Photo Exploration: Nurse Log in Percy Warner Park, May 2015
It had been a long time since I’d clambered into the woods, dirt under hands and scraping knees, to make that meticulously framed photo. The more found-and-street photography I do, the less of the compose-recompose-recompose-again process I had done. Last weekend was just such an opportunity. Walking in Percy Warner Park there was up on a hill a large tree that had fallen across another tree and, over time, twisted away and settled on the ground. In the future it will probably be a nurse log for other growth. Unfortunately it was a good was up that hill and too far for any lens to get it from the road. It was a very cloudy day making handheld shots tricky at best, and this being under cover of trees I had no choice except to scramble up carrying my tripod to setup for the shot.
Shooting with the Leica M3 at 35mm can be tricky. On the technical detail side, this was made with the Leica M3 with a 35mm f/2.8 lens. Expired T-Max 400 shot at 200, f/11 at 1/2 second. With that 35mm lens there is an attachment to the viewfinder to ensure proper framing, but when the camera is low to the ground in an already uncomfortable situation, it’s tough to ensure that the setup is just the way you want it. With a little time and patience, that part came together.
Next was metering and setting the shutter. Getting the exposure down is thankfully a breeze with my handheld meter. Since it was a long exposure, a self-timer was going to be used. With the Leica there is a strange little half-winder on the front that you set, trip to start, and then when the winder finishes it fires the shutter. It takes a few tries to trust it — especially as the winder can run whether or not the exposure has already been tripped by the shutter button.
But when all was done, the photo was made and can now be shared.