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Posted on 24th July 2010 by admin in HDR High Dynamic Range |Landscape
blending, challenge, exposure, filters, HDR, high dynamic range, highlights, image, Landscape, midtones, ND, neutral density, Photography, shadows, single
High Dynamic Range or HDR in it’s shortened form has opened up many new avenues for photography. HDR is a process of blending multiple exposures together to better reproduce the dynamic range of the scene and for the most part it’s a very useful tool indeed. I myself have done many experiments into HDR using bracketing of frames to produce multiple exposures which I can later blend BUT all that blending does take up a lot of time in post processing.
Just doing one image blend with 7 exposures with some fine tuning and manual blending included you can easily spend 1-2 hours to get the image perfect. In some cases it might be worth it to take a very special moment you captured on film and to spend that time working the image to perfection. While this can and does produce some very special effects within images I still find HDR, no matter how well executed, to lack something truly special, an ambience that only a single shot exposure carries.
 One exposure requires finding the perfect moment to capture the image. While some may argue that we’re now in the digital world and we must all move to new and wonderful ways of processing images I say yes and no to that argument. I will use HDR when I find it necessary and with many shoots I will bracket exposures regardless but my primary goal is always to get it right with one exposure. I find simply bracketing exposures on every shoot with the intention of later blending and “fixing” it in photoshop makes one a rather lazy photographer because you tend to find a recipe, set up, compose, bracket and go home to fix. Guilty as charged.
While this approach may be perfectly okay for some I enjoy photography because it challenges my mind. I myself got into a trap for a short while of merely relying on bracketed exposures for nearly all shoots. There were many days when I was too lazy to get out filters and do it properly so it was much easier to just bracket my exposures and do the hard work later in Photoshop.
In the end I was just finding HDR was totally lacking something very special, HDR just looked too perfect and NOT at all how the eye saw it. HDR fanatics (myself included) continually fool themselves into believing that the end product they produce through HDR and image blending is a faithful representation of what they saw, but of the many many photographers I know only a few ever take real notice of what the scene really looks like. The others have their eyes stuck permanently behind the viewfinder relying solely on the camera to capture all the necessary bits of information. I make a point of studying very carefully the scene’s I record and do my best to etch them in my mind, right down to the tiniest details and by doing so I manage to find some very special elements of an image that HDR tends to over-produce and in most cases actually ruin. Shadow areas of an image, for example, are crucial to the depth and feel of an image yet HDR fanatics tend to, what I call rape the shadow areas, lightening them up much more than they appeared to the human eye and it’s so easy to fall into this trap with HDR. Again .. guilty as charged 
In the last year I have slowly forced myself back to basics, getting exposures perfect with a single exposure, without filters and without bracketing. It’s not always easy depending on light conditions but actually a lot of the time it is and it all comes down to timing, planning and using all available and natural elements to control the flow of light into the camera.
I’ve enjoyed my journey with HDR and I do know I will still use HDR methods for certain work but with landscape, nature and some other forms of photography I’m finding the step back to basics to be producing very special images like none other and it’s made my photography all that more interesting and challenging again. The mental challenge has always been my driving force and it’s good to have that old friend back at my side.
MK
Posted on 23rd July 2010 by admin in Landscape
Africa, african, cape town, commercial, drakensberg, dramatic, endless, Fine-Art, Landscape, namibia, opportunities, Photographer, photographing, Photography, South Africa, Western Cape
Africa is by far one of the most diverse landscapes in the world and much of it is still undiscovered by the lens. Many photographers would trade a limb to have access to the African landscape yet a great majority of South African photographers seem intent on travelling around the world to photograph landscapes that have been well covered by other photographers, all the while a treasure chest of images lies right under their noses.
 "Mercury Down II" The sun sets and the mercury indicator starts to drop after a very hot day in Namibia - Copyright Mitchell Krog / Living Canvas Photography. All Rights Reserved.
For the budding and professional landscape photographer there is virtually endless landscape photographic opportunities in Africa and Southern Africa. South African photographer Mitchell Krog is no stranger to the African landscape and spends many months a year exploring, discovering and capturing breathtaking images of the beautiful African landscapes. Mitchell chooses to completely avoid re-capturing images which have been captured a million times or more, “I just don’t see the point in photographing things that have are captured 100 times a day when there is just so much that has NOT even been photographed yet” he says.
 "Drakensberg Sunrise" - The sun rises over the beautiful and majestic mountainous region of the Drakensberg of South Africa. Copyright Mitchell Krog / Living Canvas Photography. All Rights Reserved. The greatest parts of the undiscovered African landscape are only accessible via foot and often many kilometers of walking can be involved simply to capture one image. As Mitchell Krog says, “This is the game unfortunately and quite simply if you’re not willing to go the extra “mile”, excuse the pun, you will not return home with any new or unique images that have not been captured already. The Drakensberg region of South Africa, of which the greatest area lies within the province of Kwazulu Natal, is a good example. Photographers seeking to cover this area really need to go many extra miles to get to unique locations and in the Drakensberg there literally is endless locations on offer. The Drakensberg is so diverse and the landscape is ever changing, the light is so dramatic that you could sit and photograph the same scene every day for 365 days and not one image would be the same, it is for this very reason that I can say the landscape opportunities of the Drakensberg are endless.”
 "Table Mountain at Dusk" - One of the most photographed mountains in the world, Table Mountain. Copyright Mitchell Krog / Living Canvas Photography. All Rights Reserved. Similarly the Western Cape region of South Africa is also very mountainous and has some very dramatic landscapes. The Cape weather is rather unpredictable but this coupled with dramatic light seems to make for a good recipe for excellent landscape photography opportunities. The Cape is one of the most photographically covered regions of South Africa but this does ot mean that there is not still many landscape photography opportunities in store for the visiting photographer. No doubt South Africa will see many international photographers visiting our shores as the World Cup Soccer draws closer and it will be interesting to see how fresh eyes portray our beautiful landscapes.
Copyright – Living Canvas Photography / African Photography Blog – Duplication in part or whole is expressly forbidden. All images and photographs are copyright to Mitchell Krog & Living Canvas photography and may not be used without prior permissions. All images are available in limited and regular edition print series on archival quality papers and canvas through the web site www.livingcanvas.co.za – You may syndicate articles from this blog using our RSS feeds but all syndicated articles must link back to the original content on this site. Please see the Copyright page for more information.
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Posted on 2nd February 2010 by admin in Tutorials
dynamic, HDR, high, Landscape, Photography, range, tutorial
Table of Contents
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Overview |
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The Situation |
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A New(-ish) Approach |
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What is HDR? |
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Definition of HDR |
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HDR vs. 8- or 16-bit Formats |
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Capturing HDR Image Data |
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What Is HDR Good For? |
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| 3. |
Setting Up the Input Images |
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Physical Setup |
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Camera Setup |
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Determining the Exposure Sequence |
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RAW Conversion |
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Single Frame Scenes vs. Multi-frame Stitched Panoramas |
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Processing a Single Frame HDR Image |
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Tools Used |
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Workflow 1 – Photoshop CS2 |
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Workflow 2 – Photomatix Pro |
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Comparison of Workflow Results |
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Processing a Multi-Frame Stitched HDR Image |
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Tools Used |
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Differences from the Single Frame Workflow |
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Workflow Overview |
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Gallery of HDR Images |
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Conclusion |
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Wish List |
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References |
Posted on 17th September 2009 by admin in Articles |Isle of Skye |Landscape |Scotland |Travel
castles, Isle of Skye, kilt rock, lakes, Landscape, lochs, mountains, Photography, Scotland, skye, Travel, waterfalls
The Isle of Skye is simply one of the most dramatic looking island in the world.
 Isle of Skye Landscape Photography Scotland It has snowcapped mountains, rugged coastlines, castles, stone temples, waterfalls that plunge into the sea, green farming pastures and massive lakes (lochs). Add a completely unpredictable weather pattern and you have all the right ingredients for landscape/travel photography.
The island is surprisingly large and would take at least one full day of continuous driving to circle. Quite conveniently, the island is split into four main clusters of attractions. We had four days on Skye and planned spending a day in each section, but due to the weather, decided to skip the south east. You could easily spend a month in Skye and still have plenty to photograph.
Read this full article with fantastic images from Travel Photographers John & Tina Reid.
Posted on 8th September 2009 by admin in Articles |Black and White |Fine-Art |Kosi Bay |Kwazulu Natal |Landscape |Monochrome |SA Photographers |Scotland |Seascapes |South Africa |Travel
black, camera, Cameras, canvas, classic, Fine-Art, Landscape, megapixels, photography. monochrome, prints, processing, Scotland, soul, South Africa, texture. contrast, tones, vintage, white
In this wonderful colourful world of ours why would anyone want to strip everything down to black, white and shades of grey? Quite simply because black and white imagery remains to be one of the most powerful photographic mediums and it still very much alive and well. All photography started as black and white originally until geniuses figured out ways of capturing colour on film, since then colour photography has come a very long way indeed but black and white certainly has not left the master photographers toolbox.
When you strip away all the colour in an image you get down to the bare essentials of life. A black and white photograph has a certain mystique about it and once all that colour is out of the way we get down to the life and soul of imagery at its most powerful. Where a colour image does not need much more than colour to get a WOW factor out of viewers, a black and white image needs to have a lot more going for it in order to captivate a viewer, stop them in their tracks and keep them looking at the image for a considerable length of time. Textures, tones and contrasts are the be-all and end-all of good black and white photography and few photographers ever master this delicate process which is not as simple as using some arbitrary plug in to turn a colour image into a black and white image.
 "Harry Potter's World". This panoramic image of Glenfinnan in the Western Scottish Highlands was home to parts of some of the Harry Potter movies and ever since has become a tourist hot spot. The full size image weighs in at 93 megapixels and will soon be available for purchase in the online print ordering galleries. From Mitchell Krog's Scotland Landscape Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) With today’s advances in digital camera technology everything is about colour and even black and white digital photographers have to capture all their images in colour, that’s just the way digital sensors work. A black and white photographer however does not see the colour when he is taking the image, he already sees the tones, textures and contrasts in his minds eye and strips all the colour out long before even clicking the shutter knowing well that the image he has captured is going to make a great black and white image.
Anyone can make a black and white image !!! Yes anyone can, but few ever master the true time honoured techniques developed by masters like Ansel Adams. It is most easy to take any colour photograph and turn it into a black and white image, that can be done in under 30 seconds with any plugin developed for this purpose, but the chances of that image standing the test of time as a black and white masterpiece is rather slim. Black and White is not something to be used as an after-thought or a remedy for a poorly taken colour image, it is an image that was shot from the word go with the intention of the final image being black and white and there most certainly is a big difference between the two.
 "Secluded" A fisherman braves the cold morning weather. A good black and white image has a wide range of contrasts, tones and textures which give the image depth and soul. From the Black and White Photography Collections by Mitchell Krog. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) As photography has advanced in recent years, photographers are continually in search of noise free images, meaning images with little or no film grain in the images. Stock Agencies continually feed this “noise free” perfection in images immediately rejecting images with even the slightest of noise. As such it has become the ultimate goal to produce noise free images and photographers will always be waiting for the newest camera body promising better noise handling while also developing an armada of noise removal techniques in Photoshop or their favourite image processing application. Unfortunately a great majority of photographers today have become too accustomed to publishing their images online in galleries and seldom ever take their work to print. Critiques delivered on online forums will immediately start off with the amount of noise in an image, this results in the photographer doing noise removal and smoothing of areas of the image to produce the perfect online image. But when it comes to taking that same smooth, noise-free image to print it does not necessarily produce a very good print versus an image that still has some natural grain still in the image. The grain actually gives life and depth to an image whereas important details are lost when that has all been smoothed out with noise removal software.
A good black and white image contains film grain and without it the image is flat, dull and most incredibly boring. If you happen to work with a professional print agency that’s knows their stuff, they will actually introduce grain back into images before printing them and once you have compared the two side by side you will think twice about producing super smooth images for print ever again.
 "Deadwood". Black and white imagery contains a wide array of textures, contrasts and tones. Film grain adds life and depth into the image. From Mitchell Krog's Black and White Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Watch out for more articles on black and white / monochrome imaging by South African Black and White Fine Art Photographer Mitchell Krog.
Posted on 7th September 2009 by admin in Articles |Landscape |Night Photography |Pretoria |SA Photographers |South Africa |Travel |Tshwane |Urban Landscape
Africa, botanical, city, elements, gardens, human, Landscape, monuments, museums, night, nightlife, Photography, skyline, south, sunsets, urban
Landscape photographers will often disregard the Urban Landscape, missing many photography opportunities right on their doorsteps. While lengthy drives several hundreds of kilometres away may reveal pristine landscapes, it is not always possible for many photographers to travel such distances. As a landscape photographer based in or near a city you can still easily keep your landscape photography in tune and up to scratch by using opportunities closer to home.It is also no secret that some of the best images you may ever produce will come from locations close to home, locations that you have become familiar with.
 The Voortrekker Monument with the Magaliesburg Mountains in the Distance Photographed from Fort Schanskop in Pretoria. From Mitchell Krog's Urban Landscape Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) South African landscape photographer Mitchell Krog often travels to various locations around South Africa, no matter where he ends up he always seems to find a landscape photography opportunity, be it pristine landscapes or cities full of human elements. It’s all about conditioning, says Mitchell, too many photographers have conditioned their minds to thinking a landscape photograph must be “pure” and “pristine” when quite simply life and our planet is just not that way. We are after all humans and as photographers we should not only seek out untouched landscapes but also from time to time include evidence of our impact on the planet in photographs, including human elements can often add great impact to images.
 The Iconic Telkom Tower and The University of South Africa UNISA Buildings at Night Photographed from Fort Schanskop Near the Voortrekker Monument Just Outside Pretoria. From Mitchell Krog's Urban Night Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Cities are full of exciting things to photograph. Virtually every city in South Africa has a history going back 100 years or more, there are monuments, museums and lots of modern architecture just begging to be photographed. Of course crime in South Africa is always of concern to a photographer but there is a multitude of safe locations around city centre’s and for those safety conscious individuals, shooting in groups is often advisable. Botanical gardens offer a safe haven for photographers and most major cities in South Africa have one with very reasonable access fees, some even free.
Posted on 5th September 2009 by admin in Articles |Cape Town |Eastern Cape |Fine-Art |Kwazulu Natal |Landscape |SA Photographers |Seascapes |South Africa |Travel |Western Cape
Africa, elements, Fine-Art, human, Landscape, Photography, South Africa
South Africa is such a diverse and beautiful country and is steeped in culture and heritage. Located at the Southern tip of Africa with 2798 kilometers of coastline, a photographer could spend his life exploring just the coastline and would not come even close to photographing a tiny percentage of it. Between the coastlines sits a very diverse landscape, mountain ranges, desert, semi-arid, forests and sub-tropical regions to name but a few. There is no end to the landscape photography options available for a photographer and it is one reason that South Africa is such a prized destination for landscape photographers world-wide. Of course let’s not forget that South Africa is the top destination in the world for Wildlife photography too and many top wildlife photographers have all but made Southern Africa their home.
 South Africa's Rugged Coastline Offers Un-ending Opportunities for the Landscape Photographer. The Coastline of the Western Cape is among the most popular coastlines for landscape photographers. From Mitchell Krog's South African Landscape and Seascape Portfolios. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The Western Cape coastline is undoubtedly one of the most popular stretches of coastline for both South African and International landscape photographers and this region of South Africa has bred some really talented photographers who truly appreciate and understand the gift that they have on their doorstep.
 Panorama of the Kogel Bay, Western Cape Coastline at Sunset. From Mitchell Krog's South African Landscape and Seascape Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The Eastern Cape stretch of coastline becomes even more rugged and is a place full of adventure and there is a reason why it got named “The Wild Coast”. For photographers this stretch of coastline involves much walking and climbing over dunes and dangerous rocks but only those willing to go the effort of getting to the best locations are the one’s to return with beautiful images of this coastline. There are many parts of this coastline, also known as the “Sunshine Coast” that have hardly been explored, least of all photographed.
Approximately halfway between industrial centres Port Elizabeth and East London sits a quaint little seaside coastal town called Kenton On Sea. Nestled between the Bushman’s and Kariega Rivers it’s an ideal holiday destination and full of opportunities for the landscape photographer. The area has many pristine beaches and a declared nature reserve along the shoreline ensures that no housing developments can spoil the coastline.
 Carriage Rock is a recognisable landmark on the Kenton-On-Sea, Eastern Cape coastline. Captured here at sunrise by South African Landscape Photographer Mitchell Krog. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved)  Carriage Rock, a recognisable landmark at Kenton-On-Sea captured at first light with movement in the water by South African fine-art landscape photographer Mitchell Krog. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Moving further North along the coastline we get to Kwazulu Natal with Durban as the metropolis. Durban and the surrounding coastal towns has for many years been the top location for holidays. It’s a half day drive from Johannesburg and even in winter the weather is warm and mild, making it the ideal all year round destination. This stretch of coastline offers some wonderful opportunities for the landscape photographer but much of this coastline has had poorly planned developments encroach right onto the beach fronts. There are still many areas where development has been kept more inland allowing the photographer to capture images with hardly any human element in them. South African fine-art landscape photographer Mitchell Krog however believes that photographers try too hard to capture pristine images without any human element visible and including such elements in a landscape image can add a great sense of scale, impact and drama to an image.
 A Lonesome Fisherman at Sunrise on the Kwazulu Natal Coastline. Including Human Elements in a Landscape can add great impact to a photograph. From Mitchell Krog's South African Landscape and Seascape Portfolios. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Landscape photographer’s generally seek the best weather for a photograph and will often pack up and go home if conditions are not optimal. Come rain or shine a landscape or seascape photographer should be prepared for any weather that nature cares to throw his or her way. Instead of packing up, a photographer should learn to use the conditions available to their best advantage. Cold stormy days can produce images otherwise unobtainable when the light is too bright. Where human elements are unavoidable a photographer needs to get creative and seek out intimate parts of the landscape.
 Where it is difficult to keep human elements out of a photograph, a photographer must get creative and isolate intimate parts of the landscape. From Mitchell Krog's Landscape and Seascape Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) SA born landscape and seascape photographer Mitchell Krog regularly travels to coastal destinations around South Africa and has produced numerous masterpieces. Mitchell believes that for photographers the South African coastal landscape offers endless opportunities.
Posted on 2nd September 2009 by admin in Articles |Cape Town |Environmental |Fine-Art |Landscape |SA Photographers |South Africa |Travel
Africa, biodiversity, cape, coastal, Fine-Art, Landscape, mountains, ocean, Photography
One of the most diverse regions of South Africa has got to be the Western Cape. Recognised as one of the most beautiful places on earth it offers a vast range of attractions, breathtaking sights and endless activities. It is a year round holiday destination attracting tourists from all over the world and it caters to everyone’s taste, no matter how fickle you are. The Western Cape has a varied yet mild climate and has a rich cultural heritage. The Capital Cape Town is known as the mother city of South Africa as this is where it all began. Cape Town is such a vibrant city with so much to do and see that you would need a lengthy holiday to tackle just some of it, this is however why the Cape keeps people coming back for more year after year.
Internationally the Western Cape is well known for it’s Fynbos Floral Kingdom which is the most diverse floral entity in the world. There are still new plant species being recorded all the time and the Fynbos biome is protected and heralded worldwide. It is however constantly under threat from development but environmentalists are quick to pounce and take action to ensure that the Fynbos is there for future generations to appreciate. Many communities have stood together and proclaimed conservancies to ensure that development is kept low-key and that new developments do not come along and bulldoze the fynbos without knowing what they are actually destroying.
 The Cape Fynbos is as diverse as life itself. From Mitchell Krog's Cape Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The diversity of fynbos plants is greater than that of the tropical rainforests, with over 9000 species of plants occurring in the area, (and new species being recorded annually) around 6200 of which are endemic, i.e. do not occur anywhere else in the world. Of the Ericas (Heaths/Heathers), 600 occur in the fynbos kingdom, while only 26 are found in the rest of the world. This is in an area of 46,000 km² – by comparison, the Netherlands, with an area of 33,000 km², has 1400 species, none of them endemic. Table Mountain in Cape Town supports 2200 species, more than the entire United Kingdom. Thus although the Fynbos comprises only 6% of the area of southern Africa it has half the species on the subcontinent, and in fact has almost 1 in 5 of all plant species in Africa.
Many of the fynbos seeds germinate only after the intense heat of a fire, and so fire is a necessary stage in the lives of almost all fynbos plants. Out of death comes new life, the simplicity of it is just beautiful. World Famous Rooibos Tea (Aspalathus linearis) and Honeybush Tea (Cyclopia intermedia) are of economic importance and are grown and harvested in large quantities in the Cederberg area. These two crops make up a very important export for South Africa and provides jobs to local communities. Proteas and other floral species are also grown in many areas and their flowers harvested for export, you will often see a King Protea (Protea cynaroides) when walking into an international hotel. Restios (Reeds) continue to be used for thatching as they have for hundreds or even thousands of years and there are many different species some growing only 30cm tall some 3 meters. Fynbos areas are popular attractions for tourists, especially in the vicinity of Cape Town, and are also important recreational areas for locals.
 The Recognisable and Most Photographed Mountain in South Africa. Table Mountain panorama at sunset. From Mitchell Krog's Cape Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The Cape attracts photographers from all over the world and there is no wonder why. The face of the Cape is constantly changing and as a photographer you could never dream of photographing it in it’s entirety in your lifetime but it certainly does not stop us trying. The coastal belt stretching from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth is so diverse just exploring one area properly could take months and with photography it’s all about timing. Those photographers unafraid to get their feet wet or put their camera equipment at risk in the icy cold waters of the Cape will be sure to return with beautiful images to treasure for a lifetime.
 The well known and well photographed Kommetjie Lighthouse at Slangkop Punt near Cape Town. From Mitchell Krog's Cape Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The first European to reach the cape was the Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias in 1488, who named it the “Cape of Storms” (Cabo das Tormentas). It was later renamed by John II of Portugal as “Cape of Good Hope” (Cabo da Boa Esperança) because of the great optimism engendered by the opening of a sea route to India and the East. Many a sea going vessel has fought the waters of the Cape during a storm and lost.
 The Fairest Cape of Storms. This tiny panoramic image does no justice to the full sized image clocking in at around 84 megapixels. From Mitchell Krog's Cape Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) South African Fine-Art Landscape and Wildlife Photographer Mitchell Krog, regularly travels to the Western Cape for Photography. This is the first in a series of articles dealing with his Cape Photography trips and three never before published images are included in this article. Mitchell has spent much of his life in environmental and conservation circles and has spent years fighting for the protection of the fynbos against unscrupulous developers and golf estates. Mitchell has been writing environmental, horticultural, technology and photography articles for nearly 16 years and has been published both locally and internationally in all sorts of publications and web sites.
Posted on 31st August 2009 by admin in Articles |Environmental |Landscape |Lightning |Magaliesburg |Reviews |SA Photographers |South Africa |Storms
Africa, getaway, Landscape, Magaliesburg, mohale, Photography, sunsets, Travel
With views stretching forever and a day across the North West Province and some of the most magical sunsets anywhere in South Africa, it’s no wonder that the Magaliesburg is one of Gauteng’s top weekend getaways, the Magaliesburg is a truly magical place. South African Photographer Mitchell Krog who resides in Magaliesburg has spent the last four years photographing the beautiful environments of Magaliesburg and has achieved much acclaim with his photography.
 You Can See Forever and a Day. The views from Magaliesburg stretch far into the North West province. From Mitchell Krog's Magaliesburg Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The Magaliesberg Range has a very long geological history. Its quartzites, shales, chert and dolomite were deposited as sediments in an inland basin on top of the 3 billion year old Archaean Basement Complex. This process of sedimentation lasted for about 300 million years. About 2 billion years ago a massive upwelling of molten magma resulted in what is now known as the Bushveld Igneous Complex. The enormous weight of this intrusion depressed the sediments that lay beneath and tilted the sediments along the edges so that the broken scarps faced outward and upward, and the gentler dip slopes inward. During the same period these sediments were fractured and igneous intrusions of dolerite filled the cracks. With the passage of time these intrusions eroded, especially on the dip slopes, forming deep kloofs or ravines providing excellent rock-climbing potential to modern man. This large dogbone-shaped area is now termed the Transvaal Basin and includes the lofty escarpment of the Transvaal Drakensberg overlooking the Lowveld in the eastern part of the country. Massive outpourings of igneous material of the much younger Karroo System later covered the Transvaal Basin, but this was subsequently eroded so that it only remains along the Transvaal Basin’s southern rim.
 The Beautiful Golden Winter Colours of a Winter Sunset Over the Magaliesburg Mountains. From Mitchell Krog's Magaliesburg Photography Collection. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) The Magaliesburg Mountain range forms a natural barrier between the lower lying Bushveld to the north and the cooler Highveld to the south. The range receives rainfall in summer in the form of thunderstorms, with an average of 650mmm annually. In winter frost occurs frequently in the valleys on the southern side of the mountain, but almost never on the northern slopes. Mitchell Krog, a specialist and award winning lightning photographer has produced some incredible lightning images from Magaliesburg.
 Fire and Ice. The First Electrical Storm of Summer Sets The Grass Lands Alight. From Mitchell Krog's Lightning Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Watch our for more in photos and articles in this series about Magaliesburg.
~ Mitchell Krog
Posted on 29th August 2009 by admin in Articles |Fine-Art |Landscape |Reviews |SA Photographers |Scotland |South Africa |Travel
award, Fine-Art, forest, isle, Isle of Skye, koeel bay, kogel bay, Landscape, Photography, Scotland, skye, South Africa, sunsets, Travel, Western Cape
South African Fine Art Landscape Photographer Mitchell Krog has quickly risen to become one of South Africa’s top Landscape Photographers. His breathtaking images have captured the attention of audiences around the world and he never fails to produce bleeding edge photography no matter where he travels to. Mitchell has been published on a number of occasions and has become a regular contributor of article and images to photographic and lifestyle magazines.
Mitchell regularly travels to all corners of South Africa and abroad to keep bringing high class quality images to the Photographic Market Place. He is regularly featured on a number of internet forums and communities and has contributed thousands of hours to helping budding photographers to improve their game.
 The Wild Waters of Kogel Bay in the Western Cape. From Mitchell Krog's Western Cape Landscape Photography Series (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Mitchell has also developed a very fine eye for black and white photography and has produced a number of spectacular black and white seascape images on his trips around South Africa. Black and White photography, says Mitchell, despite this colourful world we live in, remains to be one of the most powerful mediums of photography. When the colour is stripped away we get down to the basics and simplicity of life. Black and white photographers have to have a keen eye for tones, contrasts, textures and especially light, without which a black and white image would be dull and dreary. Black and white or sometimes referred to as Monotone or Monochrome, captures the very soul and essence of nature.
Secluded. A fisherman braves the cold morning weather. From the South Coast Landscape Photography Series by Mitchell Krog. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) Mitchell also travels abroad and captured a variety of magical images on his trip to Scotland earlier in 2009. Covering over 2700 kilometres by vehicle and approximately 30-40 kilometers on foot, well lets just say this trip was not one of resting and Mitchell showed his total dedication to going the extra “mile” to find those incredible images he keeps producing. Mitchell was awarded First Runner Up for his image Sentinels in the first South African PIX Awards of 2009.
 Sentinels. Ancient Trees stand guard over the Forest Floor. From Mitchell Krog's Scotland Landscape Photography Series. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved)
 Miles from Nowhere, Isle of Skye, Scotland. From Mitchell Krog's Scotland Landscape Photography Series. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved) This is the first edition of a series of articles on Landscape Photography by Mitchell Krog.
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