Mark Andrews Photography

Moulton's barn in the Tetons - HDR

2012-02-23T08:29:00.001-08:00

This is a re-make of an image made last fall; this time in HDR via Photoshop CS5. It's impossible to tell how many camera clicks have been unleashed on this old place. If you're there, you just have to click your own camera, too. I've been playing around with HDR on digital to see whether it will be useful for me for when my beloved Fuji film is no longer available (Kodak has already ceased making my other favorite - Ektachrome). Conditions weren't right for me to use film at this location during my brief visit there last fall, so I used the Canon.

Here's a version made with Photomatix software. Different composition, same lighting, different effect. I prefer the top one.

When I return, I'll take film and wait for some juicy sky and light conditions, then unleash a sheet of Fuji Velvia on it.

Gallery edition prints available for purchase at . . .

For an insider's preview of Mark's newer or more experimental images,

see . . . 500px.com/MJackAndrews

Yellowstone - Firehole River

2012-02-22T09:40:00.000-08:00

This was one of those serene sunrise moments (October 2011) that was just as pleasant as it appears. Yet, in the night, I heard the noise of wolves catching a small flock of geese in the grasses near the river. My best guess from the feathers and grass impressions, was that 2 or 3 were eaten and about 6 survived. I saw what I believed were the survivors about an hour previous to making this image. Now, some persons, reading about this, would say it was sad the geese died. Others would say they were glad the wolves found food for survival. Which person are you . . . a wolf or a goose?

Gallery edition prints available for purchase at . . .

For an insider's preview of Mark's newer or more experimental images,

see . . . 500px.com/MJackAndrews

Spring blossoms so soon

2012-02-21T09:41:00.002-08:00

Spring arrives and a photographer's heart turns to . . . photography.
It seems photographers are compelled to make close-ups of spring blossoms.

Here's a picture of an almond blossom made well after sunset.

(Canon 5D M2, 85mm prime, 25mm ext. ring, f/9.0, 1/13 sec.)

Here's another. Since it was pretty boring, I gave it a little 1960's acid treatment . . .

Yikes!

Like this photo editing exercise, not every decision I made in the 60's was necessarily a good one, either. If you want one of these for your computer's wallpaper, e-mail me and I'll send you a courtesy image.

Some of my better choices may be viewed at my more conventional gallery website.

Gallery edition prints available for purchase at . . .

For an insider's preview of Mark's newer or more experimental images,

see . . . 500px.com/MJackAndrews

Red Rock Canyon. Rising clouds at sunrise.

2012-02-14T14:50:00.000-08:00

The Red Rock Canyon escarpment catches a lot of weather. In this case, water vapor rising at dawn makes for dramatic outdoor photography. I had intended to go just to the standard overlook hoping for snow on cliffs, however the overcast was too dense to let breaking daylight through - and there was no dramatic snow. So I continued south through Blue Diamond and around the Pahrump highway. Off-road, you can gain some good elevation. Just after sunrise, clouds broke and the differential between the 32 degree F air temperature and the warmer, wet ground masses created huge billows of water vapor. Swirling winds pushed them up the cliffs and created the appearance of ocean waves washing ashore. The rest of the morning presented plenty of rising mist for other picture opportunities.

So often, you just have to show up and the Creation is ready and waiting for you.

"Earth's crammed with Heaven,

And every common bush afire with God . . . "

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Near Bonnie Springs Ranch. I like these ambiguous sort of images with one element in front and another visual twin lurking behind.

The original stone cabin at the Oliver Ranch outside of Blue Diamond. The bucolic side of me imagines what it must have been like to be the first settler living in a beautiful place like this. I'm torn over the proposal for homes to be built on the ridge to the northeast of here. I love the pristine (kind of) nature of the area. (After all, a state highway runs right through it, there's a state park, a privately-owned amusement park and a national conservation area that gets a million visitors a year.) On the other hand, I'd love to have one of those view lots and wake up to this in the morning.

This time, all images made on a Canon 5D Mk2.

Gallery edition prints available for purchase at . . .

For an insider's preview of Mark's newer or more experimental images,

see . . . 500px.com/MJackAndrews

The Racetrack at Death Valley

2012-02-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

Speedy racer rocks zoom across the desert playa, never actually seen moving, yet the evidence says they do. I am always fascinated with the phenomenon. The Racetrack is in a remote valley west of Death Valley. It is a playa (usually dry) with rocks that somehow move across the surface from time to time, when no one is watching. There are many theories in explanation, yet no eyewitnesses.

Personally, I think I should be commissioned to set up camp there until I capture the event in progress. One of the other great features about this place is the isolation that is usually found. Lately, roving bands of tourists and photographers have been finding it more frequently (see notes below).

Looks like an action shot, right? Not. I used a Lensbaby on it.

Looking skyward, a metaphor for what is happening on the playa floor, below.

That square rock reminds me of the Borg (Star Trek) and probably weighs 50 pounds.

How can it slide across the playa without bogging down?

Obligatory black and white conversion via Lightroom.

Serene looking campsite after the 26 mph winds died down and the temperature had dropped to 13 degrees F. My water bottle froze and the milk for my dawn cereal bowl came out of the jug as a mound of white slush. The campsite is located a couple miles south of the playa. Notice the small dipper standing on its tail in the sky above the tent. That was made on a Canon 5D M2 at 13 seconds, f/2.8, ISO 1600 on a 14mm prime lens, half a moon straight overhead.

It was a good event - clear and crisp sky allowing clean sidelight at dawn and dusk.
Perhaps the biggest thrill was a pair of Navy F-15E fighter jets that came screaming past us at 500 mph and 50 feet off the ground - maybe 100 yards away from where I was standing in total jaw-dropping awe. Twice.

They work out of the China Lake Naval Air Station and practice air combat over the Saline and Panamint valleys. I've been buzzed by them and Air Force F-16s many times while photographing in the desert - but never been so close before. (The photo is not mine - it came from McDonnell-Douglas's corporate website.)
What a country! God bless America.

Refrigerated but happy racetrack photographer on quixotic quest to catch a racer rock in motion in dawn's early light. Live Action Photo by S. Roberts

Messed up.
I must say that I was disappointed this time to arrive at the Racetrack and find that small-thinking humans have interfered with the natural process by throwing countless stones onto the flats and by removing stones from tracks . . . or adding stones to them. They have also scarred rocks with their graffiti and manually pulled rocks in muddy conditions to make fake trails. With their bicycles, wheeled carts and feet on muddy days, they have turned a natural wonder into a messy city park by doing this. Educational efforts do not seem to deter them.

I know; you probably think, "Rocks on a dry lake bed? So what?" Sadly, this is not its natural state. Even just three years ago before crowds started coming here in droves, there were naturally selected rocks that matched the surface dynamics. They would slide on this unique surface for up to a mile. There weren't herds of rocks like you see above - just a limited number that made them sort of isolated and beautiful to see. It was truly mystifying and visually elegant to see what the forces of nature produced. I include an older film image below from five years ago. The distance between the shore at the top of the photo and this single rock was about 500 yards. Conditions were pristine.

The nature of the place has changed in a way that is meaningful and from which it may never recover. This time, I had to search for naturally occurring racer trails, and am not totally confident that I found them. If you ever go there, please help to improve conditions if you can.

Large size click here.

Call the Death Valley National Monument ranger office before you go, to see whether the playa is accessible or unpassable due to mud. Read and follow the posted instructional signs. Plan on two spare tires, food and water in case you are stranded.

Sunset in Las Vegas valley

2012-01-26T18:28:00.000-08:00

Kind of a drab sky to start with.

You never know if the sun will be able to get under the edge of the cloud or not.

This is a nice big lenticular blanket coming off

the Spring Mountain range on the west side of the Las Vegas valley.

I was watching it for about an hour wondering . . .

Never give up early, even if it's past supper time.

Almost always in the western desert,

something good happens before it's all over.

It turned out to be a great sunset.

Many thanks to my friends who texted, e-mailed and called me to give me a heads up.

Hah - these days I find smart phones a useful tool, rather than annoying as the old cell phones used to be.

I stood on top of the truck in the roof rack for the event and was very careful to not rock the rig.

Canon 5D M2 with a cable release. Tripod of course.

That second one from the bottom is an HDR blend of 3 exposures separated by 1 1/3 stops. Nice colors, yet when you look into the details, there is movement from the clouds of course. Not sure I like the HDR treatment as well as a single exposure, well-massaged . . . like the middle vertical one.

Western sunset in the Sheep Range, Nevada

2012-01-26T07:59:00.000-08:00

January 2012

Gold Butte offers solitude, isolation, freedom. Stay away please.*

2012-01-21T11:28:00.000-08:00

Constellation Orion, Venus and the Milky Way over Gold Butte territory.

Petroglyphs under the stars (image below).

Late night arrival at campsite (below),

followed by morning a few hours later.

Solitude, isolation, freedom under Gold Butte's starry winter sky.

*If you go to Gold Butte, remember:

never make a new trail, hands off the petroglyphs,

clean up everyone's trash, report vandalism,

tell no one else how to find the place.

And take me with you.

Winter sunsets return to the western desert. Canon 5D M2 and Lightroom

2012-01-16T12:03:00.000-08:00

January and February are my favorite months for western skies. The sun is riding a low level of inclination; desert shadow definition is at it's best and weather patterns return humidity to the sky in favor of clouds at sunset - and sunrise. The low light level and long shadows mean you can get nice side lighting on desert and mountains all day long except for 3-4 hours around noon. Makes for a much longer and productive shooting day.

This image set was mostly all nature over about 5 minutes. Handheld camera and a few Lightroom tweaks. I started digital post-editing in the days of Photoshop 1.0 on a Mac IIfx and on a Scitex console. There were enough tools to use then. These days, though, there is so much more you can do to create - or recreate - a scene and its exposure values. Although I loathe the current fad of smashing saturation sliders to the max, I do like being able to recover the look of what I perceived at the time of exposure.

This was a back yard exposure just before supper. Even so, the godly gift of a beautiful sunset gets me thinking. It's time to hit the trail again this week with my trusty 'ol 4x5 and bag full of film holders. Along with the 5D and a Dutch oven. And a MacBook for evening editing.
I'll keep you posted.

Adobe Lightroom 3.0 for RAW processing
PShop CS5
Canon 5D MkII
24-105mm L glass

Mormon Wells road on a winter day

2011-12-15T21:09:00.000-08:00

Okay. I've had some emails requesting larger size files so that when the viewer clicks on them, they can see them better. So here is a replacement for the one that was at the end of the blog until today. It is 4 times the file size. Which means it is now in the piracy range.

Please let me know if this size formula works better for you.

I've had images stolen from me before by both domestic and foreign photo thieves. Here in the US, a quick nasty letter from my very capable attorney causes the thieves to cease and desist for fear of prosecution and financial damage from a civil suit. Internationally, there isn't much a normal guy can do. The Communist Chinese are especially adept at thievery, and piracy seems to be a cultural way of life for them. I think there is a way to protect these images, like on my regular gallery at markandrews.com, although I am not enough of a technician to know how it is done. Here on Google's Blogger structure, it seems copyright is a comedy subject.

Why it is named 'Peekaboo Canyon.'

Miles of Joshua Trees.

Photo by Cliff Rogers

Photographer Cliff Rogers, doubling as navigator and psycho-therapist.

Christmas at Ethel M's cactus garden

2011-12-09T13:57:00.001-08:00

For the grandkids . . .

(my favorite kind of 'tree')

Highway 50 - Nevada

2011-12-07T16:02:00.001-08:00

Grand Canyon of the Colorado

2011-12-05T16:34:00.001-08:00

By the time I finished fooling around with this image, it ended up looking like one of those post cards from the 1930's.

Ponderosas and maples in Zion National Park

2011-11-19T20:55:00.001-08:00

This is one of those steep and deep canyons in Zion Park. I always look for this one when I visit there in the fall. It was particularly nice this year and I was there the morning after a long stormy night and a light snow drop in the morning. The maples and ash trees became very rich in color due to the frosty night.

When freezing temperatures hit, the membrane between the leaf and the host twig becomes toughened and it traps sugars in the leaf, which, cutoff from further circulation, turn colors and eventually the separation occurs. We humans like to impute emotional reactions to the process, however what it really means is the tipping point of dormancy for the next few months until vital saps flow once again through the xylem and phloem tissues of the plant. What a marvelous work the creation is for us to experience.

18mm on Canon 5D M2. Footing very precarious.

Cliffs of Zion reflected in Virgin River

2011-11-15T12:48:00.001-08:00

I always find Zion Canyon in Utah a great place to find peace. When I am there working with my camera, every care or worry is gone from my mind. I become highly aware of nature's light, the sounds of water, wind, birds, leaves rustling; fresh air that carries the scents of nature to my own senses. Making the photo is a way for me to fix the memory of the experience in my thoughts. And a way to come back and show it to others who couldn't be there.

These are new images created last week. I made them up into a single matt-mounted presentation arranged like they are above; each as a 4x5 image with one inch margins between (16"x20" overall). They also looked good when I printed them in a row on a single sheet of stock aligned on the same baseline, like a 4-window panorama (25"x11"). They are available for purchase in the blog store (see tab above) or individually in standard sizes up to 16x20 on the website.

New image of peak at Zion National Park -

2011-11-14T15:32:00.001-08:00

A clearing storm at sunrise is always a great time for a photograph of the landscape. This one shows how a rainy period overnight clears the air and washes the sandstone clean, enriching the colors with moisture.

Full moon at Corn Creek station

2011-11-14T15:04:00.001-08:00

Went coyote hunting last week on full moon night. Didn't see 'em. Heard 'em. Looked up and saw this. Only thing I shot.

KC at the Ute and Ule silver mine in Colorado.

2011-11-14T14:53:00.001-08:00

First cuts from Zion last week -

2011-11-06T22:47:00.000-08:00

First light after overnight storm.

Night shot looking north from the Virgin River Bridge, about 10:30 pm.

Night shot on the switchbacks below the tunnels at Zion. The bright spot behind the clouds is Venus; the squiggly stars to the left and low in the sky is the Pleides constellation. Starlight, moonlight, reflected sunlight (from two visible planets) and . . . headlights.

Genesis Chapter 1: verses 3-5:

3 And God ^asaid, Let there be ^blight: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was ^agood: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light ^aDay, and the ^bdarkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the ^cfirst ^dday.

In honor of the Sabbath . . .

2011-11-06T08:50:00.000-08:00

A look at His creation, the evidence of His hand, in a corner of Zion National Park. Snow and cold on Saturday morning was small inconvenience for the photographer. And on the seventh day, rest and worship.

May you and your loved ones also enjoy the day in peace.

Holy Bible, Genesis Chapter 2: verse 2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had^amade; and he ^brested on the seventh day from all his ^cwork which he had made.

Book of Moses Chapter 3: verses 1-3:
1 Thus the ^aheaven and the earth were finished, and all the ^bhost of them.

2 And on the seventh day I, God, ended my work, and all things which I had made; and I ^arested on the ^bseventh day from all my work, and all things which I had made were finished, and I, God, saw that they were good;

3 And I, God, ^ablessed the seventh day, and ^bsanctified it; because that in it I had rested from all my ^cwork which I, God, had created and made.

New panorama for hospitals - monster file

2011-10-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

Here is a new panorama image I created for the hospital project. It is a wide view of the terrain at about 8,000 feet in southeastern Utah's San Rafael Swell geologic formation. So much of Utah's canyon land is represented by these vast views of sandstone cliffs with big vistas of sky and horizon. This one was made on the way to Moab last week. A breaking weather system from a just-passed snow storm gave the sky plenty of juicy clouds and drama.

The image shown here is a small screen version of the full size file (you can click it for a slightly larger view). There are actually 24 large hi-res panels assembled into one large 700 megabyte master. The image, capable of being printed 15 feet wide, is headed for use as both reflective murals and back-lit wall panels in medical institutions. They are installed to assist in therapeutic healing for cancer diagnostic and treatment centers.

24 original RAW exposures all exposed at: Canon 5D M2, 92mm focal length, f/8; 1/250th sec; ASA 100; Gigapan robot on Bogen ball head. Temperature: 38 degrees F. I liked that. ;-)

Delicate Arch. Reality has rattled my idealism.

2011-10-28T08:56:00.000-07:00

Those who have followed my photography for the last 20 years are aware of my preference for photographing in out-of-the-way, secret places and open spaces, rather than the highly popular places (with heavy traffic) that have been photographed thousands of times. In the past, I even spent some effort to protect the places I photographed by not identifying the location, or even mis-identifying them to minimize the impact on the land.

This became standard practice for my edition prints, in that I saw what happened to places that are over-photographed. The images become propellant that drives the crushing masses to the place depicted.

No one place was more exemplary to me than Antelope Canyon, near Page, Arizona. One particular photographer in the 1980's did such a wonderful job of photographing the slot canyons, that of course he sold many prints and then began running workshops for other photographers to pay him to learn how it was done. Darn it. I was one of those.

A classic shot of Delicate Arch from my bucket list.

I found the courtesy tripod holes on a convenient slab of rock.

Rain and cold temperatures kept most urbanimals from congregating here on this late October day.

I did what everyone else did - raved about the experience to my friends and showed the pictures that I made there. Which made them want to go also. Before long, Madison Avenue advertisers were ordering fashion shoots in the canyon. Everywhere you turned, you saw images of the twisted, orange canyon walls with glowing light. People came in crowds on Pink Jeep Tours. More disappointing, I witnessed the petty struggle between local tribal leaders who claimed to be the 'real' boss of the canyon and you had to pay fees and tips to get access. Now, there are even manufactured steel ladders to get visitors down into the slots. It's as if the place has become an urban park. Then there were the flash flood drownings, because city folk are often unaware of the dangers of the desert.

This same thing happened to the Wave in Arizona and to the Racetrack at Death Valley. Previously a mysterious place known for its 'moving' rocks, the Racetrack became a stock photographer standard list location, with people actually picking up the rocks and placing them at a phony starting point like a horse race. One man even stood up on one of the rocks recently, as if he were riding it like a surfboard, leaving a wake of mud in a trail behind, supposedly 'solving' the mystery of why the rocks move. Funny sort of. But not in that location. I hate it when humans wreck nature. I love it when the environment is appropriately used, experienced, enjoyed. And like every other ego-centric person, I suppose, I want to decide what is appropriate. You know, the sierra club versus the reasonable humans; or the ranchers versus the blm.

Well. Enough intro (and political baiting).

This year I decided to embark on a series of photo trips to a long list of the places I've always avoided, because I have my own bucket list. And my print buyers have asked for them. Yellowstone, Yosemite, Big Sur, the Tetons, Sequoia Forest, Mono Lake . . . you know . . . the kind of places easily recognized and positively compelling in images.

A man named Jack used my camera on me.

It was a momentary miracle that I was the only human to be seen in this frame.

Last week I went to Delicate Arch. My pre-conceived imagination of the place and its environs was shockingly wrong. A million people a year go there. This means maybe a quarter million vehicles have to park there. This means asphalt and marked walkways. And buses spewing diesel exhaust and crowds of Chinese bringing back bags full of federal reserve notes that our ridiculous government exports over there (oops - more political bait). And long lines of parked vehicles along the road with endless lines of people snaking up to and back from the arch. Aaaargh.

My preferred dream of hiking a wild and vague trail that only I, a seasoned and intrepid adventurer could discover, was rubbed out by this circus of humanity, all clutching iPhones and Androids and wearing totally urban clothing made of pink and day-glo green fabrics, and text/chatting all along the trail, wondering if you can get snacks or souvenirs at the top. I've seen it before at Zion and the Grand Canyon. I just did not expect it here. I should have.

Well, now, the park service is considering putting in a shuttle at Arches National Park, just like they did at Zion. I suppose they will have to. How disappointing. How powerful the media and the internet are, that so many can be attracted to a single place. How amazing that so many millions of people (age is not a determining factor) have pocket phone-cameras.

This all makes my head hurt. My dream of the vast and open landscape of the American West is experiencing culture shock.

It's like when the cute girl in junior high belched in the lunch room. I am mentally disturbed because of it. Reality has rattled my idealism.

I wonder what I'll do about it. Can I really finish the bucket list?

I do so love the wide open wilds of nature.

The creation reveals the Creator's touch in everything.

Including us humans. All the glory to God.

Grizzly Creek. What a great name.

2011-10-25T21:10:00.000-07:00

The Colorado road trip continues. This small tributary joins the Colorado River in historic Glenwood Canyon. Full of Whitefish (trout cousins). Great clear water and excellent scenery surrounding it.

Aspens beg for black and white

2011-10-24T23:16:00.000-07:00

Three Aspens -San Juan Mountains, Colorado

I found this trio of aspens on an east-facing slope in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado a few days ago. They were catching the last hour or so of a setting sun. Typically, you think of photographing aspens when the leaves are glowing yellow in the fall. The empty branches here still look beautiful even without the leaves. And I still love to create black and white images sometimes, especially when the subject matter is so elegantly suited to the medium. About 9,000 elevation. I'm pleased with the result and added it to the gallery under 'New Releases." Canon 5d m2; 105mm, f/8, 1/125th sec. It is also very unusual for me to expose an image of the landscape at an aperture wider than f/32 and faster than 1 second . . . but, hey . . . "the times they are a-changin' " ( Bob Dylan - 1964).

Colorado road trip - Pioneer photographer

2011-10-22T21:05:00.000-07:00

14 shots stitched from 360 degree circle.

Canon 5D m2 on a Gigapan robot.

24mm, f/11 for 1/60th sec, ASA 800.

Liberal creative license.

I met up with a long time friend who is receding backwards in time. He's always loved vintage photography and the men and women who pioneered the art. Now he is one of them also. He is practicing the craft of making wet plates and tin types in a small historic mining town in Colorado. His cameras are all over 100 years old and the real deal. I was a well-treated guest in his home. The place is more like a museum and gallery. He loves the company of things that are at least a century old. That may be why he let me in. Heats his house with aspen firewood. No internet, no cell phone, not even an answering machine for his single line telephone. At least there is a phone. Here is a 360-degree panorama of the place - woodstove and all. Typically, these panoramas end up as a rectangle with clean square corners - I kind of like the assemblage the way it is, which is a product of the very short focal length needed to capture the small space in a full circle. And a picture of the back of his cabin under the Milky Way. I made both pictures with a camera from the other end of the historic spectrum. Home-mixed chemicals for him; Electrons and digits for me. I'll meet up with him again in the next summer and fall for a field workshop in the San Juan mountains of Colorado. He's going to teach the craft of wet plate negatives and making tin types. I'll share what I do with the landscape. Hopefully, I'll be able to show some of his work then. Happy trails, buddy.

Canon 5d m2; 14 mm @ f/2.8; 30 sec; ASA 2000

My homage to Steve Jobs

2011-10-14T07:34:00.000-07:00

My first Apple experience was an encounter with Lisa. A company tried to convince me to buy one for typesetting at the print shop I owned. It was the first computer that incorporated automatic 'kerning' when producing typography. Very cool! I didn't have the cash. The first Apple I bought not long after (1984) was a IIc portable (maybe you could call it the first laptop but without a battery); monochrome screen and floppy drive - still way cool. Loved it. Thereafter followed many bigger, better faster ones over the years. Now we are a 4 Mac household for two residents. My favorite response to those who ask me, "Do you work on a Mac?" . . . is still . . . "What else is there?"

Thanks, Steve, from a Mac-user of 27 years . . .

2011-10-08T16:50:00.000-07:00

The Enchanted Apple Orchard.

Ordinary things can be become so familiar they are nearly invisible - unless you look at them in a completely different way. Given some extra time and consideration, they become captivating again. Like this really old apple orchard in the Adirondack region of upstate New York. I went through it really fast the first time, looking for commercial style images. Then I went back to it and walked around it really slowly, regarding the trees and the environs with a different mind set. We treat people like this, too; either as ordinary things, or as completely enchanting.

2011-10-08T16:34:00.000-07:00

Orchard apples. Pretty much irresistible. Went there on impulse.

Images from Lake George, upstate New York

2011-10-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

Even though I was shooting for assignment and for stock in the Lake George area, there is always something else going on that makes it worth it to trip a shutter.

Migrating monarch butterfly in the grass of an apple orchard. Handheld Canon 5d m2 w 24-105 pushed out to 100mm.

Mushroom in a pine forest clearing at Saranac Lake, NY. Tripod w Canon 5d m2/24-105 at 100mm with 25mm extension ring. The mushroom cap was a tad wide to fit inside the depth of field. Here is where a 4x5 w 150mm f/64 would cover the entire scene. I traveled without it. Feels kind of like leaving the beloved family dog at home.

The historic boat 'Horicon' on Lake George photographed from the end of the dock at Diamond Cove Cottages. Historic sites can be found everywhere here; Fort Ticonderoga, Fort William Henry, Cooper's Cave on the Hudson, French and Indian war sites, Ethen Allen, General Burgoyne. I find it all very fascinating. Alfred Steiglitz and Georgia O'Keefe used to photograph and paint here also. Seneca Ray Stoddard is my favorite historic photographer from the area. Above: Canon 5d m2 on tripod with 100-400 pushed out to 380mm with a Canon 2x II extender. The boat was nearly a mile away and moving. The optical aberrations are not shake - rather mirage disruptions due to the distance.

Moulton's Barn, Jackson, Wyoming

2011-09-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

Everybody makes the picture. OK - OK, I found the courtesy tripod holes and used them.

Tetons and Snake River by moonlight

2011-09-20T21:10:00.000-07:00

Digital on the 5D, HDR, light from a full moon only, a full hour before the first hint of dawn. That's something I don't do with film. This was made last week and conditions were not favorable for classic landscape; too much forest fire smoke and hazy humidity. Still, I liked the triple lenticular clouds and the Snake River mist breathing through the pines in the river valley. It was worth being there before anyone else and making a somewhat spooky looking image in the middle of the night.

At Yellowstone

2011-09-17T14:25:00.001-07:00

As seen in Scipio, Utah on recent road trip . . .

2011-09-16T19:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, it's the little things that tell the story.

Name that lizard

2011-08-06T14:28:00.000-07:00

He's a happy little guy - about 12 inches nose to tail tip. Red Rock Canyon area near Las Vegas. I like how his colouring and texture exactly match the tree. In a couple of the pictures, you can see him doing his little tough guy pushups trying to scare me off.

Monsoon Deja Vu

2011-07-10T21:13:00.000-07:00

The next night also . . .

Views of the monsoon sky with double rainbow

2011-07-09T13:12:00.000-07:00

Monsoon storms in the western desert of the US bring features to an otherwise normally blank blue sky. Here are images from one day in Las Vegas . . .

God's great heaven - astral photography

2011-07-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

What a great experience to spend an evening under a canopy lit by a small part of God's endless universe.

The first image is of a constellation hanging over the Red Rock Canyon escarpment just west of Las Vegas. Look closely among the stars just above the third peak to the right, and you can see Ursa Major (the Big Dipper) with the handle to the left. The dipper portion is composed of four brighter stars in a square; the handle is made of three more in a curved line to the left.

Abraham Chapter 4, verse (3, 4): And they (the Gods) said: Let there be light; and there was light. And they (the Gods) comprehended the light, for it was bright; and they divided the light, or caused it to be divided, from the darkness . . .

The second image is of the Milky Way Galaxy, the one wherein our own planet floats through God's creations, among billions of his stars and countless planets, unknown to us, yet each known to Him as the author of the Creation. The peaks are lit from the urban-glow of Las Vegas to the east, and sprinkled with the midnight lights of man at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park and Bonnie Springs town to the south.

Verse 5: And the Gods called the light Day, and the darkness they called Night. And it came to pass that from the evening until morning they called night; and from the morning until the evening they called day; and this was the first, or the beginning, of that which they called day and night. Read the entire chapter describing the creation as explained by the Creator to Abraham, the ancient prophet.

And here below, is the evening heavens set in motion in a time lapse video of stars over the Wilson Cliffs. The streaks of bright light are not meteors. Rather they are evidence of jetliners filled with chatting people hurrying to Las Vegas, most of whom certainly had no idea I was seated in the desert below in no hurry to go anywhere at all . . .

Stills, Videos, HDR and Gigpans in the night at Red Rock Canyon

2011-06-15T01:14:00.000-07:00

Stills, videos, HDR and Gigpans. It was an interesting night of discovery. The desert at night under a full moon is full of peace and magic. Last night I stood under the dome of God's deep blue night sky in a quiet clearing among Joshua Trees. Light from a full moon behind my shoulder cast a whitish glow on everything and played moonshadows as clearly as midday. Here, a couple miles over a hill from the glare of Las Vegas, was solitary rest and wonder. Primroses bloomed in a bath of moonlight - the air was calm and cool. Only the cricket-like chirp of my camera's shutter could be heard, occasionaly violated by the rumble of incoming passenger planes bound for glitter gulch to the east. The paradox was greatest in the images. While I believed I was sitting in the dark of the desert, the camera was revealing that everything around was lit by the sun's distant power, reflected from a rocky globe a quarter million miles away above my head. Less light and more open shutter time and . . . there is the image.

Above: Stars in the sky and moonlit peaks of Red Rock Canyon revealed by a 30-second exposure. The warm glow on the upper half of the peak is glowing because of direct exposure to the Las Vegas Strip's powerful lights. The daylight look is indeed daylight (as if on a giant astral dimmer switch), bounced off the moon overhead. Amazingly, the colors are more enriched and appealing than in an image taken at midday in the summer. In fact, last night's moon light source was at the same low level the sun tracks in the winter, yielding nice long shadows and rich side light.

VIDEO sequence: When enlarged, you can see the stars flow across the sky,
punctuated by passenger jets in the landing pattern for McCarran.
Strange juxtaposition.
What happens in Vegas arrives in Vegas - by airliner.

The sky is full of night traffic - jets of various sizes and multiple satellites gliding about the heavens beaming their millions of telephone calls, inane television broadcasts and furious messages around the globe to GPS sites on the surface. All the while, I sat there and soft-winged insects went steadily about their appointed task of pollinating the flora of the creation while periodically colliding with me on the way to their intended pollen station. This little movie clip took two and a half hours of 30-second exposures strung together to make a 9-second string.

HDR image above: High Dynamic Range is a relatively new method of blending different exposures of the same image to extend the range of light and shadow beyond that normally seen on film or in camera. The software-aided method yields a very interesting look in the hands of a user with good taste. In the wrong hands, it can make a photo look like it was dressed up out a thrift shop discard pile in the alley. I know . . . why not click the 'painterly' button on the screen and see what happens? There is my first published version with streaking stars in a night sky and luminous Joshuas and sandstone cliffs below. And it's proof that everyone's taste is their own when it comes to making photographic images. The possibilities are as countless as the stars splashed across last night's midnight sky.

And last, above: a Gigapan tiled image. How do you judge this? You can't really tell its size from a blog post. This image is a 236k reduction of a 173-megabyte stitched image. The full size one is my first practice Gigapan. Looking closely, you can see sections of the image. I left it unedited at this point so that all 3 columns of nine total tiles are discernable. While standing in a patch of vanilla-white Evening Primroses, I operated my new robotic camera cradle while it directed the camera through a series of 3 rows and 3 columns of overlapping images, then later assembled them into one large file. The purpose is to be able to make extremely large images that will later be used to create 16-foot wide back-lit image panels of 'Views to Nature' in collaboration with TESS-USA. The images will be placed in hospitals and cancer-treatment rooms to give patients a more therapeutic healing experience.

You can have a desert experience for yourself. Arrive early with a comfortable folding chair, a cooler with treats and a loved one, and plan to stay until the rest of the world has gone home to bed (in their locked up, refrigerated boxes with little red and green LED lights on electric devices in every room). Turn off the electronics and then you can begin to absorb the healing power of nature.

Lunch

2011-06-10T22:24:00.001-07:00

5D Mk2

Spring flowers in the desert -

2011-06-03T13:34:00.000-07:00

I'm always motivated about photographing desert wildflowers. The most compelling element for me is the survival factor of these fragile plants in a hostile environment. I think this makes a good lesson for we humans, also. Perseverance, tenacity, durability, hope, grace under pressure, courageous defiance - all these qualities can be seen represented in a desert wildflower as a metaphor for life.

"The difference between perseverance and obstinacy is that one comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won't. " ~Henry Ward Beecher

Here are some moving picture sequences that I made while also making still photos for prints. These are some of my favorite flowers that I always look for in the desert during the spring.

This camera that I am using is becoming more and more my all-time single favorite photographic device - Canon 5D Mk2. With it, I can create gallery quality landscape images in high quality and large size. It allows me to be nimble and efficient on commercial still shoots, and I also use it for 1080p 16:9 HD video for use in my commercial and documentary projects. I think I'll keep it.

Fabulous Las Vegas sign in sepia -

2011-05-30T13:35:00.000-07:00

In sepia?

Springs along the Old Spanish Trail

2011-05-28T20:39:00.000-07:00

Traveling across the desert centuries ago - or even in the late 19th century - one needed to know where to find water or perish. Not surprisingly, most well-worn trails led from water source to water source. The Old Spanish Trail is one of those and the water sources are still there. On a relatively cool (90 plus degrees) day I went with Cliff Rogers to scout out conditions at a couple springs in southern Nevada right along a portion of the old trail (accessible via Nevada Hiway 160). The water was cool and fresh - crisp and tasty watercress was growing in the water courses, birds singing, flowers blooming - and the sun burned my neck to a lobster red. The video is located on YouTube, also. Everything shot on Canon 5d m2, 24-105mm, some with a 12mm extension ring. A very versatile camera.

Eroded conglomerate.

Nice view of Mt. Potosi.

Two wild and crazy guys.

A different spring - halfway up.

Petroglyphs . . .

. . . Pictographs.

It seems they are pecked with a fine metal point.

These are maps.

Mule Spring. No glyphs there.

Trail guide.

Bloom crazy

2011-05-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

One cluster of cereus plants with 17 blooms overnight.

Makes you want to get yer camera out.

Companion sunsets on Thursday evening.

2011-05-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

Droid phone vertical by Mojave Jack.

Horizontal on 5D canon by Kelly.

Another flower -

2011-05-18T06:33:00.000-07:00

One of those night-blooming cereus plants. I always think the pistols and stamens look like a spider guarding its web. 5d at 105mm; f/20 for 1/100th.

Okay - another flower -

2011-05-17T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is a very urban flower that came from Clarence, Iowa, where it had been blooming from its tuber cousins for well over 100 years. Now it blooms in the desert in Nevada for about 25 years. Canon 5d m2 w 24-105 variable at about 80mm, f/20 @ 1/40th.

Better looking flowers

2011-05-16T18:34:00.000-07:00

Shallow depth of field on 85mm canon prime lens - f8.0 at 1/40th. Room light with overhead 'flowerescent' panel.

Pretty ratty looking wildflowers.

2011-05-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

17-40 mm Canon set at about 18 or 19; distance from lens to first flower about 8 inches.
What if I had titled this End of winter, dawn of spring' or 'After the wildfire' or 'Desert Marigold, Winter Storm Approaching.' Would it have looked better?

Strange edits -

2011-05-13T23:43:00.000-07:00

What do you do with your boring images? I like to make something weird out of mine . . .

Tulip

2011-05-10T20:19:00.000-07:00

New panoramic image

2011-05-09T20:12:00.000-07:00

I made this originally as a 4x5 transparency while I was creating a portfolio of images for the Kelso Station Visitor's exhibits in the Mojave National Preserve. Recently, while working with the print collections on my website, I regarded this one differently and felt like the image deserved to be rendered as a panoramic.

Panoramic crop.

Original exposure.

The image was a tough one to make in the field, as the wind was gusting to about 20 miles per hour. I used a short focal length lens to keep the camera bellows from being extended very far, and sheltered the camera and tripod with my body and the dark cloth spread wide like a sail, to make a wind shadow during the exposure. I also kept the tripod low to minimize movement. It was also made difficult in that I needed a pretty small aperture (f/32) to draw depth of field both near and far; so that made for a half second exposure. You can see the effects of the wind in some of the plants and foliage, as well as the hazy dust in the air. Still, the negative effect of the wind is what made the hazy, soft ridges look the way they did. So the trouble was worth it to me to make the image under less then optimal conditions. It's a pinion pine in a field of cholla cactus, on a rolling side slope of Clark Mountain, California.

Death Valley mine claim.

2011-05-04T20:30:00.000-07:00

After spending a morning in February off-track in Death Valley, I let the camera roll on the way out. This footage shows the trackless ground out of a finger wash which spilled into a larger drainage. I walked past a rather elaborate mining claim. Usually, a claim marker is a simple square post stuck in a pile of rocks. Underneath the rocks you'll find a water-tight can or bottle protecting a slip of paper with the mining claim description. Don't destroy these things - many are historic relics - many are still current and protected. Only morons would break or take them.

You can see other Death Valley stills in a previous post here.

The narrator here is the scoundrel of the western desert, Mojave Jack. He may sound drunk but he is not. He's just thirsty. He actually behaved well on camera, however he spent the afternoon pestering me to borrow more money.

New movie release; starring Daffodil Tulips - a natural star!

2011-05-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a pair of clips from the Tulip Festival . . .

recorded on Canon 5d m2 during the still shoot from April 25 (see previous blog down this page). These were shot at 1080p HD and reduced to web resolution for this blog. Too bad - you should see them on a 52" LCD screen!

I'm greatly enjoying the 5d for its range of lenses and flexibility. I've used it for commercial video production, documentary videography and commercial and personal still photography. This amazes me a great deal that such a device with this capacity actually fits in one hand. It's a hand-held photo business. My greatest complaint is only that the sensor is a lint magnet. I shoot outdoors chiefly, and change lenses frequently. And every time I open the body there is a chance that lint or dust may enter the sensor area. Not a big problem for stills (photoshop fixes everything), but you can't tell the lint is present in movies until you see the footage on a large screen. And field cleaning is chancey and difficult. Let me know if you discover a good way to deal with this problem.

More tulips . . .

2011-04-30T08:59:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving Point tulip festival.

2011-04-27T08:06:00.000-07:00

"Be unique, just like everyone else . . ."

It was a rotten rainy day with snow, wind, thunder and lightning. People stayed away in droves. I had the run of 55 acres at Thanksgiving Point for a couple of hours. Canon 5D m2. More to come . . .

Live view smallHD DP6 monitor equals Ground Glass. Wow.

2011-04-04T07:17:00.000-07:00

Well, there it is. My new photo rig. A DSLR Canon 5d Mk2 with a smallHD DP6 1080p live view monitor attached for closer focusing and image control. I still love my trusty (yet anachronistic) 4x5 film camera with 100% preview via ground glass - it's such a big, beautiful image. And what you see is what you get on film, in the end. We call that 'analog' these days. Film is not dead yet, but is certainly gasping.

This is turning out to be a product review for the mini-screen. I can say I am unbiased because I bought everything connected with the rig and no one asked me to write about it. I am pretty enthused about this device.

I received the DP6 screen last week just in time for the Florida video gig. Over the weekend just passed, I worked with it to see how it could enhance my still images. It's a little clumsy, but then, so is the 4x5. I just need some practice time with it. Here are some of the images I made using the rig you see above. The DP6 screen runs in the field on two Canon camera batteries lashed to the back side - very convenient and compact. I mounted up the 85mm f/1.2 prime Canon lens and a 12mm extension tube so I could get really close to the subject matter and fill the screen. It uses an HDMI short cable to link the camera LCD monitor's 3.5" screen to the DP6 5.6" screen. Bigger - better; very fine resolution. And I used a Canon TC80N3 as a cable release to avoid shaking the camera.

I also used the DP6 last week on a video camera, a Canon XLH-1, to video-record a conference and workshop for a group of stock options traders. With a 110v power adapter and a composite cable connector to the camera, the monitor did a great job straight out of the box and ran for 12 hours straight each day without a flicker or a glitch. I actually used two articulated arms (provided as accessories from the manufacturer) in that application and placed the monitor right in front of my face. The camera was high overhead on tripod, and I was able to track and follow while sitting lower without having to keep an eye glued tot he viewfinder. My colleague used another DP6 as the program monitor at the switching table. Both operated as promised by the manufacturer. I like the monitor - it looks as good as it works, being milled out of a solid aluminum billet block and anodized black. And all the attachments are equally well finished. These look like pro units; not some cheapo knock-off after market stuff.

The whole camera contraption is a little top heavy and clunky in the field. I'll swap out the articulated arm attachment and just get a shorter, lighter ball joint to slide into the flash hot-shoe. Easier to manage, lower center of gravity, less to carry.

The pictures below were made with the set-up. Pink flowers and the James Christensen figurine were done table top with natural light from a window in the kitchen. I was able to place the point of focus exactly on the characters' faces, with very shallow depth of field. The bloom at the bottom is the first Peruvian stinker of the year in the back yard. Same result - I was able to crank the focus tack-sharp into the pistols and stamens in the throat of the blossom.

Oh, come on . . . April Fool's.

2011-04-01T18:51:00.000-07:00

I love motorcycles, but I live photography.

That's it - I quit photography.

2011-04-01T07:33:00.000-07:00

My 45-year obsession with photography is over. I had an ad on craig'slist and a buyer came over last night - she took the whole Canon camera system and backpack/tripods/gadgets. Some old guy is coming over this morning to take my 4x5 film camera and my collection of old cameras (I am including them for free - so if anyone wants some, come get what you want before 8:00 am Friday). I'm using the cash to buy this chop - it's a super ride. I used to build and ride in the 70's - there is no greater feeling of freedom.

Ash Meadows, Nevada. Just barely.

2011-03-31T10:29:00.000-07:00

The Ash Meadows springs area is in Nye County, Nevada, just barely. It is a miraculous springs and marsh complex (this is what we used to call them before we called them 'wetlands') located just inside the Nevada state boundary between Pahrump, NV and Death Valley Junction, CA. Funny place. Lots of critters, birds, reeds and salt scrub. And bugs. It made for a nice day trip as an exploratory for an upcoming video project on the area. Crystal Springs Reservoir is a great support base for waterfowl. You can just see some ducks in flight in the horizontal image below. There are also sea gulls - loud and noisy. This seems quite paradoxical to see a large flock of resident sea gulls in the middle of the Amargosa Desert. But then, I was also startled last night when, well after dark, I encountered two young women from Switzerland driving around in the outback on dirt roads, faithfully following a misguided GPS device that was obviously programmed by folks who live in urban areas. Fortunately for them, they met up with nice guys (my photo buddy Paul, and me) who were willing to safely guide them back on the correct path to their Las Vegas destination. I suppose you could question the safety of that destination. also. Anyway, the afternoon light was flat and the terrain in the 'wetlands' was very unappealing - not much good for photos. I had nearly given up on the sunset and was willing to pack up. Then I just stood there next to the tripod exercising patience and the last flare of post-sunset red came on. It was worth the wait and I made all my exposures for the day in the last 15 minutes before striking.

I was NOT shooting for Girls Gone Wild -

2011-03-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

Although there was a cheerleader convention going on at the hotel in Orlando. Cheerleaders everywhere and their coaches in matching uniforms. The oldest cheerleader I saw must have been 12 years old. They were delightful creatures and very loud. Drove me from the hotel. I was there with Joshua Tree Productions to shoot videography of a stock options trader's conference for Trader's Library. After a 12-hour day, the right side of my head was at war with the left side.

At the end of the day, I took my trusty Canon 5D MkII and headed for a nearby wetlands in search of psychological restoration. I found it among reeds, cattails, sun, clouds, water and fresh air. A close focus on the seed head of this leftover cattail, through a 24-105 zoom lens set at 102, and soft focus elsewhere make this scene look a little pastoral. Maybe Henry David Thoreau-ish?*

Any way I found peace. Didn't have a tripod, so I squatted with my elbows glued to my knees and heel in my backside and boot-toe dug into the ground to find some stability. Aperature at f/4.0 for 1/250th of a sec. also helped freeze the image. Worked out pretty well. I think I'll print one of these at about 24 inches on the long edge and see if it delivers the mood.

Here are some other images from the same area:

*To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts. Every man is tasked to make his life, even in its details, worthy of the contemplation of his most elevated and critical hour. HENRY DAVID THOREAU, Walden

Wild and free Nevada . . .

2011-03-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

Photographer-fisherman Tim Hunsinger of Las Vegas shared this image with me. He made it at a small trout lake near Boundary Peak in Nevada and said it kind of says a lot about Nevada. I loved it for the same reason and thought it deserved to be shared.

Rain curtains in Las Vegas - iPhone

2011-03-10T07:53:00.000-08:00

Mike Spurgin provided this guest photo - from his iPhone. My first digital was a 2MB Olympus. The files were good enough to use in magazine ads at full-page size and make 22x28 poster layouts for my clients. Plus it was a pocket sized camera. We're way beyond that level now, with 8MB images in a pocket-sized computer complete with telephone, an iTunes library of music and movies and 4G internet streaming. What a great time to live! Imagine what J K Hillers (my photographic hero) could have done with today's quality and compact equipment - and no chemicals.

'Noir et Blanc' section added to the gallery

2011-03-01T07:20:00.000-08:00

'Noir et Blanc' section added to the gallery. This image was made inside historic Cove Fort in southern Utah just a year before it was opened as a visitor center for the LDS church. I stop there every time I pass by on I-15. In the 60's and 70's, it was empty and mostly abandoned. I even collected and maintain hollyhock seeds from the grounds that I imagined had been brought there by the Mormon pioneers when they settled there and built the place out of lava rock.
In this image you can see how the rooms were laid out so that people could move from room to room throughout the 100 foot square structure for defense and convenience. I thought the open series of doors was very thought provoking as related to the 1840's exodus from Illinois of a people who were religiously-oppressed by their own government in a nation which had been formed on the basis of religious freedom for all.

I also think that 'Noir et Blanc' sounds so much more stuffy and intellectual than 'Black and White.' Wait - I wonder if in France, they use the term 'Black and White' when they want to sound stuffy and intellectual?

Spring is coming to the desert . . .

2011-02-28T21:21:00.000-08:00

Desert globe mallow in Capitol Reef NP in a previous spring season.

The thing about this image is that for a while, I was using an old Speed Graphic 120 roll film holder adapted for the back of my Zone VI wooden 4x5 (inch) field camera. At 6x9 (centimeters), it was as wide as my 5 inch wide film, yet shorter than the 4 inch dimension, meaning that I could load a roll of film and make 9 images on a single roll. But then, the square inches of image area was reduced, so maximum enlargement (scan) of the image was limited in comparison to the full 4x5 cut sheet of film. Yes, I was enabled to carry rolls of film that allowed me to carry, say . . . 20 rolls and one roll film holder 6x9 and one that was 6x7 (allowing 12 exposures per roll) for maybe 180 - 240 exposures in a pack that weighed much less than a pack filled with a maximum of 16 film holders at 4x5 (or at most 32 exposures). Still - there was the trade-off for those big, beautiful 4x5 sheets as compared to the smaller ones. I gravitated away from the roll film after a year of dinking around with it. Besides, it messed with my head. I was mentally dialed in to instantly knowing which focal length lens I would want for a scene to match my pre-visualized image on 4x5. By using the same lens on 6x9, the perspective was off due to the focal length and the amount of lens coverage. So I was constantly having to try a lens, view it on the ground glass, and then remove it and try another to get the same effect. It's similar to the way that you have to mentally adjust between a MAC and a PC. I am died in the wool a MAC and 4x5 sort of guy.

MAC good . . .

. . . PC bad . . .

Courtesy acknowledgements to Apple.com, FujiFilm and B+H Photo. I'm a frequent customer of all three.

Death Valley day trip.

2011-02-22T20:13:00.000-08:00

It seems a paradox, yet a person can become rejuvenated by visiting a place named for death.

Great video and story -

2011-02-18T10:53:00.000-08:00

Two brothers spend 2 weeks in Gates of the Arctic National Park with a Canon 5D, an inflatable boat and a shotgun.
The park . . . the only one in America with absolutely no infrastructure; no amenities (other than what God provides), no roads, no airstrips, no access other than bush plane.
Their documentary trailer . . .

Inspirational material for starting dreams.

Flaming Arch on Clark Mountain

2011-02-16T21:48:00.000-08:00

Here's an image of a ridgeline arch that is located on Clark Mountain (see previous post). Naturally, it's only flaming when the sun is just right and you operate the camera just right. This image was made in the winter - that's snow on the ground and covering the Brigham Tea bush in the foreground. The inside of the arch is about 12 feet tall. Also, I made up the name Flaming Arch, so it isn't really listed that way on the map.

Clark Mountain, California

2011-02-15T21:59:00.000-08:00

This is image was made originally for the National Park Service. It was one of a collection of images I provided for the Visitor Center photo exhibits inside the Kelso Railroad Station in the Mojave Desert National Preserve. Clark Mountain is quite a contrast in character these days. On the East facing side adjacent to Interstate 15 at Mountain Pass is the giant MolyCorp Minerals mine for rare earths, including lanthanum,yttrium, praseodymium and neodymium. Some of the elements mined there are used in cell phones, television screens and in producing green energy. On the north facing side of Clark Mountain is a preserve that is home to a small stand of surviving White Fir Trees, vestigial forests with ties to the ice age (thank goodness for global warming). It is nearly unreachable by foot in the winter due to the extreme pitch of the slope and coatings of snow and ice. I made that hike one winter and had several thrilling moments as I rode the slope down into the arms of a tree that may have saved my life. I hugged it. This image may be seen larger here (click). I'll release other images from the Kelso Collection in the next 30 days. They will be viewable and available at the website gallery.

Makin' money the old fashioned way . . .

2011-02-13T21:32:00.000-08:00

A still frame from a recent stock photo shoot.
I really like looking at $100 bills hanging there. Don't you?

HIghway 50 Lonely road

2011-02-12T22:02:00.000-08:00

The middle of Nevada is wonderfully lonely - my kind of place. I made this still photo in December 2010 while on a video shoot for the Nevada State Museum. Time was too short for me to continue driving west into the mountains. Poor weather was headed in from that direction and I still had commercial footage to make, so this photo was of the road ahead, shot from where I turned around to head back in the other direction. I was frustrated because when I'm on a road or trail that's new to me, I always feel compelled to see what is up ahead, just around the next curve, or just over the next hill. I liked how there were still leftover yellow plant colors from fall, and some of December's first snow. It's a split-season image. The color mix here is due to warm morning light and clear sky from the east (behind the camera), and the darker, moody tones of the building weather front to the west. You can see where cloud cover creates the approaching shadow on the ground, about halfway up from the bottom. It's a kind of east meets west, opposites, tension sort of image.

Sunrise

2011-02-09T21:14:00.000-08:00

More wildlife photography on 4x5 film -

2011-02-03T23:16:00.000-08:00

Saw this little guy crossing a two-track trail in the Mojave Preserve.

He was about the size of a large salad bowl.

Tortoise wrangling was useful for the image, although there was no threat or sweat with this guy. You just have to anticipate where he will be, focus up on the expected spot, then wait.

Wildlife photography on a 4x5 field camera.

2011-02-02T22:06:00.000-08:00

Spider wrangling skills helped while making this image. He's big enough to cover your hand. My hand, actually.

Playin around in b+w - I kind of like it . . .

2011-02-02T22:03:00.000-08:00

You can see the other version here.

Your choice?

2011-02-01T22:28:00.000-08:00

With, or without the dune grass sprouts?

The Paiute Gorge near Fort Mojave

2011-01-31T20:03:00.000-08:00

This image was made on 4x5 film just at sunrise. One must anticipate the point of sunrise to line up the point of view for the camera while it's still dark. There is a span of about 10 minutes before the contrast becomes too harsh for a pleasing image. Wait too long, and pfffft.

CERCA Guides - derived from magazine story

2011-01-29T08:10:00.000-08:00

In planning an upcoming spring trip to one of my favorite places on earth, I pulled up these images. This was a story assignment form CERCA magazine (Stephens Publishing) about the old schoolhouse in Mt. Trumbull, AZ. The weather had been stable for a long time and the deadline approached. What I really needed was some weather to help out with the drab terrain and flat light. I was praying for snow. Slept overnight in the Bronco near the school. Snow came in the night. I had left the tripod outside and it was encased in ice and snow crust, but still useable. A little luck, great timing, patience - all paid off and I got the story. They still use the snow shower photo over the canyon as the cover story for one of the CERCA guide books.

Tried another version -

2011-01-27T21:13:00.000-08:00

Had a bookshelf browsing moment last night and viewed some Brett Weston images. Thought I'd push my own image around a little bit as an experiment. Looks like it has possibilities in electrons, however I'm not sure how it will work in water-based dyes on fiber paper. My current version looks like this.

Calico Basin things with wings.

2011-01-17T22:17:00.000-08:00

Pretty harsh light - not much to do today, but 73 degrees on a mid-January day is crazy nice weather. Support Friends of Red Rock Canyon.

Gold Butte day trip

2011-01-13T22:41:00.000-08:00

Look but don't touch; stay on tracks. Report vandal damage. Support Friends of Gold Butte.

Stand of Maple Trees, Zion.

2011-01-08T19:43:00.000-08:00

Zion in autumn is always worth the trip.

Mullein plant, sandstone, maple leaves

2011-01-08T19:05:00.000-08:00

The lowly mullein plant often makes interesting imagery. You can see it in color at the website gallery.

Bench in rain, Centennial Hills

2011-01-08T17:50:00.000-08:00

More images from this week's snow storm . . .

2011-01-06T22:30:00.000-08:00

New trick - old meter.

2011-01-06T22:10:00.000-08:00

For 12 years I've been mentally compensating for my Sekonic L-508 light meter when using it in daylight for reflected light as a spot meter. I had to add a full f-stop of light because it was consistently underexposing by .75 or 1 stop when used in the field. I just learned this week that the Sekonic factory uses a different light standard when they calibrate them that is off by -0.67 stop compared to ASA speeds for Fuji transparency film. Who knew? And when I use Kodak in shade, it needs up to a quarter stop more. My first spot meter was the old reliable Pentax Spotmeter V 1 degree ambient meter. It was always exactly right on. I miss it, however the Sekonic is also always exactly right on - albeit on its own calibration. Now I learned that the L-508 allows the user to dial in any correction to the read-out by depressing two mode buttons at once and turning the dial. Since it also works as a flash meter and it saves memory calculations, I'll stick with it. Besides, it's flatter and smaller in my backpack. But I do miss the old Pentax with its analog dial and 1950's looking meter needle. I bought the Pentax originally from Fred Picker at Zone VI in 1990, the Sekonic from B+H Photo in NYC.

Snow in the desert

2011-01-03T19:35:00.000-08:00

Wet camera and electronics - not such a good thing. You can get away with it when using a wooden field camera with no batteries or electrical parts. The Canon 5D doesn't mix with snow so well. I first kept it mostly out of the way by tucking it inside my unzipped jacket. A better solution was to carry it wrapped in a kitchen dish towel of terry cloth, draped over it and used as part of the grip. After a while it became too damp to use, so I quit and went inside. It lasted a good hour, though.

Christmas just past.

2011-01-02T21:20:00.001-08:00

Gary Edward Adams.

2011-01-01T13:09:00.000-08:00

At one of his workshops in Zion National Park 1989, sponsored by the old Photographic Arts of Nevada organization, I learned that 'both good and poor photographers make both good and poor quality images, but only poor photographers show poor quality images." Gary was a great instructor and what I learned from him inspired me to embrace photography as a profession. Watching him work with his 8x10 and 11x14 field cameras propelled me to move to large format. And I must credit Everett Engbers, his associate, for helping me select 4x5 as the best backpacking solution for the photos I wanted to make.

Road trip - maybe a little too long.

2010-12-31T16:34:00.000-08:00

Wacky driver, goofy photographer. But hey, I can't quit shooting just because it's after sundown and I already bagged the money shot. Besides, we were somewhere fairly close to Area 51. The scheduled shoot was videography for the new Nevada State Museum in Las Vegas. The assignment was to create footage that would illustrate the basin and range geology by filming portions of Highway 50 (the Loneliest Road in America) that runs East-West across the middle of the state. Had a classic burger and fries lunch at DJ's Drive-in in Eureka. Our video product was both hi-def video of the terrain and the traffic, as well as a time lapse of about 70 miles of road (shot on a Canon 5D); up, down, through passes and curves. GREAT TRIP. MORE IMAGES TO COME LATER. Highway 50 is definitely remote and a classic example of wild and free Nevada.

Who needs to leaf home?

2010-12-31T16:32:00.000-08:00

Apricot leaves in the backyard orchard. I had 8 minutes before a morning appointment and I had a Canon 5D in hand, so why not? And same tree a month later . . .

Maples at Zion - Fall 2010

2010-12-31T14:57:00.000-08:00

I went there in early November fully expecting to arrive at a winter scene. The NOAA weather site had predicted an overnight storm leaving at least 6 inches of snow. Instead - nothing. You do know, don't you that the other name for a meteorologist is . . . "Liar." Still, there were countless opportunities to photograph maple trees, which turn color and drop quickly. Any day in Zion National Park is a good day. You can see more Zion fall images in limited edition here.