Adirondack Fall with the Nikon D750 and Nikkor 20mm f/1.8

My name is Jonathan Zaharek and I am professional landscape photographer. I’ve been doing this for about three years and professionally for one year. Every photograph below was taken with the Nikkor 20mm f 1.8. As I reflect on these photos, I would say with a full frame camera, 20mm is a very awkward range in between wide-angle and not, especially for landscape photographers. Some of these photos I found it necessary to stitch multiple frames together because the lens was just not wide enough. Indeed, 20mm is wide, but not quite wide enough for most situations. I chose to purchase the lens,however, because of its 1.8 aperture.  I specialize in astrophotography as you can see on my website. So, let’s begin!

Earlier this year, I had the privilege of posting to this Forum Europe with the Nikon D7100. This time, I would like to share with you my experience in the Adirondack Mountains for the fall season, 2016. I’ve been traveling to the Adirondacks my entire life (19 Years). I normally spend around two months of the summer  there, but for the past two fall seasons, I’ve had the ability to return and be situated there for the two years off-and-on. What better place to be on planet Earth than in the Adirondack Mountains during the fall! It offers some of the most spectacular, vibrant, colors of any park found in the United States. With 6 million acres of park, there’s so much to see in so little amount of time. The following photos are a sampling of what you might find.

20mm @1/320th, f/9, ISO 200

If I could only recommend one place to go to in the Adirondacks, it would be Mount Jo. That is where this picture was taken. After traveling on Route 73 from 87 for 30 miles, you’ll eventually come to another road which you have to travel another 10 miles, deep into the wilderness.  You then arrive at Heart Lake, which is at the bottom of the valley. I have hiked this mountain ten times; it’s not very difficult to traverse. That’s why enjoy the “off the beaten path” type of hiking so much – because of the awesome views such exploration can offer! This hike is certainly no exception and rewards the photographic explorer with some astounding views.  In the distance there are multiple high peaks between 4000 and 5000 feet. One can clearly see the multiple variations of colors that the many different types of trees have to offer. Just as in the first photo above, the one below was taken at the same approximate location. This is Heart Lake, with Algonquin peak in the background. This lake can be seen from the first photo.

20mm @½ sec, f/9 ISO 50

20mm @8 seconds, f/4.5, ISO 320

This next location is one that I enthusiastically sought after seeing it in the summer time. It is called Tenant Creek Falls in Hope, New York. It’s a very short little hike like the last one to a beautiful waterfall. The photo on the left was taken at the lower falls, and the one on the right is taken at the upper falls. One thing I’ve always wanted to capture was the swirling of the leaves in a river, however, I got them without even realizing that I did.

20mm @ 10 seconds, f/4 ISO 125

If you’re familiar with the Adirondacks, then you absolutely know this barn! I’m definitely not the first person to photograph it, nor will I be in the last. Because so many people do, I did it just for the enjoyment of it. There’s one thing, however, that you might not perceive with a casual glance. It was actually was taken half an hour after the sun went down. It was very dark and I could barely see where I was walking. There was still enough residual sunlight bouncing off of the atmosphere onto the clouds, causing the diffused light to still produce natural color in the dark. The barn is off of Route 73, halfway to Lake Placid.

20mm @ 0.8 seconds, f/9 ISO 80

There is one thing I must confess. this is my only photo not taken in the Adirondack Park. This was actually taken in the Green Mountains of Vermont. In the third week of October, the Adirondacks and the Green Mountains got slammed with a snowstorm. This was the following day at the base of Mount Mansfield, north of Stowe Vermont. You can watch a video at this link about me taking the photo and what actually happened to me on this hike… it’s worth watching. Trust me. If you want to see me suffer in -5 degree temperatures on the summit of a mountain and getting lost, then watch it! This definitely not only was my best photo of the trip, but one of the best photos I’ve ever taken. I cannot get enough of the river, snow, fall leaves, and moss!

I would recommend the Adirondack Mountains to anyone for some incredible photographic subjects – in any season. It offers spectacular views and beauty all year round. For those of you who might think I use extreme digital editing, vibrancy bar employment, I did not. In nearly every one of my photos, the colors are purely natural. This is done by way of removing impurities in the photo and using a post-processing technique that I designed to bring out more color naturally. I’ve never touched the saturation or vibrancy bar in nearly 90% of my photos.

There are a myriad opinions about what constitutes a great photograph.  However, I would submit that photography, as an art, is very individual.  It can be pursued from many different approaches, I believe that there’s no absolute “right” or “wrong” way to photograph. We often see unique types of photography which gain rapid followings and marketing success. The photographs I present in this short portfolio represents my individual style, with my “photographic signature”.   I thoroughly enjoy every element and aspect of it!  I’ve been working with this camera and lens combination for about 4 months now.  If you’re looking for a wide-angle lens, I would prefer acquiring the new Laowa 12mm Zero Distortion lens. This will be my next purchase. If you are looking for an astrophotography lens, I especially recommend this one! If you can nail the focus at 1.8, it can produce some pretty tack sharp images.

If you have an interesting idea for a guest post, you can contact me here.