Idaho Landscapes
A gorgeous sunny April morning in the Boise National Forest. The air was clean, crisp and chilly. The scene was tranquil and stunning. This was technically a very difficult photograph to create. A long exposure would give me the water motion desired, but the bright sun could easily over-expose the image. To reduce the exposure, I stopped down to f/22, which provided a nice sun spire, and used two ND filters by Fotodiox Pro on my Tamron 15-30 to capture the wide angle scene. Of course you will need a solid tripod to steady your camera for a long exposure. I used the Manfrotto Befree which is a great light travel tripod. In post, I brought up the shadows and reduced highlights. I hope you enjoy viewing the images as much as I enjoyed photographing it. You can see this view along the 21 highway between Boise and Stanley, Idaho.
Sawtooth Mountains, Sawtooth Recreation Area, Idaho
The Sawtooth Mountains are stunning. To be honest, I did not know much about them before this trip. They are jagged as the name implies and can be seen from several roads as you drive through the area. If you want a clean photograph in the winter, you'll have to hike in by foot, as the roads are closed. Trust me, it was worth the hike on a beautiful sunny spring day after a snowfall!
Sawtooth Mountains, Sawtooth Recreation Area, Idaho
To capture this shot I had to hike in several miles and stand on a frozen lake which you can see in the foreground. It was a bit dicey as I didn't know how frozen the lake was. There were foot prints further in on the lake where I did not go. I'm not a small man, and didn't fee like swimming without my dry suit. I think the end result was worth it to get a clean shot without foreground distractions. What do you think?