March 28, 2010
This image was taken 20 minutes after sunset, on an unusually calm evening, on the shores of Lake of Two Mountains in L’Ile Bizard, Quebec – just a few kilometers from where I live.
When shooting sunsets, it’s worthwhile to wait a 15-30 minutes after the sun has dipped below the horizon to see what happens. The wind usually dies down, the sky can take on some beautiful & rich colors, and the lower contrast between land and sky is easier to control.
I really love this type of image - the simplified composition, calm water and pastel colors convey a sense of tranquility and calm. I hope you like it too.
The colors are “real”, and obtained by stacking three separate filters: a Singh-Ray 4-stop Neutral Density filter to slow the exposure to 20 seconds, a 3-stop Graduated Neutral Density filter to darken the bright sky, and a polarizer to eliminate the shine off the wet rocks and to help see through the water’s surface.
Image specs:
- Canon EOS 5D Mark II
- Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM at 21mm
- f/13, 20 seconds, ISO 200
- Singh-Ray 3-stop hard GND, Singh-Ray 4-stop ND and B+W polarizer mounted on a Lee Filter System
- Gitzo GT3541LS tripod with RRS BH-55 ballhead, mirror lockup, cable release
- Processed with Adobe Camera Raw 5.x
Please leave a comment, either positive or negative – it’s always appreciated. If you’re interested in purchasing a print of this image, please let me know.
See you in the field,
Rob
Posted by Rob under Filters,Hot Shots,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Quebec | Comments (5)
January 31, 2010
In the colder North American climate, such as found in southern Quebec and Vermont, Mother Nature puts up an incredible display of colors in September and October. For many us landscape photographers, this 2-3 week period of fiery fall colors is the most productive, exciting and stimulating time of the year. This makes the arrival of November all the more difficult to accept: cold weather, gray skies, rain, snow, drab colors – probably the worst month for nature photography around here… In December, the cold weather arrives, and winter slowly settles, putting an icy grip over the regions.
At this time of year, many people imitate bears and head indoors to “hibernate” until the arrival of warmer spring weather. Nature photographers tend to spend more time in front of their computers, working on articles, preparing image submissions to Editors, while slowly packing on the pounds…
Ice Floe Sunset Over Lake of Two Mountains
Canon EOS 20D
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM lens at 17mm
1/13s (middle exposure), f/16, ISO 100
Hoya Moose Polarizer, Hitech 3-stop GND
3 exposure HDR image processed in Photomatix Read more…
Posted by Rob under L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Landscapes,Musings,Quebec,Wildlife,Winter | Comments (13)
November 27, 2009
The grey, drizzly November weather we’re having is making think back and look at images taken in different seasons. I fell upon this one taken in May 2009, following record-high spring water levels. After many weeks of frustration caused by extremely high water, which robbed me of my usual shoreline compositions, the water finally receded dropping by about 6 feet in 1 month.
Still, the water line was still many feet above normal levels – the “seaweed” see in the foreground is actually grass, and the “aquatic plant” in the middle of the image is a dry-land bush…
In order to tame the very bright sky and properly expose the dark foreground, I used two GND filters, a 2-stop one just below the bush, and a 3-stop one at the horizon line.
Image specs:
- Canon EOS 5D Mark II
- Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM at 31mm
- f/22, 4 seconds, ISO 50
- Singh-Ray 3-stop hard GND, Lee 2-stop hard GND, B+W polarizer
- Gitzo GT3541LS tripod with RRS BH-55 ballhead, cable release
Please leave a comment, either positive or negative – it’s always appreciated. If you’re interested in purchasing a print of this image, please let me know.
See you in the field,
Rob
Posted by Rob under Filters,Hot Shots,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Landscapes,Quebec,Spring | Comments (1)
October 18, 2009
Liquid Gold Sunset Over Lake of Two Mountains
Canon EOS 5D MkII
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM lens at 20mm
f/22, 2s, ISO 100
Filters: Singh-Ray 3-stop hard GND, Lee 2-Stop hard GND, B+W 105mm polarizer
Gitzo GT3541LS tripod with RRS BH-55 ballhead, cable release
Hey all,
Rob here. I kind of missed the spontaneity of writing small, quick blog posts… You know, something that highlights a mood, a thought, an event, or a specific image. Gustav and I will keep on writing the longer monthly blog posts, but I also want to write more often to stay in touch. So this is the first post of a new series of “My Hot Shot”. There may a few per week, or only one per month – it’ll depend on my work schedule.
This shot was taken on Labour Day 2009. The beautiful clouds that were hanging around at 17:00 sadly disappeared by 18:15 as I was preparing to head out for this shot.
The bright, cloudless sky made the exposure rather difficult. I ended up using two graduate neutal density filters to hold back the very bright sky. I placed a 2-stop GND just above the rocks (about 2/3rds of the way up), along with a 3-stop GND at the horizon. I also used a polarizer to remove the harsh reflections from the wet rocks in the foreground.
I absolutely love the golded layer of water – this is really what makes this image special. The composotion also works well because of the placement of the horizon, the sun, the tuft of grass in the foreground, and the way the rocks leads your eyes into the sun.
Hope you enjoy it! All the best,
Rob
Posted by Rob under Filters,Hot Shots,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Landscapes | Comments (0)
May 5, 2009
For those of us less cold-hardy than the Rob Servranckxs of the world, unless I’m sojourning somewhere south of South Carolina, the camera gear does tend to gather some dust between the time the frost is on the pumpkin and the woodcock returns to the meadow. (In case you’re picturing me supine on the couch reading model railroad magazines between November and April, I’ll let you know that I finished writing my first novel while the snow was drifting and the wind was rattling the windows.) Rarely, I’ll be in the field as early as mid-March, keeping vigil by an otter hole in the thinning ice of Belvidere Pond or in my blind on a clear morning hoping to intercept a courting gobbler and catch the light show of the rising sun playing on his iridescent plumage.
Wild Turkey (Jake)
Canon EOS 1-D Mark ll N
Canon EF300mm f/2.8 L IS lens
1/100″ @ f/6.3 at ISO 400, spot metering
Gitzo Studex tripod with Wimberley Head
Read more…
Posted by Gustav under L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Musings,Seasons,Spring,Vermont | Comments (1)
January 2, 2009
Happy New Year to all!
Before getting to the “meat” of this article on using the Sing-Ray the Gold-N-Blue polarizer, let me give you a quick update on my new Canon EOS 5D MkII camera. I’m mid-way through my 2008 Holiday break – a full two weeks off work, and it feels great! I was supposed to be spending a lot of time outdoors, enjoying my new Canon EOS 5D MkII camera, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing…
Alas, the weather has been most uncooperative, with lots of rain and freezing rain over the beautiful snow, cloudy skies, very high winds (blowing at 100km/h as I’m writing this on December 28th, 2008), slippery and icy conditions, etc… [sigh]… I did go out a whole three times to enjoy my new camera, but 95% of the images I’ve taken with it so far were indoor “test” shots. I am absolutely thrilled with the image quality of this camera. The 5D MkII is everything I was hoping it would be, so let me share a couple of shots:
Snow Covered Trees in Winter
Canon EOS 5D MkII with Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens at 47mm
1/25s at f/14, ISO 100
B+W Polarizer
Gitzo G1340 tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead, cable release, mirror lock-up
Gryphon
Canon EOS 5D MkII with Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM lens at 81mm
1/50s at f/5.6, ISO 1600(!)
Gitzo GT3541LS tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead
Read more…
Posted by Rob under Filters,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Technique,Vermont,Winter | Comments (8)
October 19, 2008
Johanne (my wife) and I decided to take our vacation 1 month later than usual, so that I could do some “fall colors” photography. My intention had been to join Gustav for a couple of days on his Fall Foliage Magical Mystery Tour, and I was really looking forward to shooting streams and waterfalls in autumnal colors. However, Gryphon, our 12 1/2 year old Labrador Retriever, no longer travels well and gets stressed when we leave him at my parents house for more than a few hours. Gryphon has given us a lifetime of love, devotion and loyalty, and the very least I can do for him is to make his life as happy and comfortable as possible. Which means staying at home…
I decided to stay in the Montreal area for my photography, and expected to do short “day trips” to various locations. Note to self: there’s no point in driving to a general location unless you really know the area well, or have a specific destination in mind… My first “day trip” to a beautiful area just west of Montreal ended up being nothing more than a pleasant 4 hour drive in the countryside. Not a single picture taken. Additionally, most areas just outside of Montreal peaked about 2 weeks early this year, and the trees were mostly bare by the start of my vacation, limiting my choice of destinations.
So, remembering Dorothy’s famous words: “There’s no place like home…” I decided to stick to nearby areas that I know soooo well. There are no “grand vistas” in the area, so my compositions would need to focus on shapes and patterns, small tree clusters, and colors. The key is to find clean, interesting compositions, simplifying the shot as much as possible to make it appealing.
Maple Trees in Fall Colors
Canon EOS 20D with Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM IS lens at 168mm
1/30s at f/8, ISO 100
Hoya Moose Polarizer
Gitzo G2220 tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead, cable release, mirror lock-up
Read more…
Posted by Rob under Fall Foliage,Filters,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Technique | Comments (0)
August 24, 2008
Wow… I certainly feel quite stupid right now – what can I say? Here I am, shooting my mouth off in my last blog/newsletter about how insect “hunting” is a photography no-miss during the summer months… Well now, I certainly did not count on record rainfall in July, coupled with many extremely windy days!
July was a complete wash on the photography front, weekends being mostly wet and windy. What a bummer! But August has been great. Frighteningly, we’re now at the end of August, and there are only 4 weeks left until the end of summer, thus, I title this blog entry as “Summer 2008″.
Let’s start with a sunset picture… For a variety of reasons (bad weather, working too late, weekend evening plans, etc.), I’ve not gone to do a sunset picture since the winter. Shame on me, as sunsets (and landscapes) is really what I find most satisfying photography-wise. On Saturday, August 23rd, everything lined up for me to go out for a sunset shot… And I was rewarded! This was the first attempt at using my new Singh-Ray Gold-N-Blue polarizer filter on a sunset. I’d love to hear your feedback on this shot:
Late August Sunset over Lake of Two Mountains
Canon EOS 20D with Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM lens at 28mm
2 seconds at f/16, ISO 100
Singh-Ray Gold-N-Blue Polarizer (blue polarization), Hitech 3-stop graduated neutral density filter, 2-stop neutral density filter
Gitzo G2220 tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead, cable release, mirror lock-up
Ah…. yes… And suddenly, I remember why I love landscape and sunset photography. And… before anyone asks, the above image is as I saw it in my viewfinder – there is virtually no PhotoShop work on this image: it’s all about understanding how to use filters and properly exposing the image.
The Singh-Ray Gold-N-Blue filter transformed somewhat “blah” colors to the stunning colors you see… I love that filter!
Read more…
Posted by Rob under Filters,L'Ile Bizard (Quebec) | Comments (2)
June 15, 2008
I love this time of year for photography, particularly since developing a taste for macro and insect photography.
Canadian Tiger Swallowtail
Canon EOS 20D with Sigma 150mm f/2.8 lens
1/200s, f/8, ISO 200
Gitzo G2220 tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead, cable release
As you probably know, I’ve been doing photography for a little less than four years. Until last year, my main spring and summer subjects were birds. The problem, for me, with bird photography is that:
- You need to get up really early at this time of year in order to be in position before sunrise… The first two hours after sunrise are typically the most productive, and the light is gorgeous. At this time of year, the sun is up at 5:00AM, which means that, at the latest, I’d need to be up by 4:00AM. On a Saturday or Sunday. Yuck.
- Now, point 1 would not be so bad if I always came back with good shots – except that I’ve been finding that bird photography is less and less predictable, partially due to the changing weather patterns in the last few years. Last spring, I did that “get up early, and be at the marsh at sunrise” thing for four consecutive weekends, and the results were disappointing almost every time.
Read more…
Posted by Rob under L'Ile Bizard (Quebec),Lenses,Technique | Comments (1)
