Tag: Sunset Light

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 3

Bridge Hoodoo, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

I’ve hiked past this small bridge hoodoo in Bisti,  usually when photographic conditions were less than optimal, many times on my way to a predetermined destination.  This feature is not easily photographed in an interesting  composition that clearly shows that it is a bridge, not just a chunk of rock in a jumble of other rocks. So even when I’ve stopped by, I’ve decided not to shoot it or did not get anything worth sharing.  Still it is an interesting little bridge, so today I decided to make an attempt to get a decent photo.  I wanted to clearly indicate the opening in the bridge with some object behind it.  I could not get the sky through the bridge opening, so I needed some distinct object to show through the opening and not fill the entire opening.   Moving around to vary what was visible through the bridge, I decided that the small rock that is visible behind the bridge, would work to give some depth in an image.  To get this image, I made multiple exposure with different focal points, then stacked them using Helicon software to get the best overall sharpness.

Moving on, we found numerous portions of petrified logs and then in an area that neither my son nor I had previously explored, we found a long petrified tree specimen.  It was so long that it was difficult to photograph its entirety and still get it into a good composition.

Long Petrified Log, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

I worked around this long petrified log, trying to get shots that showed how impressive this petrified log is.

Long Petrified Log, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

A shot from the base of the log shows the base well, but this point of view does not indicate the significant length of the log.

Petrified Tree, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

I did not get any shots of this long petrified log that shows how impressive it is to see in person, but I think the shot above with the adjacent hoodoos and cloudy sky is the best image I got here.

Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

In the same general area of the long petrified tree are several other petrified logs that are partially exposed from the encasing sediment.

Near Sunset, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

Even though it was heavily overcast on this hike into the Bisti Wilderness, there was a little break through of sunlight, but no golden hour light.

Near Sunset, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM
Long Shadows, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

The tall hoodoo in the image above seems to be tilting its head towards the sun to catch the late day rays.

More Bisti later,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 1

I know I’ve multiple posts from my visits to Bisti and I hope that readers do not get bored with these.  The Bisti Wilderness, in a desert area of New Mexico, is a marvelous place and one of my favorite places for photography.  Each visit reveals new areas and new features to photograph.  Even revisiting the same areas within the wilderness can result in different photographs, since it is never possible to photograph everything within even a confined area during one visit and  the scenes will continue to evolve with time, weather and lighting.

In early June, 2021, I met my oldest son here for several days of exploration and photography.  We chose to visit the area known as The Nursery the evening of our arrival, since we knew we could get there easily before sunset.

Cracked Eggs in The Nursery, June 2, 2021, PM

This is a popular area with photographers, requiring working around each other and proper etiquette to avoid getting in each others way.

Cracked Eggs in The Nursery, Bisti, June 2, 2021 PM

The photo above is an example with my son in a shot I wanted to set up.  Of course, I made this shot just to capture him, but since we landscape purist try to avoid people in our shots, we sometimes have to modify our point of view.  So I just turned a little to get this image:

Cracked Eggs, The Nursery, Bisti, June 2, 2021, PM

This is a much better composition, anyway.  Although, I regret clipping a little off the front and right edges of the foreground rock.

Cracked Eggs in The Nursery, Bisti, June 2, 2021, PM

There are so many objects, arranged haphazardly by nature, that it is virtually impossible with a wide angle lens to avoid clipping some object at the edges of a shot.

As the light began to fade on the Cracked Eggs, I began to explore the nooks in the hillside area to the east, where I found this tall hoodoo with a pointy top and small cap that I could set against the sunset clouds.

Sunset Clouds and Hoodoo, Bisti, June 2, 2021, PM
Bisti Sunset Clouds and Hoodoo, June 2, 2021, PM

Preparing to hike back to the parking lot, I got one last shot at the edge of the hillside with the sunset light fading from the clouds.

Stay tuned for more Bisti exploration,

Ken

 

The Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado, March 2021, Part 4

We returned to the dunes in the early evening for sunset photography and I struggled to find satisfying compositions.  Maybe we were not in the optimal location for this shoot.  There were low clouds on the western horizon, which also blocked the sunset light.

Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, March 2021
Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, March 2021

As we were giving up and beginning to hike back towards the parking lot, there was a sudden and brief break through of light.  My son, being much younger and more fit than I, ran to the west to catch the fleeting light, while I walked as fast as I could, hoping to get to a good vantage point before the light was gone.

Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, March 2021

I think the image above is the best one the I got during this outing.  I was still far from the best vantage point for the best light, but I knew the light was fading fast and I had to stop and shoot now.  I got low to catch the dim light in this grassy patch of sand with the fading light on the dune in the background and the interesting clouds over the dune.

Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, March 2021

After the light faded from that dune and illuminated the mountainside to the east, I pointed my camera in that direction to get this final shot.

Stay tuned for our final morning in the dunes,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 25, 2020, PM, Part 1

I stayed around my campsite in the afternoon, waiting for my son and his wife to arrive from the Denver area.  To occupy some of my time I sat outdoors, enjoying the mild weather, reading on my Kindle.

Rio Grande National Forest Campsite. iPhone photograph.

I kept seeing a curious chipmunk scampering about the campsite.  It even jumped onto the arm of my camp chair, startling me.

A curious chipmunk. iPhone photograph.

At one point, I noticed the chipmunk on the side step below the side door of my vehicle, peering inside.  This immediately alarmed me and I jumped up to shoo it away.  Even though I had the bug screen zipped closed, I had neglected to completely fasten the bottom velcro seal.  It was too late.  The chipmunk entered my vehicle.  I went in to try to find it and encourage it to go back outside.

There are plenty of places inside my vehicle for such a small animal to hide.  While I was searching for the chipmunk, my son and DIL arrived.  I left the vehicle to greet them, after which I continued to search for the chipmunk.  I never found the chipmunk and I feared it pouncing upon me as I lay sleeping at night.  Even if the chipmunk did not do harm itself, the shock of being pounced upon in the middle of the night might have caused a physical reaction resulting in my harming myself.  I was also concerned it might hitch a ride back to my home or die inside the vehicle.  To my relief, it apparently found its way back into the great outdoors of Colorado.

Late in the afternoon, we walked into the forest for an afternoon shoot.

Towering Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 200.
Forest Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm (before crop), 1/160s, f/11, ISO 640.

Our wandering through the forest eventually led us to an open area on a steep slope, above another portion of the forest below.  I saw streaks of light highlighting the grasses, similar to those I had shot, without great success, the previous day.  But today I managed to get a much better image, with the image below, my favorite from this afternoon’s shoot.  I cropped the image to remove the tops of trees and some sky in the wide angle image that distracted from the main subject, a beam of light, cutting diagonally across the image and ending at a small Aspen.

Forest Light. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 640.

Leaving this area, we walked back towards the utility roadway.  Until I looked closely at the image below, I had not realized that it included a portion of my DIL near the bottom left.  I was shooting up from a slope and she was just on the other side of a rise.

Aspens and Late Day Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 800.
Aspens and Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 200.

I shot the image above from the utility right of way, looking into the forest to the west of the roadway.

I will cover the last portion of this shoot in the next blog.

Until then,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 22, 2020, Part 2

After the creek and waterfall trek, I drove along FSR 243 towards FSR 380.  There are several places that I had noted, via Google Earth, along FSR 243 as places of possible interest and possible campsites.  When passing these locations previously, I was not impressed by the view that I had from the roadway.  There had always been a number of campers in these areas and I had seen fly fishermen in the creek.  As I passed by the primary location of interest today, there were no others anywhere around, so I decided to check it out.

A dirt road departed FSR 243 at a sharp angle and moderately downhill into a broad, open flat area with plenty of space for multiple unrestricted campsites.  I drove to the end of the dirt road and got out to have a look around.  Walking to the creek, I immediately saw a number of trout in the shallow water.  The bank along the creek was mostly steep with loose soil, but I found a place to safely get down to the edge of the creek and then stepped over to the other side at a narrow place in the creek.

I shot a number of iPhone photos and made a couple of videos of the flowing creek.

Treasure Creek. iPhone photograph.

One can see in the photo above that it is getting very cloudy again.

After awkwardly stepping back across the creek and making my way back to my vehicle, I continued on to FSR 380 and headed westerly.

I stopped along FSR 380 at a place that I had previously spotted and near where I had shot another late day image, when returning from Del Norte.

Approaching Storm. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/13s, f/16, ISO 64.

It had sprinkled light rain sporadically and began again as I was shooting here. It was apparent from the heavy clouds that a storm was brewing over the mountains.

I continued along FSR 380 and it began to rain more heavily.  The rain soon turned to slushy ice, then to pellet like snow.  I was close to several campsites that I had been keeping an eye on.  My coveted location had always had a truck camper in it, whenever I had previously passed by.  Today I got lucky.  The spot I liked was empty.  There was an RV trailer nearby in the same camping area in a spot, which had always been available previously,  and I had resolved myself to maybe having to use that space, if it was available today and the truck camper was still here.

Snowy Campsite. iPhone photograph.

After parking in the campsite, I got out to take a photo with the snow coming down.  I then waited, hoping that the snow would end and I would be able to shoot photos from this location.

The snow continued long enough for the ground to be thinly covered, but it mostly melted away soon after the snow stopped.  As sunset time approached, I walked into an open area with a good view of the valley and the mountains to the southwest.

After the Storm. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/25s, f/11, ISO 64.

With the cloud cover, I knew there was little chance of a golden hour sunset today.

Mountain Storm Clouds. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/80s, f/11, ISO 64.

The storm clouds made up for the lack of a golden hour sunset.

Mountain Peaks and Meadow. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 26mm, 1/125s, f/16, ISO 640.

When I first saw this location, I thought it would be best for a sunset shoot; but as I looked around today, consulting my photo app on my iPhone, I realized that this location was better for sunrise than sunset.

Mountain Meadow. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/80s, f/16, ISO 800.
Late Day Light. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/40s, f/16, ISO 800.

I hung out here shooting until just after sunset.

Cloudy Sky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 55mm, 0.4s, f/11, ISO 64.
Late Day Sky. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 55mm, 0.4s, f/11, ISO 64.

I’m now looking forward to a sunrise shoot here.

More on that later,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 20, 2020, Part 5

After my trip into Del Norte, I returned to the Rio Grande National Forest via FSR 380, having still not settled upon a campsite for tonight.  I had noted a number of sites, but all were either occupied or otherwise not a good choice for tonight.

I had noted a place along FSR 380 that looked promising for late day photography, so I planned to stop there, since it looked like the timing would work for photographing there today.

I made a number of images at that location, shooting from the edge of the roadway, as the late day shadows moved across the meadow and up the mountainside.

Reclamation. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/10s, f/11, ISO 64.

The image above is the one that I liked best.  It took me a while to realize that the terraced landscape below the mountain peak is artificial and a result of reclamation of a mine site.

I thought about shooting from the roof rack on my vehicle to get a better view of the ponds, which reflected the scene behind them.  I rejected that idea, since it would involve not only awkwardly climbing up and down my access ladder with camera and tripod, but maybe having to move the vehicle multiple times to get the best perspective and having to repeat going up and down the ladder with my gear.  In hindsight, I wish I had taken the time to do that, since even the elevated view from my driver’s seat in the van gave a better view of the ponds.

After shooting here, it was getting late in the day and I really needed to find an overnight place to stay.  I continued along FSR 380, driving slowly due to the washboarded road.  I eventually ended up back at Stunner Campground, having found no other available place to camp.  The first pull through campsite and others were vacant, so I claimed the pull through site for tonight.

I had no plans for the next day.

Stay tuned for more,

Ken

 

Sunset and Star Trails, Southeastern Colorado, July 31, 2020

I made a few sunset shots as the late day storm clouds blew past, as I was setting up for night shooting.

Dramatic Sky. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/11, 1/80s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Color Efex Pro 4.

The clouds in the sky were moving and changing quickly as they blew from northwest to southeast.

English Valley Sunset Sky. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/11, 1/10s, ISO 64, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO Color Efex Pro 4.

Just as the sun was setting, the sky to the northwest was clearing rapidly and we hoped that the clouds would clear out completely, as the weather forecast predicted, for our night images.

I used a few of my images to make a very short time-lapse movie, which can be seen here SE Colorado Sunset Sky.

We made final checks of our cameras, remote shutter release programs and put rain covers in place (there was still a slight chance of overnight rain), then hiked back to our vehicles.

Early the next morning we retrieved our cameras, then went to another location for sunrise photographs.  Upon returning home, I processed the night images and this is the final product.

Star trails with moonlight landscape. A composite of 45 4 minute night exposures with the foreground illuminated by moonlight. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/5.6, ISO 400. Edited in Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop and DxO Nik modules.

Normally, a dark sky is preferred for star photography, but there was a bright moon this night.  Our cameras were programed for 4 minute exposures, during the interval when the landscape would be illuminated by moonlight.  The light on the landscape and shadows changed throughout the shooting interval, with some images looking dull and other images looking almost like they were lighted by golden hour sunlight.  I chose one of the images with what I considered the most attractive foreground light to make make this final composite of 45 images.

Thanks for following, stay safe and well,

Ken

Pre-Sunset and Night Photo Preparation, Southeastern Colorado, July 31, 2020

We returned to our vehicles, after our hike up to a saddle in a volcanic dike, to have dinner and prepare for sunset and set up for night photography.  The weather was threatening with heavy clouds being blown in by strong winds from the northwest.

Late Day Storm iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

I’ve always liked the way the light changes just before a storm.  We were a little concerned about the prospects for sunset and night photography, but the weather report showed decreasing chances of rain as the evening progressed and only a slight chance of overnight rain.

English Valley Campsite iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

The sky was mostly covered with thick clouds in all directions.

English Valley Campsite iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

After a modest dinner, we gathered our gear and hiked up onto the volcanic ridge to the south and picked our spots for sunset and night images.  We used applications on our iPhones to determine when the moon would rise and set, so we that we could program our remote shutter releases to shoot in that time interval.  We also knew where the moon would be in the sky, so we could decide which direction we wanted to shoot to take best advantage of the moon for lighting the landscape.

Night shooting setup iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

One can see that the cloud cover is still heavy, but it seems to be clearing, with the clouds blowing to the southeast.

Cloudy sky. iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

The image above is to the south of my selected location.

Sunset sky view. iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

Looking back to the northwest from my position, the clouds are much thinner now.  Our vehicles are just visible in the center left of this image.

Anchored leg of tripod for extended night shooting. iPhone photo, edited in Adobe Lightroom and DxO modules.

After a few sunset images, I finalized my night composition and made sure the tripod was stable and added a few rocks around one leg for additional security.  One can see that the standing room is tight and requires care in moving around here.

That’s all for now.  I will have the sunset and night image results in the next post.

Ken

 

BLM Land, Southeastern Colorado, Night Photography, July 30, 2020

After dinner my son and I hiked back up the volcanic ridge to the south of our campsite to set up for night photography.

I picked my view point, looking easterly from the ridge, making a few late day images and picking a final composition for the star photographs.

English Valley Sunset, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 16mm (before crop), f/11, 1/25s, ISO 64

The moon was up and would not set until sometime after midnight.  We did not want the moonlight to interfere with the dark sky photos, so we set our remote timers to begin shooting for sometime after the moonset.

After getting our final compositions, making sure our tripods were stable, securing our focus rings with gaffer tape, programing remotes, installing rain covers (there was a slight possibility of rain), we started the remote timers and retired to our vehicles for the night, returning in the early morning prior to sunrise to retrieve our cameras, hoping we had suitable images for star trails.

Here is my final product from all of this effort:

English Valley Star Trails. A composite of 99 30s exposures plus one late day shot for the foreground.

Much better images can be seen on Flickr by clicking on the images.

Thanks for following, stay well and safe,

Ken

Sunset Photography, BLM Land, Southeastern Colorado, July 29, 2020

After scouting around some of the BLM land and the Rio Grande National Forest in southeastern Colorado, we returned to our campsite near a large volcanic ridge for sunset photography.

Sunset Road, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/11, 1/125s, ISO 640

The road along which we parked made a good leading line, so I made several images here.

Sunset Road. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 22mm, f/11, 1/160s, ISO 1600

It just happened that this road led directly towards a golden hour illuminated hill in the distance.  There were nice clouds in the distance and thin, wispy clouds above those.  Those wispy clouds added interest with the low angle sunset rays accentuating them.

English Valley Sunset, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 19mm, f/11, 1/125s, ISO 3200

To the north of the road there is another eroded portion of a volcanic dike.  That feature did not get much late day light, since it was in the shadow of hills to the west well before the golden hour.  From the view point above that outcrop looks like a pinnacle.

English Valley Sunset, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, f/11, 1/250s, ISO 4000

Walking to the east, this same outcrop looks completely different.  Although, this feature did not get golden hour light, there were illuminated clouds in the sky behind it, making these last three images more interesting.

English Valley Sunset, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, f/11, 1/320s, ISO 4000

Stay tuned for sunrise photos,

Ken