Outdoor Photographer March 2014

Photographer: Ed Callaert Location: El Capitan, Yosemite National Park, California Situation: El Capitan in Yosemite Valley is an icon in the truest sense of the word. Ansel Adams is credited with launching Yosemite into the public eye, like a great director is often credited with launching the career of an iconic movie star. But like that movie star, Yosemite played the muse for landscape photographers long before Adams’ first explorations, and in the intervening years, Yosemite’s fame has only grown. Ed Callaert’s photo of El Capitan gives us a sense of why John Muir felt that the Sierra Nevada should be known as the “Range of Light.” As Muir wrote in The Yosemite in 1912, “Then it seemed to me that the Sierra should be called, not the Nevada or…

Ansel Adams was more than a great photographer. He was a great environmentalist and a true visionary who helped to lead photography into its own identity. In the early days of photography, people didn’t know quite what to expect from the medium. As a result, early fineart photographers made their images look painterly and soft. Adams and Group f/64 rebelled against this. They recognized that the strength of photography was its ability to capture an image sharply. Historically, many new media go through a similar evolution, especially where the new media emerges as a result of an advance in technology. Adams took advantage of the technological leap forward that cameras, lenses and film offered, and he used the technology to create images of the natural world according to his vision.…

1st Place (Opening Page) Photographer: Leif Smith | Meteoric Meadow I knew I had maybe two nights to capture the Perseid meteor shower, so I headed up to Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood and took the Pacific Crest Trail a mile or so away from the lodge and set everything up in this lupine meadow. This night was actually just supposed to be a test to see what I could get; it turned out to be just what I was looking for! Nikon D600, Tokina AT-X 16-28mm ƒ/2.8 Pro FX 2nd Place (Above) Photographer: Bob Kim (www.bobkim.net) | Gullfoss Sunset, Iceland I was completely out of breath running toward this Gullfoss sunset, a very UFO-like lenticular cloud formation above the waterfalls, fighting against a 100 km windstorm with side-angle downpour.…

ULTRATELEPHOTO ZOOM The new Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD ultratelephoto zoom is compatible with both full-frame and APS-C formats. With a large focal-length-range expansion from the current 200-500mm lens offered, this lens is of particular interest for wildlife photographers who need a little extra length without losing quality (from extenders) or time (by changing lenses). Including Vibration Compensation, a redesigned tripod mount and an Ultrasonic Silent Drive for accurate AF, the lens is set up to shoot sharp images at a long focal length both mounted and handheld. Estimated Street Price: $1,069. Contact: Tamron, www.tamron-usa.com. aNIKON D610 One year after releasing the D600, Nikon has followed up with the 24.3-megapixel, CMOS-sensor D610, making few, yet significant improvements. The lightweight, full-format HDSLR uses the EXPEED 3 processor, which provides…

Stop, Thief! Tech Trending: Photographs That Take Themselves Q Have you noticed lately all those fine photographs floating around out there, seemingly unattached to any photographer? From the loftiest heights of commercial advertising to photo websites such as EarthPorn and, of course, social media such as Facebook and Google+, beautiful, professional images are everywhere. Have you ever admired one, thinking you’ve been to that location, wondering what other photographer saw what you saw, only to realize that the photograph you’re admiring—that orphan piece of creative work that’s so unimportant that no one will give it a name, nothing more than a well-organized bunch of pixels, a pleasing combination of ones and zeros—that photograph is yours? Every Photographer Almost Everywhere On Earth A Well, actually, yes. Recently, our daughter “liked” an…

Location Yellowstone National Park is known for its spectacular scenery and incredible thermal features, including 300 geysers and hot springs, as well as a wealth of wildlife, where it’s home to more than 60 mammal species and 300 species of birds. Comprised of 2.2 million acres of pristine wilderness in northwestern Wyoming, wildatheartimages.com. Yellowstone is a nature photographer’s paradise, and it’s visited by more than 3 million people annually. While most visitors arrive during summer, the possibility of abundant wildlife coupled with the promise of quiet solitude lures many photographers to America’s first national park during early spring. Weather Yellowstone’s spring weather can best be described as variable. At an average elevation of 8,000 feet, weather conditions can change dramaticall from one moment to the next. During spring, a sunny…