The Ice Tower

Thanks for commenting.

This is Oregon's Three Fingered Jack Peak (seriously, that's the name). Possibly the most dramatic mountain in the state, despite it's relative lack of altitude at only 7800 feet. In Winter, it is nearly inaccessable due to a 20+ mile approach over very avalanche-prone terrain. But given that some of the snow had melted away from the lower elevations surrounding the peak at this point, reducing the lenth of ascent, I decided this would be an excellent time to go in to try some late-season shots. Of course the terrain looks best after some fresh snow, so I waited out two blizzards in three nights on a windswept plateau adjacent to the peak in an attempt to catch some nice light. No great sunrise or sunset ever materialized, but just as I was about to pack it up and head out, the towers finally revealed themselves dramaticly. This one was a B&W from the start.

Beautiful! Definitely worth the effort. Excellent quality as usual.

Good grief Marc. Incredible. Fantastic. You simply amaze me. - Sean

Marc, in addition to your GND filter, did you use a polarizer on this shot?

Beautiful composition, great tone, great light and excellent B&W. Congratulation. Mario

Will, no I did not. Although I'm sure the dark sky makes it look that way. I exposed for those bright background highlights, and thus the blue sky went very dark. Particularly because I used a grad to accentuate the soft foreground light. In addition, I darkened it very slightly in processing for a true black which I feel often adds to the drama of a B&W image.

Ah, that's how you do it. It really does make it look more dramatic. Great job with handling a tricky exposure.

Just as always great photo :)

Hi Marc. This is my first post on this site. In fact, I joined only to finally post a comment on at least one of your works. I say finally because I've been watching this space of yours here, on this site, for what seems like years, but never posted. Instead I've shared your entire collection here with almost all I know, with constant updates as you update.

 

I know, sounds insane, right?.. I've no critique, frankly. I just wanted to thank you for doing what you do so very well. This particular image was the 'last straw' for me and I finally signed up. I couldn't take *not* mentioning how absolutely jaw-dropping this is for me. And I've seen millions of photographs from tens of thousands of talented photographers worldwide and this photo - right here - is easily my total favorite. Hands-down. No question. I could stare at this image all day. In fact, I've made a "small" wallpaper of it on my desktop, albeit it's so small on it. It'll have to do, I suppose.

 

The lighting in this is mesmerizing, haunting, perhaps. I'm not one for the cold but I reckon I'd give up an arm to go on a photo-shoot with you some time, especially if this is what *you* see out there. My gosh. Your work is certainly exemplary when it comes to properly and accurately capturing nature in it's boundless glory.

 

The photo itself feels so grand, so large, so haunting, so daunting, strong, decisive, so intense. I love it. Absolutely adore it. Have I said enough?

 

Anyhow, sorry for the long-winded post, here. Thanks *again* for everything you contribute here; it's certainly endless inspiration for me. *sigh*

 

.. Simply amazing.

Again Marc, you will never cease to amaze us...simply a work of art!

I do have one nitpick though, which is not specific to this picture: I think the pic is a bit oversharpened so that this looks more like a drawing than a photo (I also use your method of sharpening for web posting, but I find that most of the time using the sharpen filter once or twice is sufficient). Obviously this takes nothing away from the photo itself, which is, again, absolutely amazing. The choice of BW is judicious in this case as I prefer this one to the colour version you posted later. Cheers.

AGAIN AN IMAZING ONE.(EYEJAY)

Amazing b&n and light. Great photo. I?ll try to learn with your photos. Regards.

Great shot!

Greetings,Jim

I'm a sucker for a B/W photograph done correctly...Dude, ya nailed this one...Flippin' amazin' detail and exposure...Sorry for my bad grammar...My jaw fell out while typing this.... ;)

Marc, I think you were on Cascade Range of Oregon almost at the same time when I was car-camping on Pacific Coast of the Oregon. I can imagine how cold it was for you on the mountains since I felt it was freezing even at the coast. My congratulations on this dramatic image!

Brad, it only got down to about 5 degrees in the morning. Perfect hiking weather if you ask me!

One of the best I've seen from you. The treatment, the subject and the light are just amazing. Congratulations.

 

Best regards.

 

Agustin David

Amazing pictures.

Lost for more words.

 

S