Thursday, January 21, 2010

Week 38, Day 272, January 21, 2010, Ice


As I was walking back to work from lunch I noticed a lot of ice in the bottom of the gorge along side the creek.  After work I walked down part of the gorge to take these photos.  I didn't have my tripod with me, so I did the best I could.

I think if the lighting was just right, this could be an incredible subject.

Lessons Learned:
  • From what I've been reading, when photographing snow you should set your camera to over expose the photo by 1.5 to 2 stops.  This has worked fairly well for me for most photographs.  Today however on some of my shots of ice, there was a lot of exposed rocks.  These rocks were much darker in color.  My over exposing of those photos made the ice very over exposed.  I should have compensated for the dark rocks.  I should have also checked my histogram.
 Photo details: Exposure time 1/160 sec, Aperture f/3.5, ISO 200, Focal Length 115 mm, Lens Canon 70-200mm f2.8L USM, hand held.

11 comments:

Yolanda said...

I must say that your "Week 38" is kicking some serious arse. You must be becoming one with your T1i!

The ice makes for a very interesting subject, and has so much texture and dimension. It would be very cool to revisit this ice in different times of the day for different light reflections!

Andrew said...

Man, that's a sweet photo! I would definitely be returning with a tripod to play with different types of lighting and points of view. Sunset would be cool I bet. Worth trying anyway. You've found a nice spot.

Also, if you're trying to overexpose the snow/ice, Spot metering mode might help.

Rune Eide said...

Icicles are interesting subjects, but difficult. I think you managed it well, despite the problematic light. Be aware that the histogram shows the data for the equivalent JPG - not for the RAW file. If you use Camera RAW in PS SCS3 or 4, or Lightroom, they are better at saving partially overexposed area than Canon's own program. And there is a simple solution - take several exposures with different settings.

Nicki said...

Love it! I keep thinking I want to pull over as I drive by these walls on the road that are covered like this. Alas, I don't. Great shot!!

Anonymous said...

I think Rune's solution is the better one. I can set my Canons to take a series of three or five photos with each one a different setting. When I worked in R&D, the photographs were taken in a sequence:

1 overexposed
1 underexposed
1 spot on

Gary's third pottery blog said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8BxbdQqMRE

Gallow said...

All,

I really appreciate all your comments, and suggestions. I've been learning a lot from all of you, and it's really helping in my journey.

Andrew & Yolanda, You're right I was using Matrix metering. Thank you for the suggestion. One of the big problems in our area is that we are mostly cloud covered at this time of year. It's difficult to get days that there are sun. I'll keep an eye, and try to get there on a sunny day at different times of day.

Rune & Abraham, I didn't know that about the histogram. I've been shooting in RAW/JPEG mode where the camera records both. When I have my tripod, most times I do bracket my photos and take three shots. When I don't have my tripod I forget to do this. I didn't have my tripod, I'll have to remember to still bracket.

Gary, ice baby ice. I guessed which video it was before I opened it. lol It's dangerous in that we are beginning to think similarly.

Sandra said...

I think it's a great image. Wonderful location. I'd like to see the difference if you retake this shot.
Thanks for recommending the running book. I'm always looking for ways to improve my photography and my running.

AB said...

Impressive icicles. They do seem to be nicely lit in this shot.

cpowell said...

I've been following your blog for a couple months now. I like that you give tips on what you learned and the exposure details, etc. It seems your photography is consistently improving.

One suggestion for this photo is crank up the aperture and lower the shutter speed. That would give the running water that smooth, "milky" look you see in some photos. It's only the background but may improve it slightly. Nice job.

Gallow said...

cpowell, Thank you for the suggestion. I agree. I didn't have my tripod with me, and my hands are not steady enough to hold the lens that still. But, if I do go back, I will do as you suggest.