One day is not even enough time to begin to scratch the surface of Redwoods National and State Parks. Remember that this was a trip that I knew in advance would be like a scouting expedition. Shelley and I will pick a road trip and research things to see and do along the trip. We then take the journey with the understanding that we will not have enough time in most places to see everything that we would like to. Think of it as a “let’s see what is out there to see trip.” It’s a trip that we take to determine what places we’d like to go back to next time and spend more time at. One could easily spend a lifetime exploring Redwoods and might not see everything that there is to see. I, for one, would love to spend a few weeks exploring the “forest moon of Endor”.
A Sense of Scale – Redwoods National and State Parks
One of the first things that I realized while looking for compositions in Redwoods was that I would need a way to show the scale of the majestic trees. The easiest way for me to pull this off was for me to place myself in a photograph or two. Some people have difficulty photographing in woodlands, or small forest. This only becomes magnified when shooting in a forest of giants. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 15mm, f/2.8, at 1/5 of a second.
Towering Redwoods – Redwoods National and State Parks
For this composition, I slightly modified my shot from “A Sense of Scale – Redwoods National and State Parks” while removing myself from the photograph as well. I feel that this photograph does not convey the same feeling as the previous one. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 15mm, f/2.8, at 1/5 of a second.
Base – Redwoods National and State Parks
Even the fallen Redwoods are photogenic. Their massive trunk bases are pulled out of the Earth and what remains of their roots give new life to the forest. This forest landscape must change with every storm that blows through. For this composition, I got in close to the toppled tree’s base and took multiple exposes to ensure that I had enough detail throughout the scene. The only thing that I feel is missing is a sense of scale. There is no reference as to how large this root base is. Nonetheless, I still think that it helps to tell the story of life, death, and rebirth in the magnificent forest landscape. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 15mm, f/2.8, and 1/15 of a second.
When a Tree Falls in the Forest – Redwoods National and State Parks
Here again, I show off the scale of the giants by standing near the base of a fallen tree. It amazes me just how large and fragile these trees are. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 14mm, f/2.8, at 1/60 of a second.
Redwoods to the Sky
Have you ever wanted to lay down in the middle of a grove of trees and look up to the sky? Well once Shelley and I entered into Redwoods I had this exact desire. I began to look for the perfect grouping of trees. And once I found them, there was no stopping me. I am pretty sure that Shelley has at least one photograph of me laying down on my back underneath my tripod, making the photograph below. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 14mm, f/2.8, and 1/40 of a second.
Redwoods – Close up
When photographing in a forest do not forget to shoot the details. Get in close and fill your frame. For this composition, that is exactly what I did. I love the way that the bark of the redwood fills the right half of the photograph, and the forest background fades away. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 58mm, f/4.5, and 1/6 of a second.
Trillium – Redwoods National and State Parks
While walking amongst these towering giants, it is easy to forget and even neglect the forest floor. Always make sure that you look around and take in everything that the forest has to offer, lest you miss something that is undoubtedly unexpected. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 62mm, f/4.5, and 1/20 of a second.
Something To Look Up To – Redwood National and State Parks
Wow…Does this say it all? This redwood was missing the upper half of its trunk, which must have been every bit of another 50 feet, if not 100 feet. For this composition, I am standing slightly in front of a portion of the Redwoods trunk. Did you see me? Scale means everything in a forest like this one. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 24mm, f/4.5, and a 1/15 of a second.
Shelley and Craig – Redwoods National and State Parks
How is this for a sense of scale? I almost titled this photograph does this tree make me look thinner, but I thought that would be too much. Here Shelley and I are both standing in front of the largest Redwood trunk base that we could find in our limited time in Redwoods National and State Parks. I made this one at ISO 100 24mm f / 4.5 at a 1/6 of a second.
Avenue of the Giants
Last but not least-my take on the roadway that is known as the Avenue of the Giants. The road is lined with towering redwoods on either side. As we drove down the road, the light was getting better and better. This was mainly because the sun was slipping lower in the western sky to the point were the coastal range was cutting it off from the road. I could not resist the urge to make a photograph. So, I pulled over the vehicle, got out my tripod and camera set everything up on the side of the road, and as I was doing this, a Park Ranger drove by. As he passed me by, I could make out him shaking is head and could see the smile on his face. That Park Ranger knew precisely what I was about to do. Hey, sometimes you need to get into the middle of the road. For this photograph, I had to make multiple exposers to get the complete range of light, detail, and contrast so that I could match what my eyes saw while I was on the location. To create the final photograph, I added the Orton Effect, as well as brought back details in the shadows during post-processing. I made this photograph at ISO 100, 18mm, f/2.8, at a 1/15 of a second.
This concludes our trek through Redwoods National and State Parks. In our next post, we continue down the coast on California highway 1 stopping at the Glass Sand Beach. Tune in and catch some waves.
Please check out the corresponding video over on my YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVEf9aXoQMPTAVTztNkNIxg.
