Hyalite Canyon: Alarm! Hello, it’s o’dark thirty on the first shoot of DLWS, Digital Landscape Work Shop, taught by renowned wildlife photographer, Moose Peterson and friends. Some friends, they include: Joe McNally, Laurie, and Kevin. Yes, I was pumped. Not only was I running in pretty fast company, but it was also my first workshop. Some people take “self-taught” way too far.
So, I quickly showered, shaved, and soon found myself carpooling south of town to Hyalite Canyon. As we left Bozeman, it was raining, but as we rose in elevation up Hyalite Canyon, the rain changed to heavy, wet snow mixed with rain and sleet; a fine start to my first workshop shoot.
Finally, our caravan stopped along the dark winding mountain road. Next, came the “group hug”; a Moose briefing about the shooting site and a few tips. And, we were off, all thirty of us, trying to envision a decent image. I stuck around the group for a while trying to gain knowledge and insight. Whatever they were seeing; I wasn’t. Yeah, I was sweating it.
So, down the bank along the road to the mountain stream, I went. Although there were waterproof boots in the truck, they were not on my feet. Big mistake. After setting up the tripod and moving around a bit to get the angle, my foot stepped onto a non-existent rock into the stream. With wet feet, it was time to make an image.
After experimenting with a variable ND filter to get a good shutter speed, I made a few test shots and waited for a bit more light and a bit less precipitation. To be honest, it seemed like a rather dreary day to me. Then, it occurred to me; make it a black & white image. The light coming off the blurred water will make good contrast. It took awhile to get a good shot while slipping around on the wet rocks.
Little did I know, it would turn out to be my best image of the workshop. Thanks Moose.
