Framing

Rushmore Through the Trees

I'll get to the "Scale (Part 2)" entry with the Badlands photographs. Today finishes out the Mount Rushmore set.

More after the jump.

This photograph was taken from one of the last scenic overlooks that we visited in the Black Hills. It was actually taken on the path rather than the overlook itself. I just happened to catch a glimpse of Mount Rushmore through a "tunnel" of trees and thought it would make a good interior frame for the monument. I don't recall what the actual overlook was overlooking as I don't recall actually getting to that particular viewing area.

My mother said it was very convenient for one particular tree to have died. If it had been alive, it would have been standing in the very center of this "tunnel". Without it though we had a clear view of Mount Rushmore, and an image of the monument that you don't typically see. You might notice the dead tree leaning to the left near the center of the frame.

At this particular scenic stop there was a forestry crew clearing out dead or dying trees. Most of the people at the overlook were actually watching the workers. I recall hearing their chainsaws from the "Washington's Profile Overlook" which was quite a distance away and on the other side of Mount Rushmore.

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Scale (Part 1)

George and the Car

Sometimes I find it difficult to convey a sense of scale in landscape photographs. The most common method of doing so is to place something familiar in the frame as a reference. Since, I'm still hesitant to take photographs of strangers, providing that sense of scale by including people in the photograph generally doesn't happen. However, while photographing George Washington's profile at a scenic stop, I realized that I could include a car as a reference scale.

It is not what I would consider the best image that I have from this particular location. On the other hand, it is the one that conveys the scale of the Mount Rushmore monument the best of all of the images that I took that day.

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Mount Rushmore and the Errant Polarizing Filter

Moon and Mount Rushmore

After visiting the relatives in North Dakota, we headed out to return home. Our plan was to go down to South Dakota to visit Mount Rushmore and the South Dakota Badlands. The problem with that plan was that there is not a direct route from northeastern North Dakota to southwestern South Dakota. All of the roads in the Dakotas generally run North-South or East-West. There are precious few diagonal NE-SW / NW-SE trending roads, let alone interstate highways.

The trip took a full day, but we did get to see quite a bit of both Dakotas' various landscapes. They are not as completely flat as you might think. There are distinct regions with their own character that I wish I could have spent more time exploring.

More after the jump.

We spent a couple of nights in Rapid City, South Dakota. Our one full day there was spent visiting Mount Rushmore and some of the Black Hills region. The Mount Rushmore monument has changed since I last visited as a teenager. I remember parking, going up to a single viewing overlook, and then leaving. Since that time the National Park Service has greatly improved the visitors' area with museums, a cafeteria, gift shops (of course), a large amphitheater, and a boardwalk trail that takes you closer to the monument. The trail affords different views and angles then you see in the typical postcard stereotype image. While the trail is not really strenuous, there are stairs on it which make you realize how out of shape you are ... i.e. I need to walk up more stairs. Visitors can also rent a self-guided, recorded tour device near the park's entrance. However, ee didn't rent one as we just wanted to experience the park for ourselves.

This photograph was taken near the "Sculptor's Studio" museum which is along the tour trail. I am always a sucker for daylight moon images as it speaks to my sense of irony having the moon visible during the day. I used a polarizing filter to darken the sky enough to accent the moon above the Presidents' sculptures. Further on down the trail I heard my polarizing filter fall off the lens and clatter down the rocks beneath the boardwalk trail. It didn't break, but it was well beyond my reach. Lesson learned: Don't turn the polarizing filter in the direction which loosens it.

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