Last week I was in Washington DC for work (my actual job, not anything blog-related). Well, not Washington DC, we were actually staying and working in Chevy Chase, Maryland, but my client’s office was on the street that functions as the border between Washington DC and Maryland, so close enough I guess. It was a busy week and we didn’t really do much aside from going to the office, going to dinner, and back to the hotel.
I just purchased a new camera (a Sony a7) and really wanted to get some shots with it to get ready for my big trip coming up later this month. I hadn’t really had a chance to shoot anything because we had been so busy, and I wasn’t sleeping very well anyway, so at about 4:30am on Friday morning I took an UberX to the National Mall to try and get some Blue Hour shots. I really liked how some of them turned out!
I’m very much a new photographer, especially with all of the post-processing capabilities of things like Lightroom and Photoshop, but some of these pictures from the Capitol turned out much better than I expected. Anyway, just thought I’d share them with you, enjoy!
(a note: feel free to use my images, with attribution to Andy’s Travel Blog, on your personal sites, but if it’s on a business website you will need a license for use, email me for more info on licensing)
Pre-dawn shot of the Capitol
Another angle before sunrise
Getting closer to sunrise
And…my favorite!
Sunrise over the US Capitol
Photogs out there, what do you think? What can I do better? “Use a tripod” is one, and shooting a lower ISO is another I know.
Best,
Andy
Awesome photographs!
Beautiful!
Tripod & lowest ISO is always a good start for such shots! 😉
What lenses do you use?
Just need to invest in a good travel tripod I guess.
This was shot with the kit 28-70mm kit lens for the a7.
Yeah, just make sure the tripod is easily transportable and not too big/heavy – it’s often considered to be WMD at airports so I usually check mine in.
I use a 10-18mm lense on my Nex-7, that one’s awesome for landscapes.
Really looking hard at the 10-18, Trey Ratcliff recommended it pretty strongly and I figure he and I are at about the same level…
I’m probably going to get the Manfrotto Befree for my Machu Picchu trip next weekend
Very much considering that lens (with the adapter for the a7), waiting until photokina is over in September before getting one to see what they announce for the FE mount
Awesome photos Andy, they look great!
Your pictures from this series are amazing. Seriously. I hate you.