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Thread: Photographing woods

  1. #1

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    Photographing woods

    Dear friends,
    some months ago we've moved to area sort of surrounded by woods, mostly young-ish pine woods. As I walk through them quite often (and drive through them daily) I always wonder how to approach them to make pictures.. Until now I've had only VERY few passable negatives... I always feel rather special whenever I am surrounded by trees and I would like to capture something of this on my film.

    So I wonder, whether you have any advice or your own experience.. Or whether you could name some photographers doing making images of such kind of "ordinary" forests, whether they are considered masters like J.Sexton or just "some blokes in the blogosphere"... In a word I am looking for some inspiration...

    Of course I am aware of the looong "post your trees" thread - I browse through it pretty often, but I am thinking more about regular rather monotonous woods than some extraordinary interesting and often solitary trees or spectatular places like redwood forests..

    Thank you..
    Website of sorts, as well as flickr thing.

  2. #2
    lenser's Avatar
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    Tim from Missouri
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    Re: Photographing woods

    Composition is only part of the scheme. Pick your favorite spots and spend some serious time just sitting in a camp chair and watching how light sculpts each scene at different times of day. Make notes on where and the best times. It is is three dimensional quality of how light reveals the shapes that will tell you when to be back with your camera to make the really successful images.
    "One of the greatest necessities in America is to discover creative solitude." Carl Sandburg

  3. #3

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    Re: Photographing woods

    Take a piece of mat board or paper and cut out a 4x5 hole in it. Then you can view and compose what will be on your negative as you walk around. Holding it at various distances from your eyes will give you different lense options.

    Good Luck!
    Thad Gerheim
    Website: http:/thadgerheimgallery.com

  4. #4

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    Santa Barbara
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    Re: Photographing woods

    I'd walk around with a pocket digi camera at various times and conditions and just snap a lot of pix. A lot

    you probably won't get anything great..but if you look carefully..you will see how the 3d turns into 2d and where and when it's best to bring out the big camera for a try

  5. #5

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    Re: Photographing woods

    I'd agree that light is always important, but even more so to define the spaces between the trees...

    here's one with back lighting (non-LF, so I'll just post a link):
    http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6047/6...f9ec2701_z.jpg

    Quote Originally Posted by lenser View Post
    Composition is only part of the scheme. Pick your favorite spots and spend some serious time just sitting in a camp chair and watching how light sculpts each scene at different times of day. Make notes on where and the best times. It is is three dimensional quality of how light reveals the shapes that will tell you when to be back with your camera to make the really successful images.
    David Aimone Photography
    Critiques always welcome...

  6. #6
    Vaughn's Avatar
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    Re: Photographing woods

    Windless overcast days are nice to work with. It is like having a big softbox overhead.

  7. #7
    Format Omnivore Brian C. Miller's Avatar
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    Re: Photographing woods

    Color or B&W? I'm presuming B&W for the moment. In the shade or sunlit? Your film choice will also affect things.

    Recently I developed some Fuji Acros and inadvertently pushed it a bit much while doing some testing, and the pine needles wound up looking like I had used Kodak HIR. There was no filter used on the lens at the time. Another time I photographed pine trees in the shade using Konica IR, and they just give an amazing super pop, with everything looking white!

    So try something different. Try shooting wide open, try focusing on a patch of bark, try holding the camera and walking forward. Somebody posted a series in the image section of a friend dressed up as Death, and the ones where the 8x10 camera was hand-held and panned were very interesting.
    "It's the way to educate your eyes. Stare. Pry, listen, eavesdrop. Die knowing something. You are not here long." - Walker Evans

  8. #8
    jp's Avatar
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    Re: Photographing woods

    It's a good scene for intimate landscapes and macros as well. For the intimate landscape sort of thing, borrow some Eliot Porter books (particularly the Maine images). He was a master in working in tight woods rather than grand landscapes. There are many more modern or abstract compositions doable if you want to diverge from his style.

    I would agree with the others to check the places out in different light and figure out how to make 3d into a 2d image. I close one eye and move around in the scene to see things in 2d before setting up a camera.

    Thin depth of field is another option, somewhat related to macro by style. Here is one (not mine) that I really like. http://www.flickr.com/photos/cr2512/...-13759696@N02/ With thin DOF, you'll start seeing 2d scenes in 2d planes rather than 3d. Here's one I did with thin DOF to contrast new and old in the wood http://jason.philbrook.us/~jp/scans/2012/img513.jpg

  9. #9

    Re: Photographing woods

    Woods can be tough. My problem is that i "see" too much and can not seem to decide what to put on film!

    One thing really helped me:
    I went out and took 6-10 of the best woods photos I could. Basically found scenes and tried to compose in what looked best through the GG. This was on 810 so it was very fun to do

    I went through and developed as normal then scanned into LR3. I set the basic issues such as exposure and contrast then I locked the aspect ration and started playing with each image. This allowed me to recompose within what i already had and to explore new relationships within the existing photo.

    Without fail I found a better photo in what i had already shot. This process of review was followed by going back out and trying again. it did not take me too long to start getting the feel for what I liked and to learn to "see" the woods a bit better.

    I have used this same process with other subjects with good result.

    have fun...go make photographs
    david

  10. #10

    Join Date
    Sep 2003
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    Hudson Valley, NY
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    Re: Photographing woods

    I agree with Vaughn about taking advantage of bright overcast days.

    The chaos of dense forests can be difficult to translate from 3D to 2D. I like to walk around with one eye closed so that IO start seeing in 2D.

    For color work, take a look at Eliot Porter's and Robert Glenn Ketchum's photos of the forest of the eastern USA. They both were/are strong at creating order form chaos.

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