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.
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.
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.
I’ll be back on the road in March! This is the longest I’ve been home for consecutive days since at least the 80’s, and I’m anxious to get back out there into the world! I kick off the month here at home with Photography As Art in Seattle, and finish March off with at trip to the U.K. to present Earth Is My Witness at the Photography Show in Birmingham before returning to the states for another Photography As Art in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Things pick up even more in April with a couple of workshops. Even more than the travel, I’ve truly missed getting together with a small group of people and sharing my vision and in turn hearing their perspectives and experiences. I’m excited to bring an Abstract workshop to Atlanta, as well as the participate favorite Olympic Peninsula Workshop to finish out the month. Few spaces remain for these events, so if you’re interested now is the time to get signed up before they sell out.
The one thing that has kept me sane these past several weeks has been addressing all the wonderful work that has been submitted for portfolio reviews. I’ve been blown away by the quality level of the photos we’ve received, and at times it’s made it challenging critique work of such a high level. My staff has been preparing reviews and returning them this week, so if you’re waiting on your feedback, keep an eye out! I look forward to the upcoming Skype conversations with those of you whom have purchased the Present package as well.
“Abstract Astoria” is one of my most popular workshops, and it’s time to take it across the country! I’ve been honing my abstract workshops in conjunction with Photography As Artseminars for years, and I think Atlanta is the perfect location to take it to the next level!
New locations await those who have joined me on previous workshops in the wilderness of the Olympic Peninsula. We’ll also explore using 6-stop neutral density filters in the field to capture the old growth forest, wildlife, and waterfalls.
A recurring classic returns! This workshop is always a sell out, and for good reason – it’s a beautiful location, a great place to visit with great food and friendly establishments, and of course a plethora of opportunities to create stunning art. This intimate retreat always sells out early in the year, so sign up sooner than later and check out this location’s episode of Where’s Art?.
No traveler’s list of locations is complete until they’ve been to Glacier Bay. The definitive picturesque location needs to be experienced to really understand the vast beauty of this Alaskan centerpiece. Take a look at my last trip here on Where’s Art?
These workshops are sold out already, as they always do – photographers world-wide can’t get enough of the bears in this scenic landscape. Get yourself on the wait list for the first or second trip today, just in case there are any cancellations – and check out Where’s Art? while you wait!
New locations await those who have joined me on previous workshops in the wilderness of the Olympic Peninsula. We’ll also explore using 6-stop neutral density filters in the field to capture the old growth forest, wildlife, and waterfalls.
My last trip to Namibia was this passed September, and though the location is gaining in popularity, traveling here with someone whom has made frequent visits and knows the ins and outs of capturing the most graphic images of this striking landscape and it’s wildlife is the reason it’s already sold out! Get on the list just in case someone cancels, and check out the episode of Where’s Art? from this location!
We try to offer something unique when it comes to our trip to the big island, starting with a volcano expert and photographer friend who knows the place like the back of his hand. We’ll shoot at dawn and dusk and all hours in between to capture the shots that are anything but generic travel photos!
iDesigned for photographers by photographers, this expedition to the Falklands and South Georgia Island will be led by myself, Frans Lanting and Tom Mangelsen. We will take you to the places we love and will allow us to make the most of the southern ocean’s greatest wildlife spectacle, based on our collective experience.
Happy holidays everyone, and I look forward to seeing you in the New Year!
Happy holidays, everyone! As some of you may already know, I’m spending the holiday season recovering from foot surgery. I have a big 2018 and beyond in store, so it became time to correct an issue that’s been worsening over time. The great news is that the procedure went as well as possible and I’m already diving back into work less than a week later.
That’s not to say I haven’t enjoyed some “down” time. Shortly before returning home for surgery, I took a little trip down to Mexico after presenting Photography As Art in Dallas and Austin. Along with my good friend Sean Fitzgerald, his lovely wife Karen, and my assistant Libby we spent some time in Mexico City exploring and enjoying the food and drink and enjoying the sights and sounds. We also took a trip up to the El Rosario Monarch Butterfly Reserve to capture kaleidoscopes of these beautiful creatures.
I wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season!
Capturing brown bears in Katmai, Alaska! Though specific to this location in the video, this is a lesson and focus I employ regardless of my subject – to capture that subject within the context of the environment rather than going for the same ol’ shots. Certainly as you travel and visit recognizable locations and subjects, you should capture the shots we are accustomed to seeing – but moving a step beyond and ensuring your photos are telling the story of that subject’s place in it’s environment makes for a much more informative and lasting image. Taking the time to explore a bit and focus on wide shots where the bears are present but not necessarily the focus, or finding details of the bear’s impact on the environment without showing them directly will not only immerse your audience in the location, it will inform and inspire other shots you choose to take.
Gavriel Jecan has traveled to this location with me many times, and he’ll be leading a trip here in July – sign up today! I’m leading a couple trips here as well, but they are sold out. If you’re interested, feel free to join the wait list in case we have any cancellations.
I’ve been holding on to some episodes of Where’s Art?for the busy holiday season, and I’d like to finish rounding out my September trip to Africa with the final episode from Namib-Naukluft National Park in Namibia. Those of you familiar with the location know that it’s an excellent place to capture stunning images of this landscape, with sand dunes casting shadows and fading into the hazy distance. The shadows that fall from the wind-swept peaks and valleys filling the vast expanse of this region provide an opportunity to capture varying levels of the beautiful orange hues of the sand.
The dead and calcified Acacia trees as well as the angular horns of the gemsbok that populate the area are just a couple examples of how even the organic elements of the region only reinforce the graphical nature of the images one can capture here. Few places in world combine such a unique environmental aesthetic with varied wildlife and a deep local culture. Though Sossusvlei and Dead Vlei have attracted a number of tourists in recent years, this is still such a large area that it hardly impacted our group. Many of the local visitors come out for a short period of time, behold the beauty here, and move on. If you’re willing to make the effort and invest the time to being here at the margins of the day, however, you’re bound to capture some truly unique images. Enjoy!
Great news on my evergreen TV show! The first thirteen episodes of Art Wolfe’s Travels to the Edge are now available to stream in the US & UK on Amazon. If you haven’t seen them before, it’s now even easier!
Check them out at an affordable price, or stream them free if you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber:
Revel in the beauty of awe-inspiring landscapes and the unique animals and people that inhabit them through an artist’s lens. During these journeys, I share my knowledge, curiosity, and enthusiasm about the world around us. You will also learn professional photographic techniques in such an intimate manner that you feel as if you’re right there with me getting a personal photography lesson.
Art Wolfe’s Travels to the Edge was produced by Edge of the Earth Productions, LLC in association with Blue Moon Productions, Inc., presented by Oregon Public Broadcasting, and distributed by American Public Television (APT). Funding for Art Wolfe’s Travels to the Edge was generously provided by Canon U.S.A., Inc. and the Microsoft Corporation. Additional funding was provided by Conservation International.
From the freezing temperatures on Mauna Kea to the molten magma fields of Kilauea, the Big Island of Hawaii has so much to offer that even a week-long retreat with eight photographers seemed short. With local guides we traversed the island to find petroglyphs, lush fern forests, trees of extraordinary beauty, and fantastically tattooed models. Bumping down to the remote Waipio Valley, flying in helicopters, and rushing up to the MKO for sunset and then waiting for the brilliance of of the Milky Way was both exhausting and invigorating!
This trip exceeded expectations, and I look forward to offering it again in the last week of October 2018. If you would like to get on the advance notification list, please drop us a line via our contact page, or call 206.332.0993!
