Story Behind the Picture - Sunrise at Ediza Lake - Sierra Nevada (California) - September 2015

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Continuing my 'Story Behind the Picture' series of videos, this is the first of four 'story' videos that I will be doing covering pictures from my September 2015 hike in the Ansel Adams Wilderness in the Sierra Nevada.

The Sierra Nevada hike was a big 'leap' for me. It was my first solo backpacking trip out west, it was my first solo trip without the dogs, and it was the first solo trip I did without being able to make a campfire - something that serves as both 'nature TV' to me and as a sort of 'comfort blanket'. With more than plenty of 'alone time' this trip proved to be much more of a mental challenge than a physical challenge.

But this trip also provided the most spectacular scenery I had experienced, mile-for-mile, in my lifetime.

I plan to do four of these 'story' videos in a row on pictures taken during this Sierra trip. Only Glacier and the Winds can probably compete with that concentration of 'winning' pictures. I plan to complete the videos in the order that I captured them on the trip, making the 'Sunrise at Ediza Lake' picture the first in the series.

My hope is that you enjoy this 'deep dive' into some of my favorite images I've captured over all the backpacking years, and I certainly welcome any feedback you have to offer to help me improve the future videos I have planned on this theme.

Equipment / Gear List:

Still Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikkor 20mm f2.8 lens
Tripod: Sirui T-025X carbon fiber tripod
Boom Microphone: Sennheiser MKE600
Audio Recorder: Zoom H5
Microphone Stand: LyxPro SMT-1
Camera shoulder clip: Peak Designs Capture clip system
Video Editing Software: Vegas Pro 16
Photo Organization / Editing Software: Adobe Lightroom
HDR Software: Photomatix Pro 6
Screen Capture Software: ShareX (open source and free)

Base image exposures (all taken at 200 ISO):

_D7D5614 (normal exposure): 1/200 sec f7.1
_D7D5615 (-3EV): 1/500 sec f11
_D7D5616 (-2EV): 1/400 sec f10
_D7D5617 (-1EV): 1/250 sec f8
_D7D5618 (+1EV): 1/125 sec f5.6
_D7D5619 (+2EV): 1/100 sec f5.0
_D7D5620 (+3EV): 1/60 sec f4.0

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