What's the Big Deal?

For the record, (and it is a record...2 blogs in a row without a photo) I have no issues with heightened security measures laid on by TSA.  I understand my politics and beliefs may be light years diametrically opposed to those of many of the young people I work with and certainly some of my more liberal photographer friends.  I hope this won't start too many arguments because I'm not going to change your minds and you aren't going to change mine so please, indulge me for a few minutes. 

Like most Americans I was sickened and outraged by the events of 9/11.  I believe to the core of my being that despite what some government officials say we are in a war.  A war on terrorism.  And I don't believe we are trying very hard to win the war which saddens me greatly.  I'm not yet at the point of "..Kill them all and let God sort it out."  But I do believe we are in peril every day of our lives and we need to be ever vigilant.  And that's the point of this discussion.

Many people are becoming indignant and outraged by the more thorough frisking recently implemented by TSA at Denver International Airport.  I haven't watched much national news lately but the stories on our local news channels are multiplying like rabbits.  Just this morning I watched a report on 9News in Denver and therein lies my issue. 

The story had the usual voiceover by one of the news reporters accompanied by footage of about 12 or 15 people suffering the "indignity" of being frisked by TSA agents.  I saw it first last night on the 10 o'clock news and again this morning on 9News at 5am.  Last night there was a disturbing thought tickling at the back of my mind and it was confirmed this morning when I saw the report for the second time.  Of the 12 or 15 people being frisked, EVERY SINGLE ONE was a middle aged or older Caucasian.  No young people, no people of color, all of them were older white men and women. 

Maybe it's because I'm an older overweight balding white guy and quite possibly I'm overreacting but I'm pretty sure that a 70 year old Grandmother from Middle America doesn't quite fit the terrorist demographic.  I'm fairly certain that Mrs. Butterworth isn't going to stuff a chunk of C4 or Semtex in her bra and take out a commuter flight to Billings.  I'm equally certain that a Wilford Brimley look-alike isn't going to mold plastic explosives into his sneakers and blow Griz off the tail of a Frontier flight.

With this in mind I'm left with a head full of questions.  I understand that reporters have certain artistic license in editing so was this purposely edited in a manner to inflame and outrage people like me?  Are they really frisking a valid cross section of the mass of humanity that will pass through DIA this week or was the news report really representative of the people they select "at random" to be more thoroughly screened?  I could go on and on but I think you get the point by now so let's cut to the chase.

Given the events of 9/11 followed by the shoe bomber and later the underwear bomber, followed by the SUV full of explosives in Times Square and many other terrorist plots, I'm stunned into disbelief by the hue and cry raised by people who object to being frisked.  To those people I would ask only 1 thing:  Consider the alternative.  Think back to images of the space shuttle that exploded and the video of the flaming wreckage falling back to earth.  When faced with that prospect I really have very little problem with the thought of someone brushing the back of his hand against my junk.  If that's what it takes to keep my flight from going out in a blaze of glory, show me where I need to stand and get gloved up.

And one more thing:  If you really seriously object to having your junk brushed and your cheeks squeezed, shut up and go through the full body scanner.  It's not going to kill you.  Less security just might.

Peace, Out.

Stoopid Photographer Tricks

You may notice that unlike most of my other blogs, this one doesn't open with an image.  It's a little unusual for me to do that but I'll explain:

So there I am, standing behind the tripod.  Got the right lens, cable release attached, tripod leveled and image composed.  A very symmetrical line of huge old cottonwood trees that were planted in a straight row several decades ago silhouetted against a colorful morning sky.  Got my Rocket J Squirrel hat on to keep my ears warm and my light warm gloves since it's only 25 degrees out there.  I reach down to press the release button on the cable release and simultaneously glance at the LCD display to check out the histogram for exposure data and......see a 3 word phrase that reminds me how dumb I can be at times:  NO CF CARD.  That's right, no card in the camera and my backpack with extra cards is back in the car 200 yards away.  Hence, no sunrise image.  Just as well though.  After two of the most spectacular sunrises I've ever seen the past 2 days, the color this morning was pretty lame.  But that's not the point.  See, Photographers can sometimes be a bit distracted during the creative process.  I've detailed it before in a blog that talks about being in the creative "zone."  And the result is often what I call Stoopid Photographer Tricks. 

Over the years I've had my share of SPT's and I'm not proud of them but as Will Rogers once said, "Everything is funny when it happens to someone else."  With that in mind, here are a couple of my more memorable SPT's.

Several years ago in the early 90's when I was trying to convince Judy that I needed to buy a large format camera to improve my images, I devised a foolproof strategy.  The deal was to borrow a 4X5 camera from my workplace and head up to Rocky Mountain National Park where I would shoot a large format transparency of a beautiful mountain scene and shoot the same scene on 35mm so I could demonstrate the additional quality available from 4X5.  I found a great shot of the Colorado River flowing through a meadow in the Weimenuche Valley and started setting up for the shot only to discover that the camera I borrowed had a 3/8" threaded socket while my tripod was 1/4".  Basically, I couldn't mount the 5 pound camera and lens on my tripod and I'm not foolish enough to even contemplate hand holding a 4X5 studio camera.  I made my living at the time by checking details like that before sending a camera out on a rental so how was I able to get 100 miles from home with an unusable camera?  SPT.  I solved the delima by taking the head off my tripod and bolting the camera directly to the legs with no leveling head.  I leveled the camera by adjusting the legs of the tripod.  It was cumbersome but I got the shot and later when I dropped the 4X5 on the light table next to the same shot on 35mm slide film it was a slam dunk and 2 days later I had my own 4X5.

A few years later I was visiting the In-Laws at their ranch in the Black Hills of South Dakota and one morning I decide to hike up the hill from the ranch and try to duplicate the angle of photograph taken of their valley in the late 1890's.  (Yes, I had that idea years before John Fielder's book of then and now photos came out)  When I got up on the bluff where the old image was taken from it was pretty easy to align my camera using some rock formations as a reference.  I set up the tripod, got the 4X5 out of the backpack, and.......discovered that during my hike the tightening knob for the quick release mount on my Studioball head was missing.  Again, there was no way to mount the camera on the tripod.  I backtracked the way I'd come with the phrase "needle in a haystack" running through my mind.  Fortunately I was able to find the knob AND the two little springs and bracket to make the head functional.  This was a typical problem with the Studioball head and I knew it but for some reason when I finished shooting the previous afternoon I hadn't tightened the knob to keep it from vibrating loose.  SPT. 

Both of those episodes ended well with me getting the shot I wanted though not as easily as I should have.  But not every SPT ends well.  About the same time frame as those incidents I borrowed a Canon 500mm f4 lens to photograph some elk in Rocky Mountain National Park.  This was before I had switched to the Studioball and my tripod head at the time was a Bogen ballhead with the typical Bogen octagonal quick release plate and lever release.  This was an early version of the head before Bogen installed a safety release button on the lever release.  Anyway, I finished shooting one morning and as usual I set the tripod next to the sliding door to  my van and started packing equipment like I always did.  First, take the camera body off the lens and pack it away then pack the lens.  Simple, right?  Well, this time I dismounted the camera body and when I was turning to put it in my backpack the strap got caught on the lever release of the ballhead, releasing the lens.  Naturally, without the camera and motor drive to balance the lens it was front heavy and I will never forget the sinking feeling in my stomach as I watched a $5000 lens plummet to the asphalt.  I was fortunate that the hood was still on so the front glass wasn't damaged but the impact did enough damage to the lens that I was out a pretty hefty repair bill to get it fixed up by Canon USA.  Probably my most devastating SPT ever and certainly the most expensive. 

There have been many more Stoopid Photographer Tricks over the years though none have been as costly as the Canon Lens trick and I must have morphed into someone else because when I think of them I have to chuckle.  And that's exactly what I did this morning when I had no memory card to shoot with. 

So how bout you?  Let's hear about your most amusing SPT.  Leave a comment and let's talk it over. 

Another Year Older

Photographically speaking, 2010 is done.  Cameras and lenses have been cleaned and stowed.  Memory cards have been downloaded to both computers and my external hard drive.  The best of the best files have been edited and uploaded to the website.  Now only 2 chores remain:  I need to select an image to print for my annual special edition Christmas cards and I need to pick my favorite image and print it for the 2011 Rocky Mountain Nature Photographers White Elephant Print exchange.  Simple, right?  Not so fast, camera boy.....I've taken some pretty remarkable photo trips this year and choosing a favorite image is more difficult than I thought it would be.

**After further reflection I decided to add this link to a gallery on my website containing all the images referenced below.  This way you don't have to click on every one then hit the back button on the browser to get back to the blog. http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/portfolio133636.html

In January we had to take Heather back to Eastern New Mexico University in Roswell and I was able to detour for a sunset and sunrise shooting at Bosque Del Apache.  I'd heard of Bosque and read about it for years but this was my first trip there and it was amazing.  Thousands of Sandhill Cranes, tens of thousands of Snow Geese.  And despite my inexperience at shooting birds in flight I was able to make some wonderful images including this one:  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo7555642.html 

In March I made my annual pilgrimage to Phoenix to visit my Daughter and Granddaughter.  We saw a Rockies spring training game and I was able to slip off one morning for a drive up the Apache Trail where I captured some extraordinary images.  Here's my favorite from that shoot:  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo5180843.html

Heather was home again for a late spring break and to celebrate her upcoming graduation she and I took a trip to visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton parks.  She's been asking me for a while to go there and this was our chance.  We saw grizzly bears, black bears, elk, bison, moose, coyotes, and of course the wonderful scenery.  I've always loved seeing the Tetons and on this trip the weather conditions came together for a terrific sunrise.  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo5269818.html

July saw us on 2 trips.  Judy and I spent 4th of July weekend at a lovely B&B in Taos and even though the main focus (pun intended) of the trip was not photography, heck, I never travel without at least 1 camera.  I found some images around Taos, mostly of the architecture there and found a wonderful image at the church in Rancho De Taos.  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo5504914.html

Later in July we were back in Roswell again for Heather's graduation.  We had 2 vehicles so I made a side trip on the way back home that was pretty uneventful.  Despite that, I was able to shoot one sunrise that proved to be one of the most colorful ones I've ever seen.  They really play up the alien thing in Roswell and the way the trees glow at sunrise....well, you be the judge. http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo5907679.html

There were no special photo trips in August but I did spend a little time in the sunflower fields north of Longmont and came home with some very nice images.  I'm in the process of printing a 5 print series for a wall display and this is one of my favorites.  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo5931259.html

In September we traveled to South Dakota for a family visit and I was able to spend an afternoon shooting in the Badlands.  I'd shot there before but as nearly as I can remember it was nearly 30 years ago so I was quite excited to spend some time there again.  Some nice images and one terrific sunset.
http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo6237648.html 

Then October.  At the end of the month I had some vacation time to burn so I flew to Phoenix for a long weekend with Erin and her family and a side trip to Sedona.  I always love spending time with my girls and Sedona was incredible.  I spent one afternoon in West Fork Canyon photographing fall colors and had a terrific time.  Here is my favorite from that trip.  http://wcbeanphoto.photium.com/photo7427256.html

Now it's November and I've just celebrated (?) another birthday which has caused me to be a bit maudlin and reflect on what I've done this year.  I took some wonderful trips and created some images that really move me.  As far as deciding which is my favorite, well, I just can't.  So I've opened this blog with an image of my favorite Greek Goddess, my granddaughter Katrina.  Funny that I've created so many wonderful images this year but my hands down favorite is this one that I didn't shoot. 

So which one is your favorite?  Leave a comment and let me know.

I seeeee Nothink!

I don't usually go on rants and I'm not going to go off this time. Well, maybe just a little, but mostly I want to discuss what I perceive to be a disturbing trend in the National Parks and National Forests. It might be that I'm just paranoid, or there could be a completely plausible explanation. Then, again, maybe I'm onto something.

It has to do with Rangers and my attempts at information gathering. Don't get me wrong, I have tremendous respect for the men and women that work for the Park Service or Forest Service. They have terribly difficult jobs to do and they take it all in stride and smile through even the most inane of questions. They spend a good deal of their time protecting fuzzy woodland creatures from idiot people and equally as much time protecting the people from the creatures. A thankless job? In most cases...but when I was in college in the 70's one of my ambitions was to be Mr. Ranger Sir. I even spent 2 summers working for the U.S. Forest Service based in Darrington, WA.

In the more recent past I've had the opportunity to spend time in several National Parks and Monuments and travelled through countless National Forests and I've always been impressed with the amount of information I could gather in a 5 minute conversation with one of the rangers. Where have the wolves or grizzlies been most frequently spotted? Where are the most impressive displays of wildflowers? Is there a bigger bull elk in Morraine Park than the one I've been photographing in Horseshoe Park? All the information I need to be successful in my never ending search for new images. But lately there's been a change, and I don't much like it.

I started getting this feeling in the summer of 2009. I was planning a trip to Southeast Utah for 8 days of photography and started doing my usual research to get more information on how to find a site called False Kiva in Canyonlands National Park. I knew that several of the folks posting on one of the forums I read had been there and others had tried to find it unsuccessfully. The trend that ran through most of the threads was that while Park Rangers are obligated to disclose it's location, they would often refuse or simply not comment. I understand the concept behind non-disclosure of the locations of fragile cliff dwellings or rock art. The amount of vandalism is unbelievable so I don't have much of a problem with keeping those places secret. But False Kiva isn't in that category and to flatly refuse to divulge it's location is concerning.

When I visited Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks in 2007 I spent quite a bit of time talking to rangers in both parks about where I could most likely find the critters I wanted to photograph and in every instance they were very forthcoming with the information though with the caveat that animals are very unpredictable and their information might not be accurate. They even kept a notebook of animal sightings on the counter at the visitor centers so you could see where the most critters were being spotted. But in 2010 that was all changed.

When Heather and I visited Yellowstone and Grand Teton parks in May of this year I naturally went to the Rangers for information....and was stonewalled. When asked if there were any fresh carcasses near roads I was given no information. When I asked where to find the nest of the Great Horned Owl near the visitor center in Mammoth nobody seemed to know. In Grand Teton when I asked if anyone had spotted Bear #399 they looked at me like I was speaking Martian. Not only that, but the notebooks containing records of sightings were nowhere to be found.

More recently I visited Coconino National Forest and the area around Sedona, AZ for a quick shooting trip. I stopped at the Visitor Center south of the Village of Oak Creek to look at maps and get some information. One of the folks in a Ranger uniform was literally following me around asking if I had any questions or needed help with anything. When I asked about the West Fork of Oak Creek Canyon he was only too happy to point it out on the map but when I asked how far up the Canyon I had to go to find the overhang with the reflecting pool, again I got the look like I was speaking a language from outer space. It was as if someone had flipped his switch to the OFF position. There was even a large photo of the area in question hanging on the wall and I pointed to it when I asked the question. No response...

I suppose it's possible that all the Rangers I approached honestly didn't know the answers to the questions I was asking but consider this: Rangers in Yellowstone and Grand Teton are tasked with controlling traffic for critter jams and also for removing carcasses that are too close to the road so Joe Tourist won't get chewed by a bear. They have radios and everyone on the Park frequency knows instantly where the jams are. The West Fork of Oak Creek is billed in every tourist guide as "..the most popular day hike in Arizona" yet nobody seemed to know where to find the location I was interested in. Coincidence? I think not!

How bout you? Have you experienced similar refusals to disclose information at a National Park or Monument? Leave a comment and let's hear about it.

I'm spoiled

The sign showing where you turn off the highway says "Call of The Canyon" and it's aptly named.  I've heard the call....more of a Siren's song capturing me and pulling me closer.  It's the West Fork of Oak Creek north of Sedona and I was fortunate enough to spend a few hours creating images and just generally being awed by the scenery. 

The feeling here is very similar to what I've experienced in Antelope Canyon.  Every step, every creek crossing, every turn around a bend in the canyon presents you with another image, each more impressive than the one before.  And when you're headed back to the vehicle it's the same.  You see compositions and lighting conditions that you missed on the trip in. 

I've never seen fall colors so vibrant or varied.  I commented in an earlier blog that I've never seen so many orange and red leaves as this year but this puts the aspens of Colorado to shame.  The oaks and other trees have banded together to produce a kaleidoscope of colors. And now I'm spoiled.  I'm not sure I'll ever be able to photograph fall colors in Colorado again without feeling somehow deprived.  I guess next fall we'll see.  For now, I'm pretty happy with this set of images.  Check the website gallery titled "New Work" in a few days to see the whole collection.

To Shoot, or not to Shoot...

Those of you who know me or have read previous blogs know that I'm a research junkie.  When I'm planning a photo trip to a place I've never shot before I spend untold hours online searching for information.  Looking at previously shot images, looking at maps, booking hotels and airline tickets, generally making myself as familiar with the location as I possibly can before arriving.  Most of the time I get some good data that makes my trip successful for the most part.  But sometimes it's a problem.

There are a lot of locations in the West that are very iconic.  They've been shot by tens of thousands of photographers over the years and you've seen images of them all...Delicate Arch, Mesa Arch, Yellowstone Falls, Old Faithful, the Grand Tetons, all the famous views in Yosemite.  The image accompanying this blog is another of the icons, The Mittens in Monument Valley.  I could show you hundreds of images online shot from this particular spot in all sorts of lighting conditions.  I think mine is a bit unique but like many of the icons, if you look hard enough you can find a set of holes from thousands of tripod legs in this spot.  And there's the problem.

I'm heading out Friday afternoon for Arizona.  Flying into Phoenix and spending some time with my daughter and her family before driving north to Sedona for a couple of days shooting.  I've been doing my usual research and in this case, I'm just about sick to death of seeing Cathedral Rock reflected in Oak Creek.  It seems if you google or bing up Sedona and images of the area, 99 out of 100 will be images of Cathedral Rock reflected in Oak Creek.  So the challenge is there for me....create some unique images of an iconic location.  Yes, I'll probably make at least one exposure of Cathedral Rock reflected in Oak Creek.  You can't visit an icon without photographing it even if your image will be number 10,000,000 in a series.  But I'll be spending my time searching for images I haven't seen before and who knows, I may get lucky.  I may run into some unusually spectacular light like I did at Monument Valley.  Check back in about 10 days and see.

What was once old is new again

I am always looking to become a better photographer.  I look at other shooters' websites, read their blogs, and monitor a few photographic bulletin boards where my peers post their images for critique and accolades.  And I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm not above stealing a good idea and adapting it to fit my own thought process.  So a few weeks ago when I ran across a blog post by Greg Russell about using newly acquired skills to process older images it struck a chord. 

Don't misunderstand me, I'm not a Photoshop or Lightroom wizard.  There are many thousands of folks out there that have forgotten more about processing images in the digital darkroom than I'll ever know.  But I'm always trying to improve.  I go to seminars...I read books...I follow Lightroom on Facebook for tips and tricks.  I also talk to other photographers and in the past year I've become much more active in a group of Colorado based nature photographers and have even gone shooting a few times with other photographers.  (My wife tells me I probably shouldn't go shooting with Richie V anymore cause he has lots of cool toys and I always want to buy some new stuff after a shooting excursion with him)  Mostly I'm just trying to get better and I think that though I have a long ways to go before I can truthfully say I'm pretty good at it, my skill level is higher than it was 5 years ago.  The software is also better and much more powerful than in years past. 

So with apologies to Greg for stealing his idea, I've assigned myself a project.  I'm going through my older images and reprocessing them with better software and more skill.  This will be an ongoing project and I'll probably try to post some of the more dramatic improvements here.  Which brings us to the photo above.  Combat fishing on the Russian River in Alaska.  This is an image I shot in 2005 when we took a cruise then spent some time on the Kenai Penninsula after the cruise.  At that time I think I was using Photoshop Elements 2 or 3, can't remember which one but it was a much less sophisticated version than Lighroom 3 which I use for most of my processing today. 

The top image is the original version, processed from the RAW file shot in 2005.  My technique then was even more primitive than the software I was using.  About all I did was adjust the black and white points, crop a little, and sharpen the file.  There was a little bit of burning and dodging but that's about it. 

The bottom image was processed in Lightroom and then exported to a plug in called Topaz Adjust where I was able to brighten and enhance the color without increasing the contrast too much.  I also cropped out some distracting elements and I have to admit, I really like it quite a bit better than the original. 

My goal is to work my way through the Alaska images at the rate of 1 image per week minimum so it may be a while before I make my way through the archives.  And by then this year's images will be old so I can process them with whatever software and skills I acquire in the future.  So keep checking back and please leave comments to let me know what you think.