by Michael Frye | Jun 20, 2011 | Yosemite Photo Conditions
Sunset at Tenaya Lake, Saturday evening
Tioga Pass opened Saturday, making the Yosemite high country accessible again. We always like to see this terrain when it’s still covered in snow—a taste of winter in May or even June—so Claudia and I drove up on Saturday afternoon. There was a lot of snow, but based on reports we heard during the last two weeks we actually expected more. The recent warm weather has melted the snowpack quickly. But, as you can see from the short video below, we found some large snow banks, and Tenaya and Tioga Lakes were still mostly frozen.
Skies became increasingly overcast Saturday afternoon, so I photographed abstract patterns and subtle colors in the ice at Tenaya Lake, not expecting much of a sunset. But late in the day I noticed a hint of purple in the clouds, and soon the sky exploded into shades of red, allowing me to capture the image at the top of this post.
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by Michael Frye | Jun 17, 2011 | Critiques
"Sunrise From Sunset Point" by Raymond
The critiques are back! With my trip to Utah, and then having to restore the blog, it’s been awhile, but I’m happy to be able to present another photo critique this week, and I hope it won’t be so long until the next one. Thanks for your patience!
Light
This week’s photograph was made by Raymond in Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. Perhaps the most striking feature of this image is the colorful sky, with clouds appearing to radiate out from the sun just before it clears the horizon. The warm hues of the red-orange clouds, along with the rusty rocks, form a nice color contrast with the cool blues of the sky and distant mountains.
Composition
What I like most about this composition is how the foreground and background complement each other. Those radiating lines in the clouds are subtly echoed by the folds in the landscape below.
Raymond said, “I found the scene to have many things going on—the snow, the hoodoos, the colored bands across the canyon sides, the ridges running down the sides, etc. In circumstances like that I find it difficult to feel “sure” of how the elements are arranged. I basically placed the horizon at the one-third point and placed the sun at the left/right midpoint. With my fingers crossed, I was hoping the colored bands would help lead the eye into the distance and the canyon’s bowl-like shape to cradle the elements of the scene.”
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by Michael Frye | Jun 15, 2011 | Yosemite Photo Conditions
Abundant mist created an exceptionally wide lunar rainbow on Upper Yosemite Fall last night.
The National Park Service announced today that Tioga Pass will open this Saturday at 8 a.m. Last year the high country still held tons of snow on opening day, and it was wintry and beautiful. It sounds like there’s even more snow this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing it!
Meanwhile, the warmest temperatures of the year have created minor flooding in Yosemite Valley. The highest water levels are expected tomorrow morning, and Swinging Bridge will probably be underwater. Some road closures are possible, and some campsites may be evacuated (perhaps already have?), but it looks like there won’t be any major closures in the near future. However, there’s still plenty of snow at higher elevations, and hot weather is expected to return in the middle of next week, so it seems likely that we’ll see more minor flooding by next Wednesday or Thursday.
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by Michael Frye | Jun 13, 2011 | Yosemite Photo Conditions
Misty sunrise from Tunnel View, 6/6
After a long, cool spring, the weather in Yosemite has finally warmed up. Increasing snowmelt has raised the volume of the waterfalls, and partially flooded the meadows. And it’s supposed to get warmer: temperatures are predicted to reach eighty or above tomorrow and Wednesday. The waterfalls will only get bigger, and the meadows will turn into giant reflecting ponds. The Merced River is expected to reach flood stage by tomorrow night, and peak early Thursday morning. Flooding will probably be minor, but road closures are possible.
All this happens at just the right time for people hoping to photograph the lunar rainbow during the upcoming full moon. Once again, here’s a link to Don Olson’s site with his predictions for when the moonbow will be visible from the bridge below Lower Yosemite Fall, and from Cook’s Meadow. Note that the lower fall will probably be much too wet for photography—it will be impossible to keep spray off the lens. Also, here’s a link to one of my previous posts with tips for photographing this event.
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by Michael Frye | Jun 9, 2011 | Photography Tips
Sometimes it's easy to pick the winners—they just jump out at you, like this image did when I first saw it on my screen. But usually editing is a more difficult task.
First of all, thanks to everyone who commented on my post from last Friday. Your participation is such a vital part of this blog, and makes it more fun for me, and everyone else.
Of the three dogwood images I posted, “C” was clearly the favorite. But there were some strong votes for A and B as well. Just another example of how subjective photography is!
It’s also an example of how difficult it can be to edit your work. When I ask students to bring a portfolio of ten images to a workshop, they often tell me how hard it was to narrow it down to such a small selection. Many have never had to do that before.
But editing—and I mean this in the traditional sense of selecting images, rather than processing or developing them—is one of the most important aspects of photography.
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