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| © Ed Nuñez |
| SENIOR LEVEL: Nuñez made this haunting and mysterious image of Lake Tahoe exactly one year after first picking up a camera. He used a Nikon D200 with 17-55mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens with a soft-edge ND filter. Click photo for more images. |
Work the Workshops
Nuñez took his first workshop, on nature photography, only two months after buying his camera. "For the first time I was interacting with people and understood ways to work out a subject. I began waking before sunrise to catch the golden light."
A recent one-on-one with pro Marc Adamus taught him how to "make it into an adventure," he adds. Rather than just going to a locale to get that million-dollar image, it was about exploring how all things in nature could be photographed.
For instance, Adamus taught him to add a subtle starburst effect to sunsets without using a starburst filter: "If you handhold and gently shake a hard-edge split neutral-density filter in front of your lens," says Nuñez, "you get more open shadows and the soft-edge effect of a graduated ND filter." You also get a starburst effect in specular highlights. And, it eliminates flare.
Good Gear
It's common to put up with equipment for which you've just forked over hard-earned cash, but the fact is, using the wrong gear impedes your progress as a photographer.
Nuñez went through three tripods in four months: He couldn't adjust the first one's height easily, and the second one's head didn't lock tightly enough to hold his telephoto lens in position. Now he has a Manfrotto 321 Pro tripod and Acratech head. And last winter he stepped up to a Nikon D200, adding new lenses on the way.
Constant Optimism
Nuñez never gives up on a subject. "I return to locations where I've taken photos I like," he says, "to see how they can be improved."
After enough excursions, he learned not to get discouraged by the weather. One trip to McWay Falls in Big Sur nearly fell through when the sky was completely covered, with little chance of catching any of the sunset. Discouraged, his photo buddies bailed out. But, "stubborn guy that I am," he went anyway. It paid off. "For a mere 5 minutes during sunset, the sky opened up and lit up the cove beautifully." The photo is one of his favorite images.
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