Jw27

Morning Reflection

Two Medicine Lake, Glacier National Park, Montana

Two Medicine Lake, Glacier National Park, Montana
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Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XSi

settings

Aperture f/8 ISO 200 Shutter 1/60 Focal Length 24/1

upload_date

Aug, 2015

Views

422

Likes

+23

Awards

Zenith Award

Creative Winter Award

Top Shot Award 21

2020 Choice Award

Superb Composition

+18

Absolute Masterpiece

+18

Outstanding Creativity

Top Choice

Peer Award

Magnificent Capture

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 20 rank

Top 20 rank week 1

Top 30 rank

Top 20 rank

Top 20 rank week 1

Top 30 rank week 2

Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken in Glacier National Park in northern Montana. This view can be seen at the Two Medicine Campground on the east side of the park.

Time

My wife, two daughters and I were camping in the Two Medicine Campground inside of Glacier. We had woken up about 7am to get ready to go on a hike in another section of the park. We finished eating breakfast and getting our packs ready, and we were going to stop at the camp store on our way out to pick up a few things. As the store was right beside the lake, I grabbed my camera and headed through a few trees down to the lake shore. Mt. Sinopah towers 3000 ft (1000 m) over the lake and creates an opportunity for a great picture. After I emerged through the trees, I was amazed at the sight before me. There was absolutely no wind and the entire mountain was reflected in the lake.

Lighting

In July at Glacier, the sun rises before 6am so I had missed the golden hour for this shot. However, during the golden hour the sun is still mainly trying to get above surrounding peaks at this location so there are generally shadows on the lake and/or mountain at this time. I took this picture at around 8am and the sun was high enough that it cleared the surrounding mountains and perfectly lit up Mt. Sinopah for this picture. There was a forest fire further north in Canada, and there was a very slight haze in the air due to the smoke which further helped to diffuse the natural light.

Equipment

My camera at the time of this photo was a Canon Rebel XSi (450D) with 12.2mp. It is an older DSLR and it doesn't have a lot of bells and whistles, but it was a great camera to learn how to use a SLR. It is also very light for an SLR and is great to use for a hiking trip where you want to save a few ounces in weight. My main lens had accidentally been dropped the day before (on a different hike) and the autofocus was no longer working. So for this picture I was using my backup lens, a Canon 24mm, f/2.8 pancake lens that also had a polarizing filter. I was only expecting to take a few snapshots so I had not brought a tripod with me or any other equipment. I did end up sitting on the ground and locking my elbows into my knees to try to give my camera a 'human tripod' and the most steady shot possible.

Inspiration

I initially only wanted to get a few quick pictures of the lake and mountain. But with the full reflection in the lake, I knew that I had an opportunity that could be erased by the next breeze. I tried to work deliberately, but quick enough to get a few different shots. Instead of just focusing on the mountain, I began to look for foreground elements, rocks in the water, ripples from a jumping fish, etc. I tried both landscape and portrait photo orientations to see what would end up working best. I both stood as well as sat on the ground to change the point of view. I changed my aperture and focus points to try and get a photo that would be in focus all the way through the photo.

Editing

Yes, I did do some post processing in Lightroom for this photo. White balance was slightly adjusted as well as some processing to make the sky more blue (as it had been hazy from the forest fire in Canada). There were also many bugs near the lake shore that detracted from the photo, so a spot removal tool was used to remove them.

In my camera bag

My bag has evolved over time and it usually varies depending if I have my car handy, or I'm out on a trail. I generally have my camera and main lens (now a Canon 17-85mm f/4-5.6) and the small 24mm f/2.8 lens as a backup. A polarizing filter is a must for landscape shots, and I generally have a few other ND filters and a graduated filter on hand as well if I need to slow down camera speeds for a waterfall (ND filters) or to help darken a bright sky (graduated filter). I now almost always have a packable tripod as well to help steady the shot as well as a remote shutter release to further eliminate camera shake.

Feedback

My first piece of advice is to get outside in the first place. It doesn't matter if it is dark, cold, hot, wet, or snowy as all of these conditions can help make an everyday photo uniquely yours. Next do a little research before heading out. Before getting to a location, search online for photos of the same location so you can get an idea of what can be seen there. Search Viewbug or other photo sharing sites to see what kind of photos you like and think about how you can apply the same techniques (shutter speed, depth of field, etc). Think ahead about golden hour times, sun location, etc and use an online tool or app to help with these decisions (such as the Photographers Ephemeris). As your ideas form as to what you want to take photos of, write or type notes on a small piece of paper so that you can remember to check your camera settings, equipment needed, etc. And lastly, remember to enjoy the moment once you are in the field. You can easily get lost at trying to remember details, picture settings, and looking from the viewfinder. Take the time to soak in the moment with your own eyes while you are there! I absolutely love this photo from Glacier National Park, but the picture still doesn't capture the immense scale of seeing the real thing.

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Jw27

Jw27

Morning Reflection

Two Medicine Lake, Glacier National Park, Montana

Behind The Lens

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