¶Baker Lake
The family took a trip out to Baker Lake today. Andrea and I both took photos — she hasn’t developed her photos yet, but I wanted to put up a couple of mine. My favorite was this unusual expression on my son’s face:
I let him pick out his own shirt, but the color match with the forest across the lake is wonderful.
I also took this shot across the lake. The only filter applied was UFRaw’s denoising filter, set to its highest possible value. The effect is similar to that of a watercolor.
I still struggle with macro shots in the wild. The wind kept me from getting a good shot of this spider. Although I managed to get the shot after several tries, I find the noise levels unacceptable. It’s still a pretty spider, however.
¶Abandoned Factory
My family took an evening hike on an overcast day. The light conditions were challenging at best, but I managed to get several shots that were worth keeping.
Two pictures of my son walking on railroad tracks.
¶Monoskipole
No pretty pictures here, sorry, but I wanted to share a helpful hint for skiing photographers out there. Carrying an SLR and a tripod into a ski resort isn’t always a big deal, but when you’re going deep into the backcountry you want to shave off every ounce you can. Even the lightest monopods weigh quite a bit, and they’re basically the same thing as a ski pole. While I’ve heard that ski poles with camera mounts exist, I’ve never seen one, and I quite like my Goode carbon-fiber poles, and don’t want to give them up. I’ve also seen some particularly bad examples of homemade ski pole monopods, and I knew I could do better than that. Here’s how I did it:
(more)¶New Camera
I got my Canon G9 in the mail this weekend. I wanted something with most of the power of a DSLR, but small enough to easily carry on mountaineering trips. The biggest hassle with a DSLR is carrying lenses – skiing or climbing with a lens attached is just asking for trouble, and taking them off all but requires a full camera bag. Yes, it can be done, but you’re looking at a photography expedition at that point. Sometimes I just want to climb mountains without all that gear, but I don’t want to miss shots at the top, either?
The G9 is my answer. Almost as good as a DSLR, and the lens compresses into the body for storage. You can add filters and extender lenses, and you have more control than just about any other point and shoot I’ve seen. I’m still learning some of its quirks, but here’s a shot I took while playing with the camera….
This is a shot of Puget Sound, taken at about 4PM on an overcast day. The darkness and saturation are artificial, giving it almost a night time feel, but not quite. There’s something slightly wrong with the sky, and that’s what I like about it.
¶In the beginning...
In recognition of the fact that many friends and family want to see photos beyond those available in my Gallery, I’ve decided to start a photo blog. The photos here aren’t necessarily the best photos in my collection, but rather pictures I wanted to share.
Both Andrea and myself will post here. Feel free to use any photos at the posted resolutions for personal uses. For higher resolutions or commercial use, send an e-mail to photo@hedgie.com, but be aware that not all photos may be available. The originals may not be high enough quality, or model releases may not have been obtained. Still, it can’t hurt to ask.
To start things off, I’m going to post two pictures from Heliotrope Ridge that didn’t make the cut for the gallery. This photo has always been one of my favorites, however, I don’t have a model release for the climber in the picture and can’t sell the image. He is a friend, however, so I suppose I could obtain one if there were interest. Behind the climber you can see the Canadian Border, and the peaks of British Columbia.
The second photo was also from Heliotrope Ridge, taken the same day. I saw a friend traversing a rib, and quickly snapped a shot without preparation. I loved the shot, but the dog (Chugach) chose that moment to turn away from me. Unfortunately, the dog’s rear ruined a beautiful picture. My friend was too far away to shout directions to, and the picture never came out the way I wanted it to.
