jeremai Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 So, I have a recently-acquired Mazda MX-6 and I wanted to see what she was made of, so I took a trip to the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area outside of Las Vegas. Turns with a 30ft radius at 40mph will test any car - and she perfomed admirably for being completely stock. Anyway, Red Rock is absolutely incredible, but difficult to photograph, tending toward being very high contrast, so I went with HDR for the first time. The first image is my new toy and the rest are all HDR, some better than others. They are made in PhotoMatix and sharpened in Photoshop, but there were no other corrections made. Let me know what you think. Link to comment
el fabuloso Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 Very nice! Hopefully you didn't hit any cyclists or wild burros out there while test driving that thing. I would love to take a stab at HDR photography myself, I gotta get a decent camera though. I like taking pictures at Valley of Fire. Link to comment
jeremai Posted February 29, 2008 Author Share Posted February 29, 2008 lol, thanks. No bicyclists or burros this time around, though - just lots of old people, typical Thursday. HDR can be done using any camera with exposure bracketing. A lot of P&S cameras have the feature, too. I think Valley of Fire will be my next day trip, sometime next month when the flowers bloom. Should be awesome. Link to comment
el fabuloso Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 HDR can be done using any camera with exposure bracketing. A lot of P&S cameras have the feature, too. True, but I'm trying to justify getting a decent DSLR here! lol Which really, I should already have. I recently acquired an Olympus E-510 for work and so far I'm impressed. I'm considering picking one up for myself. Link to comment
Fanof49ASU Posted March 1, 2008 Share Posted March 1, 2008 I find the 'flash flood' signs humorous.......hopefully you saw them, or you won't have a clue what I'm talking about. Anyways....nice shots. Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 1, 2008 Author Share Posted March 1, 2008 I find the 'flash flood' signs humorous.......hopefully you saw them, or you won't have a clue what I'm talking about. Anyways....nice shots. Thanks. I've seen the signs, but they remind me of far less humorous times - I had to hike through one of those flash floods once. Ten inches of water moving at 30 mph does NOT make for a pleasant experience. Pfft. It's been a rough winter for us, the road to Red Rock washed out twice, and the loop itself has washed out in three different spots four or five times since the monsoon season ended last year. It also made for a short climbing season, since most of the winter the rock was too soft. But lots of water during the winter means lots of flowers in the spring - and lots more good photos! Link to comment
kinetic Posted March 4, 2008 Share Posted March 4, 2008 thank goodness, when I read HDR I was afraid of the overly excited pimple faced HDR person who goes way overboard with the HDR to make it look insanely unreal. you were able to bring out the best of the photos, the dark skies etc. It's so natural looking, and is akin to how our eyes compensate for the contrast as well. great work with the HDR, it's so subtle but it makes the picture really pop. cool car too Link to comment
SeeDemTails Posted March 4, 2008 Share Posted March 4, 2008 Nice pics. Man there must be a lot of air planes around there! Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 4, 2008 Author Share Posted March 4, 2008 Nice pics. Man there must be a lot of air planes around there! lol yeah, coming and going from California, mostly. Usually the wind is blowing enough to obscure them, but this was an incredibly rare February day - 75 degrees and calm.Gotta enjoy it while I can, in a couple months it'll be 115 at Red Rock. thank goodness, when I read HDR I was afraid of the overly excited pimple faced HDR person who goes way overboard with the HDR to make it look insanely unreal. you were able to bring out the best of the photos, the dark skies etc. It's so natural looking, and is akin to how our eyes compensate for the contrast as well. great work with the HDR, it's so subtle but it makes the picture really pop. cool car too Thanks, on all counts. I don't like anyhting over-processed, and since I'm still a PS novice, I couldn't overdo it if I tried, lol. The second one is my favorite, but the shadows in the bottom left came out all funky; it's a good composition, though. And thanks on the car, I think I like it better than my RX-8, hehe. Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 7, 2008 Author Share Posted March 7, 2008 Well, I spent another morning at Red Rock, and I figured rather than make a new thread I'll just add to this one. I was in a different section, across the valley from where the last set were taken. The trail is 2mi each way, from Willow Springs to White Rock Springs. And now, with commentary! On the way up: Detail of lichen on rocks: Halfway there, lol. Red Rock is known for its iron oxide deposits, as well as the juxtaposition of the newer iron oxide against the older granite of the Spring Mountains: There are four distinct ecosystems covered by this hike. The center section is like this, flat and covered with Mojave Yucca and creosote: The smalless habitat, and the most fragile, are the riparian systems. Las Vegas Valley is the largest natural aquifier in the Mojave Desert. There were ten large springs in the Valley once, but by 1960 demand for fresh water had outpaced the flow and the springs dried up. there are still dozens of small springs up at Red Rock, though - the largest is at my starting point (Willow Springs), but the quietest is here, the White Rock Spring. In the 1970s the BLM got a little overzealous and built the conctrete trough, with a pipe running from the source of the spring, about fifty feet up behind where the picture was taken. For all of you interested in biology, look up Pyrgulopsis deaconi - they are the reason the BLM is so adamant in saving these riparian habitats: Another view, showing the Spring Mountains in the background: See, you learned something! Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 8, 2008 Author Share Posted March 8, 2008 It was the learning thing, huh? Sorry. Link to comment
el fabuloso Posted March 8, 2008 Share Posted March 8, 2008 Yes, it was the learning. The pics are great though! Were there little froggies out there? I like the little froggies. One time I smuggled them in my water bottle. Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 8, 2008 Author Share Posted March 8, 2008 lol, I saw no froggies at White Rock Spring, but there was a bus of Japanese tourists all chattering excitedly around Willow Springs, so I imagine there could have been some there. Link to comment
ibanezgfx Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 those are some nice pics! Link to comment
phases Posted March 11, 2008 Share Posted March 11, 2008 Those images are spectacular. How many images are you layering? Link to comment
jeremai Posted March 11, 2008 Author Share Posted March 11, 2008 Three, usually, sometimes five. Link to comment
jeremai Posted April 18, 2008 Author Share Posted April 18, 2008 And now, for something completely different: SPRING HAS SPRUNG!! Link to comment
latazyo Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 great shots as always great color Link to comment
jeremai Posted April 19, 2008 Author Share Posted April 19, 2008 great shots as always great color Thanks. I got a new circular polarizer. It's a half stop faster than the old one, and the colors seem to be a lot better. Hoya ftw! Link to comment
latazyo Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 when I got mine I noticed that the sky always looks better with the CPL Link to comment
wimby Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 wow I wish I lived close to a place like that Link to comment
jeremai Posted November 26, 2008 Author Share Posted November 26, 2008 Well, it was raining pretty hard all night so the loop was closed due to flooding. I was still able to salvage a trip though, from the overlook: And some late fall foliage, for the naysayers: Link to comment
Lalani Posted November 26, 2008 Share Posted November 26, 2008 Nice shots, Jer. I particularly like 1, 3, and 4. You've got nicer Autumn colors than I do... Link to comment
Smurf Posted November 26, 2008 Share Posted November 26, 2008 http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg162/j...85/RRHDR8a.jpg][/img] Like in underworld. Link to comment
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