Late Fall Color -- Why Not Try Black and White?

Steel Creek like you never see it. There are plenty of different ways to interpret the place. I found myself draw to this odd tree -- very geometric and eccentric.  This is late fall color when tree trunks emerge to provide form and interest. 

I think this compo is better as a BW.  I could spend an afternoon interpreting this in black and white with different filters and presents.  This conversion is pretty straight ahead.  Maybe more contrast would be better with a mild red filter. I use Silver Efecs 2.0 from NIK for conversions. Easy to work with, and you can focus on the end product. (And no, I don't hype anything I don't use and like.)

Not Your Standard Steel Creek Compo

Maybe a Touch More Contrast

Tips for Elk River Shots & Crossings

Setting up for river shots is pretty simple, but one must be mindful that it is roughly like swinging for home runs -- you will strike out a lot, BUT when you connect with a river shot, you are hooked for life.

The photographer below was heading to one such sitting spot. He was hoping to get elk drinking at the river on the opposite bank. The formula for this is simple. Locate the field where the elk are, get behind them (or beside them) and wait. The will come to the river to drink, and they might cross too if it is possible (or not).

Going for an Elk River Shot

Fall color reflections can easily be brought into these photos. The key here is to locate a great river reflection and locate the elk trail that crosses it. Elk trails are easy to find. Good landscape compos are pretty easy to make. Bring the two together, add elk, and you have it.

Elk River Shots With Fall Reflections Can Be Dramatic

The crossing shot below puts an even finer point on the composition. This elk is cross lit by sunrise light cutting right down the trail toward him. This shot kind of looks impossible, but really it is about time of day, pre-visualization, and moving elk. If there are reflecting pools they add a lot.  

TIP: One thing that makes these photos much easier is that the herd bull is nearly always last when herd moves.  This give you plenty of time to think through your composition, exposure and timing.  You set these up with the cows that precede the bull. In this way, this is nothing like a snap shot, it can be very well planned. In the shot below, at least 20 cows that preceded this bull. They made it easy to get this shot and help me plan the final compo.

Think About Painting with Cutting Light -- Get Creative

Introducing "Hooks", 2013 Rut Elk Herd Bull

What a difference a day makes. Yesterday we had pretty dense fog, today the light was perfect. I got many photos of Hooks so it is time to introduce him.  Along the way I will offer a few elk photography tips based on many years of experience.

Hooks Through the Leaves

This picture was taken just up the road from many photographers who were shooting Hooks.  I shot him through foliage to get a natural frame of leaves. This breaks up a "field shot" and adds interest.  So far as I know, nobody else went for this composition.

Hooks Running off a Spike Bull

I think good elk pictures tell the story of the elk rut. Herd bulls like Hooks spend the day running off bulls of all sizes.  This is one of the basic rutting behaviors. Note that this composition shows movement, shows the small bull reaction to the herd bull, and it places the small bull outside the 3rd line on the left.  These are all deliberate.  I try hard to get elk legs in motion, rather than standing like table legs in a field. This illustrates that pretty well.

Herd Bull "Hooks" in Motion

Here is another picture of Hooks in motion. Again the legs are key. Another feature of this is his head is lowered a bit. Running bull elk lower their heads and tilt their heads back to streamline their antlers.  When they run through brush, this is the only way they can avoid getting tangled up.  Note that in this composition, there is "negative space" in front of Hooks.  This an absolutely standard way of expressing movement.  Note his legs are in motion too.  If they were straight as table legs it would be much less effective.  When I do my post-shoot editing, I look for leg positions when deciding what pictures to keep.  This is a small thing that matters a lot.

Tutorial -- Scene from the Rut

If you are going to take great elk photos, you need to understand their behavior. Because I have been taking elk pictures now for many years, I know what to look for, and many of the basic behaviors of Arkansas elk.

This picture was taken a couple of years ago, but I never bothered to process it. This is the very end of a river crossing.

Remember this basic fact. When elk move, virtually all the time the herd bull will be last in line.  He is protecting against bulls that hang around the edges of his harem. This gives you plenty of time to prepare for the bull's arrival. I always use the cows that precede the bull for test shots to get the exposure and composition just right.  Be thoughtful, the best tool in your photographic arsenal is your mind.

In this picture, the herd bull JYD, is "looking off" a satellite bull that has averted his gaze.  This is behavior is typical of herd bull behavior in the rut.

From a photographic perspective, I like this picture pretty well. I like the crossing light, and the way the elk are organized in the composition.  JYD is a fine bull and his "looking off" pose is classic. You can see the power in his back.

I have found that many elk photos benefit from a "pano" crop.  This is cropped 12x6  or 2:1.   I do bullfights in 3:1 quite often.

Herd Bull JYD "Looks Off" a Satellite Bull

Imagination and Communication in Photography

Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader's."  
Stephen King


So too in photography. 

Gifts Given and Moment's Captured to be Shared

Your artistic expression must charge straight into the imagination of your viewer. Leave it to a writer to distill the essence of our craft. 


This reminds me of a recent session with a workshop participant. I had her bring photos that she loved but felt there was something missing. I took one of her images and interpreted it, and asked her if this edit was what she saw. She said yes, that is it exactly. It was a little spooky for her I think. 


If one examines an image with the heart, looking for the expression that must be there, it can be revealed in post processing. Ansel Adams had it right when he said the negative is the score, and the print is the performance. 


We must not lose sight of the fact that cameras come up short in capturing light. They get about half the tonal range of what you see in reality. Often this means they do not capture the intimations of your heart. 


In the place behind your reason, you feel why you took certain photos. You were drawn to them intuitively. You might think the composition to death, but there is that other dimension. Be courageous in your post processing to restore your creative vision. Open up your heart's expression to finish in your viewers heart.