A Zen photography experience

Just after sunrise yesterday, I was in a nature preserve photographing the bright, early-morning cloud reflection on the surface of a peaceful lake when a fish jumped and left behind a set of expanding concentric rings. I had the Fuji X-H1 and the new Fuji 16-80mm f/4 zoom already poised for photography and immediately swung it to capture two quick images of the ring in rapid succession. Later I stitched the two photos together to make this long panorama of the scene. For me the image has a zen-like, meditative quality to it and reminds me of why I turn to the elements of Nature as the prime subject for my photography.

I had been using the cloud reflections in the water as a backdrop for photos I had been taking of birds feeding along the shore in the early morning. I stalked this Great Blue Heron to capture its profile using the same camera/lens combo I as I did for the photo above. And below it are a couple of other variations from the same scene.

Over the Everglades

A few weeks ago I rented a helicopter to do a photo tour over the Florida Everglades.  I wanted to create some abstract images by shooting straight down at the patterns of land and water. After some research I chose an area of the Everglades in the far southern end, right across from the Florida Keys. I was using a Nikon Z7 camera with the new Z 24-70mm f/2.8  S lens. This combo with its high res sensor and built-in image stabilization to dampen the vibration from the helicopter was perfect for the job.

The photo immediately below was taken on our way to the site and shows a water spout coming from a cumulus storm cloud in the distance.

The doors were off the helicopter and once we located a suitable location for my project, the pilot would bank the helicopter in tight circles over the area so I could point the camera straight down. The samples below are some of the results.  

It was a sunny day with a good number of puffy clouds to case shadows on the terrain below. That resulted in the contrast of dark and light areas that gave the shots some interesting volume. 

Drones are not allowed to fly over the Everglades so a helicopter was the only way to go. Plus, I always feel like I have more control over the composition when I'm in a helicopter. In any event, it would have taken a massive professional movie drone to come anywhere near the camera quality of the 100MP Nikon Z7. 

Back to basics with the Fuji X-Pro2

There is something about the Fuji X-Pro2 camera that I really love. Could be the design, reminiscent as it is of the Leica M rangefinder, one of my all time favorite cameras. The X-Pro is the camera I grab when I'm not sure I really want to tote a camera along with me. It's smaller than my other cameras and I've dressed it up with some specific lenses that keep it compact, convenient, and simple. The three lenses I use on it are the Fuji 18mm f/2, Fuji 23mm f/2.8, and the original Fuji 18-55mm zoom. I also have a set of 43mm close-up filters to get in close with the 23mm lens. Most of the time I go out with only one of these lenses on the camera.

I happened upon a large pile of decaying palm fronds on a morning walk with the X-Pro2 and the 18mm f/2 lens. For years I have been photographing leaves in a state of decay where they take on twisted, sculptural shapes as they transition to another stage of life. There is something I find quite beautiful in this transitional phase of nature. I was attracted to the subtle colors of blue, yellow, and ochre I saw in the palms. Later in Photoshop I boosted the colors and extended their palette by working on the images in the LAB color space. I didn't really change the colors; I just boosted what I saw there in the original scene, and this is the result.

Keeping it simple with the Fuji X-Pro2 and 23mm f/2 lens

For the past week, and the last couple of blog posts, I have been going on my photo walks carrying only the Fuji X-Pro2 equipped with the Fuji 23mm f/2 lens.  On this walk I concentrated on photographing dead and decaying tropical leaves. In their various states of decay, leaves go through subtle color changes that are quite beautiful, and at the same time the leaves twist and reshape themselves into unique sculptural forms to catch the light.

Sticking to one simple camera and prime lens combo forces me to concentrate more on the basic composition of the subject and less on the manipulative abilities of my equipment.

The color variations of the decaying leaves are very subtle. To bring out their natural hues I change the color mode to LAB in Photoshop. This color mode allows me to make non-destructive enhancements to the existing colors that displays them in a fuller palette.

Variations on a theme

An interesting result of photographing the same subject over and over again is that it forces you to dig deeper into your creative self to find new ways of photographing or presenting the subject. I find it a great way to grow my technique.

There is a group of tropical plants not far from my house where I often go to photograph, either to test our equipment or just because I need to do a little creative exercising by stretching my imagination. 

Images were taken with a Fuji X-Pro2 and 35mm f/2 lens.

The images are a composite of two images, one of the plants and the other of a textured wall. I applied the same post-processing technique to both of these photographs so they could work alone or be presented as a diptych arrangement hung next to each other, as below.

Retro shooting with the Fuji X-Pro2 and 23mm f/2 lens

I always get something of a nostalgic rush whenever I pick up my Fuji X-Pro2 camera to photograph. Last year I traded in my Fuji 23mm f/1.4 lens for the more compact f/2 version because I felt it would make a more compact kit that would entice me into using it more on those occasions where I wasn't going out specifically to shoot but wanted to have a camera with me just in case I ran across an interesting subject. Essentially, I was creating something similar to the Fuji X100F with its f/2 23mm lens. The only thing lacking in the comparison was that the lens of the X100 series cameras could photograph more close-up -- something I especially liked about the combo. 

Lately, I've been working on a photographic series of tropical plants. Rather that capturing the more vibrant colors and studied tropical compositions, I've been leaning towards a muted palette and casual composition and trying to portray a look that is more casual and happenstance. I don't want to overwork the composition so I stick mostly to fixed focal length lenses, and especially the Fiji 18mm f/2, which has become one of my favorites.  

The camera/lens combo shown above is the perfect size to conveniently carry around. For close-up shots, I've adapted the old 62mm Nikon 5 & 6T close-up lenses, which I often tuck away in a pocket, just in case they're needed. Admittedly, it would be even more convenient to have just the X100F, but I've been resisting adding another camera to my already over-abundant arsenal of equipment.  Plus, the X-Pro2 does allow me to use my other lenses and is a more suitable backup camera when I'm on location with my X-H1.  

Bird photography with the Fuji X-H1 and 100-400mm f/2.8 zoom

Last night was one of those ideal winter days in Florida, a pleasant 72º with clear, dry skies. I decided to head over to one of my favorite wildlife sites, the Green Cay Wetlands in Boyton Beach, Florida to photograph some of the birds that are more abundant this time of year. This was to be more of a relaxing walk than a full-out photo shoot so I took only one camera and lens with me, the Fuji X-H1 camera with 100-400mm zoom lens. Just in case I needed something longer, I stuffed a Fuji 1.4X telextender in my pocket, but I never did need it.

It was late in the day, just before sunset, and I decided to rely on auto-ISO to vary the exposure to make my life a little easier as I swung the camera from dark to light areas and back again to capture the active birds.  My auto-ISO bracket was set from 200 to 1600. I don't really like going over that with an APS sensor, especially considering the fine details of the birds' feathers. I worked my aperture wide open to further keep the ISO down, and also allow for high shutter speeds to stop any action.

 My ISO ranged from 200-1250 for all the photos shown here. I do almost all of my noise correction now in Adobe Bridge. The Fuji X-cameras are often compared to full frame for their image quality. Even with the higher ISO's it would be hard to tell these shots from what I achieve with my full frame Nikons under these same conditions. A great deal of that image quality comes from the Fuji optics, which, for their higher end lenses is exceptional.

Few birds are as majestic as the Great Blue Heron