National Parks

Clearing Storm over the North Rim • Grand Canyon National Park, AZ

Arizona, Desert, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Mountains, National Parks, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, sunrise, Twilight Photography, Winter 5 Responses »

Jan 292012

Clearing Storm over the North Rim, Grand Canyon National Park

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. As most of you know who follow this blog I have been away on a combined work/photography trip to the Grand Canyon. I was anticipating a great time with my shooting pal Tony Kuyper. We had compiled a list of places I have not been and was looking forward to bringing back some new images. Alas however that was not to be. Going back nearly a month to my shooting trip to Death Valley I contracted a nagging cough that weeks later was still with me. By the time I arrived at the canyon I was feverish and in quite a fix. I spent most of Sunday in the hotel unable to move and by Monday was in the Grand Canyon Medical Center with several IV’s stuck in my hand. The diagnosis was pneumonia. Needless to say everything was cancelled and I made the flight home two days later. Just to fill in the rest of the story I am on a new antibiotic that is working and I am on the mend.

Despite my condition, on the way out of the canyon to get to the airport at Flagstaff, I still managed to capture a few images. Well let’s just say I was bound and determined to shoot something despite how I felt. Over Monday night it snowed 8″ on the South Rim turning the canyon into a magical sight. Across the way on the North Rim it looked like nature had dropped white sugar sprinkles over the spires and buttes. A layer of clouds had dropped below the rim and was drifting among the canyons formations. As the sun rose and kissed the buttes with light the composition was complete. In this shot you can see the Cheops Pyramid (right), and the Isis Temple (left). Overhead the early morning light turned the clouds a subtle magenta. This was a special sight to see and though I really did not feel well I was bolstered, even if only for a brief period, by the experience. Nature has powerful healing forces. At least it does for me. This image will forever be linked to one of the worst trips I have had. But every time I see this image I will remember it fondly.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

Liquid Light • Salt Creek, Death Valley National Park, Ca.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. This will be my last post for about a week or so. I am heading out to the Grand Canyon for a combination work and shooting trip. I will be at the South Rim for a few days and then heading up to Page for a trip into Canyon X and some photo exploration with Tony Kuyper. The 10-day weather forecast looks promising to finally get into Canyon X. I was thwarted on my last attempt when a large front moved over the Page area killing off all the light. Tony and I are planning a little exploration of the Painted Desert and a jaunt through Cathedral Wash down to the Colorado River.

Today’s image is affectionately named “Liquid Light”. This was shot on my recent trip to Death Valley with my pals Alec Johnson and Travis Bechtel. As you may have noticed from recent posts we were blessed with incredible shooting conditions, amazing light, and clouds. Epic clouds to be more exact. This image, shot at Salt Creek, was made in the late afternoon as the sun was setting over the Panamint Range, just behind my camera position. The sky event was happening on both sides and it was difficult to choose where to shoot. There were just so many options. The three of us must have looked like ants after a picnic basket as we scurried about framing compositions. The clouds sent long tendrils over the salt flats. Driven by upper level winds the clouds resembled a liquid spill in the sky. As the sun moved lower reflected light illuminated the clouds and carried their reflection in the water below. Sky and earth seemed to meld into one. We continued to shoot well into Civil Twilight just enjoying the light show.

Technical Details: This image is a blend of two bracketed exposures. One for the foreground and one for the sky. Each image was processed in Adobe Lightroom and opened as layers in Photoshop for final work. I created a Channel Mask to seamlessly blend the two exposures before applying my final curves and color adjustments.

Thanks for stopping by. I’ll see you back here soon.

Bob

Sunset at Badwater – Death Valley National Park, California

California, Death Valley, Death Valley National Park, Desert, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, Salt Flats, Twilight Photography, Wide Angle Photography 2 Responses »

Jan 032012

Sunset at Badwater, Death Valley National Park, California

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. I am just back, this very morning at 3:00 am to be exact, from a shooting trip to Death Valley with Alec Johnson and Travis Bechtel. To say we shot up the place would be an understatement. We spent nearly every waking hour out in the landscape shooting from early morning to late in the evening. It was what a photography trip with best friends is all about-photography, friendship, and camaraderie. The jokes and shenanigans were non-stop. And of course there was a little photography along the way. In nearly three and a half days and 10 separate shooting sessions I managed to exhaust 10 compact flash cards and log over 100 gigs in files. The weather was amazing and we had beautiful clouds for many of our shoots.

With so many images it was hard to know where to begin. So the easiest place I think is from the beginning. This image was shot on our first evening in the park. On the way in to the park we stopped and photographed some interesting mountains and clouds but the main goal was to get down into the flats for twilight. The Badwater Salt Flats are one of the lowest places on earth. Summer temperatures can reach better than 115 degrees and the heat leaches all the moisture out of the ground. In the harsh light of midday the flats are unremarkable. But at twilight they become soft and other-worldly. Here the white salt glows with the reflected color of the sky and clouds. Undefined ridges catch the highlights and reveal the intricate patterns embedded in the flats. Out here the lack of noise is deafening. It is so quiet you can here a pin drop. This valley extends for many miles up the spine of Death Valley and includes many incredible geologic formations. This was a fitting place to start our adventures.

Stay tuned for more images from this trip. And check out Alec Johnson’s and Travis Bechtel’s websites for their images.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

Sunset on the Flats – Death Valley National Park

California, Death Valley, Desert, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, Singh-Ray Filters, Split Neutral Density Filters, sunset, Twilight Photography, Wide Angle Photography 4 Responses »

Dec 192011

Sunset on the Flats, Death Valley National Park, California.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. My apologies for my apparent lack of attention to the blog but the last month has been quite busy. I have also been spending a good bit of time on my site over on Google Plus which has been very exciting. I have made quite a few new connections with the photography community resulting in new friendships and shooting opportunities. And speaking of shooting opportunities today’s post is a teaser. This image was shot nearly 10 years ago on my first trip to Death Valley. It also marked the first time that I shot with my 4 x 5 camera and Fuji Velvia film. Photography has really advanced since those early days with the large format camera. Today digital photography affords the opportunity to shoot more often, the freedom to experiment, and the ability to capture a broader dynamic range in my images. But my 4 x 5 work set the ground work for how I shoot today. Even with my digital cameras I use many of the compositional concepts that I learned with large format cameras.

Next week I will return to Death Valley with my tow buds, Alec Johnson and Travis Bechtel. Next week I will return to the scene where the landscape photography “light” was turned on. The weather forecast looks great and I will be with two good friends. How much better can it get. In my mind this is what photography is really all about. Oh to be sure, I do like to be in these beautiful places. There will be no argument there. But to be out and sharing the experience with good friends is the driving force. Photography has brought me many joys. But it is this connection to the community at large that has been the biggest draw. It took years for me to understand this concept. And over on G+ it just gets better and better. But don’t worry I will still bring new images here, to this forum.

As the holidays approach I wish each and everyone of you good cheer. I appreciate in so many ways each and every visitor to this site. I started this blog two years ago to help promote my website. Along the way however I found out that I actually have a voice. The blog has helped my with that discovery and was the first step in connecting to the larger community as a whole. I thank all of you for visiting and supporting this site.

Technical Details: This image was shot with a Canham 4 x 5 Field Camera fitted with a Schneider 90mm XL Lens. The image was shot with Fuji Velvia 50 film at f22 for 8 seconds. I used a Singh-Ray 3-Stop, Soft Edge Split Neutral Density Filter in the sky to balance out the exposure.

I’ll see you back here in the new year.

Bob

King of the Hill – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area

Abstracts, Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Lightroom Workflow, Arizona, Black and White, Desert, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Circle, Hoodoo, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Nikon D3x, Photography Technique, Photography Trips, Photoshop Technique 2 Responses »

Dec 092011

King of the Hill, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. This is an image I have affectionately named “King of the Hill”. It is a rather large pedestal of Navajo Sandstone perched on top of layer upon layer of serrated and swirling stone. To be honest this was a disappointing day. I was scheduled to make a trip into Canyon X but a massive front several states away brought clouds and flat, contrasty light. Not exactly the kind of conditions suitable for slot canyon photography. So with the Canyon X trip cancelled, and determined to shoot something, I wondered out into some slick rock areas near Glen Canyon. I do not like to shoot in desperation as it usually leads to uninspiring images and frustration. But here I was anyway. At the very least this would be a scouting trip for a future trip. I wandered for hours up, down, and through an amazing landscape of sharp-edged stone. They were like giant red layer cakes rising upward through a series of dimensional swirls culminating in a large rock “cupcake” with a cookie on top. But the light was just horrible – flat, contrasty, and featureless. Light brings form, shape, and definition. With it we can separate the elements of an image and bring it to life.

But even without the light I knew there was a shot here in this garden of stone. In conditions like this black and white can save the day. To begin to see the possibilities I set my cameras display setting to black and white. Immediately the possibilities began to surface. The flat red color and grey sky became more cohesive and interesting in black and white. And with a little Lightroom and Photoshop work I knew I could bring out the drama and detail in the stone. I also had to be a little patient with my subject. At time during the day a hint of form would appear in the featureless grey sky. For this shot I waited almost 45 minutes for a band of clouds to form over this formation. Waiting for just the right moment I was able to not only capture some interest in the sky but to also use this to frame around the sandstone pedestal. All day I played this “cat and mouse” game with vary degrees of success. With this image everything fell in to place and I was able to bring home a winner.

Technical Details: This image was shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikkor 17-35mm lens at 24mm. The image was exposed at ISO 100 at f13 for 30 seconds. Even though I had my screen display set to Black and White the RAW captured all the color data. I experimented with the RAW processing to bring out as much color detail so I could make the B+W conversion in Photoshop. For the final however I made the conversion in Lightroom using the Color Mode Sliders. I have found I have a great deal of control with these sliders and can produce an excellent file for final work in Photoshop.

My workflow in Photoshop followed my typical pattern with one exception. I began, as usual, with “digital gardening” on a filter layer to clean up a few dust spots and applying my Smart Sharpen layer to bring up the micro-contrast of the file. The RAW file brought from Lightroom, though solid, still needed some punch. To do this I “Merged Visible” to create a new Image Layer. Note that here that I could also have flattened the file but I almost never do this as I might want to make some adjustment to the Sharpening and I need the Layer Stacks intact for this. With the new Image Layer active I changed the Blending Mode to Soft Light. You could also use Multiply Mode but this usually requires reducing the opacity of the effect. With Soft Light I find I get a nice punch to the file by increasing the density of the pixels. It is a great technique in certain circumstances to add depth to the file. From here it followed my usual Layers including White and Black Point, several Contrast/Curve Adjustments through Luminosity Masks and extensive dodging and burning. Dodging and burning is where I paint with light and manipulate the highlights and shadows to add visual dimension to the file. Using a combination of the Brush Tool and D+B Tools I work light and dark values at low opacities along edges and flat areas to separate tones and emphasize light and shadow.

Thank you for stopping by today!

Bob

Potoma Waterfall – Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, West Virginia

Harpers Ferry, Heliopan Filters, National Parks, Nikon D3x, Potomac River, River, Robert H Clark Photography, Shenandoah River, Twilight Photography, Water, Waterfalls, West Virginia No Responses »

Nov 032011

Potoma Waterfall, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, WV.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. As most of you know I have been on a self imposed exploration of my regional backyard. I have cut back some of my trans-continental travel and taken the opportunity to visit some incredible local locations with one of my shooting pals Mark Muse. Today’s post is a real jewel and is located a mere 10 minutes from my office. Just downriver from where the Shenandoah and the Potomac join a small stream that drains from the mountains around Loudon Heights empties into the Potomac. But before it does the stream drops over a knife edge of stone and splinters into multiple cascades. On this day the falls were swollen with water from rains and snowmelt. The flow of water twists and turns through an obstacle course of large boulders before finally joining the Potomac River. Sometimes it just pays to stay at home.

Technical Details: I shot the falls in the early evening. The sun was already dropping low in the sky and the dense canopy of trees obscured most of the sunlight and gave me a beautiful even light for shooting. At this time even an ISO of 100 I could get 1/4 to 1/2 of second exposures which was plenty to give the water a frozen look. But I wanted a little more “flow” to the water and cut out some small specular highlights on the wet rocks so I used a Heliopan Warming Circular Polarizer which gave me an additional 3 stops. So my exposure data was ISO 100 at f11 for 4 seconds. Nikon D3x with a Nikkor 17-35 at 20mm.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

Twilight on the Shenandoah – Harpers Ferry, WV

Harpers Ferry, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Lightroom, National Parks, Nikon D3x, River, Robert H Clark Photography, Shenandoah River, sunset, Twilight Photography, Water, West Virginia No Responses »

Oct 202011

Twilight on the Shenandoah, Harpers Ferry, WV. Image shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikkor 24mm PC lens. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f11 for 30 seconds.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. We have had quite a variety in the weather department over the last few weeks. Though fall has officially arrived the color in the leaves has been somewhat uninspiring due to wet conditions, warm afternoons, and wind. All this has combined to keep the trees on life support so to speak and has negated any possible color intensity. What we need now is a good hard frost to really kick start the leaves. But I am afraid this year may well be one to forget. What little color we have is fairly dull. But not to worry because there is still fantastic color in the skies especially around twilight.

Several days ago I found myself out along the river at twilight. The air was crisp and clear. The river flowed fast, swollen with recent rain, while overhead cirrus wisps drifted on high winds. I love the blue light at this time of the evening. The day is gone and night is approaching but the skies luminosity still casts a light over the landscape. The river flowed silently except where it dropped over unseen rocks below the surface. There the water gurgled, a lively musical serenade to break the evenings stillness. Out beyond the floating gardens of rushes and reeds a great blue heron preened its feathers. More than once the great bird looked my way, checking on me, and perhaps wondering why I was there. As the light fell he took flight heading up river towards the gap. His day was done. And as I tripped the shutter for the last time so was mine.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

Morning Fog on the Shenandoah River – Harpers Ferry, WV

Harpers Ferry, Heliopan Filters, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Mountains, National Parks, Photography Composition, Photography Technique, Potomac River, River, Robert H Clark Photography, sunrise, Trees, Water, West Virginia, Zeiss Lenses 3 Responses »

Oct 122011

Morning Fog on the Shenandoah River, Harpers Ferry, WV.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. In my last post I admonished myself for not getting out and enjoying the many scenic possibilities that exist in my own backyard. I received quite a few comments via e-mail from folks all coming clean about falling prey to the same malady. It is easy to do of course. When you plan a shooting trip, say out west, your whole focus is on that trip and the physical and mental act of scouting, shooting, chasing the light, composition, and the list goes on and on. It is different at home however. Because all the home obligations from family to work to putting a roof on the house take over. It is natural because unless we live totally in a self-absorbed vacuum we still have to take care of the business end of life. And that means manage our commitments. It is just life. But, and here is a really big but, if we do not take the time to pursue what we love then it will pass us by. Lost opportunities will turn into the “I wish I had done that”. I for one have a big bucket list of places I want to go and things I want to see, do, and experience. It is quite long and I may never get to the end of the list but I am going to try. If you want something to happen then you have to take matters into your own hands. You can’t wait for it to come to you. You must throw you aspirations out into the karmic airwaves and step by step begin the journey. The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Oddly enough the journey, for most of us, begins at home.

I am fortunate to live and work in a very beautiful place. Just twenty minutes from my house the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers meet just below Harpers Ferry. The Appalachian Trail passes below my office and Loudoun Heights and Maryland Heights, part of the Appalachian chain, tower over the the confluence of the two rivers. Needless to say it is not only beautiful but an amazing barometer of the changing seasons. Fall color has started to appear and it will not be long before sheets of ice will stretch across the river. Though constantly changing the river is the catalyst which draws me to shoot. Fall brings some incredible fog events caused by the temperature inversions as the weather changes. So I have been spending a few days at “home” now just getting reacquainted with the river. As I have discovered it has a lot to offer.

Technical Details: I was on the river fairly early in the morning. The fog is generally thicker at this time and depending on the temperature swings can hang low to the river, obscuring all but the closest details, or float higher revealing more of the landscape. On this day I waited for the fog to begin to burn off just a bit and set up the shot to play on the various converging lines. The image was shot with a Sony a900 and a Zeiss 24-70mm lens at 24mm. The image was exposed at ISO 100 at f11 for 6 seconds. I used a Heliopan Circular Warming Polarizer to remove specular highlights and a Singh-Ray 3-Stop, Soft Edge, Split Neutral Density Filter over a portion of the sky and background to hold in the sky and fog.

Thanks for stopping by today. Remember where your journey starts. Get out and shoot.

Bob

Bridge and Fog – Shenandoah River, Harpers Ferry, WV

Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Lightroom Workflow, Bridges, Harpers Ferry, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Lee Big Stopper, Lightroom, National Parks, Photography Composition, Photography Technique, Robert H Clark Photography, Shenandoah River, Sony α900, sunrise, West Virginia, Zeiss Lenses 4 Responses »

Oct 092011

Bridge and Fog, Shenandoah River. Shot with a Sony a900 and a Zeiss 24-70mm lens at 45mm. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f11 for 1-1/2 minutes.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. Today’s is image is brought to courtesy of our recent influx of beautiful fall weather. The cool mornings and warm afternoons typically generate some fantastic fog along our rivers in the early morning. In a recent conversation with Alec Johnson we were both lamenting that our current workloads and obligations were preventing both of us from getting out and shooting. So I want to make a point about this conversation. Getting out and shooting for the two of us usually involves anywhere but home. For Alec it is the North Shore of Lake Superior and for me it usually revolves around some slot canyon or grand vista in the American West. The fact is that the act of photography, the mental and physical immersion we both have for this medium, is important to our sanity and well being. It seems like a lot of baggage to place on our choice of art but it is true. Both of us, in our own pursuit of photography, find peace and well-being. Much like yoga the process is one of contemplative and deliberate practice and within this we find a release of our demons.

With the arrival of the fog came a revelation. I travel so much and most of my shooting has indeed been in the far reaches of the country. But I live in an incredible place with a veritable playground full of photographic opportunities. What am I waiting for? Nothing was preventing me from shooting, but me. That’s right, me. I am coming clean here. It is so easy to put up the road blocks and complain about our situations. Our conversation and the influx of of fog gave me a new sense of clarity. Yes, I want to shoot out west but when I can’t be there I have great places at home to practice my craft. In the immortal words of Steven Stills, “if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one your with”. The river is so close and I can make the time without negating my other obligations. It is a good thing and I am glad I woke up to the possibilities. So “Chak” , if you read this far, this one’s for you.

Technical Details: Today’s image was shot in the early morning and was conceived as a long exposure black and white. I wanted two things in the vision of this image. I wanted to soften the details and capture the beautiful soft light created by the fog. This required a long exposure to achieve. So out came my Lee Big Stopper. 10-stops of neutral density gave me a shutter speed at f11 of nearly two minutes. So during the exposure time the river softens and becomes “ice” like and the drifting fog softens the details rendering the image almost high-key. Just exactly what I was looking to do. In processing I kept the image light soft and put most of the detail into the first bridge pier. This in effect stabilizes the composition and provides a nice contrast.

Get out and shoot. Time is wasting away.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

Star Trails and White Bark Pine – Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake, Crater Lake National Park, Light Painting, National Parks, Night Photography, Nikon D3x, Oregon, Photography Technique, Robert H Clark Photography, Star Trails No Responses »

Sep 282011

Star Trails over White Bark Pine, Crater Lake National Park.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. In my last post I promised to leave the waterfalls for a bit and post something “other worldly”. I think today’s star trail shot qualifies for “other worldly”. I was at Crater Lake National Park about a month ago and found it to be one of the darkest places I have ever been. The night sky was amazing and every evening you could see the Milky Way glowing brightly and stretching across the sky from horizon line to horizon line. I did not anticipate shooting a star trail shot but after I found this amazing remnant of a white bark pine I had to give it a go. The tree clings to an out cropping of rocks along the crater rim and can be found on the West Rim Drive at an overlook near Hillman Peak. Despite the dark sky I still had an issue with the ambient light coming from the Crater Lake Lodge which can be seen in the lower right hand side of the image. But after working on the file I came to like the amber glow that frames Garfield Peak. You can also see part of the Milky Way which is the blurred area in the upper right.

Technical Details: Image was shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikkor 15mm Rectilinear Lens. The image was pre-framed when I still had some light. The 40 minute, one-take, exposure was made at ISO 400 at f5.6. I started the exposure at 9:30 which was well after astronomical twilight to ensure a very dark sky. I used an electronic release with a timer to make the exposure. With 3 minutes to go I light painted the pine using an 80 lumen LED flashlight. I shone the light through my moving fingers which acted as a light diffuser. Just a word of caution when working with single exposure star trails. Make sure you do not turn off your camera after the exposure is made. After your shot the camera will take the same amount of time as your exposure time to process the image. Final processing was done in Photoshop and consisted of a series of layer to bring out details in the tree and the star trails. A small amount of noise reduction was also performed.

Thank you for stopping by today.

Bob

Older Entries

Robert H Clark Photography Blog

National Parks

Clearing Storm over the North Rim • Grand Canyon National Park, AZ

Liquid Light • Salt Creek, Death Valley National Park, California

Sunset at Badwater – Death Valley National Park, California

Sunset on the Flats – Death Valley National Park

King of the Hill – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area

Potoma Waterfall – Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, West Virginia

Twilight on the Shenandoah – Harpers Ferry, WV

Morning Fog on the Shenandoah River – Harpers Ferry, WV

Bridge and Fog – Shenandoah River, Harpers Ferry, WV

Star Trails and White Bark Pine – Crater Lake National Park

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