black and white

Fun with Ice!

admin Blog, Landscape February 23, 2023February 22, 2023black and white, Madison River

Well hello, world! It certainly has been a while since I posted anything, don’t worry I’m not dead or retired. As the saying goes life gets in the way of life but with time and effort, you always get back to what you’re good at. Except for writing blog posts, that still challenges me. Well truthfully I have been quite busy working with several aviation nonprofits here in Bozeman and at some point, I share some of that with all of you. For now, here are some photos of frozen and nonfrozen water.

I do enjoy photographing bodies of water in the wintertime. On sunny days you can have a lot of fun with ice because the light from the sun glistening off of the water combined with the light on the ice makes some great contrast. Ice itself is very bright and the contrast against dark water is a no-brainer. Fast pockets of water are naturally a good spot for black-and-white opportunities but combined with ice it can be even better. I was using the Nikon Z6II with the 24-120z lens and boy it was easy and fun at the river this day.

A Little Sunday Drive

admin Blog, Landscape March 30, 2021March 29, 2021black and white, Gallatin River, montana landscape

Spring is around the corner and these sixty degrees March days are really starting to get addictive but if you’ve lived in the Rocky Mountains for any period of time then you know not to get hooked on them. The weather can change awfully fast going into April and become very unpredictable so it’s important to get and enjoy while you can. I think that advice is good for anyone. After a long week of work, it’s good to get out for a drive with the camera and enjoy the scenery.

The Bridgers Got Some Light

admin Blog, Landscape February 26, 2021February 25, 2021black and white, Bridger Mountains

Well, I did say some, unfortunately, I was too slow to get to a good spot in time before the light was completely gone. I have always liked going out to shoot in between storms because that’s usually when the most dramatic skies appear. The other was no different. I got the camera as quickly as I could, drove out to a local spot, and photographed what was left of the light. the results, a nice evening, and a couple of quick clicks.

Good Old Black and White Mountains

admin Blog, Landscape February 23, 2021February 21, 2021black and white, gallatin mountains, Hyalite Canyon

I do love winter in Montana. The Bridger Mountains really come to life with a good snowfall and you get to see this entirely different side to the slopes. Even better when you get on a pair of skies and go back into some remote place and see the peaks that otherwise you just don’t get to. As always I had my Z50 with me and I couldn’t help but stop at this clearing and take a quick click of the peaks as the sun came out from the clouds. Naturally, the scenario screamed for a black and white conversion because all that contrast just made the scene pop.

A Little Black and White Action

admin Blog, Landscape June 25, 2020June 24, 2020black and white, three forks ponds

Montana is very blessed right now because the number of people to the size of the state is dramatically different. With a fewer number of people, the more places you can go by yourself. Small road trips are fun because you can see a different part of the world then you are used to without having to go real far. Thunderstorms are a common thing this time of the year so finding good clouds to work with isn’t very hard. I quick trip to the ponds on a good afternoon was all it took.

Barns in Snow

admin Blog, Landscape February 6, 2020February 3, 2020black and white, Bridger Mountains, montana winter, montana winter landscapes

Wintertime is a fun time to take the camera and play around with black and whites. It’s easy to see why as all the snow makes for the perfect white element so that just leaves the black element. This old barn outside of town made for that perfect element. Since I’ve photographed this barn in the past, I knew it would be a good subject for the afternoon. The white paint job makes it blend in more with the snow which is a unique element compared to most barns that are red and stick out more.

Long Lens Black and White

admin Blog, Landscape January 16, 2020January 12, 2020black and white, Bridger Mountains

There are many ways to capture a great black and white image when it comes to landscapes, but one of my favorites has always been to use a long lens. Trying to capture everything you see in the viewfinder can lead to extra elements that might not be worth having but using a long lens can isolate good elements that are stronger. The treelines on the mountainside were far more important to me than the mountain itself which is why I used the 600f4 to isolate the trees.

Snow if Good for Black and White

admin Blog, Landscape October 15, 2019October 14, 2019black and white, Bridger Mountains

With the increasing number of snowstorms throughout the state comes the multiple opportunities to make great black and white photographs. Snow acts as a wonderful element to add contrast to any image. Using a long lens is a great way to isolate any small pockets of light on the mountainside.

Image captured with Nikon D5, 200-400 VRII, on Lexar UDMA Digital Film

Black and White and Clouds

admin Blog, Landscape July 5, 2017June 14, 2020black and white, black and white landscape, gallatin mountains

Apparently Dad and myself think on similar wavelengths because right before the holiday he had a similar post. If you’ve spent much time with landscapes in the summer, then you know it’s not just us. Summer time is a great time to be doing landscapes because the afternoon can lead to some amazing cloud formations. As I posted about on Monday, those clouds can be great for sunset but they can also be great by themselves. All clouds have a texture, a shape, a dynamic to them and each shot should reflect that.

Black and white is a great way to go with just clouds because it really brings out the depth and drama to them. When it comes to this style the emphasis has to be on the clouds and not the landscape. Notice these images have very little foreground because the subject is the cloud formation in both and I wanted to emphasize that. Both were taken with the same setup, D5 and 24-70 AF-S. Yes I use that combo a lot. It’s just a good general setup. Then again that’s just me. This area of landscape photography is really fun and it really challenges you to break away from the rule of thirds and look at landscapes another way.

Winter Weather

admin Blog, Landscape April 27, 2017black and white, Bridger Mountains, montana landscape

Despite the fact that it is spring right now, we are getting snow. While this is great for water content, we need as much as we can get, for photography it’s a little boring. Grey skies never make for really interesting subject matter but the key thing to remember is that they don’t always last. If you’re patient, between snow showers comes small openings that let in light and drama in the clouds. That’s when it’s best to be ready to shoot.

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