THE DETAIL SHOTS

Apple Canyon Lake Falls, Illinois

Yesterday’s shooting below the dam of Apple Canyon Lake over in Illinois was one of the most enjoyable recently. Yesterday was also Ansel Adams 119th birthday, and with that in mind I thought to feed my desire to aim maybe for some new black & white images. Well, there is some potential in some of the over 100 pictures I shot yesterday but I usually like to sleep over them a few times.

To be honest, I’m happy how the color versions of some of the photos turned out. As mentioned in yesterday’s blog post, I never took the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 off the camera and the two pictures I show today were made at the long end of the lens. I wonder how this waterfall looks at the rest of the year, but the frosty appearance was definitely worth to make the trip over to Apple Canyon Lake in Illinois. Thank you again Kevin for the tip!

WATERFALL!! (OH NO, NOT IN ICELAND! 😉)

Waterfall at Apple Canyon Lake, Illinois

Today’s photo was made thanks to a call from my photography friend Kevin this morning. This waterfall is the overflow from Apple Canyon Lake in northwest Illinois. Kevin made me aware of some ice built-ups at the fall and he sent me a nice photo that was made yesterday. We expect much warmer weather for the next days and I knew the ice would not last too long. That’s why I didn’t hesitate to make the one hour trip across the Mississippi into the neighbor state this afternoon.

The photography was pretty straight forward. You shoot from a road bridge and decide how far left or right to move the tripod. The question is only about the focal length or how tight you like to frame the waterfall or its details. I started with the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 and never changed lens for the next 85 minutes. I like the water a little silky but not so much that it looks like it runs straight out of a milk cow. The BREAKTHROUGH X4 ND filter 1.8 (6-stops) was the tool that got me the desired results. Most photos were exposed between 4 and 8 seconds.

A thin layer of clouds made for very balanced shooting conditions. Just as I had shouldered my photo bag and was about to walk back to the car, the sun peeked through the clouds and changed the whole appearance of the waterfall. The colors looked nice, I started shooting again, but at the end I still liked my shots with the softener, called clouds, better. I guess this is personal taste and I’m just not a fan of the “postcard look”…

A CATBIRD AT APPLE RIVER CANYON

Gray Catbird, Apple River Canyon, Illinois

I admit, we have neglected one part of the TriState-Area (Iowa / Wisconsin / Illinois) more than the two others. After more than fifteen years of living here, Joan and I finally made it to Apple River Canyon State Park in the northwest corner of Illinois today. People were fishing for trout in the river at the bottom of the canyon, a sure sign that water quality is decent, and several short hiking trails allow to explore the canyon and enjoy birds and wildflowers.

At the end of a hike we sat down in our camping chairs right at the banks of the Apple River. Our dog Cooper took a short bath and we enjoyed just watching a pair of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers bringing food to their offspring in a dead tree on the other side of the river. As we were about to leave and go home, this Gray Catbird hopped along the river banks and tried to catch some insects by jumping up into the ferns that hung down. 

I had the Nikon D750 with the Sigma 150-600 in my lap and realized after a test shot that the exposure is around 1/40-1/50s at ISO 400. Optical stabilization of the lens (Sigma calls it OS) helped to make this image. It is not tack sharp, not even close, but I love the light and the gesture of the catbird as it looks for insects and gets ready for the next jump up into the ferns.

The canyon? Well, I thought I will wait for a landscape picture until another time. Light was really harsh in the canyon and I’m sure this was not our last visit.

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, @ 600 mm, 1/50 s, f/6.3, ISO400