TE meets the rock Photo

Photographer’s Note

On my two previous posts from the Racetrack Playa, one in the blue hour and the other one in the early morning, I mentioned that I was there with another TE member. Here I introduce you to him. Actually, he is about to introduce you to one of those many rocks that leave behind them a mysterious track as a proof that they move around.

This is a shot that joins my ongoing collection of images that I do whenever I meet TE member. Unfortunately I don’t have a photograph of every single TE member that I met over the last 2 years. I enjoy these meetings a lot. It is always a multiple layer learning of photography, personality, friendship and many other things!

About this shot: The sun just came out and touched the ground of the Racetrack Playa. Its ground is perfectly horizontal and yet the characteristic pattern is the result of dried up mud giving almost the appearance of cobblestones. The sunrays being almost horizontal provide an unbelievable 3-D impression on the texture of the ground as well as the rocks and their tracks. That was exactly what this TE member was capturing here.

Technical Data:
Nikon D200
2008/03/21 08:28:32.1
RAW (12-bit)
Image Size: Large (3872 x 2592)
Color
Lens: 18-55mm F/3.5-5.6 G
Focal Length: 18mm
Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
Metering Mode: Multi-Pattern
1/15 sec - F/20
Exposure Comp.: 0 EV
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Optimize Image: Custom
White Balance: Auto
AF Mode: AF-S
Flash Sync Mode: Not Attached
Color Mode: Mode II (Adobe RGB)
Tone Comp.: Normal
Hue Adjustment: 0°
Saturation: Normal
Sharpening: None Image Comment: 2008 © P. Böhringer
Long Exposure NR: Off
High ISO NR: Off

Floydian, robertosalguero, edytungkal, marion44, ktanska, feather, paura, belido, stego, euryan, Docarmo, carper, nivaldo, jwmunro, lucasgalodoido, Cormac, gneufeld, tehanu_f, Angelillo, wgreis, gunbud, zmey, hispic, Emile, sonkai, Wandering_Dan, xuaxo, lilimih33, skippy007, zeca, doubay, banyanman, alainh, jongari, Charo has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

claire526 (1261) 2008-04-06 22:08

Hi Peter,
So many beautiful elements in this shot. Very good quality--great sharpness, light, colors, textures, composition and POV.
Regards,
Claire

wolf38 (12475) 2008-04-06 22:34

Hello Peter. Photography of a photographing. Excellent. A picture worth seeing in high quality. Best regards, Wolfgang.

edytungkal (4513) 2008-04-06 23:09

Ha..ha.. its a funny shot Peter, i like it.
I like how you combined it with beautiful landscape on the distance and of course added the man on fg (TE's member?) is a good and very original idea. Maybe included higher blue sky will give a different perspective, its just my opinion but indeed this picture has a perfect quality and clarity. Well done and tfs

daniel

marion44 (4222) 2008-04-06 23:51

Hello Peter,

I discover your gallery with this photo I like a lot. The photograph is perfectly framed in the photo in the diagonal way and guide the sight to the rock, THE detail in this desert landscape.

The rock... this is the most amazing thing I've learned in my whole life (quite brief after all !!!). This is just crazy. I've studied geography and geomorphology but I've never heard of such a phenomenon. Your precedent posts are sublime and illustrate perfectly your note in a very artistic way.

Thank you a lot for your photos and notes, I love to learn such a thing on a monday morning :D :D :D

Regards,
Marion

robertosalguero (2759) 2008-04-07 0:36

Hello Peter,

This is an amazing place, so flat and vast. The photographer on the ground is an excellent subject in this image. He does take a large chunk of the image creating an interesting element...I guess photography is not always a clean hobby as sometimes I also have to get dirty on the floor to get a nice shot of a wedding or event. Thanks Peter.

Roberto

ktanska (16375) 2008-04-07 0:36

Hi Peter,
I like the strong contrast. And your PoV showing him in the big shoes. Good shot of work in progress, sometimes it is worth laying down to catch what you want.
Kari

MarcT (20981) 2008-04-07 0:45

Hi Peter,
That's an excellent frame. The Pov is well chosen. The only pitty is I thought those rocks were much bigger :))
Have a nice week.
Marc

feather (49848) 2008-04-07 2:43

I hope he didn't clog the drains up when he finally got in the shower! ;D
The light is really showing the crazy paving effect of the ground very well. This is a good idea for a composition as it puts some interest in the frame, and putting him on a diagonal was absolutely the right way to go. Funny, but I expected the rocks to be bigger.
Well done
Kath

belido (15997) 2008-04-07 4:51

Olá Peter,

interessante "making off". Eu fico imaginando quantas boas composições rendem esse lugar. E se um dia, eu for a essas bandas, gostaria de ter você como guia...fazendo um preço camarada, né :)) Belo registro!
Abraço,
Carlos

Floydian (30970) 2008-04-07 5:03

Neighbours again, this can't be true ;-)
Hello Peter,
Who is this on the ground, is this Ken?
A funny picture and now we see also how large or better said, how small these stones are. The dry patterns on the earth and the touch of blue in the sky make it really nice, but showing a TE memeber with dedication is the best part ;-)
Regards, Henk

stego (22318) 2008-04-07 5:21

Olá Peter,
Uma foto muito interessante, tanto por mostrar a actividade do fotógrafo e a posição inusitada (não tanto como isso! :-), como pela paisagem que, com aquele elemento de escala parece perder grande parte da grandiosidade, mas certamente não da beleza agreste. Como os outros, admiro-me do diminuto tamanho das pedras "fujonas". Nitidez, luz e cores esplêndidas.
Um abraço, José.

Greg1949 (8499) 2008-04-07 5:27

Peter, I love it, it is always great to see us in action, especially in such a unique location.

Greg

paura (37722) 2008-04-07 5:39

Peter,
Tá muito interessante a fotografia, mostrando o esforço do fotógrafo para obturar. As cores também estão muito lindas.

Abraço

Paulo

hopsy_life (69) 2008-04-07 5:59

A fantastic picture of photography. I like the sand
regards Heidi

euryan (8345) 2008-04-07 6:12

This really puts everything into perspective. I imagined those rocks to be a lot bigger, or perhaps Ken is just extremely huge ;-) I think you composed this one perfectly. The blue sky looks great. I can't wait to see Ken's image haha, get it, kensimage. I guess he probably pretty busy with it being close to the end of the semester though.
Regards,
Ryan

mesutilgim (36210) 2008-04-07 6:14

Hi dear Peter,
This is a wonderfull evidence which show how hard a photographers life can be !!!
Anyhow wonderfull capture, with or without the photographer. Very good pov and amazing compo. This is really a perfect idea to show TE members how diversified photography can be.
TFS and best regards
MESUT ILGIM

Docarmo (8812) 2008-04-07 6:56

Olá Peter,
Excelente tomada! A gente tem uma idéia das dimensões e, por falar em dimensão, esta está com uma forte impressão de 3D. A hipótese dos meteoritos que eu aventei na sua foto anterior é plausível? Já foi aventada antes ou há elementos que a excluem?
Realmente intrigante!
Obrigada por partilhar,
MCV
P.S.: sem novidades por aqui, muita neve no solo ainda... estou aguardando indícios mais convincentes de primavera. Abraço. MCV

Flavia (10202) 2008-04-07 7:06

Hi Peter,

A picture to be proud of. I"m sure he was really pleased with it. Great POV , composition, beautiful light and creativity to place and portrait your subject in action. Love it!

Regards,

Flavia

Dyerco (8842) 2008-04-07 7:16

Hi Peter
Good shot of what a photographer must do to get that shot. Beautifully exposed with lots of DOF.
Well done.
Phil

nivaldo (12856) 2008-04-07 7:51

Uma belíssima apresentação, Peter!
Uma linda imagem com ótimo efeito!
Grande fotógrafo, Bravo!
Um abraço, do Recife (hoje bem chuvoso...)
Nivaldo

jwmunro (6859) 2008-04-07 8:11

Hello Peter -

What is there to say about this image, but well done.

Thank you for sharing.

John

lucasgalodoido (16537) 2008-04-07 8:29

Olá Peter,
muito bom o making-off, e bem interessante essa foto mesmo, impressionante o que as pessoas passam pra tirar boas fotos, gostaria de ver a imagem dele no WS. A qualidade fuicou ótima.
Parabéns e Abraço!

mark_mk (246) 2008-04-07 8:39

Hi Peter,
a great picture, nice idea to take a picture of taking a picture himself. Wonderful colors and once again great quality of the image. Excellent POV! Thanks for sharing this nice picture.

Greetings
Mark

Cormac (26447) 2008-04-07 8:48

Ha! This is a funny and interesting shot at the same time. I find the scale aspect to be quite interesting, because from the other photos of the racetrack it seemed that the rocks were bigger, but this proves that they are actually quite small. Nice work!

gneufeld (14989) 2008-04-07 9:54

Hi Peter,
What a great action shot - love it! Wow, this place is on my "to visit list" for sure. Thanks for sharing. Gerald

tehanu_f (6874) 2008-04-07 10:17

I like everything about this shot. It is humorous, very clear and sharp, and the contrast is very successful
Well-done.
Regards,
Fusun

crckt (6963) 2008-04-07 12:03

Hi Peter,
TE-itis portrayed really well :). I like the black tshirt that he is wearing, stands out nicely against the sand. Beautiful shot.
Regards,
Shaeri

Angelillo (9065) 2008-04-07 13:47

Hi Peter:

Amazing composition, the photographer fix the diagonal line guiding our eyes to the horizon! In addition, it creates a big contrast with the sand... The quality is extraordinary, the texture of the sand... The beautiful background close the scene perfectly! Great idea!

Greetings,
Angel.

Philippe (11651) 2008-04-07 14:09

Hi, Peter. You've chosen a very good angle here with Ken pointing to the rock in a beautiful diagonal line. We also have a feeling of immensity looking at the mountains in the distance that seem to be so far away. Good colours and good contrasts too.

MarianneS (14262) 2008-04-07 14:48

Hi Peter,
I still can't believe it! Thank you for this incredible serie.
This composition has a great advantage : it reminds us that this is reality ! And not a special effect or an optical one.
Congratulations, it is superb.
Regards,
Marianne

azleader (6) 2008-04-07 15:04

This is one of those images photographers like. I must be one because I like it a lot. It has good composition as well as having great light. The great light is the best part. You can't ask for anything more.

If you don't get dirty taking a landscape/nature picture then you aren't a real photographer. LOL!!!

There is no greater kinship than to meet a member of your peers in a fantastic location.

wgreis (5888) 2008-04-07 15:18

Olá Peter,
gostei muito da composição, bem criativa com a inclusão do componente humano. Entretanto, penso que a foto também ficaria excelente só com a paisagem natural do local.
Um espetáculo.
Abraços,
Wagner.

tomescuc (2821) 2008-04-07 16:49

I like how you combined the photographer with this stark and unreal landscape. Excellent light and angle.
cheers,
Cristian

gunbud (27515) 2008-04-07 19:51

Hi Peter,
Wonderful texture to the desert floor which with the brown hills contrast wonderfully with the vivid blue cloudless sky. Excellent details and sharpness to this fine desolate landscape. Nothing like this in the Northeast where ever you go it is green.
Regards, Tom

zmey (7242) 2008-04-07 19:54

hello peter

lol. i was almost about to ask if that was your 6'2'' (you beat me by almost 2''... but not my son... he beats you by 2 ;)) on the ground there, but then read your note ;) a great TE shot, i must say. but what amazes me more is the clarity of the stone texture, while the TE'er serves as an excellent foreground object 'of interest'. nicely done.

my compliments and TFS
kristaps

aadilj (17950) 2008-04-07 23:08

Thats lovely action which reminds me that at times I might be looking similar to someone behind me!!! Great tones and textures and lovely capture.

sorry for the delay, I had been travelling

ag1993 (634) 2008-04-08 1:46

Hey,
Very good shot. Great colours and of course superb details.
Regards
Andrea Gatt

carper (63968) 2008-04-08 3:08

it's a very nice one peter,
the unusual pov, the fantastic depth, the good balance and the nice composition made the shot good, with the note it is perfect, good photojob here, have a nice day.
gr. jaap

hispic (7399) 2008-04-08 4:25

Hello Peter,
Wonderful 3-D impression on the texture of the ground, and great perspective.
Black of the TE member's shirt was capturing the famous sailing stone in center of the image, attracts my attention.
Stunning shot with super-fine detail!
Have a nice day, Hisashi

Emile (19775) 2008-04-08 7:05

Hola Peter.
Wonderful composition with Ken taking a picture of the moving rock and very interesting surroundings, it looks like if the picture was taken in Mars. A great one.
Well done. TFS.
best regards.

sonkai (1017) 2008-04-08 8:42

Hi Peter.
It's true the ground have 3D impression,the play of the light with forms is surprising sometimes.I think this one is a simple shot,with not many elements I mean,but it has a beautiful light and soft colours,and motivates to experiment,it also give a great feeling of freedom with all that empty landscape in front of us..
Regards,
Sonsoles.

Wandering_Dan (3169) 2008-04-08 9:28

Hi, Peter -

A really funny shot! And gorgeous as well. I hope you got another one before he got down there; that would also be gorgeous, with this lighting and the mountains in that position.

If we ever go on a shoot together, I'm going to have to keep my eye on you!

Best,
Dan

xuaxo (5623) 2008-04-08 12:54

Olá Peter
Funny shot indeed.
At the same time that's very interesting that ground.
I've read a little bit about these moving rocks. That one in the picture, however, almost could be moved by force of the wind we had today in Portugal :-)
(I've read the threads about the size).
Um abraço,
F

lilimih33 (9870) 2008-04-09 12:40

Hello Peter!
Wonderful place and very nice your perspective!
Excellent clarity and great colours, like in all your pictures!
Best regards!
Lili

skippy007 (6753) 2008-04-09 21:55

Hi Peter,
I like Ken's POV but yours is better. Excellent clarity and detail. Nice note and Data is handy. In particular Shutter, aperture and ISO rating.
Thanks
Santo

zeca (20024) 2008-04-10 21:32

Você é um perigo, hein cara! Não dá para dar as costas ao velho Peter que ele logo registra-nos a busanfa...hehehe! Embora fosse bem melhor uma garota nesta posição de captura de close up, o flagrante está muito legal e bem executado, mostrando um pouco o quanto somos esquisitos quando saímos com uma câmera nas mãos. Este deserto me parece algo muito legal mesmo..
Abraço,
Zeca

dinkar (194) 2008-04-11 23:21

Great angle, colors and depth of focus. Steady hands too. Tack sharp at 1/15s.
Masterfully done
Dinkar

kensimage (8539) 2008-04-11 23:26

Who is that guy in the picture, Peter? He obviously has no clue what he is doing, and it sets a bad example for the TE audience to show him here. Oh, wait...that's me in the picture. Definitely my best angle--yeah, right. Well, revenge will be mine, I'll put your picture up soon! Mbwahahaha! Regards, Ken.

doubay (5023) 2008-04-14 12:43

Was!? So klein ist dieser Felsen nur? Dabei hatten deine anderen Fotos doch suggeriert, er sei deutlich größer. Das grenzt ja an Betrug! Trotzdem ein schönes Fotos, das einen guten Einblick gibt in die Herausforderungen und Härten, die ein ambitioniertes TE-Mitglied zu meistern hat.
Beste Grüße
Andreas

banyanman (7716) 2008-04-25 22:37

Hi Peter. I came to this post after seeing the 'near death experience' shot that Ken posted of you. Great shots that you have each posted of each other, and so completely different in concept and style. You've composed this one perfectly and the light is fantastic. Like others, I thought the rocks here were bigger. Cheers . . . David

PS: I just read your note to Kath about there being much bigger rocks around. I agree that this one was a good subject to select for a photograph because of the undisturbed ground and clean track behind the rock.

alainh (35341) 2008-04-28 10:25

hello OPeter
i like this crazy position bercause i am often in the grass to keep the little things !
incredible place and funny shot
a good day for you Peter
alain

Charo (31651) 2009-06-30 9:11

Hello Peter,
I see you have a bit left TE, a penalty not able to enjoy more often than your magnificent captures.
The image is beautiful and with great force. Excellent presentation of Death Valley with its great drama.
Best wishes,
Charo