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marcdewitt

The Ghosts of Rhyolite

After flying cross country and driving for a couple hours, we arrived just as the sun was going down. I had just enough time to set up and get this shot....
Read more

After flying cross country and driving for a couple hours, we arrived just as the sun was going down. I had just enough time to set up and get this shot.
Read less

Aperture 800/100 ISO 100 Shutter 1000/100 Focal Length 5000/100

upload_date

Aug, 2016

Views

641

Likes

+65

Awards

Fall Award 2020

Peer Award

Outstanding Creativity

Top Choice

Superb Composition

Absolute Masterpiece

Superior Skill

All Star

Magnificent Capture

Genius

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This is a beautiful shot!

PRO

Thank you!!

PRO

Thank you Suzanne. It turned out better than I thought it would.

PRO

Brilliant shot

PRO

Thank you so much. I really like scenes which are somewhat spooky.

Ultimate

Love this shot!

PRO

Thank you - it was fun.

Platinum

AWESOME!

PRO

Thank you so much.

Platinum

Amazing photo!

PRO

Thank you!!

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Same photographer See all Behind The Lens

Barn owls. They have such an understated description, that I expected them to be plain and boring. Until I saw one - wow!

Drove up to Portland during the winter from hell. Got up in the dark and went on location. It was freezing cold with a biting wind at sunrise.

Behind The Lens

Location

This was shot in the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada.

Time

After flying cross country and driving for a couple hours, we arrived just as the sun was going down. I had just enough time to set up and get this shot, taken at 7:20 p.m.

Lighting

I knew the orange sunset over the mountains would be a beautiful backdrop, but I needed some front lighting on the Ghosts to bring out detail. So I painted light across them with a flashlight during the long exposures.

Equipment

Canon EOS 30D, EF 24-105mm f/4L, a SLIK tripod, and a flashlight. Shot @ 50mm, f/8, ISO100. Three exposures at 8,10,15 sec.

Inspiration

I got the idea from a similar photo I saw on another photo-sharing website, but my post-processing gives quite a different look and feel. So it's not a totally original idea, but, we allow more than one interpretation of the Golden Gate Bridge, right? :-)

Editing

Yes, I merged the three frames in Photomatix Pro. Then played around with the settings until I found a look I liked.

In my camera bag

Canon 30D and 60D bodies, 24-105mm f/4L, 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L, 50mm f/1.8

Feedback

For a shot like this, lighting is key. Must be at dusk to set the backdrop. Then light painting on the front side to bring out features of the ghosts. Take a lot of shots in the little time that you have, varying exposure. Then later you can pick and choose which to merge in HDR. Spend a lot of time in post fiddling with the settings as a wide variety of looks are possible.

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marcdewitt

marcdewitt

The Ghosts of Rhyolite

After flying cross country and driving for a couple hours, we arrived just as the sun was going down. I had just enough time to set up and get this shot.... Read more

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow marcdewitt

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After flying cross country and driving for a couple hours, we arrived just as the sun was going down. I had just enough time to set up and get this shot....
Read more

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Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.