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Canoe on Shore
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Canoe on Shore



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Canoe on the shore of Spar Lake, Montana.

Canoe on the shore of Spar Lake, Montana.
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cameraCanon EOS 7D

settings Aperture f/7.1 ISO 400 Shutter 1/30 Focal Length 10/1 

upload_dateAug, 2015

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2 Comments |
darrellgillenwater Ultimate
 
darrellgillenwater December 31, 2015
Beautiful shot
craftworker PRO+
 
craftworker September 15, 2023
Awesome shot

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#canoe #shore #lake #beach #overcast #forest #montana
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Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken at Spar Lake in Northwest Montana. The lake is one of the deepest in the Kootenai National Forest, averaging over 100 feet in depth and exceeding 200 feet in places.

Time

This shot was taken late in the evening during the summer, just as magic hour set in.

Lighting

The lighting at the lake was not at all what I was hoping for before arriving there. The subtle streak of red across one of the clouds hints at the gorgeous sunset that was occurring... On the other side of the mountain. Since getting a vibrant sunset on the lake was out of the question, I shifted my attention to the way the overcast sky's reflection in the water created an additional set of lines for visual depth, pulling the eye from the subject (the canoe) all the way down the lake to the mountains in the distance.

Equipment

This was shot on a Canon 7D, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 lens, and a generic tripod.

Inspiration

I had actually been shooting all day in two other locations that were about twenty miles away from here, and I planned to grab a shot of Spar Lake on my way home just as the sun set. It had been quite a while since I had been there though, and it's a fairly remote spot at the end of a long, winding and mostly dirt road through the mountains. I forgot how long it can take to travel there and, suddenly realizing I was going to be pushing it for time, I hastily left the location I was at and sped down the road faster than was probably reasonable. Sadly, I still arrived at the lake later than I hoped. The light wasn't what I wanted, the clouds had shifted and killed most of the golden light from that angle, and on top of everything the water level was lower than I expected (thanks to an unusually dry summer), leaving an exposed and unappealing beach. As I stood on the shore cursing myself for poor planning and trying to decide if there was anything I could still shoot to salvage the trip, a father and his two children pulled into shore on a canoe. The father saw me and came over to say hello; as it turns out, he was a professional photographer in a nearby town, and was very sympathetic to my plight. We chatted for a moment but eventually he rounded up his kids, said goodbye, and headed back to their camp for the evening, leaving the canoe unattended on the shore. Suddenly, I had a shot I never anticipated. I didn't even need to move the canoe, it was already a picturesque scene. For me, this shot of a lone canoe on the edge of a still lake that extends off to infinity between the mountains perfectly encapsulates a summer evening in Montana, where people quietly harmonize with the world around them.

Editing

While I was very happy with the framing of this shot, I wasn't at all thrilled with the lighting. In fact, since I had shot two other locations this day with great results, I ended up ignoring this photo for over a year until I stumbled upon it again while sorting through some things in Lightroom, and I decided to mess around with it for a bit. The canoe was an extremely vibrant red that overpowered everything else in the frame, so I brought its saturation down until it was at an even level with the rest of the shot, and then brought the rest of the colors down for a muted, slightly-aged feel. Suddenly things clicked, I felt like the image had some life in it and, even though I know I could have done better, the final result has a unique feel that I enjoy.

In my camera bag

I do a lot of shooting with the expectation of hiking, so typically little more than a camera body, two lenses, remote trigger, cleaning accessories, and a mid-sized tripod over my shoulder.

Feedback

Don't give up on a location just because it doesn't meet your expectations. For this shot, I expected a sunset on a lake and instead got overcast skies with just a sliver of red in a single cloud. I got a little lucky with the canoe showing up, but had I not taken a moment to adjust my shooting goals, I would've wound up with nothing worthwhile at all. Plan ahead, but be reactive to your environment.

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