Yosemite Stock Photo Gallery

I've added a Yosemite Stock Photo Gallery. It's a collection from the past. I was inspired after losing a one terabyte drive with all my photos on it. I had about eighty percent backed up, but that's not one hundred percent now is it. After getting a couple of outrageous estimates I found Eco Data Recovery. John Marshall gave me a quote that was half of what the others offered. They did a great job and I'm very grateful.

After getting the drive back I started to organize the photos and reprocess some of the files in Lightroom. Some of the photos were scans of 35mm Slides, others were from my 6 mp Rebel and most were from my 1Ds Mark III. I found that Lightroom improved them all. For a few I used a free Lightroom preset from Heather Green. It's called "Warm and Lighten." Photos taken in higher elevations tend to have more blue and can look harsh. Heather's preset was just the ticket.


I found that I had ignored many of the files and was pleasantly surprised by some. I can see plenty of room for improvement too. I can't wait to go again and try out some new ideas. For more info check out my previous post "Photographing Yosemite in Winter".



For more on Yosemite Photos see my Yosemite Stock Photo Gallery and Yosemite Winter Photo Gallery. Take a look at Heather Green's Lightroom Presets

Great books to check out and take along are Andrew Hudson's PhotoSecrets Yosemiteor PhotoSecrets San Francisco & Northern California: The Best Sights and How to Photograph Them. The Yosemite Section is included in the San Francisco book.

Michael Frye's The Photographer's Guide to Yosemite is terrific as well.

Photos: The top photo is Yosemite Valley from Tunnel View, 2nd photo is Yosemite Falls, 3rd is Half Dome from the valley floor, 4th is Half Dome from Glacier Point, and the last photo is the shortest fall in the park Fern Springs (near Pohono Bridge).

Photographing Yosemite in Winter

So often I hear "Why bother with Yosemite, it's been done." Well that never occurred to me as I walked along side the Merced River and looked across it's snow covered banks onto El Capitan. The black oaks were covered with a dusting of snow and the red cliffs popped out from the stark white snow. I was all alone in the dark and the sun was just starting to rise. It's the rush, that's why I come here. The camera is just along for the ride.


Winter provides a magic spell over the valley. There are snow covered peaks, wildlife and small frosted treasures. It feels like you have the whole place to yourself. The North Road was closed, but I found plenty of places to go. I went to Swinging Bridge, El Capitan, The Chapel, Cooks Meadow, Sentinel Bridge, Ahwahnee Meadow, Tunnel View, and the trail behind the Ahwahnee. I never saw anyone at Sunrise and just a few people during the day. There were lots of cars in the parking lot, but it seems that everybody went skiing up at Badger Pass.


The secret to shooting Yosemite in winter, is to wait for a storm and then go. I didn't have resevations until 2 days prior. I stayed at Yosemite Lodge and it couldn't have been better. The staff there is first rate. They made me feel welcome. The soup's great at the cafeteria and don't forget to buy chains for your shoes. I'm talking about Yaktrax Walkers. You'll slip and slide all over the place without them. Make sure you bring chains for your car too. You're required to carry them in winter. I always bring my Photo Secrets book on Yosemite and The Photographer's Guide to Yosemite by Michael Frye.

For more photos see my Yosemite Winter Photo Gallery.