Tag Archives: Appalachian Trail

Do Some Scenes Ask to be Photographed?

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Pat Considine – Same Location, Different Weather

After viewing Martin’s image in this week’s posting, Pat Considine thought he noticed some resemblance to one he had taken last year. He located the shot and the similarity was obvious. “It’s interesting how some rocks, bushes and mountains call out to be photographed. This image was taken about a half mile from the parking lot on Mt Rogers last January. I believe it’s the same rock and bush that are in Martin’s image”, Pat says.
It’s certainly winter but it doesn’t appear as cold as in Martin’s image – or as bleak. Maybe the blue sky makes the difference.

Click image for higher resolution version.

Patrick Considine - Mt Rogers from Appalachian Trail

Patrick Considine - Mt Rogers from Appalachian Trail

Photo of the Week – Martin Seelig

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You may remember the photo by Martin Seelig posted in the fall of a couple of musicians at the the Ola Belle Reed festival. Here he takes a different film camera into the Grayson Highlands area of Virginia, just north of Elk Garden on the Appalachian Trail. “It was so cold I was surprised that the camera did not freeze up.”

The shot certainly captures the cold and stark nature of the landscape on that particular day. The winter clouds were enhanced by placing an orange filter onto the lens which accentuated and separated the whispy white cloud formations from the dark blue sky. One can feel the bite of the cold and hear the wind whistling. The scraggly, almost menacing tree adds to the the foreboding. The scene bares little resemblance to that viewed by most summer vistors to the Mt. Rogers area. Could the composition have been strengthened by taking a few steps to the right, placing the stone formation in the foreground more in the left third? Or does it serve as a strong anchor point as is? It’s a question worth considering.

Martin Seelig - Mt Rogers on a bitterly cold day

Martin Seelig - Mt Rogers on a bitterly cold day

A Minolta XE-7 was the camera used, loaded with Legacy Pro 100 B&W film. The lens chosen was a Rokkor-X SI 28mm. F/16 was the aperture selected with a shutter speed of 1/60 sec. Martin processes the film himself and then scans the negative to produce a digital image. One can only admire the final result.