Twilight at Rock CreekMoments before sunrise at Rock Creek in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C. I took this photo a little north of Rapids Bridge where the creek consists of fast-flowing water, i.e. rapids. The National Park Service says that this portion of the creek is the "fall zone—the geologic transition zone where the harder rock of the Piedmont Plateau meets the softer, sedimentary rock of the Atlantic Coastal Plain".

So, I got a new ultra-wide angle lens, the Fujinon XF8-16mmF2.8 R LM WR. I've been very excited to play with it. 8mm is extraordinarily wide on a crop-sensor camera like my Fuji X-T4. It allows me to take some photos that I simply couldn't take before. So, to try it out, I waited for a cloudy day and visited Rock Creek Park. For this photo above, I got up very early. I didn't see a soul on any of the trails when I got there. Because it was so dark, it was actually hard from the trail to see any good places to shoot from, but I did eventually find one. I mounted my camera on my tripod, set the lens to its widest setting, and mounted a polarizer on the lens using a Haida M15 filter holder. I needed the polarizer to reduce the glare on the water, especially on the lefthand side. I then set my exposure very low, so as not to blowout the sky, and there we have it!

Springtime at Boulder BridgeAn early spring morning at Boulder Bridge and Rock Creek in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C.

Once the sun came up, I ventured up and down the river. I like this one (above) of Boulder Bridge. Again, I shot it with my tripod and polarizer. For the photo below, I used both the polarizer and a 6-stop neutral density filter so that I could use a slower shutter speed and get that nice soft look for the water. All-in-all, I think my visit to Rock Creek was a fun and successful excursion. I'm looking forward to playing with my new lens some more.

Lush Green at Rock CreekRock Creek in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C. I took this photo a little north of Rapids Bridge where the creek consists of fast-flowing water, i.e. rapids. The National Park Service says that this portion of the creek is the "fall zone—the geologic transition zone where the harder rock of the Piedmont Plateau meets the softer, sedimentary rock of the Atlantic Coastal Plain".