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 …
How to use long exposures to create mystical black and white images
I have always been intrigued by monoliths, first by the statues on Easter Island, then by the monolith in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey and most recently by Stonehenge in England. In each case, seeing these monoliths prompts the question; Who built them and for what purpose? I’ve always loved visiting Bandon Beach in Oregon because of the natural monoliths strewn along the coastline. Randomly placed, it is as though the earth were God’s chessboard and the monoliths the …
Recalling the origins of the Galen Rowell Graduated ND Filters
In those bygone days, BD (Before Digital), one of the biggest frustrations for landscape photographers was the limited latitude of color slide film. A four to five-stop dynamic range was all that our film could handle before the shadows blocked up or the highlights burned out. This presented a real problem especially when we were faced with a beautiful (but dark) foreground and a glorious (but very bright) background sky. At best, we would have to wait for just the …
Two-minute video demonstrates how a Graduated ND Filter balances the light
From his vast outdoor studio not far from Alberta, Canadian photographer and author Darwin Wiggett sends this unedited video showing how easy it is to balance the dynamic range between the sky and the foreground of this outdoor scene simply by using a Singh-Ray 2-stop hard-step Graduated ND Filter. “I shot the video using a Canon Rebel T2i and a Tamron 17-50 f2.8 lens. I shot the scene at 17mm. A Cokin P-Series filter holder was mounted on the lens …
The “motion” in emotional water images created by stretching exposures to the limit
I believe that long exposures and water are a natural match. Portraying water as fluid seems so much more natural to me. My Singh-Ray Vari-ND lets me easily explore exposures of varying durations by simply adjusting the density from about 2 stops up to 8 stops, or anywhere in between. My strong attraction to long exposures came about because of water. I was intrigued by the way moving water looked at different exposures; a 1-second image looked so completely different …
It’s easy to photograph the American West without straining your budget or your back
For the many photographers who live out here, it’s just about heaven. If I have any advice for photographers who don’t live out here, it would be to come visit. Just be sure to bring your camera, a good tripod and all your filters. There’s an infinite supply of dramatic beauty, natural geological wonders, and the historical remains of the recent and ancient past to be enjoyed and documented. And the best part is their easy accessibility to all of …
The Essential Filters for Controlling Contrast in Digital Nature Photography
Originally posted in March, 2010, this article from Darwin Wiggett contains some truly fundamental information about using filters for photographers to learn or review. Each time award-winning photographer and author Darwin Wiggett writes about filters, he is sharing his own years of successful experience. His stories featured on this blog have become a trusted reference source for many visitors. Now Darwin discusses the essential filters for controlling the luminance or contrast range of digital images and offers us his perspective …