Radiance
1. radiance – the amount of electromagnetic radiation leaving or arriving at a point on a surface
2. radiance – an attractive combination of good health and happiness; “the radiance of her countenance”
The waves were continually rolling ashore and feeding into this naturally formed pool on the shoreline of one of the beautiful beaches in the South West of our state. There was just enough time in between waves for a perfect reflection to form on the surface, radiating the amazing colours and forms of an incredible sunset.
Yallingup, Western Australia
Seeking Solitude
I recently took of on a one week road trip covering some of the south of Western Australia. I had been surfing google earth and noticed this area from the satellite images. With a full moon due for January 9 I decided to head to this location as I thought the moon rising over the expansive area may make for a good image.
Salt Flats, Western Australia
2 image stitch with 45mm tse
Lancelin Sand Dunes – Western Australia
I managed to get up to Lancelin recently for a late afternoon/evening shoot. The conditions were looking good so I headed up there giving myself plenty of time to scout the dunes for a composition I was happy with. After roaming the dunes for 3 hours or so I had two compositions marked out that I felt were strong. It was then a matter of waiting for the sun to meet the horizon and for the lines in the dunes to take shape.
I hope everyone is in good health for the coming holidays. All the best for the new year.
5 images stacked for DOF throughout.
Lupins – Alaska
Below is an image I captured while in Alaska in August/September of 2010. I was surprised to find these Lupins on the mountainside on the hike up to the Harding Icefield. All the wildflowers at a lower elevation were well past their best before date but as I slowly climbed higher the foliage and wildflowers were in far better shape. I decided I would continue on and upward and shoot the Lupin on the way back down later in the afternoon.
Once I returned to the area I had briefly scouted on my way up it began raining, only for a short period however. There was just enough rain to line all the leaves with tiny beads of water (clearly visible in print) and make the mountainside wet enough to cause me to slip n slide all over the place. Trying to hunt out a composition that I felt worked in the slippery conditions was frustrating and after one bad spill it became painful (a rock in the behind will do that to you. I said ROCK!). Anyway after finding a composition I was happy with I sat, waited and recovered.
Sugar Coated
Just skimming through some older images and this one caught my eye. Shot during Fall 2009.
I actually bumped into well known U.K Landscape Photographer David Noton and his wife Wendy on this particular morning as they were shooting the same snow covered Aspen grove.
Windswept – Lancelin Dunes -Western Australia
Hey everyone, I hope all is well.
Well a few weeks ago I headed up to Lancelin for the evening as conditions were looking promising. This was the first time I had shot an Australian Landscape for quite some time and it felt good to get out there. I scouted the dunes looking for decent lines and compositions, but with the light fading I had to work quickly. I did come away with a few different images but this particular one I thought would suit black and white.
A location such as this is forever changing so you don’t know exactly what you will come away with. I have been back there since and the lines and curves of the dunes were completely different to the previous visit.
Also I have finally got around to creating a Facebook Page so please “follow me on facebook”. The page will be regularly updated with discussion, competitions, new images, new blog posts, my whereabouts and other events. Also if any of you have your own page I will be sure to join. Thanks
Follow Me on Facebook by clicking the “Like” tab
Double row 6 image stitch
Worlds Away
I tried to escape the heat here in Perth on Monday (40 Degrees Celsius) by going through my archives and finding an image of a winter scene. This image here caught my attention as I remember it being particularly cold at the time. As I said… I TRIED to escape the heat. Processing this image didn’t drop my core temperature but I enjoyed reminiscing.
Banff, Alberta. Canada
Alaskan Adventures
Well I am now back from Alaska. I had an unbelievable time and came away with plenty of new images. I will most likely elaborate on the trip and certain locations when I get around to posting some of the images. I will not process any of the new images until I am behind a decent monitor as I am working off my laptop at the moment.
I hope everyone is well and I apologize that I have not been visiting/commenting on everyones blogs lately. I have spent as much time shooting as possible.
Here is a quick 3 image stitch I threw together from a day spent out in Katmai National Park, Alaska. We were flown in by light aircraft and dropped off on the tidal flats of the Coast. After seeing the pilot off we began hiking up the beach until we reached this inlet. We just sat and watched as various Coastal Brown Bears made their way along the shoreline in search for salmon. This time of the year the salmon are “on the run” and the bears are doing their best to feed on the salmon as much as possible before winter sets in. It was an incredible site to see and to be out there amongst them a long way from anywhere was very surreal.
It is something I will remember for the rest of my life.
Click image for full view
For the Hell of It
Quick little Jpeg b&w. I just blended 2 jpeg exposures and converted to black and white to see how it came together. I figure I would put it up here for feedback before going and processing the RAW file. 2 exposures. Longer exposure for water and clouds using the Lee Big Stopper ND filter and then another shorter exposure without the filter to ensure the treats were tack sharp. 24mm tse
Lunacy
I headed out with the intention of capturing the full moon on Friday night just gone. I scouted this location the evening before to see where the moon would rise and possible compositions I could go with. It was then just a matter of sitting and waiting, hoping that the clouds would cooperate.
Kananaskis Country Alberta. Canada
frame of mind
I find it hard to escape visualizing images. It’s not that I want to stop, it’s just that it can often send me on a wild goose chase trying to capture the image. More often than not those visualizations remain just that. They tend to occur the split second I wake up or as I am trying to get to sleep, the latter can be frustrating. Some of you might be thinking “ok fruitcake” but I’m sure the rest of you can relate to what I am talking about. I think it is an important part of photography and any other art form (oh no, did I just refer to photography as an art form. better be careful) as it keeps us motivated and in pursuit of “that image”. I am sure that over time some of them will come together. Some may not quite stand up to what you initially visualized while others may exceed.
Here is an image I managed to capture less than 30 minutes after visualizing it. It doesn’t happen very often but it’s pretty magic when it does. I was out scouting locations and stopping here and there in aspen groves capturing some movement blur images like previously posted. After hoping back in the car and continuing to scout I thought it would be cool to do some movement blur on some wild life to create something different. I visualized deer in front of some aspens as I thought it could make an interesting image. I continued to drive keeping an eye out for deer and within no time at all there it was, right there in front of me. Three deer nibbling away at grass in front of an aspen grove. I slipped into stealth ninja mode and crept up on them. Luckily one of the three decided to participate and I was able to come away with something very similar to what I envisioned in my minds eye. It was a strange feeling.
Death Valley – 2 minute window
On the drive from Las Vegas to Los Angeles we took a small detour and headed through Death Valley National Park. What an amazing place. Just as we arrived in the park the rain began to absolutely bucket down, here I was thinking it didn’t really rain in Death Valley.
The storms that had been battering the Californian coastline had managed to head further east into and beyond Death Valley. From the time we arrived in the park (noon) until just before sundown it had been continually raining and the skies were grey and dull. Then suddenly in a matter of a few minutes things started to get interesting, the skies began to open a little and I could see light hitting sections of the surrounding mountains. Then after another minute or so it opened right up and a rainbow appeared……. It was one of those ‘get set the f*#k up and take a shot of something’ type of situations…… I quickly pulled over, sprung out of the car, ran around like a nutter trying to find something, anything to throw in the foreground
WOW! a shitty little stream of runoff – you’ll do!
The whole show was only a matter of minutes so I had to make do with what I was given.
Unfortunately we were on a tight schedule and were only in Death Valley for less than 24hours. It is the type of place you could easily spend a week or so shooting as there is so much on offer. Hopefully I will get back there sometime.
Motionless Mornings
This is a 4 image stitch that was taken at the beginning of October in the Kananaskis Region here in Alberta, Canada.
I was eager to get out shooting on this particular morning as the seasons first snow had fallen the previous afternoon. I headed out well before sunrise hoping that the grey skies would begin to clear. It was a very still morning so I had to wait around for a while until the clouds began to pass over. I had absolutely no problems sitting, waiting, watching, and listening while the skies slowly cleared.
Sausalito – San Francisco
This image was taken from Sausalito looking out toward Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay area. Myself and Neal headed to the location about 30 minutes before first light which proved to be a good move as this is when I found the light to be at its best for this particular morning. It was still dark so the city lights reflected nicely off the low lying cloud and light fog that was about. We were also hoping for a spectacular sunrise but unfortunately the cloud was too heavy on the horizon.
Luck comes into play in a big way when you only have that one or two days to shoot a particular location. You can do as much research as you like, and have allllll the gear at hand, but having the weather do exactly what you want, when you want just isn’t going to happen. I bet if Jesus was here today and into this whole photography thing he would capture some incredible images.
6 image stitch
Back in Canada
Well I am now back from my little road trip throughout Northern California with Neal of Spool Photography. It was a great trip and we got to shoot many stunning locations. The main locations for our shoots were the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Lee Vining, the ghost town of Bodie, Mono Lake, and Yosemite National Park.
I am now off to Montreal for a week, mainly just to relax and have a look around. I am also hoping to catch some of the Autumn colour while I am there, so I may just have to get the camera out from time to time. 🙂
I have not yet had the opportunity to go over any of my images from the US trip, but will do when I get back from Montreal.
Below is an image I shot a little while ago here in Alberta, it is one of my favourite locations to visit early morning. This was taken when we were getting the first few mornings of frost in the valleys. I really want to shoot the same scene when it is snow covered and under some beautiful morning light. A few clouds here and there would be really nice too 🙂
For the time being this image will just have to do.
L U K E A U S T I N P H O T O G R A P H Y 