When Where & How

Running water is one of those things I am attracted to like a magnet.  I have hundreds of negatives of running water.  Some time ago I realized that flowing water was all I was doing.  So, I intentionally weaned myself from my total addiction to water.  That didn’t mean I quit photographing running water. . . I just limited it to those things that I felt were extremely important.  Rather than just obsessing and concentrating on every little cascade I could find, I took a step back and tried even harder to find something unique with respect to the subject.

There are those times you look, then you look again.  We have been in the area of the Riverside Walk Rapids several times before.  I have numerous negatives of this area.  You are in a deep canyon surrounded by walls near 1,200 feet high.  Sunlight only comes in here when the sun lines up with the canyon mouth at its southern end.  This occurs for about half an hour somewhere around noon.  The rest of the day the light is quiet and subdued.  It was an overcast day which added to the smooth even light.  There was no wind and it may have warmed to 40 degrees F by mid afternoon.  Perfect weather to be there with a big camera.

This photograph is another case of near abstraction, yet it is a somewhat true depiction of reality.  You know where you are and objects are familiar, so abstraction may not exactly fit well in the description.   What I find, what I feel, and what I see, are not always what is actually in front of my camera.  Art is about showing others what you see. . . your vision, plus your feeling at the time.

Click on thumbnails above to see full-size image.

I have included several snapshots of where I was working.  This will show what it truly looked like at the time we were there.  I am sure it is no exaggeration that there is little resemblance between reality and my interpretation.  But this is how I saw the cascading water that day.  If I were to go back today, I might come back with an entirely different look and feel.  But this is how I saw it this day.

Enjoy!

JB

Sometimes you just have to go that “extra mile” for that photograph you want.  JB and I have made numerous trips to Zion National Park over the years.  Each time we’ve found a new spot to explore.  Even the usual “haunts” can be different depending upon what has happened since the last time we were there. This part of Utah can have flash floods during the summer and fall and the landscape can change.  Trees can wash away and even big boulders can move with the force of rushing water.  We had found this particular area on the last day of our visit the previous year and made a mental note. . . we need to come back to this spot.

I can’t stress enough the importance of having the right equipment for what you want to do.  There is no substitute for a good pair of hiking boots.  You never know what you’re going to find when you start out.  This particular trail had lots of climbing and big rocks to climb over and around.  My fully loaded 4×10 Canham backpack is around 40 pounds and I use my Ries J-100-2 tripod a lot to steady myself when I’m climbing. If I don’t have far to walk, I’ll use the 8×20 horizontal camera.  I can set-up the 8×20 on my A-100 Ries tripod and carry two film holders in my case but this hike was more suitable for the 4×10 horizontal in a backpack.

The last few years, I’ve been photographing more trees.  There are so many different types and depending upon the climate, they can become twisted and mis-shapen.  This particular day, we got an early start.  Winter was beginning to settle into the park.  The sun was out with only a few high clouds and 28 degrees. Perfect weather for photographing with only one exception. . . the wind.  The wind was blowing close to 20 mph so we would be limited as to where we could photograph.  We decided this would be a perfect day to go hike our trail.  This time of year the park can still have a lot of tourists so we like to find those non-traditional, “set your tripod here. . . click,” secluded spots.  We followed our trail along the winding stream.  At the end of the trail, the quiet stream flowed gently beside the rocks and trees.  This is what I wanted to photograph with my horizontal camera.

One of the advantages of photographing in the winter is the low sun angle and if you find the right spot, you can shoot even during midday.  This photograph was made in December 2011 at 12:14 pm on Ilford HP5+ film and developed in Pyrocat HD.
JB and I returned to Zion in December 2012.  Once again, we hiked our trail.  This time access was cut-off about halfway down the trail.  Our trail was now blocked by big boulders and fallen trees as a result of the heavy rain and flash floods during the preceding summer.  Maybe on our next trip, we’ll be able to hike our trail once more and see what Mother Nature has left for us to capture.

Susan Harlin

I really like abstract images taken directly from nature as found.  As I have said before,  you just cannot explain art.  When you get even deeper into abstract art, the explanation is impossible.  All I can do is tell the story of how I got there.  There isn’t much more I can add.

We had been in Zion National Park for near a week and I had walked passed this fallen, rotting, cottonwood tree numerous times.  It was right next to the parking lot and was in no way difficult to find.  I had made a photograph of this fallen tree the year before in a much wider view of the valley.  I had seen the fuzzy bark at the base but chose to ignore it at the time.  This year the fuzz, deteriorating bark, was even more fuzzy and struck me as looking like a beard.  It was a sunny day that started off at about 20 degrees and warmed to maybe the low 40’s.   Perfect to be out with a large camera.

We had returned to the end of the valley road to what is known as the Temple of Sinawava.  This is a deep canyon and the entrance to the narrows trail. There are times during the day when you have sun, but only about noon.  The rest of the day you are in shade and the light is soft and beautiful.  The high canyon walls reflect light into the valley and is continually changing.

I kept ignoring the bearded log, but something kept calling me back.  I knew I had to do something, so out came the 11×14 camera.  I can’t tell much more of the story since the framing, camera position, and perspective was something that had to be adjusted till it looked right on the ground glass.  When it looks right. . . it is right!

There is little else I can add.  Listed below are the particulars of this photograph. .  . the easy part for sure.  The facts and figures are purely right brain.  The look, feel, and atmosphere of the interpretation can only be experienced by looking at the finished print.

JB

Large format cameras and Texas don’t compliment each other.  There are only a few months during the year when one can really pull the camera out of the backpack and get under the dark cloth and enjoy being out photographing.  When the calendar says fall and everyone else is enjoying the beautiful fall foliage, Texas has not left summer behind.  It was the end of October last year that JB and I, along with several of our photography friends, decided to venture to a local state park.  We could tell when we got up that morning that it was going to be a warm day. . . but we hadn’t counted on the wind and humidity to go along with it.  We were going to meet around 8:00 in the morning so there was only time for a quick breakfast, load the gear into the van and off we went.  We were all eager to make some photographs.  It had been a while since we had the cameras out.  When we arrived at the park, we grabbed our viewing filters and walked all around the park looking for that spot where we wanted to plant our tripod. . . the location of our next anticipated image.  A butterfly landed on my glove and stayed there while I was walking around.  I managed to make some shots but it wasn’t long before the light started to get harsh.  I wanted even lighting with subtle shadows and dappled light would not work.  Photographing details will work during the flat light of midday but the time was not right for what I wanted to photograph.  I had found an old split rail fence that lead up a path to this neat barn.  It was surrounded by lots of trees.  There were two trees in particular that had grown together into a tight embrace, not wanting to let the other go. . . as if supporting the other as it grew toward the sky.  Because of the direction that the barn was facing I could tell that this would be a late afternoon, almost early evening shot to get the light that I wanted.  The decision was made to return later that day.

Because of the hike to get to the barn I decided to use my Canham 4×10.  I made sure there was plenty of fresh film in the holders before putting on my backpack and grabbing my tripod.  Off I went. . . headed for the old barn.  The light was just starting to get nice but the temperature was still pretty warm. . . 88 degrees.  Because I needed maximum depth of field, I decided to use the 6 ½” WA Dagor.  After metering the scene, I knew that the tonal range would work for a normal development.  I stopped the lens down to f45 and exposed the film for 8 seconds.  The film I used for this exposure was Bergger BPF 200, which has a long tonal range.  The shot was made at 6:09 pm when the sun was at a low angle and provided soft shadows from right to left glancing on the ground below. The finished print is an 8×20 enlargement on Ilford Warm tone paper selenium toned.  My waiting had paid off.

Susan Harlin

One of our favorite photography haunts is Zion National Park.  It is small when compared to many of the other National Parks but the scenery is very diverse.  We first visited Zion in 2000. Also known as our Millennium Trip.  I am often asked, “Why do you return to the same area year after year?  Why not go someplace new?”  The location on the map might stay the same but the scenery is ever changing.  Trees and rocks after a rainstorm glow and freshly fallen snow will accentuate the delicate sculpture of the rocks.  We’ve seen the dry cuts in the rocks give way to a new waterfall booming in flood.  Even majestic rocks will occasionally turn loose from their once tight hold on the earth.  With each subsequent visit, we have found new areas to photograph and this time would prove to be no different.
 
This old cottonwood tree has greeted me on numerous trips to Zion. It stands along the Virgin River.  Even as the river flows outside her banks during a flash flood, this tree stands defiant.  Each year, less bark clings tightly to the tree and during the winter months, a delicate blanket of freshly fallen snow will cover the bare tree where bark use to be providing a white, winter coat. Many trees along the river have succumbed to the elements.  But this tree will not give up its space.
 
On this trip to Utah, we would be spending 11 days in Zion. Even though there was an abundance of sunshine on our first day, the weather would be changing.  The forecast for the next seven days would be cloudy.
 
We had spent most of the day photographing in another part of the valley. Photographing along a secluded stream that ran from the top of the canyon wall down below into the valley.  Now it was time to move to another spot to finish out the day.
 
We ended up at the end of the valley road at the Temple of Sinawava. This spot leads to the Narrows where the Virgin River has cut deep canyon walls for miles. And as predicted, the clouds were beginning to roll in.  There are several extremely interesting trees near the parking lot but the old cottonwood stood out.  This tree was a familiar sight. . . kind of a landmark.  Even though it is dead. . . it still manages to “hang on” for one more year to greet us when we return to Zion.  Tourists climb all over the old tree wanting to get their photo made.  This tree deserves more than that for it has character.
 
It was late afternoon and most of the tourists had already left for the day.  Not many cars in the parking lot.  There was the old cottonwood tree.  I knew this would be a good time to make my photograph.  After parking the van, I looked around for the best spot to place the tripod.  I knew that I didn’t want to place the white, overcast sky in the image. . . an area of white in the corner would detract from the rest of the photograph.   Soon I located the right place to setup the tripod and position the camera at the exact place I wanted, which happened to be right in the middle of a parking space. As luck would have it, I was able to set the tripod up next to the van and shoot across the parking lot.  A wall of sculpted rock would fill the background in nicely avoiding any bright areas that would have detracted from my tree.  
 
I knew I wanted to make the photograph with my 8×20 vertical camera.  This would provide me with a finished print with the detail that I wanted that could only be obtained with a contact print. There were questions to ask myself.  How much of the tree did I want to include?  Would this be a photograph of the full tree or only a close detail? I used my viewing filter to aid in my decision on which lens I would use. There are few lenses that will cover the vertical 8×20 format.  Most are over 60 years old. The one I chose for this photograph was my 24” Artar.  This lens would provide the framing that I wanted with the vertical 8×20 camera.
 
One of the features that JB added when he was building this camera was the extra tall front standard for additional rise.  I raised the lens as far up as it would go.  This enabled me to exclude the parking lot in the foreground.
There were broken clouds, diffused light.  It was windy and 45 degrees.  I metered for my exposure and determined that I would need a N+1 ½ development.  I stopped the lens down to f90 and exposed for 24 seconds.
 
In the finished image the tree appears remote and lost against a wall of rock.  That is the effect I was looking for. . . had hoped for.  The final contact print was made on Bergger VCCB Warm Tone fiber based paper and Selenium Toned.

Susan Harlin