Another weekend, another trip This time a local one, but to my favorite place and of a record lenght. Full 14 hours from leaving home to return, more than 30km. The route from Nowa Sol, along the Odra river in the direction of Bobrowniki, then Bobrowniki, “Bukowa Góra” reserve (Beech Mountain), back to Bobrowniki and trought the fields to Nowa Sól, phew …

I like the Odra river very much. No matter what the weather and the season, it is always a good idea to walk near by. It sets the direction like a signpost. The same places, “boring” and seen already so many times, and still, after all, could be interesting.  Always different and always the same. Then the strip of forest, a dike, and only fields until Bobrowniki. Flat, some trees and wind, gaggle and clouds, the remnants of snow and the smell of soil in the air, it is already spring. “Bukowa Góra” rises out of nowhere, rises high and with it the trees. I walked byside the reserve, on the road leading to the river. I looked at the light flowing with clouds, I watched and admired, remembering all the sunny days when I kept coming here.

By the river, at its turn, some rest and breakfast, half way already, or only, if you will, for me it’s just the point where I came and sat down to rest. I sat down at the dam, the gate where a small river enters into this large one. A little rest, refreshment and gathering strength, and continue on the road. Still beside the Odra and I change direction. This fragment allowed to look at cormorants, always only seen from afar on the water. But today, closer, longer and more. I stopped and watched. They flew from a big floe, one after another. Some momentum on the water, taking off and short flight low over the water. One after another they flew away and sit on the opposite shore, and again, this time further. A few circled back and forth, unable to decide whether I am dangerous and it’s better to stay away. I thanked them for the pleasure they gave me and walked away.

Now to the forest, to the top of the hill to look out through the trees, for which the field I was just walking. The fields are near, but with a distant view. Further and further. I do not often go there, only to look from above, as on a distant land with it’s own life. I sat in a ground clearance of the forest to admire the views. It is warm today, the ground is dry enough to be able toby siting on it for longer. So I sat and watched.

At first the peak, the steep slope, then trough the large ravine to the forest road at the foot of the slope. Whenever I go through it, it’s like a diffrent world. Great beeches on the slopes reveal their mighty, twisted roots. Sometimes one can not keep it in the ground and falls, forming a bridge. I have to wait a little, till late spring. Then, you can get lost in this place. The green of mosses and extensive ferns accompanied by beeches You can then go through this piece for a long time.

To Bobrowniki now, the dusk is approaching and today probably it will by something to watch. The way through the fields, quiet, slow in, no hurry, I have time, plenty of time to look at the clouds, the setting sun and the rising moon. A magnificent spectacle of exelent cast, viewed from the beginning to the end.

The photographs? They were also, of course. And were successful. Two interesting panoramas made on one day, it’s a satisfactory outcome. There is also a bit of observation and learning.

The first panorama is the view of the field. Converging lines, three trees and the forest on the horizon, visible in the distance Bobrowniki placed on the slopes on the right.

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I made two shots. I set for the first one and snapped. Packed my equipment and left. However, I came back. It had seemed to me, that I set something wrong and it would be too little depth of field. I turned up again in the same place. I checked the settings, I checked the framing. At that time a small cloud came. I decided to wait for more to have a more interesting sky. They flowed from the left to the right. They filled the sky within a quarter. Then I made a second approach, the appropriate one, or at least more appropriate.

The equipment: 50mm f9.5 lens, filter ND 0.9 gradutated soft

The post-processing: Final crop, light brighten from the left edge to the middle tree, separately set the contrast for the sky and the earth.

The second panorama is with the trees against the sky and the rising sun. I like the photographs of the sun very much, or rather I like to look straight into the sun.

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Before I made the right panorama, I had made three other shots, actually I had wanted to do, but they were rather complete mistake, worth only to be deleted from the hard drive. So it comes out that this photo was created as an evolution not a revelation. I made the assumption of a colorful scene thinking that it may also be black and white. After stitching the photos, I decided for just black and white, but I admit that the color ones are also interesting.

The equipment: 17mm f8 lens, filter ND 0.9 gradutated soft

The post-processing: Final crop, removal of twigs at the left and right edges, changing color to black and white, light brightens of the top of the photography.