Suwannee River

We were on the Suwannee River this past week to do some kayaking and photography.  The water levels are extremely low in Florida due to a severe drought.  We started our trip at the Georgia border and followed the Suwannee River down through Florida until it reached the Gulf of Mexico.  We stopped and put in our kayaks at various locations to explore some of the river as we traveled.  The river looks very different than it normally would with proper water levels.  The wildlife we saw seem to reflect the stressed conditions of their environment.  We camped for a few days at Manatee springs. The spring water there is crystal clear blue and very cool. This young gator laid stretched out on a log in the 96* heat of the day.  He didn't seem to care about me and my kayak as I drifted by.  Soon the rainy season will be here and the water levels will rise and life in the swamps and rivers will return to normal. 

Cuba

I recently spend some time in Cuba photographing.  Most of my of my days were spent walking the streets of Havana doing street photography.  Havana is an extremely busy city filled with diesel fumes from the many old 50's automobile that have been converted to diesel engines.  For a street photographer Cuba has it all.  The thing I enjoyed the most about Cuba was the friendly people.  They live a hard life but maintain a joyful and enthusiastic outlook.  Cuba has some wonderful artist and I was able to meet a few of them in their studios.  Even though we had some language barriers we could still communicate about the creative process and the focus of their work. I used my Sony mirrorless camera with a couple prime lenses for most of my work in Havana.  The Sony is a small and very easy camera to carry around all day. 

Thoughts and dreams in Iceland

Iceland is a fascinating place with extreme weather conditions.  The light is always changing as is the mood of the weather.  It is not uncommon to have sun one minute and rain the next.  The wind can blow hard and then quit moments later.  The Arctic sea is always battling the coastline and creating wonderful clouds that come ashore and rise up over the mountains.  It is a quiet and remote land where the everyday world vanishes.  I enjoy quiet places where the land is in its nature state, showing no signs use.  It gives time for reflection and a focus on the real values in life.  It seems our technology has imprisoned us and we have become separated from fundamental things in life.  In someways the technological world has become our real home and the nature world is foreign to us.  Sadly I see most young people living their lives 12" from their nose staring into a screen focused on meaningless information.  So much life and youth can be squandered with such constant distractions. I am not immune to the technology trap we live in, but thankfully I have a greater desire to explore the nature world and seek out the wonders that exist there. 

Exploring the swamp

Florida has been under a drought for several months and the water levels are down throughout the state.  Many of the trees in the swamps are showing their roots that normally would be under water.  I made my way into the swamp looking for the best group of trees with exposed roots.  The light was soft and provide a nice glow to the entangled roots.  The swamps are an intriguing place to photograph because of numerous plant life that thrives there.  It is easy to get drawn into concentrating on photography and forget about my surroundings.  I always move slowly and make noise to let the creatures of the swamp know I am in there.  Alligators are always lurking about and it pays to keep a keen eye out for them knowing I am in their environment.  A few days ago I was deep in the scrub photographing and had seven small wild piglets with their mother past within a few yards of me.  Luckily the wind was blowing in at me as I stood frozen behind a large oak tree waiting for them to move slowly pass me.  Florida offers many opportunities for some great photography.  Learning the about the wildlife and their habitat is important when venturing off into backcountry of Florida.

Peaceful Surroundings

One thing I enjoy the most with my photography is the peaceful surroundings I find myself in.  The times that I am out solely for the purpose of photography are the most rewarding.  I am not distracted by other events of the day.  It takes time for me to adjust to a new surrounding and form a new mindset to fully see what is around me.  It is critical to apply some patience when scoping out a new area to photograph.  If you instantly start looking through the viewfinder and moving around with your camera you will overlook much of what is around you.  I try to first view my surroundings without the camera and just look.  It is a technique I used with my large format camera for many years.  Often times I will use a small rectangle viewing card that I hold up to my eye which allows me to move around without the camera and to evaluate the scene for the best composition.  I see many photographers snapping away as they walk around with their cameras.  It is a common mistake and leads to many unwanted images that will have be dealt with later.  It works best for me to first see and then photograph.  Ansel Adams once said, " Any photographer that creates twelve good photographs a year is doing exceeding well".  The key word in this quote is "good".  Practice slowing down and taking your time in order to really "see".  

The image from within

I often think back to my early years of photography and what inspired me to pursue photography.  I first recall being captivated by a black and white photographic image because it revealed ordinary things in an abstract way.  Somehow the absence of color creates a kind of mystery about the image that holds my attention.  I knew early on that my work would be done in black and white and started learning all I could about the medium.  Studying the works of photographers Edward Weston and Ansel Adams helped me to understand the visual relationship between space and tonal values in an image.  I also learned, though their writings, about their thought process and approach to photography.  Two quotes have remained with me throughout my many years of photographing.  Edward Weston's  " To see the thing itself" and Ansel Adams's "I m interested in something which is built up from within, rather than extracted from without".  When I consider one of my images successful it usually fits within the thinking of these quotes.  Working in the digital realm today  is more important than ever for me to remain true to my roots, and not let the technology take control of the process.  It is becoming more difficult to get the equipment behind me and the creative approach to the image in front of me.  Technology is wonderful but also a distraction.  I see many images today that incorporate technology more than the creative spirit of the photographer.  No matter where future technology takes the photographic medium, it will be still left to the photographer to express the image from within to create the most compelling image.  The above image is of a palm frond with the use of intentional camera movement to create a surreal quality.

Form and Shapes

I have been going through some of my many images that I made in Death Valley a few years ago.  It is always fun to find what I like to call "sleeper images" that I overlooked in my initial review of a new batch of images.  Death Valley offers an endless opportunity to explore geometric shapes of the contrasting sunlit dunes and the deep shadows that the low angle sun provides at sunrise or sunset.  Photography is a two dimensional art of line and form.   The line provides the contour of the form, while the contrast values define the boundaries of the form.  The use of negative space in an image is an important part of a two dimensional composition.  Form and shapes can be thought of as positive and negative space.  In this image the dunes are considered the positive space while the dark contrasting shadow and sky is the negative space.  Not all subject matter provide a strong negative space such as this image, but the use of negative space should always be part of the photographers thought process when composing an image.