MattB.Net Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>This winter started well enough in November with good early snow up high, but the warm December temperatures were pretty weird. Now with snow on the ground this season seems to be back on track with a very cold weekend. We hit -30 F a couple of times over the weekend and Saturday's high temp was 0.<br /> The snow and cold made my backcountry ski expedition on Friday not that great. Deep and cold snow made our chosen safe terrain (steeper stuff was too avalanche prone for my tastes) too gentle to ski down. So my friend and I climbed a mountain and getting back down was almost as slow and strenuous as going up. Oh well, it was nice to be out there.<br /> Yesterday I went down to our river to see how the frost and fog were doing. Not much fog but the frost was great. I took the K-x and da15 and did a few HDRs too. So the K-x seems to work fine at about -5, but the battery warning came on before I was done. Still I got probably 30 Minutes of shooting done first and the batteries were not totally fresh (Eneloops).<br /> <a title="IMGP5111.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5284/5319082244_e27a89f646_z.jpg" alt="IMGP5111.jpg" width="425" height="640" /></a><br /> .<br /> <a title="IMGP5126.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5085/5319083042_cce944e2e5_z.jpg" alt="IMGP5126.jpg" width="640" height="425" /></a><br /> .<br /> <a title="IMGP5217.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5241/5319083408_955bf9b1ff_z.jpg" alt="IMGP5217.jpg" width="640" height="425" /></a><br /> .<br /> <a title="2011-01-02 River HDR_3.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5122/5318486441_17a3159f15_z.jpg" alt="2011-01-02 River HDR_3.jpg" width="425" height="640" /></a><br /> .<br /> <a title="2011-01-02 River HDR_6.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5163/5318486805_5b7f617012_z.jpg" alt="2011-01-02 River HDR_6.jpg" width="425" height="640" /></a></p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgredline Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>Awesome series Matt. My fav is the last one. I am surprised it is not a frozen river ;-)<br> I love the way you make use of the 15. Great shooting.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukhov Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>Very good pics</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>Thanks guys! Any thoughts on the HDR treatment on the last two? I used HDRPad, a free open source utility. It seems to work pretty well IMO, but doesn't allow for much fine tuning. I may spring for a real LR plugin for this at some point for a better interface and more granular control.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgredline Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>Matt, Looking at the last image, to my eyes and my calibrated monitor, it does not look like an HDR which to me makes it an amazingly great photo. It is very detailed and well composed. If anything and I am nit picking, I think the river could use a little more contrast to highlight the reflections of the trees. I also think the clouds deep in the back ground could use a tad more vibrance. Having said all this, I am truly nit picking because, I like it as it is. Nice and sharp and well detailed. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 <p>Thanks! I agree it could use just a little more pop...</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jean_b. Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>I agree with Javier: you make very good use of the DA 15mm lens, both in this series and in others that I have seen.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainvisions Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>I'm jealous, it had been seasonably cold here for december, perhaps a bit cooler than usual, and there were 5+ feet of snow on the Tug and south to Syracuse. But it's greening up (well not quite, maybe browning up??) all around. Still plenty of ice in the mountains to climb, but not much snow to ski or snowshoe even where there was a few weeks ago. Looks like another late winter winter!</p> <p>Anyway, I like all but the last one. Clouds are wonderful, and I love the hoarfrost popping up through the snow.</p> <p>The second one being my fav! It has all the elements needed.</p> <p>The HDRs aren't great IMO. I've never liked them for landscapes, and something is just lacking in those last two shots.</p> <p>Out of curiousity, why did you need to HDR them? Bracket your exposures and than split ND them digitally. Should give you nice results, especially on the second to last.</p> <p>If you can send a little snow my way too I'd appreciate it!!!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garry_young1 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Really nice series Matt! My favorite is certainly the second, and the HDRs don't do it for me either, but most important is whether you enjoy them. Anyway, the second shot rocks!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shots worth sharing Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Actually I like the first two a lot--the last two not so much. I've never encountered frost like that (just as well, I guess, given the conditions that produce it ;~) </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Thanks. I just love that lens. So nice to shoot with!<br> Justin, I'm just experimenting with the HDR treatment. I've seen a lot I didn't like but some I thought worked pretty well. I wanted to see what I could come up with using that tool, and see if I could make something I'd like. I'm still on the fence but feel like it could be another useful tool in my collection.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainvisions Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <blockquote> <p>Actually I like the first two a lot--the last two not so much. I've never encountered frost like that (just as well, I guess, given the conditions that produce it ;~)</p> </blockquote> <p>This is pretty common in the mountains, but I can't say I've seen it on top of the snow like Matt got very often, so it's quite a unique shot for me to see. And the composition is excellent as well with all the elements. My only pet peeve is the foreground could be a stop lighter. This might be fixable in post processing if you shot RAW. Just up the foreground by about a half stop unless you bracketed, then use the original file.</p> <p>Dave, you've probably seen hoar frost in maryland, but I'm sure it melts off as soon as the sun comes up or it's just been too cold for you to bother looking for it. That said, it's probably a rarity in more temperate climates at lower elevations.</p> <p>Anyway, here is some info...<br /> http://naturalsciences.org/microsites/education/treks/yellowstone/2007/pages/054_Hoar%20frost.html</p> <p> </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgredline Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>It is interesting that I am the only one who seems to like the last. Says allot about my eye for these things ;-) Having said that, I feel like the last image would be improved if it was simply shot and presented in ''Landscape'' mode as opposed to portrait. Matt, did you shoot this last image in landscape as well?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Justin and Dave - the hoar is actually on the frozen surface of the river, so there was lots of moisture from nearby open water and a hard surface underneath so nowhere to go but up. We see a lot of it around here - it's a significant avalanche factor once it becomes buried in the snowpack. I've also skied it a foot deep in the backcountry. It's known to skiers as "loud powder" and is really good skiing when it's on top and it makes a distinctive sound almost like glass clinking. One of my most memorable backcountry outings was a full moon ski on a deep surface hoar layer that sparkled in the moonlight. Amazing!<br> Javier - that is interesting. That one seems to really strike a chord with some people. I'll look when I get a chance and see if I shot that one landscape or not. I think there may have been something I didn't want in the frame so I might not have.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_engel1 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Matt, I like picture two and the last one. The only thing I would improve is to make the snow whiter that's a personal thing.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 <p>Agreed about the snow. I may take another crack at the PP on that one.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattB.Net Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 <p>Ok, I made the snow a little whiter, but only a little. I was getting late and the foreground was getting less light than the snow across the river.<br> <a title="2011-01-02 River HDR_6.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5163/5318486805_633a21c605_z.jpg" alt="2011-01-02 River HDR_6.jpg" width="425" height="640" /></a><br> And even better I do have a landscape oriented shot like that one:<br> <a title="IMGP5184_2.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5048/5325629975_fe428285c1_z.jpg" alt="IMGP5184_2.jpg" width="640" height="425" /></a><br> I think it works pretty well B&W too:<br> <a title="IMGP5184_2-2.jpg by MattB (somedudeus), on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5123/5325630287_5cdcb7804d_z.jpg" alt="IMGP5184_2-2.jpg" width="640" height="425" /></a><br> .<br> Thanks for all the input!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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