Like a seeker after the truth
'Long exposure' is one of my favorite phototograph tech. It helps me put wonderful movements into still images. I can create a mystical image with brush painting effects. Here is a 150 sec long exposure image taken at Bayswater Marina, New Zealand. In order to get such a long exposure, I used a 3 stop ND filter and a 2 stop + a 3 stop ND Grad filter stacked.
I often go to Bayswater Marina to take a shot because the place is near home. But I was not lucky enough to get what I wanted to get untill yesterday. After the dinner, I went out to get some fresh air and take some shots hoping to see wonderful sunset. The sky looked just as usual. It seemed that nothing was going to happen. But suddenly, everything was changed. The sky started getting red like someone splashed the sky with red ink. That was something beyond what I expected yesterday. It was so beautiful.
A Photographer is like a seeker after the truth. I, as a serious amateur landscape photographer, always hope to meet an amazing light and try to capture it by interpreting it in my own way just like a seeker eagers to find out the unescapable truth. The great photographers can't be made by their techniques but by their passion to grasp something amazing (or to make something wonderful). They make constant [and desperate] efforts to capture meaningful moments and bring them into permanent images within their own hermeneutical frame.
I always wait for the light and want to be at the right place. I always wait for the right time as a humble seeker after the truth. Photography is a kind of spiritual tool for me to meditate.
Too religious?..Yes..because I am standing before the wonder.
My Photostream
Nikon D3 / 20mm / f.22 / 2.5 sec / ISO 200
Nikon D3 / 20mm / f.11 / 1.6 sec / ISO 200
Taking a shot of the stars is too much time consuming process. An image needs at least a 30 sec exposure. Since the stars are barely seen through the view finder, before the actual shot, you need to take a trial shot to make sure if you've got the right settings such as focal length, exposure time, white balance and etc. It's not hard to learn the technique to take a shot of stars. But the tech doesn't guarantee getting the right image we want to get. 
The most important matter in the star photography is whether or not we can have a good weather; no clouds, no mood light and no artifical lights. The image above was taken even under the difficult condition. There were the strong artificial lights from the city when taking the image above. I could see only a few stars at that night. I only got some stars in it. We, therefore, need to go to a remote place to avoid the troublesome light. 
I often go to Bayswater Marina to take a shot because the place is near home. But I was not lucky enough to get what I wanted to get untill yesterday. After the dinner, I went out to get some fresh air and take some shots hoping to see wonderful sunset. The sky looked just as usual. It seemed that nothing was going to happen. But suddenly, everything was changed. The sky started getting red like someone splashed the sky with red ink. That was something beyond what I expected yesterday. It was so beautiful. 
A Photographer is like a seeker after the truth. I, as a serious amateur landscape photographer, always hope to meet an amazing light and try to capture it by interpreting it in my own way just like a seeker eagers to find out the unescapable truth. The great photographers can't be made by their techniques but by their passion to grasp something amazing (or to make something wonderful). They make constant [and desperate] efforts to capture meaningful moments and bring them into permanent images within their own hermeneutical frame. 
