in the mist

gorge-mist4

I’ve spent a fair amount of time recently shooting in the rainy climes of Portland and the Gorge. I’ve always been ok with carrying my camera around in less-than-ideal weather conditions, but I wouldn’t say that I actively choose to set up and shoot in the rain.

I have quite a few images from treks (trudges?) with Matt Kloskowski, Brian Matiash and Vincent Versace. I’m finding more throwaway shots (i.e. they get deleted immediately) than I normally see, but there are also quite a few that are instructive, whether in terms of composition, exposure, or focus, in a way that I don’t always get when I’m out in good weather. For example, I don’t know if all the negative space in the upper-left corner of this photo dooms this image, but I do know that I like the line of trees fading into the mist, and I like the vibrance of the greens in the moss and the trees in the foreground. The fact that I’m stopping, looking for shots, and then trying to make sense of them is valuable instruction for my long-term growth as a photographer.

5 thoughts on “in the mist”

  1. It’s just one of those things that happens to us when we shoot in overdrive for a few days in a row, especially the same scene, and coupled with extraneous stresses of the life waiting for us when we get home.

    I try to put a moratorium on looking at fresh shots for at least 2-3 days, if not weeks. It gives me time to recompose and hit the images with fresh eyes.

    With that said, you know that I love this image. We were beyond lucky to have this atmosphere at our disposal. I get a chuckle at the thought that SO many photographers would likely turn back and go home because of this ‘weather’, rather than take it all in.

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