If it feels good, do it

Scroll down to read about the Algonquin Park photowalk at the end of September...

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I don't usually do this, but after I wrote this article for Haliburton County Living, I thought it might be appropriate to reproduce it here.

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Tell Me a Story

Photography has 1000 rules. And you have to learn and follow all of them if you want a successful picture. Bull. There are only two.

• (1) You can’t take pictures if you don’t have a camera with you. 
• (2) If it feels good, do it. 

Let’s talk about equipment. There are those who believe you can’t take a good picture unless you have $12,000 worth of cameras and lenses and a Sherpa to lug them around for you because they’re so big and heavy. Tell that to the photographer who made a Sports Illustrated cover photo with his iPhone. In fact, there are gurus out there I don’t read anymore because that’s the line they spout. Now you have to understand that I DO have expensive and high end camera gear, but there’s a picture attached to this article that I took with a $100 point-and-shoot.

This was taken on a warm, relaxing sunny afternoon on 12 Mile Lake, with a small pocket camera. I want to be one of those guys enjoying a paddle on the calm water.

Why? Because I was out in the boat (and it’s just a teeny-tiny little boat) and I’m a little afraid to take my D800 and big lenses out there. I threw my old point-and-shoot in the dry bag – I love dry bags, you should have one even if you don’t have a boat – so I had something with me. Truth be told, I had two cameras with me because my iPhone was in the bag too, but for other obvious reasons. I couldn't do the world’s greatest high resolution image, but I got something, and I was able to make it say what I wanted it to back in the computer. But that’s just me – you don’t have to be a post-processing freak either, although I admit it helps.

So why have expensive gear? To give you a better chance to make an image that looks like what you saw in your mind’s eye. You can eliminate some of the limitations and capture that feeling or memory. Which leads me to point 2:

Photography shouldn't be about making pretty postcards. I take that back, there are people who make a living selling pretty pictures and I don’t want to belittle their efforts. That guru I mentioned a couple of paragraphs ago said, “If you want to make beautiful pictures, you need to take pictures of beautiful things”. Bull, again. Some of us can’t go to the Taj Mahal or Antelope Canyon or Iceland. We take pictures of where we live and our friends and family, who may or may not be professional models.

 Maybe I'm mellowing with age, but photography should be about capturing emotions and memories. It has to bring you back to a place or time and it has to communicate what was special about that event to whomever looks at the picture. Otherwise why would we have photos of our long gone parents or ancestors, and why are the most meaningful ones the pictures we took ourselves?

It’s easy to teach people how to take better pictures, that is if you can avoid boring the students to death. The first part is purely mechanical, what buttons to push, how to set up the camera, some insight into how it works and what you can do so your image will look technically correct. The second part is to familiarize them with some of those 1000 rules so that they can instinctively use them and know what to avoid. Teaching composition, and even post-processing is also not tough, it just requires a bit more concentration on the part of the student.

Teaching people how to see… that’s the hard part. To use their right brain, to make, not take a picture. Just to put them in the right frame of mind, on the right path. Maybe this will help: figure out how to capture the moment so you can look at the picture later and remember how you felt at the time.

If it feels good, do it.

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FWIW, you've already seen the other two pictures that accompanied this article (click them to blow them up if you haven't): the one of the paddler on Maple Lake  last week and one of a racer at the PanAm Games test event from the week before.

  

The caption on the Paddler picture makes the point in the title of this article. It said,

Because it’s a wide angle shot that includes the landscape and the sky, this image, taken where Maple Lake meets Highway 118, tells a story more than the other images. Available as a large format print, if you’re interested.

I have to admit that I haven't figured out how to teach people to see. In fact, I can't do it either myself sometimes. Something to work on, hoping for an epiphany.

A little Nostalgia

Who remembers this bag?

If you've ever played Scrabble, was there any other bag you ever kept the tiles in? The bag in this picture dates back probably 60 years. I have a couple of other versions as well. It's the perfect size to hold my camera sensor cleaning kit!

From the Crown Royal website:

The first exquisite blend of Crown Royal® Canadian whisky was meticulously crafted from 50 select whiskies, dressed in the finest cut glass and wrapped in purple robes, to commemorate the first grand tour of Canada by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, in 1939. And in truly noble fashion, this bottle of Crown Royal® was placed on the Royal train as a symbol of the hardworking and genuine nature of the Canadian people.

Apparently the design of the purple bag was originated by Sam Bronfman himself. The bags were produced by Montreal Swiss Embroidery Works, Ltd., founded by his colleague Jules Springer (my grandfather. I don't know if they were ever friends). When he died in 1958 the company was taken over by my father, Robert Springer and his two brothers.

It's interesting that Seagram's has brought the bag back for their 75th anniversary. I still have some original bags, found among my father's effects when he passed away in 2010. FWIW, a Manhattan, made with Crown Royal and vermouth (and a dash of bitters, which I usually omit), was my father's favourite alcoholic beverage and is still mine (although I admit I'm quite taken with some well-aged single malts as well!).

PS: Seagram's had a very creative ad many years ago. It was a picture of a Crown Royal bottle smashed on the floor, with the caption, "did you ever see a grown man cry?". Remember it? If you're under 60 you probably won't, it was a long time ago.

Early Influence

I got to thinking about my early influences as a graphic artist. Probably the best example was this 1959 ad:

Attribution: "Think Small" by Magazine. Licensed under Fair use of copyrighted material in the context of Think Small via Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Think_Small.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Think_Small.jpg

This is one of my favourite images. I have a print here that was on display at the Rail's End Gallery for a time. I'm having framed as we speak. It's pretty clear what influenced me when I created it. 

Sensor Cleaning followup

As I mentioned last week, it was time to clean the sensor on the D800. I have some 11,500 shutter actuations on the camera without any visible signs of sensor dust – a testament to Nikon's improved design and technology, a far cry from the D600 issue I had last year. A few spots appeared last week.

I had heard great things about the new Eyelead Gel stick and tried to buy one. The manufacturer was backordered, so I shopped on eBay and found one from the Far East. Turns out it was not an original (although it was priced the same). However the technology looked identical. Turns out it may not be.

The Gel stick has a sticky surface which you press (lightly!) on the sensor and it's supposed to pick up dust. It does, but unless I'm mistaken, it leaves a trace of adhesive behind. I won't be using that again. So I took out my SensorPen and used it. It was effective: I got everything I could see in about 5 minutes.

If you are careful and delicate, you don't have to worry about damaging your sensor (DISCLAIMER: I'm not telling you to do it yourself. If you do, and you damage the sensor, it's YOUR FAULT, NOT MINE). I think you have to take much more care when you do a wet cleaning. I found the kit that I bought at B&H the most effective, it includes a rocket blower, an illuminated loupe so you can actually see those bits of dust, and the SensorPen. Here's the link to where I bought it.

Photowalk planned

Last year I did a photowalk up to Algonquin park at the end of September. I'm doing it again this year, together with the Haliburton Highlands Camera Club. I'd like to invite my friends and loyal readers to join us.

Last year, on the beach behind the Frost Centre 

Also at the Frost Centre last year 

I'm usually pretty good at remembering where I was when I shot a picture, but this one is eluding me. Could be the Oxtongue River Rapids... Shot in 2011. 

There's no charge. This is not a teaching field trip, just a guided visit to some sites we know about that are 'photogenic'. However, in fairness to the Club, if you are not an HHCC member, if you join us, we're asking you to buy at least one HHCC coffee mug at $10 to support the club.

We're working on the agenda as we speak. Our tentative plans are:

• We are NOT going on a weekend. Algonquin Park is a ZOO on weekends during fall colours season. I refuse to sit in a 20km long traffic jam.
• Dawn shoot at the Frost Centre just South of Dorset on Highway #35. If you're not an early riser, you can join us at one of the other stops
• Breakfast in Dwight
• Come into the park at the West Gate on Highway 60 and meet somewhere, somewhen! (Maybe Mew Lake campground, we'll see). You have to buy a parking pass at the gate on the way in, I think it's about $15. We should carpool...
• Visit a few good spots for photography. We can go as a group or split up, as you wish
• A quick lunch somewhere, maybe at the Canoe store.
• Exit the park and go to Ragged Falls
• Gluttons for punishment might stop at the Kawagama River Rapids on (ready for this?) Kawagama River Road out of Dorset
• Go home and sleep.

Tentative Date: Monday, SEPTEMBER 29

Rain Date: Thursday, OCTOBER 2

I'm HOPING it's not a bright, sunny, clear blue sky day. Last year it was and I came home with very few good pictures. If it's an ugly, rainy day, we'll postpone, but otherwise it's a go.

If you want to join us, YOU HAVE TO LET US KNOW WHETHER TO EXPECT YOU. I'll send additional details as we go along, including where and when. If you do not complete the survey, we will NOT send out details to you. If you're not sure, do the survey and add a comment at the bottom. 

Survey location: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/J7JFXCC

That's it! Until next week...

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The Times, they are a-Changing!

You know how it says, "sporadic musings" on the header? Today is one of those days!

Today I read a short post on Facebook by someone commenting about how it used to be when we were kids: how we would go out and play, ride bikes without helmets, play games with sticks and other sharp objects and have our mothers yelling at us that "you'll put someone's eye out" and somehow we never did...

It evoked a train of thought I've had on and off, even in the middle of the night when I have been literally scared to death and filled with wonderment and hope all at the same time. There's been a lot of change since those days... and

Our world is on the cusp

There's a new technological revolution coming. No one can argue that there have been new products that have changed the world we live in but when there are a number of advances that occur at the same time, a confluence will occur that will bring about a massive shift in the way we live. Here's a small example.

I saw a clip where they showed some kids a Walkman and they were dumfounded. Another one with a dial telephone. 20 years from now, kids will be interviewed and shown, I don't know, an iPhone and they'll have a hard time grasping what it was for. That's a given, But I was reflecting today on a number of things going on right now:

Personal Drones

I just watched a video on John Nack's blog that was really impressive. If you're going to Africa, take a GoPro camera and a quadcopter with you! Check out this clip shot in the Serengeti: Link Here.

I think these drones (let's call them that for brevity) are going to represent a real revolution in our world, not only the photography game. We've all read about Amazon playing with using drones for deliveries, but seeing videos like the one above, and with all the other technology coming into place like YouTube-like capabilities, increasing bandwidths and storage, remote controllable electronics, makes it clear that we're going to see a real change coming.

Just on the photography front, since the payloads of these RC copters is getting up there, and since cameras are gaining a lot of remote control capabilities, I could see a huge proliferation of aerial images. Put a new generation mirrorless camera with some good optics under one of these.

Imagine, if you would, a world in which there are not just a handful of these flying machines out there, but thousands of them. You're standing at the south rim of the Grand Canyon in a few years. Or Yosemite or Yellowstone or, closer to home, Algonquin Park. Think you'll be getting calm wilderness landscape shots? Not unless your Photoshop skills are honed and you're able to clone out those sky machines. Imagine the traffic jams in the sky!

There will come a point in time when manually controlled drones will not be allowed. Everything will be computer regulated. Sure, the kids today with the skills they're honing playing video games will be able to fly these things but when there are thousands of them in the air at any given time?

This is an invention that is going to revolutionize our lives. Mark my words! Maybe you didn't read it here first, but I'm definitely hopping on the bandwagon. Am I going to get one? No, not yet. I'm not really into video and it's not there yet for me, but I probably will in a few years! I know a couple of people who should be getting into this right now, though (talking to you, Howard, and Gary, and others... you know who you are!).

You can buy this DJI Phantom Quadcopter complete with a GoPro Hero3 camera for under $800 at B&H Photo.

Fuel Sources

There's a rumour about an experimental VW that gets 300mpg. Apparently it's a diesel/electric hybrid. And I'm sure there is a breakthrough out there involving quantum entanglement to step up the power available to us by orders of magnitude. There will be a day when fossil fuels will no longer be needed although I think we'll be in a hybrid state for quite some time to come, but it's coming.

Driverless vehicles

Again, the technology is on the cusp of being there. There are only a few out there, being developed by the Googles of the world, but it won't be long. Safety concerns will rear their ugly heads, politicians will lobby for and against the technology, there will be accidents, but slowly when computer reliability approaches 99.99999% or even more decimal places, it will become a non-issue
There will be roads on which you will not be able to drive without onboard computer control. More and more of them... And you KNOW the next step will be the world of the Jetsons. How long will it be before people will be scooting around in the sky? Yes, you need training and a pilot's license to do it today, but add computer control into the equation and a child will be able to control a vehicle, whether it's on the ground or not. The first time I saw a hovercraft, I realized that the days of our reliance on smooth surface routes are numbered.

Here's a scary thought: would you fly in an airplane built by Microsoft? The "Blue Screen of Death" might take on a whole new meaning! Today I had another one of those on my desktop computer, imagine if it was controlling your flying car! 

Direct computer connections

Google Glass is a fleeting fad. The next step will be contact lens technology where images can be both captured and viewed without external eyewear, but the step after that will be direct connection to the brain, where the sensor will be the eye itself and images will be transmitted directly to the optic nerve.

There's a TV series called "Intelligence" where an agent with a microchip implant is directly connected to the cyber grid. Far fetched? I don't think so. We're almost at the point where if someone can imagine something, someone else can make it real: look at Star Trek – except for warp drive and the matter transmitter, pretty well everything is out there or on its way (did you know that Transparent Aluminium exists?)!

So how will it all come together?

I'm not a futurist. There are far more qualified people out there who can predict where we're going – Dr. Michio Kaku comes to mind, read his "Physics of the Future" (which was written in 2011 so it's already obsolete!). I don't know. I think if we all sat down and thought about what the world will be like, even in as little as the next decade, we'd all come up with different answers.

But you have to be blind not to see that our kids and grandkids are going to live in a technology-driven world that we can't imagine. I may live long enough to see it but like my 92-year old mother who uses her iPad to play solitaire and nothing else, I imagine I'll be a relic who will only be able to gape with wonder at what the world has become.

Another reflection on computer crashes: remember when you first got your latest computer (or in fact, when you got any computer in the past)? My recollection is , "wow, this is so fast!" and "look how great everything runs". What happened? Why do we get Blue Screens, why do we have endless issues? It's usually not the hardware: it has to do with installing updates and upgrades. Why can't we just leave well enough alone? Set up a computer to run program "X" (let's say Photoshop), then block all updates, especially from Mickey$oft and Apple (if that's the way you go). Won't it continue to run great, just like when you first got it? 

Updated Fine Art Gallery

Since my laptop computer crash, I've been restoring programs and utilities one at a time. Today I set up the SmugMug link in Lightroom and took the opportunity to update my Fine Art Limited Edition Prints Galleries. Here's the link: there are two galleries, "New and Featured Images" and the archive that shows all the prints I have available.

Enjoy the images, and if you want a fine art print, prices start at $1000. Just kidding, they're reasonably priced and would look fantastic in your home or office!

Speaking of upgrading...

It's that time of year! Spring has sprung and visions of making pictures that don't involve snow are dancing in your heads! Time to learn about how to use that camera better, or to get a handle on that incredible program known as "Photoshop" or penetrate the mysteries of Lightroom. Come do a workshop.

I've updated my workshop pages at www.photography.to/workshops.htm. I changed a couple of the courses to reflect what people seem to want, but I still  don't show any dates because I'm very flexible (Although I did publish some course dates because they needed it for the Summer Guide in the Highlands). The most popular course has been the 2-day DSLR, but I'm now showing a 1-day basic skills session and coupling that with an optional 1-day field session.

Because I teach to small groups, even one-on-one, you get to choose what you want to learn and how long you spend doing it. Just want a theory session? Or would you prefer to do a field trip and get some real-world experience? I'm easy, I can make the time if you can. Let's Talk!

If you don't feel the need, I'll bet you know someone who does! Please share!

Lots of words, not a lot of pictures!

Yeah, well... time to fix that!

While dinner was cooking, I thought I'd try to capture the essence of the small prime rib roast I was cooking on the BBQ. I used my flash off-camera (about 1m to the left and slightly above, with the Gary Fong diffuser). I tried a couple of shots using a reflector to add some light to the dark areas, but I thought this simple version had a better feel to it. I turned up the burners momentarily to show them, and even cloned in an extra strip to see it better. For the record, it was delicious, properly medium-rare!

So there was this blue jay in the tree. I've taken so many pictures of them, I thought I'd try to make this one a little different. I used a Topaz Simplify preset on this one. One day I'll put all my black background images together somewhere! 

Out near the white water preserve, there's this old church cemetery. Now I think this is the original old church itself, although there's another building across the road that seems to be more current (but still old and rustic). This is hand-hewn log construction and seems to still be weathertight. This is a 5-shot HDR and I used the 10x ND filter to make the exposure times range from 1 to 30 seconds, to try to get some motion in the clouds.  

Generally speaking, this is my least favourite time of year because of the almost monochromatic browns and beiges that paint the landscape. So drag the shutter to 1/10 second and move the camera while the shutter is open and voilà, a really nice abstract emerges, ready for large scale printing on canvas or matte paper! You want one. I know you do. Let's Talk!

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