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| photographing the icons can be tricky. Half Dome at mid day gets help from dramatic clouds and "post card" framing. |
the intimate landscape
Yosemite Valley in winter is a treat for the senses and a fiesta of photo opportunities. I see it as a celebration and a reward. I have been fortunate to share this magnificent location with a workshop annually for many years and the reward is always meeting new people and making new images. Photographically Yosemite is a chance to celebrate the vast vista in addition to its small intimate landscape.
Being overwhelmed by the grand landscape is a common problem. When "seeing big" most of us want to convey this feeling and are often outsmarted in the process. I'm always reminded of a photographer presenting his work with an introduction stating his early work in no longer shown because it was "too big!"
I've always thought this type of description was perfect in many ways to represent this problem. Showing great vistas or landmarks that are familiar is tricky. Including too much diminishes the focal point of a photograph. Excluding too much can make the image seem detached and lifeless. Concentrating on great light can result in missing the right composition and shooting a well known icon without that light can be pointless!
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| saturated color helps to tell the story of the Yosemite forest |
Seeing small in a big place can be difficult at times. I like to concentrate on the elements within the big picture and show small slices of those elements. It's also a game of taking what is given and making those features dominant to show the scale and size without diminishing the impact. No small task here!
Landscape of course is shape, form, texture and light.
The light we have, or or don't have, dictates the composition in most cases for me. Great side light with intensity will allow me to hide elements while exaggerating others. Soft light or dim light will enable me to show color and saturation as I concentrate on the intimate detail of nature that I find so alluring.
Light is what we photograph and weather determines that light. Finding a photographic balance in all weather conditions makes one versatile as a photographer and finding a balance in nature is what my quest for images is all about. If I give up because I don't think the climate is to my advantage, I would then only have part of the story. The story is in the light, and in that light is MY story. Or so I hope!
Yes, of course I have to work more carefully when great light is not available to help me. The compositions have to get stronger and the search longer and more dedicated. Seldom do the frames come as easy in soft or subdued light. Walking slower and thinking about the subject more deeply are all two strategies that I use. Slowing down is key for me and one of the great advantages of our Yosemite Winter workshop allows me to just that.
One never knows exactly what might be found in in the way of photographic opportunities this time of year in the valley. At approximately 4000 feet in the Sierra anything is possible. This year we saw drizzle, rain, snow and some clearing. In other words, we had it all!
With this varieties of weather conditions came the chance to photograph it all but it wasn't easy at times. What was easy was seeing small. The wet and subdued light was, in most cases, what I like to call "natures soft box". That is soft evenly reflected light that eliminates shadows while saturating color. While we walked and explored the valley floor, these conditions set up the perfect situation for highlighting detail and texture!
I would never dream of overlooking the icons of The Yosemite, and when weather permitted a glimpse we certainly photographed them. The image at the top of this article is Half Dome from Stoneman Meadow. With the clearing storm lifting out of the valley, a perfect "post card" jumped into view. Most see the valley in clear weather, without shadow, at mid day and from a distance. This familiarity is the basis of a post card and I see no problem in doing one, as long as it is a good one! The framing of the trees brings comfort and eliminates most of the dormant foreground but does show the time of year.
With the overcast light, the forest became dark and more mysterious. In the image pictured above I wanted to tell the story of the huge rock slides that are always "moments away" in the valley. The light at "the end of the tunnel" was included even though I did not want the eye to stay there long, but instead to give the sense of a place to go. I felt, if I did not include this, I could not place the actual rock slide in the image. The foreground shows the result of the slide and the debris on the ground gives a path both in, and out, of the composition. The use of a tilt/shift lens keeps the lines parallel while allowing a field of view with the foreground dominate.
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| wet fallen leaves are highlighted by a bed of moss |
the vast granite wall is reflected in the calm Merced River at mid day |
These two compositions show two different approaches to seeing small. On the right the granite wall dominates the reflection but is reduced to a minor role with the placement of the trees. Sorting out the chaos that is nature is often a daunting task and by moving up and down the river bank I was able to come to a place where these patterns became appealing. Trying to discern the details of the composition gives it "life" and holds interest. Had the river bank been covered in snow this would have been an entirely different composition, however showing just a fragment of the detail of the bank added much needed texture.
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| the seasons of Yosemite Valley are on display in the meadows |
Pre-dawn light is a favorite time of mine. The contrast is minimal and mass amounts of space can be captured easily. The scene above would become impossible to show after direct light and by "reversing" the composition I was able to show both granite wall with frozen grasses and saturated color. The wall in the background has the detail and texture that I was seeking. With the green belt to separate it from the frozen grass the composition took shape. What I wanted next was a different foreground element that would show shape and form without overpowering the background. What I got in the bargain here was also great complementary color! The use of a slight blur technique in post-processing helped assure that the foreground would not overpower. I built this composition in reverse.
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| the excitement of a moving storm in the valley | Yosemite Fall and Merced River at sunrise |
The tree in the meadow above is divine when snow covered and majestic when not. Having all but given up for the day, a steady then hard rain subsided as quick as it had appeared. Spirits lifted with the storm and once again the thrill of the hunt began anew. As sunset was approaching just a hint of reflected light made the grasses of the foreground darken in shadow and the sky lighten. The use of a Singh-Ray Color Combo filter both cut the glare and added just a hint of color. This huge oak seems small in a valley so narrow and deep.
During one of the two clear- sky sunrises we witnessed on this trip we found this view of Yosemite Fall with its reflection in the Merced River was a natural. Helped once again by a Singh-Ray ColorCombo, which has a polarizer as part of its combination, and with attention to its polarizing orientation we captured both the reflection and view of the river bottom. The exposure was helped considerably by using my hand held 3 stop graduated neutral density filter with my own technique of "dodging and burning" that controlled the direct light while not turning the tops of the trees on the left dark.
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| el capitain is dwarfed by a burst of light in a lifting storm |
While gaining elevation on the trail, the light drizzle began to lift and a momentarily clearing sky gave us a view of El Capitian, the 3000 foot monolith that climbers the world over come test their skill on. Trying for a different perspective of this well known photographic icon, the tilt/shift lens again provided a perspective with straight angles and enabled me to make the sky the dominate feature. An exposure for the trees, less one stop, held great mid tone detail. This entire scene disappeared before the equipment could be put back in the backpacks!
Yosemite Valley at any time of year is to be enjoyed and experienced with or without a camera! Having the luxury of a "walk in the park" as we did for this workshop made for lasting thoughts, reflections and images. We'll do in again next year. Come be a part of the excitement of the intimate landscape.
See you there!
See images from past Yosemite workshops in the Gallery under Yosemite Winter
See the current available workshops
Your comments are always welcome