Los Angeles, It was a big sprawling city even in those days. One block looked like the next. I don’t have any photography to speak of from those days because I always felt that nature was elsewhere. I’ve never looked back and, through my photographic travels and workshops, I’ve been treated to some of the most beautiful and scenic locations imaginable. The National and State parks throughout the American West are my home and photographic focus. Nevertheless, I recently had …
Reviewing the basics of Graduated Neutral Density Filters in the Digital Age
Nowadays, my photography is still a passion that I pursue both as a doctoral graduate in biology and as a frequent photo workshop leader. While the magical effect of a polarizer is nearly impossible to recreate in image editing software, there are now all kinds of computer-based ways of replicating the effect of ND grads in post-production. In fact, many software packages offer built-in ND grad ‘effects’ that can easily be applied to images. We also have HDR software techniques …
Steve Kossack’s new location moves him closer to his two favorite national parks
I’ve just visited two of my most favorite National Parks now that they are closer than ever, When I first moved to the deserts of Arizona ten years ago, I considered Page AZ but did not move there. Instead I went a couple of hundred miles south to the small town of Cottonwood, about 100 miles north of Phoenix. For more than a decade, Phoenix served as a terrific base for conducting my various photo workshops throughout the western states. …
Reflections of this year’s visit to the splendors of Glacier National Park
Sometimes I wonder whether success in any creative art is more dependent on the singer or the song? That is to say, is it really the photographer or the place? Over the years, I’ve come to realize excellent outdoor images can be made almost anywhere at any time. Nevertheless, that rationalization fades from memory when I find myself surrounded by the awesome grandeur of our nation’s National Parks, and one in particular. Although it’s in a remote location, Glacier National …
Visiting Oregon, I brought along my Singh-Ray filters
Aspiring landscape photographer Loscar Numael recently had an opportunity to try out his Singh-Ray filters while visiting Oregon. “I brought along my entire kit of filters and I was glad I did because Oregon has to be one of the most photographically diverse and beautiful places a landscape photographer can find. Only knowing Oregon from seeing the images made by other photographers, I wasn’t sure what to expect. With each passing day of the trip — as I discovered how …
Series of dramatic architectural studies reflects constant search for fresh ideas
For the past two years, I’ve been working on a project that combines my love for architecture and photography. Called The Fountainhead, after the Ayn Rand novel, this series features images of skyscrapers that have been dramatically distorted to give them a very modern and futuristic look. Rather than transforming these images by using Photoshop, however, I resorted to a much more ‘old-school’ technique that enabled me to visualize and capture the final images in my digital camera. I photographed …
Finding out that Iceland is a great place to apply the versatility of the Vari-N-Trio and ColorCombo
Now, thanks to our new series of workshops, organized in cooperation with the folks at Focus-on-Nature in Iceland, I have been able to realize that dream. We began our series there last summer and have the next workshop set for July 10-16, 2011. Since there are also a number of other workshops held there throughout the year, I thought it might be helpful to pass along a few general observations and suggestions for those planning to photograph in Iceland. During …
Relocating my Photo Business to Nevada has Become a Moving Experience
Moving forward always gives a better view to the past. As I get set to move after a decade in one place, all the years of field photography, and especially the resulting images, now come to the forefront with different thoughts and emotions attached. The images that have special merit are the ones that have found their way into my heart and then onto my walls. They have literally stood the test of time, Now, as I move them to …
Highlighting the many creative possibilities of photographing water with filters
One of my very favorite photographic subjects — besides people — is water. We can find so many creative possibilities in water photography because it’s almost always moving, it takes on different colors, reflects light and forms so many different shapes. In water photography, it is so easy to get really unique results. All that’s required is hard work, lots of experience and the right equipment. Most of the time water is involved in something interesting like giving sand, stones, …
Putting the Singh-Ray filters to good use when capturing reflected images
We almost always get our share of great light — most often at the beginning or the end of the day — no matter what time of year or location we’re visiting. But we all realize there will also be those really challenging times when we need to work with the light we’re given. That’s often when we learn the most. The best solution I have found for the lack of ‘good light’ is stronger composition and more creative selection …