Rachel Jones Ross: 100 Nights of Photos Under the Clouds, Part 3

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It should be no surprise that I’d get clouded out from time to time. And sometimes a few clouds can be very pretty. But I think I’ve already spent one hundred nights under the clouds, and 16 of them were on a three-week-long photography expedition to the Southern-most reaches of the Chilean Fjords, in Patagonia.

This was the first expedition I have ever been on. Some of these places were so remote that fewer than 25 people have ever even seen them, and the peaks there have yet to be named. For perspective, more people have been to Antarctica than have been here. It was amazing, challenging, inspiring, frustrating, isolating, and exhilarating. It rained for most of the trip; wet boots and socks with freezing cold feet were the norm every day. I was cold in ways that I have never been in Canada.

This particular morning was the first time during our exploration of the fjords that the sky opened up to reveal the peaks. Seeing the fall colors of the rainforest juxtaposed against the icy blue of the glacier was something I will remember for the rest of my life.

Photographs © Rachel Jones Ross

This was shot on my Sony a7R III and 16-35mm G Master lens. If you’ve ever wondered how Sony gear performs in extreme environments, I can say that my gear has withstood extreme cold in the Canadian Rockies, California desert heat, and endless rain in the Patagonian rainforest.

This moment came after hiking 3,000 vertical feet the day before, from the base of the glacier at sea level, to a view overlooking the glacier. There was no trail, and much of the hike was a bushwhack. One hour into the 4-hour trek, I fell ill and hiked the rest of the trail, wishing I hadn’t left the antibiotics I had at our base camp.

When the clouds finally parted the next morning, and the dawn light was illuminating the peaks, I felt too weak to get up for a sunrise hike. But my travel companion, Matt Lum, packed my camera gear and tripod in his bag, and said “you didn’t come all this way, and wait so long for good conditions to miss this. You can do it.” So, I did. And that morning would turn out to be the only morning we would see these unnamed peaks.

This single exposure combines full moonlight with pre-dawn light. If you look closely, you can see a bit of star trailing in the sky.

Jill Waterman: What kind of advance research do you do when planning a trip to such a remote and challenging location as this?

Rachel Jones Ross: The biggest concern for me is the weather. I spent a lot of time researching weather in South America, and the best kind of clothing to wear in such rainy and cold conditions. Despite the research, I still struggled. In hindsight, I wish I had brought a rubber jacket for the times we spent on the Zodiac. Gore-Tex is only water resistant.

JW: How do you approach photographing in a location that you’ve never seen or been to before? What are your first steps?

RJR: I love to photograph places that I have never been to! Ideally, I like to arrive long before the light is good and scout for compositions. I use my camera handheld to scout at least 20 different compositions before I grab my tripod to set up a shot.

I only had a few minutes to grab a quick shot of the fast-moving river in this glacial ice cave before we had to move on. Of course, I found the best composition standing knee-deep in that freezing cold, rushing water.

JW: When going on an extended excursion such as this three-week trip to remote locations, what kind of gear do you bring for powering your cameras and backing up your data and, and what is your process for ensuring a smooth workflow?

RJR: I bring at least ten 64 GB SD cards, and at least two LaCie 2TB portable back-up drives. The images are transferred to my laptop, and then onto the back-up drives. I also bring eight camera batteries, and a Nitecore solar-powered battery pack. It usually works out that I can charge devices at some point in the trip, as well.

During our Chilean Fjords expedition, base camp was at sea level and high camp was 3,000 vertical feet up the mountain, overlooking the glacier. Shot on my Sony A9, with the Sony 70-200 G Master lens.

JW: Does your process for determining your exposure time differ when photographing in cloudy conditions?

RJR: When it is cloudy, or when the light is changing quickly, it helps to keep an eye on your histogram to ensure good exposure. I typically shoot about a half stop underexposed to avoid blowing out any highlights.

More often than not, conditions are challenging when shooting at night, but this scene in Patagonia was quiet and easy. @mattlumphoto and I grabbed our sleeping bags and watched the stars float by as our cameras quietly clicked away, capturing the changing sky.

JW: How many images are combined in the time lapse above, and what was the length of your overall capture? Did you adjust the exposure manually or with an aperture-priority setting to get this transition from nighttime to daylight?

RJR: There are about 400 shots in this time-lapse sequence, which took about an hour and 15 minutes to capture. I always use manual exposure for night time-lapsing. However, during the day, in changing light conditions, I opt for aperture priority.

To read more from Rachel Jones Ross’s 100 Nights Project, click here for the companion articles in this five-part series: 100 Nights of Photography Under the Stars, 100 Nights in Bone Chilling Cold, 100 Nights Under the Clouds, 100 Nights of Learning, and 100 Nights of Inspiration.

Thank you for joining our journey into night photography! For more Visualizing the Night content, please click here: Visualizing The Night and share your enthusiasm for this theme in the comments section below, or reach out to us on social media using #visualizethenight. Thanks for reading!

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