Rushing water,colorful rocks can create a very nice composition.You must wait until very late in the evening for the lighting to warm up and bring out the color in the rocks. I have gotten exceptional results when the sun has disappeared below the horizon.In the photo I have placed rocks in the foreground and framed the running water with rocks to give the photo depth. This photo was shot at 75mm with the settings of 4.0 sec @ f29. This allows for great depth of field.
It is always exciting when you come upon a great composition of berries and fallen logs. John Kuzak and I were on a day trip down the Killarney highway when we spotted a pond just off the road. We decided that we would explore the pond on our way back. This would put us in late evening and good lighting. When we came back we walked into the pond locale and John pointed out the berries to me. I had never seen these red berries growing that thick together. With the bright red of the berries and green leaves offset by the grayish color of the fallen log I used the stump as my anchor and came up with this composition. With the camera on the tripod and lense zoomed to 34 mm,I set the shutter speed to 1/40 sec to get my f stops at F8.
I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year.
It was a cool mid November,when my partner Paul Smith and I had trekked into Cameron Falls ,North of Massey Ontario. The cloud cover was moving in that evening making for poor lighting on the waterfalls areas. As I walked among the rocks I spied a lone strawberry plant growing on a small ledge. Its location probably created a micro-climate in order for it to survive this late in the Fall. The reddish color of the leaves along with an interesting backdrop of yellowish rock would create an interesting composition. Setting up as close as I could with the tripod, I was maxed out at 135 mm and the camera was set at 2.5 sec @ f29. The cloudy skies and low lighting provided the soft light. Placing the Strawberry plant to the left in the photo and the small water puddle in the lower bottom right corner tells us that this plant has light and water to survive.Even when conditions are not ideal you can always locate interesting subjects to photograph.
I would like to take this time to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.
One of the things I like to do is explore new surroundings. Birch Creek flows East of Massey Ontario and there is a lovely waterfalls to photograph. My partner Paul Smith and I have made a number of trips here during the fall, but always bypassed the lower end of Birch Creek. We kept saying that we should check that area out. On our last trip late in the fall we walked down to the creek and started walking along it towards the waterfalls. This was late fall and most of the colored leaves had already fallen. With this in mind we would explore the area for photographing next year. Walking along the creek I spotted the golden sunlight coming through the trees up ahead and the creek bent to the left creating the around the bend effect.I quickly looked for foreground and found greyish colored rocks covered with lichen and moss. I also was able to get some leaf color into the photo also.This photo was shot at 50 mm with the zoom lense set at 1.6 sec. @ f29. We explored further along and found some more areas that will be worth checking out at a later date. By this time the creek area was becoming heavy in shadow.Needless to say we will come back next fall to do some more photographing here.
Water takes on a life of its own when you have the right evening conditions.The sky is clear and the sunlight is filtering through the trees, illuminating the reddish rocks in this particular photo.The reddish coloration will then turn the water into a reddish hue. The lighting is also very soft. It is almost dark when this occurs so you have to quickly set up your shot or lose it.The photo was captured at 28 mm with settings of 1 sec @ f22.The rocks in the background are also highlighted into a nice warm glow giving the photo added depth. The water goes from a reddish tone in the background to a more copper tone in the foreground.
Hello everyone. It is now winter in my part of the country.We had a couple inches of snow the other day. Thank you for the comment Rebecca.
I was at Chutes Provincial Park in Massey Ontario for the first time with a couple photogrphy friends,John Kurczak and Paul Smith exploring the Chutes and Severn Sisters Falls this fall.
When I am out photographing, I am always on the lookout for a composition that is a little different than normal. The above photo fits that scenario. By framing the rushing water with the reddish brown ferns at the bottom and left side,your eye is led into the photo. On the right are unique chocolate rocks that have uniform shapes to add to framing the water.This shot was taken on a cloudy day at 10:00 AM in the morning. I had to wait till the sun went behind clouds to even out the lighting and not blow out the highlights in the water.I shot this photo on tripod at 35mm set to 1/4 sec. @ f22.
One of the things I am always on the lookout for is something different to photograph. I like a tightly composed photograph that has no clutter. The Power of Water is such a photograph. It was composed using just the rocks and water in the composition.This photo was shot at 28 mm with settings of 1 sec. @ f22.I find evening is the perfect time to photograph water as the lighting is no longer harsh on the water. This prevents blown highlights when there is strong lighting striking the water.I had to get out on a narrow rock and set up my tripod at its lowest height. Seeing as there was not much room for me and the tripod I sat down and twisted my head to the camera and composed this shot. The rock I was on was very smooth and I had to be careful not to slide off into the cold water.
The next time you are out photographing look closely around you and you will be surprised at what you can find. Nature is full of hidden gems that will create a beautiful photo. Just be aware of your lighting. Until next time happy photographing
Late evening is my favourite time to photograph due to the nice warm soft lighting. This photo was shot at 0.6 sec @ F22 with the zoom set at 95mm. Most waterfalls locations are surrounded by evergreen trees with the deciduous trees in behind. A lot of the Pines and Spruce trees do very well on the rocky areas. To get this kind of lighting the sun is just below the tree line and lighting up the evergreens on the opposite side. This causes a reflection in the water that looks golden colored. I placed the pool in the foreground surrounded by the rocks to give me the depth I wanted . Then I wanted to show the lighting on the rocks in the background without showing all the rocks. Then with the rushing water to fill in the detail of the photo.
I had an interesting discussion with a friend of mine, Rob Bouchard who lives in the area. Rob was born and raised in the Massey Tote Road area. Rob discussed with me an ongoing concern by which the Forestry companies and our MNR are spraying chemicals over logged out areas to kill all deciduous growth so that the Pine saplings can grow without competition.When they do this there is no wildlife. For more information you can contact Rob at rb_bouchard@yahoo.ca
Thanks everyone who stopped by for a visit. I had a pleasant suprise this week as I had an interview published over at 1stAngel Arts Magazine. Here is the link http://1stangel.co.uk/art/ken-bennison-interview-with-the-photographer/print/ My thanks to Beth Edwards.
On a photographic field trip this week I capture a number of beautiful photos with exceptional lighting. The above photo is an example of what I was able to achieve. Shot at 60 mm with a shutter speed set at 1.6 sec @f22. The rock formations at Cameron Falls are spectacular as well as the color. When you get into very late evening the color of the rocks really come to the fore.The water in the foreground took on a bluish color along with a hint of gold.The really neat thing was the sunlight shining on the middle part of the falls adding to the atmosphere.If you look up at the top of the falls you can just see a hint of gold. This golden color was very common that evening. The lighting on the various rock faces also adds to the atmosphere. A Magical Place
This photo is available for purchase at FAA along with other photos I have taken. Until next time bye for now.
Yesterday,Sunday I hooked up with my good friend Rob Bouchard from Massey. Rob took me into Cameron Falls located up the Tote Road North of Massey on the Aux Sauble River.It was a beautiful nice warm day. There is a power dam located here . This is the type of falls that consists of many routes through the rock for the water to flow.This creates many photographic oppurtunities. To get to the far side of the falls we drove the truck up a side road and then walked in about a mile on a road till we came to Cameron Falls. I always injoy walking in the bush and at this time of year you can see for quite aways as the leaves have all fallen off.
The above photo was shot at 135 mm on at setting of 0.3 sec at F22. I was attracted by the rock structure in the foreground which had a nice reddish color to it using that I composed the photo as you see it.Cameron Falls has some very nice rock formations and coloration that helps create a good photo.
I fell in love with this location when we came upon it. The rock face on the right with the sunlight highlighting part of the rock face. The left side was in shadow. I shot this photo at 135 mm with the camera set 1.3 sec at F29. This allowed me to keep the rock face in focus in the foreground and also the rocks on the left help create depth. The lighting and shadows is what made this photo. The rocks at this falls have a red coloration. I had to take this photo at about 1:00 in the afternoon as the crevise was darkening up quickly. At this time of year the sun is not as high in the sky. Well thats it for now. I will be heading back up to Cameron Falls tomorrow to do some more photographing.
Ken Bennison's Photography 