Sunset photos, handheld with Heliar 15/4.5

[Mr Ho]

For those of you in cooler climes, I've just gotten back from northwestern Cebu province in the Philippines where I was playing around with sunsets and a Heliar 15/4.5 on a Bessa R3M with Fujicolor 100. All handheld, wide-open at 1/15th or slower. I was holding my breath at the time of shutter release and when I went to the store to pick up the prints in fear of blurred images. I guess credit is due to the San Miguel beer company for steadying my nerves! 🙄

 

[biomed]

Those are some nice shots. I really like the way the CV15 renders the sky and clouds. I like the third shot the best. Now you have me wanting to shoot some sunsets. Maybe when the rain stops.

 

[Mr Ho]

Apologies to the Critique forum management, as I've just read the "rules of engagement" and see that I've inadvertently broken the rule of only posting one photo for critique. Consider the sunsets, then, simply variations on a single theme!

 

[cbass]

#3 is very nice. Good use of the tree as foreground interest. The 15mm is one of my favorite lenses and it is more versatile than most people think, as you have demonstrated well.

 

[David Murphy]

Simply awesome scenery and natural beauty - great photos

 

[Pherdinand]

hmm, very strange form of vignetting. Do you also see this happening on less extreme shots with the 15mm heliar?

nice, otherwise. The branches in the front make the shot.

 

[ferider]

Great pictures, I like #3 the best.

This is not vignetting, Pherdinand, but what you get with an ultra-wide at sunset.

Roland.

 

[Todd.Hanz]

wow! good stuff with great detail, #3 is fav.

 

[Mr Ho]

Thanks for the critiques, thus far. Glad you enjoyed the shots. #3 is my favorite, too.

The apparent vignetting struck me, also, but then I thought maybe the lens sees more than my naked eye? Perhaps it really is darker away from sun?

As for the tree in the foreground, that's a simple "trick" that my 6th grade photography teacher taught me so many years ago and which I've passed on to many friends. He told me to always seek to add perspective when composing. Basic as that may seem, the lesson's served me well.

Tomorrow I will endeavor to post some day 15/4.5 shots next of humble Philippine country life, which was a pleasant change from the big city for this photographer.

 

[ferider]

The apparent vignetting struck me, also, but then I thought maybe the lens sees more than my naked eye? Perhaps it really is darker away from sun?

Exactly, Mr Ho. Here is one of my examples taken with a CV 21mm at sun-rise.
The human eye doesn't really see the brightness difference as does film,
and a lens in combination with natural polarization, I guess:

Best,

Roland.

 

[Mr Ho]

Lovely shot, Roland, though I must admit sunsets have always been easier for me to catch than sunrises! Adrian

 

[Dracotype]

Gourgeous work!

As for the light fall off, I would hazard two explinations. 1) The filtering affect the atmosphere has on sunlight, or 2) the refraction of sunlight combined with the lack of sunlight. By that I mean that the corners of the frame are at such angles to the sun that only the highest energy light (blue) would be able to "turn the corner", and not much of it does. Perhaps the two work in tandem. But that's just my guess.

Again, gourgeous.

Drew

 

[Mr Ho]

Been thinking about all your comments (again, thanks!), and was leafing through some of the other sunset shots I took when it occured to me that in this portrait mode sunset (attached) there is no vignetting on the right or left sides at all. So, it seems the light on the right and left was bright enough not to fall away, but wasn't on the top or bottom where it does.

Interesting?

In the other sunset, which was taken earlier, there is no sign of vignetting at all. The sky was brighter all around, which comes through in the photo.

Still would like to hear about what ISO color film people prefer for this lens, if any.

Adrian

 

[pizzahut88]

Hey, I almost miss this post here.

Hey, I almost miss this post here.

Nice shot!
Nr.3 is my favourite.

😀

My foto blog: http://viking-manfred.blogspot.com/
No, I am not a viking . . . just can't think of another name . . .

My gear:
Zeiss Ikon RF: Ultron 28/1.9, Heliar 15/4.5, Nokton 40/1.4
Rollei 35, Leica SF20, Garmin GPS eTrex Vista Cx

 

[tomasis]

pretty cool

 

[Welsh_Italian]

Nice shots Mr Ho. I think the first one is my favourite purely because the sun is more obvious, but number 3 has some beautiful warm colours. The first two also have a more dramatic sky with the clouds giving a sense of perspective towards the sun. A nice optical effect.

So you don't see sunrises? Here's one from Puerto Rico. I was only awake because my body clock told me it was getting towards midday! I also found that sunrise tends to have more light to shoot with so you might be able to get shorter exposure times.

Taken with a disposal 35mm camera and scanned from print using a flatbed. Definitely lo-fi as you can tell!