Catching the Last Glimpse Of Fall

Like many people, fall is my favorite time of year because of the intense colors and the arresting beauty of the foliage.

Over the past few years, I have tried to spend a few days in the mountains of North Carolina to capture the majestic beauty of fall. Typically, I would go on hiking through the mountains and ride my mountain bike on any number of challenging trails. This year, my wife and I made the trip together and found a wonderful Bed and Breakfast, located in Bryson City, called the Historic Calhoun House Hotel.

We had a wonderful time together.

Here are a few images of our trip from a week or two ago. The last two photos were taken aboard a sightseeing train traveling back to Byron City.

f4.5 at 1/60 sec (ISO 400)

f7.1 at 1/100 sec (ISO 400)

f9.0 at 1/80 sec (ISO100)

f20.0 at 1/60 sec (ISO100)

So, get out and take pictures of what's left of the fall foliage while you can!

Painting With Light #1

Every year, I look forward to the State Fair which comes to town during the month of October.  For many, it's a time to enjoy the sights and sounds and... great tasting food! Yes, for me, it's all those things and more... it's also the opportunity to really creative by shooting at night, without a flash. You can view it as using light as as your paint brush!

The fun images below were produced with minimal equipment: Cannon 10D camera, a lens or two (wide angle preferred) and a sturdy tripod.  One of the keys to getting exciting and creative images is to select slow shutter speeds.  How slow? Well, that depends on the ride you are shooting: but one starts getting dramatic images at around 1/30 second.  The 'bulb' setting is best for photographing fireworks.

You can get really nice results from shooting stationary objects with lights but most of the fun can be had by  shooting rides which are in motion! Here are a few of the images I captured (without any editing in Photoshop):

f4.0 at 1/250 sec (ISO 400)

f8.0 at 2.5 sec (ISO 100)

f16 at 4 sec (ISO 100)

f13 at 2.5 sec (ISO 100)

f13 at 2.5 sec (ISO 100)

f16 at 1 sec (ISO 100)

f16 at 3 sec (ISO 100)

You Might Also Read

• Tips to Shoot Fireworks  
• Hey Speedy, Slow It Down
• Happy 4th of July... from the road side

It's Still A Rose... Only A Bit Wet

1/50 sec / F40.0 at ISO 100 (300mm)

Okay. I HAD to go back to the Rose Garden one more time but this time it was to see what effect a light rain would have on the soft petals. (See images from my previous visit). I made sure to bring the appropriate gear: camera, lens, tripod, reflector, remote release, Gary Fong diffuser and a few closeup filters.

For this session, I wanted to get a lot of good detail of the roses: petals, moisture, color, etc. So I shot most of these at very high aperture settings which meant relatively slow shutter speeds. But that was okay since I had a tripod and remote release cable.

1/40 sec / F25.0 at ISO 100 (300mm)

Moving quickly before the water evaporated, I chose different angles, various heights and zoom/cropping to show these roses from perspectives that people may not be often view roses.

1/50 sec / F20.0 at ISO 100 (227 mm)

1/50 sec / F20.0 at ISO 100 (227 mm)

1/10 sec / F45.0 at ISO 100 (227 mm)

Okay, so maybe the image above is a bit out of place. The shape of the walking path in the garden caught my eye and symbolizes a way in and a way out of this beautiful and tranquil haven.

Here are a few tips if you want to produce images with deep, vibrant colors and uncommon detail. Who knows, maybe you will be so pleased that you frame a few for that special spot at home.

A Few Tips to Consider

1. Always use a tripod
2. Pick a good time to shoot: either early in the morning or late evening. Otherwise, wait for an overcast day. Just avoid the middle of the day when there is plenty of direct sunlight
3. Use a flash (preferably with a diffuser)
4. Experiment with different heights and angles
5. Keep notes of what you did so you can repeat what works and avoid what doesn't

The Rodeo: Where Cowboys Ride For Points!

After my first trip to the Rodeo a few weeks ago, now I'm hooked!

I do have a new found respect for the skill and bravery of these cowboys. Not enough to make me change my position from behind the camera though!

Check out these images:

Here's an amazing dismount... he was thrown at least 10 feet in the air!

Wonder what's going through his mind right now?

Putting it all together on this ride!

Picking up what's left behind!

What a blast the Rodeo was. Hopefully, I'll be back there a few more times before the season's out.

Flowers Get Their Dew

Hoping to catch some fresh dew on flowers, I headed over to the Rose Garden to capture a some images. Here are a few of the ones I liked.

I switched my lens to manual focus and set it for macro mode. Using a monopod to anchor and steady the camera and I shot most of these at around 300mm / F 8.0.