December 10, 2008.......................................................................HOME.......... ......................."The Importance of Destination Photography"
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Technical Data
Camera: Nikon D3
Lens: Nikon 200-400 f/4
Capture: NEF
Metering: Matrix
Release Mode: Manual
ISO: 800
Shutter: 1/1000
Aperture: f/8
Camera: Nikon D3
Lens: Nikon 200-400 f/4
Capture: NEF
Metering: Matrix
Release Mode: Manual
ISO: 800
Shutter: 1/1000
Aperture: f/8
Having returned from my first trip to Africa (Kenya), I am basking in the afterglow of an adventure. It was rewarding on multiple levels, and post-processing for this shoot went well beyond the mere digestion of 10,000+ images that were made. As the dust settles, the significant aspects of the trip are coming to the forefront and defining at least two good blog posts in the immediate future. So sit back and reflect with me...
One of the satisfying endpoints for a trip such as this is sharing the experience, so a slideshow for the family last week was in order. My nephew and his ten year old bud were in attendance (at the request of a parent, "to get exposed to some culture"), and when a Kenyan town image of a muddy street with a young Kenyan boy came up on the screen, his response was priceless. "You went THERE for three weeks ON A VACATION?" Of course all the adults got a good chuckle from his insight, but it provides a great segue into this blog entry.
Why should a photographer go halfway around the world on a trip?
I think there are lots of important reasons...
Don't go just to "see the world". Go to "experience" the world.
Far too many Americans have never been outside the United States. Their attitudes about our country and its relationship to the rest of the world need a broader perspective. You'll come home and understand what you are lucky to have (regardless of who is the president), and you'll gain a new appreciation for what others have, and don't have.
Going through the motions of planning and executing an international trip will challenge you, and challenges are good for you. Every time a photographer writes to me and asks, "How do I get to the next level?", my response in one form or another is, "Find a new challenge and don't back away until you've achieved your goal." International travel, much more than domestic travel, will force you to deal with a dozen new, unique aspects of life, every day. Things as simple as choosing your next meal become something that really demand your attention. Along the way you learn that you can survive without Starbuck's or Best Buy, and that the richness of the cultural experience is memorable, even when not all goes according to plan.
As a matter of fact, dealing with everything when it doesn't go according to plan is a big part of why you need to go. Ever wonder what it is that separates the professional photographer from the talented amateur. Does the amateur make images of professional quality? Absolutely. But statistically, the professional is more likely to succeed. Why?
Better equipment? Yes and no.
Plenty of amateurs have equipment equal to (or better than) a given professional.
Better access? Yes and no.
Anyone with a camera and the right attitude can get to where amazing shots can be made.
It’s the experience. Professionals do many of the same things the amateur does, but they do them over and over and over, until they recognize what works and what doesn't work. They do so much of everything that it becomes instinct, not a choice or decision you have to consciously make each time.
I'd have thought as a photographer for 45+ years, I knew an awful lot about technique. I understand ISO and shutter speed and aperture. But there is a difference between understanding these principles and managing them in the field, on the fly, so that the result is not only intentional, but exceptional. I know that you need a faster shutter speed to freeze action, but until I shot birds, for days on end, at rest and in flight, I didn't have the specific shutter speed number in my head that was going to assure razor sharp images worthy of species you travel 3,000 miles to see. I knew that as you choose a faster shutter speed, all things being equal, you have to increase the ISO to compensate. But I didn't have the ISO range in my head for the cameras I was using that would guarantee exceptional file quality.
Chew on this. Each day, I'd shoot anywhere between 500 and 1000 images, download and sort them, and make selects based on content and quality. I'd see potentially great shots fail because although I'd recognized the creative moment, I hadn't understood the parameters of the scene I was shooting well enough to make truly informed choices. I might have made that mistake during the morning shoot, but you can be sure as I went out that afternoon, I was smarter than 3 hours earlier, better prepared to pull content, technology, and opportunity together. By the end of the trip, I could feel a difference in how I was shooting. Instead of thinking, "This ISO should probably work...", I was playing the camera more like a musician, and the images became a performance that I savored at each download.
Many of us will never match the experience of a professional who has been shooting year in and year out as a career. But I can assure you that taking a week, or even better two weeks (or more depending on the level of your photo addiction), and traveling to an international destination JUST TO PHOTOGRAPH can be a talent changing milestone in your photographic timeline.
What stands between you and exceptional images may just be "experience", and there is only one way to put that in your camera bag. Find a destination and begin your journey as soon as you can.
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Mark Alberhasky is a Nikon Mentor for the Mentor Series Worldwide Photo Treks.
Join him as he travels and share his enthusiasm for photography and learning.
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