Bristlecone Pines, White Mountains, California

[Mike Spinak]

Last Friday through Monday, I went on a trip to Yosemite, Mono Lake, and the White Mountains.

Here's a landscape shot taken in the White Mountains, on Sunday:

Shot with a Canon 1Ds Mark II, a Canon 24-70 f/2.8 lens, at 28mm and f/22, at 1/100ths of a second, at ISO 320.

This picture mirrors how I was feeling when I took it. I tend to very directly translate what I am feeling and experiencing into my pictures, in a see-feel-express work process.

 

[janet Smith]

This picture mirrors how I was feeling when I took it. I tend to very directly translate what I am feeling and experiencing into my pictures, in a see-feel-express work process.

Hi Mike

Wonderful, stark, bold, looks like a desolate wilderness, I love places like this, could I suggest a slight touch of burning on the rocks in the bottom LHS just to emphasise their texture a little more, I love it as is though....

I can't begin to imagine how you were feeling when taking this, I know that I would feel exhilarated and very alive being in such a place.

 

[Mike Spinak]

Thank you, Janet.

I agree. On a more final version of the picture, I'll burn in the rocks, a little.

As for how I was feeling: I left for this trip in the midst of some issues, and the world was looking bleak to me.

 

[janet Smith]

As for how I was feeling: I left for this trip in the midst of some issues, and the world was looking bleak to me.

I hope that your time in this stark location helped to put whatever was bothering you into perspective, as they say "it's not what happens to you, it's what you do about it that matters"

Anyway, the photograph is beautiful, do you have any more from your time there, I'd love to see them....

 

[Mike Spinak]

Thank you for your hopes, Janet.

Some blows are more severe and staggering than others, and take more to recover from. This one has hit me extraordinarily hard, but I am sure I will eventually overcome. It does take effort, though.

As you can see, I still went shooting, nonetheless; I'm still here, continuing on, nonetheless.

Yes, I have many more from this shoot. I'm just starting to go through them. Here's another:

 

[Cem_Usakligil]

Hi Mike,

If I'd speak in metaphors I'd say that while the first one is indeed bleak, the second one shows colors, hope, resilience and being there and facing it all full frontal and still standing….

I hope that whatever you are dealing with will get resolved soon.

BTW, these are beautiful pictures. Thanks for showing.

Cheers,

 

[doug anderson]

Let me see: did you use a polarizer? I like this kind of "bleakness." It intensifies the subject.

 

[Mike Spinak]

Cem,

Thank you.

Doug,

No. No polarizer. That's the way the sky looks at 11,000 feet altitude. (Plus I tweaked things a bit, as I wanted them, in the RAW conversion.)

 

[janet Smith]

Some blows are more severe and staggering than others, and take more to recover from. This one has hit me extraordinarily hard, but I am sure I will eventually overcome.

Hi Mike

This second shot is just beautiful, I absolutely love it.

I really hope that you'll be feeling better soon, please accept my best wishes....

 

[Mike Shimwell]

I think that the Bristlecones are amongst the oldest living things around. One (that was later chopped up in the pursuit of science!) was believed to be over 4000 years old. They have seen a lot of things.

I hope that you feel better soon Mike.