Dec 28, 2009 | Field Reports
Unbeknown to me when I posted my Gloves post, my family had secured for me the ultimate in cold weather gloves mittens. Actually, they are custom made trapper mittens that are strictly for cold weather use.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/_BMP7463.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
How cold? Well, at 12degrees my hands were almost uncomfortably warm, not perspiring but almost too much warmth. Working in places like Yellowstone or the Arctic in the winter, these mittens will be so perfect. Yeah, I can squeeze off the shutter, no, can’t work any other feature on the body. No, can’t buy these at REI. They are a two layer mitten, a heavy wool removable liner and outer Beaver fur. I just can’t wait to get out in the cold and put them to use! Thanks family!
Dec 24, 2009 | Field Reports
It’s that time of year when folks seem to take an extra minute to reminisce and look toward the New Year. I’m incredibly fortunate to have a marvelous family as well as an amazing group of friends. It’s during this time of year when the spirit of the season settles in and conversations turn perhaps more reflective than otherwise would during the rest of the year. Such is the case for a number of conversations I’ve enjoyed this last week. Mostly, we’ve talked about our profession of photography, photography of the masses and our own predictions for the next five years. Most of these discussions arise when I say I’m trying to figure out the direction I want to take my photography and where I think my photography will take me in the next five years.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/xmas_09.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
This all assumes we have control over our future, in part or total. When I started out in business, as in I was first self employed, three months into self employment the Gulf War began. We couldn’t give away a critter shot. Had lots of requests for Arabian species or oiled birds, but nothing from North America. Not the best first step in business, definitely not what we planned, but there was no way to foresee the war. So learning from the past and looking forward, we’ve learned that we put our best foot forward always keeping an ear out for the unplanned. That brings up that wisdom from age question in my mind.
Setting goals for the next five years requires looking into the crystal ball to include where is the profession going and how will technology affect it. The most obvious is the inclusion of video capture in our DSLR bodies. Video isn’t new, not by any means, but it still feels new to me and to my workflow. It’s totally new when having to shoot both stills and video with the same body attached to the same lens. That’s a mind bent that’s still screwing with my small brain. And with the first video sales this month out of our office and more in the works for 2010, it makes me scratch my head and wonder. But this is just the mechanics and while important, it isn’t really the main goals Sharon & I set for ourselves or the business. I’m talking about the ones that really count!
Getting to the heart of the matter for me is the message itself. Just to who and how, and with what and then when does the message get out that I want and need to share? And in the coming years, in what format does the message go out as, still, video, web, print or combination of one or all? That brings us back to the heart of my conversations with a couple treasured friends this past week. “Does one cast their net for all the small fishes or throw the harpoon for the sharks?” That quote was just thrown at me this morning and still has my head spinning with the implications of its meaning. It’s a more philosophical asking of the quantity or quality question. And I don’t have the answer, yet, but somehow feel that in finding that answer a whole lot more answers might come flooding in that have eluded me. It requires looking at what we’ve done so far, our successes and failures and the rewards and thinking through if they are repeatable. Thinking through if they even apply to the future!
What makes this more complicated is trying to see how others might be dealing with the same influences in the artistic and commercial market place that might affect our business. Even more important is, do we care or just do our own thing? I would really love just going out shooting and shooting and shooting and not thinking about this at all, but such is not the case. Life just doesn’t permit it. But that’s the desire and passion, which if not fulfilled the rest of the house of cards comes crashing down. You might be thinking this is really too heavy a conversation to be having this time of year, but it’s the time of year that brought it all up. Where does the photograph come into play and how does it drive the train?!
You could easily take this same thought, the casting of the net, and put a totally different twist on it, the reason for the season. And perhaps that isn’t too bad an idea. Photography is a visual communication. In many cases it’s a response to the moment and in other cases, it’s a thought out process being summed up in a click. Either case, the person behind the camera, YOU, brings to those moments all the thoughts and feelings that make you, you. You have the ability and means to take just one photo or thousands and cast them out and change lives, save places and bring delight. With that kind of power, how will you then take advantage of it, what avenue will you take in presenting the world through your eyes and heart and photography? It’s one thing to take a Saturday off just to go make a couple of clicks to clear the mind. It’s a whole other one when you turn those couple of clicks into ones that can fill hearts. Take the spirit of the season, use it to give a purpose and goal for the years to come and let it run away with you and fill your photography for the coming year. Cast your nets wide and fill them with hearts!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Moose, Sharon, Brent, Katt, Jake & Stephanie!
Dec 24, 2009 | Field Reports
A really good question that comes in a lot, especially this time of year is “What gloves do you use? Back in the day, I would haunt every outdoor store I ventured by and gleaned the glove display trying to find the glove that kept my hands warm and permited me to shoot. Then our sons got into xcross skiing and I found the Swix gloves and fell in love. From past experience, I bought 3 pairs which until this last fall lasted me for 9yrs. Went to try and find them and found they were discontinued. The closet thing I found was B, Swix Narvik Gloves. This was after I found the A, Mountain Biker Gloves. Now I like these gloves but in the beginning, they were stiff as a board. They have a special material on the top to cut the wind and that works but after four months of shooting, they are just starting to break in. These are the gloves I always have in my jacket and take care of the majority of my shooting. When going to extremes like when the air temp hovers around zero of lower, I turn to ice climber gloves. These seem to change every other day, they are updated and outdated almost monthly. The pair I got last year are now gone, the closest are the C, Grandoe Logan Gloves. They do look bulky but I found them to work really well. They keep the digits warm, permit basic operation and ability to push some buttons. You can push all the buttons on the D3 for example except the button inside the Selector. You cannot run a video camera with them. If you click on all the links, you’ll see they take you to REI. I have found them to have a great selection that varies a little from town to town. These are what I’ve found work for me, perhaps one will be right for you.
Dec 23, 2009 | Field Reports
The northern bear populations, the Griz & Polar, aren’t doing so well. There are a number of reasons for this, some obvious and some definitely not so obvious. The solution isn’t always obvious and it certainly isn’t easy. It does take the public’s awareness for any change to take place which is where you come in. NPR has posted an excellent podcast on the plight of the grizzly bear in Alberta, Canada that is a great listen. We’re expanding our work with northern bears in 2010 and once you hear this, you might understand why. It is a 18min podcast and well worth the time.
[swf]http://www.moosepeterson.com/swf_imgs/GB21555.swf, 585, 444 [/swf]
Dec 23, 2009 | Field Reports
photo courtsey Nikon
My bud Jeff (at Adorama) who I think is really the king of glass pushers (my old title) dropped me an email that this new little gem should be in early next year so I put my name on the list for one. I hear that it should work killer, better than previous models with the D3 AF system and better edge sharpness and with a project coming up this summer where there’s going to be an ocean between me and the subject, I’ll need the optical reach. When I get it and shoot it a bit, I’ll throw up a user report.
Oh yeah, before I forget, Jeff has a used 600VR coming into stock in a few weeks. Not only are they very hard to find, but it will be at a killer price. Drop him a note if you want to give yourself one helluva xmas present!
