Changing Light

I shot these images of Oneida Lake over a period of 22 minutes, with 11 minutes between each. There is no better time of day for landscape photography than the early morning, and these images are a good example of how quickly the light changes at that hour. I've spent quite a bit of time looking over these trying to choose my favorite, but I can't. Each has its own mood, its own strengths. I'm partial to the first one I suppose because of its blue tones and longer exposure (20 seconds), I love the juxtaposition of the soft water with the hard rock.

www.chrismurrayphotography.com 

Bucktail Falls

Waterfalls are another subject of which I've grown somewhat tired of shooting. Again, largely a case of been there, done that. And yet, I cannot stay away. This is Bucktail Falls, located just south of Otisco Lake in the Finger Lakes region of NY and a waterfall I only recently learned about. There was a lot of debris around these falls so I decided to crop it closely. The boulder in front provided the perfect foreground element. It's all about foreground, baby!

http://www.chrismurrayphotography.com

Death Valley Retrospective

I still have a few photos from my trip to Death Valley National Park in March to share. So far this spring I haven't had much time for photography, which is frustrating for me to no end. That will change starting next week fortunately. In the meantime I hope you enjoy these.

Early morning sun on the Mesquite Dunes

Moon hanging over sunlit Telescope Peak from Badwater Basin

The sunlit peaks of the Panamint Range with the colorful badlands in the foreground

Macro Photography

Grape Hyacinth

I find April to be the most frustrating month for landscape photography; the trees are still bare and yet there's no snow left (thankfully). It's largely a month characterized by myriad shades of brown and gray. Out of desperation this is when I break out my macro lens and hit the backyard.

Close-up photos of flowers is not my favorite subject, and I usually avoid making them. I've been doing this photography thing for many years now, and it's partly a case of "been there, done that". It's also a subject that's been overdone, to say the least, and unless it's done well tends to be cliche'. There are those photographers who excel at it, however, Stephen Gingold being one of them.

A macro lens is a must for those interested in close-up photography, its versatility opens up a world of possibilities and the potential for more original photographs. A macro lens allows the photographer to get much closer to the subject than  with a regular lens, thereby enabling an exploration of detail that would otherwise not be possible. For example, the flowering portion of the grape hyacinth is in reality a little over an inch tall, but in these photographs appears much larger. When coupled with a shallow depth of field (the range of distance in the photo that appears sharp) the results can be striking.

www.chrismurrayphotography.com

More Grape Hyacinth

Death Valley Abstract

The badlands of Death Valley are an excellent subject for abstract photography. I was particularly intrigued by the fractal quality of this scene, there's no real sense of scale. Are these hills hundreds of feet high, or just merely inches (that may be pushing it, but you get the idea)? I also love the sinuous nature of the wash running through the scene. The graphical nature of the photo and subtle light of early morning also lends itself to black and white, though I've included the color version for comparison. Which do you like better?
  www.chrismurrayphotography.com

Zabriskie Point

Dawn breaking over Death Valley

Yes, I still have one or two more Death Valley photos to share. I've been rationing them since spring is taking its sweet damn time getting here. This one is from Zabriskie Point, easily the most popular spot for photographers in the park owing to its sweeping view of the badlands and valley beyond and its ease of access. It's one of those iconic national park locations where you stand almost shoulder to shoulder with other photographers, which is always great fun. I shot here my first morning in Death valley, but the lack of clouds made for nice, if somewhat boring shots. On my final night high clouds moved in, and fingers crossed I made my way to Zabriskie in the morning on my way out of the park. As you can see it didn't disappoint.

www.chrismurrayphotography.com

Mesquite Sand Dunes at Dusk

This was my final shot of the Mesquite Sand Dunes in Death Valley, made on my last night in the park and my third foray into the dunes. The Mesquite Dunes can be very frustrating to photograph because of their immense popularity and the preponderance of footprints. However, after a few days in the park I noticed from the road how extensive the dune field truly is, and surmised that by avoiding the main parking area I would find undisturbed dunes that had not been trod upon. This section of the dune field doesn't have the largest dunes (size doesn't matter, or so I hear), but they do spread out like an undulating carpet of sand (wow, what a crappy metaphor). Anyway, enjoying the solitude I gathered several shots of the dunes in the late afternoon light, including this one after the sun had set below the range behind me.

www.chrismurrayphotography.com

Ripples

Some photos have an interesting story behind them. Others, well, not so much. This one falls into the latter category. No matter, the image speaks for itself. Here the picture-perfect ripples provide an excellent foreground feature, leading the eye to the dunes in the middle ground and the mountains beyond. The wispy cirrus clouds are the icing on the cake. I was running on fumes when I shot this, having had only three hours sleep in the past 36 hours.

www.chrismurrayphotography.com

Cutting the Facebook Cord

This week I made the momentous decision to discontinue my photography page on Facebook. I know, I know, I'm a wild man. But I say that not entirely tongue in cheek, because it was a fairly big decision. Last night I had moments of doubt, wondering if I had cut off my nose to spite my face, something I've been known to do from time to time. But this morning I feel good about my decision.

I spent four years cultivating my Facebook page and accruing fans. However, I feel that Facebook left me long ago. I spent a rather tidy sum of money advertising on Facebook, and in the end Facebook wanted me to pay again (and again, every time I posted something) so those same people I already paid for once would see my posts. My most recent post reached a little over 10% of my fans. And that percentage will only continue to drop. In short, Facebook is no longer free for businesses such as mine. I'm not naive, Facebook is a business and as such has obligations to its shareholders. They won't miss me. But their practices seem duplicitous at best, and I'm not alone in that belief. I feel as if I was abused by Facebook, and staying with them any longer made me feel like I was okay with being abused, even if I didn't drop another penny into their coffers. No longer content to be Facebook's bitch I decided it was time to call it quits. I do have my principles after all. Really, I do. One or two, at least.

So I've moved on, and it feels good. To be completely honest, my years on Facebook contributed next to nothing to my bottom line. That's not Facebook's fault, just a fact. If my page on Facebook was generating business I would be okay with paying to promote my posts, but it hasn't worked out that way. To spend time and effort on something that clearly wasn't progressing my business is foolish. So I have revived this dormant blog, secure in the knowledge that at least I won't be taken advantage of. Thank you to all that have followed me from Facebook, and I hope you may see fit to suggest my blog to your friends and family and help expose my photography to a larger audience. I sincerely appreciate you all and I'm happy you're along for the ride.

The Racetrack, Death Valley National Park

Today's photo is from The Racetrack, a must-see for anyone visiting Death Valley National Park. Here these boulders move by themselves (a phenomenon caused by a combination of strong winds and ice and/or water on the playa) across the ancient dry lake bed, leaving little trails behind them. The lack of clouds made for a rather boring photograph from a color standpoint, but the graphical elements in the scene made for a very strong black and white image.

http://www.chrismurrayphotography.com/