Uploads from eevy24012, with geodata

Wilburn Ridge Sunset

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Fri, 31 May 2013 13:52:05 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

Ninety degrees for the 3rd day in a row where I live....I cannot emphasize enough how much I think that really sucks after the rather mild spring we had experienced. The blooms on all of my flowers are dying, many of the plants get droopy in the hot sun, and I can't stand to be outside very long. I had plans to go backpacking today, and that is always subject to the weather and look of the sky since I'm not out to knock down trail mileage...I just want great photos.

Well the sky and heat have really let me down. It was supposed to be mostly sunny the rest of today (usually means high paintbrush clouds) and then get party cloudy on Saturday. This afternoon some big puffy clouds took over the sky and brought along a nasty looking haze that toned down any blue that showed through. Then the weather updated and called for Sonic Clear in the morning. That was enough to make me punt, though it would be nice to get up somewhere higher and see if I can lose this oppressive heat.

Since I'm not going anywhere and trapped inside most of the day I'm going back over some old exposures I never processed and seeing what comes up. Since I have been learning luminosity masking it has opened up a lot of possibilities for stuff that I was unable to work in the past. This is from a backpacking trip last May to the Grayson Highlands of VA. This sunset was from my camping spot up on a high rocky formation called Wilburn Ridge, in fact my tent was just a few feet behind me taking this shot. The mountain the sun is setting behind is Mount Rogers, VA's highpoint. Wish things had worked out to get back this weekend, hopefully more scenic conditions the next.

This was 4 images of 1 stop difference processed using luminosity masking and then a few levels masks as well. No vibrance or saturation added.

Grandfather Mountain

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sat, 25 May 2013 16:30:08 -0700

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My wife wanted to go down to Grandfather Mountain this weekend as she loves to hike there. I knew the time was right to see the Pink Shell Azalea in bloom, and hoped for some other flowers as well. I wanted to camp out but she was booked a hotel in Boone, NC. I enjoy the comfortable setting of a room but the other numerous downsides for me usually far outweigh just sleeping in the woods. We had to make it a quick trip due to church commitments on Sunday.

It had been a few years since I had passed through Boone since I just about always bypass it using the parkway, don't like stopping all the time and traffic. Though it is a gorgeous mountain town, I feel it has taken a rather dramatic turn for the worse in terms of crowds and traffic, and seems to be more touristy with the "attractions".

The hike on Grandfather Mountain is one of the more rugged and strenuous adventures one will find in western NC. All rock with cables and ladders to scale cliff areas. We enjoy the challenging nature and like a good work out, but in the 2 years that have passed it seems people in general here have lost their minds! I don't consider this a trail for 3 and 4 year old children, yet we saw quite a few. Lots of really out of shape people, and one woman who managed to overcome her obvious severe fear of heights proceeded to literally crawl from the ladders to McRae Peak in total panic. When one goes up these ladders, one must go back down ladders to get back to the parking lot. It does not appear that many people realize their limitations on this mountain, and I can imagine that this will lead to some bad experiences for many.

Spring is proceeding at a really slow pace in the high country, though Pink Shell was blooming all up the mountain to the bridge, it was not on the peaks. The Sand Myrtle had not bloomed out up there either. We could not have asked for a nicer day to be up there though with excellent clarity and pretty sky. The wind was bad in the morning but calmed as we hiked. The colors of spring moving up the mountain were quite the sight, and I took many shots from the high peaks, some panos, looking forward to processing them.

I can't imagine doing trips from hotels like many here. One is so far removed from most of the areas of interest it requires a ton more driving and wasted time in traffic. I lose the vibe of being out in nature at hotels as well. It's not for me, I look forward to camping out soon!

Fog and Azalea

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:19:37 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

Here's another foggy azalea. This fog was total coverage and went on for miles. Not even a slight breeze, so there was no movement in the multiple exposures. This is actual 3 images blended using luminosity masking. I just hope to catch this situation when the things hit peak a week or so from now.

Jump into the Fog

Flame in the Fog

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 19 May 2013 13:15:59 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I'm partial to the views and vistas on the parkway north of Roanoke and spend most of my time there. I often say that that *Virgina's* southern parkway would be a total loss if not for this annual Flame Azalea display. My guess is the people who finalized the decor planted these back in the post-construction days to make up for a lack of interesting vistas on the Blue Ridge Plateau. These do not seem to be a shrub commonly found in this area far from the parkway. Anyway, however they got here, I'm sure happy about it cause I go have a look every year. Got a heads up last week from my Mother in Law who lives in the area.

Well today was the perfect day with no wind, light drizzle and this gorgeous fog. These azalea really light up under the circumstances, like neon signs. The bloom has just commenced and they will look better in a week as there were a lot of barren ones, but hard to tell if this sort atmosphere will show up when needed.

I have visited this display for several years and there just isn't one to be found next to any of the extremely limited vistas.

Sunset from Roan High Bluff

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:33:26 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I took this a few years ago on a visit to the Roan Highlands, the first night of the trip. Grassy Ridge Bald is my favorite and normal preferred spot to backpack up and camp for the duration, but after enduring a multi-hour lightning experience during the night there in June '08, I will not risk it again when there is a chance of storms. Such was the case this trip, so we opted to car camp up on Roan Mountain where the vehicle and greater safety could be accessed in the event of storm. Turned out being a fortunate decision since there was one this time, and we did spend about an hour and 1/2 insulated by rubber tires....and what a downpour!

Roan High Bluff is the westernmost vantage point in the highlands, so therefore it affords the best views of the sunset since this mountain isn't in the way like all locations east of Carvers Gap. This was taken from the observation deck on the cliff edge. Oddly enough I don't recall seeing anyone else with sunset photos from here, a rather undershot location considering the Photgrapher's Mecca that is the Roan Highlands.

This was 3 shots blended using luminosity masking, taken with my old camera and lens combo.

Thunder Ridge

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sat, 04 May 2013 17:30:15 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

It was an incredible day to be out hiking and driving on the parkway seeing spring all over the Blue Ridge. My wife and I took Turbo first for an almost 6 mile hike on Brown Mountain Creek in Amherst Co getting flower and stream shots. The day was rather sunny with pretty clouds so we probably should have been taking in the vistas all morning but with the new tricks I'm learning in layer masking the sun in the woods doesn't bother me as much now. It was a great hike anyway and saw Yellow Ladys Slippers, Showy Orchis, and Crested Dwarf Iris colonies.

After the hike we rode back on the parkway from just south of Buena Vista and the sky was rather nice, but not total coverage in all areas, making the vistas hit or miss. Thankfully the area up on Thunder Ridge had some good stuff. The high elevation here still sports a mostly winter look with the oak trees, but spring is moving up the mountains.

I find this to be the best view on all of VA's parkway, it's near the high point and the ridges go on a long way. It's a long sweeping curve and there really should have been some type of overlook, but there is a decent place to park in the grass. This is 3 vertical images Photomerged. Looks best on black.

Cove Hardwood Trail

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 03:24:28 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This is a blanket of Fringed Phacelia covering the forest floor on the Cove Hardwood Trail in the Smokies. It is accessed from the Chimneys picnic area. When I shot the forest, the sky was blown out when the exposure for the ground was correct. This is 3 images blended, the sky using tonality masking. It will allow a better sky exposure to be easily blended into an area of forest like this where there are infinite little twigs and limbs that look best with the forest exposure. After the exposure blending I did numerous levels masks and then some sharpening. Looks best on black.

Dogwood!

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 15:33:28 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

Nothing else will make me drop whatever I'm doing like pretty sky with paintbrush clouds. They simply demand I go out and try to get a photograph of something showy to along with it. The dogwoods down in town have been in bloom a few days but I figured the parkway would be a little behind. Can't assume such things though. I rode around up there some and my normal favorite spots were not quite ready, but I did find this one out over a vista that wanted its shot taken.

Nothing Better to Do

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 06:13:10 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This was 4 vertical shots photomerged. The sky this day was looking quite spectacular, though at the time I was so dialed in on wanting to shoot flowers down in the lowlands I wasn't in full appreciation. This overlook is a little bit down from Newfound Gap on the Tennessee side. The views on the NC side at this time were totally wiped out by clouds, and Clingmans Dome was in the clouds. So I rode up and down 441 taking some shots waiting on something to clear up or get more cloudy. I couldn't get too distracted by this type of scenery though it would have been a great way to see Charlies Bunion or the Jump Off, both require long time consuming hikes. By the time it would have taken to get one of those places, the sky would have been much more overcast though, so ended up guessing right and going after flowers. Glad I did spend the time up "on the roof". I left this pano quite large so see on "original" size if you want to feel like you are standing at the overlook taking in the view.

Stream

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 05:15:50 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This is where Porters Creek, running in from the right, meets the Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River. This spot is a very scenic area with the sound of rushing water, and streams running everywhere in almost a chaotic fashion. The one going into the background also cuts behind the left woods, making it an island. There is a bridge just upstream to the right crossing Porters Creek with a road leading to the Ramsey Cascade Trail. The GSMNP is absolutely runamok with these hard flowing mountain torrents, the most beautiful to be found in the eastern US. Once one has seen many of these, it can be hard to get a similar feeling with the typical ones from other (eastern)areas.

Despite all of these and the park's massive mountains and abundant waterfalls, I don't find it a spectacular area for a waterfall trip. This is because most of the falls will require very long strenuous hikes to see, making it hard to get more than a few a day. One could spend a fortune in time shooting the streams that are just about always next to the main roads.

I like my stream shots to look like this one, with a lot of texture and color. I do this by using 2 exposures, one for the primary dark areas of the water and the other for the whites. I find keeping the interesting features requires the shutter speeds to be no longer than 1 sec for the dark areas, and less for the white. The happy median for me is capturing the motion while preserving the details and retaining color.

Sunset

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 08:45:57 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This is one of the best sunsets I've seen in quite some time, the oppressive heat we are experiencing has at least brought a dynamic sky. This spot is a few minutes from my house and often I'll get up here if the sunset looks to be good. The only problem is there is nothing of foreground interest to capture, without also capturing a span of parking lot. The edges of the parking lot have steep drops without trees, and then the intermediate clutter of the city. So this is the best I could do with this nice blooming tree.

If only sunsets like this could be bottled up and set free when I'm somewhere meaningful like in the mountains!

Attention Rhododendron Fans!

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Mon, 27 May 2013 18:04:24 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I'm starting to get concerned about the Catawba Rhododendron I'm seeing around VA and also now in the high country of NC. Otter Creek was first down around the James River and the blooming was very sporadic, not many on each plant. Looking around other places it seems that most plants do not have a lot of blooms, or the ones that did have a lot that turned brown and will not be viable. I have seen some full displays on some plants here in VA, but other places where they are lacking. I wasn't looking too hard on Grandfather Mountain, but all of the plants I noticed were very slim on blooms.

They form blooms in the summer of the previous year, and then must carry them through winter, before blooming in late spring. If anyone here has seen, or is going up around the Roan Highlands please take note on any plants you see and how they are looking. The buds must be greenish looking, not brown or baked as some I've been seeing. I am concerned that this may be a sub-par bloom.

Otter Creek

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sat, 18 May 2013 12:17:15 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I think my favorite thing in spring is chasing rhododendron around everywhere. This is where it starts for me, the low elevation area of the parkway at Otter Creek just north of the James River in VA. There are not many streams where you will find a lot of Catawba Rhododendron, most are adorned with the Rosebay, which is mostly white and over a month later. I like this area, and this is my 3rd annual trip here, it's very secluded and I never see anyone else. That is because getting around requires mostly wading the stream's very slick rocks, or the woods watching for copperheads while eating spider webs and collecting ticks.

I threw my back out at work on Thursday, Fri could only walk some and lay flat on ice. Today was the perfect day for stream photography with the overcast and I knew the bloom was on. The hour ride to get here was pretty rough sitting so long but once I started getting out in the bush it seems to always help the back. Maybe taking pictures gets my mind off it or something. Ended up walking several miles, mostly in the stream.

This is 2 exposures for the water to keep the detail, and several levels layers on the rest of the scene.

Last of the Dogwoods

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 12 May 2013 16:11:30 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I was fortunate to finally catch my favorite parkway dogwoods with a suitable sky, though the blooms were a little on the fade. These trees just don't put out like in the past, perhaps they are suffering from a blight or something. Anyway this one and another about 1/8 mile down the road are like old friends to me.

Hope you have been getting out if you are a bloom fan, I'd say now we are about at halftime with most of the early flowers gone in the low and mid elevations, now is the time I like to see the Pink Ladys Slippers and chase rhododendron and azalea from the low elevations all the way up the highest eastern mountains. I've been enjoying this spring so far with the prolonged milder temps and extended bloom times as a result. It has been a gift.

This image was just a single exposure with some levels adjustments and sharpening.

Azalea View

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sat, 11 May 2013 18:57:43 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This plant is like an old friend to me, I visit it each year when it blooms and try to have some nice sky along. It is down the bank and rather overgrown, not easy at all to set up the tripod and I more or less have to sit into a shrub that is behind me. The parkway's policy of "Making It Hurt" in dealing with the sequester has led to an apparent suspension of mowing and bush-hogging, while still wasting the money on all of the administrative excesses I'd imagine. Oh they so need to have a working person that lives in reality take over and show them how to run this operation. Just when you think they couldn't be any more negligent, they prove you wrong. I am about as sick as a person can get over irresponsible government and the way they act like spoiled children having their allowance cut, they simply have to stop wasting our money and I reject the notion that there isn't an adequate budget to look after this byway properly.

This azalea also has a very nice fragrance. I was fortunate that the sky had changed for the better as I neared home.

Crested Dwarf Iris

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 17:33:50 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

You just never know what to expect with these iris colonies around my area. I know of many and they can be pretty spectacular when most of the plants bloom. More often than not there are but a few blooms. So was the case on this visit to Brown Mountain Creek. I do not think coming back later will feature more since you can usually see the bloom coming when the plants are this far along.

This is my first attempt at focus stacking images in Photoshop. I like how it turned out, I only used 2 images, one for the flowers and another for background. This is along a section of Appalachian Trail in Amherst Co, VA.

Brown Mountain Creek

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 08:46:28 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I met up with my buddy Brent McGuirt and his family yesterday and we hit a botanical garden called Brown Mountain Creek along the Appalachian Trail in Amherst Co, VA. I had a previous commitment in the morning that took longer than I thought to finish, so we had a late start but the sky was completely overcast and the wind calm, perfect for stream and flowers. The stream was around normal flow for this time of year but looks and sounds a little better higher flow. It was just a little early for the flowers that should be in peak a week from now.

I only took this composition and another. I like the Wild Geranium on the rocks though it doesn't show well. The light was low and I went to ISO 400 here to avoid the lengthy exposure that would hotspot the water and lose all detail. The lighting really brought out the green forest in the background. This is 3 images, one for the scene and 2 for the whitewater that was pretty aggressive down this chute.

I love this time of year, spring is in full peak here in the low and mid elevations, making for some really great shooting ops when the sky cooperates. I'll probably go back in a few days, we are being hit with a good rain event and the blooms should be better.

Brent has the 2 cutest little gilrs, they really enjoy themselves out hiking in the woods.

Clingmans Dome

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 05:38:00 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

This is probably the wildest looking mountain observation tower one will find anywhere. It's perched on top of Clingmans Dome in the GSMNP, the highest mountain found here and 3rd highest in the entire Appalachian Range...behind only Mount Mitchell and Mount Craig in the Black Mountains of North Carolina. It's the high point of Tennessee, but also belongs to North Carolina as the border runs through the summit. The mountain is named for Thomas Lanier Clingman a former US Senator from NC who took altitude measurements in the area. Most of the high mountains of NC and TN above 5500 ft feature the Red Spruce and Fraser Fir forest similar to those found in more northern latitudes, the one here has been hit particularly hard by an insect pest called the Balsam Wooly Adelgid that has killed most of the older trees, so the mountain is littered with dead standing trunks. There is a new growth of younger trees that are immune from insect attack until a certain age, and will suffer a similar fate unless something can be done to kill off or control the pest.

The long walkway actually spirals around forming a gentle grade up to the tower affording wheelchair access. There is a paved trail perhaps a 1/2 mile from the parking area leading up to here that is incredibly steep and difficult enough to walk up without a rest, and I cannot imagine anyone pushing a person in a wheelchair up it.

Encroaching Spring

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 05:52:56 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

I just got back from my whirlwind tour of the Smokies to see the spring flowers. I left Monday evening around 7 PM since I prefer my interstate driving to be outside of peak traffic hours, especially I-81. It can be disastrous travel most daylight hours with wrecks and other snafus bringing the possibility of delays that can cost hours sitting or creeping along. I stayed in a cheap hotel in Pigeon Forge that night and was 2 AM or so getting to sleep...then didn't sleep well at all. Pretty normal anymore for my first day out on a trip.

I chose this day since the flowers were peaking and it was supposed to be mostly cloudy all day. Flowers can be tough to shoot when the bright sun casts shadows all over the forest. I started early enough that the sun wasn't going to hit the spots I visited for a few hours, and it was a gorgeous sunrise that I wasn't in position for a worthy shot. I started at the Cove Hardwood Trail (after some secret spots) at the Chimneys Picnic Area and met 2 other photographers from SC. They said they had been up on Clingmans Dome for the sunrise but the mountain had been in the clouds. That made me feel much better, and when I told them the sky was lit up pretty nice, it made them feel pretty bummed. Tried some flowers/forest/sun through trees shots and I think some will be real nice.

Sun getting up enough to foul things and so I went into the mountain scene mode. Drove up to the top and higher elevations awhile, still in the clouds. So I wandered up and down 441 a few times and got this photo of spring moving up the mountain. Finally cleared off on Clingmans Dome and I like testing myself with a brisk non-stop walk the 1/2 mile to the tower. Felt like crap from no sleep but did it. The long range scenery was mostly clouded out at the far horizons but the near mountains looked fantastic with the awesome sky. I was piddling around shooting the tower going down the walkway and 2 guys in their mid 50's were coming up and gave me the best chuckle I've heard in quite some time...lasted much of the day. They were looking at the Fraser Firs covered in the various lichens that occur in those types of forest and one guy said, "Wow...they've got a real scale problem on these trees!" Hope he isn't with the NPS.

The sky started getting more flower friendly and lasted the rest of the day. I also hiked the Schoolhouse Trail over to Whiteoak Sinks and then later much of the Porters Creek Trail, so put in a LOT of trail miles. Pretty beat after the day. The car had a new "Service Engine Soon" warning appear so didn't want to spend another day driving around. Crash out until 3AM and drove on back home. Looks like I got a lot of fabulous shots, some will take awhile to work so threw this one out first being an easy one.

Flowers are peak most of the places I went, Whiteoak Sinks was early...be peak in a week. Despite the park's claim that 441 would be closed until summer, it's open...much to my dismay. That allows better access for the hordes and motorcycle parades, I found the park to be rather crowded for a Tuesday. Don't go anywhere near the area this weekend as it's a "Rod Run" in Pigeon Forge where peacocks from all over the country bring in their cars to "strut" around creating a massive traffic jam coming out of the park that can cause delays running in the hours if one must come and go in Tennessee. It's time there was some sort of bypass road around Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg for people just wanting to visit the park without all of their drama.

Church with Better Sky

nobody@flickr.com (eevy24012) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:04:26 -0700

eevy24012 posted a photo:

The sky really improved greatly here today, the least it could do with the heat that has also arrived. Last Thursday I was shoveling snow in a winter coat, and now 5 days later I was working without a shirt getting sunburned in 87 degree misery with bees coming after me all day, like they do all summer.

You can see the sunset in the lowest window. I wish I could have bottled up the sky this evening and set it free next time I go backpacking.