Skyline Drive Series - Hogback Overlook

Sunset at Hogback Overlook, but Scott Turnmeyer

Greetings everyone. I’m starting a new series in my blog posts where I go through the ins and outs of different areas in the Shenandoah National Park and along the Skyline Drive and Blueridge Parkway. I’ll showcase hiking trails, overlooks and more from a landscape photographer’s perspective.

As you may or may not know, this is my back yard. I’ve spend 99% of my life in the this area and most of that taking photos in and around the park. I’m always being asked where the best spots are for sunrise, sunset, etc. So I’ve decided to kick off this new series in my weekly blog posts geared to areas within and around the Shenandoah National Park, from a landscape photographer’s viewpoint. I hope you find each one and interesting read. As always, please share with your friends and feel free to comment.

First up, one my two favorite overlooks along the Skyline Drive, within the Shenandoah National Park. This one is Hogback overlook.

Sunset at Hogback Overlook, by Scott Turnmeyer

Hogback mountain is the highest peak in the northern section of the Shenandoah National Park, the section between Front Royal and Thorton Gap. It’s listed with an elevation of 3,474 feet above sea level and it has three separate overlooks on it. We’ll talk about the other two overlooks in later blog posts. Today it’s all about Hogback. Given it’s height, some days you will find a dense fog at Hogback, but that is usually easily seeable well before you get to it.

You can find Hogback Overlook near mile marker 21, and you cannot miss it. It’s probably one of the largest overlooks in the park as it literally sweeps around the mountain. It’s always a favorite spot for sightseers, and occasionally you will find research vans with their radio tracking equipment sitting at the while they listen in on where the different animals that they are tracking are located. The high elevation and wide open views make it a perfect spot.

I’ve been utilizing Hogback for my photography for quite some time. It’s roughly a 45 minute drive from Front Royal. I love Hogback because I find it to be one of, if not the most versatile overlooks in the park. It’s one of the only overlooks in the park that you can, at certain times of the year, use it for both sunrise and sunset. That’s right, most people don’t realize that in the summer months even though Hogback is an overlook on the western ridge you can actually get an amazing sunrise photo from there. More on that in a bit.

I started utilizing Hogback for my photography workshops a few years back and it’s almost always a go to for either sunset, sunrise or night sky. Let’s talk about each of these in a little more detail. View My Upcoming Photography Workshops

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Winter time sun angles at Hogback Overlook

Summertime sun angles at Hogback Overlook

Sunrises at Hogback Overlook

Sunrise at Hogback Overlook, by Scott Turnmeyer

From the late spring to early fall Hogback is actually a fantastic spot to see the sunrise. The sun is slow moving north along the ridgeline until the summer solstice, when it turns and starts heading back south. If you are on Hogback for a sunrise you won’t really see the sun as it breaks the horizon off in the east, but you will see if break the horizon over the Blue Ridge Mountains, which is by far a better and more interesting shot. I try to always get there at least 45 minutes before sunrise as that’s normally when the best color happens (see photo above)

Sunsets at Hogback Overlook

Sunset at Hogback Overlook, but Scott Turnmeyer

Since Hogback is a westerly facing overlook, which one could say northerly as well, it is well suited for sunsets through most of the year. You will find that as the year progresses you will have to utilize different areas of the overlook for the best sunsets. There are even two times a year where the sun is setting directly behind the Shenandoah River below in the valley, but you’ll have to join me on a workshop to get that info. :) Sunsets are pretty straight forward but just remember, you will more than likely NOT get a great viewpoint shot with the sun going down. It’s a bit too bright and you’ll only get silhouettes and some slight detail.

PROTIP: As the sun about to go down, keep a watch on the other side of the overlook. You have an amazing view of the Browntown, Virginia area below with beautiful shots of the mountains. With the right weather conditions you will get plenty of color on the clouds to give you a fantastic shot.

Night Sky at Hogback Overlook

Night Sky Photography at Hogback Overlook, by Scott Turnmeyer

Night sky photography at Hogback is fantastic. If you are into astrophotography then you know that the northern hemisphere has a stronger view of the Milky Way in the summer months, and this is when Hogback shines. I consider one of the top spots in the park for night photography due to its higher elevation and the ability you have to literally walk around the side of the mountain to block out more light pollution. You don’t want to shoot much pointing North or East because of the light pollution, but there is enough sky and some fantastic trees to do unique things with.

So that about sums up Hogback Overlook. I absolutely love being on Hogback. Standing on the rock wall and getting a sense of out beautiful our land is. It helps to put life into perspective and quickly makes you realize that there is a lot more to this earth than just us.

If you enjoyed this blog post, please do me the honor of sharing it with your friends and following me and our Gallery on your favorite social media platforms.

Countdown of My 25 Favorite Photographs of 2019

Scott Turnmeyer’s Countdown of My 25 Favorite Photographs of 2019

Here we are, approaching the end of 2019, and it’s been a fantastic year. Tons of photos taken, opening of our own gallery, many successful workshops and classes. It’s safe to say we are gearing up for a huge 2020, hopefully it will be one to remember.

In looking back over 2019, I wanted to take some time and count down my favorite 25 landscape photos that I took this year. This was not an easy task :) Many could have easily made this list. Some you probably have seen, and for some this is the first time being shown to the public, but will be released soon. All are special in some way, and have a story, and all are available in the gallery, or will be soon.

With that, let’s get this countdown started.

Number 25: Bellagio At Night

#25: Bellagio at Night by Scott Turnmeyer

In May of 2019, I was in Las Vegas for a trip to some street photography on the strip. One night I went for a long walk and did shots as I went. There are some fantastic shots along the lights and beautiful buildings on the strip, like this black and white shot I got of the fountains at the Bellagio.

Number 24: Fall Leaves on the Water

#24: Fall Leaves on the Water by Scott Turnmeyer

This shot was taken in the Shenandoah National Park during my Fall Weekend Workshops in October (next year’s is already registering). We were hiking along the Rose River Trail and this spot was magical. The water level is usually much higher on the Rose River, and the water pouring over these falls, but this time of year the level has dropped and you have whispy small falls into a crystal clear pool. With the lower flow of water in, I could get a clear shot of the leaves in the pool and the rocks underneath.

Number 23: Beacon of Light

#23: Beacon of Light by Scott Turnmeyer

There is a lighthouse in Aruba named the California Lighthouse. It is a beautiful beacon during the day, and lite up with spot lights for an even more beautiful scene at night. This trip to the island we found that one of the spotlights on the Northern side of the lighthouse was out, which screamed photo op to me. With the light out I was able to do a much longer exposure without over exposing the lighthouse which now allowed me to get STARS. Always watch for those unique moments.

Number 22: Selfie of the Heavens

#22: Selfie of the Heavens by Scott Turnmeyer

This shot may have been one of the most fun shots to take this year. This is a selfie of me along the Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. It was taken during one of my 2019 Night Sky Photography workshops in the park.

Number 21: Reflections in Fall

#21: Reflections in Fall by Scott Turneyer

Here is another shot taken during my Fall Weekend Workshop in the Shenandoah National Park. An extremely fun and nice couple who came all of the way from Columbus, Ohio was down for the full weekend of photography. They brought along these cool mirrors to try to do some unique shots. In this spot I decided to take a try at a shot with one. Here you will see the mirror is laying up on a rock wall and I used depth of field to blue all of it while focusing on the waterfall reflection in the mirror. Definitely my most unique of the year. Great fun.

Number 20: Belle Grove Sunrise

#20: Belle Grove Sunrise by Scott Turnmeyer

One of my partners is Belle Grove Plantation, located in Middletown, Virginia. This is a historical site dating back to the Civil War. They finished a large refurbishing/renovation of their barn this year and I came out one morning for some sunrise photos of it.

Number 19: Mystic Clouds

#19: Mystic Clouds by Scott Turnmeyer

This year was about a lot of waterfalls and night sky. I had more workshops in these two areas and we had some great times. Here is a shot taken during my latest one in December. Most people would say you need a clear night for night sky photos, but you never know. Our eyes could not see all of the stars in this whispy clouds but my camera had no problem seeing them.

Number 18: Rose River Falls

#18: Rose River Falls by Scott Turnmeyer

This shot has been one of my most popular of the year, selling a few times in the gallery already. It was taken along the Rose River Falls trail in the Shenandoah National Park.

Number 17: Rattlesnake at Night

#17: Rattlesnake at Night by Scott Turnmeyer

When I take a group of people up into the Shenandoah National Park for Night Sky Photography Workshops we of course are going for the stars and the Milky Way. But I always break out a flashlight and do some light painting as well, which is always a great time. In this shot I used long exposure to get the stars while shining a flashlight at the tree to get the details of it as well.

Number 16: Tree in the Woods

#16: Tree in the Woods by Scott Turnmeyer

One morning in July I was up near Big Meadow preparing for a Waterfall Workshop. It was a great foggy morning, which meant some cool dreamy foggy photos and great conditions for waterfalls. I grabbed this shop near the parking lot area.

Number 15: Sunset on Old Rag

#15: Sunset on Old Rag by Scott Turneyer

This shot is Old Rag, one of the most popular peaks in our area. I don’t get many shots of it as the primary subject so I stopped here late fall after a waterfall workshop to grab this shot just after sunset.

Number 14: Into the Heavens

#12: Into the Heavens by Scott Turnmeyer

Earlier I showed a shot of a night sky shot at Rattlesnake, where I also did light painting. Here is close to the same shot without. Look at the Milky Way.

Number 13: Fall from Stoney

#13: Fall from Stoney

This is proof that you just never know what you will find. During my Fall Weekend Workshop in October, we had a .5 mile hike that Friday for sunset photos. The weather was great, except for some clouds, but I went up anyway. So glad that we did. While the clouds didn’t break to get the sunset, we had fantastic views from this rock cliff of the beautiful colors below.

Number 12: Fall Leaves

#12: Fall Leaves by Scott Turnmeyer

Most people head to the big falls on the trails for photos. I, on the other hand, prefer the smaller cascades. They take more climbing and work to get to, but the rewards to me are always worth it. Like this shot take close to Dark Hollow Falls in Fall.

Number 11: Foggy Morning

#11: Foggy Morning by Scott Turnmeyer

Perspective means a lot. This shot was taken one foggy morning in the Shenandoah National Park, but what makes it more unique is the perspective. My camera tripod is very low to the ground, giving these tress a more massive appeal.

Number 10: End of the Day

#10: End of the Day by Scott Turnmeyer

This is probably the newest photo on the list, taken Christmas Day, 2019 in the Shenandoah National Park. My wife and I decided to head up in the afternoon to see what the sunset brought us. And here is what it brought.

Number 9: Gazebo with LOVE

#9: Gazebo with LOVE by Scott Turnmeyer

Ah, probably my most popular photo of 2019, it definitely rates in my top 10 favorites. This is a new perspective of the Gazebo along Main Street in Front Royal, Virginia, just after they turned on the holiday lights for the season. For only a few days the LOVE sign was there, so I could not miss the opportunity.

Number 8: Purple Sunrise

#8: Purple Sunrise by Scott Turnmeyer

The colors in the shot, especially seeing a print of this in our gallery, definitely make this a top 10 shot to me. I took this at Hogback Overlook along the Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park in July during one of my sunrise photography workshops.

Number 7: Butterfly

#7: Butterfly by Scott Turnmeyer

I don’t do a lot of macro shots, but this one I would consider my favorite and it was exactly what I wanted to get. Taken in a butterfly farm in Aruba.

Number 6: Winter Night

#6: Winter Night by Scott Turnmeyer

Here is another example of dealing with what you got. During my Night Sky Photography Workshop in the Shenandoah National Park in December, we had some clouds. Looking north the lights from nearby Front Royal, Virginia caused issues doing star photography. Instead, I decided to utilize this cool looking tree as a silhouette to the clouds and went with black and white for more detail between the contrast. The hint of the stars at the top of the photo just added to it.

Number 5: Fall in Dark Hollow

#5: Fall in Dark Hollow by Scott Turnmeyer

This year’s colors in the Shenandoah National Park, especially above 2500 ft elevation was absolutely stunning. One of the best years that I have seen yet and we had peak color for my Fall Foliage Weekend of workshops. This shot was taken along Dark Hollow Creek.

Number 4: Lunar Eclipse

#4: Lunar Eclipse by Scott Turnmeyer

This shot is a top 5 choice because of one thing, the stars. Taken in January of 2019, this shot of the lunar eclipse allowed me just enough exposure time to grab some stars in the background without over exposing the moon like you would on a full moon lit night.

Number 3: Fall Sunrise

#3: Fall Sunrise by Scott Turnmeyer

The same Fall Foliage Weekend as shown in previous photos didn’t disappoint when I took our group to Hazel Mountain Overlook for sunrise on Saturday morning. We had a small break in the clouds just as the sun rose and look what it gave us. Almost made #1 for me.

Number 2: Dark Hollow

#2: Dark Hollow by Scott Turnmeyer

This has been one of my favorite photos of the year since taken in July. I have taken a lot of Waterfall Workshop Groups to the base of Dark Hollow Falls, but this morning was special. It was a foggy morning, which I had not seen before, which helped me get this stunning shot.

Number 1: Waking up the Mountain

#1: Waking up the Mountain by Scott Turnmeyer

And rounding out the list at #1 this year is this shot. It’s a sister to the Hazel Mountain Overlook shot taken at #3 on the list, but this shot was about 3 minutes before that one. That small break in the clouds gave my group of workshop goers and unbelievable sight as the sky lit up over the fall foliage of Hazel Mountain. Absolutely stunning, and it just as amazing to be there and see it first hand. You know you have a good one when everyone in your group gasps when the colors hit.

And that rounds out my top 25 shots that I took in 2019. I’d like to thank all of my workshop participants who joined me on the mountains this year. We had a fantastic year of sunrises, sunsets, night sky, waterfalls and fall foliage. I’m already registering for workshops and classes for 2020, so don’t miss out on even more opportunities and special times like the ones above.

Quick Photography Tip - Cropping to Make a Difference in your Photographs

Hope you enjoyed these quick little tips. Post some of your photos on my Facebook Page and let me see what you are catching. Or tag me in your posts on Instagram or Twitter.

Don’t forget to follow me on the social medial platforms to more tips and tricks, and come out to some of my classes and workshops where I teach you to get the

Catching the Hummers

I grew up with my mom always having hummingbird feeders around, so naturally we do the same at our house. It is always fund to sit out and watch the amazing little animals duck and dodge and fight for their food, it’s quite entertaining if you’ve never watched them.

From a photography standpoint hummingbirds can be quite difficult at times to get a good shot. In the past few weeks I’ve had a number of people ask me for critiques or tips on getting hummingbirds. I thought it would be great for a blog post and to share a few shots our our hummers.

So there are a number of things that you have to think about when you want to get photos of your favorite little buzzers around the backyard.

1. Lighting

2. Composition

3. Speed (they are fast)

Let’s talk about each one of these.

First Lighting

Hummingbirds are active during the day, but are much more active when it is cooler, like the early morning or late evening. This causes problems because you need to use a faster shutter speed to catch the action, which closes out the light. If you try to shoot them during the day you will find hard shadows and horrible lighting conditions, although you have plenty of light. The best option is to find a nice shady spot for the feeders, or get your shots on a cloudy day.

Composition

Hummingbirds are easy to get photos of actually. We bait them into an area every single day.. But shots with the feeder in them are unnatural to me and I want shots that show them in their wild settings, such as the ones you see here. What do I do? I actually pay very close attention to the birds, they are creatures of habit. The same bird will fly the same pattern again and again. Be prepared for the next time it flies that way and get your shot. Might take a while and some patience, but it will pay off.

Speed

It is actually very easy to crank up your shutter speed to some outrageous number to freeze the action. I, on the other hand, want to shot motion in my shots. I want some blur in the wings to showcase how this little creature is flying. I like to keep my shutter speed under 1000 to get that blur, the ones on this page were shot at 750. This also gives you a benefit of lighting, because you aren’t closing down the camera as much. So you late evening shots are a bit easier and you won’t have to crank up the ISO as much.

Hope you enjoyed these quick little tips. Post some of your photos on my Facebook Page and let me see what you are catching. Or tag me in your posts on Instagram or Twitter.

Don’t forget to follow me on the social medial platforms to more tips and tricks, and come out to some of my classes and workshops where I teach you to get these type of shots!