A closer look at rocks

One of the neat "finds" or "gets" -- photographically speaking, I mean -- in a recent photo shoot on private acreage west of Bloomington were the various rocks and rock formations in the northern fringe of the state's massive limestone shelf. Being on the fringe, the rocks and formations were quite modest, but ... detectable and photographically delectable nevertheless.

I showed a few rock-related pictures in a previous post. This post is dedicated to presenting those and all the others I captured that day, thanks to a fellow member of the Indy Meetup Photo Club, whose cousin owns the 100+ acres in the tiny community called Stanford.

Enjoy.

 

Rain wouldn't go away, so ... we simply dealt with it

At first, it didn't seem to make sense to drive to Bloomington from Indianapolis for an outdoor photo shoot on a day that forecasters were promising yet more rain, extending what has seemed to be an unending string of extraordinarily wet spring weather. But that's just what I did Saturday, even though I don't own any serious weather-protection gear for my equipment, nor do I have rain-repelling outerwear.

My plan at the 100-acre private property, opened to members of the Indy Meetup Photo Club by a relative of one our members, was to bring along my umbrella for protection during any drizzle or light rain, limit my gear options to just the lens on the camera (I picked my mid-range Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8) and head for the house for cover if any rain reached downpour proportions, even though there could very likely be an extensive haul to that house if I happened to be anywhere near the outer perimeter of those 100 acres.

There was rain during the several hours we were out and about, but except for some very short spurts, it never got too heavy to warrant getting out of it. I used some of the opportunity to pursue photographs of leaves and flowers -- and even an umbrella -- adorned with raindrops. There were also mushrooms, rock formations, critter paw and footprints, trees and logs (including heinous-looking thorns on one tree), mud holes, interesting vistas, and a puddle large enough to surrender a nice reflection shot. We saw no critters except for Joey and Friday, the host family's two dogs.

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Cataract Falls, Take 2

Yesterday's post about my shoot at Cataract Falls concentrated almost entirely on the recreation area's main attraction: the waterfalls. The images of the young tree trunks in that post, however, should have suggested there is more to be found there than just water and falls. But hey, shouldn't any photo outing entail looking for more than just the obvious -- especially if you have the time to explore? I think so.

Today's post will concentrate mostly on the rock and stone formations along the banks of Mill Creek in Owen County, Ind., where the falls are located. I'll include a few other images not used in the previous post as well. Leading off -- at the top -- is a photo treated in high-dynamic range (HDR) software, a melding of three images into one to extract as much detail as possible in the final digital picture.

To see a full gallery of images from the Feb. 12, 2001, shoot at Cataract Falls, follow this link.

Above and below: Single-image frames of the same area; the bottom reflects a slight zoom in. The frame above is a single-frame image of the HDR-treated photo that leads off today's post at the top.

Above and below: Prints left in the snow by a four-legged visitor along the bank of Mill Creek near Upper Falls. Both images are HDR treatments; the one below transformed a drab looking boulder that would have been incidental in a single-frame shot into a striking, colorful primary subject of this HDR conversion.

Above: An exercise in using HDR treatment for a back-lighted subject, in this case ... some trees. The sun was right behind the thick-trunked tree in the foreground.

Above and two below: A sycamore tree along the Mill Creek bank that caught my eye because the sun was behind me, enriching the blue in the background sky.

Above: The inside of the Smith truss covered bridge -- like most old structures with public access -- is riddled with graffiti. This entry -- which someone obviously took some time to compose -- was one that caught my eye.

Above: This view of Mill Creek was taken from one of the three window-like openings in the covered bridge over Upper Falls.

Above and below: Almost the same scene; the one below was processed in HDR software, the one above as a single frame.

Above and below: Making the best out of shots shooting into the sun. 

Above: The boulder you see in the creek on the right is the same one in the image several shots up, taken from the bridge and with the sun in a more favorable position -- behind me. 

Above and below: HDR views of Mill Creek, above a long-range vista of a piece of tree debris; below, a tight shot.

   

Above: This sphere, strung to a rope of some sort, loomed over the parking lot at the Upper Falls. I can only guess that it might be some sort of air travel guide.