Photo Hike

[Farktographer]

I went on a hike to Yosemite this past 4th of July and got some shots I’m pretty happy with. Word from this experience – if you’re hiking 22 miles with 50 lbs of stuff on your back, it’s not smart to bring another 15 lbs of camera equipment :shock:. Next time I’ll stick with a single lens and a small tripod.

ND filter? I don’t need no stinkin’ ND filter!

Another (cropped) photo using my sunglasses as an ND filter

/Apologies – that page got real heavy, real fast.

[orionid]

I’m jealous. I’d have also had just as much photo gear. My second hike up Koko Head on Oahu I didn’t regret any of the camera gear. Just the four-pound maglight.

[ravnostic]

This…

…is fantastic. I really like that shot.

[Kestrana]

Gorgeous shots

[CauseISaidSo]

Yeah, I’m about fed up with you east/west coasters and your gorgeous scenary. Not that I’d go out in it even if we had it here with the heatwave we’ve been having (100 degrees in the shade of my back deck).

Lots of nice shots there. The one rav highlights almost makes me queasy.

[Farktographer]

Thanks, everyone 🙂 Yeah, I definitely don’t regret it – I’d just plan differently next time :mrgreen:. I talked to my boss who’s really into photography, and he says he’s too old to carry around all the gear now, so he told me I might as well do it while I’m young.

The one that Rav highlighted was a few yards away from where we slept on Dewey Point. There’s a cliff under there, but not *right* under it. This is where we had some fun with framing.

Another shot we did:

And then the one that ruins the magic:

Still, I was surprised with that first shot because that girl is deathly afraid of heights, and she was freaking as we tried to talk her up there. Probably about a 2-3,000 foot drop if you go another 5 yards forward.

[chupathingie]

HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH! I was gonna echo Rav‘s admiration (and actually I think I still will) but you made me bust up with the spoiler… I needed a laugh after the way this week is panning out.

Man, you got some beautiful shots… my inner landscape geek is telling me in no uncertain terms to get to Yosemite…

[Farktographer]

This is a magician’s cove, where we can share spoilers like this and just never reveal them to the general public, right? 😉

[chupathingie]

I’ll never tell!

[Farktographer]

Oh, and perspective for the drop where those photos were taken – the picture I have up right after the raven eating the snake, if you look in the top-left on the cliff, you’ll see my other friend standing on the top of a boulder (easier to see on the larger version). If we slipped and fell the wrong way off those shots you were admiring earlier it’d be landing a few feet from something like that, so I’ll still gladly accept the queasy-ness

[Plamadude30k]

Some great shots in here, looks like you had a great time! Did you happen to see any indication of the snow levels a little further south (near Bishop)? I’m leaving for my backpacking trip there in 15 days, and I’m a bit worried about that-big snow year.

[Farktographer]

Hmmm…we were at about 6700 feet and only had small patches of snow, and Bishop isn’t too far away, so it probably depends on how high up you’re going. I know Mammoth has had heavy snow cover going into the 4th of July in the past, but if you’re staying under 7,000 feet I’m guessing you’ll avoid snow.

That being said, there was a snowfall up in that area about 3 weeks ago, so the problem isn’t the snow, but the melt-water. Make sure you waterproof your shoes because there could be lots of marshes, bring extra pairs of socks and moleskin, and some hefty DEET bug-spray; I was using something at 25% and it did nothing to prevent mosquitos, but my friends had some 95% DEET spray they got at a camping store that seemed to do the trick. Try not to camp too close to water, and a hiking staff can help a lot if you need to ford a river (and also helps you pretend you’re Gandalf).

Finally, you’ll probably get some good tips from a park ranger if you call ahead. Dunno if they require bear canisters like they do at Yosemite, but we rented ours in advance from stores in SD and they cost about $5 per day – we found out when we got to Yosemite that they rent them through the ranger station for $5 a week! But if you don’t have one, you can’t backpack in Yosemite (they don’t allow bear bags for some reason anymore…). Hope you have a blast!

[Plamadude30k]

I think our high point will be Piute pass at 11423′, so I’ll expect some snow. We’re plenty bear prepared, and I’ve got my trekking poles, which are great for fording. As for the bear bags, I believe they don’t allow them anymore because the bears learned how to get at them. The canisters, however, are so bear proof that studies are showing that the bears have learned to just ignore them. Thanks for the info.

[Farktographer]

I heard that bears have learned to just get pissed off at them – if they see them, they’ll knock them down the hill, knowing they aren’t going to be able to get into them, just to fuck with you 😉

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