This weekend I was meeting a friend on Treasure Island and while waiting a great photo opportunity presented itself. The largest privately owned sailboat the Maltese Falcon, owned by venture capitalist Tom Perkins, sailed past with the San Francisco skyline as a backdrop. Now while I focus on landscape and nature subjects I won’t hesitate to photograph an interesting event or news worthy subject. With that in mind if you plan to “go with the flow” in regard to photo opportunities its critical to always have your camera gear on hand.
Back to the Maltese Falcon… I’m not a mega-yacht tracker, but I did happen to see Tom Perkin’s interviewed on 60 Minutes sometime ago and he was very coy in talking about the cost of the boat. Not surprising given his vast wealth and the numerous charities that could benefit from money thrown at this boat he remained secretive on the specific cost to build it. He did eventually state the range in the interview of being between $150 million and $300 million.
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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
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.
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Technorati Tags: Photo Tour, Workshop, Photograph, Sea Otter, Monterey, 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.
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This was taken moments before this crab was quickly devoured by this California Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris). This particular Sea Otter put on quite a show for those on the Sea Otter Photo Tour I put together this past weekend. You never realize how fast a crab can be eaten until you see a Sea Otter in action. Sea Otters eat 20-25% of their body weight in food per day due to an incredibly fast metabolism. By comparison human food eating champions such as Takeru Kobayashi proportionally are put to shame daily by Sea Otters.
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Technorati Tags: sea otter, enhydra lutris, photography, stock photo, workshop, photo tour
This weekend was beautiful here in Northern California and conditions were perfect for this past Sundays California Sea Otter Photo Tour. California Sea Otters were out in force dining, playing, relaxing and well just looking cute. I’ll be sharing photos from those that joined me later in the week, so stay tuned.
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Technorati Tags: sea otter, enhydra lutris, photography, stock photo, workshop, photo tour
Soft lighting filtering through pre-dawn fog provided some interesting photographic opportunities during my last day at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming back in July. This hike was particularly refreshing as numerous photographic subjects seemed to pop out of the landscape. The layering and juxtaposition of foliage caught my eye. This photo has since become one of my favorites from this trip.
Technorati Tags: nature, photography, fine art, stock photo, landscape, Grand Teton, National Park
My latest travels this past week took me to Seattle where I had a chance to photograph some of the more iconic locations around town including Pike Place Market, arguably one of the two most recognizable Seattle landmarks. One of the many highlights during my brief trip was having the chance to meet several talented photographers at the opening night of the International Conservation Photography Awards (ICP Awards) gallery. I also had the pleasure of crossing paths with local photographer Chase Jarvis who was incredibly hospitable going out of his way to recommend great restaurants for my wife and I to try. All-in-all it was a very fun trip. With a little luck I’ll be swinging by Seattle again sometime soon.
Pike Place Market - Seattle, Washington
Technorati Tags: Seattle, Pikes Place Market, Washington, photography, stock photo, travel
