Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

As it often does, my day job required me to go out of town again this week. As I always do, I tried to make time in my travels for a photo or two. I was staying in Gallup, New Mexico and working in Ft. Defiance, Arizona. My goal was to get back up to Canyon De Chelly for sunset. I ended up leaving Phoenix too late to get there so I decided to play it all by ear.

When I drive north out of Phoenix I always keep my eyes out for Mt. Humphrys. You can usually begin to see it well south of Flagstaff. Tuesday was no exception. The skies were blue and the mountain was white. I knew exactly what I wanted. The drawback, I saw the clouds moving in from the west. I needed to reach my spot before the clouds hit the mountain. As I got closer to Flagstaff I could see the snow being blown from the top of the mountain. The wind was pushing my Jeep all over the road. But my sense of urgency was growing. I really wanted this shot.

When I finally got to my meadow. If you are a regular reader/viewer then you know the one I mean. You have seen it at different seasons this year. Anyway, when I got there, stopped and opened my car door it was almost ripped from my hand. Winds gusts over 50 miles per hour. And cold! Very cold! Oh! And the meadow was covered with snow. Bonus shot. I opened the back door much more carefully and put on my heavy winter jacket. (Yes I do own a heavy winter jacket. That is a long story for another day.) Changed into my hiking boots. Made a quick decision about lens choice and tripod. And took off running across the snow covered meadow.

I could hear the laughter from the tourists who had stopped at the same point in the road as I had stopped. I could only imagine what I must have looked like to them. A man running in 18 inches of snow, against the wind, wearing a big sail, all while trying to attach my camera to the tripod. Tip: It's very important to remember to look up every once in a while in this situation. There are trees scattered around this meadow.

After everything, I managed to get exactly what I wanted. Plus so much more. This effort was going to be a big win.

The wind blowing the snow off the mountain and creating that cloud was beautiful. I did have to firmly hold the tripod in place. Although keeping from being blown away by the wind was a constant battle. After I had the shot that I wanted I started to play around with things like jacket zippers and boot laces. All the while wondering why my hat was still in the car.

And the wind kept the cloud on top of the mountain interesting.

I really wanted to stay and watch this develop more. But as I have mentioned I have a day job and I needed to get to it. So I got back on the highway and drove east. There isn't a lot to see between Flagstaff and west Tennessee on Interstate 40. But one of the things you really have to see is the Painted Desert. I took a few minutes and explored a spot I hadn't seen before. I found this old trail leading into the desert. I believe the sign said the trail was closed for repairs. The sign also needed repairs so it was difficult to read. I decided that if you can't read the warning that it must not be too terrible, so I went down it, just a little.

On the way home from Gallup yesterday I drove through freezing rain, a blizzard and the most beautiful fog. I watched a spot for about 20 miles looking for a place to exit the highway and head south. The fog kept getting more thick but I wanted this photo bad enough that I took the exit and turned down a dirt road. The road looked more like an unimproved driveway but I was determined. Through slushy mud and snow I continued closer to the rock formation I could no longer see. I finally grabbed my camera and tripod and ran out into a field. Too late! The fog had covered the rocks. All I managed to capture was a lot of mud, both outside and inside of my new car. A big lose. But the Jeep is now broke in.

Star trails. A quick guide.

First let me say this is a quick guide. There are too many variables to to try and tell you a technique that will work every time. And I really only know Nikon's newest cameras. So my knowledge base is limited, as is my experience with star trails.

Second: If you are of the mindset that you should try to never edit photos, and you are not willing to try, don't even think about doing this. There is a whole lot of editing going on here. Hours of editing and waiting for your computer to process your commands. Unless you have access to a super computer. If you do please call me.

Okay, I started trying star trails several years ago. It was good practice but I was missing something. I recently figured out what was missing. A good foreground. Time spent searching out the perfect foreground will make your photo "POP". Your foreground should be out away from the city with a view to the north if you live in the northern hemisphere. Carry a compass with you to help.

Now that you have your foreground selected clean your lenses and charge your batteries. Seriously, charge them again just before you leave. This is going to take a lot of battery. Now check your memory cards. You need room for about 400 photos. Check again that you put those recently charged batteries back in your camera. Are you ready to go?

Not yet. Unless you own the land and know that no one will be around to permanently borrow your camera remember that you will be out there for a long time. Pack something to eat, plenty to drink and appropriate clothes. I live n the desert. It gets cool at night in the summer. In November it gets seriously cold at night. Flashlights with extra batteries. A chair. And if you plan to sleep an alarm clock. Don't forget your tripod. Are you ready now?

Maybe! What phase is the moon in? You want a New Moon. A brightly lit sky will make it difficult to get the star detail you want. And the moon is very bright. You've got a New Moon? Now we are ready.

Leave early and get set up long before sunset. You should take this opportunity to check your composition. Make sure the edges of the frame are clean. Listen for cars. Is there a road you didn't see before? You won't want the cars headlights in your photo once it gets dark. Once you're ready it's time to wait/ When the sun sets you can use a flash to take a photo of your foreground. The goal is to light just what you want to be seen with the stars. You can use a light painting technique if a flash won't work. Once you're happy with the foreground we wait again.

Do yourself a favor, wait. Somewhere around around two to two and half hours after sunset is the best time to start. The sky is still light until then. Now find the technique that you plan to use. Your aperture should be open, wide open. A 30 second exposure and select the ISO you need to get good stars in the photo. Once you have it set put your lens cap back on and take three photos of the dark with the technique you plan to use. You will use these later to help clean up noise.

Take the lens cap back off and get ready to take a lot of photos. I like three hours worth. That is 360, 30 second exposures. On some cameras there is a built intervalometer. Nikon's system is a little strange. Not intuitive at all. But if you set it up right it will work fine. I set mine to start "Now", the interval is 33 seconds, 360 exposures with 1 at each interval. For some reason the 33 second interval is the key to keeping this thing working perfectly. I'm sure you could use 34, but not 32. What you should hear is the shutter closing and then immediately opening again.

Now you wait again. Are you sensing a theme here? There is a lot of waiting. I set up two cameras last night. I listened to both of them. Close and open, close and open. It was better than thinking about the killer javelina stalking me. Or the large wild cat that kept walking around the river's edge. Don't judge me, it gets lonely out there.

Once the shutter closes for the last time you are all set. Pack up and get out of there. If you were smart you were packing during the last hour of exposures. Running as gracefully as you can get back to your car and lock the doors. You never know when javelina will develop oppose-able thumbs.

Once back home you can relax and start downloading the images onto your computer. I use Lightroom to edit one photo then I can apply that editing to all of the others. Then I convert them all to jpeg. There are several different programs you can use to stack all of the images together. I recently used StarStax. It worked well and is freeware. It allowed me to use those dark photos to cancel out the noise a long exposure creates. Then one more pass on the stacked image to fine tune the final product. The editing process is personal preferences. Play with it, a lot. You will learn to get it the way you meant for it to look when you started. You may even find a new style a long the way.

I can help with more specifics if you ask. And if you happen to live in, or be passing through the Valley of the Sun I will even go out with you to help you through it. Just let me know.

Star trails are usually done somewhere beautiful. Like the landscapes I love so much I find it relaxing to be out there where the beauty is.

Desert photography at night. A new adventure in survival.

I made the decision late this past week that I couldn't take it any more. The weather here in Arizona is perfect for hiking, and my new Jeep was looking for adventure. So I decided to try something new. So here is my adventure. With a few hints and tips along the way. I will not, however, be going into a long explanation of how to's. Google it, there are hundreds of how to's out there.

I was excited and impatient so I left too early to get out to the lake. I was really looking for something in particular. I didn't get that. But I am keeping it a secret for another day. I saw some people hiking in an area that looked promising to me so I parked and took a scout hike back into the desert looking for something interesting. I found this beautiful old cottonwood tree that I just couldn't pass up so I went back to my car and loaded up.

I had my backpack with cameras, lenses, two flashlights (yes, two) spare batteries and a tripod. A cooler with enough food to last three days, another tripod and a camp chair. I was really happy that the spot I selected was less than 1,000 yards from the road.

I used my trusty compass and set up my cameras. You really want to set your composition in the daylight. Set the focus to infinity. Then wait for sunset. I was a little early. I was setup by 4:00. Sunset was at 5:30.....

I was set up in a dry river bed. I do not recommend this. Most river beds in Arizona are dry at some point in time. And there was ample evidence of water rushing through this one, recently. I took a chance but I was also informed. No chance of rain anywhere in Arizona. And it hadn't rained for a few days. If you are not familiar with Arizona, stay out of the washes and river beds. Even if it doesn't look like rain.

An hour after sunset I used my flash to get a decent photo of the giant tree in front of me. My plan, use the tree for a foreground in a massive star trails photo.

Then I programmed my camera to take 360 30 second exposures. Hit start and wait. That's three hours worth of photos. About 30 minutes into this I wondered if two hours would be enough. I had forgotten my ear phones. It was just me, my very observant hearing, my imaginative thoughts and the noises of the desert night.

I heard the wild donkeys running though the desert. Peccary snorting close by. Coyotes calling each other in the distance. I swear I heard a very large feline stalking me. Maybe 30 minutes is enough! Wait! What was that?

The best meteor that I can ever remember seeing streaked across the sky. I could actually see the fire. It was incredible.

I decided to eat everything that was left very quickly. Hoping to keep the predators away. Then I realized that left only me as a potential meal. That's 45 minutes down. Only 135 more to go....patience.


Star trails done properly is a true labor of love. As I write this my computer is processing 360 photos that I will blend into the images that you will see here. This is pass two for these images. I wasn't completely happy with pass one so I am trying again. 360 photos took 3 hours just to take. Then there is the time scouting and setting up. And did I mention processing? When it is complete though, it is well worth it.

I hadn't been out with my camera seriously for about a month. That is harder to do than you might think. I relearn why I love it so much every time I go out with my camera. Especially when I get to a place like where I was last night.

Adventures in Canyon De Chelley

I talk a lot about my day job. One of the reasons is that I am proud of what I do. Another reason is that my day job takes me to some wonderfully beautiful places. Being a landscape photographer, that makes it doubly rewarding. A couple of weeks ago I was asked to go Ft. Defiance, Arizona for a particularly difficult job. Of course my camera goes everywhere with me. I expected to be done Thursday night which would give me Friday as a travel and photo day. So during my evenings in the hotel room I used Google Earth to look for a place to go. Canyon De Chelley called my name.

Canyon De Chelley is a National Monument that resides in the Navajo Nation. The National Park Service and the Navajo Nation work together to manage the canyon. People have lived in the canyon for 5,000 years. I can certainly understand why.

I typically get out of bed early but this particular morning I was awake at 2:45 AM. Too excited to sleep I got up and headed toward the canyon. The 90 minute drive gave me even more reason for excitement as I watched a fantastic thunderstorm just to the north of me. The storm appeared right where I imagined the canyon to be. Wet roads closer to the canyon confirmed that the storm had been there. The speed limit was tough to maintain. When I finally reached the park entrance I had to further maintain my patience as I had chosen the last overlook as the location for my sunrise shoot. And based on the lightning it was the right place for the storm as well.

There are 7 overlooks on the south rim of the canyon. The last one is the Spider Rock overlook. When I reached the parking lot I could still see the lightning to the east, but I also saw the moon shining bright. I jumped out of the car prepared to run down the path I had seen. The cold air of the morning shocked me. My desert dweller uniform of shorts and a t-shirt wasn't going to cut it this morning. Searching through my sparsely packed suitcase I quickly put a polo shirt over my t-shirt, stripped off my shorts and threw on a pair of khakis. Then down the path I ran.

If you've never tried to mount a camera to a tripod, in the dark, while shivering violently, then you may not have a point of reference here. But I imagined crowds laughing, full belly laughs, if they were only fortunate enough to see this spectacle. I'm pretty sure the laughing I did hear was only my own. It got pretty quiet when I finally had everything set up properly. But the quiet didn't come until long after I had found myself laughing maniacally while shivering in dark. Trying to put everything together. Photos of the canyon seemed impossible for what seemed liked forever at the time. Looking back it was probably only 30 seconds.

Mentally timing the lightning I decided I wanted an exposure in the 10 to 15 second range. The moon was bright enough to make it possible to get the storm, which by this point was fairly small to the east, and the canyon. Making a couple of adjustments to the exposure and composition this is the result.

The storm moved off as the sun continued to rise. So the great color I had been hoping for never materialized. I took quite a few exposures hoping for better lightning but it was really too far away by the time I reached the park. So now I was looking for light. I grabbed my things and went to the end of the path so I could see the canyon in both directions.

The sun light started streaming into the canyon as I made my way to the end of the cliffs. The light from the sunrise on orange rocks is never disappointing. So I set up on the edge and waited for the light. I'm not sure how my wife knows when I am standing on the edge of a cliff but she always does. With my eye to the viewfinder and my mind concentrating on balance, the stillness is shattered by my ringing phone. I have spent hours training for just this scenario and I know exactly what to do. Unfortunately the lack of sleep and the numbing cold have dulled my senses and slowed my normal cat-like reflexes. So I step toward the edge, one hand reaching for the tripod and one for the phone. My 3 Legged Thing tripod suddenly has 5 legs and I can't figure out which ones belong to me. All 5 of them are leaning the wrong way. Why am I in tennis shoes instead of boots I wonder as my feet slide around the rocks. I can hear the phone echoing from the distant canyon walls and I am sure that all 40 Navajo families living in the canyon are now fully awake. Luckily, gravity temporarily released it's hold on me and I was able to stumble up the rocks while maintaining a bear hug on the tripod.

After a quick good morning to my wife I carefully went back to the edge to chase the light. Looking away from Spider Rock I caught this scene.

A glance back toward Spider Rock gave this.

Once the sun was high enough to change the light I thought I might stop at a few of the other overlooks on my way out of the park. As I got to my last stop I realized that my activities during the sunrise had warmed sufficiently to switch back into my shorts. A quick look around assured me I was still alone. As I pulled on my shorts in the parking lot another car arrived. A man and his two kids got out and started speaking to the lady sitting by the path selling her art.

Wait! What lady?

I surely didn't see her there. And I don't know what she saw. But she didn't strike up a conversation as I walked past her. I wandered around on the rocks for a while then found this quiet place to relax and enjoy the view. In the top center of this photo you can just make out one of the cliff dwellings from the ancient ones that lived here 800 years ago.

Overall a pretty decent morning. I usually like to scout a place before attempting a sunrise shoot. But I have found that Google Earth really does a good job if you can't be there in person. I really look forward to my next trip in this area. For now I am spending a little time at home with my family. I think they are happy to see me.

Oh yeah! On my next trip. I hope to leave the phone in the car.

The big letdown.

I love landscape photography. I know, it's difficult in today's world to take a photo that someone else hasn't already taken. And make it look different, or maybe even better. I'm okay with that. I will continue to try and improve my own techniques and style. It is twice as difficult when you live in an area like where I live. A suburb of a major metropolitan area, in a desert. Especially when desert landscapes don't interest me that much. At least not all of them.

A friend of mine came into town last weekend. We took a dream trip up to northern Arizona and part of southern Utah. It was mostly desert. But it was desert that every landscape photographer dreams of. I took a hundred good photos, a few bad ones and a few great ones. The trip was awesome.

There were four days of shooting and traveling. And there were four days of good company with someone that loves the camera as much as I do. I've been taking my time developing the photos since I came home. I think it is because I want them to last. I also haven't cleaned the red dirt off of my camera, lenses or any of the other equipment that went with me. In fact, I haven't even opened up my camera case. Why should I? I am home. And I am feeling the big letdown.

I love my home. Our house is safe and comfortable. It is cool in the summer. The people I love the most are here and I enjoy being with them. But it is uninteresting to my camera lens. I doubt there will be any fine art photography happening here in my family room. So I am already planning my next trip. I feel the need to go again. I feel it after every great photography trip. I suspect it will always be this way.

So today I will open up the case. Clean everything, charge the batteries and put it all back together again. The whole time I will be dreaming of the great landscapes out there. Later this evening I will do a little cyber scouting. A week from tomorrow I have to be in Show Low, Arizona early in the morning for my day job. That means a Sunday travel day. Maybe a sunset at the lake I know up there. Or a hike in a canyon.

Whatever I decide to do it will feel wonderful. A break from the routine in a beautiful area. My viewfinder to my eye. How lucky am I to have a day job that takes me on these wonderful adventures? I will do my best to make it wonderful, for I know when I get home I will feel it again.

I have been developing some ideas of getting out of that funk a little more quickly. When I work out the small details I let you all know. In the mean time tell me what you feel when a photo shoot ends. Or a trip that you've loved. How do you keep the camera interested in things that are there every day?

Camera lenses.

Soon after I got my first Nikon digital SLR kit, I got my first Nikon prime lens. That was the Nikon 35mm lens made for APS-C sensors. Or as Nikon designates them, "DX". What I didn't know at the time was that the lens was going to change my perspective on photography. Was it for the better?

Most of my friends, and most of the professional photographers that I meet, use zoom lenses. Zoom lenses allow the photographer to attach one lens to his camera and change the focal length to either zoom in for a close up shot or to zoom out for a wider angle shot. Prime lenses simply don't zoom. If you are using a prime lens and you want a close up shot you have to move closer to your subject. You want a wider angle shot? Move farther away.

If you read all of the lens tests, reviews and personal opinions. Well, then you would never buy a lens. Lenses are all very similar to my golf game. Full of flaws. On the other hand. They almost all perform well in the right hands. Those will be the hands that have taken the time to learn each lens they use. Which every photographer should do with all of their equipment. So I say buy and use whatever will make you happy.

 So what makes me happy? I am primarily a landscape photographer. I don't need zoom lenses. I can usually move my feet to put the camera where I want it with the proper prime lens attached. For me they are easier to learn how to use effectively. And they afford me the opportunity to get a fantastic photo for a lot less money than a professional grade zoom lens costs.

That first 35mm lens taught me something that I had never realized. I can see the world in different focal lengths. If I attach a lens to my camera I can see everything in front of me in that focal length. I can look at a scene and decide how I want to capture it. Is it best with a wide shot or up close? I put on the lens of choice and move to compose my photo. It's a small part of my process. But it is one of my favorite parts.

I spent some time this past month selling some of my DX lenses. I did it to finance the purchase of a couple of new lenses for my kit. Yes. They are both prime lenses. And they fill gaps in my focal lengths. One of the lenses I sold was the original 35mm. I was a little sad to see it go. I think it changed my life for the better.

Blog updates.

First of all, if you haven't read any of my previous blog entries stop right here. Wait! Don't leave my blog. Go back and read some of my previous entries so you know what I am talking about. In the mean time, here is an update on some of the things I have talked about in the past.

Dave: Dave is my tripod. No,  I didn't name him. The company that made him, 3 Legged Thing, named him. I promised an update after I had used him for a while. Dave's been on a couple of trips with me. And he performs better than expected. Very stable. Durable enough to make the trips. I've carried him on airplanes and packed him in my luggage. He fits well in both the overhead bin and in my suitcase. He's been on the beach. I have taken him apart and cleaned him right in my kitchen. Dave is my go to guy right now. Highly recommended. Warning: Make sure you discuss where you clean him with your spouse before you begin. Some wives may not be happy about you getting sand all over their kitchen.

Filling the bag: Dave was on my list of things to acquire. Now that I have him I have added another lens to the list. While visiting a friend this year I got a chance to use his Nikkor AF 35mm f/2 lens. While the reviews for this lens don't paint it as a stellar performer I thought it was brilliant. One of my favorite landscape shots of the trip was taken with this lens. This lens will probably replace a Nikkor AF-S DX Micro 40mm f/1.8 that currently travels mounted to my D7000. It also has the honor of being the only DX lens in my kit. With a retail price of about $360US for the 35mm how can you go wrong?

Edit: I have edited this to remove Elements from the line that Adobe is using in their Creative Cloud line. It is Photoshop. Photoshop Elements is still available for single license purchase at this time.

I've been away from home for a few weeks so it seems I am a little behind with my thoughts here. As I stay home and occupy my time in my day job it is summer here in Arizona. That makes it harder to go out and shoot the landscapes I love so much. Stay tuned. There will be more soon.

Why can't I take it with me?

This week I have been packing my photography equipment. I'm preparing to go to Colorado. A friend of mine is retiring from the Army after 22 years. I'm excited to see him. I'm excited to meet his family and other friends. I'm very excited that he will no longer be in harms way. And I am also excited because we will be staying in the shadows of Pike's Peak. Lot's of clouds and mountains and water. In other words, a lot of landscapes just waiting to be photographed. So what do I take with me?

My first reaction was to empty my storage and pack everything. Why not? I'm driving. I have plenty of space in the car. Why can't I take it with me? What if I need it while I am there?

If you read any of the photography forums you will regularly run across people asking questions about what camera body and lenses they should take with them to specific locations. Good solid questions for those without the experience in certain environments and situations. The difference is that I feel that I have been there. I know what equipment I want in most landscape situations. I was asking myself the wrong question.

As I looked at each piece I was packing I began to ask myself a different question. Why should I take it? If I don't use it here I am probably not going to use it there either. Everything went back in the closet. I'm taking the lenses that I know I want to use. My old friends. I mix and match them on the two bodies that I love. They are all that I need.

So I am all packed and ready to go. But as I write this I begin to wonder why I even keep the things I don't use. Maybe I will think about that when I get back. It's not like they are going anywhere.

Meteors. Sunrises. And changing plans.

The Lyrid Meteor showers are in town everyone. Ever since I was a teenager I have loved watching the sky and seeing the meteors. My favorite time of year is during the Perseids in August. This year they peak on August 11th and 12th. But here in April we have the Lyrids. They peak tonight. I have to go work at my day job tomorrow so I decided to go out last night and try to capture one.

There were several problems with going out last night. First was my daughter's prom. It was last night and she and her friends had asked me to take photos. They weren't scheduled to get home until 12:30. That worked out okay. The moon was the next problem. It was up and bright and scheduled to set at 3:00 AM. That made 3:00 AM to 4:00 AM the best time to view the meteor shower. So my plan was to go to Lake Pleasant and find a high spot for meteors, then go to the lake shore for the sunrise.

For the meteors I chose my 24mm lens. I also decided that the Milky Way galaxy was close enough to the source of the meteors that I wanted to try and capture it with a meteor. So I concentrated on long exposures centered on the Milky Way. I saw probably 12 or 15 meteors last night. Only one of them was in my view finder. Luckily it was while the shutter was open. My family is especially happy with this photo because they didn't have to endure the night with me.

 Once the sun began to come up enough to make the stars appear less bright I packed everything up and set out for the lake. Without any clouds in the sky I decided to look for an alternative photo. The sky promised to be orange in the east as the sun rose. I have been waiting for the right opportunity to get a saguaro cactus in silhouette with a sunrise or sunset. So I rushed out to a nearby saguaro forest that I know is fairly open facing east. I grabbed the camera and tripod and went into the forest to find the right giant.

I had a plan when I left the house last night. Plans don't always work out. Sometimes you have to be flexible and take what the earth is willing to give you. I think it was a pretty successful morning.

You can see the full sized photos on flickr at: M. Chris Brandt's Photography.

You may also follow me on Facebook at: M. Chris Brandt's Photography

Filling the bag.

I recently wrote on my Facebook page that I had read a book in which the author had been told to always have something to want. I wish I could find the book now and give him proper credit. But I haven't been able to locate it. Odd since I still own almost every book I have bought over the past 30 years. On Facebook I asked what it was that my friends wanted. I received some very good answers. Most were much more broad than I had expected. Maybe that's because I know exactly what I want.

I have spent a lot of time getting my photography kit set up just the way I want it. There are currently three things left to acquire to make the kit perfect in my mind. I hope to have them all before the end of the year. After that I am not sure what to do. It's possible that my subconscious made me ask the question of my friends so that I could use some of their ideas. I need something else to want. For now, this is my list. In order of importance to me.

1. Travel tripod.

My every day tripod is too big to take on a trip with me. I use an Induro tripod that I like very much. It's just doesn't fit in a normal sized suitcase. So now when I travel it stays home. Loving landscapes and night photography I just can't work without a tripod. After about two years of research I have finally decided what I had to have in a travel tripod. First it has to be small. I don't care if it is light. I just want small. But I also want strong. In today's market tripods typically come with either carbon fiber legs, or magnesium allow. Carbon fiber is lighter but magnesium alloy is stronger. I ended up deciding on a fairly new British company called 3 Legged Thing. They name their systems after rock stars and I chose Dave. It will hold up to 26 pounds (the included ball head is rated for 88 pounds) and folds up to about 16.7 inches. I was warned about British engineering. But I am taking a gamble on them anyway. You can find Dave here...

3 Legged Thing's Dave

2. One more lens.

Really, just one more. At least that is what I tell my wife every time I ask for another lens. I shoot almost exclusively prime lenses. I tend to see the world in that focal length when I do that. But I have a big gap between 85mm and 300mm. I have friends with 105mm and 135mm lenses which I have intermittently drooled over. But there is still a gap. And I don't want to carry 27 lenses. So I decided to change it up a little and add a telephoto zoom lens to the kit. Nikon has been making a 80-200mm F/2.8 for, well, forever. This version currently sell since 1997. It's a professional lens without the benefit of vibration reduction (VR). The most recent version is still built like it was in 1997 and it is a tank. Metal, large and heavy. But by all accounts it is sharp. And for now, the last lens I need. You can check it out here...

Nikon's AF-Zoom 80-200mm F/2.8D ED

3. Ball head.

I mentioned earlier that I use an Induro tripod for my daily photography. A friend of mine recommended Induro after he had received one as a gift. I believe from his sister. Anyway, I bought Induro's Adventure Series AKB2 tripod. The tripod comes with a ball head and a nice carry case to protect it. I have used and abused it. I love the legs, but as my talent and camera have grown I find I need a little more precision in the ball head. What else would I put on an Induro tripod but an Induro head? The BHD2 head was made to fit my legs. It was also made to handle almost 40 pounds of camera/lens. More than I can currently put on it. And the price is great. If I am going back to Induro that should tell you something. I expect the same quality that I have seen in my current system. Check out the Induro line-up here...

Induro Tripods

So what is the next thing to want? I don't know yet. Maybe what I will want is something to want. What do you think?

You can see some of my photos on Facebook at M. Chris Brandt's Photography or on flickr at M. Chris Brandt

The story.

Lake Pleasant, Arizona

I read a blog recently written by a fairly new photographer who was also new to hiking. Her new passions were all about landscape photography. I can understand that. Landscape photos are my favorites as well. Witnessing images like the one above are what it's all about for me. Not only does it get me back out in nature sometimes, it also allows me to be there when nature is at it's most beautiful state.

Most of the time there is a little more to it than just being there. Right? Not so fast. First you have to know where to go, then you have to get there. I took the photo above during a trip to scout for locations. I had used Google Earth to pick a point that I thought might give me a great view during the sunrise.I even decided on which trails I needed to use to get there. I left my house and got to the trail long before sunrise. This is where things get interesting.

Hiking, anywhere can be a dangerous thing to do. Add in a little pre-dawn darkness and it could be deadly. Before I attempted this hike in the dark I spent years getting to know the environment I was living in. It can be steep. It is always rocky. And even if you never see one of the many arthropods, reptiles or mammals that inhabit the desert there are plenty of other things that can trip, prick or otherwise make you bleed. Except in very rare occasions I carry a very good flashlight. When I leave home the batteries are always fresh. When I have the flashlight with me I also have a fully charged set of replacement batteries.

Once you've learned how to take care of yourself, and your equipment. Don't forget to learn how to take care of your surroundings. My goal is to capture and document the world as it is. I don't want to change it or make it more beautiful. I just want to leave it as I found it. I learned a long time ago that a good news reporter never wants to be a part of the story. They simply want to bring the story to us. I bring you the world as I found it. Unaltered by me. The story? Well, that's mine.

Lessons learned. Again!

I've been looking forward to this weekend for quite some time. To start with, I am home. High School and Junior High School basketball seasons are over. And except for a little paperwork I don't have to work this weekend. So as the week wound down yesterday I packed the essentials in my trusty camera backpack and headed out. Three days of photographic bliss. Almost.

I've been hiking for about forty years. It started in the Boy Scouts where I learned to be prepared. Their motto. I embraced it. I am always prepared. So as I decided on equipment to take last night, and which backpack to carry it in, I was satisfied that I was ready. No. Prepared! Within two hundred yards of my car I realized that I wasn't prepared. I had forgotten an essential piece of equipment for a photographer that was hiking out on a trail to catch a sunset. A flashlight. Forty years ago I carried a flashlight, but all Boy Scouts know the pride of hiking through the woods with no light to guide them. I also carried one in the Army. But for tactical reasons we seldom used them. Last night as I crawled over basketball sized rocks in my trail to the lakeside, I realized that I was just a little too old to do that at night without a light. I also realized that I had not told anyone where I was going. Once the sun went down I would be blind. And the search party wasn't coming. I had visions of a stubbed toe turning into a broken face, or elbow. Me lying there, moaning, hoping some hiker would find me on this obscure trail that I found on Google Maps. Lesson learned, buy another flashlight. Put one in each backpack and leave it there. The light was on my mind all evening and I left the lake earlier than I wanted to so I could make it off of the trail before it got dark.

I live in the desert. The Sonoran Desert. I'm surrounded by giant saguaro cactus, among other varieties that may be smaller but still prickly. So when I get around a body of water larger than my pool I am entranced. The sun or moon reflecting off of the water slowly easing the tensions of the week. When I got to my selected spot last night I set up my tripod. Took a few pictures. Checked my composition. Then sat down to enjoy a semi-cold soda that I had brought with me. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of something, an old water line. Piles of driftwood at the level the lake once rose to. As I turned to look at it closer I noticed a big beautiful hill full of saguaro cactus. Glowing orange. I tried to adjust and take a few photos but the water held my attention. Lesson learned, turn around. I should have done a 360 once I got to my location. While I enjoyed my little lakeside break I would have been even happier capturing the hill with a better composition.

While I was setting up my tripod last night I took special care to select good flat and solid places for it's feet. The limestone rocks covering the hill weren't friendly to tripod legs. As I was turning around to enjoy the view of the saguaro filled hill I learned my next lesson. I am always very careful when I move around my tripod. Deliberately moving my feet so they won't come into contact with the legs. I had already watched this tripod, with my brand new camera and a very long lens, hit my cool deck. I was in my back yard taking some photos of the moon. My wife came outside to say hello so I sat with her for a few minutes. She also brought our very old, and apparently very blind, dog. Pepper ran through the legs of the tripod. Before you could yell "fetch", the tripod and camera were set in motion. Have you ever seen a movie where the action occurs in slow motion? My camera hit the deck in slow motion. Me yelling a long and deep "nooooooooo". At impact time rushed to catch up as the lens and camera separated from each other at the speed of light. Parts scattering across around the yard. Lessons learned that night, anchor your tripod and insure your equipment. That was two years ago. Last night, as I turned to look at the beautiful, glowing hill, I noticed that my camera was moving. Immediately my brain knows that this object that I cherish is inanimate. Self propulsion is impossible. With no comprehension of the laws of physics, my camera had set out to smash itself upon the rocks. I willed my hands to move into the path of movement, taking care not to hit the tripod and rush the process of destruction. I stopped it. All is well. I had been too lazy to anchor the tripod. And I almost payed for it. But the real lesson I learned, if you set your tripod up on a rock no bigger than a dinner plate, take care not to step on that rock.

I love being outside. Being a photographer takes me to some beautiful places. I once read a blog that another photographer had written stating that the best photos are always taken within one hundred yards of the road. No hiking required. I think that there is something to be said for getting away from all of the other photographers. So get out there. Take a little hike into the back country. It's good for your heart, and good for your soul. Just remember to take a flashlight.

Rekindling the passion.

I began my love of photography back in the 1970's. On my way to becoming an Eagle Scout I worked with a local photographer to earn my Photography merit badge. To earn that merit badge one of the things he had me do was to make a pinhole camera. I took a roll of black and white photos with it experimenting with exposure times in different light. I kept a journal of the 12 photo I took. He guided me through developing the roll of film in his personal dark room. Then we printed them and hung the photos to dry. I was hooked and for the next 10 years I did everything I could to take even more photos.

For reasons lost to me now, I stopped taking photos in the mid 1980's. I thought about it a lot over the years but other things in life seemed to get in the way. Until one day a few years ago. My family and I were at a Arizona Diamondbacks baseball game. There was a family sitting a few rows in front of us and they had a DSLR with a pretty impressive lens mounted on it. In casual conversation I mentioned to my wife that I would like to have a good camera again.

That casual conversation has changed my life. The next year for Christmas my wife gave me a nice Nikon kit. For those of you that know me, you know that the gift set off an episode of OCD the likes of which were never before seen my mankind. My wife, bless her, thought that the kit would be everything I would ever need. She was a little hurt the first time I wanted to add a new lens to the kit.

It took me a long time to convince her that it wasn't just a camera that she gave me that year. She gave me back a passion.

Thank you Hoodman Corporation!

In a previous post I mentioned the Hoodman Corporation Hoodman Loupe as a preferred accessory. I have the HoodLoupe 3.0, their model # H-LPP3. I was cleaning mine a week ago and noticed that one of the screws that should hold the hood to the eye piece was missing. The unit still seemed put together pretty well so I looked at Hoodman's website and found a sales contact email address. I explained what I had and what was missing. I asked if it would be possible for them to send me a screw. The next business day I received a response from one of their sales administrators stating that they would be happy to send me the part.

While I was traveling this week the part arrived in the mail as promised. Today I installed it.

It's great to see an organization willing to provide good customer support. My thanks to Regina, and the rest of the folks at the Hoodman Corporation.

Photography Gadgets

I am a gadget guy. That keeps me on the lookout for the next thing that will either improve my technique or just make my photo shoots more fun. When you do finally leave your home or office you can only carry so much equipment in your bag. Every once in a while I empty the bag. If I haven’t used something lately it stays home. Keep in mind I am primarily a landscape photographer. If I make a trip to do something other than landscapes I may add or subtract something. But for now, here is what I feel I can’t live without. These gadgets are small, easy to carry, and priceless when you need them. Except for a couple of items I am not recommending brands. What you decide to use, and who makes it,  is your preference.

Giottos Rocket Blaster – This is not really a gadget, but it something you really must have in your bag. Use this to blow that dust off of your lens, camera and sensor. I use it on the camera before I change lenses. I also use it before I wipe a lens. Try to get as much dust off of the glass as you can before touching it with a wet cloth. If your camera supports mirror up sensor cleaning lock that mirror up and blow some of the dust off of the sensor.

Hoodman Loupe - If you’ve never seen one of these, you place it over your LCD display to allow you to see the display without outside light and interference. This is a great tool for daylight shooting when it i shard to see that LCD screen. It really helps to view the image and allows you to better check your composition. Recently I used it at night and I loved it then too. From now on it will be around my neck whenever I am serious about a photo. When you get one you will wonder how you lived without it.

Wireless remote control -  When shooting landscapes your camera should be on a tripod. Releasing the shutter without touching the camera is the only way to go. Whether it’s made by your camera manufacturer, and infrared, or another manufacturer and radiofrequency this is a must have. Being able to control the shutter without touching the camera means a more stable tripod mount and less shake. That equates to a photograph with less motion blur. It also allows me to take the occasional photo of myself when I am at a great location.

Right angle viewer - This device fits over your camera’s eye piece and allows you to look at it from above, or one of the sides. I had been looking at one of these for a couple of years. I finally got one this year and I love it. It is kind of a specialized piece. You really only need it sometimes. But for those low to the ground shots it is irreplaceable for a guy with a constant pain in the neck.

Wireless interface for the camera – Right around the time that I acquired my new camera late last year my laptop stopped working. While the timing was bad financially, it was a blessing as I really needed more processing power for the larger photos. To get the best computer possible on my budget I decided to go with a desktop model. That means I can no longer process photos while I am on the road. As a landscape photographer this isn’t a problem as time is rarely an issue. However I do like to share a photo while traveling and with the wireless interface Nikon makes I can do that right from my iPhone.

So these are the little things in my bag. What gadgets do you consider a must have?

The beginning.

Hello. After several years of fumbling through the world of digital photography I have decided to share some of the things I have learned on my journey to where I am today. I suspect that my posts will rarely occur in chronological order. But I hope that they will be both entertaining and insightful. For now let me say thank you to my wife. Mrs. Brandt reintroduced me to photography after quite a few years absence. She changed my life, again.