THE LOCATION: Cincinnati, Ohio's skyline as seen from the Kentucky shore of the Ohio River.
THE EQUIPMENT: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV | EF 24-70 f/2.8L II USM | Peak Design aluminum travel tripod
GPS: 39°5'21.5736" N 84°31'3.8532" W
THE STORY: Cincinnati. The Queen City. The city of my birth, of family history, a few family mysteries, and an overall jewel on the collar of the nation.
I returned to Cincinnati from my home in Pennsylvania for the first time in seven years. That's a long time, but Cincy's charm and vibrancy remains as strong as it did when last I visited.
One of my goals in returning was to grab a look of the city's iconic skyline. That would complete a trifecta I was aiming for, to create a gallery of large print images on a wall in my bedroom that would include Seattle and New York City's skylines.
I rented an electric scooter and zipped my way back and forth across the river, up and down both the Ohio and Kentucky sides, looking for a spot. I tried a few. None really gave me the Wow! factor.
Eventually I ended up on a concrete boat ramp just east of the Roebling Bridge. The August sunset gifted a brilliant light show in the fast moving clouds, but there was plenty of challenges to contend with, especially the baseball stadium.
Stadium lights glow brightly, and when you aim for a long exposure of a downtown scene, that can often lead to blown out parts of the image.
Experiment with the shutter speed and aperture. Eventually find the right one, and maybe it'll be a little under exposed in camera, but that's all right. Image making includes what happens after you've packed up the camera gear and you're back in front of your iMac.
Piss off you get-it-right-in-camera purists. I mostly agree with you, but sometimes we gotta use the tools we're given to create the image we've imagined.
Otherwise, I wouldn't have my skyline gallery. But I do. And I'm proud of it.
Dave Pidgeon is a seasoned writer and photographer. He lives in Lancaster, Pa., with his three sons. You can email him at dave@pidgeonseyeview.com.
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