Tag: Cloudy

Bisti Wilderness, May 2019, Day 4 Sunset

I wanted to reshoot at the Conversing Hoodoos at sunset, since I was not satisfied with the wide angle images made upon my first shoot here.  Today I would use the 24-70mm lens, hoping the zoom range would let me be more discriminating with my compositions.

Daniel accompanied me for this shoot.  We arrive early as I prefer to do, giving me time to shoot around the area at anything I see of interest, before moving to the primary subject.

There were many clouds in the sky, definitely adding interest to the sky, but maybe not good for sunset light.

The Clam Hoodoo under cloudy sky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 31mm, f/16, 1/40s, ISO 64.

The overcast sky with muted light made for good monochrome images.  The Clam Hoodoo was just down a canyon/wash from the Conversing Hoodoos, so it was easy to shoot there prior to the sunset light.

Bisti Wilderness and cloudy sky in monochrome. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 31mm, f/16, 1/10s, ISO 64.

In fact I think this turned out to be a really good late afternoon to find monochrome compositions with the many rock shapes and cloudy sky.

A Bisti bird like hoodoo in monochrome. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 48mm, f/16, 1/10s, ISO 64.

This particular hoodoo with the broad flat area and a pointy beak like part reminded me of a bird in flight.  Looking closely one can even see an “eye” and a crease for a mouth.  The embedded link is to the color version on Flickr.

Bisti Wilderness and Cloudy Sky in Monochrome. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 24mm, f/16, 1/13s, ISO 64.

This is my favorite monochrome image made this afternoon.  I like the leading line of the sunlit rocks running diagonally, pointing to the highlighted rocks on the hillside, then the wash leading back to the upper center and the cloudy sky.  I think this might even be the best image that I got in this shoot; although, I have not gotten any comments or faves on the posting to Flickr.  So maybe readers will tell me if they see faults with this image.  I think this image looks really good on my large iMac monitor.  Maybe it does not look good viewed on smaller screens?

A rusting bicycle frame in the Bisti Wilderness Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 24mm, f/16, 1/6s, ISO 64.

One never knows what kind of surprise one may find in this wilderness.  Why and how is there a bicycle frame here?  A totally surprising find.

Bisti Rock Sculpture in Monochrome Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 48mm, f/16, 1/8s, ISO 64. Focus stack of multiple images.

I had previously taken a few iPhone shots of the “modern art like sculpture” in this image, while scouting here.  Today I made a number of images of the two foreground rocks with the background hillside then focus stacked them using Helicon software before converting to monochrome.

Conversing Hoodoos and cloudy sunset Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 40mm, f/16, 1/25s, ISO 64.

As I had feared, the clouds on the western horizon prohibited any golden hour light this evening, so I had to make do with mostly silhouette type images of the Conversing Hoodoos with some sunset color on the horizon.

Conversing hoodoos and a cloudy sunset Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 58mm, f/16, 1/20s, ISO 64.
An HDR image of the Conversing Hoodoos and a cloudy sunset Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 36mm, f/16, multiple exposures, ISO 64.

I made one HDR image from a few of the images to at least get detail in the foreground rocks.

The results of this attempt at sunset shooting here dictates another effort on another day.  Such is the life of a landscape photographer.

Thanks for following,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, May 2019, Day 4, Scouting Part 2

This is a continuation of the mid-day scouting on day 4 of my May 2019 visit to the Bisti Wilderness.  Accompanied by Daniel, the Frenchman, whom I had met while shooting sunrise photographs on the north side of Bisti, I made many iPhone photographs for future reference, hoping to return to some locations on some future visit at a better time for photography.

Hoodoo Nook, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

One of the first places we stopped by on the south side was the nook, as I called it, where there is a long petrified log (see the previous post, if you missed this) and other interesting features.

Hoodoo Nook, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Hoodoo Hillside, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

We continued hiking to the east, heading towards other features that Daniel wanted to show me, stopping to shoot reference photos along the way.

Bisti Panorama, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

One of the places, that I had seen referenced in other posts, is a Ferruginous Hawk’s nest.  That nest is on the ledge below the topmost portion of the tall rock formation in the photo above.  The nest is best seen in this photograph by viewing this image on Flickr and clicking on the Flickr image to see it enlarged.  It is also apparent in the zoomed in image below:

Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Judging by the size of the twigs that make up the nest, those hawks must be fairly large.  According to a local Navaho that I spoke with earlier during my visit here, the hawks that built this nest no longer frequent this area.

Daniel & Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

First Daniel hiked up the steep hillside at the hawk’s nest, then I followed, after getting a few images from below.

Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Daniel @ Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

After joining Daniel on the hillside here, I got a shot towards the west from that saddle like area between the two large rock formations at the top of the hillside

A view from hillside below the hawk’s nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

and a close up shot of that rock feature on the northerly end of the hillside.

Bisti Rock Formation, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Continuing towards the northeast, we found another hawk’s nest on the top of a nearby rock formation.  That nest is in the top middle of this photo:

Another Hawk’s Nest, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

From far away, Daniel had pointed out the large rock formation that looked like a Wizard’s hat.  I got a number of images of that feature from various view points.

Wizard’s Hat, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Bisti Wizard’s Hat rock formation, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The one above is my favorite.  The clouds that seem to be emanating from the “hat” make this look magical.

Bisti Wizard’s Hat rock formation, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I also got some wide area views with the “hat” and nearby the hat.

Bisti and Sky Vista, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

We walked around the nearby area finding many large and interesting hoodoos.

Long Neck Hoodoo, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The hoodoo above reminds me of a giraffe.

Large Bisti Hoodoos, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

There were so many large, interesting hoodoos in this area that it is difficult to convey how impressive this area is.

Slim One, Thick One, Fallen One, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I think that is enough for this post.  To be continued,

Ken

 

Bisti Wilderness, May 2019, Day 4 Scouting, Part 1

After breakfast, Daniel and I hiked from the north Bisti parking area to the southern portion of Bisti.  Along the way, I made many iPhone scouting photographs for future reference.  In fact, I have so many scouting photos from this mid-day outing, that I will break this subject into several separate posts.

Bisti Wings or Flats, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The sky with many clouds adds to the interest in these iPhone photographs.  While these images are not intended to be great photography, they will serve to show what one may see in Bisti and give an indication of the type photographs that a mid-day visitor might obtain with a simple point and shoot camera.  Please note, though, that these images have been post processed with photo editing software.

Bisti Flat or Wing Hoodoo with hole, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Most, but possibly not all, of these image are posted to Flickr.  Clicking on an image with an embedded link will take one to that image on Flickr, where a higher resolution image can more easily be viewed.

Bisti hoodoos on a hillside, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
A passage through tall Bisti Hoodoos, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The hike from the north side to the south side required navigating through badlands, up and down hills, through washes, etc., passing many interesting rock formations.  There are no trails in this wilderness and many ways to get from one place to another, so each trip can be a new adventure.

Hoodoo with Window, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Unstable, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
One Remaining of Three, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Hoodoos on wash wall, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Bisti Flat Hoodoo with Window, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Hoodoo Wash, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Assorted Hoodoo Shapes, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I had shown Daniel around the northern area in the morning and now Daniel wanted to show me places he had visited in the southern area on the previous day.  I have been to the southern area a number of times, but I had never gotten as far out into it as Daniel, so I was eager to see what he had to show me.

South Bisti Petrified Log, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

This long petrified log may be one of the most photographed ones in Bisti.  I had previously obtained GPS coordinates for its location, but until today, I had never gotten to it.  The long petrified log had many other interesting features nearby.

South Bisti Scene, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Duck Hoodoo, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Bisti Hikers, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

We saw only a few people on this portion of our hike, but these two are heading back towards the south parking area.

Daniel in the Hoodoo Den, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Petrified Log, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Two other petrified log sections with orange lichen near the longer log are shown in these two images.

Petrified Log & Tall Hoodoos, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Most of these features and petrified logs are within what I called a nook, a somewhat confined area mostly surrounded by hills.

Petrified Log, iPhone Photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The petrified log in the image above looks so real that it could be mistaken for real wood.

That is enough for this post.  To be continued,

Ken

 

 

Bisti Wilderness, May 2019 – Day 4 Sunrise

On the fourth day of my May 2019 visit to the northern portion of the Bisti Wilderness, I went to a plateau area with large hoodoo features for sunrise photography.  It was a cold morning and even though I did not think it was below freezing when I started hiking, my initial attempt to get a sip of water from my Camelbak tube was unsuccessful due to ice in the tube.  It might well have been colder out on the slightly higher elevation plateau than back in the parking area.

I shot in the pre-sunrise hour, while waiting for sunrise and testing various compositions.

A large north Bisti hoodoo in pre-sunrise light. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 28mm, 8.0s, f/16, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Since I had plenty of time and the light was changing so slowly, I began to make multiple shots, focusing at different points, so that I could focus stack the images to improve the front to back sharpness.

Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 32mm, 2.5s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 7 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 32mm, 2s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 6 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 32mm, 1s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 4 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 27mm, 0.6s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 6 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I was getting good color in the clouds to the west and it initially looked like there would be good sunrise light, but cloud cover on the eastern horizon quickly limited the golden hour light.  One can see that the far features on the horizon here are beginning to get the first rays of sunrise light:

Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 38mm, 0.4s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 8 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

And here there is enough direct light to cast shadows, but the light is still muted:

Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 44mm, 1/6s, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 4 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 44mm, 1/8s, f/16, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Here there is finally a burst of light through the cloud cover:

Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 27mm, 1/13s, f/16, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I had to work quickly, when the light came, since I could see that there were limited breaks in the clouds on the eastern horizon.

Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 46mm, 1/25s, f/16, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 56mm, multiple exposures, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 5 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.
Early morning on a north Bisti plateau. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 24mm, multiple exposures, f/16, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 5 images, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

As usual in the early morning hours, I was alone in the wilderness (I was the only camper in the north parking area), but I did see one couple passing nearby on the plateau.  Maybe they had intended to shoot at my location and, seeing me there already, decided to move on somewhere else.  As I was finishing my morning shooting, I caught a glimpse of someone standing nearby watching me.  My first thought was that the couple that had passed by had returned.  Without looking directly at the onlooker, I made a comment about the light disappearing so quickly.  Looking up from my camera, the stranger gave me a big smile and we exchanged greetings.  His name is Daniel and he was visiting from France, spending four weeks in the southwestern U.S.

Daniel asked if he could tag along with me, since he did not know the area.  I was finished with my morning shoot, so I gave him a partial tour of the area, showing him some of the best features that I had found, allowing him as much time as he liked for photography.  He was really good at rushing up and down the steep hillsides that were covered with loose, dry clayey soil.  I would not even attempt to climb those hillsides, even had I been his much younger age.

As we hiked around, I got to know a bit more about Daniel.  He is a pastry chef with a wife, son and daughter, living in a small city in the south of France near Marseille.  He is quite fond of the southwestern area of the US and has visited this area numerous time, but this was his first in Bisti.  Daniel said the U.S. is his favorite country and he would like to live here, but would not want to be so far away from his extended family.

After the tour, I invited him to have coffee and breakfast in the Sportsmobile, since we were much closer to it than the south parking area, where Daniel had parked.  Afterwards, we would hike back to the southern area, scouting much during a long hike.  This will be a topic for other posts.

Until then,

Ken

 

 

 

 

Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky – September 2019

Rain had prevented an afternoon shoot with the DSLR the previous day and the rain chances were to go away overnight, so I got up before sunrise this morning to photograph the falls and portions of the Cumberland River in early morning light.

Cumberland Falls in Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/11, 10.0s, ISO 400, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.

It was still overcast in the very early portion of the morning with a mist around the river area.  Condensation fell upon me from the tree canopy at my first shooting area.  I was the only one there and this is usually the case, when one gets out before daybreak.  Most typical tourist are late risers and/or have breakfast before venturing out and about.  We photography enthusiasts usually shoot first and eat later.

Initially, long shutter speeds were required due to the dim, very early, morning light; but this is exactly what I wanted, in order to get the silky look in the flowing water, creating the sense of motion.

Going back up to the walkway/trail along the river after my first stop, I noted that there were other view points that I had not explored the day before, so I continued to those other areas, checking views from the trail as I walked along.

Cumberland Falls in Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 38mm, f/16, 2.0s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.

Eventually, the overcast began to burn away and there was some good early morning sunlight, which as expected fell on the opposite side of the river.  The waterfall was mostly in shadow in the very early morning; but I think I got good images anyway and the low light intensity made it easy to get the slower shutter speeds that I wanted to use.

I continued to drag the shutter (use longer than required shutter speed) a little, even though as the light brightened, I could have adjusted the aperture and/or the ISO to freeze the water motion.  I prefer the silky look in the flowing water;  although, there are some who object to this as creating an unreal (not as our eyes see it) image.

Cumberland Falls in Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 35mm, f/16, 1.3s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.
Cumberland Falls in Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 31mm, f/16, 1/3s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.
Cumberland Falls in Cumberland Falls State Park, Kentucky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 56mm, f/16, 0.8s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.

As the light advanced and I was satisfied that I had acquired the images that I wanted of the falls, I walked down by the river just below the parking lot, shooting several photographs of the river above the falls.  By this time a few scattered visitors began to show up.

Cumberland River and Reflections. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 50mm, f/16, 0.4s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.
Cumberland River and Reflections. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 38mm, f/16, 1/3s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.
Cumberland River. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 48mm, f/16, 1/3s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Color Efex Pro 4.

As a reminder, clicking upon an image will open it in Flickr, where the image will look better than in this post.

Thanks for following and I hope you enjoy the photographs,

Ken

North Bisti – May 2019 – Day 3 Scouting

My mid-day scouting activity proved really useful for learning my way around in the northern part of the Bisti Wilderness as well as for determining good places for either sunrise and/or sunset landscape photography.  I also began to make written notes, rather than relying upon my memory, since I’m seeing so much variation here that my brain cannot reliably recall some details, especially a few days after the fact.

Today my primary destination was the plateau area with a couple of significantly large hoodoos that I had first seen during my March 2019 visit with my oldest son.  I wanted to get a better fix on the best route to these features and a better idea of how much time to allow for hiking there from the north parking area.

I would then explore more in that area.

I followed a general route that I had already found, but explored a slight deviation as I was climbing up out of a valley/wash near a previously found exit point.

Instead of going straight up a somewhat steep, red rock strewn exit, I turned to the right, up another short incline to see where that took me.  I entered into a smallish, enclosed area, which I initially thought might be a dead end route.

Looking around the little nook, I spotted this small hoodoo on the wall near where I had entered:

Small Sentinel. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

It looked like a hoodoo sentinel standing guard over the little nook.

On the opposite side from where I came in, I could see that it would be possible to climb out there, so I went up the hill and entered into a large, flat area, which I recognized as being just east of an area my son and I had exited into from another direction during our March visit.  We had come into that area via a much more difficult route.

Now I was actually on the plateau of my destination, so I began to walk to the south, which I recalled was where the large hoodoos and other features were located.

Hoodoo Plateau. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

In a blog post from the March visit, I included scouting photographs of the large pedestal like hoodoos in the above image.  We did not get back here on that visit.  Looking around, I realized that this area would be good for either sunrise or sunset shoots.

I continued exploring this area to the west and south.  Finding areas that were familiar from the March 2019 and March 2011 visits:

Many Hoodoos in a Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.
Many Hoodoos in a Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

There are a number of deep canyons or washes crisscrossing this badlands area with many hoodoos lining the walls of the washes.

Hoodoos and Wide Vista. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.
A deep wash lined with hoodoos. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

I explored along the top edge of the deep washes finding many interesting features.

Resting Hoodoo. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.
Hoodoo Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

Can you see the leading lines in these photos:?

Hoodoo Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.
Hoodoo Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

I recall photographing in this area in 2011 during my first visit to Bisti and I still have a few photos of the features in this image:

Hoodoo Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

I also found features that make good abstract photographs, like this one:

Abstract. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

Wandering through a hodgepodge of rocks along the edge of a deep wash I found the fish like hoodoo at the right end of the line of hoodoos:

Fish Tank. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.
The Fish. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

And this scary looking rock:

Demon Head. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

Just behind the fish hoodoo:

The Pterodactyl. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

On the way out of this area:

Piling on. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

I could see these large wing like hoodoos on the far side of a deep wash:

Across the Deep Wash. iPhone photo with edits in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik Modules.

I did not know how to access those far away wing hoodoos at this time; but later I found a way down into the wash and a way to hike up near those wings.

I think that is more than enough for this blog,

Ken

Bisti May 2019 – Day 3 Sunrise – Continued

Petrified log and north Bisti vista. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 34mm, f/16, 1/13s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 13 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The last shots that I acquired on the hillside, where I spent most of the early morning on day 3 in the northern portion of the Bisti Wilderness, were of the long slender petrified log that I had discovered in scouting this area a couple of days prior.

I had found a way to safely get down a hillside and shoot near the log.  The first image above is taken from a place on the hillside above the log.

Petrified log sections in North Bisti. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 55mm, f/16, 1/20s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 4 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I shot four images from the perspective above, focusing at different points in the scene, then stacked those images using Helicon software.  Focusing stacking results in a sharp image from front to back in the image.

The image below is created in the same manner, using 6 images, each with a different focus point.

Petrified log in north Bisti. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 48mm, f/16, 1/10s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 6 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Satisfied that I had done as much as reasonable shooting on the hillside, I hiked back down into the canyon and made a few images of interesting features in the canyon.

The Clam Hoodoo in North Bisti. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 48mm, f/16, 1/20s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 6 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I acquired a number of images with various focus points to create these final two images of the “Clam” hoodoo.

The Clam Hoodoo in North Bisti. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 27mm, f/16, 1/40s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 7 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I used the Helicon retouching tool for the last image to fix some artifacts that were a result of the clouds moving as the multiple images were acquired.  The Helicon retouching tool allows one to choose one of the multiple images and paint in portions of that image to replace the unnatural artifacts.

If the cloud motion just results in an appearance of a long shutter speed image, showing motion in the clouds, I think that is fine and does not require retouching.  Obviously, this is a matter of personal preference.

The hike back to the parking area was pleasant, with moderate temperature.  I had seen rain in the distance while shooting and while returning to the parking lot.  The sky appeared to be clearing in the west, but the wind speed was increasing.  It can get very windy here, but I am hoping it will not be so bad as to prevent a sunset shoot today.

More later,

Ken

Bisti May 2019 – Day 3 Sunrise

I was up at 4AM and noted that it was very cloudy, overcast and a little breezy.  I thought about not going out due to the heavily overcast sky, thinking there may not be good sunrise light, but I went, anyway.

My destination was the hilltop at the end of a canyon that I had scouted on the first day of my arrival.  There was good color in the eastern sky before sunrise, but I was a little too late in getting to my destination in time to get shots of the best color.  As I was hiking to my destination, I missed a turn into the side canyon that I had to take to get there.  Fortunately, I realized my mistake quickly and only lost a few minutes as I backtracked.  Still, those few minutes cost me a few possibly good shots, as the color was mostly gone by the time I got set up to shoot.

North Bisti Toadstool Hoodoo and overcast sky just after sunrise. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 55mm, f/16, 2.0s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The heavy cloud cover eliminated the sunrise golden hour, too.  I had to make do with the light that I had to work with and the clouds did add some interest to the sky, at least; but the photos are a little dull without that golden hour light and the dispersed, uniform light with no shadows made the images a bit flat.

Overcast sky over north Bisti features. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 42mm, f/16, 0.6s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

At least, I got just a little color in the overcast sky in a few of my shots.

North Bisti toadstools in monochrome. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 70mm, f/16, 1.0s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I considered converting most of my images to monochrome, but without the shadows, these lack the depth that help make such images more appealing.

Various north Bisti hillside toadstools. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 50mm, f/16, 0.5s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

There were many interesting toadstool type hoodoos scattered all around the hillsides and wide vista.

Overcast sky over north Bisti features. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 36mm, f/16, 1/3s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

The features in the foreground of the shot above are actually fairly large, but they are on a hillside across a ravine so I could not safely get closer.

I spotted this large petrified log in a ravine downhill to the west.  The slope was quite steep here and I would not risk trying to get closer to this one.  I have a number of shots of it, trying to show how impressively large it appears and the environment around it; but I think none of the shots do it justice.

Large petrified log sections and north Bisti vista. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 44mm, f/16, 0.5s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I continued to work the area, shooting anything that I though might be interesting.

Large and small north Bisti toadstools. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 44mm, f/16, 1/8s, ISO 64. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Looking back up the hill from above the large petrified log is this large hillside with many toadstool hoodoos on the top and a few scattered below:

North Bisti toadstools and hillside. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 42mm, f/16, 1/6s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 3 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

These are the features that are most prominent, when first climbing up the hillside from the canyon access:

A large north Bisti toadstool and hillside. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 24mm, f/16, 1/8s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 4 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

A close up of that rather large toadstool feature:

A large north Bisti Toadstool. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 55mm, f/16, 1/6s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 4 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

And another view of the large toadstool with the vista stretching out behind it:

A large north Bisti Toadstool. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 32mm, f/16, 1/8s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 5 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

Down the hillside behind the large toadstool, I got down low behind one emerging toadstool to get this view of the sky and the vast desert vista:

A north Bisti Hoodoo’s view. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 24mm, f/16, 1/10s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 8 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

I was not satisfied with the sharpness in the first image in this post, so I made a series of images to focus stack:

North Bisti Toadstool Hoodoos. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm at 40mm, f/16, 1/13s, ISO 64. Helicon focus stack of 7 images. Edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Nik modules.

{Note that a number of the previous images are created by focus stacking a number of images.  I finally have had enough of the problems with Photoshop focus stacking, so after some research, I’m trying Helicon software, which is designed specifically for this task.  So far, I’m really impressed with it.  Helicon produces more accurate results, much faster than Photoshop and has an easy to use retouching tool, that can fix things like artifacts produced by moving subjects (for example, the clouds in these images)}.

I do not recall seeing Bisti photographs such as those in this post.  I know others have hiked around this area, since I could see evidence of footprints which had been essentially removed by recent rains;  but such areas of Bisti are less popular with the typical visitors and do not have the striking rock shapes as the more popular areas.  Yet these photographs, when compared to those from the more popular areas, illustrate the geological variety and vastness of this striking desert wilderness.

This post is getting too long, so I will continue it in a follow up.

Thanks for following, remember that your critiques and comments are always welcome and that clicking on most of the photos will take you to the photograph on Flickr,

Ken

Bisti May 2019 – Day 2 – Interesting People – No Sunset Shoot

My plans for sunset on day 2 of my May visit to Bisti was to go back to the Conversing Hoodoos and shoot with my 24-70mm lens, since I was not completely satisfied with the wide angle 14-24mm shots the day prior.

However, it became increasingly windy and gusty as the day progressed into late afternoon.  I even put my penthouse top down due to the wind and rain concerns.  I could see rainfall in the distance, but it might have been evaporating before it got to the ground.  The rain was in the east and the wind from the west, so I was hopeful that the wind would at least keep the rain away from me.  The parking area is all clay soil and would be very slippery and messy, if wet.

As I was sitting in my vehicle, either reading or writing in my journal, a vehicle stopped nearby and a man got out, approaching my vehicle.  He had thought that I was someone he had seen earlier.  Anyway, he introduced himself as Yan or Jan (not sure of the spelling) from the Netherlands.  Since I had served in the U.S. Air Force in the Netherland, we had a bit in common to chat about.  He was very familiar with the area around the NATO base at which I had been assigned.

He informed me that he had researched this area via internet posts, at least one site was the same that I had used.  He introduced me to his wife, Alida (spelling is uncertain), who had remained in their vehicle.  They liked visiting the southwestern U.S and had been to the Valley of Dreams (VOD) in this area.  VOD is also known as Ah-She-Sie-Pah (various spellings) and is on Navaho land.  I was interested in going there on this visit, but overnight stays on Navaho land near there is not recommended and for my purposes, it works best if I can stay overnight.  The drive from Bisti to VOD requires a long drive along dirt roads, which means a slow commute, making it awkward for sunrise and/or sunset photography.  If it rains, those dirt roads are not passable and Jan related a story of one of his friends that got stuck on a muddy road and got one of the local Navaho to pull him out.

I’m thinking that, if I can find a local near VOD, I might get permission to stay overnight there in the future.  I have seen some amazing features in photographs from VOD.

Later in the day, another couple of guys (Tony and George) parked nearby and came over to chat.  They were both from California and Tony was apparently leading a group into Bisti for photography.  George was keenly interested in my Sportsmobile and walked around it looking underneath and all around it.

They had camped at the Cracked Eggs in the south portion of Bisti the night before, saying it got very cold and windy at night.  (It got down to about 44 degree F in my vehicle the night before).  Tony also told me about tent camping in very low temperatures at Yosemite on a recent visit.  Shooting at Yosemite in winter would by good, but tent camping there, especially in winter, does not appeal to me.

Around 3:30Pm the wind was very strong with sand and dust reducing the visibility to zero on occasion.  It sprinkled rain a little and as a precaution, I moved the van to an area near the parking area exit, where I could quickly exit, if it began to rain in earnest.

The forecast, obtained via my InReach Explorer GPS, showed windy conditions until 9PM – not looking good for sunset photography.  The wind subsided around 5PM and I began to think a sunset shoot would be possible.  Several car loads of people came into the parking area.  They all got out with camera gear and headed into Bisti.  From a distance, I thought that I recognized the vehicle that I had seen Tony and George driving.

The wind soon picked up again and it became much cloudier.  The clouds could add drama, but too many on the western horizon, of which there were many, will not allow good light for sunset.

Around 6:15PM, I walked up a hill, where I could get a couple of bars of cell service, to make a phone call.  Standing there in the gusty, dusty wind convinced me to abort a sunset shoot today.

Later, the sunlight did look good near sunset, but it was still very gusty. which can make shooting difficult and blowing dust and sand is not good for the gear.  I had no regrets about not going out.

When the group that had gone out earlier returned, one walked towards my vehicle.  It turned out to be Tony.  He said the light was great and he liked this area better than the south area.  He said that if I came to Southern California he could fix me up with great beaches at which to shoot.

So to wrap up this day, I met some interesting people, had a few interesting conversations, but did not get to shoot at sunset.

Maybe tomorrow will work out better,

Ken

July 2019 – Colorado – Cold Springs – Routt National Forest – Day 2 Sunset

There were scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon and more storm clouds were approaching well prior to the normal time we would go out for sunset shots, so we decided to go out early and try to get some shots before the storm arrived.

I went down the road to the small field of Columbines we had seen earlier in the day, arriving there shortly before the storm blew in.  There had been sunlight, but by the time I arrive at my destination, clouds obscured the sun.  I only had time to get a couple of shots before the wind and thunder convinced me that I should hasten back to the campground for cover from the storm.

Storm Clouds over Routt NF, CO
Storm Clouds over Routt NF, CO Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 15mm, f/11, 1/125s, ISO 640.

Not long after getting back into the vehicle and zipping up the penthouse window covers, it began to rain, followed quickly by pebble size hail.  As the rain and hail stopped, a double rainbow appeared to the east of the campground and there was light on the mountainsides to the east and south.  It was still far from certain that the storm was completely past, so we hung around the vehicle until we were fairly sure the storm was over before going out again.

My son shot via his drone, launching it from the campground, while I went back to the field of Columbines.  There were clouds and good sunset light with a beautiful sky, as there often is just after a storm.

After the Storm
After the Storm, Flattop Mountain, Routt National Forest, Colorado. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, f/8, 1/125s, ISO 2500.

It was still windy and I was trying to get the Columbines in the foreground, so I went to high ISO in the dimming light to get a high enough shutter speed to freeze the motion of the flowers.  The high ISO shots in the dim light were noisy and I was not able to filter out the noise enough to make most of them presentable.

Flattop Mountains, Routt NF, CO
Flattop Mountains, Columbine Meadow, Routt National Forest, Colorado. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, f/10, 1/125s, ISO 320.

I was disappointed with many of my shots, which I think were good compositions, but those with Columbines in the near foreground were mostly too fuzzy due to wind induced motion of the wildflowers or noisy due to high ISO and/or failure to chose a better focus point.  On the other hand, focusing on the close up wildflowers would have resulted in fuzzy distant objects.  I only have three shots from this shoot that I thought presentable.

Until next time,

Ken