Story Behind the Picture - Camp at Garnet Lake - Sierra Nevada (California) - September 2015

View and purchase all my photos at: davidcgray.smugmug.com/
Continuing my 'Story Behind the Picture' series of videos, this is the second 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, with the 'Camp at Garnet Lake' picture the second in the series. The first video, 'Sunrise at Ediza Lake', has already been published, and the last two videos - 'Sunrise at Garnet Lake' and 'Cowboy on the PCT' - will be published soon.
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 amzn.to/3bhNghP
Lens: Nikkor 20mm f2.8 lens amzn.to/2KjnSvX
Tripod: Sirui T-025X carbon fiber tripod amzn.to/3bH3Rvg
Boom Microphone: Sennheiser MKE600 amzn.to/2xvobRV
Audio Recorder: Zoom H5 amzn.to/3eubI1f
Microphone Stand: LyxPro SMT-1 amzn.to/2KhN2Lv
Camera shoulder clip: Peak Designs Capture clip system amzn.to/2wRdusp
Video Editing Software: Vegas Pro 16 amzn.to/2X5dKyu
Photo Organization / Editing Software: Adobe Lightroom amzn.to/2XQokKt
HDR Software: Photomatix Pro 6 amzn.to/2Vg987p
Screen Capture Software: ShareX (open source and free)
Base image exposures (all taken at 200 ISO):
_D7D5735 (normal exposure): 1/160 sec f6.3
_D7D5736 (-3EV): 1/500 sec f11
_D7D5737 (-2EV): 1/320 sec f9
_D7D5738 (-1EV): 1/250 sec f8
_D7D5739 (+1EV): 1/125 sec f5.6
_D7D5740 (+2EV): 1/80 sec f4.5
_D7D5741 (+3EV): 1/60 sec f4

[@UVJ_Scott]

Sierra Nevada mountains are some of the most beautiful places on earth.

[@fcernst]

Loving the series.

[@bobb7029]

Love that picture

[@KathysOutdoorAdventures]

Stunning image. Garnet lake looks beautiful. Thanks for taking us a long

[@MarkFugel]

Your picture is simply SUPERB!!! Glorious momento of that trip....i would find it hard to go back to civilization David!! You have the best packpacking videos out there. We will all get out there soon i hope...until then...thanks for keeping us sane!

[@TheWorldIsEnough]

Really digging these type of videos you started to produce. Thanks for all the work you put into these and for carrying all the extra gear on your hikes!

[@nagaviper1169]

An absolute gorgeous picture. Thank you David for this series, I hope to see more.

[@nelsonminingandabandonedplaces]

Awesome, David.

[@dianeclarke2618]

Thanks for all your content. All is helpful and enjoyable to watch. I hope the quarantine is lifted soon so we can all see new " views that don't suck". Thanks for all you do.

[@thehikerfiles4547]

This is a great series! Your channel is the best backpacking channel on the tube,🤙

[@julierood1228]

Oh, how lovely! Very thoughtful of you to do all this work and share the beautiful images with us. ;-) Take care now, God Bless! ;-)

[@raymondchen6906]

Great post, we love the series!

[@MADHippiesLife]

Keep it up, David, this series is great. It's crazy how beauty almost blinds us on the trail at times. You're submerged in an epic landscape and you're thinking, "it just keeps getting better, certainly there's an even better site around the next corner." Our goal in 2020 is to slow down and take in more. Thanks again for a great video!

[@jdtreadway]

I'm truly amazed with your technique. I love this series you're doing. I hope you continue it after the Covid thing has passed

[@april906outdoors3]

Stunning photo - really enjoying this series. Would love to hike that area someday.. Thank you, and be well!

[@olmedaenrique]

Excellent Photo...Sir! Thank You

[@cynthiaschwartz559]

I love these videos. I just watched your August 15, 2015 Collegiate peaks hike. There was one picture you took at a lake with a storm cloud over it. That picture is my favorite. I want to backpack that area just so I can go to that lake. I love watching your hiking videos, thank you for all the work you put into these videos.. You and your family stay safe !!! My husband wanted to know if you are going to do anymore hikes with Bob, we miss him on your backpacking trips.

[@davidgrayin]

Thank you! That picture you're thinking of is from Hartenstein Lake with our campground looking straight at Mt. Yale (one of the many Colorado '14ers'). It was a great campsite that we had all to ourselves (it sits about a mile down a side trail off the primary CDT trail), and I remember watching that developing storm, hoping all the time that it didn't head our way. It never did come our way, and the 'nature TV' show it gave us was one for the lifelong memories for sure.

[@craigsmith6446]

This is really interesting, again thanks for sharing!

[@bobeallison]

Great composition and shot. Especially with the sun in such close proximity to your frame. I have not tried HDR. I have Adobe 6 Suite, my Light Room is really old and I did not update it. This makes me want to play with some. I really like this picture.

[@kernriver1967]

Beautiful... Now 70, used to take lots of film photos .... Grew up in Sierra Nevada's, miss my mountains... (have lived in Texas last 40 years)....but don't miss the political crud... Thank you David, job well done!

[@isidorocristobalena3277]

Hello David, very good.

[@Lifehacksss]

Love the series!

[@trevort5380]

Loving all the content you been putting out 👍

[@FOLLOWINGWALKERSWORLD]

Love it👍👍 Especially I just uploaded my favorite backpacking trip challenge & most of it was Garnett Lake fishing. Also in Sept. but 2018. Enjoy your videos David. 👍👍👍✌️

[@naturallyadriftphotoadvent123]

Awesome, love this series! Do you have any trip plans for when we can finally get out of quarantine mode?

[@delvinmorales9458]

Thanks for sharing. Any planned trips to the SouthWest?

[@DrJohn493]

To an untrained eye like mine, I would've never noticed the water droplet distortion if you hadn't called attention to it. With background like that, the foreground doesn't compare.

[@woodchip2782]

That spot seems aligned with the sun flares, could it be one?

[@ningluo6889]

Thanks for sharing ,do you accept business cooperation