A Hike on the Unfinished Railroad

A few weeks back, I took a hike at the Manassas National Battlefied, site of two ferocious battles in the US Civil War. The Unfinished Railroad is a trench dug for rails, but never finished. It was a center of the second battle of Manassas.

 

I shot these images with my Rolleiflex SL2000F. Man, I love this weird old camera.

 

You could smell the summer honeysuckle all along the trail.

 

 

This monument is at the end of the trail. It reads: "In Memory of the Patriots Who Fell at Groveton, August 28th, 29th, & 30th, 1862.

 

 

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Desolation - Lumix LX100

Desolation, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100

 

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Spider's Web, Waihe'e Ridge, Maui

 

Spider's Web, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7, Sigma 60mm f2.8 Art Lens

 

From my sunrise hike up Waihe'e Ridge in Maui. Sometimes jet lag can be a good thing. Today, it made it awfully easy to be up before dawn for the drive to the trailhead.

 

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Some Fungi - Lumix LX100 in Macro Mode

Yesterday, I posted a couple of images from my hike at Sky Meadows State Park in Delaplane, Virginia. Here are a few interesting fungi I found along the trail and shot with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100.

This one was enormous (~4" diameter) and looked like it was made of velvet.

The closeup capability of the LX100 is also impressive. Such a flexible camera.

 

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Hiking Practice - Sky Meadows State Park - Lumix DMC-LX100

I've been practicing for a hiking and camping trip I'm going on in August. I'll be going to the Desolation Wilderness in California for a two night journey. At my age, you need to get the body used to carrying a full backpack and walking multiple miles before heading out into the wilderness. I also need to break in a new pair of boots.

 

I've been doing most of my practice in a neighborhood "nature preserve," which consists of a boardwalk over some wetlands. Very flat, but convenient to home. Today I went out to Sky Meadows State Park in Delaplane, Virginia, to add some elevation and hills to the practice. Here are a couple of shots I made there with my Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100.

Sky Meadows Barn, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100, Edited in Snapseed

Sunflower, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100, Edited in Snapseed

 

The LX100 is the perfect hiking camera. I can wear it on my backpack belt, and it really doesn't get in the way. It may be the only camera I take on the actual hike. But, I'll probably also take along the Fujifilm GS645S medium format film camera.

 

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Tips for Better Hiking Photography, Skip Spitzer on Luminous Landscape

I love to do outdoor and nature photography. I love to hike. My family hates to hike with me because I do too much photography on our hikes. Balance is important. However, now I have the excuse that I'm just staying aerobic, after reading Skip Spitzer's post on the Luminous Landscape blog.

 

Family Hike at Shenandoah National Park (Will They Ever Go Again?), by Reed A. George

 

In Skip's post, he gives quite a lot of information about how to be a better hiker and photographer at the same time.

 

(Click Here) to read the full post. Here are the points that were most important to me:

 

1. Have a real relationship with the nature you're photographing
2. Be skillful enough in your hiking to be at ease, feel the "flow" of the experience
3. Focus on keeping your energy usage aerobic (go slow, with only short bursts of intense activity)
4. Learn about the best hiking gear and materials (a cotton shirt isn't the best idea)
5. Learn to understand, respect, and manage the risks so that you can enjoy the experience

In the post, you'll also see a link to Skip's video program, which you can view for only $10. I'll probably do that when I have time.

 

So, you see, the reason I stop every ten feet or so to shoot several pictures is that I'm trying to stay aerobic. Yes, I quite like that excuse.

 

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Results from December's SFTC Camera, the Nikon F2 - in B&W

For my final Skeletons From The Closet selection for 2013, I used the awesome Nikon F2. I purchased this one from KEH for ~$120 in EX condition. It's actually unbelievably close to like new in condition, and I believe an incredible bargain.

 

Here are some of the shots I made with the F2 in December, all on Kodak TMax 400 black and white film. I've noted the lens used where I'm sure I remember it correctly.

 

First, a few from a walk in Washington, DC:

 

 

Made With Nikkor 50mm f1.4 pre-AI Lens

 

Made with the Nikkor 28mm f3.5 pre-AI Lens.

 

 

December was a busy (at work) and cold month here in Virginia, but I did get out for a couple of hikes. The remainder of the images in this post were made on two separate hikes nearby home.

 

 

The preceding four images were made with the 200mm f4 pre-AI lens. I purchased that lens from Camera West for $75 in absolutely beautiful condition.

 

 

 

And finally, a shot I made at a Buddhist temple in Warrenton, Virginia.

Incense, by Reed A. George

Nikon F2, Nikkor 50mm f1.4 pre-AI Lens

 

It is terribly fun to use the F2. I have two of them now, both with the first photomic viewer and meter, the DP-1. I've found that the meter can be a bit unpredictable (and slow to react), so I usually carry a lightmeter along, in my pocket. However, I realized a great improvement in meter performance when I switched to Duracell DL1/3NBPK Ultra Photo Lithium/Manganese Dioxide batteries (see link to purchase them at Amazon below). These batteries are designed for camera systems, and really seem to put out a more consistent voltage than alkalines, especially as they age.

 

The F2 handles like a dream to me. I love using manual focus lenses. Since the F2 is designed for pre-AI lenses, I've gotten to explore several inexpensive yet well-preserved lenses for very low cost. And the results are spectacular in my opinion.

 

I do find myself considering the purchase of the new Nikon Df, which will work with essentially all of the historic Nikon lenses, including Pre-AI. However, similar to my Monochrom(e) experiments using the Leica M4-2 film camera, I have plenty to shoot with the F2. I'll keep using this camera into 2014.

 

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Another Set of Pics From November's SFTC Camera - Ricoh 500G 35mm Rangefinder

We're well into December, and the final month of Skeletons From The Closet (SFTC), a series I ran throughout 2014 where I take out and shoot a different old camera from my collection each month. I will be posting the December camera selection soon.

 

November's SFTC camera was the Ricoh 500G. (Click Here) to read my introductory post on the the camera. And (Click Here) to see the first set of results, some street photographs from NYC.

 

And now for some very different results - not from the city but from a hike in the Virginia hills. These were all shot on a single hike, using iso 400 print film.

 

 

 

The place I hiked, Beverley Mill, has a couple of old rural cemeteries on its trails. I found this one (Dawson cemetery) on this, my first hike in the area:

 

 

It's crazy how the tree grew around the single headstone. It's a pretty lonely place.

 

I love the light on the tree in this shot below:

 

The little Ricoh 500G rangefinder makes a very good hiking camera. It's tiny, and produces decent images. No frills, but it is easy to throw in a backpack, and is extremely light weight.

 

I hope you've enjoyed SFTC and the results from this unsuspecting little camera.

 

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Another Long Day on Maui, Short Post

 

Sunrise at Iao Valley, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

 

I had a long day of photography today. The girls went off to shop and go to the Maui Aquarium. I hiked around the Iao Needle, then hung out in Wailuku and Paia Town.

 

While Hiking, I carried my Leica M9 (with WLL lens for August, the Summicron 35mm f2), SFTC camera (Agfa Record III), and the LX7. The LX7 was out and around my neck the whole time. I used the built-in HDR quite a bit. The LX7 is so versatile, I had to remind myself to bring out the other cameras. Each did well in its own way. I'm looking forward to seeing the Agfa Record pictures, but those will take a while to get developed.

 

Anyway, just wanted to make sure I get a post in before going to bed for the night. Maui is a blast!

 

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A Walk In The Woods, With Leica M9 - Composing Differently

Yesterday, I posted an image I made at Manassas National Battlefield, on my way to a hike at the Shenandoah National Park. Here are some shots from the hike itself.

 

I have been in the situation of shooting nature with my M9 recently. Not exactly what most nature photographers grab on their way out, the rangefinder presents challenges. It doesn't play well with long telephoto lenses or macro. This is part of the fun for me. In fact, it forces me to compose differently, maybe even better in some cases.

 

This little white mushroom was sticking out of a bank of green along the trail. If I were carrying my Nikon DSLR, I would have been motivated to grab a macro lens, and show as much detail of the mushroom as possible. It did have an interesting texture; this would not have been a bad idea. But, it would have missed some of the context, the contrast between this little fungus and everything else around it. This month's Whole Lotta Leica Lens, the Summicron 35mm f2, showed that quite well.

 

Shroom, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Leica Summicron 35mm f2 Version 3

iso 400, f8, 1/25 sec.

 

Perhaps a little more in the normal Leica realm, I really liked the abstract shapes made by the flowing water, wood, and stone in the creek below. I would have liked to use a neutral density filter and get a longer exposure, to let the water flow even more. I don't carry filters for my Leica lenses.

Creek, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Leica Summicron 35mm f2 Version 3

iso 160, f16, 1/3 sec.

I shot the leaf below from several angles before getting what I wanted. What really attracted me was the reflection of the green leaves and dark tree trunks above the water. This green patch was actually quite small, so my shots with the 35mm wide angle lens included too much. I switched to my lovely little Canon LTM 135mm f3.5 lens. This is an amazingly sharp lens. I was able to get it up on a tripod pretty high, and isolate the reflections from the rest of the scene. The leaf in the water provides an anchor point for the eye.

Summer Reflection, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Canon LTM 135mm f3.5 Lens

iso 400, f5.6, 1/60 sec.

I spied this Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon), sunning himself by the creek. My nature photographer instincts kicked in, and I started shooting from afar, to make sure I got a shot of him. Again using the 135mm, a rather modest telephoto length, I kept easing closer and closer. Here's the closest shot I got.

Northern Water Snake, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Canon LTM 135mm f3.5 Lens

iso 320, f6.7, 1/1000 sec.

Upon looking at all of the shots I took when I got home, I discovered the one below. Including the full body of the snake, and more of his surroundings, I actually prefer this one:

Northern Water Snake With Context, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Canon LTM 135mm f3.5 Lens

iso 320, f6.7, 1/1000 sec.

 

I most definitely would not have made the shot above with a DSLR and long telephoto. Just to be clear, this is not a weakness of the DSLR per se. It is my own way of thinking when I'm using that equipment. I'm really glad that I forced myself to work with what I had.

 

I continue to learn about this interface of equipment and creativity.

 

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Lumix DMC-TS3 and I Go Fossil Hunting Again - Lots of TS3 Images

One of my favorite local activities here in Northern Virginia is fossil hunting. I'm very fortunate to have close friends who really know their Paleontology - both academic and in the field. For more on that -

 

(Click Here) to go to paleoquest.org, my friends' non-profit organization, targeting education in prehistoric science.

 

So, Jason Osborne and I headed out on President's Day for a day of fossil hunting near Liverpool Point in Maryland. I carried my Lumix DMC-G3 and 100-300 zoom in a backpack all day, never taking it out. I did, however, shoot little vignettes of the day, all day long, with my waterproof Lumix DMC-TS3. Here they are (pretty much straight from the camera):

 

 

Bird Tracks, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f10, 1/250 and 1/20 sec, respectively

 

Icicles, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, 3.3, 1/1000

 

Yes, it was cold in the morning. However, there was essentially no wind, no cloud cover, and it got up into the 40s later in the day. All in all, the nicest day we've seen in a while.

 

Duck Blind, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 160, f3.3, 1/1000

 

 

For some reason, I really like this shot. I knew I liked it when I shot it. Yes, the subject is centered, a compositional no-no. I like the "T" shape made by the combination of the dock and the horizon. I also like the bush sticking out of the roof.

These next two shots seem to me like they could have come from the desert southwest. I'm told this is likely holocene (recent) river bed.

 

 

Sedimentary Layers, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 160, f10, 1/100 (both shots)

 

I thoroughly enjoy shooting with the TS3. I used iAuto pretty much all day, which means that I didn't make any decisions other than composition. The small sensor provides lots of depth of field regardless of settings (except in extreme closeups), so I can trust the camera to take care of exposure for me, and not worry about it. On these fossil trips, I'm usually carrying other stuff, and in this case had multiple layers of clothing to contend with as well. Having the little TS3 in my hand was so simple.

Speaking of closeups, again the small sensor and wide focal length lens allow you to get very close. Here are a few examples.

 

Barnacles (Modern), by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f10, 1/160

Turritella Fossil, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f3.3, 1/250

Tracks, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f10, 1/320

 

Oyster, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f10, 1/320

 

And here's the real goal - a shark tooth. This one was sticking right out of the cliff side. It's nice to find them this way, as the real Paleontologists can see which layer they're in. And, they're not worn down by wave and sand. Beautiful.

 

Tooth in the Matrix, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3

iso 100, f10, 1/160

 

Unlike most days out in the field with Jason, we didn't find anything spectacular on this trip. But, we sure had a good time walking the shore, enjoying some sunshine, and having a laugh or two.

 

The TS3 was a useful tool for grabbing some images along the way. I hope you enjoy them.

 

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There's a newer version of the DMC-TS3, the TS4. I would recommend this camera for a nice balance of image quality and toughness (including shock resistance and waterproof operation).