Getting down and dirty

This will probably be the last of the trees and trunks for a while. To really get the shots I want I’m going to need to befriend someone with a boat. The waterline here really describes the unusual dry spring we are having. I decided to put some fireworks into this one with an HDR process that was quite the challenge for the camera capture. This photo was taken right off the roadside on a steep embankment. It was incredibly windy Sunday, and the wind mostly came in violent gusts. With the steep grade and wind, I didn’t want to trust the tripod too much. So I had to “human tripod” it to get the bracketed exposures with a combination of prone positioning, makeshift bracing, finding natural point of aim, etc. I guess I found a use for all the rifle marksman tricks I learned in the military. Extreme boot polishing, foxhole digging, and taking machine guns apart while blindfolded, however, I haven’t found a use for since getting out.