I’ve just got back from 6 weeks away in the expansive Aussie Outback. What a place!
I love the vastness, the simplicty of subject, the harshness of the weather upon the landscape, and the unique character of the towns and people that live out there. Naturally it was a little warmer than down here in Victoria too!
This shot was taken on the drive from Winton to Hughendon in Queensland. It’s very much a “less is more” type image that I love capturing. Stay tuned for more updates as I get the chance.
Less is More
Most people when they see the photo below say to me “wow, fantastic, how lucky were you with that streaky sky”. When in fact on this day I had regular white fluffy clouds and I was lucky I had wind (lots of it) and that I brought along my ND filters.
On a windy day the temptation is to use a faster shutter speed to “freeze” the movement of tree foliage, clouds and anything else that is flapping and drifting in the breeze. On this occasion I used a ND3.0 filter to allow me to capture all this movement, in this case the high and low altitude clouds whizzing across the sky in two different directions. You might also choose to capture trees blowing or a flag fluttering.
So what is an ND filter and what does it do? ND stands for Neutral Density, meaning it is a dark shaded filter that is neutral in colour, or just simply put… translucent grey. Like putting on a pair of sunglasses for your camera. They are commonly available in various strengths (darkness) from a 0.3 through to a 0.9 which allow you to extend your exposure by 1 to 3 f-stops. By extending your exposure time you can capture movement with easy, think flowing water for example. If you dig around a little further you’ll also find ND filters that are super dark right up to the ND3.0 which is a full 10 f-stops darker. This allows for exposures of up to 30 seconds in the middle of the day…. Awesome!
So in this situation pictured I had some gnarly rock, some recently bushfire-burnt trees (that due to no foliage weren’t moving in the wind), and lots of fast moving white clouds. With a ND3.0 filter I managed a 20 second exposure to achieve this result.
Long exposure with ND1000 filter to slow shutter speed down during daylight hours
Wow! An exciting few months for Marty Schoo Photography was this week capped off by being named a finalist (final 5) in the Momonto Book of the Year Awards in the Landscape Category with my project book “I s o l a t i o n”.
The Landcsape Book winner chosen from many entries deservedly went to outstanding landscape photographers Dylan Toh and Marianne Lim with their “Iceland” Book.
Overall Book of the Year honour went to the brilliant well-known Australian photographer Stephen Dupont with his “Stoned in Kabul” Book which is an account of his times in Afghanistan over the last few years.
For me there is always next year again of course, hehe!
To see all the finalist books and find out a little more visit the Momento Awards Website right here…
Get in to macro photography and learn a bit about getting up close to the landscape. I was interviewed recently by the ABC Open Online to get a perspective on macro photography from a photographer in the region. Some great links and the interview and can be found at the link below the image.
http://open.abc.net.au/openregions/vic-south-west-19bu8YD/posts/photographer-marty-schoo-shares-his-love-of-macro-47wa7qm?preview
Capture is Australia’s Top Selling Pro Photography Magazine. In the latest bi-monthly edition (March/April) I’ve been selected as the winner of the exposed challenge. Woot woot!
“It’s a competition that Capture run to help pro photographers in their early careers to get published and rewarded for their creativity and professionalism.“
They chose the following images from my ongoing project on outback Australia I s o l a t i o n.
Between Weddings and Commercial photography shoots I also find time to contribute to the widely popular Australian Traveller Magazine. I’ve recently joined the contributor team as a photo journalist.
The latest issue ‘The Outback Special’ features my photography and words on the legendary Birdsville Track. Pick up the bumper issue from your local newsagent. They also have a great website at www.australiantraveller.com
Well a day without taking photos is a day gone missing in my books.
The weather looks like its taking a turn for the worst for most. But for a landscape photographer bad weather usually means powerful, dramatic image results. I love it!
These images are all from the Halls Gap, Lake Fyans area of the Grampian region, in Western Victoria.
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| Storm clouds forming near Lake Fyan | Grampians |
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| Dark storm clouds brewing over Lake Fyans | Grampians |
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| Storm clouds forming over Halls Gap | Grampians National Park |
Marty is proud to announce that his photograph of the vivid cliffs and beach landscape at Cape Leveque in Western Australia has been chosen for the Cover of this months Australian Photography Magazine, Australia’s top-selling photography magazine.
Check it out in your nearest newsagency.
