Photos from Giant and RPR

[the_swede]

Hi all,

Figure I'd switch things up a bit and share some pictures instead of posting a trip report from my most recent Adirondack adventure! Feel free to critique!

 

[adktyler]

Really nice, my friend! I like the second one of Giant's east face the best. It adds a new flavor to a popular shot. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Grumpy]

Deliciously dramatic monochromes ...

Beautiful lighting, wonderful textures. Bravo!

G.

 

[WinterWarlock]

Eric - is the last one going up Giant after passing one of the open slabs? I agree, though...nice pics. Love the b/w....

 

[the_swede]

Deliciously dramatic monochromes ...

Beautiful lighting, wonderful textures. Bravo!

G.

The skies are almost too dramatic! I attribute that to my use of a polarizing filter. Turns the sky dark in b&w. Mimimal editing was needed. Just some curve adjustments.

 

[the_swede]

Eric - is the last one going up Giant after passing one of the open slabs? I agree, though...nice pics. Love the b/w....

Thanks! I think that picture was actually taken heading up Rocky Peak. I should have posted the pictures in chronological order. From top to bottom it's: 1) summit of Giant, 2) near the summit of RPR looking at Giant, 3) summit cairn on RPR, 4) heading up RPR.

 

[the_swede]

Really nice, my friend! I like the second one of Giant's east face the best. It adds a new flavor to a popular shot. Thanks for sharing!

Aye, thanks. The only one worth posting in color too! Had to shift the color balance towards yellow in order to get the greens out in the trees. Otherwise, everything would just look blue.

 

[Rob S]

Really nice shots, Eric!
Definitely some good calendar material for next year. (ooops, wrong forum! )

 

[the_swede]

Really nice shots, Eric!
Definitely some good calendar material for next year. (ooops, wrong forum! )

Haha thanks. Maybe VFTT should start printing calendars that features the whole Northeast.

 

[Woody]

I really like the first and the third pictures. Nice job.

 

[Grumpy]

Clarification ...

Just in case, I want to make it clear that my reference to "monochromes" posted above was to all images in the original series, and not just the black-and-white conversions.

Even the second photo -- the one that appears in color -- really is a monochrome, predominantly blue, without real color contrasts.

The strength of all these photos lies in their monochromatic simplicity. We are left to appreciate these scenes for the play of light, rendition of texture, and tonal scale gradation, which is their essence.

Of course, that comes from an old-timey black-and-white photographer, who understands that B&W is not merely a second-rate alternative to color, but an exercise in the fundamental art of "writing with light."

G.

 

[Billy]

I agree with Grumpy...the texture of the snow in these photos is fantastic. Very Tom Murphy-esque (of Yellowstone fame).

Also, people usually want brilliant blue skies for winter photos. In your photos, I think the (semi)overcast skies worked in your favor...great exposures.

 

[Technetium]

These are nice! The high contrast brings out some great details. You have succeeded in making me wish I was there.

 

[Grumpy]

These are nice! The high contrast brings out some great details. You have succeeded in making me wish I was there.

To avoid confusion (or add to it?), the photos themselves exhibit a long, well graded tonal scale -- a lot of shades of gray or midtones (in color) as well as black and white. Thus, detail throughout the scene(s) is well preserved and rendered. It is the crisp directional lighting that is "contrasty" (higher contrast) here, and which brings out the textures so nicely.

G.