Chasing Clouds with the X-Pro1

This weekend was a good reminder of the importance of being flexible, especially in long exposure photography. I set off Saturday afternoon to photograph Arch Rock in Corona del Mar and to test out a Fujinon XF 60mm I purchased a couple weeks ago. When I got to Corona del Mar, the skies in the area were completely overcast making the conditions less than ideal for shooting long exposures. As I looked out over the water and contemplated heading home, I noticed that the clouds over Newport Beach showed much more promise. So with an hour before sunset, I jumped back into my car and headed towards Newport Beach. As I made my way towards Newport Beach, I thought that the cloudy skies would make a good backdrop for the Balboa Pier. Upon arriving, I abandoned the idea of testing out the XF 60mm and switched to the XF 14mm so I could capture the pier along with all the details in the sky.

Here are three of my favorite long exposure images from a Newport Beach sunset that I nearly missed all together. For all three of these, I used my XF 14mm and Lee Seven5 system which consists of a Big Stopper 3.0 ND and a Soft-Edge 0.9 Grad ND.

NYC Long Exposures with the Fujinon WCL-X100

Having rented the Fujinon WCL-X100 Wide Conversion Lens for our trip to New York, I thought I would use it for a few long exposures during an afternoon visit to the Dumbo area in Brooklyn. As the sun began to set, I set up the X100S, conversion lens, and a 10 stop ND filter to shoot the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. The good thing about the conversion lens is that the filter thread is the same size as the X100S. This meant that I didn't have to buy an additional step up ring to use my ND filter. The bad thing is that you need to tell the camera the lens is mounted to get the right Exif data. Not a huge deal, but I did find myself constantly forgetting to switch this setting on and off during our trip. Aside from that though, I have no complaints about the Wide Conversion Lens. My images shot using it were all plenty sharp and the wider angle of view, while subtle, really helped for capturing these iconic New York City bridges.

Brooklyn Bridge Sunset - 28 seconds at f/11

Newport Back Bay Sunset

I've been to the Newport Back Bay many times over the past few years and on many of those occasions, I was greeted by a beautiful sunset. So when I found myself with some time last weekend, I headed to the Back Bay to capture a few long exposure images. Having arrived an hour before sunset, I wandered around a bit until I found a good place to set up my camera and tripod. As I watched the sun slowly move towards the horizon, I considered leaving and finding a better location to shoot. I thought better of it however, and decided to sit tight and simply enjoy the view. Well, it turns out my decision to wait was a good one as I was rewarded with yet another beautiful Back Bay sunset. This image is my favorite and the one I feel best illustrates the scene I watched unfold this past Sunday evening.

11 Hours in London

During our visit to Paris, we took a day trip to London that gave us roughly 11 hours to explore the bustling city. Since I'm still struggling with editing my images from Paris, I decided to shift my attention to some long exposure images from London. Here are three that were shot using the X100S and the Lee Seven5 filter system I purchased shortly before our trip. The items I ordered included a filter holder, 49mm and 58mm adapter rings (for the X100S and the XF 14mm), a Big Stopper 3.0 ND, and a Soft-Edge 0.9 Grad ND. I haven't used the system enough to decide if it's a better solution than the screw-on ND filters I've been using, but I will say that the Grad ND came in handy on many occasions.

Seattle, Long Exposures, and the X100S

Our trip to Seattle gave me an opportunity to really put the Fujifilm X100S through its paces, especially for long exposure photography. What I realized during our 5-day trip was that the X100S is not only my preferred travel camera, but also the ideal camera for my long exposure work. The built-in ND filter lets me extend my exposures without stacking another filter on top of my 10 stop ND. And its size and weight let me use smaller tripods which are more compact and easier to carry. In combination with its new X-Trans sensor, these small but important features have made the X100S the camera I reach for whether I want to take a quick snapshot or set up for a 2 minute exposure.

Stephen Ip | Travel Photography

Blog

Chasing Clouds with the X-Pro1

NYC Long Exposures with the Fujinon WCL-X100

Newport Back Bay Sunset

11 Hours in London

Seattle, Long Exposures, and the X100S