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Archive 2015 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)

  
 
Alan Brock
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


When I visited Zion a few months back, I had originally intended to shoot quite a bit of black and white. I thought that the Narrows in particular would offer several compositions. Instead I only took four black and white shots, three of which are shown below. None were from the Narrows...that orange glow is just too good to shoot monochrome! I hope you enjoy. Comments are always welcome.

Image 1: 90mm, f/22, 1s, Ilford Delta 100, #25 red filter I wasn't expecting much when I decided to lug my large format gear to the top of Angel's Landing. I figured it was going to be windy (it was) and compositions were quite limited. I knew if I left early, the rising sun would create some dramatic shadows on the canyon floor. I lucked out with some very interesting clouds here looking up-canyon toward the Narrows. The detail at 100% in this is stunning. There are 2 buses and 3 cars parked at the Temple of Sinawava a mile away, and there are 13 people in the Scout's Lookout area. I took a shot looking down-canyon as well, but the clouds weren't as interesting and I had some depth of field issues.

Image 2: 90mm, f/45, 7s, Ilford Delta 100 I pointed my camera the wrong way at Subway. After taking "the" Subway shot, I took this shot facing the other direction. I love the combination of layers, textures, and reflections. Not my proudest moment as a photographer though. Just as I finished focusing, a group of 4 from a top-down hike started to rappel near the "back" of this image. I proceeded to passive-agressively stare death rays at them as they took THIRTY-SIX MINUTES (I timed it) for a group of 4 to rap down 25 feet. Now, I'm a rock climber so I can do this in my sleep, but it shouldn't take a group of 4 that long, especially when prior canyoneering experience is required to even attempt this route! I later felt bad for how upset I got; I let it completely disturb the Zen-like wilderness experience I try to have while shooting.

Image 3: 90mm, f/45, 1/8s, Ilford Delta 100, #25 red filter One of my favorites from the entire trip. I'm pretty proud of this one as it's a shot I envisioned long before I made the trip. I've always admired Ansel Adams' shot Half Dome, Oak Trees, Autumn for the way he used the trees to frame Half Dome. I knew there had to be some cotton woods that would do the same to Angel's Landing. An hour of scouting found the perfect tree and then it was just a matter of timing it so that most of the tree was in shade while Angel's Landing was in sunlight. It left me with a real sense that this photograph was created and not just taken.

















Jan 06, 2015 at 09:09 PM
JimFox
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Hey Alan,

Some wonderful B&W work here! #1 is a great view of the canyon, but #2 really stands out for me. You took your gear all the way back to the Subway?

Jim



Jan 06, 2015 at 11:32 PM
dswiger
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


That is a great set of B&W images.
Favorite is #2, but they all are great comps & exposed well
Like you want to go to Yosemite, I want to go to Zion
Dan



Jan 07, 2015 at 12:08 AM
kwilliam8
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Wow, your efforts for the first image were really worthwhile! I really like that image a lot.
Keith W.



Jan 07, 2015 at 03:16 AM
Tim Knutson
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Very nice stuff. Make me feel bad that my box of FP4 hasn't seen the light of day for a while.


Jan 07, 2015 at 04:56 PM
markcapilitan
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


The 3 images are great. But no.1 stands out for me! Tough hike with that gear! And the exposure is spot on...I know how hard it is up there shooting on film, and you nailed it. The detail you have in the shadows is excellent....gotta love film!


Jan 09, 2015 at 06:06 AM
philtax
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Breathtaking set. #2 is the standout for me because of the unusual curved rock formations and the "wraparound" lighting. Well worth the effort.

Phil



Jan 09, 2015 at 06:23 AM
dgdg
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


these are all great shots.

David



Jan 09, 2015 at 08:25 AM
ckcarr
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Of the three, my favorite is number two. Very nice. Kudos for lugging the camera up Angel's Landing also Alan!


Jan 09, 2015 at 09:24 AM
Jeffrey
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Nice work, Alan. Thank you for not pumping the contrast in these images. The reason we use BW negative material is for the wide dynamic range, and it shows here.


Jan 09, 2015 at 12:39 PM
Ed Sawyer
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Well played, nice shots. Post some color 4x5 if you haven't already. Zion deserves large format film, no doubt. Other formats don't really do it justice.


Jan 09, 2015 at 02:40 PM
Ben Horne
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


I really enjoy your B&W work from Zion. We don't see much B&W from there since it's such a color dominated area. I ended up picking up a box of Delta 100, and may or may not be exposing a few sheets there in the coming weeks. ;-)


Jan 09, 2015 at 03:50 PM
zhangyue
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Enjoy the work and story, thanks for sharing.


Jan 09, 2015 at 07:08 PM
Alan Brock
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Thanks everyone! I actually found the hike to Subway more difficult than Angel's Landing. Probably because of the mileage involved. Image #1 was my first time ever using a red filter so I was worried about contrast being too high, but I think it turned out well.

Ed Sawyer wrote:
Well played, nice shots. Post some color 4x5 if you haven't already. Zion deserves large format film, no doubt. Other formats don't really do it justice.


Thanks Ed! I agree that, if anything can do Zion justice photographically, LF certainly comes close. A few months ago I posted some of my color images from Zion. You can find them under my "posts" tab or on my website under the "www" tab.
---------------------------------------------

Ben Horne wrote:
I really enjoy your B&W work from Zion. We don't see much B&W from there since it's such a color dominated area. I ended up picking up a box of Delta 100, and may or may not be exposing a few sheets there in the coming weeks. ;-)


Appreciate it Ben! It's so hard not to shoot all color in Zion. However, I found that I really enjoy these black and white images. I'm already thinking of compositions for this year's trip. I look forward to seeing your black and white results as well. Reciprocity aside, Delta 100 is a great film.




Jan 10, 2015 at 08:29 AM
cohibaron
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


Nice shot love detail in number 1. How did you post, ie photolab scan or scan yourself?


Jan 10, 2015 at 10:33 AM
Alan Brock
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


cohibaron wrote:
Nice shot love detail in number 1. How did you post, ie photolab scan or scan yourself?


Thanks! I developed these myself and then scanned them using an Epson V700.




Jan 10, 2015 at 03:08 PM
astro-ep
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


What a great set! I used to love doing darkroom work. I never produced anything like these, but it was lots of fun. Funny that I only did B&W, on my way to learning to process color. But more than 3 decades later, I find myself shooting only B&W.

Thanks for sharing,

Eric



Jan 11, 2015 at 08:16 PM
Scott Kroeker
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Zion in Black and White (4x5)


spectacular images Alan!


Jan 11, 2015 at 08:50 PM





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