Desert Star
Green River Overlook - For a very brief time, the sun poked through the clouds providing this lovely light bouncing off the rocks. Although a bit chilly, shooti...
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Green River Overlook - For a very brief time, the sun poked through the clouds providing this lovely light bouncing off the rocks. Although a bit chilly, shooting in Canyonlands Nat'l Park in November is a real treat; less tourists and less particulates in the air creating this wonderful clarity. I was quite fortunate on this particular trip to the desert as the clouds really didn't want to cooperate.
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Jul, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
The image was taken at the Green River Overlook in Canyonlands National Park, Utah. There is the "popular" overlook location that most tourists shoot from. However, if one walks a bit from the crowd, other foreground opportunities exist.Time
On a rather cool winter late afternoon about 5 minutes from sunset.Lighting
The lighting really didn't appear until the sun was able to peak through some rather thick clouds. Until that time it appeared good light was not going to materialize this particular evening. I was so disappointed initially, but have learned to be patient and wait it until there is absolutely not hope of good light. Fortunately, for just a few minutes, the clouds parted and the sun appeared providing not only the sunstar, but some nice glow off the rocksEquipment
To capture this image I used a Nikon D-810, Nikon 20mm lens, and Manfrotto tripod.Inspiration
I had been to this vista many times before and could visualize the potential for great light if the conditions were prime. Not only was I interested in great light and a sunstar, I was interested in clear air. What does that mean? Well, it is not unusual in Utah to have heavy particulates in the air from fires or wind blowing dirt. Knowing that fact, I was hoping for clear air during the late fall/winter months. Hence, this image was taken in late November when the air is quite pristine.Editing
Yes, being a RAW image, that only provided the basic exposure to "develop." Think of a RAW file as sheet music. To really make the music come alive, a talented artist must interpret the music and put their soul into it. That is what post processing means to me; creating the vision as I interpreted it at the moment the image was taken. On the technical side, this is a four image composite. One for the sun; one for the landscape at infinity, one for the foreground, and one on the general landscape with my finger over the sun. Why a finger over the sun? Shooting into the sun inevitably leads to sun flares which I find distracting. With a finger blocking the sun, I can use that image to mask out sun flares. One composited I use a variety of processing techniques in Photoshop, with different levels adjustments being use the most. However, I rarely used levels adjustments globally, but rather through luminosity masks so I can target the tones I want to enhance.In my camera bag
I always carry the same equipment no matter what or where the shoot will be. That would include the Nikon D-810, 14mm, 20mm lens, 35mm lens, 50mm lens, 90mm lens, and a 70-200mm lens. I really enjoy the sharpness and quality of my prime lens. They can be difficult to use at certain locations since one can only move around so much, but overall, they are worth it. I only shoot off a very high quality tripod with a ball head.Feedback
To shoot a image similar to this one, it is best to wait until late in the afternoon when the light in low in the sky. During the day, the light tends to be too harsh for landscape photography. Of course the exception is when clouds and present.
