Tag Archives: rain forest

Moisture on the Lichen

Rain forest conditions do tend to mean lots of moisture in the air.  That much moisture means perfect conditions for the growth of lichen.  The lichen do a great job of collecting the moisture from the air to keep them well watered.  The way the water drops form on the surface of the plant can be really interesting.  Just a small vibration would send them dropping to the plant life below but, for now, they were safe.

What a Tree!

Rain forest conditions produce plants that are uniquely able to exploit the environment.  This tree was like something out of a fantasy movie.  I think it was one plant but, to be honest, there would be no obvious way to tell where one ended and another started if it proved to be two or more.  The branches and roots were spread everywhere.  It really did seem like something that should come alive at some point and just envelope the unwary traveler.  It was dark and creepy underneath its canopy.  I found myself fascinated with it and looking at it from every different direction.  The sad part was that it was really hard to find a shot that really conveyed the feeling you had when there.

Polarizer Comparison

When I changed bodies, I had to update some of my accessories too.  My old filter system was fine on a cropped body but with full frame, the filter holder encroached on the corners for the wide angle lenses.  I took the opportunity to change my polarizer set up.  I used to use a polarizer on my Cokin holder.  This was a bit inconvenient when I was using lens hoods.  Instead, I decided to get a screw in polarizer.  Since most of my lenses have the same filter size, this gives me more flexibility.

B11I7923.jpg B11I7922.jpgI took the polarizer with me on vacation.  One place where I made good use of it was in the rain forest.  While it was pretty dark in the heavy forest cover, there was moisture everywhere and this meant a lot of reflections and glare.  Consequently, I went with the polarizer most of the time.  While I was there, though, I decided to do some experimentation by repeating some shots without the polarizer to see how much of a difference it made.  You can see the with and without shots here and judge for yourself what a difference it makes.