Outdoor Photographer October/November 2021

When To Use Black & White Monochrome may be a better choice than color for some nature photos. Here’s how to decide. By Aaron Baggenstos On Landscape William Neill’s column on the fine art of landscape photography explores thoughtful approaches to composition and creativity. Assignments Share your best shots in our weekly “Assignments” photo challenges. Submit images that fit the week’s theme—you may be our next Assignment winner. Tip Of The Week Available on our website—or delivered directly to your inbox—our “Tip of the Week” provides shooting and processing techniques to sharpen your photography skills. Sign up today. Connect With Us Get the latest news and be inspired by great photos from the Outdoor Photographer community. Newsletter Subscribe today for updates on the latest features, how-to articles and photography news. outdoorphotographer.com/newsletter/…

I get asked all the time, ‘Why black-and-white?’” Kristi Odom says. It’s certainly a less-common choice for wildlife photography, where the impulse is to document animals and their habitats in full color. For Odom, the answer lies in the simplicity of black-and-white, focusing attention more precisely on the textures and gestures of her wild subjects. In this special double issue, we explore the artistry of monochrome photography from several perspectives. Odom’s feature, “Wildlife In Black & White,” narrates her departure from a degree in electrical engineering into the darkroom, where she fell in love with the process of photography. Though some of her methods have evolved along with technology, she still relies on the foundations of her early years with film when she studied the work of the medium’s masters and…

Kristi Odom is a Nikon Ambassador, an associate fellow of iLCP and a motivational speaker. Her photographs and films focus on connecting people emotionally to wildlife, and her award-winning images have been published in National Geographic, Forbes and Rolling Stone. See more of her work at kristiodom.com. Darren White is best known for his fine art prints and work along the Oregon Coast. His photography has been used in collaboration with clients including Sigma, Robus Supports, Microsoft, Portland Monthly magazine, Craft Brewers Alliance and others. See more of his work at darrenwhitephotography.com. QT Luong’s photographs are extensively published and have been the subject of large-format books, including Treasured Lands (winner of six national book awards) and his latest book, Our National Monuments, which explores 27 national monuments across 11 states. See more…

Photographer: Darren White Location: Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Washington Equipment: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM Situation: I realized it was going to be a good day for shooting waterfalls when I woke up to a light drizzle. A friend and I packed our gear and drove into Gifford Pinchot National Forest to begin our adventure. Lower Lewis River Falls is one of the several falls located along the Lewis River in southwest Washington state. It’s an iconic location that provides varied atmospheric conditions throughout the year. When we arrived on this crisp fall morning, we could see the fog just lingering in the trees. The most popular view is from a viewing deck that overlooks the entire area. I knew I wanted a lower vantage point where I…

Grand Prize Enchanted Forest By Pat Rose “The Pacific Northwest: mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, the ocean. It’s pure joy to explore this region’s most beautiful locations and observe the majesty, the romance and the quiet grace on display in this part of the country. “Some of my most treasured moments spent photographing this environment are still alive for me. I remember especially well the magic of hiking one golden, misty November morning into the fairy tale world of Metlako Falls along the Eagle Creek Trail in the Columbia River Gorge. On that extraordinary morning, the splendid light and lingering fog seemed to magnify the brilliance of the autumn colors and the luminous glow of the falls, offering me a gift of singular beauty that is now forever preserved in this example of the American…

The Sony FE 14mm F1.8 G Master lens is both Sony’s widest full-frame prime and its brightest ultra-wide full-frame lens. The 14th lens in Sony’s high-end G Master series, it joins a growing list of premium Sony lenses. Yet, through a combination of impressive design and performance, the Sony 14mm F1.8 GM manages to stand out. We’ll get to the lens’s excellent optical performance, but before that, it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate just how compact and lightweight the Sony 14mm F1.8 GM lens is. At only 3.9 inches long and weighing about a pound, it’s much smaller and lighter than the Sigma 14mm F1.8 DG HSM | Art lens for Sony E-mount, which weighs 2.6 pounds. Unlike the Sigma lens, Sony’s new prime has been designed from the ground…