How to photograph fog?

[StuartR]

Great shots everyone. Two things I might add. One thing that helps with fog is to be somewhat outside it if possible. It is much easier to give a good sense of "it's foggy" if you are shooting from outside it. This tends to delineate it more. Another thing to try is to put something sharp and clear in your foreground. The foggy background will then be accentuated. Here are a couple all taken at the same time in place. The fog was a bit above me, which I think helped.

 

[StuartR]

Here is another:

 

[StuartR]

yet another:

 

[FrankS]

Very cool photos, Stuart! In what country were these taken? The first reminds me of things I've seen while I was in Japan. The last photo though is a more "primitive" scene, as though from Nepal or Tibet.

 

[StuartR]

Thanks Frank. They were all taken in Aomori Japan at a mountain temple at Osore-san. It is basically the northernmost point of the island of Honshu. Right near the Tsugaru straits .

 

[FrankS]

Ahh, so desu. I spent most of my time in the middle part of Honshu, between Osaka and Kobe. I also travelled south to Kyushu. I was teaching English there in 1985/86. How about you?

All my photos from there are on slide film, taken with an FE2. I wish I knew then what I know now.

 

[StuartR]

I am a graduate student studying Russo-Japanese cultural relations. This was a side-trip from when I was visiting different Russian Orthodox churches in Japan and doing some research in Hakodate and Sapporo. The black and white ones there are from the Hexar AF and the color ones were a Leica MP.

 

[JohnL]

JohnL,
Beautiful, are those swans?

Well, I'm no expert on the subject, but I thought they were!

 

[Pherdinand]

those are black swans if i'm not mistaken...a variation which is quite rare🙂 they are beautiful, especially together with their white cousins.

 

[bmattock]

Ahh, so desu. I spent most of my time in the middle part of Honshu, between Osaka and Kobe. I also travelled south to Kyushu. I was teaching English there in 1985/86. How about you?

All my photos from there are on slide film, taken with an FE2. I wish I knew then what I know now.

O gan ke des ka?

I lived in Okinawa for a year and a half in the Marines in 1982. Fun! I picked up a little Japanese, along with some Okinawan dialect, known as "ho gun" as I recall.

As a Jarhead, "Beeru O Kudasai" became one of my favorite phrases. Tok son Beeru. Tok son Stink-o. Boku, ikareta n da.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[FrankS]

I picked up a little of the language as well. (sukoshi) I kind of like the simplistic nature of their language. I'm not saying their language is simple, but the way it is used is. In English there is just so much flowery verbage. And German, don't even get me started! But in Japanese, a simple word is often used to express paragraphs that my be spoken in English about, say, a sunset. Wakarimas-ka?

 

[Pherdinand]

Have you been Franki-san or Franko-san there?🙂

 

[StuartR]

He would actually be Furanku-san if they are following standard practice...

 

[FrankS]

As long as you don't call me obsenities!

 

[nwcanonman]

"And ya' don't have to call me JOHNSON!" ~ ; - )

 

[pshinkaw]

I just flipped the page over on the Ansel Adams calendar hanging over my desk and noticed that the November photo is called Road and Fog, Pebble Beach, CA. It pretty much embodies all of the advice given here.

-Paul

 

[FrankS]

As long as Ansel follows our advice, he can't go far wrong!

 

[Natron]

I just thought I'd add that I hated fog shots I took until I realized I needed to have something relatively close in the foreground that wasn't covered by fog so that you could tell that what you're seeing in the background wasn't just a misfocused/dirty lens. This was most easily seen in some random quick shots I took recently where there were lines of trees in a cemetary. You could see the fog getting thicker tree-by-tree away from the camera which gave a good sense of distance.

Here is one example from that day that I've posted here before:

 

[Doug]

Good example of "atmospherics", Natron!

 

[taffer]

Not only a very useful thread but one loaded with really beautiful images as well !

Osgaru