Progression Of A Morning

Last weekend I met some friends before sunrise for a shoot at a nearby spot. We knew the moon would be setting just after sunrise and when we got there it was hiding behind the clouds. It was dark out and I liked the way the bright moon lit up the cedar silhouettes across the bog. And when the moon disappeared, the sun slowly bathed the area in morning light. The scene changed rapidly from one moment to the next. A pink stripe appeared to the west for a short time before the sun made its way over the tree tops to light up the scene and welcome a new day. An old shack warmed itself among the marsh grass and Pickerel Weed. Then, when the sun climbed higher we turned our attention to Pineland wildflower gifts. It really was a wonderful morning!

‘Hiding Behind The Clouds’ © Denise Bush

‘Goodbye Moon’ © Denise Bush

‘A Stripe Of Pink’ © Denise Bush

‘Sun Falling On Cedars’ © Denise Bush

‘Wading Cedars’ © Denise Bush

‘Swamp Shack’ © Denise Bush

‘Pickerel Weed’ © Denise Bush

‘Orange Milkwort’ © Denise Bush

My 12th Time

Looking back through my image folders from the Catskills I figured out that the recent spring Catskills Photographer’s Weekend was my 12th visit. When my friend, Rich became the owner of the Glen Falls House Resort in Round Top, NY years ago I had the idea for the photography weekends, and began recruiting my fellow photographers to participate. The first weekend was in the winter of 2009 and it was led by two photographer’s who live in the Catskills. I had met one of them, Ron while on a trip in Acadia, Maine. The other was a locally known Catskill photographer, Francis Driscoll, who was recommended by Ron. After that first photographer’s weekend Francis led the next couple of tours before I started leading them in 2010.

The Glen Falls House has become a sort of ‘home away from home’ and I very much enjoy my visits. I usually go up a day ahead in order to scout for new locations as well as check on known locations. I have met several kind property owners in order to get permission and my friend tells me I am ‘practically a local’. Each visit is a challenge for me to make images that are different (and better) from previous trips and a chance to capture the same scenes in different light and conditions. I welcome the challenge and look forward to future visits.

Here are some favorites from the spring trip.

‘Painter’s View’ © Denise Bush

‘Bastion Falls Overview’ © Denise Bush
Prints For Sale at Fine Art America (link top right)

‘All Souls In Spring’ © Denise Bush

‘The Fallen’ © Denise Bush

‘Bending Tree’ © Denise Bush

‘Field Of Phlox’ © Denise Bush

‘Little Red Barn’ © Denise Bush

‘Phlox Beside The Barn’ © Denise Bush

‘Posted’ © Denise Bush

‘Cold Springs Hotel Windows’ © Denise Bush

‘Sunset Silhouette’ © Denise Bush

More MACRO

I thought I’d follow up the MACRO Photography & The Natural World workshop I co-presented on June 15th with more macro images. These images were captured this spring and are all from the natural world. Here are 10 of the tips that participants learned:

1. Macro images require that your chosen center of interest be very sharp. Always use a tripod (or other support).
2. Use live view if you have it and mirror lock-up if you don’t to eliminate camera vibration caused by the mirror flipping up.
3. Use live view’s magnification and manual focus to insure your focus is as sharp as can be.
4. While watching your subject in live view, wait until it is perfectly still before releasing the shutter using a cable release or remote trigger.
5. Avoid busy backgrounds that compete with your subject by changing your position or using a shallow depth of field.
6. Consider bracketing your f-stops (aperture) for a choice of varying depth of field and backgrounds when you process the images.
7. Compose in camera whenever possible for the best quality and detail … and to make full use of your camera’s capability.
8. Choose a camera angle that parallels the same plane as the subject.
9. In bright, harsh light use a diffuser or umbrella diffuser to soften the light.
10. Be patient! Successful macro photography requires a lot of tripod and camera adjustments before clicking the shutter.

Scroll down to Very Experimental and Splendor In The Grass for some fun, macro photography ‘how-tos’. And, feel free to leave a comment by clicking ‘comments’ at the end of any post!

‘Iris In The Rain’ © Denise Bush

‘Emerging Iris’ © Denise Bush

‘Bluebells’ © Denise Bush

‘Bleeding Hearts Close-up’ © Denise Bush

‘Swamp Pink’ © Denise Bush

‘Columbine Posterior’ © Denise Bush

‘Emerging Fern’ © Denise Bush

‘Peacock Feathers’ © Denise Bush

‘Bottled Yarrow’ © Denise Bush

‘Coral Cairn’ © Denise Bush

‘Skeleton Leaves’ © Denise Bush
Prints For Sale at Fine Art America (link top right)

Very Experimental!

Here are two images from from just one of the set-ups we’ll be doing at Pinelands Photography School’s, MACRO Photography & The Natural World workshop next weekend. This is simply seltzer water and some plastic flowers in a small, square tank. I used an ordinary desk lamp and daylight balanced OttLite bulb to illuminate the subjects and bubbles. Using live view, magnified, I manually focused to be sure what I wanted as the center of interest was as sharp as could be. Then, I set my ISO to 800 to increase the shutter speed and insure my focused bubbles did not show any motion blur as they expand and travel to the surface. It was easy to do and the results are a fun departure from the ordinary!

‘Tentacles & Bubbles’ © Denise Bush

‘A Thousand Bubbles’ © Denise Bush