Isolation Project, Day 7.

Rainy Day

One week down.

Which I know to some of you that’s nothing. Some of you have been cooped up for twice that, and more. I sincerely hope all of you are able to find something to do to occupy your time. I have no idea what I’d do if it weren’t for my camera.

One thing’s for sure, some days have been a lot harder to come up with images than others. Yesterday it started raining, today it’s still raining, and based on the forecast you can expect photos of and in the rain pretty much all week. I guess it’s a good thing all of my Fujifilm X-Series cameras and lenses are weather resistant. On the plus side, dreary overcast days are great for the way colors seem so much more saturated.

I hope you enjoyed my image for Day 7. My apologies for it being a day late. Think of it as a rain delay 🙂 (Stay tuned for Day 8!)

Now lets see your Isolation Project images. Post a link you yours in the comments or follow me on Twitter and share your photos using the hashtag #IsolationPhotoProject

The Isolation Project, Days 1 and 2.

Isolation Project, Day 1
The Art Of Looking Down.

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 I, like so many others around the world find myself out of work for the next two weeks as the owners of the auto repair shop I work at as my daily grind have decided to close down in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.

So what’s an out of work photographer supposed to do while practicing self isolation and social distancing? I’ve decided to start a person photo project, capturing at least one photo a day, all while staying in my own back yard.

Not only will this get me out of the house to prevent me from going stir crazy, it will also be an exercise in creativity.

Each day I’ll be venturing out into my back yard, or the surrounding woods, where I’ll do the best I can to make at least one photograph. They may not all be good. Hell, many of them might turn out to be downright garbage. But at least I’ll be out with my camera.

Isolation Project, Day 2
It wouldn’t be spring in New Hampshire without 4″ of new snow.

Join the project.

Have you been cooped up inside due to the coronavirus? Whether you’ve got two acres or a tiny postage stamp, a house in the country or a small apartment, it doesn’t matter, even if you cant leave the confines of your home, get out your camera and exercise those creative muscles. Make at least one photo a day for as long as your isolation lasts. Share it in a blog post with “Isolation Project” in the tags, or follow me on Twitter and use the hashtag #IsolationPhotoProject.

Lets see what you got!

Chocorua.

If there’s one mountains that lets you know you’re in New Hampshire, it’s Mount Chocorua. With a summit elevation of only 3,490′ it’s not the tallest in the state, that distinction goes to 6,288′ Mount Washington. What Mount Chocorua lacks in elevation it makes up with a distinctly recognizable profile, one that can be seen from miles in any direction. The profile is so distinct that when the U.S. Mint was designing the White Mountain National Forest quarter, released in 2013 as part of the America the Beautiful series of quarters, it was Mount Chocorua that they chose to represent the White Mountains.

Is it any wonder why I, along with countless other photographers and artists find it nearly impossible to resist this iconic mountains allure?

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Wordless Wednesday.

Winter Light.

Oh What A View!
Mount Willard, Crawford Notch, NH.

Finally, Some Time In The Snow.

Reading all of the recent reports and seeing all of the photos of the snow in northern New Hampshire, has had me eagerly awaiting my first “winter” hike of the season. Wanting to get my feet on the snow and my first snowy sunset of the season, my friend Suzanne and I set off this past Saturday heading north in search of mountains, snow, and majestic views.

Frosted.

Though I’m a fairly experienced winter hiker, Suzanne is not, and with extremely high winds coupled with temps in the low teens, I made the call to attempt a much lower, much less exposed summit for our adventure.

Trying to decide on which mountain offered the right combination of ease of hiking, protection from the weather, and a killer view as a reward, I decided on Mt. Willard for our adventure.

With the mountains in and out of the clouds all day we were unsure of what would greet us when we reached the top. On this day the weather gods were indeed smiling on us! The view was as amazing as I anticipated, with the most beautiful light illuminating the summits lining Crawford Notch.

That Light!

Do You See What I See?

If you walked up to this scene what photograph would you see? Would you immediately go for your wide angle lens (the wider the better??) in your desire to capture everything, to take it all in?

Or would you go right for the telephoto lens in order to tell a more intimate story?

Maybe zoom in even more?

Does a vertical composition speaks to you?

There’s no right answer here.

Plop 10 photographers down on the same spot, in front of the same view, and the resulting photographs will likely represent 10 unique visions.

The best part about photographing with other photographers is seeing what they see. Admittedly, most of the time I prefer to photograph alone. I can be a real “Chatty Cathy” when I’m with a group, as a result my creativity goes right down the toilet, (probably because I’m not focusing *pun intended* on the task at hand). However, I do thoroughly enjoy photographing with others on occasion, because it never fails to become a learning experience. Whether I’m leading a group on a workshop, or out for the day with camera toting friends, getting to see how others see can be enlightening. So many times as I’ve glanced at the LCD on the backs of their cameras my eyes have been opened to composition and subject possibilities that, upon looking back in hindsight seem so obvious. There have been so many, “How the hell did I not see that?” times. Yet it took seeing through someone else’s eyes before it even occurred to me.

What’s my point? I don’t know, is there one? Maybe I’m just babbling?

Maybe what I’m trying to tell you is to embrace your own vision. There is no right or wrong way to photograph. Be less concerned about how other photographers do it, and pay more attention to how your own eyes tell you to. But also, be aware of the other possibilities.

Or, I could just be babbling…

Wordless Wednesday.

My White Whale.

All good things…

The Gardens in Prescott Park.

Prescott Park, located on the waterfront in beautiful Portsmouth, NH is a place I’ve visited and photographed often, really, really often!

I’ve photographed there at night.

(please excuse the overly intrusive watermark)

I’ve photographed there at sunrise.

(again with the giant watermark?)

I’ve even photographed there in the winter.

But ever since picking up my first camera back in 2008, the one time I’ve never been able to photograph there was during cherry blossom time.

Not once, not in 10+ years!

But how you ask, could someone who photographs a place as often as I photograph these beautiful gardens miss one of the most beautiful time to be in the garden? To tell you the truth, I ask myself the same thing each and every year! Each year I’ll see photos of this spectacular event as they’re posted to social media, and each year I tell myself, “next year.” Then next year comes and the bloom occurs mid week when I have my day job to think about.

Another possible reason I keep missing the cherry blossoms is that their bloom just so happens to be around the same time I’m gearing up for waterfalls. This time of year is peak time for waterfalls here in New Hampshire, and those of you who’ve been following along know I do love my waterfalls. Who knows?

All I know it I keep missing it!

But finally…

It Only Took 10 Years! (but who’s counting?)

Finally!

This year, finally, the stars aligned and I was able to make it down to the gardens in time for the cherry blossoms.

SOOC.

Confessions of a (former) die-hard RAW shooter.

Day after day my Fujifilm X-T2 amazes me with the images I’m able to produce, especially the straight out of camera (SOOC) jpegs. Case in point, this wonderful winter scene captured using the wonderful film simulations built into the camera.

With my camera set to capture both RAW and jpeg files, more and more ( when it comes to black and white images in particular) I’m finding the jpegs are more than good enough. Even when it comes to paid photography work, quite often it’s the jpegs that get delivered to the client.

I never would have thought that I, a die-hard RAW photographer, would ever be shooting in jpeg.

Captured using the Fujifilm X-T2 with XF 23mmF2 lens, below are the in-camera settings for the image above:

Film Simulation: Monochrome + Red Filter

Dynamic Range: 100

Highlight Tone: 0

Shadow Tone: +3

Grain Effect: Strong

Sharpness: +1

Noise Reduction: 0

Tripods Need Love Too!

Tripod required. Setting up for a long exposure at the base of Cloudland Falls.

Considering how much it cost me, you’d think I might take better care of my tripod, you’d be wrong. Without question my tripod is the most abused piece of gear I own.

That is except for the few times a year my tripod gets the love it deserves for serving me so faithfully all these years. Several times a year, more if I’ve been shooting in or near sea water a lot, I take each leg completely apart, clean and (sparingly!) lube each leg lock.

Click HERE for instructions on how to disassemble, and more importantly reassemble, your tripod with twist-locking leg locks.

With a little TLC your tripod will love you back for a good long time.