It was just a matter of time, but once Nikon announced the D850, I knew at some point I just had to get one.  I got mine about three weeks ago.  I traded in my D810 and sold my nice stereo system to take some of the bite out of the upgrade cost.

I won't cover any of the technical features as there are a ton of excellent reviews on the internet that do a great job of it.  But I will say, they all seem to be true.  Sum it up to say, it's one great camera.

Before you go out an get one, let me tell you about some of the potential hidden costs that surprised me a bit.  

(1) This camera upgrades the memory cards needed.  It has two card slots. One for an XQD card.  The advantage of this card is that its very fast and can handle the very large RAW files of this camera.  The other slot is for SD card.  Its recommended you use the UHS-II format.  You can use a regular SD card but it you use burst mode, you'll likely have buffering issues as well as a longer download time into your computer.  Both of these cards are a lot more expensive than the regular SD cards. Sony pretty much is the only provider of the XQD cards currently.  You'll have to wait a couple of weeks to get them as every retailer has them on backorder.  Given the expense, I will no longer keep my cards as a final backup source but have to rely on my external hard drive backup process.

(2)  The battery grip of the D810 will not fit.  You'll need to get the MDB-18 grip.  So add another $400 there if you want the grip.  Also, if you want to achieve the 9fps rate, you'll have to use the battery grip or you'll only 7fps without it.

(3) Then, of course, you will need new tripod plates if you use them.  I use the Really Right Stuff plates so I got their new L-plate for the D850.  Its a beast and is price accordingly at $200.

(4) Since the Nikon removed the pop-up flash from the D850, you'll likely need to get a radio trigger to fire your flashes.  You still can use a camera mounted flash to use Nikon's CLS system but most photographers recommend going the radio trigger route to avoid the limitations of the line-of-sight limitations on their optical system.  I bought the Phottix Odin II TTL transmitter and receivers.  Again, this will mean additional cost if you want to use off camera flash.

(5) Contrary to the camera's hype, I do not seem to be getting better battery life.  It actually seems to drain batteries faster.  While I haven't been out for a full days' outing yet, I don't think one battery will be enough.  I plan to bring three batteries in total for a full day's shooting.  There are contradicting reviews on battery life on different forums.

(6) With the largest RAW file size, you'll be going through more memory cards.  For me, I will likely need to buy two new 5TB hard drives once my current drives fill up this year.  This is bound to happen.  It will just happen sooner with these large files.

But besides these factors, its a beautiful camera. There are so many improvements to the D850.  I'll cover some of the ones I really like so far.

(1)  Higher resolution.  A huge 45.7MP sensor.  Enough said.

​​​​​​​(2)  Focus peaking.  If you set your lens and the camera to manual focus and use Live View, you are able to see areas of focus outlined in red (or 3 other colors you can use). This will be very good for getting totally sharp focus throughout your photos. For macros, you won't have to guess what parts are in focus.  You can take a series of shots, placing the focus where you want it and stack the resulting photos in post processing.  For landscapes, you can do the same thing.  I'll likely use it for getting a sharp focus on the foreground, middle and background.  Can't wait to really start testing it.

(3)  Focus shift.  Here you let the camera take a series of different photos (up to 100) are varying focal points to later be stacked in post processing.  This automates the process.  This will be a great too for macro photography.  You also have the option of placing the resulting photos in their own folder so you don't have to remember the first and last frames of the sequence.

(4)  9 frames per second if you use the Nikon MBD-18 battery grip.  I don't do a lot of high speed photography but its there if you need it.

(5) 4K video.  Look at other web reviews for this area but its suppose to be fantastic.

(6)  Much better live view.  The screen has great resolution for using live view.  On my old D810, I didn't even bother with live view to shoot.  Just not clear enough.  Well, problem solved.  You also have the ability to use the touch screen for selecting your focus point.  There are more options on live view that I'm still exploring but I will likely use live view much more with this camera.

(7)  Touch screen.  Nikon has caught up with mirrorless cameras with the touch screen.  It works well.  Its nice flipping through menus or photos with a simple swipe.

(8)  New location for ISO button.  From the left side dial, they moved the ISO button to near the shutter so its easier to adjust all the elements of the exposure triangle with your right hand.  I'll have to train my muscle memory with the change but it will be better.

(9) Easy exposure compensation.  Before I knew about this I was bummed out since the normal exposure compensation button by the shutter release has been made more flush with the camera body.  Therefore its not as easy to feel where it is and push.  But then I found out about easy exposure compensation.  If you are in aperture priority mode, you can use the rear dial to change the exposure compensation.  Really easy.

(10) Flip screen.  A great addition.  Solid construction.  Can fully tilt down or up.  This will be great for getting low to the ground or when you want to raise your tripod to shoot from a higher vantage point.  I do wish it could move right and left.  Oh well.

(11) Multiple raw format sizes.  You can select from one of three RAW file sizes.  From small (11.4MP), medium (25.6MP) to large (45.7MP).

Those are the main features I like.  I'm sure I'll be finding many more as I explore the camera and go out on some photo outings.  But if you can bear the additional cost, I don't think you'll be disappointed.  Let me know if you have any questions.

After retiring and seeing how truly great the photographic possibilities were in western North Carolina, I thought about starting a small photo tour business.  There are several very good photo tours and workshops already available operated by some great photographers.  But I still thought there would be room for me to get started.  I had originally wanted to run about three photo tours per year and fill in with more individual tours.  But it hasn't quite worked out like I hoped.

I created this website as well as a Facebook page.  Next, I started to think about the business end of it, i.e., potential revenue, expenses, legal and liability concerns. To help with potential liability issues, I met with an attorney to draft a pretty solid waiver of liability form.  Each participant would be required to sign this in advance of arriving for their tour.  Then it was time to think about logistics.  This is where things started to slip away.

Since I don't own a large van to transport people during a tour, I looked into renting a vehicle.  Simple enough, right.  Wrong.  If you were to personally rent a vehicle while on vacation, for example, your auto insurance policy would protect you in case of an accident.  But for commercial ventures, you have to have a commercial auto policy.  I also found out that my personal umbrella liability policy would not cover me during a commercial venture.

I contacted several insurance companies to look into getting the appropriate policies. To my surprise, no one wanted to take on this type of risk.  I learned that waivers of liability are largely insufficient in the event someone gets injured.  I did find one agent who thought he could place the coverage.  But after months of waiting and back and forth discussion, it fell through.  

The best way to protect my personal assets would be to form an LLC.  The initial cost is a bit high but then there's the ongoing renewal costs.  It would be easier to get insurance but it gets very expensive.  My personal car would have to become part of the LLC and be retitled.  Commercial auto insurance is 2-3 times the cost of regular auto insurance.  So the costs just kept mounting as did the hassle factor.  I just kept wondering how all the other photo tour operators managed this risk.  But their operations were likely much larger than what I anticipated and their revenue would be better able to cover these expenses.

In the end, I had to decide to rule out conducting formal photo tours.  Rather, I will provide individual instruction and tours but require that they drive their car.  I've done some of these and they work well.  I still require the waiver of liability and I try to manage risks but not going to any risky locations.  I also can exercise more control on people's movements to avoid severe injuries.

But please contact me if you'd like a great private photo tour and/or instruction.

A friend of mine told me about a neat little very old stone bridge located in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  It's called the Troll Bridge.  I could not find anything about its history but its in the Elkmount Campground on the Little River Trail.  As you can see, it is a pretty cool looking little bridge.

My friend and I were in the Park to photograph the beautiful cascades in the Tremont area with nearly peak autumn colors.  Since it was still too bright there we decided to try finding the bridge first.  The Elkmount Campground is located between Gatlinburg and Townsend.  Just before you reach the campground, turn to the left and go all the way to the end to a parking lot.  At the far end of the lot is the trailhead for the Little River Trail.  There is a faint trail to the right about 100 feet from the trailhead.  You will not be able to see the bridge from the trail as its in the woods a bit. Walk the path a short distance and you should see the bridge.  Its not big so its not easily spotted.

When we were there the trees were past peak so getting a good composition was a bit tough.  Lighting also didn't help the cause either.  If we had been there a bit earlier in the season and early in the AM, it could have been really nice.  But I got the best I could here and overall its not too bad.

I understand in the spring there are a lot of wild flowers around, which could make for a nice photograph.

Anyway, check it out the next time you are in the Smokys. Tremont - November 2017

Most of the people that will read this post already know one of the gold rules of photographic composition - moving around your location for different vantage points and compositions.  But it does bear repeating.

When I first started in photography I was so excited to get to where I was going, I opened up my tripod and plopped it down and started clicking away with different settings and zoom factors.  I generally came away with a keeper or two but missed so many other, and possibly better, compositions.

Over time, I listened to speakers at our local camera club, watched YouTube videos, or read articles stating that the approach I was using was dead wrong.  They said when you don't get to your location, don't just set up your tripod and start clicking away.  Take some time to study the entire scene.  Move your body around the entire area - right, left, lower, higher, etc.  Take your camera and look through the viewfinder to envision different possibilities.  Try both landscape and portrait orientations to see which works best.  Get on your belly (in my case, that's not very easy anymore), your knees or stand up to check out different vantage points.  Look behind you to see what you may be missing.  Most times I find doing this really opens up some great photographic opportunities.  

To give an illustration of what I mean, I'll use two examples from a recent visit to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  One of my favorite areas of the Park is the Tremont section which is just before you reach Cades Cove and around the turnoff for Townsend.  There is a wonderful cascade toward the end of the road heading in Tremont.  Its located right before you reach the parking area.  Its a bit of a steep slide to get to the water's edge but its really not too bad if you're careful.

Here is the "normal" composition you see most often.  Its taken from the top of a large boulder, which highlights the nice curve of the cascade.  Granted, I love this angle myself. But just don't accept it. Look around and see what else could be possible.

Tremont Autumn Cascade II - November 2017

Even though it was getting dark, I took a minute to look around to find other opportunities.  Was there a way to safely get across the stream?  In this case, no, the water was too deep and moving much too quickly.  Remember - safety first!  But then I noticed some rocks that were downstream a bit that would allow me to move more in front of this cascade.  So why not try it?  By simply moving my body to another location, I was able to get this photograph.

Tremont Autumn Cascade November 2017 I really like the way this photograph turned out too.  Its completely different than the other angle but it shows more of the varied water movement coming over the cascade.

So on your next outing, don't immediately set up your tripod and settle for one spot.  Investigate the location thoroughly for a while looking for many compositions.  Get higher, lower, move right then left.  I think you'll come away with more "keepers" than you might realize.

This autumn season has been a bit frustrating for me this year.  Colors have not looked all that bright.  Peak times in locations has been more difficult to find as well.  I've driven a lot of miles this season with not a lot of quality photos I'd been hoping for.  I've been waiting to go to the Smokys.  From reading posts on Flickr, I heard the Tremont area was looking good.  So a friend and I headed there last Thursday.  We drove across the Park on 441 but there wasn't any real good color.  Spotty at best.  As we started down heading toward Gatlinburg, the colors looked much more promising.  Our spirits began to lift.  We thought we'd try Cade's Cove since it was mid-afternoon.  Wow - it was a awful long line of cars meandering around the road.  We cut our losses and cut across on Sparks Lane and headed for Tremont.  Great decision.  The Tremont area was just a bit past peak but still fantastic.  This photo is taken at a very popular of the Park just before the parking lot at the end of the road.  This wide well rounded boulder, when it has good water flow, is spectacular to photograph.  Most compositions are shot from atop the boulder and I shot there also.  This photo was taken just a bit downstream and I think it turned out really well IMOH.  : )

I'll still be hunting for last remaining bits of color this coming week hoping to find some good photos.  I hope your fall photo season provided you with some real wall-hangers.

Tremont Autumn Cascade November 2017

I made a quick and short visit to Pearson Falls in Saluda, NC a couple of days ago to check out the color.  It was a very sunny day so I arrived right at sunrise.  Colors were OK as you can see below.  I couldn't get as many photos as I wanted since the morning breeze was a bit much.  But I did manage to get this photo, which I think turned out OK.

Cascade at Pearson Falls

Also tried to visit the Smokys today, 10/27, but never got there.  After getting up painfully early I arrived first at White Owl Falls just outside of Cashiers, NC.  After our recent rains, I expected the falls would be flowing very well.  But with the severe storms that hit last weekend, numerous trees and brush were down and making the already sketchy trail non-existent.  Since I was alone, I thought it would be well advised not to attempt to get down to the stream so I reversed course and made my way to my next stop, Whitewater Falls.  Strike one.

In good fall conditions, Whitewater Falls can really be spectacular.  Well this isn't what I found.  Colors still hadn't fully come in and it wasn't even worth getting out of the car.  Strike two.

Certainly then, nearby Silver Run Falls would be good.  But a funny thing happened on my way there.  There was some good color on NC107 south of Cashiers as I approached the parking area.  But as I was driving I caught a glimpse of a little church off the main road.  I decided to turn in to check it out.  But it wasn't really photo worthy so I tried to find a place to turn around.  I noticed an open area on the road and thought I had room for a Y-turn.  Unfortunately what appeared to be solid ground was more like quick sand and my front wheel drive car sank up to mid wheel making it impossible to move.  Well, this sure is fun.  Of course, there is no cell service either.  But luckily after a bit, a work crew driving by stopped and pushed me out.  Strike three.

I contemplated still proceeding to the Smokys.  But by now the now was shining brightly in the sky and I didn't want to shoot for strike four.  So I cut my losses and drove home without clicking my shutter once.

But while there was some color around Lake Toxaway, the color still really hadn't come in yet.  I still plan to get to the Smokys later next week so I'll let you know the color situation then but it may be too late by then.

Upon the recommendation of a friend, Curtis, I submitted an article about my favorite waterfall in North Carolina - Eastatoe Falls, to Light and Landscape magazine.  It is a web-based magazine.  The article was published today and one of my photos was selected for the cover.  While its a small magazine, I'm still happy about it.  Hey, you have to start somewhere, right?  The article is titled, "The Many Faces of Eastatoe Falls".  Eastatoe is one of those great waterfalls that remains photogenic regardless of the time of year or the flow of the water. My photos illustrate the many compositions that can be used at this beautiful waterfall.  If you care to read it, follow this link.  http://www.lightandlandscape.co/magazine

Light and Landscape - October 2017

Took several trips up to the Blue Ridge Parkway near the Linn Cove Viaduct last week.  This photo was taken on the 12th.  The previous day was clear blue bright (awful) skies.  So I was very happy to see clouds on this morning.  Took a different composition here than the typical viaduct photo.  I actually missed the traditional vantage point.  We arrived pretty early to photograph the viaduct.  Unfortunately, there was another "photographer" on the rock perch needed to take the photo.  He just stayed and stayed hogging the rock while my friend and I tried to patiently wait.  All the while thinking the clouds could be short lived. I'm all for "he was there first" but when there is only one spot to photograph from, don't hog the spot for too long.  The irritating thing is that he wasn't even shooting.  He was just sitting there!!

Well he finally left and my friend got to the spot first and got his shots and then it was my turn.  So just when I was about to click the shutter, guess what?  Yeah, the other guy decided to position himself right on the viaduct clearly in my composition.  Now I claimed, "I was there first" and he knew I was there.  Now remember the light and clouds could be changing at any minute so I was getting impatient.  Finally, he filled up his SD card and left.  Alas, I can get my shots finally.  Amen.  That didn't last long and he reappears with a fresh SD card.  But now he proceeds even further on the viaduct.  OK, I finally had it and yelled out to him that he was in my shot (with a "friendly tone" of course).  He continued to shoot.  Finally, he left and said something I couldn't hear.  Really?

So I was racing to get some shots since the clouds in the other direction opened up and had beautiful sun rays from heaven shining through.  So in my impatience and hurrying, I forgot to take any photos in landscape orientation.  AGGGHHH!  Of course, I didn't realize it until I was home and uploaded my photos to my computer.

So please fellow photographers, be aware of others shooting around you and work together to get all the shots everyone wants.  Share the scene.

Changing topics, the colors north on the Parkway around the viaduct and Rough Ridge are well past peak.  I took a drive to the western part of NC taking US64 west from Asheville.  Surprisingly, there wasn't much color at all.  Dry Falls had some and seemed to be fading.  Cullasaja Falls was all green.  Going further into the Smokys we were greeted with green foliage with just a hint that changes were coming.  So if you'll be in the area of the Smokys, colors should be good mid to late next week.  I'll be there for sure.

Happy Shooting!

Linn Cove Viaduct - October 2017

Spent about two and half days up on the Blue Ridge Parkway this week - mostly around the Linn Cove Viaduct / Rough Ridge area.  Great colors are popping.  Colors should be good through mid-month moving into the lower elevations.  If you're thinking of going, get out soon or risk seeing them.

I took this photo on the Linn Cove Viaduct on Oct. 12.  What a morning.  The clouds were good and the wind calm.  It was early enough too that the steady stream of cars hadn't started up yet.  For about 30 minutes these gorgeous sun rays kept streaming down.  I was perched up on the rock to get the postcard shot of the Parkway and they showed up.  I was so anxious to get down to photograph them before they vanished, I forgot to take a landscape oriented photo of the viaduct.  AGGGGHHH!  How could I have done that.  Lesson learned, rushing photos means losing key compositions.

After I climbed down from the perch, I got across the road to set up my tripod.  I've not tried to photograph these types of sun rays before so I wasn't sure how to set my exposure.  The lower trees were not well lit either.  I decided to stack some graduated ND filters and that seemed to help.  So I bracketed some shots to see what would work later during post processing.

The raw images didn't really show the rays strongly but they were visible.  By using the graduated filter in Lightroom CC and by adding a bit of contrast, I got the sun rays to really pop.  Then with just a bit of brightening of the lower portion of the photo, I took it into Color Efex Pro 4 and used just a few filters to get this result.  No Photoshop work was done beside adding my logo.

I hope I've done justice to a great show put on my Mother Nature.

Blue Ridge Parkway - October 2017

I just took a very quick trip up to the Linn Cove Viaduct area of the Blue Ridge Parkway yesterday.  Colors are primo right now.  Don't wait - head to there before they fade.  Colors popped in about a day per the locals.  Heading back up tomorrow and Thursday too.  

This photo was taken off the bridge on the Tanawha Trail at the Boone Fork turnoff north of Rough Ridge.  I didn't have the ability to shoot the bridge since no water shoes.  AGGGHHH!  Try that tomorrow.

But head to the Parkway before the colors fade or the wind takes them.  ENJOY!!

October 2017 Blue Ridge Parkway

A few days ago, I made my way back to White Oak Falls.  During my earlier visit recent rains really had the waterfall flowing too hard.  This day, the water was much better with a bit more definition.  I had hope to get into my water shoes and get over the far side to check it out.  But the water was still a bit deep to risk getting over there.

I do like White Oak Falls.  Its certainly easy to get to from the parking area only requiring a little bit of rock scrambling to get to a short path along the left side of the stream.  There are a lot of distractions around the water though.  There is a patch of tall weeds right where the stream curves and it is not very attractive.  So you have to try different compositions to handle them.  I did have to erase some twigs and limbs scattered about in post processing.  I try to avoid doing that but sometimes its that or ditch the photo.

In terms of colors around the Smokys, none as of October 3rd.  Friends also told me that as of October 5th, there were no colors on the Blue Ridge Parkway around Mt. Mitchell and the Boone area.  Shouldn't be much longer though.

Hope your autumn photography goes well for everyone.  Later.

White Oak Falls - October 2017

Mouse Creek Falls - September 2017

After some good rains, a friend and I got an early start to see a new waterfall, Mouse Creek Falls.  After seeing some great photos by Jason Frye, I knew I had to see this beautiful waterfall.  It did not disappoint.

Conditions were very good with cloudy skies early.  But even on a sunny day, the main falls, like you see here, are heavily protected by trees.  Foreground less so.

The 4.2 mile round-trip hike in is rated a "3" in Kevin Adams' book.  The hike in was more like a "4" to me being a steady slight uphill climb with some rocks and roots to watch out for.  The downhill hike back was considerably nicer.

With the hike, we spent six hours photographing the area.  There are so many possibilities.  At about 1.75 miles in, there is a very popular swimming hole on the left with a small waterfall at the head.  I tried going downstream a bit to get a better angle of the waterfall but I was too far away to really get anything I liked.

All along the hike, there are some very nice cascades to photograph provided the water flow is good.  We met someone familiar with Mouse Creek and he commented that he'd never seen as much water as this day.  Guess we had some good luck.

Mouse Creek Falls is located in Mt. Sterling in western North Carolina.  I'd definitely recommend putting it on your "to see" waterfall list.

Cascading Stream

A friend and I took a drive to the southwest corner of North Carolina recently to visit Whiteoak Falls.  As we were driving along a short stretch of Wayah Road southwest of Bryson City, there was a parking area next to this great multi-tier cascade.  It is a great location with many compositional opportunities.  It is just downstream of Whiteoak Falls so its easy to take in both.  I'd highly recommend visiting Whiteoak Falls.  I'll create a post of the waterfall shortly.