A900 - Winter in Death Valley - 6 Images

One of the best series on this subject that I have seen anywhere.

All are superb but "Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes" is my favorite.

Thanks very much for sharing these!

--
Busch

Take the scenic route! Life is too short to do otherwise.

http://www.pbase.com/busch

dw73 said:

Thank You!

For shots 1,2,3, and 6 I used the Tamron 28-75. I was shooting at
F8, ISO 200, and DR+. I usually had exposure compensation set to
+0.7 EV.

For shots 4 and 5 I used the Sigma 12-24, also F8, ISO 200, +0.7 EV,
and DR+.

Thanks again to all... I will post some additional shots from this
Death Valley trip shortly...

Click to expand...

--Great Images!

Did you shoot using .raw or .jpeg?

already with those shots, I don't think you need some more.

Can't help it,...WONDERFUL SERIES! Thanks for taking me there through your photographs, I enjoyed them all! Welld done!!!!!!!!!!!!!

--
JP
http://www.pbase.com/mediman30
'Be a reason for someone else's happiness...Life is beautiful!'

Great set, I particularly like #2.
--
Richard B.
http://www.pbase.com/richard_b

Do you know the photobook 'Dunes' by Stack?
You photos are inspiring in several ways - thanks for sharing these!

Bart
--
x700 - 7xi - 7 - 7D - A700... two more 7s to go...

Astonishing

both the environment as well as the photo's

nr 2 I find the most impressing. Shows the smallness of us human beings

Directly into the sun shots and the shadows near the roads shows the DR capability of this camera. If they were taken with a C and N camera, you would had more than 100 replies in a few hours.

a1man

Thanks for sharing, a wonderfull series from a good photografer.

--
http://www.pfenninger.ch

dw73 said:

Depth of Field on the Eureka Dunes - 70-300G:



Eureka Dunes - 70-300G:

Click to expand...

Hi dw73,

Just to clarify with you, your technique so that I understand it better. Cos I also have DOF issues with my wideangles (KM 17-35mm)... so some questions:

1) What was your focus mode? Wide area (where the camera decided where to focus) or selected AF sensor (you decided which sensor to use)?

2) In all your shots, did you focus-lock and recompose? Or did you shift the AF to the sensor nearest the area you wanted to focus on?

3) In the first shot that I reposted here, where was your focus? Was it on the lady on the ridge? Or was it on the ridge much more forward in the foreground? As in Q2, if the lady on the ridge was your focal point, did you focus-lock and recompose? Or you selected a sensor nearest to her? Cos she's off-centre.

4) What about the second shot where there really isn't any focal point in the foreground?

Thanks! Your replies will really help!

just what the a900 was made for.
The Tamron looks very good.

waveney
--
Next-door to World of Adventure

wow... these are amazing.
--
http://www.peterhu.hphomeserver.com/photo/

thank you so much for sharing these amazing images. Snow on the dunes is indeed a rare treat!

I'm thinking about going this coming week - checked the park website and it said the race track and many other areas are not accessible. Yet you seem to have made it no problem. Did you have any issues getting into the valley or at any other locations? We have a 4 wheel drive pickup . . .

Thanks, Cindy

--
******************************************
http://www.pbase.com/cindyd

Hi Cindy,

We had no major issues - The Racetrack road was actually in very good condition! The Racetrack playa surface was dry. I'm not sure when Dantes View will be open though. The Big Pine Road to Eureka Dunes has some snow at the passes, but it is also open and easy to pass. I highly recommend visiting the Eureka Dunes this time of year as they are partially covered in snow.

Hope you have a great trip,
Dave

Some excellent examples of why one would want a UWA lens - especially for a FF camera.
--
-Jerry
Sony V1, H5 and A350 - Still learning...

'The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.'
-- Dorothea Lange

http://www.pbase.com/icicle50/root

tme wrote:

1) What was your focus mode? Wide area (where the camera decided where to focus) or selected AF sensor (you decided which sensor to use)?

2) In all your shots, did you focus-lock and recompose? Or did you shift the AF to the sensor nearest the area you wanted to focus on?

3) In the first shot that I reposted here, where was your focus? Was it on the lady on the ridge? Or was it on the ridge much more forward in the foreground? As in Q2, if the lady on the ridge was your focal point, did you focus-lock and recompose? Or you selected a sensor nearest to her? Cos she's off-centre.

4) What about the second shot where there really isn't any focal point in the foreground?

1) I had the focus mode set to wide.

2) I used a combination of both methods, but usually relied on composing and watching where the red focus points locked on.

3) I tried focusing on the person on the ridge. I can't remember if I got focus points on the person and the distant ridge, but I kind of averaged it out in my mind and checked to see if the person was enough in focus...

4) This shot just used wide focus and centered the focus points on both ridges. I think since the ridges were so far away, the camera was able to focus on both fairly accurately.

Thanks,
Dave

Thanks again to all for the positive input. I'm a lot more critical of my own compositions, and I'm still learning how to maximize the A900's potential, but I just wanted to also mention that Death Valley never ceases to amaze me with its sheer amount of geology spread out over a relatively "small" area. I've heard noted geologists state that they can't think of another place on earth in which you can look into the earth to see the exposed rocks. And everytime I spend a night in Death Valley and wake up the next morning and look at the dirt, the rocks, the mountains, and the vegetation that does exist there, it always gives me this impression of a raw and unspoiled area of pastels and earth tones, let alone its badlands, salt flats, canyons, volcanic craters, sand dunes, valleys, and endless vistas.

Thanks again to all here - Death Valley is one of my favorite places.

Dave

ps Someone asked if I shot RAW or jpeg. I shot both, but all the shots I posted here were jpegs.

dw73 said:

Hi Cindy,

We had no major issues - The Racetrack road was actually in very good
condition! The Racetrack playa surface was dry. I'm not sure when
Dantes View will be open though. The Big Pine Road to Eureka Dunes
has some snow at the passes, but it is also open and easy to pass. I
highly recommend visiting the Eureka Dunes this time of year as they
are partially covered in snow.

Hope you have a great trip,
Dave

Click to expand...

--
******************************************
http://www.pbase.com/cindyd

Wonderful shots!
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/qwz/
http://www.pbase.com/qwz/selected/

How you got there? I am going to be in LV twice in the next few months so I would love to go there.

Thanks
--
Eugene

The only time a smaller sensor with the same pixel count is superior to a larger sensor (aka higher pixel density) is when you are focal-length limited.

Lee Jay

Well done, those are some impressive shots.