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May, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This is image captured at the main upper entrance to Yosemite National Park. There's a turn-out there that is usually packed with visitors to the park.Time
We were going to different locations in the park capturing images with a group of people. Later in the evening we figured you only live once, let's keep going. This is an iconic view of the park that is normally crowded but, at 2:30 AM, its not. I know the exposure makes it look very bright but its a 30 minute exposure at night.Lighting
This was a 30 minute exposure using the BULB setting, ISO 100, f8 on the camera. I only used available light for the image.Equipment
Camera: Canon 5D mk III Lens: Canon 16-24 Focal Length: 20 fstop: 2.8 Mefoto Carbon Fiber Travel Tripod Remote: Neewer NW-880Inspiration
I love Yosemite; its one of the most unique and beautiful places in the world. Capturing its beauty well isn't always easy to do. I liked this perspective because you can look in to the details of the photo and see locations; Vernal Falls and Half Dome in the distance. Capturing this beauty at night allows you to focus on your composition and the message you want to convey without all the crowds.Editing
I didn't do a lot of post-processing. I cropped it a bit and did some basic RAW processing. I was really happy with what came out of the camera. I de-tuned the foreground because it was distracting to the eye.In my camera bag
I've spent years fine tuning my bag-o-stuff. Obviously, I'm a Canon user and I carry a 5D mk III as my primary camera and a 70D as my back up. There's an EOS M2 with a lens adapter hidden in the corner of my bag. Its useful when you want to be less intimidating. A DSLR and lens looks like a lot when you're at a party or social gathering. I have four lens I always take with me; 16-24mm F2.8, 50mm f1.4, 24-70mm f4, 70-200mm f2.8. I have one optional lens when I need it; Tamron 150-600mm f5.6/6.3. Other paraphernalia includes Mefoto carbon tripod, Siriu hybrid monopod/tripod and various other trinkets depending on where, what, who etc.Feedback
Well, it should be dark... Not being too much of a wiseguy, the moon has a lot to do with the exposure and quality of the stars you'll see in the picture. A full moon will wash out the image, so either no moon to half moon for lighting. Seasonality also has a lot to do with this. Just like shooting with the sun at your back, the moon impacts the shadows etc. on a long exposure image. If I had do this over again, I would have captured three images and merged them. Not HDR but a shorter image would have made the stars crisper, two longer images to get different light values of the valley. I think this would have made a perfect image but I am still very happy with the result I got with one.
