Colors on the Water, March 13, 2012

Colors on the water at Carter P Johnson Reservoir, Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

A study in soft lines and color contrast. The evening sun turned the shoreline gold, and I looked for shots of it reflected in the water. The zig-zag pattern is not really repeated throughout the frame, though the idea behind it is. I like the dark bump at the bottom, which acts as an anchor for the overall scene, and a contrasting point for the brightest part at the top of the frame.

An Afternoon at Fort Robinson, March 13, 2012

 

Trees along Soldier Creek Road in Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Colors on the water at Carter P Johnson Reservoir, Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Bush and clouds at Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Sunset on the water at Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Birds flying over Fort Robinson State Park, March 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Snowy Lagoon at Chadron State Park, February 20, 2012

 

Ice on the lagoon in Chadron State Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Footprints from the picnic area toward the lagoon in Chadron State Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Tree reflections on the lagoon in Chadron State Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Trees overlap trees in Chadron State Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

 

Llamas look up near Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Llama near Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoo closeup at Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Slanted hoodoos at Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Rock formations recline on a hillside in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos and hillsides in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

A runoff channel leads toward a horseshoe bend of Big Cottonwood Creek in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Horseshoe bend of Big Cottonwood Creek in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Llamas at Toadstool Park, February 19, 2012

Llamas look up near Toadstool Geologic Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

These friendly critters live on ranchland that borders on Toadstool Geologic Park, and on this day I was able to look in on the period-style sod house that's part of the park, then turn and say hello. The llamas didn't quite want to approach the fence, but they were curious. This composition uses a triangular arrangement of the llamas — and how nice of them to arrange themselves for me! I also like the contrasting tones of their dark and light furs.

Snow at Toadstool Park, February 18, 2012

 

Frost on the rocks in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos and cairn in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Hoodoos in Toadstool Geological Park, with Sugarloaf Butte in the background, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Bush and hoodoo in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Contrail and hillside in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Cliffside cactus in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Swale and windmill in Toadstool Geological Park, with Sugarloaf Butte in the background, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Windmill and water tank in Toadstool Geological Park, February 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Panorama Notes

The 8mm fisheye, mounted vertically and using only horizontal shots, produces 360x180° panoramas without much hassle. Many panoramas are workable using only Hugin's automated settings (turn on rotation search in preferences). Adding zenith/nadir shots tends to increase likelihood of errors and necessitates manual control points. Producing quality stereographic projections requires careful use of zenith/nadir shots or outer edges will suffer from heavy interpolation artifacts.

Further testing is necessary to determine if the zenith/nadir shots can be force-stitched into the panorama. Perhaps crop upper edges of horizontal shots?

Further testing is necessary to determine number of shots for 360x180° panorama from 12-24mm. Stereographic projections should have clearer edges with this setup.

Note: Plate settings are preliminary.

D2x with Kirk Enterprises L-bracket.
PG-02 Ultimate-Pro Omni-Pivot

Sigma 8mm f/4 EX

Horizontal
CB-10: 8
PG-02 VA: 4 inside edge
MPR-CL II: 6

Row middle: 270° + 90° stops = 4 shots
Row up/down: 225° + 90° stops / 315° + 90° stops = 8 shots
Zenith/nadir: 0° + 1 / 180° + 1 = 2 shots

Vertical
CB-10: 8
PG-02 VA: Between 10 and 5
MPR-CL II: 9.2

Row middle: 270° + 45° stops = 8 shots
Zenith/nadir: 0° +1 / 180° + 1 = 2 shots

Tokina 12-24mm f/4 ATX (12mm)

Horizontal
CB-10: 8
PG-02 VA: 4 inside edge
MPR-CL II: 7.6

Row middle: 270° + 45° stops = 8 shots
Row up/down: 225° + 45° stops / 315° + 45° stops = 16 shots
Zenith/nadir: 0° + 1 / 180° + 1

AF-S Nikkor 18-70 f/3.5-4.5 DX (18mm)

Vertical
CB-10: 8
PG-02 VA: Just under 10 outside edge
MPR-CL II: 9