Equipment | Russ Bishop Photography | Nature Photo Blog

October 26, 2018December 15, 2020

Mountain Solitaire

Backcountry skier under Piute Pass, John Muir Wilderness, California

Backcountry skiing opens up a whole new world of travel, sport and photographic possibilities. Locations in my local Sierra Nevada Mountains, which are crowded and require permits long in advance during the rest of the year, are quiet and often untouched during the winter months.

Temperatures can drop to -20 degrees Fahrenheit so proper equipment is a must (think REI and Patagonia), but the reward is experiencing your own private ski bowls and perfect mountain landscapes just waiting to be photographed.

This image was made in the John Muir Wilderness where a fresh blanket of snow provided a pristine scene to rival the Alps or Canadian Rockies. It’s hard to imagine that just two months earlier this location was bustling with visitors chasing the fall colors, but on this three day trip we didn’t see another soul.

For those looking to experience the Sierra in the winter months, but who aren’t prepared with overnight gear, several businesses in the towns of Bishop and Mammoth Lakes offer day trips and overnight hut arrangements. Either way, there’s a beautiful untouched world out there just waiting to be explored.

July 21, 2017July 22, 2017

The Value of Filters

Evening light on Watchman Peak above the Virgin River, Zion Canyon, Zion National Park, Utah — Evening light on Watchman Peak above the Virgin River, Zion National Park, Utah

Back in the days when I shot film filters were an indispensable part of my technique that enabled me to control the light, balance dynamic range, and give a little extra snap to every image. Well guess what? Fast forward to the digital age and the same still holds true.

It’s easy to get caught in the trap of saying “I’ll just fix it in post”, but the truth is filters are every bit as important in the digital age as they were in the days of film. Photography after all is about shaping and controlling light, and whether your image is preserved in celluloid or pixels there is still no substitute for capturing the best possible image up front.

Two filters that I consider essential are the graduated neutral density (GND) and the polarizer. The GND is available in several densities with both hard and soft transitions allowing you to ideally balance the contrast in the scene. This magical filter works best for landscapes where the foreground is in shadow and the background has direct light. Through the viewfinder washed out clouds suddenly become more defined and foreground subjects emerge from the shadows and retain their natural color. Positioning the filter takes a little practice so that the transition seamlessly blends into the horizon and is not obvious in the final image.

The polarizing filter blocks scattered light rays to remove reflections from water and foliage, and definitely spends more time on the front of my lens than any other. By turning the filter you can control the amount of polarized light reaching the lens, which has the added benefit of saturating colors, darkening skies and increasing overall contrast. In addition, the polarizer works like a neutral density filter to slow exposure times allowing for a silky effect when shooting flowing water.

There are many other excellent filters available, but these two are a great starting point for creating more dynamic images and saving considerable time at the computer.

January 12, 2017July 12, 2018

That Extra Something

Mount Rushmore and fall color, Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota

I always strive to find the unique angle or foreground subject in my landscape and travel photography, and most of the time this is simply a matter of scouting the location before the sweet light arrives to find that special element. But sometimes the options are limited and even the subject itself has really only one angle. Mount Rushmore is a classic example.

The sculpture created by Gutzon Borglum in the 1930s is an icon of Americana, and has probably been photographed more times than Old Faithful or Yosemite Falls. Of course I too had to capture my version, but with limited access to the monument my choice of lens was about the only option. Tight telephoto images are captivating and show the skill and detail that went into Borglum’s creation, but in the end it was a simple splash of fall color and a wide field of view that captured the essence of what I felt and gave the image that extra something.

So the next time you find your vision is hampered by the limitations of your surroundings go long or go wide, but try to include something unique within the frame that imparts a sense of time or place – and sets your image apart from the crowd.