Posts Tagged ‘arboretum’
Winter Wonderland
I love winter. That’s probably good because I live in a state where we get lots of it. Sometimes I get in a rut like everyone else and think I can’t get out to shoot in the winter because it’s too snowy or cold or drab or whatever. Frankly, it often is. On Saturday I was reminded again about why I love winter – everything looked Heavenly with fresh snow and fresh hoarfrost. There was a saintly white wonderland in every direction – so bright and white I wore sunglasses even though it was fully overcast.
Shooting on days like this is a challenge too – there is no detail in the sky or the ground. Do you emphasize the negative space or minimize it? The last post maximized it – this one minimizes it to focus detail on the frosty trees. Another gotcha is the light meter in the camera. It is important to set the meter to +1EV since everything is white. If you don’t, the camera will try to make everything 18% grey – and this will mean an image that is way too dark. One final winter shooting tip? Bring spare batteries and keep ‘em warm! Battery life is shortened by a huge amount when it’s below freezing.
Vital Stats: Canon 5D Mark II w/Canon 17-40 f/4L @ 40mm ISO 200, f/13, 1/250 sec.
Kristina and Glen
This is Kristina and Glen – and I’ve got the huge honor of being their wedding photographer. This is a shot from their engagement stills+fusion shoot two weeks ago at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. I knew it was going to be fun based on our initial meeting – but I had no idea how much fun it was going to be. We did a couple of hours of still photography in the great Minnesota fall colors – then switched over to video once we had some shots ‘in the bag’. They were great sports about the whole thing – frolicking in damp leaves in 45 degree weather, playing hide and seek, dancing on bridges, and baring their souls by talking candidly about their feelings for one another. Their love for each other really shows through!
As a little ‘behind the scenes’ – getting this session off the ground was an exercise in patience with the crazy fall weather we’ve had this year. It rained 16 out of the first 26 days of October – and it snowed several times as well. It was pretty – but it really played havoc on any outdoor shooting. The day we shot this was literally our last chance before the remainder of the leaves hit the ground.
Vital Stats: Canon 5D Mark II w/Canon 135mm f/2L ISO 400, f/4, 1/100 sec
Farm on the Hill
I’ve seen this shot every time I’ve driven through the Arboretum. I finally had the opportunity to shoot it as we were setting up for a birthday picnic. I’d still love to go back and get it right at dusk when the light is better – but I’m happy with how this turned out. This shot was about 3:30 in the afternoon – at 7 it would have been magical. To frame it up right, I had to use a LOT of lens – I had to stack my 70-200 with a 1.4x extender and zoom it ALL the way in.
Vital Stats: Canon 5D Mark II w/Canon 70-200 f/4L + Canon 1.4x II extender @ 280mm ISO 100, f/11, 1/40 sec.