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It seemed far too long since I’ve published any images, so I thought I’d get back to what I like to do.
Back in late September, 2012, we found this small waterfall and pool below Long Falls in northern Maine. I think it was near Long Falls. Maybe. It’s been a while.
I set up on the slippery rocks and took a series of bracketed exposures, but for this image, I only used one ridiculously long exposure. Sometimes, simpler is better.
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St. Philip’s Church, Charleston, S.C.
On a beautiful night in May, we had dinner at one of Charleston’s fine restaurants, Tristan, now closed, sadly. (Charleston is noted for being “food obsessed”, an obsession that works out particularly well for us.) Afterward, we wandered around the downtown area looking for interesting photo opportunities.
Although the wind was high that night, the church stood still long enough to capture some interesting frames, with a beautiful ice-ringed moon as a backdrop.
Built in 1836, St. Philip’s Church features an imposing tower designed in the Wren-Gibbs tradition. St. Philip’s is the oldest religious congregation in South Carolina, having been established in 1681.
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Again at the Silver River in Florida.
This was taken on the back side of an island that used to be a tourist attraction. Whether the boat was used for ferrying guests, or was used as a prop for greater realism, I’m not sure, but it makes for a great haven for turtles.
I think that turtles make fascinating subjects. Even though they don’t move very much — which is good — the way they huddle together on exposed logs can make for interesting compositions.
I had any number of funny albeit puerile titles and captions in mind for this one, but Susan said, “Oh, don’t be such a boy.” So I promised I wouldn’t.
Suffice it to say, I wonder what’s inside that they’re willing to wait for so long?
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I’ve said it before: I’m not an early morning person… usually.
While in Acadia National Park last autumn, we got in the habit of waking up early — around 4:30AM — so that we could get a cup of coffee and transport down to the waterfront for sunrise shooting. During the two weeks we were there, most sunrises were rather mundane due to the clear weather, but on occasion… this. It was well worth the effort, and had the added benefit of putting us in a place where there were few other people, if any at all.
This was taken from a set of 9 frames, merged in Photoshop Merge to HDR Pro, finishing with a bit of Topaz Clean (for the rock foreground), and a slight radial filter in the clouds to accentuate some of the long exposures.
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I was thinking about running an ad: “For Sale: Nikon D600 with 24-70 f/2.8 lens. Cheap. Used once in a marine environment.”
Despite the proximity to the crashing waves, the camera is fine. I kept it covered whenever the spray got too close.
Thunder Hole is a popular destination along the Park Loop Road in Acadia National Park, and is usually loaded with tourists. More often than not, people don’t get to see much action at this spot. But when offshore storms kick up larger waves, the place really lights off. Indeed, in the past some visitors have been flossed off the rocks by rogue waves.
At this cleft in the rocks, incoming waves rush in, trapping air in a small cave or hole. Something has to give, and the competing forces of incoming water and escaping air create a thunderous explosion of sound and spray. On a good day, you can hear the “Whump!” from a fair distance, even from the cliffs overlooking the area.
I wasn’t sure how best to convey the action of the place, eventually deciding to create a tetraptych of just one wave as it came in and broke against the rock.
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In the relatively small area that is Acadia National Park, beautiful scenes are everywhere. It’s also one of the nation’s most heavily visited parks, so people are everywhere, and most of them have cameras to capture their share of the scenery. And like most parks, there are certain areas where people are ‘funneled’ into one small section that reveals a highlight.
Such is the case with Jordan Pond and “The Bubbles”, those two small peaks across the water. What you don’t see in this picture are the hundreds of other visitors strolling along the carriageways and paths leading along the pond.
The views in this place are archetypal, and have been photographed probably millions of times. As such, it’s difficult to envision a new approach, a new angle or lighting that would present the subject in a unique way. Sometimes I wonder if that’s even possible without creating an abstract rendition.
We take the shot anyway, hoping to capture this particular scene, on this particular day, with those particular clouds. Perhaps get down low to see it from a worm’s eye view. Maybe add on a neutral-density filter to smooth out the water.
In the end, whether or not we come up with an image that is utterly unique or one that’s fairly commonplace, we can appreciate having been there that day, experiencing nature’s beauty as the light changes with the passing clouds, knowing that each of these moments IS a completely new and unique experience.
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When the weather is yucky and overcast, with no subjects of real interest in sight, it’s time to get on the hands and knees and scramble over the rocks.
Down near Ship Harbor and Wonderland on the “quiet side” of Mt. Desert Island, expansive slabs of rock extend into the ocean. Shallow pools filled with life are created from the receding tide, and as long as one is careful with their footing, you can get up close and personal with all manner of little critters and plants. I found this particular collection of denizens to be a lovely composition, but it also looked quite delicious. (I didn’t do it.)
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“Missed them by that much.”
Susan and I had a lovely autumn vacation in 2014, graced by some of the best, driest weather we’ve ever experienced in New England. When you’re living in a tent for a month, rain is not usually welcomed. The only disadvantage to all that dryness is that on most mornings, there weren’t any clouds that would provide photographic interest.
Still, we’ll take it. After sunrises, we got a lot of hiking and biking in on the trails of Acadia.
We spent a total of 16 nights on the island — surely a record for us. Despite the long stay, our circumstances dictated that we leave for New Hampshire to meet up with my college buddy JUST before the NxNW crew arrived at Acadia — Bob Lussier, Mike Criswell, Mark Garbowski, Chris Nitz, Len Saltier, and a number of other photographers that I would have loved to meet in person. Perhaps next year would work out.
Enjoy the scenery — A delightful sunrise on the rocks near Otter Point, remarkably devoid of other people, which can be a rare event on the island.
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If looks could kill.
While kayaking along the Silver River in Florida, we encountered our first group of wild monkeys, the backstory of which you can learn in Shelter from the Storm.
The monkeys weren’t hard to spot. The mother and child seen in “Shelter…” were sitting on a cypress stump near the water. Just on the other side of the large cypress tree, this alpha male was standing guard against the onslaught of other members of the troop. Just behind him, in the woods, there was a cacophony of howling and screeching as monkeys chased each other through the trees. It seemed more serious than just play. I don’t know what the problem was, but there was clearly upset in the tribe deeper in the woods.
Meanwhile, the male’s attention was drawn to a number of colorful boats approaching from the river. Threats all around.
He kept a careful watch on the mother and child. If a rambunctious member of the troop got too close, he’d climb up on a flexible downed tree, bouncing up and down while grunting his warnings. The other monkeys seemed to respect that, and kept their distance.
As did we. This guy gave me a look, so I backed… away… slowly…
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Handheld from the kayak, ISO400, f/6.3, 1/250s, 210mm
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As I mentioned in my previous post Full Retreat!, not all of our recent trip was a downer. On the one day that we did get to paddle the kayaks, we took a trip up the Silver River to the headwaters of Silver Spring.
Now, Silver Spring is an interesting place. It was the location for the “Tarzan” movies featuring Johnny Weissmuller. “The Creature from the Black Lagoon” was filmed there. The first glass-bottom boats plied the river in the 1870s. “Sea Hunt” with Lloyd Nelson was filmed there. Silver Springs was, and still is, the site of various tourist attractions both active and defunct.
But, we were there to paddle the river. Because Silver River is restricted to paddle boats and idle-speed-only motors, it seems that the wildlife has become accustomed to the presence of humans. This allowed us to get very close to the animals — while still maintaining a respectful distance, of course.
Here, a cormorant dries his wings after diving for sushi lunch. Getting this close let us notice, for the first time, how their feet wrap around and grip the perch. We could see individual patterns of feathers and coloration, each bird a bit different.
This proved to be the case with other wildlife as well, including wild boar, great herons, ibis, and monkeys.
Yes… monkeys.
Here, Susan is doing her impression of a cormorant…
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