You're never too young to learn how the Vari-ND can improve your images

When 18-year-old Alex Mody was just launching his career as a nature photographer, he decided to embark on a a 100-day photo/camping journey across the U.S. and briefly into Canada. So he traveled westward from his home in Northern Virginia, making frequent stops along the way to photograph the scenic wonders... West Virginia and the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Wichita Mountains of Southeast Oklahoma, the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, Bosque del Apache, New Mexico, the Canyon Country of Arizona and Utah, Grand Teton/Yellowstone National Parks, and many other interesting places in between.

In mid-January, Alex successfully completed that 100-day journey. As he says, "I’m fairly new to photography, having only been shooting 'seriously' for the past year and a half. During the trip, I had the chance to photograph many different landscapes and types of wildlife and learn so many valuable lessons. For example, I used a variety of Singh-Ray filters which were very instrumental to my success. I hope to share some of what I saw and learned with readers by way of this blog. For starters, here are three images I’ve selected that share a common theme... they were all made with the Singh-Ray Vari-ND filter.

"I made this first image early in the trip, in mid-October on an overcast day in the Potomac State Forest of western Maryland. When water levels are just right, this waterfall has a giant swirling eddy at its base. Upon arriving on the scene, I knew instantly that I’d want to frame the eddy below the falls and use a long exposure to blur the swirling leaves. Once I set up my gear and metered the scene, I found that at ISO 100 and f/16, the longest shutter speed I could muster was merely one second. I mounted my Vari-ND filter on my lens and dialed the density almost to the 'maximum,' which allowed me to use a shutter speed of 30 seconds, and ultimately, to make this image.

"About a week later, I captured this image along the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. I had actually finished shooting the sunset from a nearby overlook and was en route to my campsite when I discovered this scene. Realizing that I could blur the moving clouds by using a long enough shutter speed, I quickly set my gear up. Using my Vari-ND and a 4x6-inch Singh-Ray 2-stop hard-step ND Grad proved to be the right combination for this scene. It enabled me to achieve a sixty-second exposure in bulb mode, which made for an interesting effect on the blowing clouds.

"Just a few days before Christmas, I made this image from Grandview Point in Canyonlands National Park, Utah. I had previously photographed a rather clear and uneventful sunset that evening. Not being one to give up easily, I hung around for a few minutes and, almost as if they were on cue, a small group of fast-moving clouds moved in. Remembering what I had done in October on the Blue Ridge Parkway, I attached my Vari-ND filter to my lens and dialed it about halfway. This time, I used a 3-stop hard-step 4x6 ND Grad as well. I pulled off a 45-second exposure in bulb mode, which in my opinion, blurred the clouds just right. Overall, I’ve found the Vari-ND filter provides many creative options. It really helps achieve a dreamy feel to what might otherwise be considered “ordinary” scenes.

"I began taking photographs on trips to Shenandoah National Park with my Grandfather and on family vacations. That experience soon led to a very strong interest in the natural world and it wasn't long before I was really inspired to become a nature photographer. Now I'm trying to take advantage of every photographic opportunity that comes my way, hoping that I can eventually share my enthusiasm and perspectives with many others."

To enjoy more of Alex's photography, you can find his steadily growing website and blog here.