I am preparing for my fall trip to Big Bend National Park and, as part of my preparation process, I go through my old photographs to determine potential shooting locations. In doing so I ran across this photograph of a flowering Ocotillo against Nugent Mountain on the eastern side of the park.
The spring of 2015 was a great time to photograph in the park as heavy rains yielded a multitude of wildflowers. The Ocotillo flowers are one of the brightest flowers on the desert floor. I really enjoy photographing them, however, it is a challenge to do so unless you have absolute calm winds as the long stems tend to sway in the slightest breeze. The winds that day required me to boost the ISO in order to increase the shutter speed enough to freeze the movement. This is a common practice for advanced photographers but most people forget that ISO changes can be a valuable tool. Higher ISO speeds allow for higher shutter speeds. Something to think about when shooting in high winds.
This image was taken with my Canon EOS 5D Mark III using my Canon EF 24-105f/4L Lens set on 47 mm. The camera was set on Aperture priority mode with the aperture set at f/11, shutter speed at 1/320th of a second and the ISO set at 1600. This is a single image processed in Lightroom and finalized in Photoshop using Nik Color Efex Pro.
You can see my other photos of the Big Bend area by clicking here. Please use the section below to post your comments, questions or suggestions.
© 2017 T. Kahler Photography
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Good technique getting the hyperfocal distance correct and managing the wind. After this trip, I felt I would never see the park as nice as it was in 2015. Jeff Parker raced to BB this week and took an image on the Lost Mine Trail with frost on the trees.
Thanks Rick. I’ll be sure to pack my big coat!