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Photo of the Month Archives - 2000 |
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Kodak 100VS
When I received my first ten rolls of Kodak's new 100VS, I was less then impressed. Yea, the film was sharp, but the colors especially at slower shutter speeds were unacceptable. At a recent conference I was at, I talked with one of the nicest folks from Kodak I have ever meet. He asked me if I had tried the new 100VS and I told him my results. He said that he would send out some current production film because the pre-production film I had received to test was not right. On my recent trip to Alaska I shot the 20 rolls of the Kodak 100VS and for some situations, I felt it was dynamite. The image of the fireweed is a good example of the power of this film. The colors just jump off the film! And yes, the film is nice and sharp like my Agfa. Am I switching? Na, because for my personal taste, I did not like the way the 100VS recorded big game mammals but birds were OK. For scenics and wildflowers though, the 100VS is gorgeous. The problem for me though is I don't want multiple films in my bag, I like one standard film I can use for every situation and if I really want to punch up colors there are other in camera techniques that could be used. But if you haven't tried the 100VS or Agfa RSX II 100, I highly recommend you try both on a variety of topics in a variety of light to see which fits your style of photography the best. Truth and Myth
Oh brother, the line between Truth and Myth in photography just boggles my mind! I'm alive and well and here to tell you that my life has changed after spending nearly four weeks with the Grizzly Bears of Alaska. I was very fortunate to spend time with both the inland and coastal grizzlies, a time I will always treasure for so many reasons! When you are just two to forty feet away from beasts weighing anywhere from 450lbs to 900lbs, the experience is hard to capture on film. But I learned so much that it will take years to realize it all, digest it and share it with others. The first thing I want to share with you blows a couple of myths out of the water. First and foremost, Grizzly Bears are not to be feared, but respected! Never, never in all of the encounters during my time with grizzlies did I ever feel threatened. Yes, I used basic biology to know my limits. Yes, I did use my basic biology knowledge to permit the grizzly to approach me on its own terms. And yes, I always kept looking over my shoulder. But no, there was no fear but just wonderment when s close to these animals. I'm not suggesting for a moment they are giant puppy dogs to take for granted, but they are not the killers so many others make them out to be in popular text. On one magical occasion, I was taken for the trip of a lifetime up to a small pool. The four of us got out of the boat, walked fifty yards to the pool and stood on the shore just fifteen to forty feet away from three grizzlies. They were there grabbing salmon to eat. Armed with only my 80-200AFS, I took frame filling images at 80mm of these seemingly gentle creatures. True enough they thoroughly checked us out, circling us in an alarming manner to those unwise in their basic biology. But the photographic rewards do not do justice to the personal experience! After our weekend seminar on Wildlife Photography Marketing this past weekend, other myths came and died as the truth was explained to the participants. These three very gifted photographers IMHO will go very far in their photographic careers. But like so many, they had much self doubt and concerns because of the bull they had read by self proclaimed experts in popular print. The biggest myth that really ticks me off is this, "it's too competitive" !@^%(^%(! Did you know that there are over 8800 magazines printed in this country, each month! And that if each magazine only needed 10 photographs (and they need a whole lot more), that's 88,000 photographs! Who is supplying them, it's surely not those folks writing, "it's too competitive." My point?! Photographers need to experience life for themselves and not rely so much on what's in print. Sure, what I write along with others might be of help on this or that, but it's personal experience that will always be the best teacher. I admit that the first time I encountered that wild grizzly, my mind reached back and thought of those tales of the "man eater." That when I submitted my first article, I followed all those "hints" in print which ended up leading to disaster. But I quickly learned photography is much more than what's in print. Life is there, wildlife is there, waiting for those who grab for it! Spending time online reading this or that opinion, worrying about this lens or that film being better than this or that doesn't mount to a hill of beans when you're in the glory of the Alaskan frontier watching a grizzly sow and two cubs, playing about in the grasses, enjoying the sun and fishing for salmon less than a hundred feet away! I had a fly rod in my hands at the time, no camera anywhere nearby and I'm glad! That moment like so many from my recent trip will always be exposed on the thin emulsion of my mind! It Isn't What It Seems
You might be saying to yourself something like either "I don't want to be that close to a grizzly ever in my life" or "I wish I could be that close." But whatever the case, you only have what I've communicated in this photograph to go by. Heck, you don't even know if it's a wild griz other than my reputation for not shooting captives. You do know that I had the passion and basic biological skill to get this close to capture these images without mentally falling apart. And since I'm hear to write about it, one would have to assume that while the bear is all puffed up, it didn't charge and eat me. 
In actuality, you can see exactly why this bear is all puffed up. Not exactly the most exciting moment in wildlife photography history, but it kinda helps make my point. Not everything you see in photography is what it seems. In this case, charging to eat me was the last thing on this bear's mind. In fact, this very act signifies the bear was perfectly at ease with our presence. My point is that even after you've read what everyone has to say, you've looked at the pros and cons, you still have to try whatever for yourself to make sure it works for YOU! Photography in a very individual sport, the winners are those who can make it their own. The best photographers aren't those who can quote f/stops and lens specs, but who can put their photograph up for all to see and it communicates! There is no race, there is really no "best." I spent an incredible weekend in MI at a camera store, talking with folks who just loved to take photographs. Some of the photographs shown to me sucked, others were dynamite! Those that sucked, the folks understood that, but they wanted to learn more to improve and couldn't wait to get out and try some more. And those with the great image, wanted to go out and likewise, go out and improve to create even better images. They didn't get all puffed up about their images, they weren't out to dump on anyone. They simply loved wildlife photography so much, they wanted to share it with others. That's what makes it marvelous, that's when often, it isn't what it seems. Photo captured by F5, 400f2.8AFS on Agfa RSXII 100. Slow Morning
Slowly I approached the hawk. There was nothing else about, so if I didn't approach carefully, I'd have nothing to photograph for hours. It was so dark out, the thick fog like a blanket shrouding the landscape in gray. I dialed in +1 compensation just so the image would come out as bright as you see it, but I probably could have used another stop. With this, my shutter speed was 1/8 at f/4, that's a slow morning! Slowly I approached and captured the image you see here. It's always been a favorite of mine, the stark white world with the small splash of brown color the form of a bird. But wait, I captured a sharp image at a really slow shutter speed and I wasn't using a Canon IS telephoto! That's a low dig, but....it can be done using proper long lens technique, here's an image proving it. I'm not saying that the IS technology doesn't work, I don't know as I've personally never tried it. But the theory behind it simply is to make up for poor photographic technique. I much rather see folks have great long lens technique, save themselves a whole bunch of money and use it to be out on a blustery cold, slow morning photographing a Red-tailed Hawk perched in a cottonwood! Photo captured by F4, 800f5.6 EDIF on Agfa RSXII Time into the Craft
There is so much to learn in photography to be successful. I'm not talking about exposure or composition as while they are important, they are only but a small part of a successful photograph. What I'm talking about is the ability to communicate what not one sees with their eyes, but their hearts. This expression comes from the marriage of technical skill, passion, and time. We need time to first master those basics that give so many photographers fits, exposure, focus, equipment, and get past these trivial matters to the greater pursuit of photography. We then need time to see what it is we're seeing and translating that into images where others can see the same thing. We next need time to understand how light plays into this whole scheme of photography, something that some photographers never, ever get. We then move on to the challenges of improving on what we've captured, or capturing what our imaginations say is possible. This is where I feel I'm at which brings me to the photo of the month. I've been venturing to Bosque del Apache for years, first with manual focus lenses, then with the F5 and AFS lenses. One image I've always wanted to capture is a Snow Goose landing on a pond, its landing gear out stretched, just barely skimming the surface a pond, one deep blue in color and still as a mirror to reflect the goose coming in to land just as the sun is sinking in the west. Getting all the elements I "see" in my imagination to come together before me just hasn't happened yet. After my trip to Bosque last month, I feel I'm getting closer, getting lots of images like this of a Snow Goose coming in for a landing, panning downward (rather than side to side) and getting the sharp image, but still no cigar. No beautiful, romantic late day light, no still, clear deep blue pond reflecting back the approaching snow white Snow Goose in its waters. To get that image of my imagination, I'm going to have to continue putting in time into my craft. I see other steps in the evolution of a photographer beyond where I'm at (lots). The ability to effortlessly capture whatever the heart or imagination holds is a great challenge and a few steps beyond. This ties in with an unbridled imagination in the first place to see only the potential in a subject and not the challenges. And perhaps the pinnacle is to be a pure communicator in light, film, motion, color, emotion and life. If life is willing, I hope to make it close to that plain some day. If life is willing, we all can get to that enlightened plain of photography, where all we do is put time into our craft! Photo captured by: F5, 600f4 AFS on Agfa RSX II 100 The Power of Color
We're all about color. To prove my point, look at all the time wasted on fighting over which film delivers the best color. Two very important concepts dictate how we see and perceive color when communicating visually. Color psychology, how colors subconsciously effects and sways our perception and Color Contrast, visual clues to make us look at one thing or another, are critical elements in a successful photograph. Have you ever noticed that some of the more successful photographers are those with art backgrounds, I'm speaking of a formal education in art. Not that they necessarily learned composition and the like, but they learned the play of colors both in communicating and making elements stand out. The successful photographer is aware of these elements and exploits them! This photo of a Roseate Spoonbill is a perfect example of what I'm talking about. The color of the bird, pink, is a soft and mellow color that puts the mind at ease. This is color psychology at work. The pink of the spoonbill against the blue water makes the spoonbill stand out and smack the viewer right between the eyes. This is color contrast at work. The upcoming BT Journal is all about color and its many forms in photography. To get a further hint of what you might be missing if you're not a subscriber, head for our Journal Snipits. But if you shoot color film, you owe it to your photography to be more in tune with the elements you're capturing! Field of Dreams?
This past weekend, I was at my mother-in law's who has a killer backyard for bird photography. There are Ca. Quail that come up to your feet, Scrub Jays, Hummingbirds, Sparrows, nesting Tree Swallows and Plain Titmouse (in houses I put up years ago) plus so much more. But I wasn't in a "pull out the long lens-photograph birds" mood. I was in a goof off, didn't want to worry about making great images mood. What to do? My mother-in law asked if I had seen her "poppy field" on a little wedge of her property which I hadn't. I wanted to play, so I grabbed the Coolpix 990 (which I really love!), 24mm attachment and wondered over to the field. What I found at first was not inspirational, the light was hard on noon yuck! So I took a shot or two shooting down on the poppies, looked at the images and decided I it just wasn't going to be a day for photography. Then I wondered about shooting from a buggies' eye view. I always had enjoyed other's photo taken that way, but I never wanted to smash a field of flowers to take one myself. With the Coolpix 990, I can simply turn the lens so I can stand up and see the monitor while the lens is pointing up at the poppies. For the month of April, I kept track of the emails I received, something I do every so often. I received 3051 emails in the month of April, of those, only 18 expressed the joy photography brought them. 18! All the rest were technical or equipment questions. I'm not assuming that those other 3033 emailers didn't enjoy photography, but when I read the emails, joy is the one thing I didn't come away with. My point? If you look at the photo of the field of poppies where I found my fun, it doesn't look like much (that's our new puppy Benson out there helping me). It wasn't until I let go of my "conventional" photography thoughts and got down on my knees as it were that I found the fun. While understanding the technical nuts and bolts of photography is important, I honestly feel that most photographers just don't spend enough time simply enjoying photography and the subject in front of their lens. Photography is often described as a hobby or profession, but it really is neither! Successful photography whether it's fashion, car, sports, wedding or wildlife, comes from a love of the craft and the subject. A love of f/stops and focal lengths, I have found from the thousands and thousands of photographers I've meet over the past two decades, doesn't make for success. I'm suggesting that you grab your passion and camera and go out and find your own field of dreams! And Then There Was Rain
When I told some folks I was going to photograph wildlife in Chicago, the usual snide comments came out. But just outside Chicago in Elk Grove Village is a really cool place for photographers, Busse Wood Preserve. I'm a big advocate of shooting in your own backyard, be it right out your back door or just down the street. Busse Woods is just such a place! It was not surprising that when the group of 15 photographers was polled, only one had been to the woods prior to this morning. "Some of the best images are taken in the worst weather." I know this to be true, but when you're standing in the rain with a group of 15 photographers about to start a day shoot, these are not comforting words. But that's exactly what happened just this past weekend in Chicago and while the weather did end up getting the best of us by the end of the day, those 15 photographers hung in there! They're my kind of people!!! So, what do you find in an urban forest in the rain? In all honesty, you find what you want to find. The photo of the month is one thing we found, an elk. A small corner of the Busse Forest is an "elk reserve," a giant fenced area where 50+ elk live. Just because they're in an enclosure, don't get the idea you can just drive up and shoot them. They have LOTS of places to hide as we found out as well as plenty of space for being way off in the distance (they are fenced in probably so officials don't have elk on the toll roads). But by working the subject, walking around in the rainy forest with the mesquites constantly running your blood type, you can make the image. The bull pictured here will be a beaut this fall in the fall color of Busse Woods. He stood close enough, long enough for all to capture this nice portrait, in the rain. Leave the elk and head for one of the lakes, and baby Canada Geese are about to photograph. Under the oaks are Robins, jays, cardinals and other fun targets. Walk one of the bike paths and White-tailed Deer by the thousands appear. One area of the woods is well know as a buck area every evening, perfectly front lit by the setting sun. But even if we didn't have great weather, killer subjects or shot tons of film, the sixteen of us had fun, learned a little and shared in our wild heritage. What's that old fishing adage - a day out fishing and catching nothing is better than a day at the office! I think that could apply to photograph as well. Photo captured by D1, 80-200f2.8AFS on Lexar digital film, WB-cloudy, +1/3 comp for overcast Have I Shown You My Dog Imitation?
I can guarantee you that right now while I type this and while your read this, something really cool is going on in nature and it's not being photographed! Of course, that's the way it works. And just as there is something really cool going on, there is something really funny! Finding humor in nature and capturing it on film is difficult, one because you have to see it, the other is because you have to stop laughing long enough to photograph it! On my recent trip to Silver Salmon Creek in Alaska (where I lead bear safaris), we had a marvelous two days with this 500lbs sow and her three, year-old cubs. It was quite an animated group and this photo is just the ending to an incredible two hour session with the family. The tug-of-war with the tree root was good, the cubs wrestling even better, the knock out punch one cub gave itself when it dug up a bee hive was sidesplitting hilarious but I thought I'd seen and shot it all, until. At the end of this session, the family took turns scratching themselves on this fallen log. The mom was so into it, it made me sleepy just watching her rub and rub and rub with her eyes slowly closing with each rub. Then, she rubbed herself right off the end of the log and started to slip which provided me the pose you see her. It took all my strength to contain my laughter as this big, "fierce" symbol of the wilderness did her dog imitation. Isn't wildlife grand!!! Photo captured by D1, 400f2.8AFS on Lexar digital film, WB-cloudy Ugly Ass...Bear
This particular male was sitting in the water, all I could see was his head, neck, shoulders and massive hump and that he was B I G! I watched and watched, my finger on the shutter release, poised for the moment he caught a salmon. Then he slowly started to raise from the water, I could hear myself scream, "no!" He was in the perfect spot, perfect light with the perfect face and then he was leaving. Then I heard myself scream, what an UGLY ASS, sit back down, please! I had never seen a truly old, battle scared male before but by the end of my stay at Brooks, I had seen more then I ever had wanted to. And you know what, I got a lot of ugly ass images. I kept shooting them for a very simple reason. The bear is related to the pig and some day, some editor is going to have an article saying as much and will want an image to illustrate the point. While no one else was taking ugly ass photos, I was. 00.08.03 I was just informed that the information I received at the NPS talk was incorrect, bears are not related to pigs. Darn, that means I have ugly ass pictures for nothing! Don't get me wrong though, I only shot a few. The rest of the time I spent photographing all the "beautiful" bears and there were plenty of those. Make the most of what's in front of you and you'll always come back a winner! Photo captured by D1, 400f2.8AFS, WB-A-1 on Lexar 160MB Pro digital film. Them Trees
I keep working at doing just that, finding the one photo that say a thousand words about the majesty of these towering giants. I'm not about to smoke you and say I've done it, not even close, still. There are so many elements I'm looking for in my redwood image. First is the sheer height of the trees. Finding an object for scale that's not man made yet recognizable in the frame compositionally with a big tree is well, plain old difficult. Add to that great light which normally comes with just the right fog which only comes certain times of the year with any certainty. There's also things like character of the tree, ground cover and .. You get the idea! The photo of the month was taken just a couple of weeks ago in Del Norte Redwoods, CA. It was taken about 10am as the fog slowly burnt off. Standing in the middle of the 101 freeway (which is really just a two lane highway at that point), I dodge traffic to set up for the photo. Many of the elements I seek in my redwood photo were missing, but that light grabbed my attention! Oh gee, I didn't get the photo, guess I'll just have to go back up there again and try, darn! Photo captured by D1, 14f2.8 on Lexar digital film WB-cloudy-3 What Is He Doin'?
This past June I was in Nome, Alaska where an "invasion" of these beautiful little owls occurred, fourteen showed up where none had since 1902. While the rest of the bird photography was slow, the fourteen Hawk Owls in the area provided days of great photography. But when I first approached the owl, I had no idea that would end up being the case. We were driving down the road (Artie Morris and myself) when Artie spotted the first Hawk Owl. It was on private property so we watched for a while to see if it would move and then we drove further down the road. We hadn't gone that far when at the same moment, we both spotted this individual. Well neither of us had this species in our files, so slow, extra slow was in order especially for me, I didn't want to get skunked again. Slowly we approached, refining our angle of attack to improve the background the best we could. As Artie's and my style are so similar, we walked next to each other as we approached the owl. The first frames started to be ripped off and the owl stuck, we were feeling pretty darn good about things. Then the owl moved six feet away to another perch so we started the stalk all over again. We had just started to get the framing we want, and the owl moved again. After a little observation, it was obvious the owl was after the many, many voles running about in the grasses and was moving trying to find the best vantage point to make an easy kill. By the end of the morning and two voles later, this little owl and posed for us on half a dozen different perches, basically let us pet the darn thing, and work it to no end. The photo here, I'm laying down on the ground, shooting up on the owl, including some of the blue sky in the background while a Red-backed Vole was scurrying around in the grasses around my feet. With its head cocked to better hear the direction of the vole, it posed for me while I shot. The owl was truly wondering just what I was doin, going after it's meal?! Photo captured by D1, 600f4AFS w/TC-14e on Lexarmedia 320MB WB/sun-3 |
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For over five years, I've been shooting Agfa RSX 100 film. Currently, I shoot Agfa RSX II 100 and really love the film. But that's not to say I don't try other films as I do. There are always new and great things coming out replacing the old and only a fool wouldn't keep current if for no other reason than to reassure oneself that what they are using is still the right thing.
There I am, forty feet away from a live, free roaming Grizzly Bear, nothing between it and me but my 400f2.8 AFS with F5 mounted a top my Gitzo Carbon Fiber 1548. This fierce man eater is just moments away from charging, my life is on the brink of ending and all I could do was press the shutter release to make the last images of my career. The fierce beast closed in to the point where I could no longer focus on it, my blood turns cold, sweat pours from every pore and my heart is beating so hard I couldn't hold still. This is it - Good Bye!
There are still challenges out their for me, more than I can ever hope to fulfill in my lifetime. And I'm just talking about photography challenges. When I started out almost twenty years ago, I wondered why some of the greats at that time, were just starting to get published and recognized after they had been shooting for twenty years. Now that I have almost twenty years into wildlife photography, I now understand why that's the case, it's simply requires putting time into the craft.
You couldn't get me out of the field, I had so much damn fun for hours! Before I knew it, I had filled up a 160MB Lexar flashcard. I ran back into the house, downloaded the images onto the notebook and viewed them. I was so thrilled with the images I had captured, especially after not really being in a "photographic" mood to begin with, I just wanted to have fun!
Watching the magnificent, beautiful male Grizzly Bears at Brooks Falls catching salmon is really incredible! Standing on the platform for the first time, I studied all the faces of the bears, looking for the most photogenic. Using my 400f2.8 AFS, I studied each and everyone, looking for the best in the best surroundings. I then found this big old face, full of character with its years of scares. I settled down and focused in on it to capture the moment the bear would catch a salmon.
Every few years I need to remind myself just how big Coastal Redwoods really are, so off we go to Northern California. Telling you they are 360 feet tall, live 2000 years standing and even more year once fallen doesn't do justice to these giants. They produce ten times the biomass of the riches rain forest Life in the crown (the very tippy top) of the redwoods is estimated to have 1500 invertebrates, 100 mosses and lichens, and 100 bird and animals. Life in a dead standing redwood snag is estimated at 300 invertebrates, 200 moss and lichens, 129 birds and animals. Life is a Downed redwood is estimated at 3228 invertebrates, 700 plants and fungi and 178 birds and animals! How to put that in one photo?
After being skunked for three years every time I had a Northern Hawk Owl in my sights, to say I was frustrated by this magnificent little bird is an understatement. I love owls: we spend much of our time rehabbing different species at our home and when I can photograph them in the wild, I'm a happy moose! But this one species was becoming a candidate for my dog list as I couldn't get one to hold still long enough to get it in my viewfinder.