West Virginia Fall Tour announcement

Announcing the 4 day West Virginia Fall Tour! Come photograph mountain ridges, fog in the valley, blueberry bushes, bogs, forests, streams, waterfalls and landscapes all covered with or surrounded by amazing fall color. This tour is designed to give you maximum time in the field and get you to the most photogenic locations at the best time of day. Limited to only 6 participants! Date: October 7-10, 2010. Location photographs, registration and details at - http://www.nikhilbahl.com/photography_workshops.html#wv

Shoreline Revelation - a photo essay

This photo essay has photography from the eastern shore of Maryland and Virginia. Long exposures, textures, sea shells, wildlife and more. Best viewed in the 480p or 720p resolution. Enjoy!

Chincoteague Island Workshop Report

Chincoteague is definitely one of my favorite places to photograph. I love it for the variety of photographic opportunities. It's not a very grand or large location, but I am attracted to it's subtle beauty and wildlife.

A couple of weeks ago I lead a spring workshop at Chincoteague. The weather held up and we were able to view and photograph some beautiful beach scenes and lots of birds.

Here are a few photographs I made while demonstrating various techniques. The image above was a "grab shot". We got to the beach the first morning and witnessed a colorful display of nature. This was one of two photos I made while the color was intense. I spent the rest of the time with the participants making sure they were making the most of this lovely sunrise.

Sitting on a Dock

Seeing the California Sea Lions hanging out on docks is a common site in the Monterey Bay area. I heard from a local (Dan Tracy) that this dock cost a pretty penny to construct only to have the Sea Lions claim it as theirs even before it was operational.

The Sea Lions forage at night so they hangout at the dock all day. This offers us a chance to view some interesting behavior. Wildlife never fails to entertain...

Brookside Gardens Workshop Report

I just completed a workshop through VisArts. We spent some time photographing at Brookside Gardens. The Tulips were quite amazing! If you haven’t had a chance to visit Brookside while the Tulips are in bloom, you should.

The group was very enthusiastic and photographed non-stop for 3 hours. I demonstrated various techniques from optimal exposures to creating abstract images. The participants were fairly new to creating blurs and multiple exposures and seem to enjoy the process. Seeing their images in the critique session I was quite impressed how quickly they were able to pick up the technique and create some lovely images.

The blog image was made as the light started to get harsh. A diffuser was used to soften the light. Here are a few abstract/photo impressionistic images I made during the demonstrations and after the participants left. Click on the thumbnails to view the larger image.

February Featured Photo on NikhilBahl.com

Rhythm and Light (_NIK0207)

Walking along the beach on a lovely morning, I came across this unusual pattern in the sand. It seemed like there was potential, but the pattern by itself was not interesting enough to make a strong photo. I chose to include the seaweed and setup the composition to create diagonal movement. Even then, the photo did not feel complete; the water had to be included. As I decided how much space the water should occupy in the picture frame, the seaweed got swept away by the next wave. I quickly found more seaweed. Now I knew I had to act fast and time the release of the shutter perfectly. Serendipitously, the next wave stopped perfectly at the top of the frame to give me the pre-visualized photo.

Having only a little bit of water in the composition allows the photo to be about the pattern in the sand. The seaweed acts as a focal point and the foamy water is a supporting element that adds interest and enhances the movement created in the photograph. Let’s not forget, the early morning light helps bring out the texture in the sand and adds the warm hue.

None of these elements were strong enough to make a photo by themselves, but brought together in harmony they make an effective photograph.

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A new blog...

...and a test post.