goals

• Cardiovascular conditioning – I try to regularly perform exercises that increase my heat rate significantly for sustained periods of time. I live extremely close to 1500 ft Mt Beacon, so 3 times a week I will climb to the top and back down with my backpack – a 50 minute workout that burns lots of calories and improves my cardio conditioning. During the summer months I add cycling and kayaking. In winter I snowshoe which is even more strenuous but provides a great workout and keeps me warm even when it’s very cold out. Just remember to wear the right base layers, and don’t stay idle too long, otherwise your body will cool off and make you very uncomfortable.

• Core Strength – I use a swiss ball combined with many of the routines found in the Core Performance book by Mark Verstegen. These are all fairly easy to learn, don’t require any elaborate equipment, and you’ll experience positive results fairly quickly. In addition, push-ups are one of the best exercises, and if you don’t do anything else, is probably the best single thing you can do for core strength – just ask the military.

• Yoga – Finally, I have a daily yoga practice of about 45 minutes that I have been doing for over a year and has been really beneficial in so many ways, both physically and mentally. Balance and flexibility are tremendously important when hiking, and having a strong core is the key to reducing injury, and improving endurance. In addition, yoga places the entire body into focus and really helps create awareness of how it functions as a whole. Just as knowing how your camera operates is important to getting the most out of it as a tool, so too the body will function so much better for you when you are in harmony with it.

I fractured my ankle very badly over 4 years ago, and while I did try conventional physical therapy, it was a regular yoga practice combined with exercise (and pain) that allowed me to heal and recover to where I am today – probably 95% strength and range of motion (yes this is my ankle with the 5 screws and metal plate that hold it together!)

So during a typical week, I’ll try to get 3 hikes in, use the swiss ball 3 times, and practice yoga 5-6 days of the week. I will also do 75-100 push-ups and 6O-90 sit-ups every other day. Of course this will change depending on travel, and whether I’m hiking for photo shoots which provide plenty of exercise already. Even on an extended photo trip, I will take my yoga mat and a few weights and find the time to practice – it’s all a matter of priority and commitment, just like photography in general. And of course, I hike with my camera, so there is always the opportunity to make great images and get some exercise at the same time.

This is a broad subject, and what works for me may not work for you, but I hope I have inspired you to consider the benefits that health and fitness can bring to your landscape photography and your life. It isn’t always easy, and I need as much motivation as I can get at times, but with small steps and commitment, you will enjoy real benefits that are well worth the effort.

What fitness challenges do you face? Care to share any motivational ideas?

Web Resources

Core Performance

Outside Magazine Fitness Center

Yogamazing

P90X – workout program

iPhone and iPad Apps

iFitness HD

Streaks – motivational calendar

Watch this video for a behind the scenes look at a recent hike I did in the mountains of the Hudson Valley where I captured the Jan wallpaper photo. Because I was alone I used my iPhone 4 without a tripod so please forgive the shaky parts of the video – even so, I think the quality is outstanding for a phone, plus it’s 720p HD.

Look for more behind the scenes videos in the near future – I’m planning on making these at least once a month during 2011 in many different locations. Thanks for watching and please let me know if you have any questions I didn’t cover- such are the risks of unscripted videos!

I recently received a few questions from a student on controlling exposures and using ND filters. Here are his questions and my responses – keep in mind these are very general answers and books have been written on these topics. I highly recommend “Understanding Exposure” by Bryan Peterson for anyone who wants to dive into this head to toe. Now for the questions…

Q- How does one avoid exposure blowouts when one has an uneven/ragged skyline?  I am thinking in particular of the problem created by sunlight and sky behind treetop leaves, although mountain tops present the same issue sometimes.

A- There are several ways to deal with the problem of dynamic range and the limitations of digital cameras to capture what our eyes can see. Of course, I can’t stress enough how important quality of light is, not only for controlling exposure, but also to the overall success of an image. The direction, quality, intensity, and reflectivity of the light on a particular scene will all determine what you can capture, and what tools and strategies you may need to use. These might include circular polarizers, ND grad filters, multiple exposures and HDR (high dynamic range) photography. The easiest way to determine this is by checking your histogram – if you’re clipping the blacks and the whites, then the scene is too contrasty and you’ll need to use some sort of exposure control.

In your particular case, I would try a soft edge graduated filter since it will make a softer transition from sky to foreground with an uneven skyline and/or trees. These area available in 2 and 3 stop versions. I always carry a set from Singh-Ray, which are high quality and come in many different configurations. If your foreground is properly exposed, but your sky is 2-3 stops over exposed, then a 3 stop grad filter would do a nice job of controlling the highlights while maintaining shadow detail. You can also use grad filters in combination with polarizers, but you will need a filter holder that attaches to the polarizer.

Beyond that, two exposures could be made, one for the sky, and one for the foreground. Lightroom does not offer any way of combining exposures, so you will need to export both images to Photoshop and combine them using masks. If you only have one capture, you can also process the image twice in Lightroom then blend in Photoshop.

Watch this video for an example of this technique

Q- I have been looking at the EXIF data on images on Flickr that I particularly like and am finding that many of my favorite photos are taken at dawn/dusk with exposure times of 60 seconds or more…is this an instance where photographers are using ND filters?

A- Unless you are shooting at night, the only way to have a long exposure of 30 seconds or more is with the use of a ND filters. These are simply filters that limit the amount of the light that reaches your lens. I always carry a 6-stop and 10-stop ND filter for those times when I want that effect.

f/11 @ 20 sec, ISO 100

Seascapes are a good example where long exposures of a minute or more can make water look like fog. They are also great when wanting to blur the movement of a waterfall. Even if it is very bright, an ND filter allows you to use a relatively fast aperture (f/5.6 or f/8) and still use a long shutter speed of a few seconds, giving you the best optical quality from your lens. One thing to be aware of is that with a 10-stop filter on your lens, you will not able to see much at all through the viewfinder, and focusing will be close to impossible. So I always setup my composition and focusing point first, then screw on the filter.

I often use PhotoBuddy, a great iPhone app for photographers. I simply set my exposure without the filter, then once I add the filter, use the app to calculate my new exposure with the filter on. Knowing how to do this w/o a calculator is also a valuable skill.

In the Field

If my exposure without a filter is f/8 @ .5 sec, ISO 800, and I then use a 6 stop filter, I need to add 6 stops to my exposure. With out changing my aperture, new exposure might be f/8 @ 30 sec, ISO 800 OR f/8 @ 4 min, ISO 100.  If I wanted a longer exposure while at ISO 800, then I would switch to the 10 stop filter, and add 4 more stops to my shutter speed: f/8 @ 8 min, ISO 800.
Exposures over 30 sec require you to put the camera into ‘bulb” mode and manually open and close the shutter. I use a remote shutter for this, which allows me to lock the shutter, then count off the seconds – just don’t wander off to far!

Please feel free to ask any other questions, and let me know what you think of the video…thanks!

Canon 1Ds Mk III, 4 min @f/16, ISO 100, 19mm (17-40mm f/4 L)

Having scouted this beach the day before, I was up at 4am to get to this spot before sunrise. Noticing there was probably not going to be much color given the clouds on the horizon, I decided to work with long exposures and the strong blue color of twilight. It took some time to work out a composition that was pleasing to me given all of the rocks along the shore. I am always looking for simplicity, and I struggled quite a bit to come to terms with the the patterns here. But I just couldn’t get away from the beautiful rhythm these rocks create and how the balance the sky so well moving from left to right. Telling a story is the point of it all, and I was in awe of how these rocks were formed over millions of years and how they are constantly shaped by the forces of the sea.

CREATIVE NOTES:

For this image, I used my 6 stop ND filter to cut down the light significantly and allow me to use a 4 minute exposure. This enhances the blue color as well as create a more surreal effect with the water and rocks – nothing new but I still love the effect! Using an ND filter this strong can be tricky since I can barely see what I’m looking at once it’s on, so I set up the composition and exposure beforehand, then put the filter on and calculate the new exposure based on reducing the light 6 stops. For example, at f/16 the exposure was 4 sec, but once I add the 6 stop filter, the exposure becomes 240 sec, or 4 mintes. Calculating exposures in the field is critical for this type of work, but the calculator in my iphone works great, and there are also iphone apps (Photo Buddy) that will calculate this as well.

“Heron Marsh Trail”
Canon 1Ds Mk III, 1/4 sec @f/14, ISO 400, 17mm (EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II)

CREATIVE NOTES “Heron Marsh”:
This image was pretty straight forward from a technical standpoint, and a good example where any mode except manual fails miserably to make a proper exposure. A careful balance between shadows and highlights is crucial in terms of conveying the depth I felt as i walked along this trail and the forest opened up to the marsh. The feeling of moving into the open space is what the image is about, yet I didn’t want to give away what was beyond these last few trees, so the element of mystery is also at play. I used higher than normal ISO in order to minimize movement in the trees, and was very careful with the corners in order to avoid any distractions. Sure I could have used HDR, but the deep shadows and very soft light is the effect I was after, not an exposure where every part of the image leaves nothing to the imagination.

“Buck Pond at Dawn”
Canon 1Ds Mk III, 1/25 sec @f/11, ISO 400, 16mm (EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II)

Black Creek Forest

On a recent assignment for Scenic Hudson, I needed to capture some images of a dark and very dense forest in a valley, which is always a great challenge. Because of the terrain and surrounding hills, there is never any warm light so the approach I took was to wait for the right conditions and work with shapes, lines, and especially color.

One of my favorite times to shoot in a forest is right after a heavy rainfall when everything is wet and colors are most saturated. Often there will also be some mist in the air which adds an aura of mystery and mood. In this example, I wanted to create contrast and depth using whatever light was available, and back lighting is my favorite for this. At the same time I used the trees to create rhythm using repetition and visual patterns – notice how the trees tend to get smaller and more grouped together from left to right. of course I had no control over this, but as a landscape photographer I am always looking for design elements in nature that can create excitement visually, and rhythm is just one of those ways.

Here I was drawn to the relative brightness of the foreground tree and again tried to use back lighting to add interest to the image together with strong vertical lines which create tension. In addition, having the ferns in the  foreground help to create dimensional depth and add a strong color element.

Both of these images were shot in very low light, so I used a tripod and fairly high ISO’s (640-800). I did this in order to keep my shutter speeds down to less then 1/2 sec which helps prevent blurring from things moving in case of a slight breeze. Lightroom 3 has a vastly improved noise reduction feature over past versions, and I used it on both of these images without the need to export to Photoshop.

These are just some thoughts about how I went about capturing these images, and hopefully they give you some insight into my own creative process. I’ll have more “On Assignment” articles in the near future since I currently have a long list of locations to photograph. Please feel free to let me know if you would like any other specific information – I’m always willing to share whatever is helpful.

Canon 1DS Mk III, 1/30, f8, ISO 200, 24-105mm L

There has been much talk about the convergence of still photography and video recently, and with good reason. This has been driven by the video capabilities of recent DSLR’s from Canon, Nikon and Panasonic. The advantages they offer include extremely high quality HD video recording combined with shallow depth of field (a hallmark of traditional film movie cameras) and access to a great selection of lenses.

In addition to photography, I’ve always had an interest in the combination of static and moving images to tell a story, especially in the environmental work I do for Scenic Hudson. A project I’m currently working on is a 400+ acre farm that Scenic Hudson has protected from future development. I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to experiment with multimedia so that others can better understand and appreciate these environmental success stories.

This is the first of many multimedia projects I have in the works, and I’m constantly learning the more I practice. Your feedback is welcome as always!

Technical Info:

I shot this video with a Panasonic GH1 DSLR, which I recently purchased primarily as a video camera for the above mentioned reasons. Why not Canon you might ask considering I have a nice collection of Canon lenses. The main reasons are a) autofocus capability (great when you need it) b) an articulating LCD screen (makes shooting at low angles much easier) c) stereo sound recording (again not pro level, but great when you need it. I capture audio separately using a Zoom H4n recorder.

Another reason is that being a micro 4/3 format, it can adapt to many third party lenses, and I wanted to take advantage of some old but really  fast Olympus lenses I inherited from my Dad. The GH1 14-140 kits lens is also excellent, and I shot most of this video using it. I shot in 1080p at 24 frames per second, and edited in Final Cut Pro where I added several still images. There is also a time lapse segment which I created with my Canon 5D and an intervalometer. It was set to capture an image every 20 seconds for 4 hours.

Combining all of these media elements is exciting, and I think adds another dimension to my landscape photography work both as a story teller and provides more ways that I can share my passion for nature and the Hudson Valley.