D30:SF Trip - Sunset from Marin Headlands

MichaelT · Jan 30, 2001

Since I knew that it was going to rain a lot the week we were in San Francisco, I took advantage of the great weather on the afternoon we arrived. We rushed right to the Marin Headlands and spent the last hour of daylight photographing the bridge and the surrounding beauty. Here is a sunset looking away from the bridge out towards the ocean.

Sunset from the Marin Headlands

D30 in Large/Fine Mode
28-135 IS @ 135mm
ISO 100
f16
Handheld

The above shot is a composite of 2 bracketed shots, 1 at 1/60 and 1 at 1/800. Here are the 2 seperate shots direct from the camera with no processing.

Larger composite image available in the "San Francisco" album at....

http://www.zing.com/members/michaeltapes

Your critique is appreciated.

MichaelT

Furrukh Khan · Jan 30, 2001

Neat Album, Michael! I love the cover photograph “taking off”. Strong photograph! I also enjoyed the other one with the shadow of the airplane.

This two bracketed photograph is amazing, the way this technique can bump up the dynamic range of a digital camera by such a large amount! What tripod do you use? Did you use a remote release?

Cheers!

Furrukh

MichaelT · Jan 30, 2001

Hello Furrukh,

I am glad you liked the shots. I had a feeling that you would like the shots from the airplane. I will post them here along the way for others to see.

Regarding the sunset shot. I list it as handheld in the notes below, but of course it is not. I use a Gitzo 1227 which is a 3 section carbon fiber model. I have a Linoff Ball head with a RRS clamp and a Kirk Plate.

I don't recall if I was using the remote release or not, but I was using the mirror lock with self timer which is a great way to take these shots. After you release the shutter the mirror flips up and the self timer waits for 2 or 3 seconds and then takes the exposure. It is actually easier than using the mirror lock with the remote release.

And of course, as you mention, taking multiple shots like this and compositing them is the only way to capture the full dynamic range of the scene. I usually take about 5 shots, maybe 2/3 or 1 stop apart. It is amazing how different each shot looks. Each one is great in it's own right, but something is always lost. If anyone is interested, I could post a few of the series (5 shot sets).

Thanks for the kind words.

MichaelT

JCDoss · Jan 30, 2001

MichaelT,

I understand that it is highly preferrable to use a tripod and MLU in these situations, but is it possible to bracket shots like this handheld? I would think IS would make some difference.

Just curious,
JCDoss

PS: If I had my D30, I'd just try it myself without bothering you with such a silly question!

PSS: Fantastic shot!

PowerPet · Jan 30, 2001

Very nice shot Michael!

I need to try that effect, even if my camera isn't as good as yours.

Petra

MichaelT · Jan 30, 2001

Petra,

Thanks for the compliment, but I laugh out loud when you say silly things like that about your camera. You have proven many times over that the camera is not so important as many other less tangible things.

None the less, it is a good technique to get the most from a dynamic range that no camera can record (other than our wonderful eyes!)

I look forward to your experiments!

MichaelT

MichaelT · Jan 30, 2001

JCDoss,

Actually I was plagued by cut and paste when posting the message. This was taken with a tripod. However, in this case, I have no doubts that I could have done it handheld. The IS can handle a 1/60 sec shot, and it is easy to match up images in PS. It is easier to use a tripod however.

So thanks for the compliment on the shot, and sorry for the confusion about the tripod.

MichaelT

Judy Arndt · Jan 30, 2001

This is a very beautiful image Michael ... so serene and elegant.

Thanks, too, for sharing your technique.

Judy

mike · Jan 30, 2001

Absolutely beautiful. It has a very relaxing affect. I find myself staring into it. I would hang this on the wall and enjoy it.

Dickson · Jan 30, 2001

Hi Michael,

This is a beautiful sunset photo. Its interesting to see that you can combine two photos and turn them into one great photo. I take a lot of sunset photos every day, I must try this technique one day.

Dickson

Andrew Chiciak · Jan 30, 2001

Michael,

Nice portfolio. Those colors are awesome. How do you process
your files?

Andy

Ed Leys20479 · Jan 30, 2001

Michael,

I really like the clean, graphic qualities of this image. And the technique you shared with us is certainly what made it work.

Regards,

Ed

JimK/Canada · Jan 30, 2001

Michael - this is really nice. The top large photo has amazing depth to it. A great feeling of atmosphere. Beautiful!
Jim

Elizabeth23842 · Jan 30, 2001

Absolutely beautiful Michael! Thank you for the information on how this was acheived.
Liz

Frances · Jan 30, 2001

Excelent Sunset!

Frances.

JWin32667 · Jan 30, 2001

Very nicely done Michael.

I see that you were able to get around quite a bit despite of the rain getting in the way. The headlands is one of my favorite location as well. There are hiking trails in the back of these headlands which can give quite spetacular views as well.

Thanks for sharing your adventures and the photos.

Cheers,
Joe

Janusz20944 · Jan 31, 2001

Michael,

Was about to say: love the photo and it’s simplicity and than I read how you fudged it…
Love the photo but can’t say and it’s simplicity anymore, can I?
Janusz

Daniel Lauring · Jan 31, 2001

Very nicely done....rich, like an oil painting.

Danny

MichaelT · Jan 31, 2001

Daniel,

Thanks for the kind words. I, too, am pleased with the results.

Regards,

MichaelT

MichaelT · Jan 31, 2001

Janusz,

I am glad that you loved the photo. Thanks for the compliment.

Regarding that I "fudged it"....

I don't consider what I did "fudging it". I knowlingly took 5 exposures instead of 1 at each point in the sunset. My purpose in brackeing like that was for 2 reasons. Either to get the best shot of the 5 (to be judged later), or to combine 2 (or more) later, which is what I decided to do.

Our eye can deal with this kind of dynamic range, but our film (or digital sensor) cannot. So why not use the tools and techniques we have to create a great image. If I had painted in the sky in photoshop then I would agree with you. Interesting, that in most of my photos I do some levels correction and other PS tecniques. In this one I did nothing except to merge the 2 shots using 2 layers and a gradient mask.

If I used a split neitral density filter in the filed, would that be less of a fudge?

I think you get my point.

My goal is to produce the best images that I can. I am pleased that there are tools and techniques that can help me. The art of using these tools and techniques is as much a skill as the taking of the image (IMHO).

Again thanks for your compliment.

Regrads,

MichaelT

D30:SF Trip - Sunset from Marin Headlands

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