Olympic National Park with Charles Needle and Mark Johnson
Beach 3 at 9
JFP-071807-4510
I was badly in need of a vacation. While meeting with Art Wolfe at his wonderful Seattle studio, he mentioned a workshop that sounded to me like the perfect scenario. One week of shooting in Olympic National Park while learning new Photoshop technique from two guys who really knew their stuff. I signed up immediately. Here's how it went...
I hopped the Edmonds-Kingston ferry and made the quick drive to Port Angeles. That evening, I met my two hosts, Charles Needle and Mark S. Johnson. Right off I knew that these guys were going to be fun and that we'd be having a blast. Several folk from West Virginia had travelled out here to attend the workshop. They were some of the nicest people i've met in quite some time. As introductions were made, we talked a little about ourselves. Photographic skill, experience, and goals varied across the group from casual shooter to budding pro.
Sea of Lavendar
JFP-071707-4293.jpg
Our first morning out and the weather set the tone for the rest of the trip. Rain. In fact, it was to be the only rainy week in the past two months with sunshine resuming the following week. Go figure.
We spent the first morning at Jardin du Soleil (Garden of Sun), a lavender farm in Sequim. The rain came down. I draped a jacket over my head, threw on my Singh Ray polarizer, and got to work (play!). You really want to approach these lavender fields from all angles. Get down on your knees or set your tripod up high. Close-ups are just as interesting as wider shots of the textured fields. The purple and greens are amazing. Overcast, or in our case rain, makes for very saturated color. I could have spent an entire day here, but we had a busy day planned.
Tiger Lily
JFP-071707-4406
Hurricane Ridge was fogged in something fierce. The drive up to the viewpoint was slow and cautious. Roads were bordered by wonderful arrays of wildflowers and local fauna. There were many places to stop and shoot. Reaching the viewpoint, we had visibility of about 10 feet. At one point I nearly walked into a mule deer. No wonderful vista shots of the mountains on this trip. I threw on my 100mm macro lens and worked the flowers. When the fog lifted briefly, I worked the treelines with my 70-200.
The next day we were off to Kalaloch Lodge, by way of Crescent Lake, Sol Doc Falls, and all of the scenery on the way. The rain kept falling. This made for more wonderfully saturated colors but made keeping gear dry somewhat challenging. For Sol Duc Falls, I wanted to capture something other than your typical waterfall image. Mark and Charles had been raving about two particular techniques. One was a double exposure: first shot at the desired exposure, the second shot wide-open and slightly out of focus (pulled back). Later, the two exposures could be merged to create this really excellent glowing effect. I chose some vine maples overhanging a small forest stream. By shooting my 50mm f/1.4 both stopped down and wide open, along with a cicular polarizer, I was able to get exactly the shot I had in mind.
Hoh Vine Maple
JFP-071807-4717
The second technique involved zooming and panning during long exposures. By exploring this technique, it is possible to create an image with both sharp details and soft blurring. For this, I used my 70-200 zoom lens to isolate a group of trees with excellent bark texture and interesting back lighting. My exposure ran for about 4 seconds, and was shot at a small aperature. After remaining still for 1 second, I slowly panned vertically up through the trees until the remaining exposure time passed. When exploring this technique, try different shutter speeds, varying panning or zooming distances, and slower or faster movements. With practice, the results can be very pleasing. If zooming during the exposure then start zoomed in and pull outwards as the shutter is open. When panning, remember to stay level. At first, I had a ball head mounted on my tripod. It took only a few test exposures for me to realize that it was the wrong head. My pan-tilt head did a much better job at keeping my panning level and without "bumps". A gimbal head might work well when working with longer, heavier lenses. I've yet to try it.
So, onwards to Kalaloch. By now, we were wet. Our gear was wet. My ambition was not dampened. In fact, I was feeling great and was looking forward to shooting beaches and tidal pools. Again, the rain came. This time it really poured down on us. I had water in the pockets of my jacket. Rain poured off of my camera a tripod. Keeping water off of my polarizer was futile. Sand and salt was getting everywhere, especially in my sandals. So, I shot. When many had retreated, Mark, Charles and I shot until darkness. The rain receded. We painted with light, shooting long exposures while running an LED flashlight over our subjects. I illuiminated driftwood with cold, blue light. When total darkness set in, we retreated to our cabins and got a few hours of sleep.
Driftwood Painted with blue light.
JFP-071807-4536
The next day brought more rain. Folks were starting to talk about it. This was very unusual weather for summer, even in the Pacific Northwest. As we arrived on Beach 4, just down the road from Kalaloch Loadge, the sun broke through the clouds. While others cheered, I thought... "Oh crap... there goes the good light." Fortunately, the break was a short one, and a perfect overcast sky illuminated the rest of the day. Beach 4 provided wonderful tidal pools full of sea stars, anenome, crabs, tube worms, and the occasional stranded fish. We worked those pools all day long. Once again, when others had retreated to food and drink, the "trio" kept shooting. We worked our way to the base of sea stacks, sheltered from wind but not waves. You had to keep an eye on tripod and backpack. Stray waves provided the occasional "shower". What we got were several hours of fantastic light and more opportunities than we could handle.
Rialto Beach provided more fun with excellent driftwood and eroded rocks. If you find yourself there, be sure to look for large rocks with small sherical pock marks filled with colorful grains of sand. They make for fantastic macro subjects. Reaching the sea stacks at Rialto beach means walking quite a distance. Be sure to check your tidal charts, as it is very possible to become stranded. Steep banks line the beach, so plan your route carefully. Avoid the surf when driftwood is plentiful. Imagine a 100ft tall cedar being thrown towards you by a 10 foot wave. Rip tides can be severe. Play it safe. Surfers, enjoy fantastic conditions with plentiful waves.
After enjoying several beaches and forested areas we made our way back into Seattle for 3 days of Photoshop tutorial at Art Wolfe's digital photography classroom. His facilities are well-equipped and resourced very well by folks who know their trade. Oh, right... his gallery is pretty darned good, too...! Mark Johnson led the classes, and spewed forth such a deluge of Photoshop know-how such that we left each day in a daze. His workflow is finely tuned and his teaching style isn't too shabby. I was comfortable with my Photoshop skills before the class, but now I feel saturated with additional knowledge that i'll apply to my own workflow.
Since we were in Seattle, it only made sense to take a break shooting Pike St. Market. I spent almost all of my time at the flower vendor tables. If you've never seen them, then you must understand the sheer amount of flowers being sold here. It's amazing, and the variety is significant. Both Mark and Charles are adept at photographing flora. Their keen insight and guidance allowed me to create what I believe to be some very special images. All of them happened spontaneously. None were very time consuming, as we were wandering constantly. However, I very quickly knew, looking through my viewfinder, that each and every one was exactly what I wanted.
Pike Street Flower Market
JFP-072207-4779
Pike Street Flower Market
JFP-072207-4850
As the workshop came to and end, I realized just how much I had accomplished in just one week. My storage device was full of fantastic images. My Photoshop skills had improved vastly. I'd made new friends, some of which I'll be shooting with again very soon. I was tired! On average, I shot for over 12 hours a day, sleeping for about five hours each night. I'll spend the next few weeks processing my favorite images. Following that, I'll be creating a new gallery on my website. Even farther out, I'll create framed and matted prints. The list goes on... in other words, a perfect vacation!
I want to thank both Charles Needle and Mark Johnson for a wonderful workshop. You should know that Mark just released a book titled "Botanical Dreaming". It features his fine close-up work with flora and much of his very talented Photoshop technique. Additionally, he will be releasing a new book this fall covering many aspects of Photoshop workflow. I'll be buying my copy as soon as it is available. Charles will be planning more excellent workshops, including one featuring gardens of the pacific northwest. I'm hearing rumors of a particular location that you won't want to miss, so keep an eye on his website.
Charles Needle - Charles Needle Photography & Nature Comforts
Mark S. Johnson - Mark S. Johnson Photography
Lastly, I want to thank the crowd from West Virginia, who made this trip fantastic. I hope we have the opportunity to shoot together again.
Jamie, JFP
|
