Nature Archives • Page 5 of 7 • phoclab.com travel and landscape photography by Claudio Beffa

Amphitheatre waterfalls

Amphitheatre waterfalls: hidden gems of great beauty in sardinian back country.

Amphitheatre waterfalls. Sardinia is a region mostly renowned for its beaches and summer vacations destinations, being a mediterranean island; however, hidden in the back country there are so many amazing places that make Sardinia a real “treasure island”. One of the natural gems that I have had the pleasure to explore are the Lequarci waterfalls: as for many other waterfalls of the island, it’s possible to enjoy their beauty only after a rainy period, because they are fed by a torrential river. Therefore, during summer or a dry month, there are no waterfalls at all… Luckily, even if winter 2019/2020 has been quite dry, after a steep but not overly demanding trekking, I’ve reached the top of the plateau and I’ve found a sufficient flow to show the beauty and magnificence of Lequarci. The waterfall, branched in two main courses, takes a jump of 50 meters from a massive ridge of rock, to fall on a stony bed in the middle of a wood. The ridge’s shape, which resembles an amphitheatre, make the view on the valley even more scenic.
To capture this view I’ve used a 9 stops ND filters, which extended the exposure time, emphasizing in this way the water’s flow, and a 2 stops graduated ND filter to darken the sky a bit, avoiding to overexpose the brightest parts. Considering that the weather conditions and the light were about optimal, the photo editing that followed has been quite straightforward, requiring just some color and contrast adjustments made with the luminosity masking technique.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX DC HSM

Focal lenght: 10mm

Shutter time: 119 s

Aperture: F/7.1

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery

Rolling hills, hills, wheat, wind, clouds, sky, landscape, umbria, italy, long exposure

Umbrian skies – Rolling hills

2020/02/27 Claudio Beffa Natural Italy Clouds / Italy / Landscape / Nature / Rolling hills / Umbria / wheat

Umbrian skies: Rolling hills. Vast wheat fields in Umbria, Italy.

Umbrian skies: Rolling hills. A glimpse of italian countryside, Umbria, where vast wheat fields slowly grow, gently brushed by the wind. During my stay in this beautiful, as well as quite underestimated, region of Italy, more than once I’ve found myself lingering on this kind of vistas, almost mesmerized by the soothing waving of the ears of wheat. In the same way as when I sit on the beach and look at the sea, those moments slowed my perception of time, making me feel more in touch with nature and in peace with myself.
To capture this view, I’ve used a 10 stops ND filter to make the movement of the clouds more apparent, and a 2 stops graduated ND filter to darken the sky a bit, balancing the brightness of the scenery.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX DC HSM

Focal lenght: 10mm

Shutter time: 105 s

Aperture: F/5.6

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery

Guarding the pool

2020/02/26 Claudio Beffa Natural Italy Italy / Nature / Pond / Reflections / Rocks / Sardinia / Sea / Seascape / Sunset

Guarding the pool. Sunset over an ancient quarry in Sardinia, Italy.

Guarding the pool. South western Sardinia, Italy. Sunset over a unique place on the coast: where, during the punic age (about 8th century BC) there was a quarry, now there’s a pool, whose water mirrors the colors of the sky and gives a glimpse of the submerged stones. The thin line of eroded rocks divides the the perfectly still pool from the rough sea, making this scenery even more fascinating. Further on, a watchtower built in a more recent era, dominates the promontory and guards the entire coastline.
To make this photograph I’ve used a 4 stops ND filters and a 2 stops graduated ND filter: the first one helped to extend the exposure time, emphasizing the movement of the waves, while the second one darkened the sky, balancing the light in the scene.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX DC HSM

Focal lenght: 10mm

Shutter time: 1,6 s

Aperture: F/7.1

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery

blunted teeth, rocks, cove, sea, water, sky, clouds, long exposure, sardinia, italy

Blunted teeth – Seascape of Sardinia

2020/02/21 Claudio Beffa Natural Italy Italy / Long exposure / Nature / Rocks / Sardinia / Sea / Seascape

Blunted teeth. Seascape of a rocky shoreline in Sardinia, Italy.

A narrow cove made of round shaped rocks which reminds of some blunted teeth, eroded by the movement of the water. To emphasize what in my imagination was the shape of a jaw, I placed the camera close to the ground and in the middle of the cove’s width, so that the shapes of the rocks resulted more apparent, against the sky. I’ve also used a 10 stops ND filter and a graduated ND filter, to smooth the water and balance the light in the scene.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Sigma 10-20mm 3.5 EX DC HSM

Focal lenght: 10mm

Shutter time: 30 s

Aperture: F/7.1

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery

Path to the forbidden forest

2018/05/18 Claudio Beffa Traditional Japan Autumn / Forest / Japan / Momiji / Nature / Shrine / Travel

Path to the forbidden forest.

Path to the forbidden forest. Japan. A stairway of stones, plentifully bestrewn with the last leaves of autumn, leads to the heart of the sacred forbidden forest.
With this work I wanted to convey a sense of mysticism, which can be felt during this particular moment of autumn, when the flaming red leaves of the Momiji trees (japanese maple trees) adorn the ancient stairway of stones that leads to the temple into the forest. This scene represented for me the perfect bond between nature and the work of man to approach the divine.

To capture this image I used my Pentax K-3 camera with the Pentax SMC DA* 50-135mm f/2.8 ED (IF) SDM lens, mounted on a tripod, and the Lee Polariser filter. To reach the highest possible resolving power of the sensor, I’ve set the aperture to the lens’ sweet spot of f/5.6, then I shot using the Mirror Up function and the wireless trigger, avoiding any unwanted micro-movement. This is actually a composite image of seven different shots, blended together to remove some tourists from the scene.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Pentax SMC DA* 50-135mm f/2.8 ED (IF) SDM

Focal lenght: 58mm

Shutter time: 1/2 s

Aperture: F/5.6

Sensitivity: ISO100

This photograph has been awarded with an Honorable Mention in the 2018 edition of the ipa int’l Photography Awards: “The Path to The Forbidden Forest” – Category Nature/Seasons

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Traditional Japan gallery

Sacred elements, Minoh Taki, Minoh, Waterfall, Water, Pond, Rocks, Black, Forest, Trees, Momiji

Sacred elements – The waterfall of Minoh in autumn

2018/05/12 Claudio Beffa Natural Japan Japan / Momiji / Nature / Pond / Rocks / Travel / Water / Waterfall

Sacred elements – The waterfall of Minoh.

Sacred elements. A view of the waterfall of Minoh, inside the Meiji-no-mori park, in early autumn. The Momiji tree that grows close to the wall of rock, whose harsh surface is polished by the flow of water, stretches toward the waterfall, as if it would breathe the air full of droplets.
Using a 6 stops ND filter, which extended the exposure time, I managed to emphasize the shape and the jumps of the waterfall, as well as smoothing out the surface of the pond.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Samyang 16mm f/2,0 ED AS UMC CS

Focal lenght: 16mm

Shutter time: 13 s

Aperture: F/5.6

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Japan gallery

Minoh Taki, Minoh, Waterfall, Water, Pond, Rocks, Black, Forest, Trees, Momiji, Vertorama

Minoh Taki vertorama – Waterfall in the heart of the forest

2018/05/12 Claudio Beffa Natural Japan Forest / Japan / Momiji / Nature / Travel / Vertorama / Waterfall

Minoh Taki waterfall vertorama.

Minoh Taki vertorama. At the end of the gorge that runs between the mountains of Meiji-no-mori natural park, this 33m tall waterfall makes for an enchanting view. The luxuriant forest embraces this pond, hiding it from the outside.
To compose this vertical panorama I’ve taken 9 landscape-oriented shots, obtaining as a result a final image whith an unusual aspect ratio, similar to a scroll, with a resolution of about 98 MPixels. Moreover, every shot is a long exposure, thanks to the use of a 6 stops ND filter.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: SMC DA* 50-135mm F2.8 ED [IF] SDM

Focal lenght: 65mm

Shutter time: 1/20 s

Aperture: F/8

Sensitivity: ISO100

Note that this photographed has been awarded with a Bronze Medal at the 2017 edition of EPSON International Pano Award.

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Japan gallery

Sunset, Seascape, Sea, Pond, Quarry, Punic, Reflection, Guard tower, Sky, Clouds, Sardinia, Italy, Punic pool

The punic pool – Reflections on an ancient punic quarry at sunset

2018/03/22 Claudio Beffa Natural Italy Clouds / Italy / Nature / Reflections / Rocks / Sardinia / Sea / Seascape / Sunset

The punic pool. Sunset over the south western coast of Sardinia, Italy.

Sunset over the south western coast of Sardinia. Where once was a quarry of the Punic age, now the perfectly still water reflects the sky and the colors of the sunset.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Samyang 16mm f/2,0 ED AS UMC CS

Focal lenght: 16mm

Shutter time: 3 s

Aperture: F/7.1

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery

Sunset, Sea, Rocks, Waves, Puddle, Mirror, Seascape, Sardinia, Italy, Corsair's mirror

Corsair’s mirror – Sunset over the western coast of Sardinia

2018/03/22 Claudio Beffa Natural Italy Italy / Nature / Pond / Reflections / Rocks / Sardinia / Sea / Seascape / Sunset

Corsair’s mirror. Sunset over the western coast of Sardinia, Italy.

Corsair’s mirror. Sunset over the western coast of Sardinia. In this photograph I’ve played with the opposites: the emptiness of the sky with the richness of the foreground; the intersection between the harshness of the rocks and the clean stillness of the water of the puddle within.

EXIF:

Camera: Pentax K-3

Lens: Samyang 16mm f/2,0 ED AS UMC CS

Focal lenght: 16mm

Shutter time: 4 s

Aperture: F/8

Sensitivity: ISO100

Buy fine-art high quality print of this photo

Back to Natural Italy gallery