Rob’s Fall 2008 Vacation

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)

Autumn, 2008

G’day everyone,

A couple of frosty mornings in mid September, with temperatures in the low thirties, ignited the forests up here in northern Vermont about a week early this year.  People remarked that the color appeared virtually overnight – like the flash of light from a bulb burning itself out, fall foliage was an explosive event.  As I write this, wind and rain are already stripping the leaves off of the trees, wallpapering the roads with wet leaf litter and making them treacherous on the curves.  Just down the muddy road from my house, sugar and red maple leaves cascade down Tamarack brook,  bunching up in the deep pool below the falls where they swirl in the eddy, forming a vivid galaxy on the tea-colored water.  Further south, colors are just beginning to peak.  Good thing because the Fall Foliage Magical Mystery Tour begins Sunday.  We’ll head toward the central part of the state where the colors aren’t running down the rivers just yet.

Autumn at Tamarack Brook
Canon EOS 1-D Mark II N, Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM lens at 17mm
Moose 81A Polarizer
30 seconds at f/19, ISO 100
evaluative metering, aperture priority
Gitzo G2220 tripod, Bogen 3047 head, cable release

Read more…

Posted by Gustav under Cape Cod,Fall Foliage,Filters,Fine Art Prints,Shows & Exhibits,Technique | Comments (1)