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Creativity tip #1 – Shoot close to home

Turning orange and yellow at sunset, clouds are reflected in the still waters of the San Francisco Bay. The sky has been cleansed by a passing storm. Foster City, California.

Don’t wait for the weekend or vacations to get out the camera. Take one along with you as you go about your every day life. You never know when you might have an opportunity to capture something unexpected.

Even when I don’t have my camera with me (which isn’t TOO often!), I’m constantly on the lookout for interesting ideas for photographs. I get especially excited when I see opportunities for shots that are outside of the subject I normally shoot (nature, landscape, wildlife, etc). This helps keep my creativity going, especially when I’m stuck close to home for long stretches of time.

The moon rises over the San Francisco Bay at sunset.

While working one afternoon last week I could see out my window that there were some pretty interesting looking clouds lining up over the bay after a particularly wet winter storm had passed through. I quickly checked my tide chart and saw that it would be low tide right around sunset. It was a quick 5 minute drive out to the edge of the bay, and only 30-40 minutes out of my day. By being on the lookout for something that caught my eye during my day-to-day life, I was able to capture some beautiful colors in the heart of an urban environment of over six million people.

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Moonset At Dawn (Photo of the week)

The moon sets behind off-shore fog, cast in a purple hue from the rising sun

On a recent morning out at the coast, I was lucky enough to have the conditions of a clear sky, a full moon, and a moonset close to the moment of sunrise. My goal had been to use my longest telephoto lens to zoom in on the moon and capture it setting over the horizon, or behind on offshore rock formation. By using my long lens, the moon would have appeared huge.

However, as soon as I got to my desired location (in the dark of course), I saw that the morning also brought with it the typical fog bank looming just off shore. Once the moon set behind this layer of cloud, it would be gone – long before ever reaching the horizon.

I now had to quickly decide what kind of image this new challenge would allow me. With the rising sun behind me, I was sure to get some interesting colors off of the fog. The telephoto lens would no longer work for this composure because with no strong elements (only moon and fog), the photo might lack interest. I looked around and saw and old fence that could serve well as a silhouetted foreground. I set up my tripod with my 24-70mm zoom just in time to capture the moon before it disappeared behind the fog.

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Townsend’s Warbler With Blossoms (Photo of the week)

A Townsend's warbler sits atop a blossom

Sometimes when I head out for something particular in mind and it doesn’t work out, I can be happily surprised by unexpected opportunities. This week’s photo is a prime example. Recently I traveled down the coast to try to get some photographs of wintering Monarch butterflies. The butterflies were there, but not very active. I have since realized that I was a little too late in the year to capture them clustering on eucalyptus trees. However, the tree in the above photograph had flowered and the blossoms seemed to glow in the soft light of the overcast afternoon. Just as I was starting to leave, a Townsend’s warbler perched itself on one of the most photogenic branches. I was ready to capture the fleeting moment, and came away from the trip with something entirely different than that which I set out to capture.

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Back to Muir Woods (Photo of the week)

Soft light filtered by the forest canopy partially silhouettes this moss covered tree, Muir Woods National Monument

Early this year, I made a very brief stop to Muir Woods National Monument as my wife and I were touring around with an out-of-town guest. I knew that I wanted to come back soon to do some more in-depth photography, and last week I was able to do just that. Armed with a lightweight tripod, a polarized filter, and my 24-70mm zoom lens, I worked my way through the heart of the canyon in which Muir Woods is situated. The day was overcast and slightly drizzling – perfect conditions for forest photography.

The photo above was created from five photos stitched together. I love the tree’s long, gangly branches and the bright green of the moss-covered bark. The way in which the filtered light penetrates the thick canopy above gives the grass and green foliage an almost translucent glow.

Scroll down to see more photos from that day, or click here to see the entire gallery.

A fern grows at the base of a massive redwood tree, flourishing in the light of a rare clearing, Muir Woods National Monument
Redwood Creek flows through the forest, bringing nourishment to the many ferns and redwood behemoths that flourish along its length, Muir Woods National Monument
The white and black bark of these redwood trees are tied together by the ubiquitous green of forest life, Muir Woods National Monument

Muir Woods National Monument