misty morning
The Famous Maple in the Portland Japanese Garden on a foggy, early spring morning. This was the featured February photo in their calendar a couple of years ago,...
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The Famous Maple in the Portland Japanese Garden on a foggy, early spring morning. This was the featured February photo in their calendar a couple of years ago, and is also for sale as a post card in their gift shop.
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May, 2014Views
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Awards
Contest Finalist in Dear Trees Photo Contest
People's Choice in Tree Vibes Photo Contest
People's Choice in Its a Foggy Day Photo Challenge
Contest Finalist in Foggy Times Photo Contest
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Peer Award
Top Choice
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Magnificent Capture
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Superior Skill
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Virtuoso
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Impressed
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Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Top 10 rank
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jackhall_9918
October 21, 2017
Wow! This really shows that timing and lighting really make the photo. With different lighting or at a different time of day or in a different season, I have an idea that the photo would not be nearly as good. As it is, it is simply breathtaking
stewartmac
February 12, 2018
Just love the madness of the branches, here, there and everywhere brilliant
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espartanodeplasencia
May 16, 2022
Congratulations on the award being the people's choice is a great recognition.
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
The Japanese Garden, in Washington Park, Portland, Oregon.Time
This was early; I used to keep a photo membership to the garden, and it allowed me to get in before opening, and stay later than closing, and allowed me to bring my tripod. This was around 8am, just after the photographer membership opening, on the perfect foggy winter morning. Our winters in Oregon aren't as snowy as some other areas...Lighting
Fog can be tricky to shoot in, as it both diffuses light and amplifies it. It's a blessing and a curse, and it throws off white balance and exposure readings - so you have to shoot manually and work smarter than your camera.Equipment
This was shot January 30, 2009 - on my old Pentax K20D. It was a fabulous landscape camera - very realistic colors out of it. This would have been with my old Pentax 16-50mm lens I used for landscapes, and was on a tripod with a 1/8 exposure, f/5.6, ISO 100.Inspiration
This tree is famous - I cannot stress that enough. It was one of the first places in Portland where I fell in love with the city, and I have this tree tattooed on my arm. Capturing it during the fall is the predictable image - I loved trying to find it in a different light. Snow, fog, rain, whatever. Winter it's particularly skeletal, and the fog that morning was so thick in the hills I knew I had to run up there and hope for the best. This photo wound up being the February, 2010 Japanese Garden calendar photo - and they sell it as a postcard at their gift shop. I love love love seeing my name on something they sell, I can't lie - it's pretty awesome.Editing
Minor curves - just bring up the dark areas a hair. I had to shoot in such a way that I didn't blow out the foggy areas.In my camera bag
Then, it was all landscape all the time. Today, 9+ years later, I'm #teamNikon because I find their menus more intuitive and their flash system easier to control for wedding work. In my bag right now is my Nikon D850, a backup D800, some Sigma ART lenses (24mm 1.4; 50mm 1.4; 135mm 1.8), and a Nikon 80-400 which is slower than I'd like, but the compression is beautiful; I only use it in full sunlight. *sad trombone* I have Nikon speedlights, spare batteries, CPL and 6 stop ND filter, and if I'm traveling I have a CMT underwater housing and silicon gel to seal it up.Feedback
Be prepared! This is a location I know and love well, and I knew we'd be likely to have some fog in the winter, so I just kept waiting for a foggy morning. When I woke up to that soft light I was ready to go, in my car, and waiting at the gates as soon as I could get in. If I didn't know the area I may have wasted time wandering around - but I knew I wanted this tree, without leaves, in the fog - so I was ready to go as soon as the situation presented itself. I am all for spontaneity - but this was almost predictable, so I was prepared to be there when the conditions were right.
