Foggy photos can be moody and emotional, but can also seem bland at times. However, add some color and fog takes on a whole new persona.
Painted Fog Everglades National Park
Tag: Z Tree
Everglades National Park Early Morning Fog
Photographing fog has been on my list of things to do for quite some time. Being that fog is unpredictable and happens early in the mornings, I have been procrastinating on setting my alarm. However, yesterday I saw that there was a dense fog advisory and high probability for fog so I decided to get up early and make a trip out to Everglades National Park.
The fog cooperated and was fairly heavy. The sun was scheduled to rise around 6:50 AM but did not make an appearance until after 9 as a result of the fog. I did not have a real plan on how to shoot the fog so I experimented as I went. I captured a few decent shots and learned a lot for my next photo trip.
I found that fog is best captured with a long lens that compresses the scene and more accurately reflects the scene. Unless you are in white out conditions, fog is more noticeable in the distance than right around you. This is more accurately captured and/or accentuated with a long lens versus a wide angle lens.
I still need to find the best subject matter to compliment the fog. I tried pine trees and cypress trees yesterday. Next trip I will work with some of the lakes and/or boardwalks.
Another lesson learned was that color photos and fog tend to be bland. I found that if I converted them to black and white they had more emotion.
Z Tree Everglades National Park aka N Tree
The iconic Z Tree of Everglades National Park, aka N Tree, has been photographed by many renown photographers and amateurs alike. Almost anyone who spends a good amount of time in Everglades National Park will eventually spot or photography the Z Tree. I too wanted my own photograph of the Z Tree but I wanted my shot to be different than those taken by my predecessors. I decided to take a picture of the Z Tree at night in contrast to all of the day or morning shots I had seen to date. Not only was I going to take a picture of the Z Tree at night but I was also going to capture the rising full moon as part of the shot.
After checking my handy moon calculator to obtain the right azimuth I planned my trip out to the park to capture the Z Tree. After numerous shots and playing with the settings I finally got the shot I was looking for. I processed one in color and one in Black and White. My favorite is the Black and White shot. The color shot reminds me of Halloween as the yellow and orange tints give the tree a scary feeling. I like both but prefer the Black and White shot.
