Now that Spring is officially a week away and the weather is warming up a bit here in the Pacific Northwest, it’s a great time to get out and shoot. Winter rains can be cold and nasty, but throughout the spring and early fall rainy overcast days that aren’t also affected by extreme temperatures and winds are the best days to get out and photograph! I woke up this morning to some cloud cover, light showers, and a relatively balmy 60 degrees, and was inspired to get the word out about how great such conditions can be for capturing fantastic images.
People are often surprised that I don’t run outside with my camera on a beautiful blue sky day. The clouds on an overcast day act like a huge softbox to soften the light, reduce contrast, and open up the shadows to details that would be completely lost on a bright sunny day. Falling rain diffuses and evens out the light even more. Some of my favorite images have been captured on gray rainy days.
You’ll need to check your lens frequently for spots but with a little care you can use the rain to your advantage. Use a tripod, polarizer, small aperture and long shutter speed to keep from recording individual falling drops of rain and maximize atmospheric softening. Additionally, the polarizer removes the shine from foliage for the richest colors possible. It’s rare that I don’t have a polarizer on the front of my lens. With standing water in your frame the falling rain will ripple the surface. The long shutter speed will blur movement the same way a waterfall can be rendered as a soft ethereal white drape over rocks.
A brown bear sow watches over her cubs as they survey the landscape, Katmai National Park, Alaska, U.S.A.
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Art has chosen images that trace back to his arts education background for his Limited Edition Fine Art Collection. Images with the same sensuous tones and textures realized by watercolor painting were selected. They are printed on EPSON Metallic Luster or Somerset Velvet watercolor paper using archival EPSON Ultrachrome inks. After each print is approved, it is then titled, numbered and signed by Art. Only 100 of each will be made.
Print sizes are approximate based on image or format. Canvas prints on EPSON Exhibition Canvas are available. Contact our office for more information.
This month I’ll be skipping across the pond to attend and present at The Photography Show in Birmingham, England. This will be the fifth consecutive year the show will be held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC). From hobbyists and enthusiasts to seasoned professional photographers, this show will have plenty to offer everyone including demonstrations of the latest technology from leading manufacturers utilizing their latest gear offerings. Conferences, talks, and seminars from a variety of speakers will have something to offer everyone of all skill levels. Come and check out the photography event of the year!
Spring is just around the corner, and after heading to the U.K. to present Earth Is My Witness at the Photography Show in Birmingham, I’ll be returning stateside for a few events in the Southeast.
Photography As Art happens on March 25th in Raleigh, North Carolina and I’ll be visiting Florida in May to present the seminar in Tampa as well. In between, I’ll be bringing a west coast favorite to Hotlanta with the inaugural Abstract Atlanta workshop, a new riff on what’s become an annual favorite that originated in Astoria, Oregon.
After being cooped up for so long, I can’t wait to get back out there refreshed and with new perspective. Hope to see you there, or at any of the other upcoming events! For those of you interested in hanging out with me in my own back yard, check out the recent post on Pacific Northwest Events.
Space is limited, and many of these events are nearing capacity. Hop on before they sell out!
The polar bears of Churchill are world famous, of course; like many photographers I have made pilgrimages there since the early 1980s. This has given me the opportunity to photograph the bears in various ways. From a tundra buggy, you can see the bears engaging in harmless battles as they wait to hunt seals once the ice that’s formed on Hudson Bay. From the air I recorded the beautiful patterns on the frozen lake’s surface as well as the bear’s shadow cast across the ice. To emphasize the barren tundra terrain and diminish the bear’s presence, I selected a 17-35mm wide-angle lens.
For The Living Wild I went to Churchill to photograph cubs newly emerged from their winter dens. Not only did I find several sows with their cubs, but I found them in near-perfect late afternoon light.
Because light meters are calibrated to read any scene as neutral gray, I set my aperture to overexpose by two stops from the reading to make sure the snow stays white. Without this compensation, the bears would be underexposed. This gives the most accurate exposures for white animals in the snow.
In anticipation of finally getting back to world travel, I’ve been easing back into the swing of things by making a few day trips to visit our neighbor to the north to photograph the birds of the region – predominantly owls in this case. Solitary and intelligent, owls are some of my favorite animals to photograph. Although stoic and not as playful as many animals, at any moment they can burst into a flash of spectacular action to make a precision strike on their prey. Featured in this set are a variety of owls – short-eared, long-eared, barn owl, and even a pygmy owl hunting voles which I was incredibly happy to find here. Enjoy!
I was walking along the Ganges River in Varanasi, India, at dawn one morning when I saw the color. The sun rose through a layer of smoke and haze, and I thought, “Wow, that is a beautiful red orb.” I had to get that shot.
I was at this location during the Kumbh Mela, a massive gathering of Hindus along the Ganges that happens every 12 years. This is a time of great spiritual and cultural significance when holy men gather to bless the millions of people who have made the pilgrimage to the location. Many pilgrims had traveled to Varanasi and upriver to Allahabad. Many were crossing the river to the encampment on the far side. I contacted one of these people the night before, offering a dollar to act as my model the next morning, one hour before sunrise.
The next morning, I positioned the boat with my new model in the dark mud along the shore. I used a polarizer to take the shine off the water in the foreground, creating the illusion that the boat was floating.
To get the deep depth of field that I wanted, I shot with a wide-angle lens and a small f-stop of f/22, getting an exposure of one or two seconds, during which my model had to remain still. The foreground point of the boat is every bit as sharp as the distant horizon. I had to work quickly because the color of the sun was so important, and it lasted only a short time. once the sun rose above that layer of haze, it lost it’s color.
I loved creating the image, stylizing something these pilgrims did every day during Kumbh Mela, making the image more memorable. you don’t know whether the person is a woman or a man, which helps the viewer see him- or herself in that place.
The Chinese calendar designates 2018 as the Year of the Dog. According to the Chinese Animal Zodiac, those born under the sign of the dog are loyal supportive individuals who’s deep caring and willingness to give advice can sometimes come off as being intrusive, but ultimately their intent is well-meaning and in the interest of the happiness of their friends and loved ones. Much like the dogs themselves, they are loyal with a strong sense of duty to those in their lives.
“Dogs make us fully human. They awaken us to many of the qualities we find in them that we wish to have in ourselves. We wish to be loyal and forgiving and loving. We wish to be focused on important things like family, enjoying time in the wild, walking in the woods, being with friends, lying about indolently in the sunshine. We would like to believe we could make friends with anyone if we try hard enough, to believe that we neither have nor need to have enemies at all in the world.”
We are fast approaching spring and kicking off quite a few events in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Come join me for a seminar or a workshop whether you’re local or just want to visit!
Photography As Art is coming back to Seattle, and soon! If you’ve missed out in the past, now’s your chance. This seminar tends to fill up fast as it gets near, so sign up today to ensure your spot! If you’ve attended this seminar in the past, I’m continually revising it to add new photos and perspectives, so it can be a great refresher while you prepare for spring shooting!
Always a fan favorite! We will include some new locations this time around, and work with 6-stop neutral density filters to expand on technique. This is an excellent way to experience the Pacific Northwest, whether you’re a native who wants to explore your own back yard, or from out of the area and want to experience the lush variety of our corner of the world where it converges between the Olympic range and the Pacific ocean
Situated at the mouth of the mighty Columbia River, Astoria is a fascinating and revitalizing port city with a history tied to the early territorial aspirations of the United States. My goal is work closely with each participant to truly transform and refine their skills while exploring the nature of creativity itself. This ties strongly into the subject matter I cover in Photography As Art.
Same locations, two different seasons to capture beautiful Mt. Rainier and the surrounding Cascade Range, as well as the lush forest, meadows, and surrounding forests! We will use the setting of Mt. Rainier National Park to discuss composition and design in nature photography. Aside from lessons in the field, there will also be lectures on these subjects as well as informative critiques of your work in the field.
Art Wolfe: Spotlighting is an often unpredictable event that can create and unexpected picture. With this image of a tiger in the dense forest, it was essential that I spot-meter the tiger’s illuminated face to ensure it was exposed correctly, since all of the deep shadows could have easily fooled the camera’s meter.
Martha Hill: I find this image intriguing. Tigers are among the most elusive of the big cats, and this image, by showing it lurking in the shadows, perfectly captures the animal’s mystery. To me it is a more evocative rendering of the subject than the more commonplace, out-in-the-open view we often see.
Art Wolfe: In the hours prior to this shot (of Bridalveil Fall), the valley had been covered in flat light under solid cloud cover. Late in the afternoon, however, the clouds began to break, sending shafts of light onto the faces of El Capitan and Half Dome, and, in this case, the waterfalls that rush over the cliffs in early spring.
Getting the proper exposure in a shot like this can be challenging. using my camera’s spot meter, I took a reading off the brightest area and opened up to keep the whole image from getting too dark.
Martha Hill: This image has drama and mood. Bridalveil Fall is one of Yosemite’s most photographed icons, but the unusual lighting conditions captured here set this image apart. The momentary beam of light illuminates the distant waterfall, directing the eye immediately to it. Under different conditions, such as an even lighting, we might overlook the waterfall altogether in this already dramatic landscape. The success of this image depends on timing – waiting for the exact moment when the light will highlight an interesting visual element.
Art Wolfe: In the hours prior to this shot (of Bridalveil Fall), the valley had been covered in flat light under solid cloud cover. Late in the afternoon, however, the clouds began to break, sending shafts of light onto the faces of El Capitan and Half Dome, and, in this case, the waterfalls that rush over the cliffs in early spring.