Ivan Sohrakoff's photostream  

I've been meandering through some photos and stumbled on this one... it just seemed to fit my mood perfectly. This is something I really enjoy about photography... the ability of an image to somehow fit into a feeling that already exists. Similar to putting on a very specific song when I'm feeling a particular mood, a photograph can take my mood and sympathize, distort, and transform it.

Hope everyone is doing quite well...

Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105L @99mm
1/6 second exposure @ F16
B+W Polarizer Filter
ISO 50

This shot goes out to my grandmother who turned 91 on the day I took this photograph.

An unbelievably colorful and long-lasting sunset prompted a spontaneous shoot on the way to a birthday bash! The geese were in full-swing, and seemed to be basking in the color of the evening. After pulling off the road in a random spot, my composition choices were meager, so I chose a series of long-focal-length shots at relatively quick exposures to keep some sharpness in the flying geese.

The clouds have been sparse this season, so I was particularly excited to see these remain in the sky for the sunset. The color lasted at least 25 minutes!

Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 100-400L @400mm
1/125 second exposure @ F5.6
This is one single image @ ISO 200

I will forever be humbled by the countless sea stacks that stand the test of time on the Pacific Coast. With a constant crashing, pounding, and the relentless ocean dynamic, they remain standing for centuries upon centuries. I visited these stacks two mornings in a row, and had the location to myself for both shoots. I don't get over to the coast that often, so it was a real treat to be able to spend a couple mornings with these two old friends, the sea stacks at Garrapata State Park.

For this photograph, I chose to shoot a single shot for the waves, rocks and sky, but also shot another image focused on the foreground rocks to get more definition. This is always tricky business, as it also slightly changes the focal length, but I felt that this shot would be a relatively easy blend and it would benefit from having sharper rocks in the foreground... as the take up a good 1/3 of the shot.

The glow from the rising sun was brilliant, and I was able to witness a couple of rainbows behind these rocks as well. The power of the surf at this beach demands respect.

Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105L @73mm
0.3 second exposure @ F16
Lee ND soft grad .75 + .9 filters
ISO 160
+ one shot focused on foreground

Here is a monochrome film version of the previous post. Let me know what you think...

Rolleiflex Automat 6x6 Model K4
Tessar 3.5 Zeiss-Opton Lens @75mm
15 minute exposure @ F8
Fuji Acros 100 Film

Last weekend, my buddy Steve and I spent over 8 hours rambling around Bowling Ball Beach, attempting to compose and shoot the famous bowling-ball-shaped boulders under the light of the moon.

We were both operating two cameras each, one film and one digital, dashing from tripod to tripod, calculating exposure times and estimating safe distances from the waves for our long exposures in the moonlight. After an intensely short window of time where the tide was lapping around the boulders, it was over. I was packing my gear when I looked up and saw Steve scoping out some rocks down the beach. It only took a matter of seconds before I made the decision to comp-stomp the crap out of Steve's newfound isolated boulders. Of course, Steve was cordial and had no qualms with my joining him amongst the lone bowling balls.

This period of time turned out to be the best shooting of the night. All the light you see here is from the moon, and the 15-minute exposure provided the smoothing effects to help emphasize the dome of the boulder. Originally conceived as a monochrome shot, I left this one in color because I liked the warm/cool combo.

Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 17-40L @40mm
903 seconds of exposure @ F8
No filters
Single Shot at ISO 50