MyPhotoAdventure

Bronze

A shot from a summer trip that passed through Yellowstone. This is from the Grand Prismatic Spring area. As the water runs off the spring, some very interesting...
Read more

A shot from a summer trip that passed through Yellowstone. This is from the Grand Prismatic Spring area. As the water runs off the spring, some very interesting patterns are made in the surrounding soil. I used this photo in a recent photography scavenger hunt for the word "Bronze".
Read less

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

settings

Aperture f/10 ISO 100 Shutter 1/500 Focal Length 16/1

upload_date

Sep, 2017

Views

544

Likes

+34

Awards

People's Choice in crazy and beautifull nature Photo Challenge

Peer Award

Absolute Masterpiece

Outstanding Creativity

Magnificent Capture

Superb Composition

All Star

Top Choice

Top Ranks

Top 30 rank

Top 20 rank week 2

Top 30 rank

Top 20 rank week 2

Top 20 rank week 1

Top 20 rank

Top 20 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

This was taken in Yellowstone National Park, at Grand Prismatic Spring. The spring is a truly amazing thing to see, but I became almost hypnotized by the surrounding ground. These lines are from the water runoff of the spring, cutting through the mineral crust around the spring.

Time

It was a mid afternoon shot, with the sun overhead. Not usually the best of conditions. Being my first time in Yellowstone, it was more about exploring and seeing things than trying to get the best photo conditions.

Lighting

Being an afternoon shot, the bright sunlight was a major consideration. There were shadows from people walking by, and if I moved wrong, my own shadow was in the shot. The other issue from the sun was reflections off the thin layer of water. Finding the right look for the lines while avoiding shadows and stray reflections took some time.

Equipment

This was a hand held shot. The boardwalk path going around the spring can be fairly crowded making a tripod anywhere from challenging to unreasonable. For this, I also needed to lean over the side of the boardwalk a little to not get the boardwalk in the shot. The bright sunlight negated the need for a tripod. I had my Canon 7D MkII and Tamron 16-300mm lens with me. It was shot at 16mm at f/10 to get the widest look possible, while trying to keep it in focus edge to edge. With the height of the boardwalk and leaning over, the camera was about five feet from the waters surface.

Inspiration

Simply the look of the lines caught my eye on this. The spring is truly beautiful, but it seemed so many people were not taking in the full surroundings. I think photographers are more open to seeing different aspects of a scene.

Editing

This has very little post processing. The biggest thing done was to invert the image so it looked somewhat like trees. That was simply a creative choice in experimenting with image before getting too far in post. As much as I enjoyed the image, I actually picked it for the color tones and interesting patterns. At the time of shooting this, I was in the Chrysta Rae Scavenger Hunt and needed a word for 'Bronze'. The color tones were naturally pretty close to bronze, so it seemed it would work. I did a very minor crop to remove some distracting patterns from the sides. From there, I enhanced the structure and sharpening to bring out the details. The color has been adjusted a little to enhance the 'Bronze' look. After that, I worked with the amount of clarity to get the look and feel I wanted. The initial edit was a little harsh with the details, so I softened it a bit.

In my camera bag

My bag is pretty consistent. My Canon Canon 1D MkIII is always in it, along with a Canon 7D MkII. These two bodies give me a huge amount of flexibility, and ability to really look at the shooting conditions. Sometimes I may want the 7D's 10fps to capture the right instant of an egret taking flight, or for it's video capability. Other times I may want the color depth and added details the 1Ds provides. I have three primary lenses. My "walking around" lens for the 7D is a Tamron f3.5-6.3 16-300 VC. The range it offers, combined with the image quality, is simply amazing. As a general shooting lens, it has never failed me. My "wildlife" lens is my Canon EF 100-400 f4.5-5.6 L IS. I can't say enough about how great it is for wildlife, and works equally well on both the 7D and 1Ds. I also keep a Canon 1.4x III Extender handy for use with this lens. For the 1Ds, my walking around lens is a Canon 28-135 f/3.5-5.6 IS USM , which is great for many types of shots. Past that, spare batteries for both bodies, polarizer for each lens, 1-8 ND filter for the Canon 28-135mm and Tamron, a remote trigger for most tripod shots, and spare 64GB cards just in case. Although not "in my bag", I have a ProMaster XC525 tripod, and a Really Right Stuff MC-34 monopod with the MH-02LR head, which are always ready to go.

Feedback

The best advice I can give for something like this is to simply keep your eyes open and try to take in your entire surroundings. Just because the majority of people are looking at the primary attraction, doesn't mean there is nothing else interesting to photograph. Be willing to do what it takes to get the shot you want, and not worry about what anyone around you is thinking. I got some odd looks leaning over the boardwalk and pointing down rather than at the springs, but I got the shot I wanted. More often than not, when one person starts taking different shots, you will see others suddenly exploring with their cameras also. Be the trend setter! The capture and post processing for this shot were very simple. The only challenges with the capture were being aware of shadows and reflections. Post processing was very basic, with just a few creative liberties taken. It doesn't always take a lot of setup and post processing to get an interesting image that you really enjoy.

See more amazing photos, follow MyPhotoAdventure

MyPhotoAdventure

MyPhotoAdventure

Bronze

A shot from a summer trip that passed through Yellowstone. This is from the Grand Prismatic Spring area. As the water runs off the spring, some very interesting... Read more

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow MyPhotoAdventure

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes. Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.

A shot from a summer trip that passed through Yellowstone. This is from the Grand Prismatic Spring area. As the water runs off the spring, some very interesting...
Read more

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes.
Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.