FOR LANDSCAPE SHOOTER FROM SUMMERVILLE PHOTOGRAPHY BEGINS AT HOME

John Preston ().

Dick Mason

The Observer

Nothing shatters nature's mirrors faster than a wind gust.

Just ask Summerville's John Preston. He has seen nature crack enough mirrors to bring centuries of bad luck to the superstitious.

Preston is an award-winning landscape photographer blessed with an eye for nature's reflections.

Some of Preston's most striking portraits are those of mountains reflecting in ponds and lakes in Union and Wallowa counties.

Glass-like waters, however, are hard to find in Northeast Oregon.

"You need still water,'' Preston said. "There is not a lot of opportunity to get good reflection shots in this area because there is so much wind.''

Periodic turbulence, though, has not prevented Preston from snapping up a storm of portrait-quality mirror image photographs. Many of Preston's best reflection shots are made at his home on Hunter Road. Preston's irrigation pond is his looking glass.

"It's probably the most photographed pond in Oregon,'' Preston said with a smile.

Wallowa Lake reflection photos have proven more elusive. On only two days when Preston has been at Wallowa Lake has it been still enough to reflect mirror images.

The best time to get reflective images or many other landscape photographs is at sunrise and sunset. Nature's color wheel expands like an accordion during these times, called the golden hours by photographers. Hues are more abundant because sunlight is beaming in from a low angle, creating color and contrast.

At midday, by contrast, lighting conditions are at their worst.

"At noon the colors are flat, and you have harsh shadows,'' Preston said.

Two time periods Preston believes are often overlooked are the twilight period after sunset and the hour before sunrise.

"Unique colors are tied to twilight and predawn light,'' Preston said.

In landscape photography the importance of luminosity upstages all other elements.

"In photography, lighting is almost everything. Composition is important, but you can't do anything unless you have lighting.''

Winter is Preston's favorite time of year to take pictures.

"I can shoot all day when the sun is low on the horizon in the winter,'' Preston said. "It extends the golden hours to all day.''

Snow-covered terrain is another photographic plus.

"Snow gives you much more dramatic lighting and contrast.''

Preston shared his works last week at a meeting of the Grande Ronde Bird Club. He presented his slide shows "Photography Begins at Home'' and "Union and Wallowa County, Four Seasons.'' Preston received a first place award at the Columbia Council of Camera Clubs' annual convention in 2002 for "Photography Begins at Home.''

Preston said he believes that people do not have to travel far to find good opportunities to photograph landscapes.

"Photographic opportunities are in your own back yard,'' he said.

Preston has had an excellent view of Mount Emily in his backyard since he and his wife, Becky, moved to Summerville in 1969. He describes himself as living in "the shadow of Mount Emily.''

John Preston worked for the Oregon Department of Transportation as a regional environmental specialist and a regional transportation planner before retiring five years ago. Preston, who has several advanced degrees in geography, links his educational background to his interest in the Northeast Oregon topography.

"As a trained geographer, I like nothing better than travel and to look at landscapes.''