Dabbling in the Abstract

Following our stop at Cascade Ponds yesterday, we moved on to two other locations where we could experiment with some abstract images. The areas chosen, Sawback Burn and Muleshoe in Banff NP offer some good scenes for what we had in mind. Sawback Burn is the site of a prescribed burn several years ago. It features the blackened trunks of the coniferous trees burned at that time and a renewed forest floor covered with wildflowers. Muleshoe has a large grove of aspen trees, favoured by many artists and photographers. With some guidance from Stu Hamilton, I worked on some techniques new to me and produced a few images I’m pleased to share.

The first three photos I’ve included today are the same style, achieved with a longer exposure and a coincident vertical movement of the camera. This produces a streaming of the images and works well with vertical subjects such as burnt conifers and aspen trunks. With a little experimentation and practice, it’s possible to produce a pleasing image, a little abstract but easily recognizable.

The appearance of each image varies a little, subject to the length of exposure chosen and the speed and length of vertical movement. The former can be set in the camera; the latter is in the hands of the photographer.

The next image uses a similar style, again using a relatively long exposure but in this case the motion is radial, achieved by changing the lens’ focal length while the exposure is in progress. Again, the length of exposure is easily controlled and the change of focal length is done by manually manipulating the lens, coincident with releasing the shutter. Not so easy!

The last technique I tried was applying a soft, blurry, dreamy look to some wildflowers. This requires two exposures,using a tripod to ensure proper alignment of the images. The first is a normal, focused exposure. The second is taken with the camera out-of-focus and one f-stop darker. The images can then be blended using photographic software to produce the desired effect. No manual manipulation required, so it’s a little easier.

This kind of photography is fun and it is surprising what you can produce. It’s a good change from my usual and I look forward to learning more about it.