Posted on by Anne Sandler · 38 Comments

Lens Artists Challenge #294: Before and After

It seems like I’m always confessing in these LAPC blog challenges. Well, here’s another one. John has challenged us to show how we edit images. I don’t edit that much and use Lightroom most of the time. I’ll go into NIK, Topaz and Photoshop for minor help, but that’s about it. It’s not that I’m against other editing programs, I’ve just never taken the time to learn them.

With that said, here’s my first image before and after. This was taken recently at Dry Creek in Roseville. The sun was bright and the trees provided shade, but not all the way. This resulted in roots that were bright and dark. The editing was done in Lightroom with the adjustment brush to burn in some of the roots. Then I toned down the shadows and brightened the image a bit. Then I intensified the color with the orange color slider. Original is on the left and Edited one is on the right.

Next is Rush Ranch taken in January. It was a foggy day which didn’t bother me. I love the mood fog gives an image. But it can leave it dull. In this one, I brightened it with the tone curve, added more contrast, did a sky select and used the blue slider to accent the fog. In Photoshop, I removed the insect trap on the right. I use Photoshop when I want to remove something from a picture.

This flower was photographed last month at Jensen Botanical Garden. I cropped the photo to make the flower larger. I also lightened the background a bit and used the Lightroom sharpener for good measure.

I believe composition is most important. Sometimes I photograph a tight composition and sometimes I give enough room for me to finish composing in editing. My first two examples were framed tight in the camera and this one wasn’t.

Thanks John for having us think about how we edit (or not), and how we can learn from how others edit. When you respond, please link to John’s original post and use the Lens-Artists tag. Last week we had fun with Sofia’s Water in Motion challenge. I enjoyed seeing all your various responses. Dawn is presenting next week’s challenge so look for her post.

Have a great week and take care!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 27 Comments

Mother Nature Rules: Rush Ranch

I know there are photographers who choose to photograph in the right light and weather conditions. Me? I take what I can get. Here in sunny Northers California, we’ve been dealing with rain, fog and cold temperatures. I needed to get out with my camera and Richard was willing to drive me. I think he needed to get away too. So off we went to Rush Ranch in Suisun City located near Fairfield.

During the little more than 1 hour ride, he kept questioning me about photographing in the fog which didn’t get better as we headed west. I love fog, and, of course, clouds also add to our pictures. He’s an astronomer and fog and clouds are his enemy.

When we got to Rush Ranch, part of the Solano County Land Trust, the fog had not dissipated. I didn’t care. I had been here before, but this time they had horses, wet grass and mud. What more could you want!

Here are some of the images I took during our short visit.

I’m planning to go back with my photo buddies when the sun is out. I’m sure the ranch will have a different look and feel.

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 5 Comments

Disappointment? Not with friends around: Grizzly Island and Rush Ranch

I’ve never been on a photo outing where I didn’t get a good shot or learn something. This time, I learned not to return to Grizzly Island Wildlife Area in Suisun City, Solano County. When we were there last, it was during the drought. I thought, with the current rains, it would be different. I thought I’d see a lot of wildlife (It does boast of being 12,900 acres of prime wildlife habitat.)  and nice green marsh land. However, it looked much like it did last year with more water.

We drove for about 45 minutes and then called it a morning there. Next we, Ray, Marlene and I, went to Rush Ranch, which is down the road from Grizzly Island. At first Marlene wouldn’t get out of the car because of mosquitoes. They were swarming during our last visit. So Ray and I checked it out–no mosquitoes. Marlene joined us. I did get some shots that I hadn’t gotten in the last two visits.

Yes, it was a disappointment, and I probably won’t return; but we did have fun. Whenever you go out with friends, it’s fun. We shared jokes about this misadventure, mosquitoes and more. I value the friendships I’ve gained since beginning photography.

Wildlife: Red Winged Blackbird.
Farm outside the island.
Bridge leading to the island.
Near the pond.
We saw more wildflowers.
More flowers.
I thought this scene looked best in black and white.
A house outside Grizzly Island.
Another farm outside of Grizzly Island.
Now we’re at Rush Ranch.
I didn’t go into the barn last time.
The mosquitoes were so bad. Now we have spider webs!
Outside the barn.
An old wagon–uncovered.
An old truck.
There’s an air base near the Island. This was my best wildlife shot!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

Those little buggers: Rush Ranch, Suisun City, California

Those little buggers are called mosquitoes,  and they were biting at Rush Ranch during a recent visit. We backtracked to Rush Ranch after leaving Grizzly Island and eating lunch. It wasn’t too far, and I knew there were things to shoot.

Rush Ranch is an operating facility and is part of the Solano County Farmlands & Open Space Foundation that provides educational programs. There are hiking trails and  grasslands. And, this time, there were mosquitoes. And did they bite!

Those who entered the barn to photograph the two barn owls were ferociously attacked. I decided the shot would not be worth the pain. I didn’t venture on any of the trails either. Nevertheless, I was bitten on my left index finger which took a little more than a week for the swelling to go down!

I’ve been there before and there were no little buggers to feast on us. You can never predict what environment you’ll encounter on a shoot!

Enjoy what I did get of Rush Ranch before rushing back into the car. The old equipment is there as museum pieces. All photos were shot and processed in HDR. No captions are necessary.

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 5 Comments

An amazing find: Rush Ranch, Solano County, California

The best things are the ones you don’t expect. And, I didn’t expect Rush Ranch to be so beautiful and fun to shoot. We went there after we visited the Suisun Wildlife Rescue Center. Photo buddy Laura suggested this and Marlene and I were agreeable. Oh, did we have fun, and we didn’t even take any of the nature paths. We stayed and shot old equipment, etc.

Rush Ranch is a working ranch, with cattle and sheep grazing under a wildlife habitat management program. Prior to its purchase by the Solano County Farmlands and Open Space Foundation in 1988, this ranch was owned by the Rushes (a pioneer family).

Now it is open to the public with three hiking trails that take you through different ecosystems. These are the trails we didn’t have time to walk. So we need to go back. Who knows what we’ll see, especially when we don’t expect to.

Meanwhile, enjoy these images from the immediate property.