Rock wall
by Mark ~ March 10th, 2010. Filed under: abstracts, art, artistry, nature photography, rock.
Rock face in Katmai National Park, Alaska
You folks probably already know I am a sucker for cool looking rocks, and if you don’t – well – I have revealed my kryptonite. They are pretty cooperative subjects, they don’t ask for much, work for free, and not demanding at all actually. They can look good in a variety of light conditions, do their own makeup, and are fairly reliable. If I go back tomorrow, chances are that darn rock wall will still be there just where I left it. You typically don’t have to worry about them moving much. Can’t say that about many subjects now can ya?
Thinking back on various trips I have taken, I don’t think I have ever passed one up that I didn’t photograph. I wonder if that makes me a rock paparazzi? Seems like the description is a bit different than a photographer who follows Eric Clapton around. Yet, perhaps a rock wall can have as many stories and facets as a human rock star with a lot less ego to contend with. I do think getting punched out by a rock would probably hurt more than by a rock star.
One of the cool things I like is that there is no sense of scale. Is this section of rock an inch tall, or 40 feet tall? Some people may seek that sense of scale, but I like the mystery without it. One of the observations I’ve had in doing my macro rock abstracts is that the macro version often resembles much larger versions. Those larger versions may be just a rock face of a cliff or even better – a resemblance to a satellite view of an entire region.
So this rock face above is about 20 feet tall. I always find the amount of life that can attempt to grow on a rock face fascinating. This one has no shortage of small plants, weaving their way into every little crevice, probably seeking out trickles of water. I used Topaz Adjust 4 to bring out some more of the color variation and details. I don’t think it will ever make the cover of Rolling Stone, but maybe, just maybe some rockhound gossip tabloid featuring those scantily clad slabs.
March 10th, 2010 at
The beauty of this one is the subtle colors and abstraction. Of course we know it is a rock wall, but it also has some abstract qualities. Your abstract images are amazing, like the one at the head of the blog now. Besides, anyone who gets that close to a bear as large as the one in your last post, deserves a good deal of recognition, as well as a chance to unwind and just photograph rocks for a while. You seem to do just as well with either subject.
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Mark Reply:
March 11th, 2010 at
David, that is very kind of you. Thanks.
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March 10th, 2010 at
Lovely blue and green tones and patterns in this one – one of many fine rock images I’ve see you post.
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Mark Reply:
March 11th, 2010 at
Thanks Tom.
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March 11th, 2010 at
Fantastic colours and details in this image, Mark. I like how is Topaz Adjust able to draw out even those colours which are barely recognizable with naked eyes from the subject. I don’t know how this rock looked in reality, of course, but I guess that the colours were not so prominent. Thanks also for the post which put me in a nice cheery mood in the very morning.
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Mark Reply:
March 11th, 2010 at
Glad you liked the post Tomas. The colors are not too far off from “reality” – the light was rather flat, but Topaz definitely helped pop some of the colors that were already there, but lacking in definition.
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March 11th, 2010 at
Hi! You know you have a “broken heart” in the middle all to the right in your picture?
BR Andreas – Norwegian nature photographer
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Mark Reply:
March 11th, 2010 at
Andreas, I think I can see what you are referring too, but not sure..
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March 11th, 2010 at
Really nice, Mark! Where was this shot? You know I’m a sucker for this stuff, too, which has earned me some puzzled looks over the years from passers-by while my camera was pointed at a rock face… Come to think of it, I’ve gotten some of those looks from fellow photographers, too… :^D
I don’t recall – do you have Nik’s Viveza 2? The Structure tool in the new version produces some nice detail emphasis, often with a little different flavor than Topaz Adjust 4’s… So many fun toys… er, tools!
- Jack
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Mark Reply:
March 11th, 2010 at
Jack, it was photographed from our boat in Katmai National Park while cruising out of Geographic Bay. A lot of cool rock cliffs there that I wish we could have spent more time exploring.
I am very familiar with that look you mention.
I haven’t tried Viveza, my plugin budget is busted as of late. I will have to check it out though if it comes highly recommended.
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March 11th, 2010 at
Beautiful, as always. You do have a way with rocks!!!
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March 12th, 2010 at
Mark, I think that you are a rock stalker!
I, too, am amazed at what life can grow in such seemingly inhospitable places. I guess that I would say that they seem inhospitable because I couldn’t imagine living there, but the plants seem to do just fine.
When I first looked at the photo, I thought it was one of your small, table-top rocks; however, after you mentioned that it was 20 feet tall, I thought that you probably didn’t have a table large enough to support that, so it must have been outside.
A beautiful shot. No scale needed!
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Mark Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at
stalker |?stôk?r|
noun
a person who stealthily hunts or pursues an animal or another person.
• a person who harasses or persecutes someone with unwanted and obsessive attention.
stalkerazzi |?stôk??räts?|
plural noun informal
photojournalists who follow celebrities closely and persistently with the intention of obtaining sensational pictures.
ORIGIN from stalker + -azzi, on the pattern of paparazzi.
Hmm, I see no mention of rocks anywhere in these definitions!
Thanks anyway.
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March 12th, 2010 at
Hi, Mark -
If you have the time, I think it would be worthwhile to download the Viveza 2 demo & check it out, or maybe watch some of their videos. As with most plugins, I’m sure there are other ways to accomplish the same tasks, but I’ve found it to be a really powerful & easy-to-use tool…
- Jack
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March 12th, 2010 at
Beautiful work Mark, the patterns and color are wonderful, your images are amazing !!
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March 13th, 2010 at
Thanks guys.
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March 13th, 2010 at
Not a rock paparazzi, but a “rockarazzi.”
I hear you on the scale thing, & have always marvelled at the “micro/macro” nature of…well…nature. Very Celtic notion, that. Fantastic photo, as always, regardless of scale! The colors are beautiful.
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March 15th, 2010 at
That’s an amazing piece of rock in that image, with the given saturation it reminds of wrecked, oily foil. Pretty cool!
Rockarazzi, that’s an awesome title Lana came up with!
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March 15th, 2010 at
Rocks ROCK! Ok, so that was lame. lol…but I can definitely relate to your love for rocks. Amazing how this piece is 20 feet tall. You are so right about the sense of scale. I thought it was a close up at first, until I saw the foliage.
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March 16th, 2010 at
Wow! The colors are amazing. I can never resist taking a photo of a rock wall, but I can’t say I have any like this one. Beautiful.
Are you trying to increase traffic by talking about paparazzi, the Stones, and “scantily clad slabs”? Shameless!
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Mark Reply:
March 19th, 2010 at
Thanks Anita. I doubt I will get much traffic from people searching on scantily clad slabs.
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