We have driven along the Oregon Coast several times in the past few years. Unfortunately, each time we encountered blue skies and strong sun, which in our view didn’t do justice to the beauty of this magnificent place. Finally, this time we had one morning during which the coastal scenery presented itself at its best. Patches of fog blanketed giant rock structures, which occasionally received a larger dose of filtered light. As usual, I took a few initial exposures and checked all the data on our Fuji X-Pro1 paired with the XF 14mm F2.8 and Fuji X100s. The cameras were choosing apertures between 5.6 and 8 with shutter speeds fast enough for me to shoot from the hand. This allowed me to walk around freely, letting the camera do all the technical work. I could keep all my attention on the beautiful scenery, composition and light. Even in a place of such a beauty, one requires concentration and focus. Maybe it is just me but my approach to photography is very personal and methodical. While taking photos I like to concentrate on a subject, visualize and compose it in my mind before I take out my camera. If taken seriously, this mental effort doesn’t tolerate any distractions – whether it is a discussion, loud noise or even a telephone conversation. Not only did we walk around, climbing some rocks to find a different perspective, but also worked hard to eliminate “waste” from the frame. In most cases, it requires walking back and forth (we shoot primes only), sometimes repeatedly to make the right decision. I don’t press the shutter button until I am confident this is the photo I want to capture…..

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Black and White Fuji X-Pro1 Fujifilm Fujinon XF 14mm f/2.8 R Olaf Sztaba Oregon Sample Images