Below find a sampling of images from my mountaineering trip down in Durango, CO last week. My Dad, brother-in-law and I spent the first day ice climbing, learning some basic 'low-angle' techniques. The second day we headed up to base camp at the the 11,400' level of the east flank of Engineer Mtn. We set up camp in a large Mountain Hardwear tent, and headed out in the afternoon for some avalanche transceiver practice. The third day we skinned up a ways and practiced some basic ice axe and crampon self-arrest techniques, snow anchors, roped travel, etc. The fourth day was an attempt on the 12,978' MSL summit. Fortunately, the weather was good, as you can see in the sampling of images that follow. These may not all fit precisely into the 'Landscape' category, but figured this forum was as good a place as any...
Jeff, this is exceptionally nice work. You have done an outstanding job with this portfolio of images. I must admit, I was thinking "Galen Rowell" as I flipped thorugh the images. Congratulations! Best, Phil
Jeff:
Fantastic pictures. HOW do you get pictures like the first one with that clarity and a blaring sun?
And they are so sharp....
2 things......
What camera and lens did you use for these?
Also, you seem to be an avid outdoor sport enthusiast. My husband saw your pictures and was astounded. He is an editor of a climbing/hiking/etc. website that he thought you might enjoy.
He would also love it if you would post some of your experiences/pictures on the website. This is a free website for all to enjoy, so anyone else reading this, feel free to check it out.
www.trailpeak.com
It's mostly Canadian, but they want and need more U.S. content.
Feel free to PM me if you want details.
Wow! Wonderful pictures from what looks like a great experience. I spent a week last fall in the Durango area and just loved the sites.
You did an excellent job with the compositions and settings -- for pictures that, because of their location, would be impossible for us normal people to reach.
tzuyang - Hate to admit it, but I was using a Canon PowerShot S70 P&S camera! I couldn't bear the thought of dragging the 1Ds up there, as my pack already weighed in at 55 pounds!
gatom - Thanks!
Phil Radlick - Wow, thanks Phil! Not sure I'd quite go that far , but I appreciate the kind words!
DaniH - Thanks for stopping by, and glad you enjoyed!
shelleyc - Well Shelley, as I stated above (embarrassed), I used a Canon S70 with it's built-in 28mm ( to 105-ish?) equivalent lens for many of these shots. I briefly checked out your husband's link last night, though didn't get too far into. Looks like there's some good stuff there, especially (as you said) for people in Canada. I'll try to check it out more later today... Glad you both enjoyed these so much!
freefly - Thanks, we did indeed have lots of fun, with a little adrenaline thrown in here and there!
seattlechronic - Thanks for checking these out, I highly recommend a trip like this for those who are interested!
tinglilin - Thanks!
bill keller - Appreciate it, Bill. Nothing like a little fill-flash in a backlit situation to spice things up a bit, eh?
Bart Carrig - You're most welcome! Durango is a beautiful area, I kind of wish we could move there!
Those are the best shots of Engineer Mountain I've ever seen. It almost looks like a substantial peak in some of those shots! Really cool stuff (in more ways than one)! This just reiterates the point that if you give a talented photographer even a small point-and-shoot, they'll still come away with great pictures. It's not the tool that is the limiting factor.
Those are the best shots of Engineer Mountain I've ever seen. It almost looks like a substantial peak in some of those shots! Really cool stuff (in more ways than one)! This just reiterates the point that if you give a talented photographer even a small point-and-shoot, they'll still come away with great pictures. It's not the tool that is the limiting factor.
Darren - Hey, thanks for the thoughts, I appreciate it. Are there two Engineer Mountains down there? I recently saw some pictures in a book about an Engineer Mtn. off of 550 that you can drive to the top of in the summer, but I didn't see any sign of any roads or anything. This was only about 40 minutes out of Durango, and was near Coal Bank Pass... I just checked the GNIS database, and there actually is also an Engineer Mtn. in Ouray County, though it's just a bit over 13k....
Rosemary - Nice to hear from you, and thanks for taking the time to comment! I hope you are well Rosemary, and are taking lots of pictures!
Yep, there are two Engineer Mountains there. The other one is at Engineer Pass. The pass itself is on the northern flank of the peak, and the Oh! Point overlook spur road just prior to the pass on the Ouray side, lies due west. The road has been closed for driving to the top for a few years now, but it's only a few hundred feet higher than the road from here. That's my favorite mountain view in the state.
Jeff:
Okay, now I'm depressed. After spending about 2 months driving my husband to distraction trying to decide what landscape lens to buy for my drebel, I saw yourpost and said... I'll find out what he used cuz that picture is unbelievably sharp... only to find out it was a P&S. Ahhhhhh... will this never end.
At least it was a Canon P&S.
So, the hunt continues.
borodir - Appreciate the thoughts; a camera is a camera, and can be used to tremendous potential, as long as you have one with you...
shelleyc - Sorry to not be able to help you out with that! The web is a meager forum for presentation of highly detailed images like landscapes. Much can be done with a file in post-processing to make it look 'good', and once you shrink it down to the little 640-pixel remnant of what it once was, it's truly hard or impossible to tell what kind of camera took many of the shots posted here at FM. Some people might think some of these shots are oversharpened, as I do when looking back at one or two of them. But, I've sort of settled on a routine for web-reduction sharpening, and in general I think it works for most images. As far as your lens goes, not having a dRebel, I can't really help, but I guess what I can say is whatever lens you buy can be put to good use. Just concentrate on its merits, not its deficiencies, and most importantly, just go shoot! The fundamental and innate qualities of a well-captured image can overcome even the merest of lenses... (PS: I'd be looking seriously at the 17-85 IS myself)
?
, but I appreciate the kind words!
This just reiterates the point that if you give a talented photographer even a small point-and-shoot, they'll still come away with great pictures. It's not the tool that is the limiting factor.