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Dustin’s Unplanned Photo

Unplanned Photography

Dustin Here: Over memorial day weekend I drove down to the Salt Lake City area to visit some friends and just enjoy the weekend. The trip was very last minute as several of my other plans didn't work out and Utah is where I ended up. Saturday morning I found out we were going on a hike and I definitely didn't bring the shoes for hiking, but I grabbed my camera and went anyway with a hope that nature would treat me right. We ended up hiking up a trail to Stewart Falls where the trail ended at a pretty nice waterfall – an oasis if you will 🙂 . That's when I had the most fun on the hike and temporarily forgot about the blisters that had formed on the heels of my feet as I was trying to photograph the waterfall.

It was quickly apparent that this hike was a popular one for the locals and a lot of people had their cameras out snapping away – but I knew I had to be different. I couldn't just take any ole photo of the waterfall, but that I had to get the right angle on it. That's when I hiked up a little higher and closer to the waterfall and then did what I could to get underneath it for the perspective and angle of it.

Dustin's Process: I didn't do a whole lot of editing to this (hard to believe, I know.) because all I wanted was to bring out the colors (saturation) in the rock and increase the contrast. The majority of the editing was done using just CameraRaw with a few finishing touches in Photoshop such as levels and sharpening. That's it! Nature did the rest for me…

Dustin's Metadata:

Shutter speed: 1/10, Aperture: f/14, ISO 100

Camera: Canon 6D, Lens: Canon 24-105mm (24mm), Manual Mode, No tripod.

Lighting: Sunlight

I used a higher f/stop to not only get more in focus, but to reduce the amount of light coming into the camera cause the sun was pretty bright. But, it also allowed me to have a slower shutter speed to get the silky smooth water coming down. To also help with this – I turned my ISO to 100 to avoid the noise but also keep the light out for the sake of the slower shutter speed.

It was a blessing that the photo turned out as sharp as it did because I didn't have a tripod with me and I hand-held it. I did, a couple of times, prop the camera or my arm on something to help stabilize it but was only partially successful in the process. Enjoy the photo!

Stewart Falls - Provo, UT - Dustin Olsen
Stewart Falls – Provo, UT – Dustin Olsen

27 thoughts on “Dustin’s Unplanned Photo”

  1. The silky smooth water, the contrast of colors in the rock and the bright blue in the sky make this picture gorgeous! Nice one Dustin, you have an eye to capture something so many have caught but in a unique new perspective. Way to keep it fresh!

  2. Very Nice, I love when a photo comes through with so much to offer, this one has so much, going back now to take another loooooong look

  3. i’m a newbie living in Belize and just took the rather expensive plunge(atleast for me) and bought a T4i, really appreciating your general insight and learning alot from your “Dustins Process”. Great Photo!!! hope i’ll be as good as you one day

  4. I could not imagine my life without The-Writing-Kid during my graduation semester. That is my story of success and a failure I managed to avoid. So, as Gen. Patraeus recommended – I shared) Now it’s your turn!

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  7. It was quick apparent that this hike turned into a famous one for the locals and quite a few people had their cameras out snapping away – however I knew I had to be distinctive. I couldn’t just take any ole photo of the waterfall, but that I needed to get the proper attitude on it. That’s when I hiked up a little better and closer to the waterfall after which did what I should to get underneath it for the attitude and perspective of it.

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