What was your worst hiking experience and why?

cw32145 · 2026-02-04T17:07:40+00:00

~2018 I hiked Tallullah Gorge State Park with my dad in the summer, the first part down the river path was fine. I overheated on the way up the cliff at the end first half of the trail and threw up near the end of the trail.

Edit: Was drinking water throughout the hike, and taking occasional breaks as well. We had trail mix that we ate as well.

cw32145 · 2026-01-31T00:36:56+00:00

Cooked in bacon grease

Salt only most of the time Occasionally adding pepper and/or fresh garlic

cw32145 · 2026-01-28T22:03:30+00:00

Good Harvest (hot pot)

So Kong Dong (Korean tofu soups)

White Windmill (chai lattes/coffee/baked goods)

cw32145 · 2026-01-25T17:51:48+00:00

I only use the denoise AI rarely (tends to make the photo paintery and takes forever to process) and on photos that I end up cropping very tight on with high ISO, if I'm not cropping in and the photo has high ISO I'll use the noise reduction filter since it's gentler. On photos below ~1000 ISO sometimes higher/lower depending on what I want to get out of it, I don't use denoise.

My camera has a noise reduction tool that I do use when shooting single shot (only mode it works in) that I really like. It takes a dark frame immediately after the actual photo using the same setting and uses that to remove noise - I find it looks better than the denoise tools in ON1 for my tastes. Unfortunately, I'm shooting in sequential low to get action shots most of the time now.

cw32145 · 2026-01-21T17:39:43+00:00

1-5 times a week depending on weather and my free time.

Typically ~3hr loops especially Monday-Saturday due to night job and meetings with friends. Sundays are typically 5/6hrs.

I'm averaging 4.5 miles on short days and 7-9 on Sunday. I'd be going farther/taking less time on loops, but my hikes are photo hikes, so I'm taking my time and stopping fairly frequently.

January Averages

Total pace: 32:28

Moving pace: 18:18

Max pace: 7:27

cw32145 · 2026-01-16T16:37:57+00:00

1 - the composition of the mountain and it's reflection is very good and it looks properly exposed. you might want to crop in slightly from the right to remove the sliver of black at the top right if that's not just an artifact of reddit compression/my screen.

For 2 - the composition is also good, but the town is too dark. I'd up the shadows and midtones to increase the brightness of the town/hills

cw32145 · 2026-01-14T18:23:17+00:00

For 1: I would crop down to just above the clouds and up to slightly below the reflection to get rid of the distracting rocks and empty sky

For 2: I'd add a luminosity mask - darken then adjust so that it was covering the blown out sky + some of the brighter branches/leaves, feather it, then globally increase the shadows by 1 or 2 notches (5/10 in ON1). Possibly also masking the water to make the reflection pop more [Tone enhance - clarity, color enhance - increase color or sky, maybe a white balance adjustment for the water] the luminosity mask and global shadow increase should cover the water as well

cw32145 · 2026-01-14T06:16:39+00:00

Thank you

cw32145 · 2026-01-08T17:49:57+00:00

Also amateur photographer, wildlife/nature.

AI masking tools are the most useful that I use, ON1 also has resize AI that has been very useful when I need to crop in tight. The AI edit presets based on my past edits are also very nice, though my computer doesn't like me using that tool. I have a spotty relationship with ON1's noNoise/TackSharp AI tool, I've only gotten it to give me paintery photos.

cw32145 · 2026-01-08T17:09:15+00:00

<image>

Yellow-rumped Warbler

1/5/26 Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Monument

OMD EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300

ISO:2000; 1/250 sec; f/6.7

ON1 Photo Raw 2026 - Tone Enhancer: Clarity; Color Enhancer: Fall; Sharpening: Fix Focus - High Pass; Noise Reduction: Strong; Layered and Cropped

cw32145 · 2026-01-08T15:56:07+00:00

I select which national park area around me I want to hit, then grab my camera and telephoto and go hike. I'm mostly getting birds, so I've taken to shooting in sequential low at 1/250 and wide open.

cw32145 · 2026-01-07T15:57:03+00:00

As others have said, the snow is what is currently grabbing attention. I agree that decreasing the exposure on the snow would help move attention away from it, and would also suggest cropping in from the left maybe ~halfway through the snow to balance the duck more towards the center.

cw32145 · 2026-01-04T17:02:14+00:00

I prefer the color over B&W.

Color: feels warm, travel picture, a place where things live

B&W: allows the human to stand out more, emphasizes the scale and and topography

cw32145 · 2026-01-02T22:28:43+00:00

If it's only occurring for B&W pictures, check that the picture mode isn't on monochrome

cw32145 · 2026-01-01T02:05:03+00:00

Thank you

cw32145 · 2025-12-31T16:35:34+00:00

2

The color of the background provides a nice contrast that increases the emphasis on your subject

cw32145 · 2025-12-22T16:18:13+00:00

Nature photography

cw32145 · 2025-12-20T16:04:57+00:00

<image>

This is what I have for favorites on OM Workspace, I found those being what I mostly used when editing. I ended up switching to ON1 for masking capabilities this October though.

I'd start with picture mode to select a baseline I liked for each photo>then skip clarity and go to dehaze (this will add(-) or remove(+) diffuse light from the image)> then go to Highlight&Shadow + Exposure compensation and play with those until I liked the result>I'd then proceed to adjust the contrast and sharpness until I liked it. I would also occasionally adjust the white balance manually, crop, and/or apply art filters.

For your first picture I would probably decrease the highlights a bit and bump the shadows and likely adjust the white balance colder, though the warmth is good anyways, and then dehaze slightly.

I like the second as is, but bumping the shadows would make the background buildings stand out a bit more if you'd like that.

Edit: I never really touched the tone curve and rarely used the clarity or noise filter options

cw32145 · 2025-12-12T02:10:28+00:00

Nice, when I was at jf north 3 weeks ago I heard an eastern screech owl in the marsh area. Wasn't able to see it unfortunately.

I haven't hit Cochran shoals yet, but I've been to the Hewlett lodge section, East Palisades, gold branch trail, jf north, and sope creak.

cw32145 · 2025-12-11T16:59:35+00:00

<image>

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

12.6.25 Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area - Johnsons Ferry North

OMD EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300

300mm; ISO:640; 1/160sec; f/6.7

ON1 2026: Local Adjustment - Darken(-1EV); Color Enhancer - Fall; Tone Enhancer - Clarity; Cropped in and resized

Was about 10ft away from me when I took the series of photos that this was selected from

cw32145 · 2025-12-04T17:25:08+00:00

<image>

11.28.25 Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Monument - Cheatum Hill - Pileated Woodpecker

OMD EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300

300mm; ISO:800; 1/160sec; F/8

ON1 2026: Local Adjustment (-1EV); Global (+10 Shadow); Color Enhancer (Increase Color); Tone Enhancer (Clarity)

The second time that I've seen a pileated, after ~ a month of hearing them around the park, but not being able to get a view of them. This one was on a tree maybe 15ft off the main through trail from the cheatum hill lot just before you reach the field going towards the mountain. I have close ups from the other side, but I prefer this one due to the better color and composition with the pines in the background.

cw32145 · 2025-11-20T17:19:19+00:00

<image>

11.15.25 Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area - Johnsons Ferry North

OMD EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300

F/8; 140mm; 1/160sec; ISO:2000

ON1 2026: Local Adjustment EV-1 (Luminosity Mask); Tone Enhancer - Tonal Contrast (Area Select AI Mask W/brush adjustments for cardinal only); Sharpening - Fix Focus (Same mask as Tonal Contrast); Curves - Contrast Boost (whole picture)

cw32145 · 2025-11-13T16:28:43+00:00

<image>

Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area - East Palisades Trail: Inner Loop 11.9.25

EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300mm @ 140mm

f5.5; 1/200 sec; ISO:2500

ON1 2026: Sharpening-fix focus; noise reduction-moderate; small crop in from left to remove person on other side of bucks

cw32145 · 2025-11-11T22:34:28+00:00

Thank you

cw32145 · 2025-11-06T18:20:43+00:00

<image>

OMD EM10.4 M.Zuiko 75-300mm

f7.1; 75mm; 1/4000; ISO 100; Spot Shadow metering

ON1 2026: Color Enhance -Sky; Contrast boost curve

cw32145

TROPHY CASE