In the Moment:
Michael Frye's Landscape Photography Blog

Nightscaper Photo Conference: Last Chance for the Early-Bird Discount!

1927 Dodge Graham with gas pumps at night, Bodie State Historic Park, CA, USA

1927 Dodge Graham with gas pumps at night, Bodie State Historic Park, California. In my presentation Complex Lighting With One Flashlight I’ll show how to create rich, complex, sophisticated lighting with just one flashlight – as I did in this photo, lighting the old truck and gas pumps from multiple angles with just one light.

August 31st is the last day to get the early-bird discount on the Nightscaper Photo Conference!

This conference, focused on night photography, takes place September 26-29 in Kanab, Utah. I’ll be making two presentations at this event: Complex Lighting With One Flashlight, and Nighttime Sequences. And I’ll be teaching alongside a stellar lineup of other presenters, including Lance Keimig, Royce Bair, Jess Santos, Matt Hill, Tim Cooper, Rafael Pons, Katrina Brown, and a bunch more. Topics include star trails, auroras, printing, panoramas, deep-space astrophotography, Photoshop selections and masks, planning with PhotoPills – too many more to list them all here, but you can see all the details on the Nightscaper website:

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Join Me at the Out of the Great Smoky Mountains Photo Conference!


 

I’m excited to be joining the Out of Chicago team for another photo conference – this time in the Great Smokies!

I love photographing the kind of intimate landscapes this park abounds in during the spring – creeks, cascades, forests, blooming dogwoods, and misty ridges. I’m looking forward to photographing these scenes, and to helping participants find their own visions of this beautiful area.

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In the Range of Light

Sunset clouds, Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite NP, CA, USA

Sunset clouds, Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite NP, California. Light from the setting sun caught some virga (rain that doesn’t reach the ground) falling from a passing thunderstorm.

I’ve been lucky to live in or near Yosemite for the last 40 years. It’s such a wonderful place. And for about five months of the year, when the Tioga Road is open, I can easily get up to the cool, uncrowded, beautiful high country. It’s always a treat to breathe the thin, pine-scented air while hiking to a secluded alpine lake, or a field of wildflowers.

Last year the Tioga Road didn’t open until July 22nd, its latest opening date ever, which limited the time we got to spend in the high country. But this year Claudia and I got to hang out up there for extended periods before, during, and after our Starry Skies and Range of Light workshops. While not at the record levels like 2023, we did have a good snowpack this year, keeping the water levels high in the creeks and rivers, and creating some nice wildflower displays. We also saw monsoonal moisture sometimes pushing up into the mountains, creating clouds, showers, and thunderstorms, which makes things exciting – and makes for interesting photographs. In other words, it was really beautiful.

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The Light and Colors of Mono Lake

Sunbeams over Negit Island, Mono Lake, CA, USA

Sunbeams over Negit Island, Mono Lake, California. 91mm, 1/500 sec. at f/16, ISO 100.

Claudia and I recently returned from our annual workshop in the Yosemite high country. It was super fun, as usual, with a great group, and lots of interesting weather and clouds.

Before and during the workshop I photographed several sunrises and sunsets at Mono Lake. One of the things I love about Mono Lake is that it’s a great setting for light shows created by passing weather – clouds, virga, sunbeams, rainbows, and even lightning. The lake’s expanse allows you to include lots of sky, and capture some of that sky reflected in the water.

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Frolicking Bison

Bison calf kicking up its heels, Yellowstone NP, WY, USA

Bison calf kicking up its heels, Yellowstone NP, Wyoming

After our visit to the Tetons, Claudia and I spent a couple of days in Yellowstone before heading home. Since we were only there for two days, we didn’t see the variety of animals we saw in the Tetons, but did get to watch a large bison herd with numerous young calves.

These calves (often called “red dogs” because of their reddish fur) were endlessly entertaining – chasing each other, butting heads, kicking up their heels, or zooming around and around in circles to expend excess energy. Here are some photos of those adorable calves, along with one image of a Canada goose family. And I’ve also included a video Claudia made of the frolicking bison.

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Teton Wildlife

Grizzly 399 and her 18-month-old cub, Grand Teton NP, WY, USA

Grizzly 399 and her 18-month-old cub, Grand Teton NP, Wyoming

As I mentioned in my last post, Claudia and I had a great time watching and photographing the wildlife in the Tetons, and during a brief visit to Yellowstone. There’s so much wildlife in these parks, and the animals are relatively easy to see.

For us, the highlight was seeing the famous Grizzly 399 with her yearling cub, and Grizzly 1063 with her triplet cubs of the year – experiences we shared with our friends Charlotte Gibb and Chrissy Donadi, which made it even more fun.

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Teton Views

The Teton Range from Jackson Lake at sunrise, Grand Teton NP, WY, USA

The Teton Range from Jackson Lake at sunrise, Grand Teton NP, Wyoming

Claudia and I had such a great time in the Tetons, before and during the Out of Grand Teton photo conference. The conference went smoothly, as we’ve come to expect from the Out of Chicago folks. We had a great group of participants and fellow instructors, and it was fun hanging out with everyone – teaching, learning, and photographing this beautiful area. Special thanks to my wonderful teaching partner for the conference, Charlotte Gibb, and to Chris Smith, Jennifer Renwick, and all of the Out of Chicago team for making this such a great event!

I actually climbed in the Tetons in the late ’70s, and had been back a few times for photography. But that was awhile ago; in fact it had been more than 20 years since I’d photographed this area. Why did it take me so long to return? I’m not sure, but it was great to be back, and I am sure it won’t take me so long to return again.

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Shutter Speeds and Mood

Misty evening light along the Oregon coast, USA

Misty evening light along the Oregon coast. I thought a slow shutter speed (1 second) complemented the soft, misty, painterly light in this scene.

If you want to make expressive photographs – ones that capture a mood, or tell a story – then light, composition, and timing (the moment you capture) are usually the most powerful tools in your arsenal. Those three essential elements largely define the message and feeling of a photograph.

But while these tools are vital, they’re not the only ones at our disposal. We also have camera controls, like shutter speed, aperture, and filters. And we can use processing to interpret and enhance the photograph’s message.

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Dogwoods, Mist, and Bridalveil Fall

Dogwoods, mist, and Bridalveil Fall, Yosemite NP, CA, USA

Dogwoods, mist, and Bridalveil Fall, Yosemite NP, California

Before I left for my raft trip down the Grand Canyon, Claudia and I had a chance to go up to Yosemite Valley to see dogwoods. We picked a rainy, showery day, because interesting weather often generates interesting photo opportunities.

We made a circuit around the valley to check on conditions, and found lots of dogwoods blooming. Some were still in that stage where the blossoms (actually bracts) are green, but most were fully out, and beautiful, with white blossoms, but not yet leafing out, so the leaves didn’t compete with the flowers.

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One Week Left to Enter the Natural Landscape Photography Awards

Melting Ice #1

Melting Ice #1, Yosemite NP, CA, USA. This photograph of mine earned fourth place in the Abstracts and Details category in 2023.

There’s still time to enter the Natural Landscape Photography Awards contest! The deadline is next Friday, May 31st. And you can still get a 10% discount on entries by using the code FRYE10.

I’m honored to be one of the judges this year, alongside my distinguished fellow judges Viktoria Haack, Lizzie Shepherd, Matt Palmer, and Ben Horne.

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