Western Views

January 13, 2009 ·

Michael Reichmann

Western Views

Though Jim has been living in Japan for the past several years he often returns to the U.S. to do photography. This page features a portfolio shot in the West in the summer and fall of 1999.

Sequoia NP, CA. August 1999
Senate Group – Sequoia NP, CA. August 1999

 

I was fortunate to capture this image of the Senate Group in Giant Forest the day following a controlled burn. The still smoldering ashes along with patience and a favorable wind shift created a foggy backdrop for the giant sequoia trunks glowing in the late afternoon light. I used large format to eliminate the converging verticals.

Photographed with a Toyo VX125b, Schneider 90/5.6 Super-Angulon XL, Schneider IVa center filter, on Kodak E100S

Leaves - Hart Prairie, Flagstaff, AZ
Leaves – Hart Prairie, Flagstaff, AZ., Oct, 1999

 

The western side of the San Francisco Peaks north of Flagstaff hosts a large expanse of aspen, which were in full color in early October. This image was taken in the early afternoon in the deep woods.

Photographed with a Rollei 6008i, Schneider 90/4 Apo-Symmar, on Kodak E100VS

Mittens at Sunrise - Monument Valley
Mittens at Sunrise – Monument Valley, October, 1999

 

The Mittens in Monument Valley are, perhaps, the most photographed of all rock structures in the Southwestern desert. This image was captured shortly after sunrise. I waited until the sun cleared Merrick Butte and illuminated the rocks in the foreground. A large format camera was used to set the focusing plane from the foreground rocks to the Mittens.

Photographed, with a Toyo VX125b, Schneider 210/5.6 Apo-Symmar, on Fuji Velvia

Great Western Divide - Sequoia NP, CA
Great Western Divide – Sequoia NP, CA. August 1999

 

This view is of the Great Western Divide of the Sierra Nevada, which you only get a glimpse of from the western side of the park unless you hike. En route, there are spectacular views of the Sierra foothills to the west starting from Panther Gap. I packed in over 50 lbs. of camera equipment plus a water filter and food on a trail which took over six hours in the beating sun and climbed up to 9000 ft. I was rewarded with orange alpenglow, which disappeared and then reappeared as pink on a different mountain peak. Luckily, my friend, Srikant Jayaraman, carried the bear box and tent.

Photographed, with a Toyo VX125b, Schneider 210/5.6 Apo-Symmar, Velvia

A portfolio of Jim’s photographs taken in Japan can be found here.

All text and photographs on this page are Copyright‚© 1999 James Chow

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Michael Reichmann is the founder of the Luminous Landscape. Michael passed away in May 2016. Since its inception in 1999 LuLa has become the world's largest site devoted to the art, craft, and technology of photography. Each month more than one million people from every country on the globe visit LuLa.

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