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High Seas Lawmen

“High Seas Lawmen” – Pacific Ocean :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Pacific Ocean (U.S. COAST GUARD) – First, a bit of background about the United States Coast Guard and the men and women that choose to serve our country in this capacity.

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission (with jurisdiction in both domestic and international waters) and a federal regulatory agency mission as part of its mission set. It operates under the Department of Homeland Security during peacetime, and can be transferred to the Department of the Navy by the President at any time, or by Congress during time of war.

Founded by Alexander Hamilton as the Revenue Cutter Service on 4 August 1790, it lays claim to being the United States’ oldest continuous seagoing service. As of August 2009, the Coast Guard had approximately 42,000 men and women on active duty, 7,500 reservists, 30,000 auxiliarists, and 7,700 full-time civilian employees.

The Coast Guard’s legal authority differs from the other four armed services and it operates simultaneously under Title 10 of the United States Code and its other organic authorities, e.g., Titles 6, 14, 19, 33, 46, etc. Because of its legal authority, the Coast Guard can conduct military operations under the Department of Defense or directly for the President in accordance with Title 14 USC 1-3.

The Coast Guard’s enduring roles are Maritime Safety, Maritime Security, and Maritime Stewardship. To carry out those roles the Coast Guard has eleven statutory missions as defined in 6 U.S.C. § 468.

The Coast Guard motto is “Semper Paratus”, Latin for “Always Ready” or “Always Prepared”.
The Coast Guard has roles in maritime homeland security, maritime law enforcement (MLE), search and rescue (SAR), marine environmental protection (MEP), and the maintenance of river, intracoastal and offshore aids to navigation (ATON).

Though the idea of this image came to me long before I actually had the opportunity to make it, making photographs on a rolling and pitching Coast Guard Cutter brings an entirely new set of technical challenges.  First off, the vibrations from the ship that one encounters requires quicker shutter speeds, meaning that I had to adjust the other factors involved in making a quality “negative” so-to-speak.  Second, light does some very strange things when the surrounding decks are painted virtually neutral gray and the bulkheads (walls) are solid gloss white; it does things to the light meter that defy reason.  Through and through, the experience has proven to me that great images not only come from being patient and adapting to the surrounding conditions, but also from having a more-than-willing crew of participants that have a common desire, to share what they do with the rest of the world.

Being home for the first time in three(3) months is sure going to feel wonderful…. :) -DvK

October 11, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Travel | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Contemplation, and Change…

Vision

“Vision” – Edmonds, WA., U.S.A. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Those of you that know me, know that I spend a ton of time reading about photography, refining in my minds eye what my vision is, and contemplating what projects (those which I have time for) I should undertake in the near future.  To be honest though, lately I haven’t had *any* time for projects, “self-assignments”, or much in the way of shooting new material.

Recently, I’ve made the [uncomfortable] transition from land life to boat life.  My profession, or at least what I specialize in at my real job is that of a Coast Guardsmen.  I spend each and every day managing a wonderful group of men and women whom I call my shipmates…a second family of sorts.  Honestly, the closest friends (other than my childhood friends) I have, come from those relationships I’ve made while assigned aboard ship.  I still have yet to figure out why; perhaps it has something to do with spending months on end living, breathing, and sharing meals with these folks.

I chose the above image out of several I have made recently to effectively manage the thoughts I have about the next couple months I will spend at sea away from family and loved ones.  Even though the prospect of spending so much time away from family seems insurmountable at present, the reality of it is that I’ll have many hours to contemplate the things which I hold the most dear: my family, my loved one’s, my friends…God’s role in my life and craft which he blessed me with.

Change is hard, no matter what you do, where you are, or how you roll.  Pushing forward and embracing that change, making the most of the time you’re given to allow that change, and being the change you wish to experience…that’s what will matter when you look back on life without a single regret.  See you all in about three months and change (pun intended).  God speed, fair winds and following seas….you get the idea. -DvK

July 10, 2011 | Categories: Photography | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Curves, and Vanishing Points…


“Via Casino” – Santa Catalina Island, CA., U.S.A. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011 All Rights Reserved.

All too often as someone who likes to take pictures, I get so caught up in what I’m doing (as far as the job at hand goes), that I don’t take time to concentrate on what the scene in front of my lens is doing….or what I’m doing to it. Some of the normal questions you may ask yourself when framing a scene are, what message will I send to the viewer? Are the “rules” accurate for the image and does the scene lend itself to those rules? Am I cropping in camera? Etc. Etc. Who are we kidding!?! Do we really put that much through into each and every image we undertake or process? Incorporating curves and lines into your images, though contrasting as it may seem, can add interest, lead the eye, and carry most any viewer through the world you present.

The image you see above was made dring a lull in shooting during destination wedding with my good friend, John Mueller. Not only is a great memory tied to it, but the image allows me to visit every once and a while when I see fit. In it’s deconstruction, I find myself starting along the outdoor path and slowly walking around the terra cotta tiles to that area in the background around the bend. So there is some level of mystery, but it’s implied that the path looks largely the same all the way around. Just as you would suppose that the scenery doesn’t really change beyond what’s out of camera view, it doesn’t. The image is an accurate architectural example and representation of the building. I didn’t set out to fool the mind with any sort of crazy perspective compensation and for that matter, the image was made with a Sigma 10-20 f//3.5-5.6 lens; the perspective correction was accomplished in post in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 (one of the best new features of LR3). There was some level of distortion from the glass, but keeping the horizon line dead-center kept it to a minimum.

What I’m constantly trying to ask myself as a photographer (OK, I said it), is what can I show you, how can I bring you, and what can I make you feel? The door in this image contains so much mystery behind them and the area out there in the ocean, which is seemingly endless, is desolate…without a soul around! Do we all not wish from time-to-time that desolation would overcome the rigors of daily life? Sometimes I would love to take a stroll around the deck of someplace above an ocean, away from the prying eyes of civilization. Just think about this for a minute – the gentle sound of the water lapping up against the rocks below, the call of seagulls, the wind moving past your attentive ears… peacefully laying waste to a lang day. Isn’t that what we all want, isn’t that how life should be?

Is it not our job as photographers to take someone to a place they may never go, or to make people remember how they once felt? The cool breeze blowing from the ocean, the snow falling gently between the trees, the feeling of the ring going on the finger for the first time, the birth of a child, the death of a loved one, and the life of what God created for us to enjoy…

It is yours to capture, no matter if you’re the professional or the amateur, the hobbiest or the teacher, life is out there….waiting, and certainly more than willing for the capture. Make it your right place and right time! -DvK


May 30, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Technique | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Layers, and the Setting Sun…

Golden Pasture
“Golden Pasture” – Montana, USA :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Just as I’ve touched on before in a previous post, as people who like to take pictures, we find ourselves in front of something we’d really like to make an image of but the conditions or the way we’ve arrived there is less than ideal.  On this day in Montana, we found ourselves in the middle of the wide-open landscape just outside the Bitteroot Valley…on the side of the road with the setting sun keeping us company.  The warm daily visitor was casting long shadows over a field of low brush, Angus cattle, and a mixture of aspens and other deciduous trees ready for Spring.  Grand as the landscape was, what struck me about the scene was not necessarily the golden swath of light making it’s was across the field, but rather the abundance of layers indicated and uniquely separating the landscape before me.

In looking at making an image which contains many layers, I first look at the combination of highlight and shadows in the scene and how to accurately represent them.  Telling a story with a single image isn’t a new concept by any means, but doing it in such a way can prove to be a challenge for even the most seasoned story teller.  Over-analyzing a scene is something that the art world loves to do…that said, just take the scene for what it’s worth and represent the elements contained accordingly, paying attention to the basics of highlight, shadow, acuteness,  and subject.  I see perhaps one hundred, if not two hundred head of cattle, some agricultural equipment used in the irrigation of fields, low brush, trees, mountains with a clear line of foliage, and a bit of weather moving across the landscape way out there in the background.  Therein lies the the possibility of multiple subjects, perfectly capable of standing on their own.

So in the interest of making the image as powerful as possible, I began to wait for about ten minutes for the light to lay down it’s golden ribbon across the valley only slightly below me.  I made a total of three(3) frames, not bracketed, but rather paying special attention to where the swath of light casted it’s golden glow across the landscape.  It eventually made it’s way up the mountain in the distance;  I found those frames to be far less powerful than the image you see above.

What struck me about the scene was not just it’s grandeur, but how the elements seems to coexist harmoniously without interruption…perfect for two people, driving up the road and deciding to pull off onto a small gravel patch and make an image of the landscape being bathed in the setting sun.  Take the time to view and take in the world around you, and remember the basics without getting caught up in the result.  The humble beginnings of an image will surely justify the reward… -DvK


April 3, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Technique | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Elevation, and Waiting for Opportunity

Steptoe Buttte, WA.

“Rimmed in Gold” – Steptoe Butte, Washington, U.S.A. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011 (1/100th sec., f/11, 200 ISO)

Washington state is a glorious place.  Too often I find myself at the same beach, trying to make a different version of the same photograph, and not paying any attention to what may be unfolding for me in the near future.  If you’re anything like me, you have responsibilities…dinner has to be made and usually coincides with the setting sun, kids have activities which require your attention, or simply put, life nurtures other areas of your life where photography cannot. This in itself is the beautiful part of life which flies by if you don’t pay attention. So, when I have the opportunity to get out and shoot for nearly 7 days straight, I tend to enjoy the landscape unfolding around me and wait to make a few frames, which most surely require the availability of time.  This was one of those times…

In an attempt to capture the grandness of the Eastern Washington landscape, I chose a middle of the road exposure in addtion to the use of a three(3)-stop Lee soft ND filter.  I wanted to pay special attention to the yin and yang thing that was going on in the sky above but not take away from the seemingly infinate layers in the surrounding lanscape.  The light began to engulf the surrounding hills and the elevated position I was in proved to be quite advantageous; any higher and I believe the details would have been deminished.  One element of the photograph that is probably my favorite is the sun glinting ever-so-slightly off the stream below me; no matter how much I tried, a photograph struggles, for the most part, to adequately represent details such as this.  If anyone out there has insight into this, do tell!

My Pop and I began driving on the morning of March 5th, 2011.  Under normal winter driving conditions, the roads in and around the I-90 corridor would be questionable to say the least, but we were seriously blessed by dry pavement and the ability to make it from my home in Edmonds, Washington to Steptoe Butte state park in Eastern Washington about one hour before sunset.  By the time we arrived, the light on the surrounding snow-covered hills began to take on a golden cast, which neither my Pop nor I had ever laid eyes on.  It was simply, for lack of a better word, beautiful.  It was the perfect start to a perfect trip that lay ahead of us in the coming six(6) days.

Getting to the location where I made the above photograph was a bit of a challenge due to the road conditions; it involved quite a bit of cussing on behalf of my Father and even more white knuckling on my bahalf.  My nervousness came not just from the conditions on the road, but due to the fact that I was on the receiving side of a potential roll-over.  I guess in this case, I really have two people to thank – the engineers whom designed the 2011 Ford F-150 4×4 and my Father, who drove through the snow like a champ.  I am by no means Catholic, but I swear I crossed my heart at least a dozen times.  I would have to say that the payoff was well worth the risk.  You’ll see a bit more in regards to risk versus reward in my coming posts, which should be trickling in over the next few months.

I’ll be leaving for Maine this coming Saturday and plan to be visiting the Casco Bay region, Bar Harbor, Acadia National Park, Camden, and Bailey and Orr’s Island.  Stay tuned for some images and perhaps a narative or two about our trip.  Photographically speaking, it should be rather fruitful. -DvK


March 31, 2011 | Categories: Photography | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Vision, A Mid-Day Southern Sun, and Leading the Eye

Hey Barn
“Hay Barn” – Montana, U.S.A. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011

The plans are made, the bags are packed, the cooler is full of Red Bull, and the landscape ahead of your wheels is ready for the taking.

I have always been one of the persons that likes to take pictures during the ideal times of day – an hour before and after sunrise and an hour before or after sunset.  I could travel to a destination and sit there all day, starting wide and working my way into the scene, closing in on certain subjects and compositions, compiling hundreds of frames full of great material for review and post-production later.  Road-trips simply don’t work that way…

The image above is a single exposure made while controlling the light with Lee 2-stop Soft Graduated Neutral Density filter and processed in such a way to lead the eye by adding a custom vignette in the foreground and background.  I took a meter reading from both the blue sky up above and the dry winter grass in the foreground.  It was from the average of those two numbers that I figured the proper exposure; 1/160th of a second at F/16, 400 ISO (I chose 400 ISO to preserve the wonderful details in the grass, wood, and crystalline structure of the snow).  My father and I were driving from Bozeman, Montana to Jackson, Wyoming at the time and were literally pulling over to the side of a two-lane road whenever an opportunity presented itself.  If I stopped to shoot every barn I saw that day, I would still be there!  Once you’ve spent time in Montana, you will surely realize why it’s called “Big Sky” – the landscape is incredibly vast.

In regards to the mid-day southern sun, I found that shooting in and around the snow, that any structure seems to be illuminated on all sides because the snow acts like a giant, multi-faceted reflector.  It’s structure refracts light in many different directions, which made that northern side of the barn beam with detail.  See that little bit of snow down there doing the job of reflector grip for me!  Perhaps those barn connoisseurs out there would even venture to call this a barn portrait!  Enjoy! -DvK


March 24, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Technique | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Expectations, and Flat Light!

“Tetons and the Snake River in Snow” – Grand Teton NP, WY. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011

Often times as people who love to make photographs, we find ourselves standing in front of some of the most beautiful vistas this country has to offer.  Sure, we’re prepared for it  - we have the appropriate gear, necessary support, driven 100+ miles to get there, and most importantly, we’ve got the correct amount of rest the night before (insert mild sarcasm here).  So, what do you do when you get there and find that the light is absolutely horrible?  Bracket and blend later, or choose a more practical approach to the problem that’s presented before you?  Could increasing the effective dynamic range of the mostly monotone scene be the answer?  Most definitely!

Changing the ratio between the largest and smallest possible values of a changeable quantity of light is nothing new to photography and has been done for years with the use of filters.  This was also accomplished during the developing process in a darkroom by dodging and burning (e.g.- increasing or decreasing the amount of light reaching the paper while being exposed to light beneath an enlarger).  Pushing and pulling film, custom making “cookies” to put between paper and light source, those are methods too, but in this digital darkroom we all use from day-to-day, are we forgetting how to see in values of light (Google:  Zone system of photography)?  To the contrary, I think we’re getting better!

For the first time in history, the person who likes to make pictures has an incredible amount of information at his or her fingertips.  Even modern smart-phones will make an extended dynamic range image.  As I sit here and write this, there are some 150 to 200 bookmarks available to me an the press of my mouse, all relating to imaging, photography, technique, etc.  You get the idea.  The questions that I get most often have nothing to do with defining the relationship between the way I visualize the photographic subject and the final results I desire.  The photographic process [for me], involves the following. Perhaps some of these apply to you:

  1. Conception or Vision (What I would like to get an image of)
  2. Reality (Do I have a destination, or am I perfectly content in my own “backyard”)
  3. Gear (Not necessary, but let’s face it, the gear you use directly affects the quality of your images…really)
  4. The Means to Accomplish (vehicle, cash, gas for the vehicle which requires settling the national debt to fill…hopefully you can walk there)
  5. Time of Day (In my experience, morning light is hands-down awesome but your scene may be backlit, front-lit, or side-lit, which doesn’t always produce the best quality image)
  6. Set Up (Not just walking up to a scene and taking the standard “turnout ahead” shot)
  7. In Camera (What’s in the viewfinder paying special attention to composition?)
  8. Controlling the Light (selecting the correct exposure or using filters to control?  Bracketing for post-production blending?)
  9. Shutter Release
  10. Follow Through (How will the image be handled once it’s loaded into your image editing program)

I figure stopping at ten is enough to chew on for the moment as I will surely delve into the details of those ten items in the future.  With that in mind, the image you see above was made by bracketing nine(9) frames at one(1) stop increments and digitally blending them in Photomatix and Photoshop for the final result.  I kept it monotone mostly out of respect for where I was standing but photographically because there was almost a lack of color entirely.  The scene was easily zone 1 (Near black, with slight tonality but no texture) to zone 9 (Slight tone without texture; glaring snow).

What are your methods?  How can you get there? Are you having fun doing it?  Food for though for some future photographic endeavors perhaps?  Definitely! -DvK


March 23, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Technique | 1 Comment »

Vision, Opportunity, and Panoramas…

“Shipping” – Seattle, WA. :: © Doug van Kampen, 2011

Imagine a scenario for a moment, if you will.  You happen upon a scene which you come across at least once a day, but on this day, it’s epic, full of contrast, even…dare I say, dynamic!  Camera, yes, you have one, but what lies before you is absolutely and wonderfully HUGE.  ”How on earth do I go about capturing this…?”, you say to yourself.

Well…up until about ten years ago, you may have used the point-and-shoot in ‘panorama’ mode or perhaps the ever-popular-for-the-time-period, panoramic disposable camera that cost $14.99 at Kmart.  However you went about it, you may have always been left feeling as though the photo you held in your hand was and remains nothing like what you envisioned or what you saw.  You can only realize the potential of an image by actually standing there, which most cameras nowadays fail miserably at.  But there’s hope…

Photographers today have a tremendous arsonal of tools at there disposal, regardless of your level of expertise and/or experience. The way you use them is entirely and completely up to you.  I would suggest narrowing your focus to learning one or two of these within a month or so and getting proficient before moving on to the next bigger and better thing.  So what good is this advice without perhaps shedding light on some of the tools I use?  Not beneficial at all, so here goes:

The goal behind any of the images I make from day to day is being able to average the highlights, shadows, and mid-tones (base exposure).  If this falls outside of say, four(4) to six(6) stops between the highlights and shadows, I tend to use a different technique some of you may have heard of, but I won’t get into right now (bonus points and a smiley face if you can guess what technique I’m eluding to).  What I shoot for is no more than two(2) stops between highlights to mid-tones(base exposure)and mid-tones to shadows.  Controlling this can be challenging if you’re not using filters or bracketing your exposures and then editing them using layers in post (Adobe Photoshop, Elements, Gimp, etc.)  The goal here is to get the best possible image straight-out-of-the-camera (SOOC).  Filters is the way to go!  There are several manufacturers that make filters, which are represented in the industry in varying qualities as well as varying price points.  I have used both and I must say, Lee is certainly the way to go. Not because of price, but because of quality; you really do get what you pay for.  I have always been the type of consumer that would rather not re-buy something, especially when I know I’ll use it.  Lee filters come highly recommended…and not just by me..do the research and you’ll be convinced.  Lee  first published a book entitled, “Inspiring Professionals”, back in 2007.  It is a comprehensive landscape photographers guide to using filters, Lee filters.  ::steps off soapbox::

Always remember, it’s not the camera that makes the photographs, it’s you.  Why not give yourself the best possible tools to make the opportunity and your vision, your reality.  Observe the scene carefully, average your meter readings, choose what tool fits for the scene in front of you (bracket if you must, -2, 0, +2).  Use a tripod if you have one, or the closest rock, car hood, or chair to steady your camera.  Make the photograph.  Hopefully, with a little bit of luck, a whole lot of fun, you’ll walk away from the experience having made something worth holding in your hand. -DvK


March 2, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Tools | Tags: , , , | Leave A Comment »

Vision, Control, and Successful Execution…

Lately I’ve been reading my way through photography books that deal with the subjects of exposure and lighting.  Touching on such topics such as light placement, camera settings, and evaluative metering, none really cover vision in the creative and perceptive sense.  Isn’t that what we all have in our heads and try to convey through the images we make?  Much of what we do has to do with controlling not only what comes into our lens, but how it comes in.  Adding another step to the creative process can often yield magnificent results, allowing us to achieve our creative vision without having to alter it in post.  This can be especially important if you’re shooting on site for a client who wants unedited RAW images straight out of the camera (SOOC).

Recently I read an article touching on the subject of using filters combined with very fast glass (e.g. – Nikkor 85mm f/1.4) to create massive separation and isolation of image elements.  I think I was browsing through the news stand at Powell’s Book Store in Portland, OR. when I read it.  Regardless, it peaked my interest and kept me focused for a short while amongst the stacks.  Powell’s has more photography books in one location than I have ever seen…it, was, glorious!

As you can see below, the separation in the image below is wonderful and required a simple conversion to an sRGB jpeg image from Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3.3.  Shot at a 250th of a second with an aperture of f/1.4, I was able to maintain an extremely shallow depth of field by doing the following:

Shooting:

Camera settings: Manual, ISO 200, Shutter – 1/250th sec., Lens wide open at f/1.4, shot in RAW.

Equipment:

-Nikon D700
-85mm f/1.4 Lens
-8-Stop ND Filter
-AB-800 set to 1/32 power
-Large Softbox
-SB-900, 8″ snoot,  set to 1/4 power for backlight

My Son – February, 2011.  © Doug van Kampen, 2011

Thanks for the visit! -DvK


February 19, 2011 | Categories: Photography, Technique | 2 Comments »