Gates of the Valley, Yosemite
Gates of the Valley, Yosemite
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on one of my bucket list destinations in the heart of glacier cut granite walls that some of the best rock climbers in the world challenge their skills to free climb. "Yosemite National Park".Time
During the early morning hours just after sunrise on the second day of my trip to Yosemite I ventured back into the park with a destination in mind to find the area known as "Gates of The Valley". The sun had been up for almost 30 minutes with clouds rolling in when I positioned myself to see this stunning view of El Capitan on the left, Triple peaks to the right and a lazy river of rocks and fallen fall leaves leading into the fall colors of oranges, yellows and greens on an absolutely perfect morning to get landscape images.Lighting
I wanted this image to draw my viewers into the entire scene as it did me when I looked through the lens. The lighting was all natural. It was one of those mornings when you stop on the trail to see a perfect light from the morning sky and the early morning sun trying to break through the clouds with glimmers of light reflecting in the water. The wet river rocks, green and yellow grasses casting a shine as the light bounced off the entire area through this valley of fall colors and massive granite walls.Equipment
This image was taken with a Canon 5D Mark III, 16-35mm wide angle F4.7 lens @ f22, shutter speed 1/5, ISO 100 and a Hoya Circular Polarize filter. The camera was mounted on a lightweight OBEN Tripod.Inspiration
I believe the inspiration for this image is just the sheer rugged beauty of this landscape. I wanted to capture all of this river valley to share a story of adventures to come as it leads the eye from the foreground river and rocks, through the landscape of bright fall colors and into the massive granite cliffs that is Yosemite.Editing
This image was taken in 2 shots. One on the under exposed side by a half stop and the other slightly over exposed with my camera on a raw setting. I merged the two images together in Lightroom and processed to my liking.In my camera bag
My camera bag always carries the same equipment no matter where I go to shoot landscapes as well as city shots and night images. My Canon 5D Mark III, my lens package consists of a 16-35mm F2.8, a 24-105mm F4.7 and a 100-400mm F4.5-5.6. I also carry a circular polarize filter, a 3-stop and 6-stop neautral density filters, a remote shutter release, extra batteries and camera lens cleaning kit.Feedback
My best advise for a landscape photographer is patience. Taking the shot at the proper moment when the light is in your favor. Usually this is early mornings of dawn and blue hours of sunset when the light is at its best for shooting landscape. I always check weather reports when traveling from home to plan for good days in the field and also suggest to know the area. I check google earth on my laptop to investigate and become familiar with the landscape if my photo shoot requires a hike. I recommend you know and learn your equipment, know where the sweet spot is of your lens and most of all, have fun exploring the area, be patient and take lots of shots.