RogerBrooks

Meditation of Nature

SONY ILCE-6000

settings

Aperture 56/10 ISO 100 Shutter 1/8 Focal Length 1390/10

upload_date

Aug, 2021

Views

211

Likes

Awards

Summer Views Award

Flawless Summer Award

Judge Favorite

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Top Ranks

Top 30 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

The photo was take at France Park in Cass County, IN. This is a small county campground about two hours from my house. I was introduced to when we went camping back in Highschool. My group of friends and myself had come to the area to actually go to a completely different camp ground. Due to my some questionable behavior by my friends, and of course not me, we were kindly asked to leave the original camp ground. I personally was not too devastated by this, the camp ground we originally where at was not nearly as 'woodsy' as I would have liked. We drove around for a while in the area looking for a new place to camp and found France Park. It's no National Park, but it is beautiful and has a lot a space to explore with trees, hills, creeks, crystal clear lakes, and even a waterfall. There are even 'monster' Lake Sturgeon you can see swimming in the lake from the top of the cliffs!! During the high season it's a little busy for my tastes, but during the off season it's still one of my favorite places to visit for a quick impromptu trip!

Time

11:33 AM, April 10th, 2020. This is much later in the day then I normally shoot but I had taken my brother with me on this trip. He feels that 4AM is not an appropriate time to wake up, I disagree with him on this point.

Lighting

My style of photography is a 'work with what you find' style. I enjoy exploring locations and seeing what I find. Part of that means that I don't always get the exact lighting that I want, and when trekking too many of my locations bringing lighting with is not always an option. In some cases I'll come back to a location I found at a latter time when I know the lighting will be better. In this case, I was on a short trip and used the lighting I had. I did make sure to shoot from an angle that the rocks would stand out from the dark area behind them though.

Equipment

I used my trusty, non-fancy, Sony A6000 with a Sony 55mm-210mm lens and an Amazon special tripod. Nothing fantastic, just equipment that I have and works. 139mm 1/8sec @ f/5.6

Inspiration

I think I have two primary inspirations. One, the image of the perfectly balanced rocks, fit into the the back drop of a cliff, cozy into it's perfect place really resonated with me. I had a perfect sense of balance. In my life I'm always trying to find more balance with less being thrown to the ups and downs. Steady like a well balanced rock. Second, is a bit of a secret; but I'll share it anyway. I didn't place the rocks. As I said, my style is that of an explorer and I generally shoot what I find interesting and maybe making some minor tweaks; but these rocks, not me. So there is a sense of Mystery on who placed them there and why. I imagine someone out on a peaceful reflective walk who comes to sit by the cliff. Maybe they found themselves at the cliff the same way I did, to shelter from the rain. While they sit there they see the open mini cavern in the cliff and some rocks nearby. Slowly, mindfully, they stack the rocks as they calm there mind and allow the rain to pass.

Editing

Yes, but not very much. It was originally shot in color RAW. I changed the color profile to black and white. I did not feel the color in this case really added anything to the photo. I look to cut back anything in my photos that don't add to what I want to achieve and sometimes this makes them a b&w. In this case I wanted to achieve the sense of balance and peace in nature that I perceived. There were also some subtle tweaks with texture, clarity, and vignette.

In my camera bag

It depends on how much hiking I have to do; but I don't normally have much. I like to keep things simple. * Sony A6000 (My first and only camera at this time, but it does me well) * Sony 55mm-210mm Lens * The Sony A600 Kit Lens (16mm-50mm) * Artisans 60mm Macro Lens w/ guide rails kit * Gobe UV, CPL, and Variable ND filter. * I upgraded the tripod from the 'Amazon Special' to a Eekoto AT24 Traveller

Feedback

In my opinion everyone has their own, ever developing style, whether they know it or not. For me ,in part, I've come to see myself more as an explorer with a camera more then a photographer to setup a scene. I work with what I find and then work to decide the best way to compose the photograph in a way to bring the viewer with me to that location and experience what I discovered.

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RogerBrooks

RogerBrooks

Meditation of Nature

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow RogerBrooks

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