I’ve updated my self-selected 2019 Best of Harold Davis selection with a few new images. These were either photographed or processed after I initially compiled the list. Since the selection is chronological, based on the date posted to my Flickr account, the new entries are at the end of the story.

Check out my complete 2019 best, including Old Schoolhouse Trail shown below, by clicking here.

And, a Happy New Year to one and all! Can’t we work our best towards building a better, more serene, and lovely world in the year to come rather than striving to tear each other down?

About the image: I photographed Along the Old Schoolhouse Trail along the eponymous trail in the coastal range mountains above Kensington, California. I was hiking with a friend on a somewhat foggy day in November. What caught my eye was the way the old California oak trees seemed almost to be dancing with one another, like spirits of the forest frozen in time. 

With my camera on tripod, I waited until the breeze had stilled and I could be sure there were no other hikers or dog walkers. I made three exposures with my Nikon D850 and my 28-300 “walk-around” general purpose lens at 190mm. Each exposure was at f/22 and ISO 64, with exposure times of 3, 6, and 10 seconds.

As an editorial observation, I’d note that the great technicians of the black-and-white analog darkroom knew how to control and extend dynamic range with great results. Some of the same creative ideas they used, and some new ones, are required to fulfill the vision of making exciting digital imagery that also prints well. The technical expertise required is no longer that of the wet darkroom.

Knowing how to proceed in the digital darkroom means knowing how to work with software files in Photoshop and other digital post-production tool sets. It takes no less skill than the wet darkroom did, but the skills required are certainly different. You have to know the technical side of cameras and photography, and also how to work with software.

Most images available as prints. Please inquire. © Harold Davis. All rights reserved.