Senior Capstone: May ‘21

Coordinates: A Study in Light

I first began photographing images in 2010 when I lived in Paris, France. My equipment at that time was a mere point and shoot 12 MP Kodak camera. My images were elementary, at best, but I discovered a passion for documenting what I saw through the lens. When I returned home to Canada, I purchased a Canon Rebel XSI and began photographing flowers, objects in my house, and family members. I also purchased Adobe Lightroom and taught myself to edit through trial and error. During the next six years, I upgraded to a Canon 7D Mark I and purchased my first professional lens – a Canon EF 24-105mm F/4L IS USM. My eye for what constituted a good photograph improved as did my editing skills. 

Although I initially did photography as a hobby while I studied to become a translator in Manitoba, I quickly realized that my passion lay with photography. As such, I switched majors and traveled to the United States to study photography, after having  discussions with my photographer friends in Oklahoma. Since 2016, I have pursued a Fine Arts degree with a focus in photography. 

Over the past few years, I have dabbled in astrophotography and discovered a love for trying to capture the night sky illuminated with stars or any other celestial trace of light that my lens could find. Through reading and watching other photographers’ vlogs, I have learned more about landscape and wildlife photography and, more specifically, how natural light can be used to craft stunning images. These two things – astrophotography and light – influenced my decision to create a body of work that would highlight natural lighting, surrounding landscapes with a focus on incongruent rock faces, and astronomical phenomenon as my capstone project.

For this endeavor, I chose digital photography as my medium. Although I have shot film before and enjoy that medium, the creative concept behind my project was best served through digital photography (shot with a mirrorless camera) and the ability to manipulate my images in Photoshop and Lightroom. 

When settling upon a location and subject content, I was influenced by several digital and film photographers whose works I admire – Peter McKinnon, Ansel Adams, Thomas Heaton, Peter Lik, Nate Luebbe, Reuben Wu, Autumn Schrock, Joe Greer, and Chris Burkard. All these artists are landscape photographers, which is a genre that was an early part of my portfolio and one I wish to expand upon and possibly do commercially someday. An overarching trait that draws me to each person’s work is their ability to weave a story with their photographs and draw the viewer’s eye to the overall beauty of the scenery. In addition, their imagery usually coincides with some sort of narrative – whether it be journal work, personal photo study, a photo book, or even a cinematic mini-documentary such as the ones that Peter McKinnon, Nate Luebbe, and Chris Burkard produce. Regardless of format, they all tell a story. 

One artist that had an impact on my project was Ansel Adams and his book Ansel Adams’ Yosemite: The Special Edition Prints. The fact that he did this on film, which is temperature sensitive, yet managed to yield such beautiful exposures with perfect whites and just the right amount of contrast fascinated me. As I studied Adams’ photos, I was intrigued by light and its effect on landscapes (particularly how he captured shadows and highlights), and how those two factors changed the emotion of the photo. 

When I first delved into photography, Canadian Peter McKinnon was my go-to guy. One of his most inspiring pieces was his “Bucket Shot” film, where – on a whim – he flew to Banff, Alberta to photograph a shot he had always dreamt of shooting. He filmed the entire process, and by the end of the film, Banff was on my bucket list of favorite photographers, as well. In fact, since the end of my freshman year at Rogers State University, Banff was where I planned to shoot my capstone. But when COVID-19 began in March 2020 and the Canadian-US borders were closed indefinitely. In hindsight, this roadblock helped me, because I was forced to rethink my initial plan.  

Last year, I became aware of photographers Nate Luebbe and Autumn Schrock. Both are a part of the Sony Alpha Collective, and they run photography workshops all over the world. Their images are vivid, stark, and often remind me of National Geographic images in their composition and editing. Luebbe and Schrock not only produce beautiful daytime photographs, but they also create stunning night and astrophotography. In December 2020, they released video of a joint mini-documentary entitled Light Side Up that they shot using the brand-new Sony A7sIII. They released the camera into the edge of space at 122,000 ft elevation to photograph the Aurora Borealis – something that had never been attempted before. The resulting image and video footage were phenomenal.

Night photography is an entirely different breed of photography. For the camera operator, settings become more manual and automated features, such as autofocus, are normally left out of the equation. Seeing these photographers dive into something that I have only scratched the surface of made me want to do more research on night photography. That is when I came across Rueben Wu – a photographer, director, music producer, and member of the band Ladytron. His works tends to have a dream-like quality to them, and what intrigued me about his work was his use of both night photography and drones with mounted lights. While using long exposures to light rock facades, he flies his drone to create shapes in the sky. The result is stunning imagery which is ephemeral and mysterious. 

One of the most important aspects of any photograph is composition. To gain a better understanding of this, I referred to photographers Joe Greer and Chris Burkard. Greer is a former New Yorker who works primarily with Leica film cameras. His style documents both the life of people and the peacefulness of nature. Even when a location seems to be absent of beauty, Greer somehow finds hints of vibrancy in the environment. Coupled with the beautiful quality that film offers, Greer’s photographs showcase the attractiveness of imperfection and the deep sense of balance that can be achieved by simply slowing down the photographic process.

Burkard was one of the most accomplished explorer photographers that I came across during my research. His outdoor adventure, travel, and lifestyle subjects highlight his skill and visionary perspective. Burkard has a unique way of portraying meaningful stories, involving his environmental activism (National Geographic recently hired him to photograph the Iceland volcano eruption) and his passion for creating which made him one of my favorite photographers.

Thomas Heaton, an English landscape photographer, is probably the most reserved of the photographers on my list. Each of his photos are documented on his YouTube channel and the videos show his creative process as he battles equipment failure, unexpected weather, and harsh conditions. His process of meticulously choosing his compositions, as well deciding when to walk away from those  he is not satisfied with, helped me better understand that sometimes tabling good photos is necessary to the narrative. In doing so, an artist is sometimes able to capture an even better photo or series.

The last photographer who influenced this project was Peter Lik. While best known for his nature and panoramic imagery, he also favors heavy saturation and vivid colors in his imagery, so it makes sense that I was drawn to his portfolio as my works tend to portray heavy saturation, as well. 

The silence of the night brings questions which cannot be answered with language but only by that feeling which implores the viewer to explore it. Inspired by the photographers that I spoke about, I decided to do a study which revolved around fleeting light and its effects on varying rock faces. The study involved astrophotography, low-light situations, and landscape photography. The images included qualities that entertain celestial rhythms, ephemeral light, and composite imagery. Photos analyzed the surfaces from various altitudes, rock contours, varying geographic locations, and light which was undetectable to the human eye at night, surrounded by the incongruous landscapes. Techniques such as long exposures, focus stacking, and exposure stacking were used to create composite imagery. I envisioned three images which would capture light throughout the day and into nightfall. 

The equipment I used to complete this project included: Canon EOS R5, and an array of lenses, a Breakthrough Photography Night Sky Filter to reduce light pollution, and a tripod for stability.

About a year ago, I began planning my photographs for my senior capstone. My first thoughts were the passion that I have for the exploration of the Canadian wilderness. I thought about the soaring pine trees of the Canadian Rockies and the awe-inspiring landscapes that come alive after the ice caps have melted. I decided to travel to Banff National Park to photograph Moraine Lake under low-light conditions. I envisioned the Milky Way, the Northern Lights, the vivid blue glacial runoff of the lake, and the fiery sunsets that accompany the mountainous region as a composite image. However, when COVID-19 struck in March 2020, the border closure between Canada and the United States meant that my trip and capstone idea had to be tabled and a new idea formulated in its place. 

I considered other landscapes with similar qualities that could be used. I immediately thought of Yosemite National Park. I could photograph the Half Dome – one of the most recognizable rock faces in the United States. I was drawn to the formidable landscapes, the breathtaking waterfalls, the towering granite formations, and the vast unspoiled alpine wilderness. Upon researching possible photograph locations in early November, I discovered that most of the western U.S. National Parks were under restricted operational hours because to the California Stay-At-Home Order. The area I wanted to visit in Yosemite was also closed. This meant that all the parks I wanted to visit in California were open for day-use only. Many also had restricted hours. The 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. operational hours meant that low-light opportunities would be non-existent, and any other images taken during those hours would not align with my capstone theme. This led to much frustration because I felt as if my capstone idea would not be possible.

As I struggled with finding locations, I continued to practice low-light techniques for shooting. During this project was my first time using a technique called focus-stacking, and I did research to teach myself the process. To have a properly exposed photo at night, I needed to photograph with a large aperture. I also needed to take various shots taken with multiple focus points. For example, I exposed and focused on the foreground, then exposed the subject or horizon line, and finally, I exposed the sky. In post-production, I made a composite image in Photoshop by merging the three images together and masking each image. Upon completion, I edited them in Lightroom to make the final image as sharp as possible. By doing this, I could shoot a long exposure for a sharp foreground without any star trails, by exposing the sky separately. As a complete image, the qualities were superbly sharp and properly exposed.

I narrowed down a list of parks and locations which remained open during the month of March. Rocky Mountain National Park – specifically Dream Lake – along with Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, and the Flatirons in Boulder were all on my list of proposed destinations. 

On March 7, 2021, I drove from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Denver, Colorado. On March 8th, I drove to Rocky Mountain National Park near Estes, Colorado, to photograph Dream Lake. The day started off cloudy, but I was hopeful that there would be a clearing once I arrived. I knew that weather could be a factor and that weather reports forecasted some light snow overnight and into the next day. Because of this, it was important that I made this shot on the first day of the trip.  Once at the entrance for Dream Lake, I took my photo bag and made the 2.2 mile hike up the prominent mountainside to get to my location. I was awestruck when I finally saw the mountain pinnacle and the vastness of nature surrounding me. 

The weather conditions were exactly what I had envisioned for my daytime study of light. I titled this photo 40°18'34.1"N 105°39'31.7"W – which was the GPS coordinates of this location. I composed this outdoor scene to be comprised of a frozen body of water, towering trees, and protruding boulders which lead the eye up to a sloping and vast mountain range. I aimed to have diagonal lines emanating from the ground which draw the eye up to the subject of the photo – the looming mountain face, resulting in a blurry lower part of the photo until it becomes in focus near the main focal point. The daytime zenith of the sun created brilliant angular rays which created shadow and contrast in the scene, while still accentuating the sharp ridges and vertical ascent of the mountain. 

40°18'34.1"N 105°39'31.7"W

On March 9th, I drove to Winter Park in the afternoon to capture my composite image – which would showcase multiple images combined from sunset to nightfall. However, the sunlight never shone through the clouds for the conditions I had envisioned for this photograph. The evening was forecast for light snowfall and the cloud cover ruined my attempt at the shot.  

On the way back to Denver, I studied the forecast. Heavy snow was predicted to hit Denver that night and continue through the weekend. Meteorologists said that up to 27” of snow could be there by Thursday. This meant that the remaining proposed locations – 

Garden of the Gods and Flatirons Chautauqua Park – were no longer options. Although I knew that photographing during winter in Colorado could pose some unexpected weather conditions, I never imagined a blizzard could derail my plans. 

I was faced with the difficult choice of choosing whether to stay and hope for the best or move locations to an area without snow, while still aligning with my original vision. For the next three hours, I combed over various locations that could work. Going North or South was out the question because the snowstorm spanned from New Mexico up to Wyoming. Even Arizona was slated to receive snow. I eventually realized I would have to drive out West all the way to Nevada or California to capture the photographs I needed. Fortunately, I was familiar with that area and had a promising idea of what would work for my project. I also knew I had to leave that night to avoid the storm. Unfortunately, the storm arrived earlier than expected, and my new trip took me directly into a blizzard.

Driving through the mountains at night was treacherous. I ran into heavy snowfall passing through Rocky Mountain National Park. Stopping several times was necessary because the roads were almost impassable. Safety was at the forefront of my priorities, so I waited overnight and into the morning for improved visibility and safer driving conditions. Shortly after I made it through the pass, the Park Rangers closed access for anyone else attempting to go through. The drive through Colorado and Utah to Nevada was long, but it allowed me ample time to consider two new locations for my nighttime focus stack and my composite image. 

After driving almost 24 hours through three states and six snowstorms, I made it to Pahrump, Nevada on March 10th and checked into my hotel at 9 p.m. On March 11th, I drove out to Death Valley, California to scout possible locations for my composite image. I drove through the park for three hours, contending with high winds, dust, downpours, and even snow, at times. By late afternoon the rain had stopped, but it seemed as if the day was a bust. I was resigned to calling it quits for the day and returning the next day. However, as I was driving out of the park, I noticed an area to the left of Zabriskie Point which had incredible, twisting badlands. I immediately knew that this could work with the rapidly changing light, and I prayed the weather would cooperate.

I quickly set up my camera, noted the GPS information, and began writing in my notebook. I noted the time and camera setting of each photograph for my exposure stack. I attached my night sky filter before nightfall since it was important to keep the camera as still as much as possible during the four hours of photographing the same location. My first photograph started at 4:45 p.m., and I set a timer to remind me to take a photo every five minutes. This was also so I could capture the sunset as well as the change in color and light while making any necessary adjustments to my camera settings. At this point, the sky was partly overcast, and I saw glimmers of blue sky in each shot. At around 5:45 p.m., the light started to drastically change. I began to photograph every 2 and a half minutes in order to capture the shades of light in the sky and on the rock features. At the same time, I adjusted my camera settings and paid attention to the histogram so I would not overexpose or underexpose any images. As the sun receded, I had a brief period where intense fiery pinks and oranges entered my composition. By 7:15 p.m., all sunlight had diminished, and the darkness of the night fell. I took one last photo to focus on the vastness of the twinkling night sky – which would play a key part in the beauty of this composite. 

36°25'13.5"N 116°48'30.0"W is a composite image which comprises 26 carefully selected images. Each are 45 megapixels and reflect various light situations which highlight the changes of color and shadows as light fell to darkness. I edited them all separately in Adobe Lightroom and then imported them and aligned them in Adobe Photoshop. My editing process involved masking each photograph to unveil only the parts of each image that I wanted  shown. Once masked, I sent the photo back to Lightroom for brush tweaking and for adjusting the exposure to my liking. The result is a stunning composite image which exemplifies the beauty of light and highlights the multitude of colors as dusk turns into darkness. 

36°25'13.5"N 116°48'30.0"W

I left Death Valley and returned to the residence in Pahrump where I was staying that night. Before I could even look at the photos I had just taken, I was already planning my next shot. I pondered driving up to Mount Charleston, but I knew the snow could impede my expectations for my composition. As I sat on the couch, I gazed out the window to the mountain behind the residence. It was a familiar sight to me since I had stayed at this location many times before. I realized the mountainside had a lot of sentimental value to me. It was the place where I first learned how to do astrophotography and experienced the Milky Way without any light interference. I suddenly realized that I had to photograph it. However, I was unsure it would happen because the sky was full of cloud cover which made it impossible to capture what I needed. I vigilantly watched the cloud radar throughout the night, waking up at various intervals to see if anything had changed. At 5:00 a.m., the sky cleared long enough for me to photograph the mountain with the Milky Way. The clearing lasted a mere 15 minutes, but it was enough time for me to execute the focus stack.

36°15'26.5"N 116°06'08.7"W is the location of my third and final image – the night study. I photographed six different images of the same composition to create six separate planes of focus. This technique allowed me to stack the images and create a sharp image from top to bottom. The result is a striking starlit mountainside, as the current waning crescent moon phase hides the moon from the night sky. Snow from the previous day is seen on the mountainside, and the Milky Way is visible as an umbrella of blue hues exploding into the ethereal sky. 

36°15'26.5"N 116°06'08.7"W

All three photographs illustrate the majesty of nature and the beauty of the unknown. They also fit well within my overall body of work since I primarily focus on landscapes. In the past year, I have been drawn to astrophotography and have been able to capture nighttime sky moments which include meteors, the SpaceX rocket on its way to the International Space Station, along with comets. What separates these photographs from my previous work is the new techniques of focus stacking and composite images. Both techniques are ones I had never done until this capstone. However, after the success of these photographs, I know that I will incorporate focus stacking and composite images into future photographs. The effects are stunning and elevate the beauty of the photographs. 

After graduating, I will work to become a full-time freelance adventure, travel, and wildlife photographer. I aspire to travel to the farthest expanses of the earth and photograph secluded wilds and untainted vistas. In doing so, I hope to inspire people to think about their relationship with nature and rediscover an urge for wanderlust. 

Conservation is also something that I am passionate about and would like to be more involved in. Ideally, I will find a balance between fine art and commercial photography. Thus, while I will pursue personal endeavors, I will also pitch projects to clients for brand marketing. This will allow me to photograph meaningful projects which motivate me as an artist and spend the majority of my time pursuing it, in hopes that I can help make a difference in the world through imagery.

In the immediate future, I hope to be hired by a local production company and work on set. I would like to focus on studio photography as well as polish my cinematography skills. This will be useful when I make the transition into full-time freelance work. This senior capstone project was the first step off the beaten path and into the world of commercial travel photography.

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