Defiance

Defiance :: CT

“An island of calm in a sea of uncertainty…”

 

I spent a little time last week down at the shore, putting together example images for next month’s Light and Landscape Member’s Area lesson plan.  This photo was a happy little by-product of the trip.  And by happy, of course, I mean angry skies. haha  We’ve been having some strange weather lately.  This morning, the second day of spring, we woke up to 4+ inches of snow in the back yard…but that’s New England for ya!

If you’re interested in getting any info about our teaching program and photography community, you can contact us at support@availablelightmedia.com .  We’d be happy to give you the overview and answer your questions!  You can also check out a small sampling of some of our student’s work in the next issue of Light and Landscape Magazine, the number one landscape photography magazine on iTunes. 🙂  You can find it in the newsstand app!

The settings, for those interested: 10 mm, 4 seconds, ISO 100, f/11, grad ND

The Plunge

The Plunge :: VT

“Plunge boldly into the thick of life, and seize it where you will, it is always interesting.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 

The settings: 1 sec, f/9, 10 mm, ISO 100

Into the Light

Cavern Cascades :: NY

Because clearly, I don’t have enough waterfall photos in my portfolio yet….. 😉

This photo was taken almost 2 weeks back on a photo trip with Derek Kind (an awesome guy, who wrote a schnazzy review for our book), Ron Clifford and A.D. Wheeler to Watkins Glen in NY.  I had originally planned to drive up to the finger lakes and stay a night or two, to maximize my time with those guys (all incredible photographers, check ’em out) but two things happened.  First, I picked up an event photography gig the night I intended to leave.  Second, we had a family emergency involving broken bones and surgery (not my bones!) and I had to be home earlier than expected.  All told, I drove the 5 hours to upstate NY, and then 5 hours back on the same day.  Because landscape photographers are crazy.  And apparently, we also hate sleep.

Despite my extreme tiredness, we really had a great time creating together.  It was definitely worth the travel time.  When the idea of the trip first came up, I thought I would find some foliage shots.  Instead, I ended up creating black and white waterfall images. haha  Funny how life works out, sometimes, right?

Just going with the flow, I guess.  (Get it??  Waterfall….?  Flow….? Ha!)

Speaking of fall foliage, leaf season is just about done in northern New England, but we still have some rad colors in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and upper Pennsylvania.  If you’re looking for a private session over the next few weeks, to help you improve your fall foliage (or whatever) photos, contact me and we will set something up!

For those of you interested in such things, the settings for the photo above are: f/9, 2 seconds, iso 100, 22mm, with a circular polarizer

Salvaging Your Blue Skies

Poetry of the Earth

Another photographer recently talked to me about his silly habit of taking camera gear with him wherever he goes, even if he knows the light is going to be harsh.  I think he expected me to agree with him, and tell him he really *should not* hike with that extra 15lbs of gear up a mountain.  Instead, I reminded him of Murphy’s Law.  If he didn’t hike with his gear, he would get to the top of the mountain, only to find a unicorn standing under a rainbow, in front of a (completely unforecasted) partial solar eclipse.

Now, don’t get me wrong, blue skies at mid-day are not ideal light to shoot in.  I’ll always prefer the diffuse light of sunrise and sunset, or the textured light of cloudy New England days.  But if I find myself somewhere epic, with only a small window to shoot, I’m going to make the best of the conditions I have.

So, how do we do that?  First, I’d invest in filters to help you tame unruly light.  Circular polarizers help to cut down on harsh glare, beef up blue skies and give foliage a lush feel in bad light.  A neutral density filter will help you decrease the amount of light entering the camera.  Graduated neutral density filters are particularly handy for modifying the harsh light of blazing, mid-day skies, while still keeping your foreground well-exposed.  (If you want a bit more information about this, check out our practical tips e-book!  You can get a copy in our store, or on itunes through the Light & Landscapes magazine…found in the Newstand app.)

I’d also be certain that if you have the option to shoot in RAW, you do so.  As long as your highlights aren’t clipped and your shadows aren’t crushed, you may have enough data to work with to recover some of the image’s detail.  Remember to keep an eye on your histogram as you shoot and adjust your camera’s settings to give you the best possible chance at a successful photograph.

Balanced Flow :: RI

If the shadows and highlights are just too severe, you may also consider converting the image to black and white.  Personally, I prefer a well exposed black and white with full tonal range…but if image detail can’t be salvaged, B&W can generally support high contrast images.

Most of the time, your best bet will be to shoot during good light, as it will have fewer tonal extremes and be easier to edit.  Sometimes though, some places just won’t allow you to shoot during the golden hours.  In my opinion, you shouldn’t let that stop you from capturing your “epic place” experience.  Play with your camera and filters.  You may not get any award winning shots that day….but then again…you might!

If you know anyone who might benefit from this article, share it! 🙂

“Ahem. My lens is up here.”

Balanced Flow :: RI

 

You can thank David for that title. haha

This week, I was honored to be included in a pretty comprehensive list of Inspiring Female Landscape Photographers, put together by Sarah Marino.  She did a really nice job expressing how I feel when she says that instead of being a “female landscape photographer”, it would be great to be recognized as a landscape photographer who also happens to be female. Every industry has its challenges though, and hopefully resources like this list will help make the hard-working landscape photo-ladies easier to find when companies are looking for speakers, teachers, etc. 🙂

I feel so very honored to have made the list with so many other talented, inspiring women busting their butts to make it their goals a reality! Check it out, show Sarah some love and hopefully you’ll discover some new, awesome talent out there in the world.

As for the above shot?  I took that in Block Island a few weeks back.  I thought the composition had a nice “yin yang” potential, so I did the smart thing…plopped myself in the way of some incoming waves, and then was shocked when a rogue one snuck up on me and almost drowned my camera. haha  (Don’t worry…the gear is fine!)

Black and White and Grey

Dreamsong

Well…it’s April 22.  That means four things.

First, it’s Earth Day.  It’s one of those holidays that most people give a nod to in passing.  We humans are creatures of habit, afterall.  While we may remember to appreciate the beauty of nature for the day, making it a daily occurrence takes some dedication.

Just remember though…your life is 100% affected by your perspective.  A positive mindset can go a long way towards building permanent happiness.  One of the things that involves is appreciating what we have.  For me, that includes stopping to notice and experience the beauty of the world around us.

Juxtapose

Now, as part of Earth Day awareness, we may also recognize we don’t do as much as we should to protect our planet.  But again, change is difficult.  “I want to recycle…but the recycling bin is down by the street.  I’ll just do it…..tomorrow.”
Here’s the thing though….you’re better than that.  Change is difficult.  Bad habits are hard to break.   I’m not saying it will be easy.  I’m saying it will be worth it.

At the moment, this is our only home.  That water? It’s all we have.  That polluted air?  Well, it’s all connected and it’s in your lungs too.  That soil? …well, you get my point.

Make a decision to be good to your world.  Give the gift of a healthy future to your children.

 

The House on Grass Island, one of many images featured in my new ebook. Get it now!

 

Ok…the first of four things is Earth Day.  The next thing?  A great Black and White Challenge issued by John over at Book of Bokeh.  John’s blog is great, and I enjoy his point of view on things.  Make sure to swing by and give his blog a read.

Now, I’ve actually already been issued several B&W challenges (and participated once a few months back), so I’m going to condense this round into one post.  I know, it’s not the way the rules read….but damnit….rules are meant to be broken.

The Pillars :: New Hampshire

In the spirit of breaking rules, and embracing monochrome images, I actually challenge ALL of you to give B&W a try.  It truly is it’s own art.  It is photography that carries it’s own set of guidelines to be effective, and requires a deliberate, thoughtful approach to have long term success in the medium.

(For those of you interested in learning more, I actually have an article about learning to see in Black and White in the newest issue of Light & Landscape Magazine.)

Oh!  That’s the third thing.  It’s April 22nd, and I have my art in that ^^ magazine.

Now….what was the fourth thing??

Mono and Moody :: CT

Was it….eeerrr….ummm….  I am helping to run a new Instagram feature page?  Where we put together lovely images from contributors and share those images with like minded individuals in the hopes of creating a safe community atmosphere where people can discuss their mutual interest of photography??

Nah…that’s not it.  (Although I do help with a new IG account, which you can be a part of.  Just follow @i_took_a_photo and use the hashtag #w_my_camera )…..get it?  I took a photo with my camera!  Now you will always remember it!

But for reals, that wasn’t the fourth thing.  I should really start putting together outlines for my blogs.

out….lines…..reminds me of The Outbound, where I am now doing write ups on some of my trips.  The Outbound is a great website that any traveler, adventure…er?, and explorer should be a part of.  It gives you the background on what it takes to get to crazy awesome locations, like the ones you see in my shots.

It is also not number four on the “April 22 list”.  Maybe I meant to ask you to sign up for my newsletter?  Because you can’t get deals on the upcoming book without the newsletter.

Or maybe I was just going to tell you to stay cool, Daddy-o?  I don’t remember.  I need an assistant to start writing these things down for me.

WAIT!  Eureka!  I do remember!  Happy Administrative Professionals Day!  Buy your secretary a coffee today!

And on that note…You guys rock.  Thank you all for your continued support. 🙂

Bonus image.  Just because.

SSP Endless Summer :: Massachusetts

Practice Makes Progress

Last weekend I spent some time reprocessing some older photos for a write-up on the Outbound.  As I looked through my older shots, I kept asking myself, “What the heck were you thinking??”

The shots themselves were solid compositions (in my opinion) but the edits were….well…not.  They were okay, but they didn’t reflect where I am as an artist today.

Art is funny that way, ya know?  Trends change.  The look that was popular a few years ago is most definitely not what we see now.  A few years ago, many of the landscapes you saw were run through HDR software, so they had very even tones across the board.  The highlights and deep shadows were pulled back, and the lack of dynamic light was over-shadowed by the fantastic colors.

The Vortex :: CT

Older version of the same image is significantly different based on both growing my editing skills and current trends.

Now, you’re seeing a trend for extremely dramatic light…lot of deep shadows during the magic hours.  Think Ryan Dyar or Marc Adamus.

Now, these shots are stunning.  But having watched the HDR revolution come and go, I can definitely see it’s a trend.  I have no idea how long it will last, before the next editing style gets its 15 minutes of fame.

Which brings up a good point, I think….  Your edits really can make or break an image.  It’s important to learn to use your camera in the field, but in today’s world, your edits can hold almost as much weight.  If you put together a well composed photo in good light, but the edit doesn’t highlight the strong points of the image, it will get overlooked in favor of an image with the more popular editing trends.

Now, if you make art for you…then you do what looks best to your eye!  But if you make art for a living…then you need to catch the buyers eye or you can’t put food on the table.

For me personally, I strive for a photo with dynamic, molded light.  I don’t often go so far as to create surreal images, but rather, I’ll try to enhance the light as it falls normally. Molded light is…well…my newest trend. 😉

The shot above was taken at Enders Falls in CT.

For more information about the edit and/or classes, contact me at seespotsphoto at yahoo dot com.

Also, if you’re an iPhone/iPad user, check out my newest article on seeing in Black and White in issue 9 of Light and Landscape magazine.

The Pillars

The Pillars :: New Hampshire

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence. -Ansel Adams

 

New Hampshire is a such a beautiful state. This fall, we will be taking some students up into the White Mountain area for a one day workshop. If that’s something you’d be interested in, sign up for our newsletter so we can keep you informed. Announcement should be coming in the next month or so. 🙂

If you think a private lesson is more your speed, contact us and we can put together a lesson plan tailored to your needs.

And finally…for those of you on Instagram, we have a new project we have started meant to help people meet other great pphotographers, chat, and grow a sense of community among our awesome supporters and friends. If you’re on IG, please give @i_took_a_photo a follow. If you want your own images shared, tag them #w_my_camera. 🙂

See what we did there? @i_took_a_photo #w_my_camera ….. Heh. Heh.

Hilarious.

Xoxo!

Shannon

A Quiet Moment

Arco della Pace :: Italy

Over the Valentines/Presidents Day long weekend, Sean and I decided on a last minute trip to Italy.  Yes….you heard right.  Italy.  Just a short 9-ish hour flight away from New York (plus a two hour drive to the airport).

No big deal. lol

It was a great trip for a lot of reasons.

A) We were in Italy.  We got to see so many awesome things, check out the southern Alps (!!!), get lost in a city where we didn’t speak the language, and ruin any future attempts at eating pizza.  After you’ve had real Italian pizza, nothing compares, ya know??

….annnnnnndddd….. (mush alert)

B) We were together. 🙂 Awwwww.

So truly, the day we discovered this arch, we had no concrete plans.  We were going to try to go check out Parma (because I love cheese) but missed the train by two minutes (oops!).  So instead, we trekked across Milan in search of a castle and ended up stumbling upon this empty plaza.  Now, as you know, I’m more of a “natural landscape” kind of gal but this scene…with its texture, patterns, symmetry and the soft feel of a freshly-rained-on location…was too damn pretty.  I had to photograph it. 🙂

Hope y’all enjoy the image.  For those of you looking for some hands-on help with your own photographs, I do offer on-location classes, editing help and feedback sessions that can be done either online or in person.  Feedback sessions help you break down some of your own work so you can develop a plan to reach your photography goals.  If that sort of thing interests you, feel free to email me at seespotsphoto at yahoo dot com.

xoxo

Shannon

Dreamsong

Dreamsong

Be still and listen, the Earth is singing.

 

So often, they say that your photograph should tell a story.  You should have a “thing” you want to convey and use your image as a way to do that.

 

Good, advice.  Tried and true.  But what do they say about images that invite you to be part of their story?

 

Let me start at the beginning.  There I was, schlepping around Acadia (my first time there) determined not to create the same old shots that have been done a million times.  Now, given the popularity of Acadia coupled with the fact that I was there with three other extraordinary photographers, the potential for a comp stomp was damn near exponential.  Trying to make something completely new…or completely new to my eyes and experiences at least…seemed like a tall order.

 

Thank goodness I’m never one to back down from a challenge.  (‘Stubbornness’ eeerrr….ummmm…I mean…. ‘Dedication and tenacity’ are part of my charm.)

 

So, there were were, shooting away on the boulder face pictured here, wrapped up in a beautiful sunrise.  Maybe it was the lack of sleep, maybe it was the lack of caffeine…most likely both…but in what felt like no time the tide began creeping back in to shore.  Thankfully David noticed before our route off the rocks completely flooded.  No problem.  Time to go.  Back to the beach we went.  Or, rather, three out of four of us went back.  One of us (not naming any names *cough*Mital*cough*) was so involved in shooting seascapes that he didn’t climb down with the rest of us.

 

Now, as a photographer hanging out with other photographers in a beautiful place, you need to exercise a lot of patience.  If you’re not stopping every 5 minutes, you’re doing it wrong.  Therefore, waiting for Mit…uh…our fourth to finish up wasn’t an issue.  Him getting stuck on a cliff being pounded by progressively higher waves, with no escape route because the tide was up?  Well, that was a problem.

 

So, being the lady of the group, I obviously volunteered to toss their Nikons into the surf while they went to rescue our wayward fourth group member.

 

Um…I mean, watch their stuff.  Yeah.  Keep it safe and sound.  Yup.  *look away*

 

While I was waiting for Mike to find and/or rescue Mital, I looked longingly back at the tree I had been photographing as the sun began peeking above the horizon.  It was so tenacious, making a life for itself out on the boulder face.  I looked at the texture in the sky, and in the rocks.  I looked at the movement of the water across the rocks.  Everything about the scene felt right.  It needed to be photographed.

 

Although I loved the snaps in-camera, it wasn’t until I began the edit that I really felt the magic of the scene come alive.  At first it was just those hints.

 

Damn…that water looks good.  This shot emotes movement.  Is that even possible?

 

The light falling along those lines in the rocks is so dynamic.  I want to touch them.  Again.

 

That path!  Its calling to me, that siren, daring me to explore.

 

That was about the time I realized, my image was begging the viewer to be part of the story it was trying to tell.  I don’t know what that’s called, but its a spectacular feeling.  It’s like accomplishment, white chocolate and fairy dust all rolled into one.

 

It’s surreal, really.  Like a dream.  ………Hence, “Dreamsong”.

 

(And that, my friends, is the story of how I didn’t throw Mike’s camera into the ocean.)

 

This is just one of 5 images I put together for the ongoing “5 day black and white challenge” on the FB.  Are we friends yet?  I’d really like for you to see the rest of the pictures. 🙂