dj.tigersprout's photoblog
View From Behind Seljalandsfoss Falls, Iceland
Posted by dj.tigersprout (New York City, United States) on 20 May 2009 in Landscape & Rural and Portfolio.
i have always had an immense love and appreciation for Ansel Adam's work... my parents had a book of his amazing and majestic photos while i was growing up -- and in high school i often perused large poster prints of his spectacular Yosemite series in the art room. Ansel also was commissioned to do the grand opening publicity shots of the University of California @ Santa Cruz campus -- where i got my undergrad in fine arts. lately i have again been looking at my favorite photos of his quiet often, as i picked up a copy of 'the camera' (written by him) and have been reading through it and looking at his diagrams, examples and his accounts of how he went about composing and capturing his images.
in the last 8 weeks of 'holiday' while settling into NYC, i have done a significant amount of processing work -- much of which has been black and white. and with his work clearly in my mind, i have worked to try and produce similar processing effects -- this shot being the closest in my mind to a processing style he is widely known for. as a result of his large wonderful influence over me, i dedicate this shot (and my intrinsic love for striking nature photography) to Ansel Adams.
**note: i have been interviewing (non photography wise -- will update you all later) so i have not been around much -- will be back soonish!!
all work protected by Creative Commons
@Alain Berger - vu@granby: merci a toi, Alain!!! :)
@Yvonne S.: thanks Yvonne!! :)
@Alun: thanks Alun!
Marion from Nanaimo, BC, Canada
Well I love the word soonish!! Hope the interviews go well for you. This is a most interesting shot . Very etheral and beautiful.
20 May 2009 6:07am
@Marion: thanks x2 Marion!!! :)
@beanow: thanks Bea!!
Leena from Joensuu, Finland
You write nicely about this Ansel Adams and his influence to you.
And the photo is delicately beautiful.
Tiny water drops - like a fog - make it dreamlike.
20 May 2009 6:35am
@Leena: thanks Leena!!! :)
Linerberry from Sumner, Christchurch, New Zealand
Wow dj this really is superb!!! I don't know Adams work but I will now google to find out more! This is such an amazing shot I can just see it in a book! Great work mate!!
20 May 2009 6:48am
@Linerberry: yes check him out -- you are sure to recognize some of the shots -- they are everywhere!! :) thanks!!
k@ from Paristanbul*, France
Wow, this is a vivid curtain !! I can feel the drops everywhere over my screen, bravo !
20 May 2009 7:01am
@k@: thanks heaps K@!!! :) it was beautiful indeed!
Monique from Koh Samui, Thailand
Wow, that's an unusual viewing point ... great shot Jaycee, I can almost hear the sound of the falling water!
20 May 2009 7:13am
@Monique: it was soooo loud!!! basically deafening! and sooo wet too!! took a while to dry off! :) thanks Monique!
@zOOm: thanks Florence!! it was quite a spectacle!! :)
@MrsAmber: thanks Amber!!
Aurore from Paris, France
i used to love waterfalls, so powerfull and refreshing, but this one's so delicate... like a curtain, k@ has found the right word... !
Great shot !!
20 May 2009 9:49am
@Aurore: thanks Aurore!!! it is more delicate in the photo -- while i was standing there it seem very powerful, very strong, and a little bit dangerous!!! :)
MadScientist from Düsseldorf, Germany
These pillars of water are really impressive!
Good luck for your interviews!
20 May 2009 9:51am
@MadScientist: cheers MS!! i am getting prepped now!! :)
dobbino from Cape Town, South Africa
Fantastic angle - it must have been unbelievable standing there taking the shot!
20 May 2009 10:04am
@dobbino: thanks Rob!! it was amazing -- the humungous roar of the water and the thick and cold billows of mist!! still it was amazing!
@Giovanni: cheers Giovanni!
grouser from Ludlow, United Kingdom
Wonderful viewpoint DJ. Are you on a natural ledge?
20 May 2009 10:54am
@grouser: yes -- there was a thin muddy walkway covered in moss and algae that stretched behind the falls -- i was soaked when i came back out!! :)
@Aneesh: hello and thank you Aneesh!!
@rhys: thanks Rhys!
@Veronelle: thanks Veronelle!
Mirko Herzner from Germany
This is truly a fanatstic shot, DJ. Your motivation is clearly visible. You should have this printed somewhere in your appartment.
20 May 2009 11:39am
@Mirko Herzner: thanks Mirko!! yes i really do love this image too -- once i start making money again i will frame and put this up!! cheers to you!! :)
bluechameleon from Vancouver, Canada
Wow! This is amazing and I just love your vantage point! The falling water in slow motion is very dramatic and stunning in black and white.
20 May 2009 12:54pm
@bluechameleon: thanks BC!!! :)
MaryB from Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Wow! this is superb Jaycee, you also get a sence of scale with those tiny people in the background.
20 May 2009 2:06pm
@MaryB: thanks Mary!! glad you could make out the human figures :) it was actually a bus load of high school aged kids!!
@Onlymehdi: thanks Mehdi!
Bogdan from Brasov, Romania
Great dedication! Ansel has a special style! and you managed to close up to it!
20 May 2009 2:55pm
@Bogdan: cheers Bogdan!! :)
@Daryl Johnson: hehe -- thanks for all your comments Daryl! it was pretty wet -- but it was worth it! :)
Steve Rice from Olympia, United States
This is a spectacular image. A wonderful vision.
20 May 2009 3:17pm
@Steve Rice: thanks Steve!!!
hugo poon from hong kong, Hong Kong
This is so very spectacular!!!!!! Both of your capture and processing are just fantastic... so expressive yet so natural! Marvelous work Jaycee! Wishing you all the best!;-)
20 May 2009 3:23pm
@hugo poon: thanks much Hugo!!! :) i will feel much better this evening -- just found out i will be having a third interview today as well!!
Stunner from Kingston, Jamaica
Great shot! I like the view from behind the falls, it's different!
20 May 2009 3:32pm
@Stunner: cheers mate!!
Michael Rawluk from Williams Lake, BC, Canada
I had Ansel Adams books and posters as well. A great inspiration.
20 May 2009 3:47pm
@Michael Rawluk: yes -- isn't he awesome? thanks Michael!!! :)
peter from new york, United States
i LOVE the contrast of the ink black water and the white waterfalls. great one mate! as for drinks this week, no worries! i'll be back from boston monday night and around till next thurs (when i go to florida for a long weekend) but maybe we can find a time in between? good luck with the interviewing too! oh and btw the union square shot was taken from the 3rd floor of filene's basement. check it out sometime ;-)
20 May 2009 3:56pm
@peter: thanks for the tip mate -- will check it out indeed!! have a great time in boston and florida!! next week sounds great -- speak soon! :)
@john4jack: cheers Jack!
Magda from Vancouver, Canada
Wow! This is spectacular!!! Fabulous way of looking at the falls! :)
20 May 2009 4:41pm
@Magda: thanks Magda!! it was fun indeed! :)
Mariana from waterloo, Canada
Fantastic shot . Falls look like a very delicate curtains !
20 May 2009 5:20pm
@Mariana: hello and thanks Mariana!! :)
PD from Overland Park, Kansas, United States
Wow that is a very cool shot. Ansel would be proud. I saw an exhibition of his work in Chicago once... I think it was in 2003, or maybe 2005.
20 May 2009 5:36pm
@PD: thanks very much Paul!! :) i have never seen a full exhibition of his unfortunately -- but i have still managed to see most of his famous shots up close in group shows / personal collections / or giant poster prints!!
callemie from Belgium
oooooooooooo
this is one to "enlarge"( I don't know if it's the correct word) and hang on my wall!!!!!
great!
20 May 2009 7:53pm
@callemie: enlarge is correct!! :) thanks callemie!! when i get it printed i will send you a copy!! xxx
Graham Russon from Cape Town, South Africa
Great spectacular shot, as always nice work.
20 May 2009 8:00pm
@Graham Russon: thanks mate!! cheers!! :)
observing from North West, United Kingdom
I know what you mean dj, Ansel Adams work was so expressive and uncomplicated. This image would do well in his collection ;)
20 May 2009 9:43pm
@observing: thanks much Mike!!!
Steven from Chicagoland, United States
I love the viewpoint from which this was captured and the B & W treatment really makes the falling water "stand out."
20 May 2009 10:33pm
@Steven: thanks Steven!!! :)e
Twelvebit from Victoria, United States
Makes me think of the film, Last of the Mohicans --the Michael Mann version.
20 May 2009 10:38pm
akarui from Kagoshima, Japan
I remember a previous picture of yours about that fall but here the point where you are standing behind the fall is amazing. You seems to be quiet high and there is a good distance between you and the wall of water... It should be really impressive. Very nice.
20 May 2009 11:41pm
@akarui: yes!! you have a very good memory Olivier!!! :) i have another version of that shot coming up in mono in a few weeks time!! thanks!!
Howard F. from South Pasadena, Calif., United States
What a view! Not a lot of waterfalls have a space behind it, so this is a very special fall!
21 May 2009 1:05am
@Howard F.: it was certainly amazing!! thanks Howard!! :)
willow from Chelsea, United States
Ansel would be honored! I like your view of the waterfall!
21 May 2009 2:17am
@willow: cheers Willow!! welcome back!! :)
One from Açores, Portugal
What wonderful shot, excellent location, it appears that the water goes on top instead of down !
21 May 2009 3:11am
@One: thanks Leone!!! :)
John Maslowski from Dallas, PA, United States
Excellent image dj. You are a very impressive young man and very well versed. I did B/W in my own darkroom way back when and that's where I developed my love of photography. Keep up the great work, you definitely have a great style.
21 May 2009 3:51am
@John Maslowski: sincere thanks John!! i am still waiting for an HDR course from you!! :)
ishm from dubai, United Arab Emirates
Water falls from the heavens..the way i look at it. Amazing shot!!
21 May 2009 3:58am
@ishm: thank you!!
@10Fraction: cheers mate!! :)
@Ivar: thank you Ivar!!
@grant: thanks Grant!! :)
San G. from Encino, California, United States
Can you say more about what (in particular) you appreciate about Ansel Adams' processing? I (also) got my undergrad in photography (CSUN) but way back in 1971. Edward Weston , Edmund Teske http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/teske/highlights.html , and Frederick Sommer http://www.fredericksommer.org/index.php were also in my favs. I always thought there was a perfection in the Ansel Adams images that kept me a bit apart from them. (As I'm writing this I'm think of Hitchcock's cool blonds, does that make sense?)
Your work seems to surpass Adams in that way. Yours always draws me in. Your image of Blueberry Mountain (next I think) blows me away entirely, but I have been invited in ... I have stepped IN, and heard the silence, and felt the air. Somehow, I have always felt as if I am LOOKING AT an Ansel Adams. True perfection, no doubt ... but I want the invition in. Your work draws me in to stand beside you in the awe that (I imagine) you also feel being in that particular place on the globe.
23 May 2009 7:22pm
@San G.: thanks VERY MUCH for these wonderful links Sandy!! :) i'm sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you!! but i have checked the links and also used google to look up some of the work of these wonderful artists and i am richer for it!! thanks also (as always) for you heartwarming comments!! they are always so intricate and relate to your own personal experience when you look at my photos and i am very grateful!! they are always such a pleasure to read! hope all is well for you!! cheers!!
San G. from Encino, California, United States
For Edmund Teske try:
For Edward Weston try: http://www.edward-weston.com/edward_weston.htm
For Frederick Sommer: http://www.fredericksommer.org/index.php
23 May 2009 7:26pm
San G. from Encino, California, United States
Well, you have 'em anyway, I'm setting the type correctly, but I guess you'll have to just look at the letters and copy them over if you want to see the links, sorry!
23 May 2009 7:28pm
@jamesy: thanks Deb!!
lisa v from Gawler, Australia
It must have been amazing to stand there. I've only stood behind a waterfall once but I never wanted to leave.
26 May 2009 4:53am
@lisa v: it most certainly was!!! i wasn't sure whether to stay forever or run out of sheer imensity of the waterfall!!! an amazing conflict of desires!! ;)
Laralo from Vanves, France
Beautiful photo. Same as the other comment I left, I took a photo at that same spot too. :) And will post it, yes yes.
28 May 2009 2:26pm
@Laralo: let me know when you do! thanks!!
Nikon COOLPIX L11
1/250 second
F/5.6
ISO 64
37 mm (35mm equiv.)
seljalandsfoss
waterfall
southern-iceland
mist
ansel-adams
nikon-coolpix