What I do in the "off season"

As I write this, Southern Louisiana is in the grips of an unusual cold snap. Not the kind of weather I would go wandering around finding things in nature to photograph and certainly not the kind of weather I want to be out on the water. I would argue, however, now is the most important time for my photography and the success of the shooting season is dependent upon much of what I do now.

Here are some of the activities for the next several months:

Planning

At the beginning of the year I like to set my photography goals. What would I like to photograph? What can I improve upon? What trips would I like to make? I firmly believe in the mantra “Plan your Work and then Work your Plan”. So I spend an hour or so each week working on the plan. I try to get this in writing so I solidify it in my mind and break things down into steps. While things never really go as planned, getting this on paper helps move things in the right direction.

For example, this year I want to spend more time creating good landscape photographs and panoramic images. I’ll be looking for good opportunities to create these images in the off-season so I can focus on getting the photograph when the conditions are right. I also will set up the pano head and make sure I have the proper nodal point for each of the lenses I expect to use.

Maintaining Skills

In order to be at my best in the spring, I need to be photographing all winter. So I create some self assignments to keep at it even though most of the resulting images will go into the trash.

Some examples of self photo assignments:

1. Photograph a week with a single focal length and then the next week go to the opposite extreme.
2. Create one photograph a day from the backyard for a week.
3. Create one photograph a day of my cat or dog for a week.
4. Create 3 good macro shots.
5. Create a panoramic photograph of the front of my house.

I also make to sure to notice things on my walks with the dog and perhaps take a shot or two with my iPhone. I make it a point to pick up my cameras every day, even if I’m not photographing and go through the photo making process. I also try to take a camera with me on trips to the grocery store or shopping and take and few shots along the way. The key is practice, automatically connecting with my camera rather than needing to think through the technical aspects of shooting. See my article here.

Maintenance and Testing

During the winter months I do extensive testing of my equipment to make sure it is in the best condition for the spring photo season. I set each camera up and go through each of the lenses. I check for any potential problems with back or front focusing. I run a test on each autofocus lens with ReiKan FoCal that identifies the sharpest aperture, checking aperture in turn, generating a report for each. This identifies problems with my lenses. I also do an exposure test at each aperture for each of my lenses. Using this test this year I identifies two lenses with sticking apertures. I then either send the equipment in for repair, repair the problem myself or replace the problematic equipment. Finally I do a thorough cleaning of all the equipment and put things in their proper place.

New Equipment

Now is the time I like to purchase new equipment. During the active shooting season I don’t like to learn anything new. I prefer to have some time to get used to new camera bodies, lenses, computer software, etc. during the off season when I’m not under pressure to get the shot. Having gone through process of assessing the condition of my equipment and setting the goals for the shooting season, I can make intelligent choices concerning purchases I need to make.

Computer

This is also the time to make an assessment of the computing strategy and equipment needs. I check over things such as the amount of free storage on my computers, any potential problems with hard drives, etc. I run diagnostic software to find any hidden bugs. If I need to make any changes to my workflow, now is the time.

Study

Also I spend time with photography and wildlife textbooks and doing research on the web. I subscribe to Lynda.com and now is the time to learn new software and shooting techniques. I like to spend time looking at the work of other photographers on Web sites like 500px.com. It’s also the time to reread camera manuals and guides like those published by Thom Hogan for my camera bodies.

While this time of year is not when I make most of my best images, it really is an Important time for getting things set for the rest of the year.

Photo Tours

Space is still available for the 2015 Photo Tours, check it out here.

The Role of the Photographer versus The Role of the Camera

​Nichols State University Graduation 2013

iPhone 4s Camera Panoramic Mode

Last week I did a Program for the New Orleans Photographic Society. The talk was on the Role of the Photographer versus the role of the Camera. I though I would write it up as a blog post as well.

Background

I've been doing photography full time since April 2000, in that time I've created a lot of Good images, some Very Good images and very few if any great images. I've been spending some time reflecting about what a great image is and how to go about making them.

Great Photographs

Tell a story, connect with their viewer, and convey a feeling, mood, or emotion. Looking at timeless photographs from photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson or Ansel Adams, the photograph put you into the place through their eyes, you can definitely understand their feelings looking at their work.

What it takes

It seems to me there are three things a photographer must do, have, or master to create great images:

1. The skill of visualizing the final result prior to taking the picture
2. A Great deal of Luck
3. Practice and Preparation

Visualization

"Visualization is the conscious process of Projecting the final photographic image in the mind before taking the first step in actually photographing the subject."

                                                                                                                Ansel Adams

Old Man in the Mountain, New Hampshire

Nikon N90s Camera, Velvia Film, Nikon 300 f2.8 AFD lens

This is a photograph of the Old Man in the Mountain in New Hampshire. On many of my fall trips into New Hampshire I often noticed this Iconic landmark to the West of Route 3. I awoke very early one morning (around 2am) and thought about how sunlight would strike the mountain and put only the face into sunlight. I loaded my truck with my camera bodies and my 300 f2.8 lens and arrived in time to capture what I thought about hours earlier.

This is one of the first times I remember thinking about the result I wanted and being able to select the time of day, lens, film and camera settings to capture what I thought about many miles away hours before.

Developing this skill enables the photographer to create a body of work fitting within their vision.

Luck

“Of course it’s all luck.” 

– Henri Cartier-Bresson

​Juvenile Forked-Tailed Flycatcher

Nikon F5 600mm f4 AFS lens

This is a shot of a Juvenile Forked-Tailed Flycatcher. Native to Mexico and  Central America, I photographed this one in Massachusetts. During the Spring and Summer I rarely missed a Sunday Morning at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. Normally arriving at the parking lot of Hellcat Swamp around dawn I would find very few cars. This Sunday morning the parking lot was full. Getting my equipment out and setup, one of the people with spotting scopes said he's over there. I asked who is over there. The Forked-Tailed Flycatcher was the answer. I spent that morning trying to get good shots of the bird, and only managed to get some shots with the bird small in the frame. I came back the next week and spent the time on the trail having similar luck. I came back to the truck and started to pack away the gear, looked up and there he was in the tree above the truck. I managed to get quite a few very nice photographs.

Of Course in Nature Photography you can increase the odds of getting a good shot by constantly being in the field and by knowing what to expect. But the greatest shots are often those that are unexpected.

Practice and Preparation

“If I have any ‘message’ worth giving to a beginner it is that there are no short cuts in photography.” – Edward Weston

“Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.” – Henri Cartier-Bresson

Practice and preparation are in my opinion the most important things a photographer can do to increase the odds of creating a great photograph. In his book "Outliers", Malcolm Gladwell, makes the case that anyone can master almost anything as long as they are willing to devote 10,000 hours to learning the subject. While one can certainly quibble one way or the other with the number of hours, there is no doubt the photographers best work comes when they have practice enough that they are one with the camera. 

In the book "Talent is Overrated", Geoff Colvin goes one step further and says that great performance in any field is a result of deliberate practice where the person analyzes their weaknesses and designs a practice routine to overcome those weaknesses. The best in any field will seek out feedback from those they trust and demand and accept brutal honesty on where they need to improve, and then go about designing a routine to address the issues.

The Role of the Camera

There is no doubt todays cameras enable a photographer to create work he was unable to create in the past. high resolution, high iso sensitivity with low noise, great autofocus systems, etc. all have an impact on what can now be done. 

That said, many of my better images were take with older cameras that lacked many of the refinements with todays cameras. Not to mention photographs of the masters taken long before the digital revolution.

Lessons & Exercises

1. Make the best use of what you have and only upgrade when there is something you need to do can't be done with the equipment at hand.

2. Spend more time with the camera and less time looking at equipment. Create self assignments that push the boundaries of your ability.

3. Practice visualizing photographs you wan to create and do your best to create that shot.

4. Try shooting with a minimum of equipment. Take only what you need and use some ingenuity to create shots rather than relying on the equipment.

Lake Martin - Status of a Favorite Photo Location

Prothonotary Warber - Lake Martin

Sunset at Lake Martin

Barred Owl Along the Road at Lake Martin

Snowy Egret at Lake Martin

Cypress looking down at the water from the Boardwalk at Lake Martin

Black Crowned Night Herton at Lake Martin

American Bittern Along the Road at Lake Martin

History

When I first moved back to Louisiana in 2001 I discovered the amazing Rookery at Lake Martin. There were literally thousands of nesting wading birds, including resplendent Roseate Spoonbills nesting within easy photo access of the road. from the Spring of 2002 through March of 2006, I spent hundreds of hours photographing the amazing scenes unfolding before my eyes. This was truly a world class place to photograph wading birds, particularly the Roseate Spoonbill.

That all abruptly ended in Late March of 2006. On the morning of March 26th, I received an email telling me that the majority of the birds had left. Having been there on the morning of the 24th and witnessing what appeared to be a better than typical nesting season, this came as a real shock. While it can't be proven, I believe that this was a man made tragedy.

In the last 7 years, many of the nesting birds have returned. Unfortunately none are are nesting within easy photo range. While in the early spring there are good opportunities to photograph the birds in flight retrieving sticks for their nest, the best opportunities are birds within the lake feeding and landscapes.

Current Photo Opportunities

1. Lake Martin is one of the best places to photograph owls. Barred owls are frequently seen along the road and from the new board walk early in the morning. Several times I have spent at least an hour following an owl from tree to tree as it caught crawfish from the water and returned to the tree to eat.

2. Lake Martin is also a good place to photograph smaller birds in the spring, such as the Prothonotary Warbler. While I haven't gotten any good shots of them, I've also seen Painted Buntings in Mid to Late April.

3. The lake is also a very good place to photograph irises. Mid April finds Irises in bloom along the edge of the lake and with some work you can make outstanding photographs.

4. Finally Lake Martin is a great place to photograph Cypress in the water. Although some of the best sites have been blocked by recent construction along the Lakes edge, good shots can be obtained along the road early in the morning One of the best spots in the state to capture sunsets is on the small peninsula along the boat launch.

Summary

While the loss of photographic access to nesting wading birds and to some of the better landscape locations due to construction, Lake Martin still offers significant opportunities to the nature photographer. A day at Lake Martin can provide great shots of native Louisiana wildlife and landscapes.

Update Late 2015

Unfortunately, 2015 saw a significant decline in wading birds over 2014. My hopes for a return of a great place to photograph nesting wading birds seems to be unwarrented and I'm focusing elsewhere. I've also not been able to photograph owls over the past several years and many of the best places to photograph landscapes have been obscured by development and no trespassing areas. Unfortunately I have also witnessed people removing many of the natural wild irises on the northern side of the lake, of course nearest the road where it's easiest to photograph. While still a good place to photograph natural Louisiana, it is no longer a great place.