Mom is still unpacking but I managed to sneak down to the lake for the pre-dawn pictures. Only able to edit on the phone but wanted to show off at least one today. More to come this week… 🙂
At the Dock
Early Morning
Category Archives: long exposure
Motion Blur
Imagination Pavilion, Future World, Epcot
Mondays are always difficult. The start of another work week. The first get up after a relaxing weekend. But they are also known in my Disney Photography world as Monorail Monday. I have posted lots of monorail images and as any frequent reader will know I have a thing for those darn monorails. 🙂
Today’s monorail image is a little different. It is more of a hint of monorail image than anything else. I also have a thing for photographing the reverse waterfall at the Imagination Pavilion in Epcot. This image combines those two favorites.
I was right in the middle of the evening blue hour. The sky still had that deep blue color and near the horizon you can catch a glimpse of the sun reflecting off the clouds. I setup the tripod with the thought of capturing the monorail as it approached the waterfalls. In order to freeze the monorail I would have had to increase my ISO to get a fast enough shutter speed.
I went in the other direction. I triggered the shutter as the monorail approached and captured the whole passing in a 25 second exposure. This allowed for a nice smoothing of the waterfall and monorail. You can still make out a few distinguishing features of the monorail… the red stripe, the white body and the window area. The headlight created a great reflection in the water.
Motion Blur
Nikon D7100, Tokina 12-28mm f/4, 25s, 12mm, f/11, ISO 200
Morning at the Bridge
192 Causeway over the Indian River
We had just spent the last two days at Disney. It was Wednesday morning and I was planning on taking the kids up to Kennedy Space Center. I had time, they were not getting up any time soon. I had just downed the cup of coffee my mother-in-law had made so the caffeine was going to kick in at any time. When I looked out the window I could see the sunrise was going to be beautiful.
The day we arrived in Florida I had taken the kids over to Melbourne Beach. My Leave Your Cares Behind post was from that little excursion. It wasn’t a great day then but I didn’t care. I was in Florida and on a beach. On our way over to the beach I had spotted a little park right on the edge of the Indian River where the 192 Causeway crosses over. I had a good feeling the view of the sunrise would be best from that vantage point.
When going out for sunrise pictures it is always best to arrive early. You want to be there at least thirty minutes if not an hour before the sun is suppose to break the horizon. The reason for the extra time is two-fold. One, you want to be able to search out a good location (if you haven’t done so already). The second is the light before the sun rises is actually the best. The time just before sunrise and/or just after sunset is known as the blue hour.
During this blue hour the sky takes on an extra deep shade of blue, fading as the sun nears the horizon. If you are lucky enough to have a few clouds in the sky, the sun will color those shades of red and orange as it rises. This is what I was hoping to capture this morning. I got lucky…
Morning Bridge
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 25s, 12mm, f/11, ISO 400
Shoot the Middle
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 30s, 12mm, f/16, ISO 200
Going East
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 25s, 12mm, f/16, ISO 200
Big Rocks
West Canada Creek
Although the last day of the year was an overcast day I took the opportunity with the recent rains to go play in the West Canada Creek. The area just below Trenton Falls is a favorite spot of mine and always provides me with great views for images. I was also trying out my adapter ring to allow me to use my old 77mm circular polarizer with my 12-40mm lens. I can’t use the lens hood with the filter but on a day like yesterday, a hood wasn’t needed.
There was a light coat of snow on the rocks around the overflow area which made for some slippery footing. My biggest fear was ending up in the water! Luckily I avoided that concern with some good balancing maneuvers.
I’ve mentioned before that capturing the water flow is a balancing act in itself. I don’t want too long of an exposure and completely smooth out the water, but I also do not want to freeze the motion with a quick shutter either. For this image an almost 1 second exposure produced the water flow I was looking for. The polarizer did not help a great deal with the shine on the rocks but I think the shine adds a nice contrast to the water.
These water images always look better in black & white. I also do not do as much sharpening on these water images as I like the look of the water with the long exposure. After all processing is done, I add just a slight silver tone to the image which is really just a personal preference.
Staring at the image I can still hear the water rushing past… it is very hypnotic.
Big Rocks
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 0.8s, 25mm, f/16, ISO 200
Before the Sun
Riverside Park, Indiatlantic, FL
Another trip to Riverside Park along the Indian River in Indiatlantic, FL. This trip was the morning of my last day in Florida. It was a challenge as the clouds were rolling in which would eventually bring the rain. On the plus side the clouds did obscure the full moon which allowed for this extremely long exposure of the 192 bridge and the fishing dock from the park.
Before the Sun
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 50s, 12mm, f/11, ISO 200
Simplicity
Riverside Park, Indiatlantic, FL
On the last morning of my vacation I headed out for one more photo opportunity. The full moon was still high in the sky but the clouds were starting to roll in. I had not scouted very many locations although the few I had used held plenty of opportunities. I decided to return to Riverside Park in Indiatlantic, which is just across the Indian River from Melbourne.
My original goal was to capture some images of the 192 bridge with this great dock in the foreground. If everything worked out I would catch the moon and its reflection as well. I did manage did get the images I wanted but as I was standing on the shore I noticed this great dock/boat lift off to my right. It wasn’t the colorful view I was getting with the bridge and sky but it reminded me of fine art, long exposure black and white images that I admire from a few photographers. This is my attempt at that style…
Simplicity
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 25s, 40mm, f/11, ISO 800
Full Risen
Indian River, Melbourne, FL
Well, sometimes you have to run with the image that knocks your socks off. I had another image all ready to go today but last night we went over to the water to see the full moon. The first stop was the park at the end of the 192 Causeway on the Melbourne, FL side. Just standing next to the water with the lights from the bridge and the moon I knew I was going to get a great image.
There was just the right amount of clouds in the sky to give the moon a glow and reduce the sharp moonlight. I had to manage the ISO to get a suitable long exposure. I didn’t want to completely glass over the water. I wanted to still have some texture in it. Increasing the ISO to 400 allowed for a 25 second exposure at f/13. I was ready to go back and start working on this image but we continued on over to the beach and that was just as beautiful. More on that image later…
Merry Christmas my friends!
Full Risen
Olympus OM-D E-M1, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 25s, 12mm, f/13, ISO 400
Crossroad Wars
Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World
I am positive it is related to leaving in 5 days for Florida but I also know that I love the entrance plaza at Hollywood Studios. Such a great nostalgic feel to this area and I am definitely in love with the Crossroads of the World kiosk. This view just after sunset as the sky is transitioning to the deep blues and blacks of night is my favorite time for photographing this iconic area. This image was captured in May when I was at the Studios for Star Wars Weekend.
Crossroad Wars
Nikon D7100, Tokina 12-28mm f/4, 25s, 13mm, f/16, ISO 100
MLCreations Photography 