Tag Archives: landscape

Tarrytown Light

Posted by Mike on

When I realized my daughter would need to make a trip to Pace University for the FTC Robotics competition I started searching on the web for what would be available to explore with my camera. As I mentioned in a previous post I didn’t research deep enough and feel I missed some great opportunities but too late to cry about that any more. The very first attraction I found that I wanted to capture was the Tarrytown Light.

The Tarrytown Light is a small lighthouse on the east side of the Hudson River in Sleepy Hollow, NY. The main attraction for me, besides just being a cool lighthouse, was the ability to have the Tappan Zee bridge in the background with the lighthouse. I thought there would be some great possibilities for images. One of my original ideas was to get a late evening, early night capture with the bridge lights in the background and maybe even some light reflections off the water.

I did manage to find the Kingsland Point Park which would allow me to get a clear view of both the lighthouse and bridge but when I arrived after dropping my daughter off at the college the first night it was too dark without any park lights to allow me to venture far from the car. The next morning was a much better time for my first trip through the park and resulted in the images below. If it wasn’t almost four hours from my house I would be heading back some time soon to grab that night view.

I will also have to keep an eye on the status of some construction occurring near the lighthouse as it did prevent me from getting closer. Other images I have found on the web appear to be from a very close vantage point and there was a walkway that brings you right past the lighthouse. I’m thinking a weekend trip later in the year!

Tarrytown Light and Tappan Zee Bridge Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/400s, 90mm, f/13, ISO 200

Tarrytown Light and Tappan Zee Bridge
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/400s, 90mm, f/13, ISO 200

Tarrytown Light - Landscape Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/400s, 190mm, f/13, ISO 200

Tarrytown Light – Landscape
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/400s, 190mm, f/13, ISO 200

Tarrytown Light - Portrait Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/500s, 200mm, f/13, ISO 200

Tarrytown Light – Portrait
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/500s, 200mm, f/13, ISO 200

Snow Dam

Posted by Mike on

The weather yesterday was almost perfect for a winter day in Upstate NY. The temperature was above freezing (if only slightly) and the sun was out during the afternoon. How could I sit inside just waiting for the new year to arrive.

I threw on some appropriate clothes for trudging through snow and headed out the door with the camera. I had a few scenes in mind that could work in the mid afternoon sun but eventually I ended up at Delta Lake dam just north of Rome. I’ve found this is a location I have no trouble visiting repeatably as there is always something of interest to photograph.

As I worked my way down to the water I noticed another adventurer admiring the view. At first I thought it might be a fisherman but as we said ‘Hello’ I noticed the long lens attached to the camera around his neck. He was out hoping to capture one of the eagles that inhabit the trees around the dam. We stood and talked for quite a while before he decided they were not coming out and I was going to lose my sun behind the approaching clouds. It is always nice to meet fellow photographers.

I played around the dam for another thirty minutes before the sun disappeared behind the clouds. I think I like this area best during the winter. The views are wide open with all the foliage hidden beneath the snow. These images are not possible during the summer…

Delta Lake Dam Memorial Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/80s, 21mm, f/16, ISO 200

Delta Lake Dam Memorial
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/80s, 21mm, f/16, ISO 200

Snowfall Dam Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/100s, 21mm, f/16, ISO 200

Snowfall Dam
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/100s, 21mm, f/16, ISO 200

Dam View Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, (1/5, 1/20, 1/80s brackt), 17mm, f/20, ISO 200

Dam View
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, (1/5, 1/20, 1/80s brackt), 17mm, f/20, ISO 200

Winter Wonderland

Posted by Mike on

I had promised my daughter we would go see The Hobbit yesterday so I convinced her to go to the first show of the day. Getting the near 3 hour movie in early was important because it was looking like the sun was going to be out and I didn’t want to miss an opportunity to get outside with the camera. A little selfish, I know, but with the snow we have been receiving I had an image in my mind I wanted to capture and the possibility it would present itself yesterday was great. Luckily, she understands my photography insanity and manages to accommodate me. 🙂

We arrived back home with an hour to spare before sunset.  I didn’t even take off my coat, just gabbed the camera and tripod and headed down the road. I have been watching the snow accumulate on this lone pine tree in the corner of a fenced in field and thought it would look best in the setting sun. I used my telephoto lens to bring the barn across the fields closer and compress the whole scene.

I had to wait 10 – 15 minutes while the sun played peek-a-boo with the clouds but eventually it lit my scene as I wanted. I’m not sure if the cars passing me while I stood on the side of the road knew what I was doing as some of the drivers gave me some interesting looks. Any of my neighbors are use to the crazy guy walking the roads and fields with his camera but the casual visitor to my neck of the woods always wonders what I’m up to.

My Winter Wonderland scene was exactly what I wanted to capture. I made a few adjustments in Lightroom 4 then processed the image with Topaz Labs’ Adjust 5. I used the plugin to bring out some additional detail in the snow and grass.  I tried not to over-process the image but I did want just a little extra punch in it.

Winter WonderlandNikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/25s, 55mm, f/18, ISO 200

Winter Wonderland
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/25s, 55mm, f/18, ISO 200

Thoughts on a Sunday

Posted by Mike on

If you are a landscape photographer or generally only capture images of landscapes, how far do you go while processing your image? How much do you enhance the image? Do you attempt to create an image that is the best you can make? Or, do you try for as much realism as possible? Is your processing based on the scene or do you have a general ‘look’ to your images?

I was driving home from work the other day and the sun was breaking through a dark cloud cover. I was amazed by the clarity of the sunlight shining through the holes in the clouds. It was a very intense light that was begging me to pick up my camera. I knew in my head what I wanted in the foreground to help create a more interesting image. There was a tree in the field close to home that had the brightest yellow leaves. They would just ‘pop’ out of the picture against the clouds. I couldn’t drive fast enough.

My problem became a race against the wind. The clouds were moving too fast and I was losing my image. When I did arrive at the field I quickly pulled over, grabbed the camera and tried to make a picture as nice as the one I envisioned in my head. It didn’t quite work out as I had hoped. There was a second tree in the field next to my yellowed leaf beauty that was just empty branches. The clouds had already started to fill in the holes and the beams of sunlight were not as intense as I saw when I started this race. I clicked away for a few minutes and then the scene was gone.

The image below is the straight out of camera image…

Shine Down on Me – SOOC
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/160s, 62mm, f/11, ISO 400


I have stared at the images from that day for a while now. I wasn’t happy with how they turned out and I almost deleted them more than once. I decided I should try to see what I could create and set about processing the best of the group. I know the original thought in my head was to create a ‘landscape’ image which I have always associated with trying to make it look as ‘real’ as it was when the shutter clicked. That just wasn’t happening.

I ended up using Lightroom to do all my basic adjustments. Warm up the image slightly to help bring out the colors. Reduce the noise in the image. Tweak the highlights and shadows. Sharpen the image as I was just slightly out of focus. When I finally had everything set I threw the image in Topaz Labs Adjust and went to the HDR presets. I selected the ‘Dynamic Brightness’ preset and went to work tweaking the settings. The image below is the final result.

Shine Down on Me
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/160s, 62mm, f/11, ISO 400


You can definitely see the beams of sunlight and the autumn colors look good against the dark clouds but the image looks unreal to me. It is somewhat close to the image I had in my head when I first caught sight of the sky but it is far from what was really before me when I captured the scene. Now don’t get me wrong, I use all the tools at my disposal while processing my images. I’m not sure what my issue is with this particular image but if feels fake to me. I think I ‘pushed’ it too far while processing in my attempt to highlight the beams of sunlight. I know I have created other images that are far removed from reality so I’m struggling with what it is about this image that bothers me.

I would definitely be interested in any thoughts on this image or processing in general. Thanks…

Color Lines

Posted by Mike on

Whenever I have to go to the high school I end up passing this view on one of the back roads. I always want to stop to capture a picture but usually it is not worth pulling over. The other day everything seemed to line up for me. The dark clouds hanging over the valley with the sun shining down closer to me. I really like the way the lines were illuminated…

Color Lines
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/320s, 120mm, f/11, ISO 400