Perhaps the last of the year.

This was taken during one of the more crazy weekend adventures. I believe we drove 700+ miles in 2 days, and hiked 20 miles or so. This is of Painted Hills, Oregon. I found the Painted Hills tough to shoot, especially with a wide angle. This is gated off, but one theoretically gain access with permission, which I will inquire about.

For this particular image, I double processed it with Niks' Silver Effex 2. I am fairly happy with the results. I like the colors on the original, which I may post at some point.

ushering in the new year

To everyone who reads this blog, heres' to a happy new year and hoping 2012 finds you all well. 2011 has been an interesting year. In the last 8 months, I have captured the best images I have ever! The irony is that I am using even older gear than I was in previous years. Perhaps it makes me think more about what I am shooting. I will admit that when I had autofocus lenses, I never EVER used manual focus.

Summer of 2010, I had a Canon 40D, 17-40L and a 50mm 1.8. I would just keep it on AF and not really think about anything. Sure it was in manual mode, but still. I had always wanted to get a full frame camera, but of course it would cost me quite a bit more to get a FF body. I think my 40D was worth $500, and the two lenses maybe $700 combined. So theoretically I could get a full frame, but then have no lenses. After some research on the FredMiranda Alternative Forums, I was stoked. I never realized that there were so many amazing lenses for so cheap. Obviously you sacrifice autofocus and exif data, but oh well. I learned photography on film, so I have already some experience writing info down, such as film speed, aperture and focal length — all stuff I would still need to.

So I sold my camera and lenses and finally found a 1Ds in summer of 2010 and bought an OM Zuiko 28mm 3.5 with a fotodiox adapter to mount it onto the body. It is a sharp lens, but I look back at the pictures from that, and I still didn't grasp using manual focus. For some reason, I sold all my gear at the end of September 2010 - even my tripod — only to repurchase photo gear in late January 2011. I went as far as to buy another 40D and a Tamron 17-35 2.8-4, but never even used them, as I was going to regret going from full frame to a crop body.

Off it went to eBay and on FredMirandas' excellent buy and sell forums, and I picked up another 1Ds in February 2011. I must say the sensor on this one is MUCH cleaner than on my old one, plus I am much harder on this body than on my first 1Ds. I found an OM Zuiko 24mm 2.8 locally (by chance!) for like $120. I used that and picked up a Samyang (Rokinon) 85mm 1.4 to mess around with. For anyone who doesn't know this by now, Samyang is NO JOKE! The 85mm 1.4 is like $260 at Amazon.com, brand new. This lens is so AMAZINGLY sharp, it is rediculous. It is manual focus, but who cares:). Samyang also makes a 35mm 1.4, 14mm 2.8 and I think they are coming out with a 24mm 1.4.

After several months of using this combo, I came across the Tokina 17mm 3.5 RMC. I hadn't heard much about it, and I ended up outbidding one other person on eBay. I got the lens for $130 shipped to my door. I was told that this lens would not come close to the performance of the Zuiko 24mm, but I wanted to try it out. Even Ken Rockwell gave it a great review - even though I don't follow that guy. I didn't realize that the lens I got was in Nikon mount, so I have a fotodiox Nikon to EOS adapter. Pretty "alt" if you ask me.

Soon after shooting "Weeping Walls", the Zuiko was on eBay. I didn't sell it because I found it to be lacking after using the Tokina, I sold it due to I would seriously not use it that much, as I like wide angles for landscapes. It is a phenomenal lens! Now I am thinking of adding a Zuiko 28mm 3.5 to my kit, as 17mm is too wide for a lot of things. The 28mm 3.5 averages about $45 on eBay or on craigslist. Pretty crazy!

I still cannot believe this combo can capture what it has! So for those of you that are reading this and worried about getting older gear, DON'T! I honestly believe that using this combo has made me grow 10000% as a photographer. Attention to every detail is imperative. It makes you slow down and take your time, even though it is digital.

Before I close this post, one last thing. Before I bought my 1Ds, I would hear the 1Ds described as being "film like", which I didn't understand. I also hear the 5D is also like that, although I haven't used a 5D. The 5D would be dead by now in the conditions I shoot in, seriously. Well, here is what "film like" is. Kinda gritty, but still good. I am hoping to upgrade to a 1Ds2 or even 1Ds3 this year (and lens), but I need to start making money before doing this:).

Until next time,

Happy New Years'

Figuring this out

So I have a few kinks to work out, but I am getting my blog to where I like it. I really like the addition of the links up at the top - the only problem is that going through all the CSS and html code to remove some of these "breaks" the code since I am not proficient at coding. I didn't write this code, just editing it to my liking (or trying to :)

More changes will be coming, such as menu colors, background color, etc. The twitter link, linkedin links just go to their respective websites, as I do not have a twitter (who would follow me) and haven't started a linkedin profile; but planning to. The other links (buttons) work as they should.

Anyways, here is a shot from Abiqua Falls from last summer. Crazy how green it gets up here in the PNW, and crazy how far my post processing as come in the last few months.

YES!

So i have spent the better part of the day trying to edit the WordPress theme. I am the type of person who will keep on working on something until I figure it out. My wife hates that sometimes, but I cannot help this. So after realizing that in order to change the wordpress theme, you need to have it hosted somewhere. Well, in my mind, why would I pay to have a blog hosted when I could have a website.

Back to blogger I came. After some searching around, it seems that there are more and better themes for blogger that are free! I ran into some problems trying to get the themes uploaded, but I think I have figured it out. The customer service at Google sucks, but good thing there is the internet.

For now, I am keeping blogger - and it may change looks over the next few days; but atleast the images are showing up correctly.

Here is an image I posted today on my Google+

Still no resolve - but new wordpress..

So I send Google several emails, and as expected I have yet to get a response. I am not holding my breath. In the meantime, I started a wordpress. You can follow me there, and I will probably still keep this one updated (though not as much). It really is too bad, as I liked blogger. I may simply try a new layout - one in which doesn't use thumbnails; as that seems to be the problem.

Wordpress is nice, but takes some getting used to. I do believe next week I will be set up for business, as I most likely will get a website up and running...

google blogspot - no good anymore?

for some reason, the images (thumbnails for my posts) are not showing up from my 2 latest posts. When you click on the post, it the images show up as they should. I have no idea why, but it has to do with google. I tried to create a tmblr blog, and the photos are linked google. The same thing happens. Googles' "customer service" is not on the same level as Apples'. Needless to say, I am going to be looking at a wordpress blog perhaps and move away from this. Having everything hosted together is not a great idea. That is why, when getting a website, you should ALWAYS get your domain and web hosting from 2 separate places.

I will keep this updated in the meantime - until I swap over to another platform; whatever that may be.

new spirit

Here is another take on Spirit Falls. I need to get a shot of this in the spring and in the snow/ice. The water here is deep, so venturing out with out a pelican case and some rope is not a wise decision, and I have made some dumb chances before...

Took me a bit to get the color on this one "right". The water is really quite a blueish/aqua color, so it messes with the white balance of the camera.

hmmm

don't worry about the title of the post. Just didn't have an interesting enough name. Here is a shot from this past spring. This falls is called "Middle Ruckel Creek Falls". Kinda redundant and unoriginal, I know. The stories I heard about getting here were crazy, but they were tall tales. Getting back out to the trail was a WHOLE other story (11 hours of non-stop brutal hiking).

I will end up back here this spring, but much earlier in the day, and possibly on a rainy day..

selective colour?

This image looks as if I used "selective color", the cheesy and oft overused gimmick for portrait shots mostly. Not the case; just the scene looked like this - being winter (almost) and all.

I will be trying to update this blog every other day, if not everyday - we will see though. Gots to get new images to be able to update everyday!

For now, here is a new one.

subdued

This is one I took several weeks back. I don't think I will be able to get out this weekend, but perhaps next weekend to get some new shots. The color and lighting in this one I like, as it was way early in the morning and was cold.

Also, I have a zenfolio website (trial) right now. The url will change to www.dustingentadventures.com once I decide if I will keep the zenfolio. For now, here is the website. I will be updating, adding more photos and options/functionality on it this week.

inspiration

It really is interesting how sometimes I get the inspiration to go back through to certain photos, and process ones I hadn't touched previously. I believe I have posted several from Mt. Rainier in this very blog, and I know I have at several websites (500px, flickr, etc). However, I hadn't posted these two in particular.

Anyways, I got the new Roots album - which I have been a fan of their work for years and years. The last two albums, they have really stepped up their work! The new album, "Undun", is so amazing. I was listening to this, and the two songs that really stand out to me are "Make My" and "Lighthouse". So while listening to this, I started to go through my Aperture libraries to see if there was something I could find. For some reason, these songs made me grab for the Rainier library.

My post processing skills are not the best - but I feel they are getting better. I figure that if I can put in all the dedication I do for when I am taking the photos, why not put in the time to learn a bit about the various post processing methods and apply them. I was never truly happy with any of the previous Rainier shots I processed. I spent some time with these photos, and I am pretty happy with the results. When I got up this morning, I found out that one of them is being used for the top 15 photos over at PhotoExtract, which is always cool when people like your work. It is my second time being chosen on that website. I have been chosen twice as well over at todaysphoto.

For Christmas, I am hoping I can get a website going and a monitor (or maybe a few lenses - an Olympus OM 28mm 3.5 and a 50mm of some sort perhaps..). I will keep this blog posted with updates!

an ideascape

I have though about shooting the scene for years, but always though "I'll take this later" - that was in 2007. As I was driving back from downtown PDX (shot the XMAS tree at the Square), I came upon this scene. All I could see was the fog at the end of this tunnel. These conditions are VERY common around here.

Heading out tomorrow most likely to get some new stuff. Hoping I can get a proper website up soon. Here is the shot - may try it in B&W with the top cropped/cloned out..

new website in the works, as well as print sales...

Since there are many different options to display my work, I am taking my time in getting a website up. I want to get the most (read - Best :) ) out of what I spend on a site. There are the usual suspects; Zenfolio and SmugMug. There is also BigBlackBag.com, but they charge $360 a year. With that kind of pricing, may as well pay a web designer since you pay once (usually other than the domain and such) to design a site and be done with it.

OCD also plays a role in the delay. I am a PERFECTIONIST on my work, and if I am NOT happy with the product, why would anyone else. I am now starting to realize that I am an above photographer, and my "post processing" skills are not bad. Funny thing is that I do very minimal work; I try to get as much technical stuff right "in camera" as I can. I am old school - learned photography with film, although I am 32 years young:).

Also, I get sometimes caught up in the amount of Flickr comments and 500px comments and ratings. It boils down to a popularity contest. A lot of the FLickr comments are "nice shot" or whatnot, and most people comment because you comment on theirs. So having less feedback reflects nothing on ones' skill level.

During my showing at the PDXRaw Artist showing, I had A TON of feedback and compliments on my prints; which is huge because print is THE FINAL PRODUCT. Photos can look good on web, but in print, those same "good looking" images can loose quality quickly. I was, ironically, uncomfortable with amount of attention my work was getting. This has to do with being the first time I was showing my work. In hindsight, it was so much fun, and I will be taking my work to the San Francisco and Orange County RAWArtist showings this spring. I think I would have more luck selling my stuff, as there really is no waterfalls or peaks in California :).

In any case, here is a new image I just finished. It looks WICKED in print. Anything I post is print worthy. I will also be offering my prints for sale matted, in case someone is wanting a high quality print! I will post prices soon, in case anyone even reads this:).

through the ice and fog

Sorry I have been off the grid lately. Between lack of sleep and work, been tough to process new stuff - or even get new images to process.

This weekend I headed out to Outlet Falls and then Multnomah Falls to meet up with some other photographers I hadn't met before. It has been pretty frigid in the PNW the last week or so, and the week before that it was really wet for about a week. Crazy weather. I have heard reports of maybe snow this next weekend, but who knows.

Outlet Falls is located in Washington, in the shadow of Mt. Adams. This falls, while in many waterfall guides, is not marked in any shape or form from the road. After a bit of scouting, we found it. The view from the top is not very good. It looks lifeless and the water color is like a brownish. I wasn't expecting much. Views from atop are deceiving, to say the least.

Many of the rocks were frozen, and icicles were everywhere. The "creek" was deceptively deep in many parts, so it made for an interesting trek. Not only did I have to watch for the water level/depth, I had to watch for ice on the rocks when crossing.

I think this falls is way better in the fall, or even in early spring, but that is to be determined in several months when I get back here.

The other shot is from Multnomah Falls. Nothing really revolutionary. I like how the fog concealed the top part of the falls, and then as it dropped, the falls came into view. I will hope to post more stuff tonight or tomorrow.

12th Attempt

Paul and I headed out to The Gorge yesterday to attempt to get to Weeping Walls (also has been called Enchanted Gorge). We have had a lot of rain in the last week or so, and the waterfalls have come back to life. Everything is roaring.

We bushwhacked to this spot. The creek was simply to high and powerful to cross. The water did some crazy rearranging of logs and trees here. I am talking 50 foot logs that were laying across the creek (probably for years) are now gone! No sign of them. I was here two weeks ago, and noticed many differences. There is a tree that is maybe 40 feet tall that was uprooted and just chilling on the river bank, next to where I was shooting.

There was also a log that had been lodged up in Punchbowl Falls for 12 years that was dislodged in late 2009 that had been floating in the splash pool just below Punchbowl. Well it had worked its' way to the foreground of Punchbowl. After these rains, it is now gone! I believe it is now lodged onto of these falls! That means it went down Lower Punchbowl Falls AND Metlako Falls. That is a good 230 feet HIGHER and two waterfalls upstream from this spot! Really crazy how powerful water is!

I have to head off to work, but will post more when I get home.

Giving Thanks (and new photos:) )

First off, I want to thank everyone for checking out my blog. Although there are no comments, I am seeing that more and more people are visiting. I also want to wish everyone a Happy and blessed Thanksgiving. Although I am spending this day alone (my wife is visiting her mom in Eugene, Oregon and all my family is in Orange County), I have a lot to be thankful for.

I have met some very good friends this past year via Flickr and FredMiranda that I now shoot with regularly. Up until about May of this year, I shot almost exclusively solo. Now I cannot remember the last time I shot solo (probably in Hawaii last month). Ofcourse I am thankful for my family and my health.

So while I am waiting for my roast to get done, I decided to go through some of my photos that have been sitting in "the chamber", so to speak. I haven't posted these anywhere previously, except for the Mt. Rainier shot. A shot from that morning is being used in the Portland Hikers annual calendar, although I am unsure which month they are using it for, lol.

Two of the shots are from The Painted Hills in eastern Oregon. Lower Lewis River Falls is the waterfall (taken last Friday in the snow). Mt. Rainier was taken last August I believe.

Snowy Treks

As promised (and advertised :) ), yesterday I made it up to the snow. A couple of friends and I headed up to The Gifford Pinchot National Forest. That forest is amazing! It is much more rugged than the Columbia River Gorges' forests, yet it is not far from there. The waterfalls are also just as impressive!

Our destination this day was The Lower Lewis Recreational Area. Once we got outside of Carson, WA, we hit snow. It was a few inches, and by the time we hit Curley Creek Road, we had to wait for the plow to plow the road, as there was probably 18 inches+ of snow. We thought about chaining up, but I am glad we didn't as the plow ended up going that way anyways.

When we got here, it was still snowing, and snowed the whole time we were here. I was in the water for 2+hours, and I have no waders or anything. My hiking shoes are made for water - meaning that they are designed to get wet and not get ruined, but my feet get wet. My feet were stinging the rest of the day.

As for the photos, I am not crazy about what I got yesterday - but that may change over the next few days/weeks. The colors were very monotone, as it was snowing and windy the whole time, muting the colors. Here is one photo that I have worked. I think it captures the mood quite well, however.

I should have some more to post in the next day or so.

Snow and Rain - plus a new website

Several months ago, I was doing some research on what type of weather we were going to get this year. I was unsure if we were going to get a repeat of last years' weather (lots of rain and some snow), or if it was going to be milder. Well, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) outlook, we are going to be A LOT more wet and colder than normal, thanks to La Nina. What that means is that the Pacific Northwest will get much more precipitation (with colder temperatures) from November - March, and the mid-west will be a bit warmer and have drought like conditions, thanks in part to the Rockies (and Cascades).

So yesterday I hear on the weather station that we are going to be getting 4 inches of rain today, and then the Arctic Air will be moving in on Friday; significantly dropping the snow levels. 1,000 foot snow levels (possibly lower) are expected Friday - Sunday. The Columbia River Gorge has many mountains that are 3500+, and it receives on average 84+ inches of rain. Portland receives about half that. I am stoked for this weekend, as the waterfalls (if the weather holds up) will be kinda crazy!

About that new website. Well, it is a website that is new to me, and I believe relatively new. A buddy of mine sent me a link to this website. I really like it, and have uploaded several photos. It is a bummer that I have to go back and resize the images I want to upload to that site - so I only have like 3 or 4 photos posted there. The photo I posted in this blog entry, I hadn't posted here before. It is of Lower Lewis River Falls, and I may be back there this weekend.

Columbia River Jungle

Perhaps the correct name for this one? This one called to me today from my Aperture Library. I know that I am on a "waterfall kick" lately, and usually i avoid them like the plague unless it is late winter or spring time. This one is the same one I posted and called "Ipsoot falls", although I cannot make a claim to the name as I didn't' "find" it. It has been referred to as "Mowich Falls", though it has no official name.

I think it will look good as a metallic print!

Workflow

Back again! It seems that I am going to have some extended downtime (won't be shooting everyday:( ), but my wonderful wife is getting me an XBOX, Battlefield 3 and Oblivion Skyrim this week, so I will have something to keep me busy, lol.

Now that I got that out of the way, I worked a photo in Photoshop and took screen shots to show you how I went about this particular image. Just keep in mind that each photo I approach differently. Before I get too ahead of myself, some info. I use the Nik software (which is SPECTACULAR) on most of my images. I try not to go overboard on anything; such as over saturation, contrast, ect. I am not a fan of HDRi at all. I understand that it can be helpful for getting shadow details back, but I think manual blending of multiple exposures renders MUCH better results, or even dual "processing" a single RAW file works just as well.

I also contacted Tony Kuyper. He is a bad-ace photographer based out of the SW. Over the last 6+ years, he has (with the help of others') written "actions" for photoshop. They are great, and the explanation on what they do and how to use them is excellent. To be honest, I don't know what 90% of them do..meaning I don't use most of what I bought. The photo I worked on here, I didn;t touch any of the curves. I try to get the best exposure I can in camera, and try not to rely on photoshop if I can. Don't get me wrong, I am not a "naturalist" or against Photoshop/etc at all, it is just that I am still learning the more advanced (and even basic, lol) techniques..so I keep it as simple as I can on my self. I do use the web sharpening (less halos) on all my photos I post online. I do adjust the amount via the sliders.

Now for printing, I do NOT use the Tony Kuyper sharpening actions. I use Niks' RAW Output sharpening. It works super well. There are settings in there you fill in (such as paper type, file size, sliders), but I will make a post about using the Nik Output in a bit. Also, there are a ton of different options for sharpening. I just found that his actions are really helpful and easy!

So here is what I did, step by step. Let's hope that I post them in order. I will add a photo where I did more to it, as I really didn't do a whole lot to this one.

First step I do is to get rid of the dust bunnies. I then will level the horizon - which I ALWAYS have problems with. The irony is that BOTH my head and tripod have level bubbles on them. After messing with the horizon, I will save the image to a PSD. That way off I mess up, I just simply go back and re-open. Also if there is a crash of Photoshop (which is super stable on my new 2011 iMac running Lion and CS4 Master Suite), I have a backup.

After saving, depending on the photo, I will use the TK actions for curves. He has a TON of them, so I will usually mess around with several of them until I get the result I am happy with. The beauty of RAW and digital in general! Then I will open Nik (which you have the option to buy it for Aperture, LightRoom or Photoshop I believe..I use PS) and adjust the colors and sometimes contrast values.

Next I will add a border around the photo and add my signature that I scanned. Then I run the TK sharpening and save for web. Here are the photos..

Daily Rant and a few fall photos

I have had some down time the last few days, so it afforded me the opportunity to work on some of the shots I took on Friday. I am excited about what I have captured. All of the adventures my camera has endured the last 3-4 weeks has significantly quickened my workflow in Photoshop. I used to spend 20+ minutes cloning out the dust on the sensor, but after taking a swim in the Pacific Ocean, taking a 3 foot fall onto some rocks at Silver Falls State Park and then again rinsing off in the drink at McCord Creek, it now takes me less than 5 minutes to get rid of the dust via cloning. I LOVE that camera!! If you are in the market for a camera and you are torn between a 5D and 1Ds (or even 5D2 and 1Ds2), seriously look at the 1Ds! The 5D build quality are embarrassing for what you pay, not to mention the AF is not up to par. If you need video, then your options are limited.

So back to the images. Something recently happened to me that improved my photography. I wouldn't go as far as to say the events that happened in the movie "Phenomenon" happened to me, but after experiencing Mt. Rainier National Park and that sunrise, I have had this confidence and stuff just clicked. Perhaps it was due to the fact that using an old camera and lens that is probably as old as I am captured this event unfolding SUPERBLY and I didn't even have the aid of filters, whereas everyone else shooting with me had new gear and filters (and AF - but who shoots landscapes in AF anyways:) ).

Since that sunrise, I shoot with a "purpose", so to speak - and showing my work at the RAWArtist showcase has helped me immensely. My biggest creative block has been compositions. In any art field, you HAVE to get out of your comfort zone. The ones who separate themselves from everyone else, will adapt to their respective situations. With myself, my "comfort zone" had been waterfalls. There is something about waterfalls that I get drawn to. It isn't the ease of access hat draws me, but it was the ease of access that helped me learn how to shoot them.

Before I shot Rainier, I had very limited experience shooting mountains. I know it had a lot to do with not experiencing the "CLL"; composition, lighting and location. I just made that up:), but it is true. That is true with all landscape photography. You need these three elements to converge at the same time to really experience the essence of landscape photography. You can have an excellent location and a killer composition, but without the lighting, it is just a regular shot. You can have a killer location and once in a lifetime light, but if you have no comp... Only way (if you know of another way, please email me!) to get all three is dedication and luck. Luck is as big as the other elements. So we could label it CLLL, but it doesn't have as nice a flow, lol. If you EVER have a chance to spend multiple days out in the mountains, DO IT! You may not get that magical light - but you just might! Once you experience the excitement of a lightshow (sunrise-sunset), you will want more!

Back on track, when I first got to Rainier NP, I was out of my element. I really didn't have experience shooting in the mountains. Now it is one of my favorite places to shoot! We are planning a trip to Glacier National Park, Jasper and Banff this spring (they are so close to each other, why not?) and I cannot wait!

The whole purpose of this rant was that I hadn't ever shot fall. Can you believe this? Last year this time, I sold my camera, tripod, everything because I didn't think I would be shooting until the following spring, which was true. I sold it beginning of October, and the fall colors hit usually mid to late October. This year they are way late, but that is due to the crazy year we had - and looks like this winter/spring is going to be even more wicked!! So the river scene I am posting is an element I have not had much experience with. I have crossed so many of these scenes, but have never taken the time to shoot them. I just never have been happy with the results, but I am happy with the 30+ I took. I will be posting more this afternoon.

Gorge Harvest

Yesterday, we headed back out to Spirit Falls on the Washington side of The Gorge. I was there last Friday, but I wanted to see the fall colors (if any) a bit more vibrant than last weeks' trip.

We took the wrong entrance into the falls, which is ironic because Brian #2 has been there 4 times previously, and I was there last week. After following some game trails for a bit, we made it. Brian #3 hasn't really bushwhacked yet, so it was his "break in".

We got down to the falls, and were not disappointed! Nice colors were there, but the real treat was above the falls, along the creek. For me, it is hard to find a good comp with a creek/river and foliage. I found some I liked on this day, and it wasn't just limited to this area.

After shooting this place for a few hours, we ran into Sheldon. I have never run into anyone out in the wild before that had been a "contact" on any of the photography sites. We had a nice talk, and then headed out.

Once back to the car, we decided to head over to the Oregon side of The Gorge as the clouds had moved in. The lighting was amazing. After a quick stop in Hood River for some refueling (coffee), we stopped at Starvation Creek. This place had exploded with color! The best part is that the incoming rain kept all of the tourists away! We ran into one other photographer here, and he had a large format camera. Very nice guy.

2 hours or so later, we decided we better go to Elowah, as it was getting late. The sunset is at like 4:45pm. Right before we got to the trailhead, it started to rain lightly. It progressed to a heavy downpour and made for one of the worst rains I had shot in. The Gorge gets an average of 7-8 feet of rain a year. Pretty crazy. I was soaked, as was my gear and I took maybe 10 shots. It just got too dark. I am hoping to get back out there this week at some point before the leaves are blown off of the trees.

Here are some of the images. I think my keep ratio from yesterday was maybe 90%. A lot of times, it is like 9-20%. Oh well, if it was this easy, everyone would do it...oh wait...:) More images to come tonight or tomorrow.

Kiwandas' Last Light

Headed to Cape Kiwanda several weeks ago for a rare sight. During a week in the fall and a week in the spring, the setting sun will light up this tunnel with her light. You need two elements to get this shot; a low tide (we had a negative tide) and a sunset (we had a pretty much cloudless sky). If you had been to the Oregon Coast (or pretty much anywhere in the PNW), you will know that getting the sunset is the biggest challenge.

This shot is a single exposure, no blending. Also, no filters were used - as I have none. I was trying to get to the rock about 20 yards ahead of this vantage point. The problem is that over the last year or so, the ocean has eroded out the sand and thus the water is about a foot deeper than it used to be. So I decided to take a risk (un-calculated of course ) and get out as far as I could for a different comp. While shooting the second shot, a wave came in and my camera was half submerged in the Pacific.

You can see it is a bit out of focus, but that is due to me picking up the camera right before the exposure ended. It wasn't really a wave, but a surge of water. This is the second time my camera has come into contact with the Pacific. One reason why I will never buy anything less than a Canon 1 series! I don't expect to always be lucky, though. I am super lucky as I am not making any money on my photography (yet)....

As always, you can "like" my Facebook page. Oh and I made a Google+ page. I am not totally sure if I made it in the "correct" category. Here are other places you can find my work:

500px

razi

Google+

Morrisson Colours

Going through my Aperture library on my computer to get rid of "garbage", it lead to me going through some old shots. Just like me to get off track - or starting another task while still in the middle of another one:).

This one was taken while i was stopped on the I-5 exit heading home from The Gorge in May 2010. We were stopped due the bridge lifts. As chance would have it, we were stopped in the perfect vantage point. I hesitated to get out of the car and set up my tripod and camera, but when I finally did, I captured this. Gotta love the way things work out sometimes.

On another note, Razi used my image for their "photo of the day", which is kinda cool. It is the second photo they have used for their POTD. Ironically, I had never been on FlickR's "explore" - but that website is mostly "pat me on the back, I will pat you on the back" type of deal.

Crater Lake

I have been to this magical place many times, and in every season. I still don't have a shot of it that I am entirely happy with. I visited this place with Brian Kibbons a few weeks ago. Now I know that it is obviously too dark for details, but I like the mystery to this one.

The sunrise was pretty good, with nice colors. I think that Crater Lake is best in the winter with snow. That way it will reflect the light. I guess I will test that theory soon enough. For now, I am happy with this image. Should look good in a metallic print.

Coming this spring - and a little history

I have been at this photography deal for many years. It has been really a crazy journey. My dad used to have an SLR back in the 80s. I remember him toting that around when we would go on vacation, or to the beach, park, etc. It was a Minolta, and he had several lenses, flashes; the works.

In 1987 (perhaps 86') I was 8 years old and I got a Kodak Reflections camera, which I still have to this day. It was a point and shoot little camera, but it was a stepping stone, so to speak. I used that until I got a Canon point and shoot from Target for like $149 in 1992 or 1993. I used that until I got an SLR (EOS 650 or 630) in the late 90s. I had the "kit" lens, but I was happy with that.

My first digital camera was a Fuji Finepix 2400Z. It was a point and shoot, but back in 2002 or so, they were still expensive. Canon had just released the original Digital Rebel 300D, and it was a break through as far as the price went, but still too expensive for me at the time. My next camera was a Fuji S602Z. It was an EXCELLENT camera and what really got me out shooting landscapes. It wasn't the fastest camera, but it had great IQ. It also was almost as expensive as the DREB. I had that camera for several years and then moved onto a 20D.

It wasn't until I bought the 1Ds that I got serious about photography. What I mean about serious is shooting for a reason. I always have had the "film state of mind". Learning with film makes you stop and pay attention to everything - the lighting, composition, etc. As everyone knows, with film you have to wait sometimes up to a week (I shot Velvia 50 slide) to see what you captured, and if you missed focus or used the wrong aperture, it sucked to say the least (especially if you had driven 500 miles to a location). When I got the digitals, some of that went out the window due to the ability to see results instantly.

Nowadays, I only post what I think people would want to hang in a frame. I got back to the basics, lol. The images posted here are from years and years ago. They aren't necessarily bad or good, but more of a progression - if you will.

Now that I have the "history lesson" out of the way, I have been contemplating offering "workshops". I know that there are many others that offer their services with great results, and some not so successful. At this point, I am just jotting down ideas, but the prices will be VERY affordable. I think I have a grasp on photography, and with photography booming in popularity, many people would like to learn new techniques. You can always email me or comment if any questions arise in the mean time.

Overlooked, not Neglected

Lately, I have been pretty busy that I haven't really been able to work on photos. I have gone out shooting the last 4 full days. Between that and work, not much time to post/work photos. Add in that it was a bit of work getting all the prints and stuff ready for the PDXRaw show...

Some of these images have been printed up, but I just haven't posted them online anywhere. Usually I post them here first and then over at 500px.com. I have found that website to help me decide what prints to get done in Metallic. Brian Kibbons (who I usually shoot with every Friday and Saturday) has prints done in gallery blocks and metallic wraps, and they look wicked good! I am impressed. His prints look 1000% better than his online shots. BTW, he is revamping his website. I told him the waterfall on his site needs to go :).

Getting back on track, here are some shots that I have taken over the past few weeks/months. I went out Friday ALL day (sunrise to sunset) and really don't have anything I am happy with. I will probably back them up and delete them from my Aperture Library. Yesterday I had some I was happy with, but on the last waterfall of the trip (we got a late start), I had some water on the lens that I didn't notice until I got home. Me being not the best with photoshop, I may just go back to that place and get more shots. Might be easier, even though there are no trails to these falls, and the falls have no name.

I should be getting some more shots up in the coming days. Stay tuned.

Adventures in Washington

Today a buddy and I hit up a creek on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. This creek has many waterfalls along it, but there is absolutely NO TRAIL. I was in the water for about 5 hours, and my feet are all bruised up - but it was worth it.

These falls have no names. I will have to come up with some names. We discovered another falls on our way out, just before sunset. For now, this is what I have processed.

Spirit Falls from tonight

Just got back from Spirit Falls on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. This waterfalls is like 2 miles from the Columbia River, yet you would NEVER EVER know there was this crazy waterfall hidden down here.

I hadn't ever been here before, and my buddy who went with me hadn't either. He saw an image on 500px of this waterfall and sent me an email, inquiring what and where this falls was located. I knew immediately the details of this falls, except on the exact directions. A search of google gets you really nowhere. It is really easy to find, but the talus slope is a formidable foe!

This falls is super popular with kayakers worldwide. There are UK based websites showcasing people running this 30 foot (or so) falls. In any case, here is a quick shot I edited to show this falls. It is a low flow, as are most of the waterfalls around here. I think the water is about 2 feet lower than normal (winter-spring), but the fall colors are good. Heading off tomorrow and Saturday somewhere to get some shots. Snow in the mountains are calling my name.

Kiwandas' Adventure

Headed to Cape Kiwanda last Tuesday to try to shoot the sunset through a cave at Kiwanda. The conditions line up only one week or so in the fall and in the spring. There has to be a low tide AND a sunset at the same tide - which any Oregonian will know that is asking a bit much for BOTH on the same day:).

In any case, I haven't really started working on that particular set, but this is from the sunset that night. Scrambling up that huge sand dune and running is not the easiest. Here are two shots from that evening.