I went down to Everglades National Park after work on Tuesday to meet up with my friend Robert Chaplin at Pine Glades Lake to try and photograph a sunset. Robert has been teaching a photography workshop in Everglades National Park all this week and I told him I would come down to meet his class.
I decided while I was down there to borrow Robert’s Canon 8-15 fisheye lens and give it a try. I primarily like to shoot wide angle with my Canon 16-35 Is II. I have always thought about trying a fisheye for getting an even wider perspective but to date have not had the opportunity. My wallet may regret trying out his lens.
I set up my shot using the rocks and shoreline to lead the viewers eyes to the post sunset glow. My first few shots had my tripod legs in them as I did not realize how wide a fisheye’s perspective actually was. I also used HDR to take three exposures to compensate for shooting directly into the light. This allowed me to capture the detail in the rocks and water as well as not have any blow outs where the sun had just set. It turned out to be a beautiful sunset with rich color and great reflections.
I may just start looking around for a good used fisheye of my own.
