First Day in the Ozarks

My wife and I arrived in Mountain Home, Arkansas on Wednesday evening.  After two days of "settling in" we finally got out today to check out the Buffalo River wilderness area.  We spent all day today exploring the Buffalo and White River area near Mountain Home.  This was not really a photography day but I did get a couple of images at Blanchard Springs.

This creek emerged from a rock face about 200 yards farther upstream.  I was struggling with dappled sunlight on the stream which always makes shooting water difficult.  The contrast was very high so I shot a series of three images, one at the meter, one at -1 stop and one at +1 stop for each of these three compositions.  I combined the three in post processing to get a more balanced exposure.

I like the way the rocks in the foreground pull the eye into the image by creating a strong line that moves up the stream.  This one has one very bright, overexposed rock that pulls the eye.  I like the light in the foreground but the bright rock is just too much and I think it ruins the image.  Direct sunlight on scenes like this one is always a challenge.

I moved the camera position just a little and then waited until the light was cut down by a passing cloud and shot this image.

I like the exposure better without the bright rock.  Overall this image is a little softer in terms of light intensities.  When I moved the camera I also tilted it up a little and I think that was a mistake.  I like the lower camera position of the first image better.

Here is a third composition I took after moving upstream about 20 feet.  The waterfall becomes a much more dominate part of the image.  The strong lines of the overhanging limb stand out much more in this image and I think they become a distraction.  There is a little sun in the background, just enough for interest but not enough to create unmanageable contrast.

The rocks still lead the eye into the image but that effect is not as strong in this image as it was in the first two.

Of the three, the second is my favorite.  To me it communicates accurately what the area looked and felt like.  So what??

Is there a takeaway from this?  I think so.  The three images have pronounced differences in lighting and composition.  They "feel" different, yet they are very similar, were taken minutes apart, and the camera position was only slightly different between images.

The takeaway for me is that little things really do make big differences.  A small change in camera position, waiting for slightly different light, arranging the elements in the frame differently converts into big changes in the final image.  When you find a subject that you like, work it!  Try different camera positions, higher, lower, left, right, etc...  Far too often I see photographers set up their tripod at a location and work it for 20 minutes without ever moving the tripod.  Get mobile, move around, experiment.  Good subjects are not that common so when you find one that speaks to you, spend enough time with it unlock its secrets. 

My new website is up for viewing at http://www.robertpriddyphoto.com/, check it out.