Category: Skyscape

Views of the sky. Sunrise, sunset, clouds, and weather

Wednesday (09-October-2013) — Arizona

Gone to See America 2013. Nikonian Annual Photography Adventure Trip. Day 4: Page, Antelope Canyon, and Horseshoe Canyon.

Since the US Government shut down all the National Parks, Monuments, and other “non-essential” government facilities closed. The organizers of ANPAT 13. We  have been scrambling to find places for the four vans to go out and photograph. The plan was to spend time in Grand Canyon National Park.  Many signed up for the trip specifically to see the north rim of the Grand Canyon.  Our van’s assignment for the day  included  Lower Antelope canyon, on Navajo land, and thus not closed. Horseshoe Bend, the upper vista point is on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land — technically closed, but no one was there to stop folks from  hiking to the upper view vista point. Restrooms being locked at the Horseshoe Canyon vista parking lot was the only sign of the shutdown.  Since Grand Canyon, one of the most visited National Parks closed, many others like us were looking for alternate places to visit. The parking lot for Horseshoe canyon was near full with many folks already at the overlook. Rather than fight for a spot at the favorite viewpoint, I found a different place with a good view. I mounted a camera  with a fisheye lens on a sturdy monopod. I then held the camera over the edge

Horseshoe Bend, Arizona. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 16 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 100, 16 mm, f/11, 1/200 sec). Camera mounted on a monopod held out over the cliff. Nikonians ANPAT-13 on a day that the National Parks were closed. (David J Mathre)

Horseshoe Bend, Arizona. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 16 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 100, 16 mm, f/11, 1/200 sec). Camera mounted on a monopod held out over the cliff. Nikonians ANPAT-13 on a day that the National Parks were closed. (David J Mathre)

Monday (07-October-2013) — Arizona

Gone to See America 2013. Nikonian Annual Photography Adventure Trip. Day 2: Sedona.

Getting ready for Halloween. Creepy tree at Dusk. It looks like it belongs in a horror movie.

Creepy Tree at Dusk in Sedona, Arizona. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 32 mm f/1.2 lens (ISO 200, 32 mm, f/1.2, 1/100 sec). Nikonians ANPAT-13 Day 2. (David J Mathre)
Creepy Tree at Dusk in Sedona, Arizona. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 32 mm f/1.2 lens (ISO 200, 32 mm, f/1.2, 1/100 sec). (David J Mathre)

Wednesday (02-October-2013) — Colorado

Gone to See America 2013. Autumn Rocky Mountain Photography Safari in Colorado with Jason Odell. Day 2: Ashcroft Ghost Town.

Lone Building and Fall Colors in Ashcroft. A Ghost Town in Colorado. Composite of 15 images taken with a Nikon D3x camera and 85 mm f/2.8 PC-E lens (ISO 100, 85 mm, f/16) combined with Google/NIK HDR Efex Pro and AutoPano Giga Pro 2. Additional processing with Capture One Pro 7 and Adobe PhotoShop CC.

Lone Building and Fall Colors (David J. Mathre)
Lone Building and Fall Colors in Ashcroft. A Ghost Town in Colorado. (David J. Mathre)

One-Year Ago (08-September-2012)

Gone to see Europe. Semester at Sea. Fall 2012 Semester Voyage on the MV Explorer. Day 16: Stonehenge.

While traveling, I have been testing different camera gear. In part to see if I can get high quality images with new lighter weight travel kits. The Nikon 1 V1 camera with the 30-110 mm VR lens (10 MP) is much lighter than the Nikon D800 and 50 mm f/1.4G lens. I took ten vertical images of Stonehenge with the N1V1 at 110 mm and combined them using the Photoshop CS6 panorama feature. The ultimate image ended up being 16850 x 5400 pixels. I spent some time using “content aware” to remove the people in the image. The other image is cropped from a single image taken with the D800 and 50 mm f/1.4 lens. In this case, I didn’t take the time to remove the tourists from image. Let me know which you think is best, but I am afraid that I will continue to carry a heavier kit.

Summer Morning at Stonehenge. Composite Image taken with a Nikon 1 V1 and 30-110 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 110 mm, f/11, 1/200 sec). Composite of 10 vertical images processed using Photoshop CS6 (David J. Mathre)
Summer Morning at Stonehenge. Composite Image taken with a Nikon 1 V1 and 30-110 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 110 mm, f/11, 1/200 sec). Composite of 10 vertical images processed using Photoshop CS6 (David J. Mathre)
Summer Morning at Stonehenge. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 50 mm f/1.4G lens (ISO 100, 50 mm, f/5.6, 1/1600 sec). (David J. Mathre)
Summer Morning at Stonehenge. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 50 mm f/1.4G lens (ISO 100, 50 mm, f/5.6, 1/1600 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Four-Years Ago (08-September-2009) — Alaska

Gone to See North America Road Trip – Nikonians ANPAT 9. Day 18: Denali National Park, Alaska.

Stony Hill Scenic Overlook. Autumn Panorama of the Highway to Denali, Denali National Park, Alaska. Composite of 3 vertical images taken with a Nikon D3x camera and 85 mm f/2.8 TC-E lens (ISO 100, 85 mm, f/16, 1/100 sec).

Stony Hill Scenic Overlook. Autumn Panorama of the Highway to Denali, Denali National Park, Alaska. Composite of 3 vertical images taken with a Nikon D3x and 85 mm f/2.8 TC-E lens (ISO 100, 85 mm, f/16, 1/100 sec). (David J Mathre)
Stony Hill Scenic Overlook. Autumn Panorama of the Highway to Denali, Denali National Park, Alaska. Composite of 3 vertical images taken with a Nikon D3x camera and 85 mm f/2.8 TC-E lens (ISO 100, 85 mm, f/16, 1/100 sec). (David J Mathre)