Landscape, Nature And Travel Photography

One thing I’ve trained myself to do over the years while out in the field is to look in the exact opposite direction of what I’m focused on photographing. I call this creative exercise “The Law of Opposites“. If I’m looking in front of me, I’ll check behind me. If I’m looking up, I’ll look down. If I’m looking left, I’ll look right. You get the idea.  The reason for this exercise is to break free of tunnel vision. With almost absolute certainty I’ll find myself focused to the point of distraction on something widely recognizable such as an iconic landscape subject. When looking in the opposite direction you view the world with a blank slate so to speak; all your visual preconceptions are cleared from your mind and you thrust yourself into something new that your brain has to reprocess.

Almost always I’ll photograph my primary focus, but as I wait for lighting conditions to improve or after I’m done I’ll conduct this exercise. Not only does this keep my mind working, it also helps me become hyper aware of my surroundings. Granted this exercise doesn’t guarantee that you’ll capture an image more impressive than your primary subject, but it will certainly exercise your minds eye.

An example of the “Law of Opposites” creative exercise in action…
After locking in on fog clearing to reveal the Grand Teton mountains, I broke my focus to look at what was underfoot and under-tripod. Dew had collected on lupine leafs in the field I was standing and if you looked close enough you could see other lupine leaves in the dew drops. I swapped lenses and began photographing the lupine. Upon review later I found that my macro photos had turned out far better than my landscape images. A perfect example of the “Law of Opposites” helping me see something I’d likely have otherwise missed.

Technorati Tags: photography, macro, law of opposites, lupine, leaf, dew, stock photo

The 20th episode of EXIF and Beyond has been released.

This episode of EXIF and Beyond features a panel discussion on Orphan Works with professional photographers Chase Jarvis, Dan Heller and John Harrington. With view points that span the spectrum from support to opposition of the Orphan Works legislation, it is my hope that the information and viewpoints with in this discussion help you form your opinions on the topic.

Referenced Articles:
Little Orphan Artworks – Lawrence Lessig Op-Ed in the New York Times
Orphan Works Act: Courts and Law – Dan Heller
Speed Links 5/6/08 Orphan Works Edition – John Harrington
Orphan Works 2008 – A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing – John Harrington

Note that as of Friday September 26th, 2008 the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act, S 2913, the Senate version of this legislation, has passed and has moved on to the House.  Considering the recent passage of this bill in the U.S. Senate it is even more important that you listen to the full length of this podcast, educate yourself as best as you can and take action as you see fit by contacting your Congressional representative. Your call or email to your congressperson in the coming days could make the difference in whether the current form of this legislation is passed or not.

Download the latest episodes:
EXIF and Beyond: Orphan Works Panel Discussion

For the non-iTune listeners a streaming version of this podcast can be accessed here.

For this podcast episode rather than break up this discussion into multiple podcasts I’ve embedded chapters Read more…

I received the following message from the Stock Artists Alliance (SAA) this morning and wanted to be sure that all my subscribers were aware of this important issue:

SAA learned yesterday about an aggressive last-minute push by Congress to pass Orphan Works legislation. The Senate was “hot lining” the Orphan Works Bill (S2913) for a vote, and the House was expected to follow suit.

We’ve now learned that the Senate bill was passed.
We must immediately turn our attention to the House.

We need to stop the House Judiciary Committee from folding their own bill (HR5889) and moving to adopt the Senate version.

PLEASE EMAIL CONGRESS RIGHT AWAY.

The CapWiz site is set up to make this a very quick and easy process. A letter is prepared, and all you need to do is enter your contact information.

Send an email now

Technorati Tags: Orphan Works, Orphan Works Legislation, Copyright, Law, Congress, Senate, Bill, Legislation, SAA, Stock Artists Alliance

This months Sea Otter Photo Tour in Monterey was such a success that I’ve opened another for mid-December. Around this time of year it is possible to catch sight of pups. If we’re lucky we might see a couple. Unlike the last tour this one will be on a Saturday and will be a late afternoon – sunset trip. If you missed the last outing (see the highlight photos) be sure to make this one.  Sea Otter Photo Tour details.

Click to Enlarge

Technorati Tags: Photo Tour, Workshop, Photograph, Sea Otter, Monterey, California

This weekend the new California Academy of Science museum and aquarium is reopening. Saturday September 27th’s admission is free.  The architecture of the building is impressive inside and out. Info about the opening can be found on their web site and for those that won’t be able to make the grand opening check out this time lapse video of the museum being built.

Technorati Tags: California Academy of Science, CalAcademy, San Francisco, California

The first time I saw a Pronghorn while out in Utah I saw nothing but a dust trail in the desert. Not too surprising considering they’re the fastest land animal in the western hemisphere. From my experience they’re quite skittish and most of the time you’ll see them far off.

Recently I caught a lucky break and had a close encounter with a couple of Pronghorn in eastern Utah. One stuck around surprisingly long, after seeing me in the distance. Well… I wasn’t to distant that’s what makes the encounter so special. These were photographed at a focal length of 400mm and I ended up having to stop photographing this particular Pronghorn after he came too close, closer than the minimum focal distance of my lens. All in all this was a great wildlife encounter. Witnessing a wild animal carry on without a worry in the world is a very satisfying experience.  With in those moment the world has a peaceful harmony to it.

Read more…

“It’s not a photo until its a print“

One of the unique aspects of digital photography is that we’re now able to enjoy photographic work with out viewing it in printed form.  More so now than ever before supporting a photographer is shown almost exclusively online through photo forums, blogs, and other online communities. While viewing photographs online is easy and relatively inexpensive it is a hollow experience by comparison to holding an actual print from a photographer you respect and admire.

The goal of this project is to introduce fine art photography, photography books, print exchanges, and other photography related products to photography fans of all walks of life.  It is also to spur photography fans to think in terms of financially supporting talented photographers so they can continue to do what they love.

What This Project Entails:

1. Find 1 to 3 photographs from photographers that you respect and admire.
2. Purchase a photograph or photographs from these photographers. Spend within your means. Ideally try to purchase 1 to 3 photographs.
3. Write about the experience (buying, viewing, etc) on your web site, blog, Flickr page, etc.
4. Participants should then send me a link to their write up (see details below)
5. I’ll consolidate a list of links to the write ups of everyone that took part in early November on my blog and distribute it.

What You Can Do To Make This Project A Success

1. Contact photographers that you may or may not know.
2. Point them to this post and provide them background to your print request.
3. Even if you have little to spare inquire about a discount or an alternate product to purchase such as notecards, calendars, proof print, etc. I realize that times are challenging economically at the moment.  Any support is better than no support. The goal is to obtain a physical copy of photographs you like.
4. Alternatively if you’re a photographer it is not uncommon to conduct print exchanges, where photographers exchange equivalent prints. Not every photographer may do this so don’t be offended if you approach someone who is not interested in such an exchange.
5. If you’re a photographer consider providing a discount to project participants. I personally will discount my print prices 25% to those participating.
6. Spread the word about this project.

The Deadline

Before the conclusion of this project on November 2nd, 2008 write a blog post highlighting the photographs you’ve acquired and share thoughts of your experience in becoming a fine art print owner. Send me a link to your blog post and I’ll post the results the week of November 3rd.

How to send in your link to your blog post:

1. - Access my Contact page
   Note: Omit “http://” on any links.
2. - In the subject line type “Favorite Photographer Prints”
3. - In the message put the name of your site, web address, link to your “Favorite Photographer Print” blog entry.

PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT YOUR BLOG LINK AS A COMMENT TO THIS ENTRY.

Get To It!

I’m extremely excited at the prospect of how this project will open the eyes to first time fine art print owners. I already have a couple print requests in with photographers, a print exchange request and I’ll be purchasing a book titled Cubano by Baldomero Fernandez who is donating all proceeds from purchases to hurricane relief efforts in Cuba.

Technorati Tags: Photography, Fine Art, Prints, Photo Project

My wife has launched a new blog on the topic of Healthy Living aptly titled Into Healthy Living.  She is extremely passionate about the subject and after a little encouragement she decided to test the waters blogging.  She’s new to blogging and could benefit from feedback and encouragement. 

Take a look… her most recent post 7 Steps To Staying Healthy When Traveling is a great read.

If you’re on Twitter you can also follow developments with her blog there via _HealthyLiving

Technorati Tags: Into Healthy Living, Healthy Living