Matt_Nash-Arnold
FollowThe photograph was captured near Chateau de Chillon on Lake Geneva in Switzerland. If you're ever lucky enough to visit Switzerland and the shores of Lake ...
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The photograph was captured near Chateau de Chillon on Lake Geneva in Switzerland. If you're ever lucky enough to visit Switzerland and the shores of Lake Geneva, you could almost miss this little wooden pier to the south of the Chateau. Coordinates of the pier are (46°24'49.7"N 6°55'41.2"E) for those who might like to visit the location.
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Behind The Lens
Location
The photograph was captured near Chateau de Chillon on Lake Geneva in Switzerland. If you're ever lucky enough to visit Switzerland and the shores of Lake Geneva, you could almost miss this little wooden pier to the south of the Chateau. Coordinates of the pier are (46°24'49.7"N 6°55'41.2"E) for those who might like to visit the location.Time
We were based in Visp for the holiday and time of day was dictated by Swiss public transport and my two small children. Short answer is that it was midday.Lighting
Like so much travel photography, I had very little control on the time of day I would be visiting the site. Fortunately nature was kind to me and it was a stunningly overcast day with forgiving lighting conditions. I always under expose my captures when travelling by several stops to increase my chances of capturing the perfect lighting.Equipment
Camera was an faithful Canon 40D, probably sounds like a nightmare to contemporary photographers but in its day the 40D was a great platform for travel photography as it was light and not too bulky, I had two. Lens was one of my all time favourite non-Canon lens; the Sigma 10-20mm f3.5 DC HSM. Photo is hand-held on a knee, no tripod, no filter and no flash.Inspiration
I always find myself responsible for holding up the entire family while I look for the photo 'less' taken. Ironically we had spent several hours exploring the Chateau and had 5 minutes to kill waiting for our return train to Visp. I spent the time walking around outside the grounds and found this small pier. Sometimes you just instantly know the you're in the right place at the right time, an photo perspective and composition made for photography.Editing
The photo didn't have enough dynamic range and impact in colour, the choice to convert to B&W was a no-brainer. Probably a slight horizon correction, conversion to B&W (adjust colours for drama), some dodging and burning, (as Ansel so brilliantly stated, to take care of the mistakes God made in establishing tonal relationships) and finally a minor vignette to enhance the drama of the photo.In my camera bag
While traveling; good backpack, single dSLR, travel tripod, 2 lens (wide-angle + versatile ranged telephoto), ND filter, spare batteries, CF cards, water bottle and heaps of exciting shacks. :)Feedback
Well to be honest, it's not so much a good photo but rather an amazing location. Switzerland is epic on a bad day but this pier created the perfect leading line for the viewer to appreciate the unfolding layers of Lake Geneva. Taking a knee lowered the camera to align the end of the pier perfectly with the horizon. As I get older, I find that it's on the days I wake up feeling disappointed that the weather conditions are horrible, that I take the most emotional photography.