Greg Molyneux Photography

Tag: hdr

  • A frozen bay belies the weather

    An HDR sunset photograph taken from Harvey Cedars Sunset Part of a fully frozen Barnegat Bay. Unique ice patterns and strewn jetty rock mark the picture's foreground.
    A frozen bay belies the weather — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    We’re wrapping up what’s easily been the coldest stretch of weather we’ve felt over the 2014–2015 Winter—and the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway has the frozen bays to prove it. Knowing the temperatures would be moderating as soon as tomorrow (can you believe it’s going to rain after this bitter cold week!?), I wanted to get over to Harvey Cedars Sunset Park to capture the not-so-common sight of an ice entombed Barnegat Bay. While the sunset color didn’t explode this afternoon, the sights I was treated to out on the point made enduring an hour of uninterrupted cold completely worth it. My mood soared immediately upon arrival; my body and mind both were in need of this photographic ice world therapy session.

    For much of my time at this ephemeral Fortress of Solitude I was transfixed by the undulating, serpentine patterns of ice locked motionless from the freeze. I’m amazed at the transformation ice can bring to a summertime haven of warmth and water that I know so well. It’s nature’s way of teaching the duality of life—as well as its impermanence. And yet all I can think of is Yogi Berra opining, “you can observe a lot by watching.”

    Enjoy the scene now as it will be gone tomorrow.

  • Get thee to the beach

    Get thee to the beach

    An HDR photograph taken on the beaches of Holgate, NJ just after a late winter sunset. Featuring a soft pastel sky with algae laden jetty rock marking the sandy foreground.
    Get thee to the beach — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    Pardon the directive—this title is mostly intended as a self-serving reminder to get my butt to the beach more often. But if you can make it, well then you should too! Living mere miles away I’ll readily admit I don’t capitalize on the natural splendor looming just to the east nearly enough. It’s hard to pinpoint the hangup/excuse but with views like the one above I clearly need to get there more often. Camera in hand since I’m an embarrassment on a surfboard.

    This past Saturday I ventured all the way down to Long Beach Island’s southern-most point—Holgate, NJ. There I met up with friends and what seemed like 5 or 6 dozen other revelers to take in the wonderful weather, low tide, and stellar sunset that Mother Nature was promising. Initially concerned I’d have my shot impacted by the sizable winter crowd, I staked my claim to the jetty rocks you see above. I didn’t venture far from my spot for the next 50 minutes or so worried I’d lose it and my precious foreground. And other than a temporary scare of 2 exuberant young photographers running around trying to capture seagull shots, my viewfinder went unimpeded. Fist bump.

    Unrelated: it’s New Year’s Eve—I hope everyone has a great night and an even better 2015. Cheers and thanks for being a part of the first year of my website!

  • A Christmas Sunset

    An HDR photograph taken at sunset on Christmas Day overlooking the glowing embers of the south marsh from Cedar Run Dock Road.
    A Christmas Sunset — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    It’s December 25th. Christmas Day. With stores closed and roads dead, all was right with the world as I took an easy drive eastward to Dock Road this evening. With high pressure setting up shop for the next few days it was readily apparent the clouds were dying a fast, unceremonious death. Goodbye, clouds. We hardly knew you. But what did I care? Today is Christmas, and I’m going to enjoy myself.

    Considering the fast dissipation of the cloudage, I shot earlier than usual knowing all cloud cover would be gone before the sun settled below the horizon. Opting to get a sun flare and the glowing red ember color that washed over the dead winter marsh grass, temporarily breeding life into the now brown grasses. I’m digging how the light plays along the grasses mixing in with the meandering tidal pools.

  • Going through the motions

    A soft focus HDR photograph taken along the Cedar Run Dock Road marsh at sunset.
    Going through the motions — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    Not the most inspirational of titles, but I’m going with it because it’s topical. I keep writing and rewriting this post only to delete it for sounding like little more than non-stop complaining. So instead of calling the wambulance, I’m just going to say it was nice to be out taking pictures tonight. I needed to break away from the current comings and goings, and even though tonight’s sunset wasn’t the most stunning I still got to spend some quality time out on the marsh. That, and I like the picture I made more than I thought I would, too. So despite my wont to bicker, things really ain’t that bad.

    And speaking of titles: I always (98.7% of the time) go with the first word or phrase that comes to mind when editing my photographs. It’s a habit I started with my 365 Project back in 2012. I rarely deviate from that process. With this shot though, I was literally going through the motions—struggling to come up with something, anything fitting. About an hour later, this is it.

  • The unnamed feeling

    A subtle HDR sunset photograph with soft yellows and a touch of pink marking the racing clouds. Taken at the Stafford Forge Wildlife Management Area.
    The unnamed feeling — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    What was I thinking about when I was photographing tonight? The constancy of flux. Particularly in the most familiar of places. The front lake at Stafford Forge has swelled several inches and consumed feet of shoreline, changing the dynamic of one of my old standby shooting locations. A few extra inches of water has transformed a whole landscape. Perhaps more interesting? This change would have been inconsequential to my pre-photographer eyes. But now, with an ultra wide angle lens in tow, inches matter as the space around you pushes out toward that vanishing point.

  • Stay awhile longer

    Fiery HDR sunset photography taken from Sunset Cove in Bowleys Quarters, Maryland, overlooking a Chesapeake Bay tributary.
    Stay awhile longer — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    Or perhaps titled, Take your own advice?

    On the upside I got to shoot a sunset from a new spot and that’s always exciting. As hindsight will explain, I just should have been more patient about it.

    This past Tuesday, perched at the rear of Sunset Cove in Bowleys Quarters, Maryland, I took aim at one hell of a sunset. Dramatic colors, glassy waters, and plenty of objects to compose. Pretty much everything you can ask for. Luck would have it that the timely end of a late afternoon food run allowed me to arrive at this sunset spot ten minutes after sunset. At the perfect time for ideal color. Usually.

    About 15 minutes after sundown I made my last bracket of 7 exposures. I only took a grand total of 3 brackets over a span of maybe 3 minutes. For whatever reason I just wasn’t comfortable loitering around this new locale and busted loose with great haste after only a few minutes of shooting. In doing so the sky did something weird. It got brighter and more colorful. And while I readily admit the color always improves after the sun goes down, I’ve yet to see the sky do this. Where it amplifies to this degree some 20 plus minutes after sunset. And sure I am really happy with my shot, I’m just bummed knowing I missed out on capturing an even more dramatic brand of sky.

    Next time, Gadget. Next time.

  • A change in the weather

    A black and white HDR photograph of fierce clouds, a tidal pool and undulating sands on the beach in Holgate, NJ.
    A change in the weather — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    Holgate, New Jersey. Back to where it all began. This is the photograph. The date? January 1, 2012. I didn’t know it at the time, but this began a 365 day (366, it was a leap year) photo project that would later transform into a full on passion. I am thankful for life and its odd twists of fate.

    As for tonight’s shoot? I was hopeful the clouds would break just enough to allow sunset to do its thing. That never really happened, but for tonight that was OK. With storm clouds moving through in advance of tomorrow’s rain-out, the clouds were plenty dramatic. Combine that with the tidal pools and undulating sand patterns marking the foreground, and I had the ingredients for solid landscape photo. Considering the abundance of grey the stretched on for miles, I had a notion I may go black and white for the final processing choice. Once I got home and went monochrome with Silver Efex Pro 2 my decision was made.

    Oh, and speaking of weather—it may snow for Thanksgiving, New Jersey.

  • Color me bayside

    Winter sunset colors and clouds rolling in from the west, dramatically backdropping Antoinetta's restaurant over Manahawkin Bay in this HDR photograph.
    Color me bayside — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    Winter sunsets, man. So hard to beat. When I don’t get enough camera time I really start to miss it. It doesn’t take long either. There’s just something about regular, near daily shooting that regulates my mood. And I guess that’s the hallmark of any therapeutic hobby, really. That chance to decompress and slip away from the daily grind to recalibrate.

    Lately, however, life has gotten in the way and Mother Nature has hardly been the most cooperative, either; leaving me cloudless or entirely clouded out. But that’s just the way it goes, I guess. This afternoon, after saying goodbye and celebrating the life of an unparalleled man who meant so much to so many, a clear day turned variably cloudy allowing the waning light of day to do its thing.

    Thanks, Dr. Wurst. You will be missed.

  • Feels like the first time

    Looking for a dramatic sunset photograph? Here it is, an HDR marsh sunset in all its saturated color glory. Strong shadows and deep contrast are the hallmark of this seascape picture.
    Feels like the first time — 14mm | f/8 | ISO 100 | 7 Bracketed Exposures

    I haven’t been out shooting once since October 26th. October 26th! I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that’s my longest photo-less stretch since I began this whole picture taking fiasco New Year’s Day 2012. This camera cessation was not planned, and suffice it to say I’ve been jonesing.

    All day the clouds were spectacular. Low, dark, puffy and fast moving they hinted at the threat of sun-showers all day. Since I was already down in the Great Bay Boulevard area picking up four of my reclaimed wood framed prints from my good buddy Ben Wurst, I knew that’s where I’d head for sunset. Tonight did not disappoint. I’m hard pressed to recall a Fall sky more fierce. The shadow play on the clouds dripping in red scarlet color was really something else. Tonight there were several other revelers out there with me, and that’s always good to see.