Sebastian Inlet
Mar, 2017Views
3421
Likes
Awards
Contest Finalist in Monochrome Marvels Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Black And White Landscapes Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Long Exposure Experiments Photo Contest
Canon 5D MK III
Contest Finalist in All Things Black And White Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
Genius
All Star
Emotions
Impressed
Happy
Top Ranks
Top 30 rank
Top 20 rankTop 20 rank week 1
Top 30 rank
Top 30 rank
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the Sebastian Inlet State Park in Melbourne Florida, about one hour south from where I live.Time
The Inlet points east which is perfect for a sunrise shot but that was not what I wanted to capture so I got there in the afternoon, around two o'clock, when the sun was high enough not to be in the exposure and giving me the light I needed for the shot. Also, that time of the day winds can be very strong and this time was not the exception. Winds were blasting from east, right against my equipment and I use big filters for my work so I had a large surface area blocking the winds. I was expecting some blur and even water drops on the exposure but it came out just right.Lighting
I like contrast on my photos, more specifically I look for contrast on my exposures, contrary to traditional landscape photography where soft light from morning and evening is preferred. You can almost get a 3D effect with time exposure when the sun shines right onto your subject making it standing out from the rest of the composition with two contrasts, light and motion.Equipment
For this exposure I used a canon 5D MK III with a ts-e 17mm and a 1.4x extender, combined with a set of formatt hitech firecrest 165x165 10+6 stops ND filters on a simple and heavy Manfrotto 190x with an Arca-Swiss Monoball P0 head.Inspiration
Living in the area, I see a lot of photos and paintings of this place in restaurants and art shows, so much that one day I made some research and found out that the next door State Park has quit interesting history so I decided to give it a shot. I very rarely use the square format, it is simply not my favorite but the composition and lighting could not fit in another format, I could not fight against the obvious.Editing
Post-processing is a big part of my work and fortunately I love it. Once done with camera corrections on lightroom, I opened it on PS and using Nik Silver Effect Pro I converted it into B&W focusing on the sky and water and made a second conversion focusing on the rocks and structure. I then selectively merged both conversions to get to a single good starting point. I created the overall drama working on contrast with luminosity masks and dodging and burning and finished by adding a film grain because without grain, a B&W photo feels bland to me.In my camera bag
I've been using the same equipment for quite a while now, that makes me more efficient; a canon 5D mk III converted into infrared, a 5D mk IV, my favorite ts-e 17mm f4L, ts-e 24mm f3.5L, the 16-35mm f2.8L III, the 24-70mm f4L, a 1.4x and a 2.0x extenders and a set of formatt hitech firecrest 165x165 filters (10, 6, 3, 3grad ND) with the adapters I need for each lens.Feedback
Most people say that this kind of photo can be made anytime of the day since the lighting can be modified in post, it is mostly true when shooting architecture where lines are well defined facilitating selections but even so, after shooting exclusively time exposure for two years now I found out that when you get it right from the beginning your final product can only be outstanding. Shoot when the light is just right for your vision, time exposure is about creating from the moment you press the trigger till you release it, the post-process is about refining and polishing and honestly, good cameras are quite expensive, more so are good lenses and filters, so I expect them to give me uniqueness and quality, something that post-process can only imitate.
