jymhitchcock
FollowCame across this peaceful scene after a long day's hiking in Norway, perfect excuse to wear our my arms as well as my legs......
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Came across this peaceful scene after a long day's hiking in Norway, perfect excuse to wear our my arms as well as my legs...
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Action Award
Chatter Award
Zenith Award
Creative Winter Award
Curator's Selection
Legendary Award
Member Selection Award
Winner in Tranquility by the sea Photo Challenge
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Peer Award
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Magnificent Capture
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PeterTaylor-PHOTOGENIX
October 29, 2016
Congrats on winning my Competition Jimmy,
Love the shades and you have certainly grasped the theme... I can picture myself here and being totally in the zone.
Well done
Love the shades and you have certainly grasped the theme... I can picture myself here and being totally in the zone.
Well done
jymhitchcock
November 08, 2016
Thanks Peter, enjoyed the competition, there were some wonderful entries.
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on the shores of a Fjord in northern Norway, when two friends and I were hiking the Fjordruta from Tømmervåg to Vinjeøra. We stopped at a hikers cabin one evening and decided to take a row boat for a spin on the calm fjord waters.Time
It was late afternoon when we headed out onto the fjord. I had my camera slung over my back, with a zoom lens on for in case I saw anything back on shore from the middle of fjord and wanted to take a look. As as I went to boar the boat, I was presented with this landscape scene, and wasn't really prepared for it (hence the portrait angle, the only was to fit boat and sky into the shot)Lighting
It was an overcast day, with squally showers scattered about. One of these small storms was approaching from behind us, so that the scene was darkening. In hindsight I wish I had bracketed the image, to give me a better chance of getting the exposure right, but that's one of the joys of any hobby - learning form your mistakes and getting better!Equipment
I used a Nikon D5100, with a Nikon 18-200mm lens attached. The lens was at it's widest zoom (18mm) with the camera set to ISO 400, F10, 1/60. I also used a CPL to help remove much of the glare from the water's surface. The 1/60 was slower than I would normally use handheld, but the clouds overhead and the CPL filter meant anything faster was too dark. Truth be told, this was one of those occasions when I didn't really have time to take more than a couple of shots, because my companions were keen to get into the boat and not hang around while I messed about with F stops, ISO settings and a tripod, etc. I managed a couple of quick shots using settings I thought (hoped!) would work well enough before scrabbling into the boat. The image would no doubt have benefited from some more time taken, but thankfully the final result came out quite well.Inspiration
I take a lot of photos while I'm hiking and Norway was full of vistas to point my camera at, and the water's edge is always a place I look for inspiration as well. As I stepped into the water to board the row boat, I noticed the prow, together with the light reflections and the mountains in the distance all provided natural leading lines, and the soft yellows of the oars contrasted nicely with the dark hillsides and grey water and sky. The whole scene was so tranquil so I wanted to capture that feeling.Editing
I generally post process my landscapes, tweaking sharpness and levels to bring out the drama in the scene, although I try to avoid too much, to force me to use the camera to achieve the desired result, rather than software. In this instance I brightened the whole image slightly and lightened the shadows to help bring out the colours inside of the boat. I upped the contrast to enhance the differences between land, sky and sea and I also brightened the nameplate and anchoring rope to bring some interest to the foreground.In my camera bag
I normally carry a couple of lenses, my favourite being the Nikon AF-S DX 35mm prime. It's one of the cheapest I've bought, and yet probably the best - it's very fast (F1.8) and the sharpness is exceptional. Plus I like that using a prime lens forces you to move to achieve the composition you want, which is good practice. It's also very light and easy to carry, although the field of view means it is more suited to narrower shots, such as portraits, or still life photography. I would class it a must buy for Nikon owners. I also carry graduated ND & CPL filters with me. The former help to achieve a more even exposure of land and sky, reducing the need for post processing, and the CPL is great for cutting out reflected glare, and an absolute must when working with water or strong lighting. I often carry a zoom lens as well, depending on what type of photography I'm expecting to do, and although they can't match the optics quality of the prime lenses they are a very convenient alternative.Feedback
Practice with your settings, play around with ISO/aperture and shutter speed, so that you understand the way they interlink and are comfortable changing them quickly. The standard advice is that a tripod and remote trigger are good additions for landscape photography, together with bundles of patience. That's all very true, but I guess this image taught me to have my camera handy and to be on the lookout for things like leading lines whenever you're out and about. You might not have time to get all your settings quite perfect, but if you have a good sense of which settings might work you give yourself a chance at capturing the shot, even if you're hurried. Some of my favourite images have been caught on the hop, and I'm more pleased when I capture an image in this way than when I have hours to play around and try again and again to get it perfect. Sometime you just gotta go with the flow...