Steve Kossack's visit to Death Valley NP was his first chance to check out his new tilt/shift lens

"I begin each of my workshops in Death Valley National Park by saying that we're standing in the lowest, hottest, driest and windiest place on the planet," says veteran outdoor photographer Steve Kossack. "I then add, 'on most days.' Our visit this year to Death Valley followed a far-from-ordinary winter in California, so we weren't too surprised to be greeted this spring by some rather hostile weather. In a short one-week span in mid-April, the temperatures fell from almost 100 degrees F to the mid 20's, and then headed back to the century mark again as we departed. Snow fell at daybreak, wind and rain tried to chase us off ridges, but colorful sunsets and a break from the really hot weather made for some great shooting days as well. From elevations of almost 300 feet below sea level to more than 6,000 feet above, this magical landscape gave us more to experience and photograph than we could have imagined.

"The image above of Zabriskie Point was captured at my favorite sunrise location, bar none. This image is also noteworthy as one of the first taken with my new Canon 24mm Tilt/Shift Lens Mark ll, which, as its name indicates, is one of Canon's newest tilt-shift lenses. Now that I've seen the greatly improved optical performance of this lens, I'm tempted to shoot every frame with it from now until forever! It is just that good. For this image, I wanted to raise 'the platform' we were shooting from. Since the Mark ll allows tilt and shift movements in any direction, I simply made the lens tilt downward along the same vertical axis as the upward shift of the lens. This accentuated the sand-colored shelf on which my tripod was set up, making it look more like a cliff instead of a small hill. The stage was now set for the magnificent sunrise we witnessed. All that was needed, as the intensity of the light increased, was the use of a Singh-Ray 3-stop soft-step ND Grad and then, as the direct light made its way to the Panamint Mountain range across the valley floor, I switched to a 4-stop soft-step ND Grad for this frame

"This next image was taken at Aquereberry Point 0as the morning snow dissipated. Yes, snow in April in Death Valley. We witnessed no more than a few seconds of partial clearing. Setting up a shot I made many times before gave me the freedom to watch and wait. It paid off big after making the movements of the T/S to straighten the vertical lines of the foreground rocks while holding the depth of field at near infinity. Knowing that I would need the quickest shutter setting possible to stop the motion of the moving clouds -- thinking that a slower shutter speed would render fast moving clouds a gray mess -- I then raised my ISO to 800 and again waited. In the moments of clearing and light that followed, I was able to make only 3 frames at a wide open f/3.5 as I inserted a 3-stop hard-step ND Grad horizontally across the lens. At this point, I had to stop and watch the last few seconds before the entire scene disappeared. It was all simply breath taking!

"It's been many years since I added anything to my basic photo gear. As I get older, I think more like a backpacker than a pack mule! These days, I'm more inclined to use the smaller lighter pack, with the zoom lenses, rather than the much bigger and heavier one that contains the fixed-focal-length lenses. I've long traveled with both packs and usually make a decision according to how far and how long when I depart the vehicle or campground. Today two zooms and an extender will usually suffice, with one exception. My tilt/shift lenses go with me no matter which pack I choose.

"This sunrise image of the southern basin of Death Valley was captured at Dante's View. After several previous attempts to get a break in the weather, we finally got one. In the pre-dawn light, we could see more than a mile down -- from over 6,000 feet above sea level dropping to almost 300 feet below sea level on the floor of the basin. We stood awaiting the sunrise. Since the wind was sporadic, I began making frames in between gusts but quickly changed my setup to include mostly rock so as not to be concerned with moving objects. After working many frames with the Singh-Ray Color Intensifier, I switched to the ColorCombo at first light to reduce the glare and haze. As the bright sunlight muted the color in the clouds, I then ran through my ND Grad filters starting with a 2-stop soft-step and working my way up to a 4-stop hard-step. The frame shown was captured with the ColorCombo and 3-stop hard-step.

"No place in Death Valley reveals more clearly the hand of man than Twenty Mule Team Canyon. This is where the Borax company had their first operation and where the teams of mules set out on their 120-mile trip to deliver the goods to the railhead. If you stand still in the morning light on the ridges of this now quiet setting, I think you might imagine the sound and struggle that took place here some 100 years ago. For me, this is long-lens country. In the cross light here, there seem to be many compositions that work no matter what the weather or light situation! Here all that was needed was to pick some lines that went dark-to-light-to-dark, then dropping my modified Singh-Ray ColorCombo into the filter drawer of the Canon 300mm 2.8 IS and adjusting the filter's built-in polarizer to cut the glare of the brightly lit rock. I metered for the mid tones. It's a rare day when, using this lens, I don't want the ColorCombo. I have a bad habit of leaving it in the lens. If I can't find it when working with the 500mm, I know it's still in the 300mm, or vice versa, but I rarely have both with me in the field. Having a filter to leave in each lens would be the ideal solution!

"As much as I enjoy photographing in the Dunes, I find it difficult to come up with images I consider unique and creative. Maybe that's why I've tried long and hard, with varying degrees of success, and so many drastically different compositions! Angle of view and degree of light are the keys. Exposure even more so. To get the highlights glistening off the early morning sand patterns is difficult to say the least. Careful metering gives way to best guess -- as the intensity of the light increases with each second after sunrise. Choosing where to meter for this frame brought both the highlights of the foreground sand and the sweep of the huge dune into usable zones. Just before actual sunrise and direct light, I attached the ColorCombo knowing that I would have to visually check the orientation to make sure I did not cut the highlights from the foreground. With the direct light, the next step was choosing a 4-stop soft-step ND grad to hold as much of the bright blue sky light as possible. This frame is simply all about the exposure and the filters used to get it.

"Death Valley is the place that initially drove me to learn the art of landscape photography those many years ago. It's a place where I return to remember this fact, to learn more, and to enjoy the beauty of nature."

You can find a number of other images from this year's Death Valley workshop in the "new images" section of Steve's website gallery. He is currently preparing for his Yosemite High Country workshop in September and his Eastern Sierra Fall Color workshop in October. More information is now available on his website.

Steve Kossack had to quickly refocus when he found no snow had come to Yosemite Valley this winter

For a veteran outdoor photographer like Steve Kossack, "Yosemite Valley is the best seven miles on the planet! I have believed that since my first visit in 1980. The park itself is vast and almost all wilderness. It is a wonderland of granite and water with sheer cliffs, beautiful waterfalls and lakes. There is no one season that's better than the others, and photographers should experience it in all seasons!

"Each summer I lead a photography workshop to the 'high camps' along Yosemite's mountain ridge line, far removed from the more civilized valley floor. The high country provides more seclusion and tranquility and is quite unique in many ways, but over the years I've come to appreciate the winter months on the valley floor just as much. Every winter the valley seems to provide something different, and this year was no exception. This year it was fall all winter long.

"With an elevation of only 4,000 feet, winters in Yosemite Valley don't get a lot of snowfall that stays very long on the valley floor. On the peaks that tower over 9,000 feet directly above the valley, however, there is almost certain to be a heavy snow cover. On the other hand, in the valley the weather is always a guess until we are actually there. Some years we may find snow drifts over our heads and sometimes hardly any cover at all. In the fall, the trees go bare and some of the waterfalls go dormant. When we arrived this past February, we found Yosemite Falls to be a mere trickle in the frozen morning and Horsetail Falls only 'a wet spot.'

"The image above of Mt. Watkins reflected in Mirror Lake, was actually 'discovered' as I was photographing the reflected image of the red tree seen in the fourth photo below. This was the opposite of finding a picture within a picture. As I worked the previous image, the sky began to open some and the changing light brought fresh highlights and detail to my attention. As I watched the changing light, I could see that all that was needed to also photograph the image that was surrounding my close-up image was a change of lenses. I then mounted a 35-mm lens on the camera and attached the ColorCombo filter, orienting the filter's built-in polarizer to give a partial view into the river in the foreground without entirely removing the reflection. I then used a 4-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter to hold the marvelous detail of the sky.

"This next image shows one of the iconic views of Yosemite that is always a stopping point for me. Through the seasons, the angle and direction of the light changes dramatically. In many places, this one being a prime example, I could be content to simply leave my camera set up and open a shutter morning, noon and nightfall in every season of the year!

"This image, however, presented some challenges. The first was that this popular vantage point on the Merced River had at least a hundred people on the banks to watch the passing storm. Finding a place just to set up proved difficult. The second challenge was the lack of snow cover on the far river bank and meadow which I felt detracted a bit from the scene. Then, in the last few minutes, the solution arose when the scene took on fresh colors as a gloriously muted light found its way through the clouds. A canopy covered us overhead and the soft reflected light set the scene aglow. This effect was so stunning that most of us took time away from our viewfinders just to absorb the spectacle! The movement in the clouds and river were rendered by a 6-second exposure and color heightened with the use of the Singh-Ray Vari-N-Trio and light from the sky balanced with a 4-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter.

"There are areas of Yosemite Valley that get little direct sunlight during the winter months. If you know where to find these, they can appear to be in deep winter regardless of the situation elsewhere. Under circumstances such as this very dry winter, finding these locations improves the photographic opportunities and brings fresh detail into the shoot. Here as the Merced River turns and slows, the still and chilled morning air rendered the bare trees on the banks frozen while allowing the trees with leaves to remain green. The color green in any of my compositions, which I find is one of hardest to manipulate in post processing, is always cause to reach for my Singh-Ray Color Intensifier. Wanting to slow the shutter speed while cutting the glare from the water and bright snow, I then decided on the ColorCombo that combines the color intensifier with a warming polarizer to get the three effects I needed to make this image.

"On a cloudy day when the sky becomes a canopy of soft reflected light, it almost always leads to images with deeply saturated color. What's more, it takes away heavy shadows that would normally make for difficult exposure problems. That was the kind of light we were working with in the area around Mirror Lake and Meadow. The snow around the base of this mostly bare tree caught my attention and the red glow in the water gave life to the composition. I wanted to work with the red glow but did not want to take away the reflection of the bank. This element was crucial to the composition in my mind. This image was made with the color intensifier, which has no polarization and very little filter factor to be concerned with.

"In years such as this one with so little snow on the ground, we are nevertheless grateful that the walking and hiking were made easy. We covered just about all of the valley floor in our 5 days and proved once again that in any season, no matter the weather conditions, Yosemite Valley is the best 7 miles on the planet."

Steve is now taking reservations for his Yosemite High Country workshop in September 2012, and his Eastern Sierra Fall Color Workshop in October -- for more information, check out Steve's workshop schedule. For more news, fine outdoor images, DVDs, and more, visit his website.

Disguised as a wandering landscape photographer, Steve Kossack captures New York City

"I was raised in Los Angeles," says veteran outdoor photographer Steve Kossack. "It was a big sprawling city even in those days. One block looked like the next. I don't have any photography to speak of from those days because I always felt that nature was elsewhere. I've never looked back and, through my photographic travels and workshops, I've been treated to some of the most beautiful and scenic locations imaginable. The National and State parks throughout the American West are my home and photographic focus.

"Nevertheless, I recently had reason to visit New York City -- arguably the greatest city in the world. This visit was my third, and it was just totally exciting and fun! Dragging my photo gear through this metropolis was a first. To my surprise, my appearance wearing a beat-up shooting vest and carrying my trusty tripod, and photo backpack was hardly noticed by anyone. Nothing seems out of place in the Big Apple! People were moving in all directions at top speed and the towers of the city provided a glowing backdrop. I was a kid in the candy store!

"Early in my visit, I was reminded once again that the basics of outdoor photography are applicable anywhere. Composition is critical and good exposure almost as important. I also found that my filters would play the same essential role here as in our national parks.

"I approached the skyline sunrise (above) feeling the familiar impulse to eliminate the clutter and find the patterns and shapes that would add clarity -- just as I would for any of my western landscape compositions. As I watched this early morning sunrise with a full moon setting from the Brooklyn Promenade, I felt as though we had the entire city to ourselves! Quiet and somewhat cold at 38 degrees, the harbor was still and the moonset pristine. Feeling the history of this place prompted me to set the tall ships in the foreground. With the moon falling quickly, I knew a fast shutter speed was necessary. I chose the longest lens I could fit into my backpack: a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS with a 1.4 extender. In a situation like this, the filter factor of the Singh-Ray ColorCombo -- with its built-in polarizer -- would require a slower exposure that would have rendered the moon as an oval blur. Fortunately, I was able to use my Singh-Ray Color Intensifier with its minimal filter factor (about half an f-stop) to achieve a faster shutter speed and make this sharper image possible. While the Color Intensifier enhanced the natural color of the reflected light, my 4-stop soft-step ND Grad kept the craters in the moon clearly visible.

"This view of Grand Central Station reflects the influence of seeing so many impressive black and white photographs of the old Penn Central Station. Tragically, that 'cathedral' was torn down in favor of today's Madison Square Garden sports arena. For residents of the city, Grand Central Station is their post office and the terminal is their transportation hub. In choosing a vantage point for this image, I wanted to show the 'hum" of the people in this grand and ever-changing environment. After deciding to use my Canon 24mm f/3.5 Tilt/Shift lens to bring symmetry to both the frame and straighten the structural lines vertically, I settled on a slower shutter speed that would render some of the faster moving travelers as ghostly blurs. This was accomplished by using the Singh-Ray ColorCombo. In this case there was no light to be polarized, but the additional filter factor gave me the slower shutter speed I wanted and warmed the light at the same time. Balancing the wide difference in exposure levels was a challenge. The windows near the ceiling read almost seven stops brighter than the shadow areas. A 4-stop hard-step ND Grad held the exposure from the top lights to the top of the image. All that was left was to wait and choose the traffic pattern I wanted for the image.

"Properly exposing this waterfront image was another challenge. The motion implied by the boat was needed to lead the eye toward the primary focal point which is the reflected light on the building windows. I began by finding a shutter speed quick enough to freeze the moving boat and then choose f/11 as an aperture small enough to assure good overall depth of field with the Tilt/Shift lens. To achieve the right combination of 1/500 at f/11, I grudgingly selected an ISO setting of 800. Next was the selection of the Singh-Ray ColorCombo to both increase the color saturation and, more importantly, cut the glare. However this left the water a deep shadow. This was corrected by increasing the exposure 1 2/3 stops and inserting a 4-stop hard-step ND Grad all the way down to the waterline. Now, looking at the image with everything aglow and the exposure levels more evenly balanced across the entire frame, it looks like an easy shot.

"A 'must see' tourist attraction, the Empire State Building allows a good view of almost everywhere. With no tripods allowed, my inclination was to leave the photo gear in the vehicle. After a few moments' thought, that idea was dismissed for many reasons, and I figured I was just going to carry it as one might through an airport. Actually, the security both here and at the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island is the same as it was at the airport! In the end I was glad I had it. Wherever I went, I found myself hand holding my image stabilized 70-200 while standing shoulder-to-shoulder with about 400 of my new and closest friends! As the light faded into a great sunset, motionless images became almost impossible. This situation was the best case I could ever make for owning the Singh-Ray Color Intensifier. Any other filter would have created impossibly slow shutter speeds. With little or no filter factor to worry about, I used it for every frame until the light was gone!

"Here again it was deja vu. I've viewed hundreds of images of the Flat Iron Building done by the masters ever since the days when this beautiful structure was the tallest skyscraper in Manhattan. Since I expected the light to play a major role in this first-light situation, it was pretty much a landscape photographer's mindset from the beginning. My preconception, however, did not hold up when the light came forth, and so the creative process took over. The composition was adjusted when I discovered a lot of open space at the foot of the building across the intersection. I just could not find a location in the pre-dawn that satisfied me. Instead, I set up where the bottom of the building was obscured by hedges and trees and made a frame from the tree branches. To bring the vertical lines of the skyscraper into proper perspective I again used the 24mm Tilt/Shift. When first light did appear it became obvious that the front of the building, where light was needed most, would not materialize. I decided to use a ColorCombo to heighten the intensity of the greens and blues. The filter's polarizer helped boost the contrast just a touch in the clouds; I then 'painted' the tree leaves with my head lamp to give them more color and detail."

Now that Steve has returned to his Nevada homestead, he's preparing to lead workshops in Yosemite Valley - Feb. 15-19 and Death Valley - April 11-15. For more news and information about Steve's workshop schedule, visit his website and gallery.

From the Archive:Tracking the "filter workflow" through a winter workshop in Yosemite Valley

At the 5 year mark of this blog, we are revisiting some of our most helpful instructional stories. Going back to March 2008, Steve Kossack describes his "Filter Workflow" in detail, as he evaluates different lighting situations and determines what will be the perfect combination of filters to help optimize his captured image.

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When outdoor photographer Steve Kossack shoots in any location, he instinctively follows his "filter workflow." To help explain how it works, Steve offered these three images of an early-morning scene he recently visited with his annual Yosemite Valley winter workshop. "Once again," says Steve, "the endless photographic opportunities plus the exhilaration of being in such a magical place made for an unforgettable week. And because Yosemite is so magical, whenever we return to the locations we've visited in previous years, we find they are never the same.

"With a deep snowfall and the weather changing by the moment, even familiar and easy-to-get-to locations were neither," explains Steve. "Road construction prompted the closure of the north side road and forced us to take a short predawn hike to reach Valley View. We were well rewarded for the effort.

"While standing in the dark, after hiking through the knee-high snow pack down to the edge of the Merced River, we saw the clouds getting pinker in the light blue sky, but only for a few moments. (Frame A -- click image to enlarge.) Not certain how much detail could be recorded in the shadow areas, I positioned the camera down low and tilted forward to include as much of the foreground as possible. To emphasize the color in the sky, the LB Color Intensifier was selected along with a 2-stop soft-step Graduated Neutral Density filter to reduce the relative brightness of the sky. Because the exposure would be for several seconds, I did not want to extend it too much further. The modest filter factor of the "lighter, brighter" Color Intensifier cost me only about half an f-stop. It's surprising how often my filter workflow begins with trying the LB Color Intensifier for early morning light.

"Soon after the first shot -- with the color of the sky now faded and the scene before me gaining even more contrast -- everything became flat. The river had some reflected light on the far side but the shadow area of the water was now dark with no reflection. (Frame B.) In cases like this my filter choice is often the Gold-N-Blue Polarizer and 2 or 3-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter. Anytime there is no reflection in the shaded areas, I check to see if my Gold-N-Blue can help out. Of course you need light to create reflections and the orientation of the sun has to be right for a polarizer. I reframed the composition just slightly to limit the amount of now colorless sky and highlight the river. Here the balance of the blue to gold polarization helped accentuate the natural flow of the river. A 2-stop ND Grad was also used here.

"My third shot (Frame C.) at this location was taken as the first light of the day illuminated the tip of El Capitian. Here's where the LB ColorCombo became the right choice. This time, the reflections from the river were distracting the eye from the focal point and the ColorCombo's polarizing effect tamed this problem nicely. The added warmth of the color intensifying filter (an integral part of the combo) was also a welcomed effect. Adding a 3-stop hard-step ND grad was used to achieve the finished image.

"A few days into our winter workshop it became clear the Merced River -- which was now a calm reflecting pool in many places -- was presenting us with dramatic photo opportunities at almost every turn and bend. The opportunities, in fact, were sometimes overwhelming -- a situation I always welcome! My filter workflow enabled me to rationally concentrate the left side of my brain while the right side was joyfully experiencing the dramatic winter scenery.

"For this next scene, I choose to anchor the image on the left with the river bottom. The problem was that I could not see the river bottom in the reflection.

To help solve this and a few other problems, I chose the ColorCombo for several reasons. The first reason was the small bright green conifer at the top of the snow bank and its reflection in the still water. This green is what brought me to the composition in the first place. Whenever I see an important green element in a scene, my first thought is always the LB Color Intensifier or -- in this case -- the LB Color Combo which also provides 'lighter, brighter' polarization. To set the composition, I first found the best orientation for the polarizing filter by making my way down the snow bank to change the angle. Then a slight turn of the filter clearly revealed both the river bottom and the surface reflection. The polarizer was then fine tuned to cut the bright reflection off the snow as much as possible while still revealing the river bottom. Since the bright snow was such a major part of the composition, I realized it had to be exposed to capture both the overall scene and the detail in the white snow.

"For the stormy image of Yosemite Falls seen at left -- with its beautiful muted light -- you would think no filters would be needed, but this image is not quite as simple as it appears.

Rain was moving in and out as the falls drifted from view and then appeared again. This also obliterated the reflection in the water at times or made it dark and distant when it was visible. The colors were also very muted in the mist. My next workflow step was to try balancing the exposure to render the mid-tones a full stop brighter and accentuate the reflected image in the process. The only problem created by doing this was a very slow shutter speed that would have made the quick moving clouds, as well as the rain spattered river, too blurry. The next decision was to test the capability of my new Canon 1Ds MKIII at a higher ISO 800 setting while using a 3-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter. What was lost was some of the detail in the snow, but what was gained is a brighter reflection, a more realistic presentation of the falls and a recognizable cloud pattern that shows the passing storm’s movement.

For me, working through the filter workflow process is both fun and productive. I should add that I always expose a 'reference" frame without any filters to provide a basis for later review. In the end, there are always choices to be made between the variously filtered images. I can’t help but feel that is always a good thing!"

For more information about Steve's work, videos and workshops, visit his website.

Steve Kossack's new location moves him closer to his two favorite national parks

"I've just visited two of my most favorite National Parks now that they are closer than ever," says Steve Kossack from his new office and residence in Las Vegas, Nevada. "When I first moved to the deserts of Arizona ten years ago, I considered Page AZ but did not move there. Instead I went a couple of hundred miles south to the small town of Cottonwood, about 100 miles north of Phoenix. For more than a decade, Phoenix served as a terrific base for conducting my various photo workshops throughout the western states. I enjoyed great access to the south rim of The Grand Canyon with the Navajo nation and all of Utah's parks close by.

"Now that I have moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, I find myself halfway between my two most favorite national parks. Six hours to the north is the Grand Canyon. Yosemite is just six hours to the west. That means both are virtually right in my backyard. I first visited the North Rim, then I went west across the deserts of Nevada to Yosemite. Fall was in the air, but the color had not yet changed. The Canyon was mostly quiet after the tourist season and the weather was mild. In Yosemite we closed two of the High Sierra camps. Both visits were great opportunities to celebrate my relocation!

"Photographing the Grand Canyon felt like visiting an old friend. It was a time to relax -- knowing that whatever happens next will be enjoyable on several levels. I find tranquility in setting up an image where I've previously made some fine images. I'm seldom disappointed photographically and even when I walk away empty handed, I revel in the experience of just being there! The image above was taken from the north rim of the canyon which has an elevation that's over a thousand feet higher than the south rim and the rock formations are so much closer. Nowhere are both rims more in play than here at Cape Royal. From this point above the dramatic setting, it is easy to set up an image that has converging lines that parallel the rim to the south. This gives a flow to the composition that is simply majestic to me! In the past I've been fortunate enough to capture two images from this location that I have framed to hang in my home. Maybe this one will be number three? I used a Singh-Ray Color Intensifier along with a 4-stop hard-step ND Grad.

"This sunrise image from the north rim was an unexpected gift! I was out looking for first light on Mt. Hayden, but the cloud cover that morning prevented it. Over my shoulder I had been watching the changing colors in the sky for more than half an hour when suddenly the rising sun lifted into the cloud formation thus giving even light to the canyon below. Setting up my composition as fast as possible to show the ledges leading into the canyon, I was only able to capture two frames before this image was gone. The use of a 3-stop Reverse ND was the key to holding the exposure of the light rays below the clouds. I also used a ColorCombo and a 4-stop hard-step ND Grad.

"On my trip to Yosemite, I was able to make the last few days of the season at two of my favorite Sierra high camps. Both the Glen Aulin and the May Lake high camps offer different and unique photo opportunities. This view of Glen Aulen never disappoints me. It's located at the mouth of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River. This late in the season, the orientation of the light was much different and offered beautiful sidelight on the canyon rim. The magic light that appears in this image turned the clouds a crimson wonder. Using a ColorCombo and a 4-stop soft-step ND Grad, my exposure was for 10 seconds at f/16. With the future of the Glen Aulin high camp in jeopardy due to the drain field runoff into the river, each visit here becomes even more special. I happily add this image to my portfolio with hopes of capturing more in the future.

"I've shot this scene at May Lake many times, but this was only the second opportunity I've had to photograph the scene with Mt. Hoffman reflected so clearly in the perfectly still water! The reflection was a rare treat but it presented a couple of problems. First and most important was the fact that I have, for years, considered my previous reflected image from this spot to be about as good as I know how to make -- both compositionally and technically. But in my heart of hearts I always hope this is not true. But what to do now? I was also limited in what tools I had with me. Backpacking only allows for limited photo gear. If I wanted to take advantage of the three-quarter moon setting, I needed to widen the composition a lot. Including the reflection would help immensely here. The long 20-second shutter setting would render the moon oblong. It's moving! I had two lenses in my pack. One of them was my Canon 20mm 2.8. Perfect! I used a 4-stop hard-step ND Grad to balance the exposure."

Steve continues to polish his website to make it more convenient for visitors to browse his gallery and keep up on the latest information. As the result of his new location in Las Vegas, he expects to be adding several more workshops for the coming year.

Steve Kossack sends his "reflections" of this year's visit to the splendors of Glacier National Park

Steve Kossack has just returned from leading another workshop to Glacier National Park. "Sometimes I wonder whether success in any creative art is more dependent on the singer or the song? That is to say, is it really the photographer or the place? Over the years, I've come to realize excellent outdoor images can be made almost anywhere at any time. Nevertheless, that rationalization fades from memory when I find myself surrounded by the awesome grandeur of our nation's National Parks, and one in particular.

"Although it's in a remote location, Glacier National Park on the Montana Canadian border is rich with photo opportunities for those who visit frequently. Nowhere -- except for Alaska -- are there primitive wilderness settings as easily accessible as here! By 2020, however, Glacier National Park will have no glaciers! The original estimate for their demise was 2030, but that date has since been revised and a current study may yet again move this date. What this means for those of us doing photography is unclear. Those visitors who have hiked to Jackson, Grinnell or Sperry glaciers in the park have witnessed over the years their decline and increasingly limited accessibility. It's just tougher to get close to what's left! This will certainly have an effect on the surrounding plant and animal life. It's well worth noting that within its 1 million acres, this park still retains almost all its original endemic plant and animal species. It's doubtful that a name change for the park will take place after the last of the glaciers have gone, however. Glacier National Park it will always be, with or without them! It's a place where the hand of man has met the environment head on. Its drastically short summer season permits a short window into this hostile habitat with long days and very short nights. Especially so if one wants to sing its song with tripod and camera.

Mule Deer on Logan Pass
"Yes, I would prefer that nature's wildlife step into more of my frames! I'm not a wildlife photographer at all. That is a skill set unto itself. Here the final element presented one more challenge. As I was considering the possibilities for this landscape, I noticed the deer making its way into the scene. I quickly switched from my Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo to an LB Color Intensifier to gain a one-stop advantage in shutter speed. While I lost the advantage of a polarizer, I realized I'd need the extra speed if the deer did indeed enter the frame. I also chose my 3-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter to balance the distant sky. The deer would not cooperate by turning toward me, and I considered not opening the shutter at all. I've learned that shooting creatures from behind is not the angle of choice. Then I decided the deer was not my main focal point in this composition. I then waited for it to stop once again and raise its head.

Further Reflection
"This image was made just after the one above. It's a good example of my belief that nature never does anything just once. Repeated patterns, textures and shapes are usually found again in the surrounding area and this scene proved that point. Arriving with a reflection pattern fresh in my mind, I was immediately drawn to yet another. Here the reflection was the focal point and I 'shortened up' the composition with a longer lens. But this left less feeling of scale. The tree was the last element I needed for this shot and the exposure was set for the snow field at the base of the butte. My Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo was carefully set so that it did not negate the reflection or over-saturate the sky. A 4-stop soft-step ND Grad helped bring the reflection value closer to the exposure for the butte.


Moonset at Swiftcurrent Lake
"The eastern part of Glacier National Park is the windy side. It's also the quiet side in terms of people. The lakes are the main attractions. Swiftcurrent Lake is one of the park's jewels! In all the years I've been photographing these lakes, I've only seen a smooth, glass-like surface once! And it was obvious as we stood in the dark an hour before sunrise that this was not going to be the second time. In order to 'create' a smoother surface, I used my Vari-N-Trio. With the benefit of the that filter's built-in warming polarizer and color intensifier all that was needed was to first set a shutter speed and aperture combination that would give a long exposure to blur the water and achieve enough depth of field to keep the foreground rock in sharp focus as well. The last step was to use a 2-stop soft-step ND Grad to hold back the exposure of the moon near the horizon. The exposure was 30 seconds at f/16 at 100 ISO.

Passing Storm at Sundown
"Low light and the drama of a passing storm is what we found as the sun was setting over the peaks. A thunderstorm had developed as our day came to an end, and with it came the challenge of composing and exposing this scene. The focal point is way out at the far horizon. Without the ability to change my camera position at the base of the lake, the only way to change my composition was by my choice of a 24mm tilt-shift lens. The reflected clouds were helpful but it was the branch and rock that seemed to anchor a foreground that made the decision for me. The LB ColorCombo was set to take advantage of its built-in polarizing feature to show the lake bottom merging with the cloud reflection. I also used a 3-stop soft-step ND Grad to balance the sky with the foreground. The trick was in the exposure of the foreground. I considered using fill flash but knew the bounce off the water would produce glare. My second thought was the reflector in my vest pocket but there just was not enough light to reflect. In the end I simply used my Petzel head lamps to "paint" the foreground during the 3 second exposure.

"Watching the light glow and glaciers recede in this remote wilderness is both breathtaking and heartbreaking, sometimes at the same moment. Although this year's summer season was no more than a few weeks, every moment spent here is a moment to be cherished. Especially in a viewfinder!"

For more news and information about Steve's workshop schedule, including his Monument Valley Expedition this October 8 - 12, visit his website and gallery.

Steve Kossack shares some stories behind these images of Glacier National Park

Steve Kossack has just returned from leading another workshop to Glacier National Park. "Sometimes I wonder whether success in any creative art is more dependent on the singer or the song? That is to say, is it really the photographer or the place? Over the years, I've come to realize excellent outdoor images can be made almost anywhere at any time. Nevertheless, that rationalization fades from memory when I find myself surrounded by the awesome grandeur of our nation's National Parks, and one in particular.

"Although it's in a remote location, Glacier National Park on the Montana Canadian border is rich with photo opportunities for those who visit frequently. Nowhere -- except for Alaska -- are there primitive wilderness settings as easily accessible as here! By 2020, however, Glacier National Park will have no glaciers! The original estimate for their demise was 2030, but that date has since been revised and a current study may yet again move this date. What this means for those of us doing photography is unclear. Those visitors who have hiked to Jackson, Grinnell or Sperry glaciers in the park have witnessed over the years their decline and increasingly limited accessibility. It's just tougher to get close to what's left! This will certainly have an effect on the surrounding plant and animal life. It's well worth noting that within its 1 million acres, this park still retains almost all its original endemic plant and animal species. It's doubtful that a name change for the park will take place after the last of the glaciers have gone, however. Glacier National Park it will always be, with or without them! It's a place where the hand of man has met the environment head on. Its drastically short summer season permits a short window into this hostile habitat with long days and very short nights. Especially so if one wants to sing its song with tripod and camera.

Mule Deer on Logan Pass
"Yes, I would prefer that nature's wildlife step into more of my frames! I'm not a wildlife photographer at all. That is a skill set unto itself. Here the final element presented one more challenge. As I was considering the possibilities for this landscape, I noticed the deer making its way into the scene. I quickly switched from my Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo to an LB Color Intensifier to gain a one-stop advantage in shutter speed. While I lost the advantage of a polarizer, I realized I'd need the extra speed if the deer did indeed enter the frame. I also chose my 3-stop soft-step Graduated ND filter to balance the distant sky. The deer would not cooperate by turning toward me, and I considered not opening the shutter at all. I've learned that shooting creatures from behind is not the angle of choice. Then I decided the deer was not my main focal point in this composition. I then waited for it to stop once again and raise its head.

Further Reflection
"This image was made just after the one above. It's a good example of my belief that nature never does anything just once. Repeated patterns, textures and shapes are usually found again in the surrounding area and this scene proved that point. Arriving with a reflection pattern fresh in my mind, I was immediately drawn to yet another. Here the reflection was the focal point and I 'shortened up' the composition with a longer lens. But this left less feeling of scale. The tree was the last element I needed for this shot and the exposure was set for the snow field at the base of the butte. My Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo was carefully set so that it did not negate the reflection or over-saturate the sky. A 4-stop soft-step ND Grad helped bring the reflection value closer to the exposure for the butte.


Moonset at Swiftcurrent Lake
"The eastern part of Glacier National Park is the windy side. It's also the quiet side in terms of people. The lakes are the main attractions. Swiftcurrent Lake is one of the park's jewels! In all the years I've been photographing these lakes, I've only seen a smooth, glass-like surface once! And it was obvious as we stood in the dark an hour before sunrise that this was not going to be the second time. In order to 'create' a smoother surface, I used my Vari-N-Trio. With the benefit of the that filter's built-in warming polarizer and color intensifier all that was needed was to first set a shutter speed and aperture combination that would give a long exposure to blur the water and achieve enough depth of field to keep the foreground rock in sharp focus as well. The last step was to use a 2-stop soft-step ND Grad to hold back the exposure of the moon near the horizon. The exposure was 30 seconds at f/16 at 100 ISO.

Passing Storm at Sundown
"Low light and the drama of a passing storm is what we found as the sun was setting over the peaks. A thunderstorm had developed as our day came to an end, and with it came the challenge of composing and exposing this scene. The focal point is way out at the far horizon. Without the ability to change my camera position at the base of the lake, the only way to change my composition was by my choice of a 24mm tilt-shift lens. The reflected clouds were helpful but it was the branch and rock that seemed to anchor a foreground that made the decision for me. The LB ColorCombo was set to take advantage of its built-in polarizing feature to show the lake bottom merging with the cloud reflection. I also used a 3-stop soft-step ND Grad to balance the sky with the foreground. The trick was in the exposure of the foreground. I considered using fill flash but knew the bounce off the water would produce glare. My second thought was the reflector in my vest pocket but there just was not enough light to reflect. In the end I simply used my Petzel head lamps to "paint" the foreground during the 3 second exposure.

"Watching the light glow and glaciers recede in this remote wilderness is both breathtaking and heartbreaking, sometimes at the same moment. Although this year's summer season was no more than a few weeks, every moment spent here is a moment to be cherished. Especially in a viewfinder!"

For more news and information about Steve's workshop schedule, including his Monument Valley Expedition this October 8 - 12, visit his website and gallery.