Gary Williams Photography » HDR

Favorite Images From 2010–Flooded Orchard

admin — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 15:12:19 +0000

This small orchard near Watsonville was inundated from heavy winter rains. The little tree seemed sad surrounded by so much water. I liked the reflections of the clouds and the other trees. Five bracketed exposures blended together.

Daffodils in Winter

admin — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 05:01:31 +0000

A row of Daffodils retreats into the distance. Five exposures blended together to create a High Dynamic Range image. Taken on Blackie Road above Castroville in North Monterey County, California.

McWay Falls at Waterfall Cove

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:40:07 +0000

I have driven Highway 1 through Big Sur for many years but had never found McWay Falls. I was aware that the falls were somewhere near Julia Pffeifer Burns State Park but, somehow, never made the connection until an afternoon in late February. I was astonished by the setting. The conditions were challenging for this photo, harsh midday light, but I shot 5 exposures a stop apart and blended them together to bring out he detail in the shadows.

McWay Falls: highly recommended!

Another View of Bixby Creek Bridge

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:50:46 +0000

The Bixby Creek ridge is 280 feet high and the main span measures 320 feet. This shot was taken a short walk up the Old Coast road which rejoins Highway 1 at the bridge. Before the bridge was finished in 1932, travel to Big Sur from Monterey was an arduous journey over rough roads and many ridges and valleys. I’m grateful that it is so much easier today.

Bixby Creek Bridge

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:34:48 +0000

This beautiful arching bridge is an icon of the California Central Coast. It may be familiar to many from its appearances in numerous automobile commercials. There is some historical information here.

I stopped for this shot on a bright and hazy day in late February. The winter rains have turned the hills green. I set the aperture to f/16 for more depth of field and shot 5 bracketed exposures and blended them together in Photomatix Pro 3.2.

Oaks on a Ridge

admin — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:37:03 +0000

Another image captured North of San Juan Bautista in San Benito County, California. I used a telephoto lens at 200 mm to bring the trees and clouds closer. The longer lens also helps find pleasing compositions by excluding unwanted elements in the scene. This image, and the others in this series, are five bracketed exposures blended together in Photomatix Pro.

Cumulus Cloud Detail

admin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:54:16 +0000

An HDR image of A cumulus cloud taken near San Juan Bautista, California. Five exposures bracketed 1 stop apart and blended together in PhotoMatix Pro.

Solitary Oak on Ridge

admin — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:04:16 +0000

Photogrpah of a oak tree and cloud in San Benito County, California

As the storm cleared. patches of sun alternated with shadow. This lone oak on the top of the ridge was momentarily bathed in sunlight. Taken with a 200 mm telephoto lens in San Benito County, California.

HDR in the Lobby of the Mandalay Bay Resort

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:50:45 +0000

The interior of the Mandalay Bay Resort seems quite removed from the natural world, my normal photographic home. The marble, the grandeur, the illusion doesn’t attract me, but I wondered if I could capture the extreme range of light from the shadows in the plants to the overhead skylight and the reflections from the windows. I took five exposures, one stop apart, and blended them together with Photomatix Pro to create this High Dynamic Range image.

Hotel Reflections in Las Vegas

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:36:25 +0000

The black glass of the Luxor hotel reflects part of the pyramid and a palm tree in the early morning in Las Vegas. 1/100th of a second, f /6.3. The image was processed with Photomatix to bring out the detail in the shadows.