So CAN’T wait until this weekend and being in OKC at Bedford Camera’s PhotoCon! I’ll be talking my favorite topic, wildlife photography, photography and of course a little bit about gear. We’re doing a Zoo Photowalk, a little formal presentation (ok, 2hrs of my yacking like about my cousins, Ghost Faced Bear and much more) and just celebrating how fortunate we are to be photographers. Love to cya … come on down and join in on fun!
The Sierras have received a healthy dose of snow so far this winter with much more predicted to fall. That along with other factors lead me to believe we’ll have a gorgeous fall in the Sierras. So we’ve been granted a permit to have a photographic workshop at South Tufa, Mono Lake this October and we’re very excited! The Forest Service is only permitting two groups at a time at South Tufa this year which means to us, we basically have the place to ourselves!
Starting the evening of the Sept 30th, we’ll gather and talk about photography and get ready for the next day. Sunrise on 01 Oct, we’ll be on the shores of Mono Lake enjoying its beauty and celebrating it with our images. Then after breakfast, we’ll go through ALL the photos from the morning to learn from our efforts then head back out to explore the High Sierra. Then we’ll venture back to South Tufa for a gorgeous sunset shoot. And if that wasn’t enough, after dinner we’ll gather in the digital darkroom to learn how to finish and share our images.
The morning of the 2nd, we’ll start shooting heavenly bodies at South Tufa and then enjoy and shoot sunrise. We’ll join for breakfast and a crit of images and then disperse to head home. All this shooting and instruction, a written packet of all my favorite shooting locals are included in your registration (food, lodging & transportation not included). This is for a small group of shooters and the price is $595!
We’ll be based out of Mammoth Lakes, CA for this weekend celebration of Mono Lake and landscape photography (30 Sept – 02 Oct.). If you’re interested, give Sharon a call quick, 661.204.1506 to reserve your spot (only 2 left!).
“Do you ever feel apprehensive?” Man, is that a loaded question! In this case, the emailer was asking about whether to buy the D5 of D500? The response for me was real simple, both. But when I first read the email, my mind wasn’t on gear, but photography. Gear to me is a slam dunk proposition, it’s a tool and like any tool, if it fits the job than I need it in my bag. But when it comes to a particular photograph, project or visual statement, I’m full of apprehension. I have it sometimes to the point to where I literally don’t sleep. And I think that if you value your craft, love being a storyteller and I hate to say it, want to stay in business, you’d best have apprehension. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I don’t like it but when you strive for the best from yourself, you’ve gotta ask yourself hard questions and some of those answers probably scare the crap out of you and that, creates apprehension!
Being a veteran of apprehension for over thirty years, I’ve managed to turn it into my favor, most of the time. It normally starts when I take on a project(s) that in the back of my mind, something says, “Don’t do it.” Some call this living on the edge or, pushing your comfort zone. I think it’s basically a combination of both and personally, it pushes my photography from within. External influences that push your photography, like paying a bill, is one thing. Pushing from within though, that’s the hard one because you’re depending on yourself to bring everything to life. There are times when this totally falls apart but from those you learn to turn into learning experiences. And the more you do that, the less life threatening the apprehension becomes to your photography. No, I’m not passed having apprehension about my photography, it’s part of everyday life it seems. I just am not paralyzed by it as much as I use to be.
Yep, you can pre-order the new Nikon gear introduced today. I’ve already contacted B&H Photo and ordered my D5 with the XQD option. Why that over the D5 – CF option? For me it’s real simple, XQD is so much FASTER and if you’re going to shoot that 12FPS with 200 frame buffer, speed is everything. I can’t wait for the first time I fill them Lexar XQD 128GB 2933x at that speed. My heart shutters just thinking about it!
And what about the D500? Yep, went and ordered one of them too! Why did a I order a DX body you might be asking? Well, for a very specific new project where a small, light, super high quality video camera will be perfect. The D500 couldn’t come at a better time for me.
And what about the new SB-5000 speedlight? Well of course, it has to go in the bag as well. Moving away from the infrared to a wireless signal is a BIG deal to me. I can’t wait for nesting season to put these bad boys to work.
and you can’t forget the ultra cool KeyMission 360 Action Camera!
What about the rest? Oh, I have no doubt it will find its way into my bag. This is enough damage for the 5th day of the year :-)