Altamont Pass, California: One of the oldest Wind Farms in the US

Wind Generated Electricity in California

Anne and I were driving East along I580 when we saw strange looking towers looming in the distance – each time we came up and over a rise more and more towers seemed to manifest out of nowhere!  Little did we know we were driving through Altamont Pass, California, home to one of three primary wind farm regions in California.  Wind farm development began here more than 30 years ago, and to date, more than 4,800 wind turbine towers stretch across the rolling landscape about an hour east from San Francisco.

Image 1 Rolling hills in Altamont Pass, Ca - Copyright L.A. Lewin 2011

Really, it was amazing to see wind turbines spread across the landscape.   We had never seen anything like it.  Seeing it for the first time was bizarre.

Even more bizarre, the sight of cows grazing seemingly unfazed by these massive structures and the constant non-harmonic hum they produced.  The hum seemed to be everywhere and nowhere; the sound travels in the wind that constantly blows across the Altamont Pass region; an amazing experience, indeed.

Image 2 Seemingly unfazed cows graze among the wind turbines - Copyright L. A. Lewin 2011

I asked Anne to turn off the next exit so we could tour some of the back roads, many of them unpaved, for photographic opportunities.  Capturing the strange beauty of hundreds of wind turbines painted across the golden hills in Altamont Pass was a task; very strong winds, some gusting to 35+ miles per hour, made using a tripod useless; all shots are hand held.  For the shot along the fence, (see Image 3), I had to brace myself right up against the front grill of our rental SUV to keep the camera and myself steady.

Image 3 Some wind turbines are 30 years old - Copyright L. A. Lewin 2011

Early wind farm development included construction of wind turbine towers 60 feet to 80 feet in height.   These low profile towers interfere with bird migration and on the lower, 60 feet towers, allows the rotating blade to come very close to the ground sometimes killing raptors as they swoop low in search of prey.  In a 2003 report issued by The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 1000 birds are killed annually in the Altamont Pass region!

Image 4 These older turbines are being replaced with 400-450 feet structures by 2015

In an effort to reduce the number of birds killed each year, some of the oldest towers began replacement a few years ago with 250 feet towers, and more recently with towers more than 400 feet in height!  Taller structures keep the blades tips far off the ground and away from low flying raptors, while the greater height will keep the spinning turbine blades out of migration paths.

Image 5 More modern 250 feet wind turbine towers - Copyright L. A. Lewin 2011

Replacement of 2000 of about 4000 older wind turbine towers, (some dating back more than 30 years), is part of a ambitious project slated to be complete by 2015.  These new wind turbine towers rise more than 400 feet in height, and for every new one erected, replaces 23.   These state of the art wind turbines are much quieter and each produces 2.3 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 600-700 homes!

If you are interested in reading more about this wonderful, clean and efficient alternative energy source, follow this link for a head start. 

http://www.eoearth.org/article/Altamont_Pass,_California

Be sure to visit my website and Blog later in March to learn about the tech in capturing and developing the images viewed on these pages.  Thank you.

Citations:

Data research gained from an article titled: Altamont Pass, California - by Melissa Lowitz - Copyright 2009

Additional information researched from an article by Diana Hull – San Jose Mercury News - 2012

Fine Art Photography Techniques: Sunday's Shot Tech

The Missed Shot!

I scolded myself for not having my camera with me.

The scene was perfect: strolling along a mountain path I came upon an open field.  Looking east, tall blades of wild grass glistened with gold, and in the distance, framed in a square, treetops reflected the yellow-orange glow of the parting sun. 

Nice, but my camera bag was home. Bummer.

As an added slap to my face, as I came to the end of the trail, close to where my car was parked – a family of deer emerged from the tree line and grazed – beautifully lit by the golden glow and unmoved by my presence.  Just then, I saw another hiker emerge from the forest; I placed my hands up in the universal sign to “stop!”  She did, and I used both hands to direct her gaze to the tree line.   We both stood in silence and enjoyed the moment.  After the deer walked backed into the woods she yelled over, “thank you!”

Though this short four-mile hike near Kennesaw Mountain proved to be a wonderful experience, I scolded myself for not having my camera with me. 

As a photographic landscape artist I have trained myself to “see” – to capture frames created by nature.  However, up until this hike, every time I strolled along a path or along a shoreline without my camera, I just walked – looking straight ahead and daydreaming about “stuff”, in many cases unrelated to photography.   But recently I began composing drafts on the art of seeing – visualization.  As a consequence, I visualize more, and this being the case, I should have had my camera.  Obviously, this will not happen again – and my new TENBA backpack will help by transporting equipment wherever I travel – a local walk or a fifteen-mile hike into the mountains.

Lesson: The first step in becoming a better photographer involves carrying a camera with you at all times.  Now, let me be clear, I am not talking phone and iPad cameras, but better point-and-shoot or digital single lens reflex, (DSLR), cameras; equipment that will capture the moment in all its color, structural and emotional detail that you originally experienced.  Even a trip to the grocery store: place the camera in the passenger seat – incredible scenes show themselves everywhere – when you least expect it.  Be ready.

As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated – sharing stories is fun.

Best regards,

Lance

www.emotionalrenderings.com

Fine Art Photography Techniques: Sunday's Shot Tech

Christmas Doll: Community Christmas Parade  L. A. Lewin Copyright 2012

Greetings!  Hope everyone is well and ready for the holiday season!

A suburban community North of Atlanta was having their annual Christmas parade, and I asked the organizer if I could capture a few shots - he pleasantly agreed.

Colored lights sparkled and Christmas music blaring - holiday-joy resonated in the air!  To capture the mood, Flash was not used - but instead, I dial-in a very high ISO value.  High ISO settings create a low signal-to-noise ratio or a noisy - film-grain character.  In landscape or most portraiture photo shoots this is  not the first choice for photographers, but to create or in this case, capture a mood, the high ISO setting was utilized.  I was aware making this choice may yield less "keepers" that if I used Flash.  But eliminating Flash was essential to creating the holiday spirit I felt while on location.

I approached each of the parade floats just before they began their journey through the neighborhood - at least I would minimize the amount shaking or movement of the subjects - to give me more chances to capture acceptable images.

Through the viewfinder, I kept aware of the space surrounding the subjects and tried to keep cars, light posts and identifying signs out of the frame.  Because I was working fast and did ask children or adults to pose, I kept my Canon 16-35mm F2.8 L II set at 35mm for the entire session.  Later I can re-crop if needed to compose as desired.  Being dark and not using Flash I dialed in an F/2.8 aperture, wide-open, setting.  This will allow as much as light as possible to pass through the lens and onto the sensor.  As it relates to focusing, the wide-open setting will create the most bokeh - or blur - near and around my point of focus, thus narrowing my room for error, but aware I will be creating soft, film-like photographic images - and this is what I wanted. 

The lovely image above was one of 4 frames captured while kneeling to the side of the float.  The young girls doll-like expression-character captured the innocents and spirit I was looking for. 
 Your feedback is always welcomed.  Thank you.

Technical: 

• ISO 6400 (No Flash)
• Aperture Priority mode: I set the aperture to F2.8, (wide open)
• Captured @35mm angle of view
• Shutter: 1/50 second
• Chromatic & Luminance corrections via CS5 software
• Black+White conversion via Silver Efex Pro 2 digital darkroom software
• No other post-production manipulation applied to this image file

lance@emotionalrenderings.com

Official Photographer of the 24 HRS of Booty in Atlanta!

2011 Atlanta 24 Hours of Booty  Photo by L.A. Lewin

Hello everyone!  

Again, I am very excited to be the official photographer for the 24 Hours of Booty event in Atlanta, on the weekend of Oct. 13th. & 14th.!

On Nov. 9th. a small collection of photographs will be posted on my site for viewing and purchase.  This time around I am offering only the image file - prices start @$10 for one image file!

For the next 12 months 25% of ALL purchases from my site will be donated to the 24 Hours of Booty Foundation!

2012 Atlanta 24 Hours of Booty  Photo by L.A. Lewin

Fine Art Photography Techniques: Sunday's Shot Tech

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Deep Creek Area

Anne and me traveled to Bryson City, NC last weekend to go hiking and mountain biking; we began our short weekend taking a hike at dusk.   Carrying our tripod and camera, we took a short loop into the Deep Creek Area just outside Bryson City.  A combination of dead silence and the heavy canopy blocking much of the light created a very peaceful atmosphere.

Near the end of our walk we stopped once or twice to listen to the silence.  I looked up to view the treetops and found this interesting silhouette.   (Truth is, I like this photograph enlarged to a 20x20 square print; smaller versions, (like the one illustrated in this post), does not show the leaf detail; the main attraction of this composition.)

Click photo for a larger view

Using the tripod would be ideal, but instead hand held this shot.  This frame was the keeper out of a three shot bracket.

      Photo Tech: 

·      As in most of my shots, ISO = 100, even with the low light; a result of the thick canopy above our heads.

·      Camera was set in Aperture priority mode – I dialed to an F/5.0 setting.

·      Meta data revealed the camera picked a 1/25 sec. shutter speed.

·      I set Exposure Compensation to +1.3

·      This particular frame was composed using the 23mm setting on my new Canon F2.8 16-35mm II L.

Post Production:

·      I felt a “square” crop best represented what I saw through the viewfinder.

·      After making minor dodging mod’s and luminance adjustments, I crafted the BW rendering using Silver Efex-Pro 2.

·      The final you see here also includes a minor application of a copper dip.

As always, I look forward to your feedback and questions.  Thank you.

Best regards,

Lance A. Lewin

Fine Art Photography Techniques: Sunday's Shot Tech

Signal Mountain Summit: east, the Elk preserve sprawls across the valley floor

After driving 800 plus feet above the valley floor - 7593 above sea level – Anne and me parked and walked – slowly - it took a day or so to get use to hiking and biking at this altitude - the last 100 yards to the summit: we were rewarded with beautiful views to the west, toward the Teton mountain range, and turning, the Elk preserve sprawling the landscape to the east.

Looking east from Signal Mountain Summit - Copyright 2012 Click for larger view

 As a rule, before sunrise and again before sunset, is one of the best times to capture the real beauty this wonderful Earth has to offer – no matter where you live, or visit.  The lighting changes quickly; you need to be ready to change camera dynamics to take advantage of what your eyes see and how the brain develops a rendering.  Of course, the more experience you have in the field, the easier it is to make the correct adjustments.  The photograph above was captured looking east around 6:45pm – in this part of the country, the sun was still a bit high in the sky, but in this case, the cloud formations splashing a crystal blue sky and a variety of textures painted across the Elk preserve, was all the invitation I needed to set up my tripod and compose a shot.

Looking through the viewfinder and pivoting my tripod left and right I scanned the landscape for a suitable composition I felt captured the beauty and emotion I was experiencing.

Technically speaking: after several wide angle choices, I chose the 35mm setting on the Canon F/2.8 16-35mm II L, to best represent my artistic expression.

The Canon 5D Mark II was set in aperture priority and dialed an F/22.0 setting – closing-down the lens yields maximum depth of field, (DoF), what you want on most landscape photographs. 

Camera dynamics:

ISO 100

Aperture = F/22.o

Camera Shutter Speed = 1/30 sec.

Exposure compensation = 0

Tripod

Canon RC-1 electronic trigger

Post Production:

The color image file was cropped with a 3:2 aspect ratio and adjusted for chromatic and luminance accuracy that best represented the original scene as viewed through the viewfinder.  After I was satisfied with an accurate color image I converted to a black & white photograph. 

Workflow:

CS5 for color and luminance adjustments and to remove dust spots

Color Efex Pro to add a slight neutral density filter, (ND), to help maintain a rich blue sky

Silver Efex Pro 2 for the black and white conversion: used yellow filter to help bring out certain details in the BW version in an attempt to maintain textures I feel is one of the focus points, (pun not intended), in this composition.

There you have it – hope you like the photograph and contact me with questions or comments. 

Thought you may want to know: The fall workshop schedule was posted on the Kennesaw Parks & Recreation web site - hope you decide to join me for one of my 4.5 hour Saturday workshops!  Contact me for details!

Thank you!

Best regards,

Lance

Yellowstone National Park – Scorched Canopy

Charred forests give way to new growth – Text & Photographs by L. A. Lewin

Traveling north from Grand Teton National Park our SUV entered the south entrance of Yellowstone National Park around noon.  Our first destination was Old Faithful 20 miles ahead.  But, as we continued north, my wife and I were taken aback when we saw the burned landscape.  We were in shock - in awe - by the vastness the burned forest stretched. 

Burned, and bare, fallen trees lay like pick-up-sticks stretching as far as the eye can see.  Thinned, the hollowed terrain of burned and dried timber was sketched on either side of the road.  Standing naked, some trees still charred - a reminder of the firestorm that ravaged this area – while others colored charcoal grey glistened with a silvery tint in the midday sun. 

Figure 1 Scorched landscape – Copyright L. A. Lewin 2012

I researched Yellowstone National Park archives to obtain details on the events that caused this devastation - here’s what I found: Unless serious damage to property or eminent danger to people is present, most fires are left alone to burn themselves out – allowing nature to dictate terms.  However, in the summer of 1988 – later recorded as the driest summer in history for the region – 248 fires ravaged Yellow Stone, (50 were inside the park), engaging hundreds of fire fighters, and an army of overhead tankers spraying water and fire retardants to snuff flames and regain control.  But, not until the first snow began to fall, was the last smoldering limb extinguished.   Inside the park the fires consumed 793,000 acres and 3 million dollars in lost property!

The 1988 Yellow Stone National Park fires brought national attention to fire management guidelines and by 1992 an updated fire management plan was adapted with stricter rules governing how naturally occurring fires are allowed to burn.

Figure 2 Wild flowers and pine reemerging Copyright L. A. Lewin 2012

When we stopped our SUV, so I could walk the area and capture photographs, closer inspection revealed life was coming back – slowly – but nature was doing its thing.

Among the hundred of new lodgepole pines rising up from the scorched soil, wild flowers colored in between the straight lines of the felled trees, embellishing an otherwise colorless landscape.  And the ground hugging sagebrush scattered everywhere, filling the air with a sweet scent.

 It may take decades before the hills and valleys are covered under a thick, lush canopy, but the resurgence of life has begun.

Resurgence of life closes around a lonely piece of charred stump

Baby pines begin their skyward journey in the revitalization of the forest

The burnt areas of Yellow Stone is widespread. 

In a decade it will be hard to find a trace of the fire storm that ravaged this hillside.

For a complete report on the 1988 Yellow Stone National Park fires, follow this link to their web site.  http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/wildlandfire.htm