RickHorowitz
FollowLiving in the Central San Joaquin Valley, I decided that I wanted to start applying "traditional" (whatever that might mean) landscape photography techniques to...
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Living in the Central San Joaquin Valley, I decided that I wanted to start applying "traditional" (whatever that might mean) landscape photography techniques to shooting agricultural scenes. In this image, I shot with a wide angle lens near sunset, at the edge of an onion field. Although I've lived in the area at least 30 years, I don't think I'd ever noticed an onion field in bloom before. I really liked the way the sun kissed the blooms.
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nandicmb
October 06, 2015
Congratulations on your Contest Finalist win in Agriculture Photo Contest!
RickHorowitz
June 15, 2016
Uh, thanks. Until just now, I don't think I even knew about this. I got an email a minute ago that said it was chosen for something, so I clicked the link. But I see you posted last year. Sorry I didn't say thank you then.
RickHorowitz
June 15, 2016
Uh, thanks. Until just now, I don't think I even knew about this. I got an email a minute ago that said it was chosen for something, so I clicked the link. But I see you posted last year. Sorry I didn't say thank you then.
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Behind The Lens
Location
I do not remember the exact location where I took this photo. I had been at the local photography shop talking with one of the employees, and told him that I was looking for "agricultural landscapes," which I called "agscapes." (I found out he was already calling them this, too!) He told me where to find this onion field a little south, and east, of Fresno, California. When I went out there that afternoon, I noticed that the sun would set on the opposite side of the field where I'd arrived. I waited. I'm glad I did, because a couple days later I decided to go back and shoot some more, but the plants were done; everything had started to die, and weeds, which had been small when I was there before, were already beginning to predominate the field.Time
I got there in the late afternoon, and stayed until just before the sun had completely gone down.Lighting
The lighting was perfect for what I wanted, in that it was backlighting the onion blooms. As the sun set, it began to go down near an old barn. As you can see this added some nice colors to the image.Equipment
I had not long before purchased a heavy-duty tripod. (In fact, I don't use it as often anymore, because it's so heavy. I ended up later on buying a Really Right Stuff tripod with Arca mount, and ball head, which has become my main tripod today.) My Canon 5D – I cannot remember if I still had my Mark II at that time, or if I shot with my Mark III – was controlled by iPad, via the CamRanger. This allowed me to get a better idea of how well the images were coming out.Inspiration
Living in Fresno, pretty much at the heart of the Central San Joaquin Valley, everything around here is farms. I decided that I wanted to shoot some "agscapes," and see if this would inspire the locals to help support my work. That has been somewhat successful, although it seems like it's mostly my vineyard shots that people gravitate towards. For myself, other than one particular vineyard shot, my favorite agscape images are the onions. Sadly, I haven't seen any this year.Editing
I typically do significant post-processing, including quite a bit of hand-work using the brush tool, masks, and adjustment layers. At the time this image was made in 2014, though, I had not yet begun to work my images up as much as I do today. Frankly, I would say I enjoy working with Photoshop and other digital tools at least as much, if not more, than photography.In my camera bag
I have a VERY full bag. If you can name a fast Canon L lens, I probably own it, including a 90mm tilt-shift lens. My favorite of the bunch is my 85mm f/1.2, and I use it for all kinds of shooting, including both portraits, and landscapes. I tend to like to experiment, so whenever something new comes along, I am tempted to buy it. In the last couple years, I've tried to tone it down, as I can never decide what to leave at home when I go out, and it's getting harder to carry it all at once!Feedback
Well, you know the drill: it's all about the light. Plus, in Fresno's summer months, being out in mid-day can become quite uncomfortable. Not being much of a morning person, I prefer to shoot as the sun is setting. However, I periodically try to push myself to get out when the sun is getting itself out of bed. Agricultural images look okay during the day, but when they get hit with a little low light, wow! Sitting at the edge of a field, waiting for just the right light, also is a very calming experience. You won't find too many people doing it, so you have lots of time to think about your composition. And crops are (usually) patient: they'll sit there as longer than you will, waiting for you to take the perfect shot!