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2015 February Photograph of the Month: Arctic Fox Freeze – Win a Fine Art Print!

Iceland, News and Updates, Photographs, Travel Photography, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs

It feels appropriate that an Arctic fox photograph is the February photograph of the month given I will soon be headed back to Winter in Iceland to photograph one of my favourite Polar mammals – Perhaps Nature’s greatest survivor. This photograph, taken in the extreme northeast of Iceland last year during freezing sub zero temperatures was taken during a seven day expedition to the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve. This is an area of Iceland very rarely visited during the winter months. It is extremely remote, and only accessible via chartered boat ride (approximately fours north of Isafjord). It is logistically difficult to get there and special permission is required from the park ranger to undertake a winter expedition into the area. On top of that there is no infrastructure once you arrive and everything from food to satellite communication and survival gear must be carried in for the duration of the expedition. I love this photograph for both the pose of the fox, but also for the dusting of snow clinging to its coat and tail. There was a low fog when I took this image and in print you can actually see the exhale of breath from the fox.Arctic FoxDon’t forget! You can win a free 13″ x 19″ Win a Fine art Print of this photograph including shipping anywhere in the world. All you need do is to be the first to comment on this post on the home page with your thoughts on why you like this photograph or why you would like to own a print of the image and then share the post with your preferred social media outlet. Just keep in mind that due to my hectic travel schedule it may take me some time to make and post out each print so if you are the lucky winner for a given month I ask that you jut exercise a little patience and as soon as I am back in my studio in Australia and as soon as practical I will make the print and send it to you – free of charge. Each print will be made and personally signed by me with the same care and attention to detail I exercise on my large gallery prints. There will be a total of twelve prints to win throughout the calendar year. The first print was won by Fred Jennings and his print should be with him in the next few days – congratulations Fred!

Good luck and don’t forget in order to win the print you need to be the first to comment here on the home page on the February photograph of the Month for the 2015 calendar year with your thoughts on why you like the photograph or why you would like to own a print and to then share the post with your social media outlet of choice.

Landscape Photography with Emotion and Mystery Part Three

Landscape Photographs, News and Updates, Photographs, Uncategorized

I thought I might have been finished yesterday when I hit the publish button on Part Two of my Landscape Photography with Emotion and Mystery article. However, I realised this morning that the flood gates were open and that there was more I wanted to share on this topic. I was quite direct in part two of this series on the problem with ‘Wow’ photography (See my post from yesterday for the definition of a ‘Wow’ photograph) and I want to instead focus on more positive aspects on the creation of evocative photography.  Training ourselves to see with better eyes and freeing ourselves up to be creative is going to be the subject of this third article. The hope is that we can create images that rise above ‘Fast Food Photography’ ‘(See my post from yesterday for the definition of Fast Food Photography).

One of the things I have noticed that happens in my own image making is that it takes me time to get into the rhythm of the location I am photographing. I rarely turn up at a new location on day one and make a photograph I consider to be anything more than a snapshot. If I get lucky and get some good light I might create a ‘Wow’ photograph, but thats not really any better than the snapshot. This is a phenomena I have long pondered and I have come to the realisation that it is actually very difficult to arrive in a new location and take a great photograph on day one.  Part of the reason for this is it takes time to settle in and get into the natural rhythm of the landscape and see better photographs. I need time to let the creative side of my brain attune itself to its surroundings. I need time to let my creative juices flow and I need time start to see strong compositions. The more time I spend at a location the more likely I am to produce an interesting evocative photograph. And that is an aspect to the creation of evocative photographs that has continually frustrated me.Well of LifeWhat I have also come to realise is that the more time I take off from actually being in the field and making photographs the more my ability to see strong and evocative images diminishes. When I spend a week or more in the field making photographs I become attuned to the landscape and the images start to flow freely. As the days progress I usually find the quality of the output improves. I am not necessarily taking more photographs, but I am taking better photographs. I can see this by looking at the images I made on a day-by-day basis after the fact in Lightroom.

When I subsequently leave the field and return to my studio for a period of time and then head back out into the field I feel like I am starting at square one again. Time has passed, my creative image making brain has been idle, and I have to attune myself all over again. Its a conundrum that has continually frustrated me. It really would be nice to pick right up where I left off with my creative brain in top gear and with strong and evocative imagery flowing freely. But how can that be done?

I have considered this problem for some time and have come to the conclusion that my creative ‘image-making’ brain is not being exercised sufficiently when I am not out in the field. Or perhaps more accurately, I am not spending the time learning to see with better eyes that I am doing when I am in the field. By the way, ‘seeing with better eyes’ is a subconscious process – its not something I am consciously considering when I am in the field. As a result my skill to see creatively is lying dormant and like any skill you don’t practice you start to loose your edge. The best analogy that comes to mind is cardio fitness. If you exercise daily your cardio fitness improves. If you stop and sit idle for a period of time your cardio fitness starts to deteriorate. Our ability to see creative images in the field works the same way – at least it does for me.

I have long considered the first few hours or days in the field to be ‘ramp-up’ time. That is time I need to spend attuning myself to see creatively. Or to use the cardio analogy, I need to ‘get fit’ again. The problem with ‘ramp-up’ time is that opportunities get missed. You may not realise it at the time, but you will no doubt, on reflection think back and consider the opportunities you missed during the first hours or days of a field session.

The key to minimising ‘ramp-up’ time for me has been to make a concerted effort to look at other photographers work in book and print as often as I can. This not only gives me insight into the work of other photographers and educates me on how they see the world, but it also keeps my creative brain ticking over. When I make the effort (and it isn’t an effort at all – its actually something I really enjoy) to sit and read or study a book of photographs it lights a creative spark in my brain. That spark gets me thinking about not only the photography I am absorbing, but also my own image making and how I can improve my next photograph when I next lift the camera to my eye. Looking at the work of other photographers gets me thinking about their interpretation of a scene, their vision and their way of seeing. It makes me consider how I look at the world, what stories I want to tell with my photographs and how I might consider an alternative approach to a scene or situation. It helps keep my ‘eye-in’ as it were and keeps things ticking over at a regular consistent pace.

One of the best things I believe you can do to improve your photography before you head out on your next field session is to spend some time looking at other photographers work. Not on social media, not on the web, but in books, prints and galleries where you are free from the distractions that plague the internet and social media platform. Take some time out of your day when the house is quiet and study a photography book from someone you admire or whose photography you enjoy. Go to the nearest gallery during your lunch break and spend some time studying the art work. Get to know the contemporary photographers out there who are masters of their craft and who are creating strong, evocative photographs with their own distinctive style. It never ceases to amaze me how many photographers I speak with can’t list more than ten well known photographers whose work they admire. Think about that for just a moment…. And what you will realise is that photographers are going out into the field uneducated and uninformed.

If you are planning a photographic trip somewhere make the effort to keep your creative brain stimulated with quality imagery before you get there. The more we train our brain to see the elements that make up a powerful evocative photograph the more likely we are to be able to create our own when we are next in the field. Just as an aside, I am not necessarily advocating you spend your time looking at photographs of African wildlife if Africa is your next travel destination. I am in two minds about wether this is a good idea. A part of me likes to approach a new location with fresh eyes and a clean slate without the influence of having seen location specific photography. Instead I would advocate you look at wildlife imagery in general and don’t necessarily limit yourself to African wildlife as in this example.

There is another thing you can do to improve your photography. I believe this is a really important aspect to the creation of evocative photographs and at the risk of being controversial, that just about all of us would be far better to invest the money allocated to our next camera or lens purchase to books on photography, prints, and museum and gallery entrance fees instead.

The marketing departments of the camera manufacturers has done a superb job over the last decade or so of convincing us that we ‘need’ the new model. That those extra pixels or extra stop of dynamic range are paramount in our photography. And that our current camera is now sub-optimal because the new version is now available for pre-order. This conditioning has been incredibly successful. Just scan the pages of any photography forum and you will find thread after thread talking about the next camera to come down the pipeline. Almost all of the ‘chatter’ is about equipment and very little is about about the creation of photographs. Now, I grant you the camera is an integral part of the process, but it is also just a tool.

The problem with that tool is that far too many photographers are constantly upgrading to the new version in the belief that it will improve their photography. The truth of the matter is that it usually has the opposite effect. The reason for this is that until control of the the camera you already own has become second nature and the movement of its controls nothing more than muscle memory you can never be truly be freed up to be creative. The brain is too focused on being a technician as it grapples with knobs and dials. We need to free ourselves up to be creative and the best way to do that is to properly learn to use the tool we already own. The best musical instrument players are intimately familiar with their instrument of choice. Yes, they can pick up another guitar, or another violin and play it very well. But they will play their own instrument at a higher level because they are intimately familiar with it. They understand its idiosyncracies and its limitations. They also understand how to get the best from it. And lastly, they don’t have to think consciously about it so they are freed up to play at their very best.

This is actually something I have witnessed countless times on my workshops and expeditions. Photographers fumble with their camera trying to find a button or setting. The focus and attention is on the equipment and not the photograph. Their brain is busy being a technician and is not focused on being creative. This is perfectly fine if the workshop is about teaching the technical aspects of photography and you are there to learn how to operate your camera. Typically however, this is not the case and the photographer is there to make images. Not only that, but they frequently have an expectation of wanting to create a strong photograph, yet they hamstring themselves through being unfamiliar with their equipment.

The take away from this is that you need to give yourself the best possible chance to be creative in the field and to do that you need to be intimately familiar with your equipment. Learn the camera you own back-to-front and inside-out and I promise your image making will improve considerably. Soldiers are trained to field strip a rifle blindfolded. They sleep with their rifle and they make sure they are intimately familiar with every aspect of their weapon. I am not advocating we all start sleeping with our cameras, but that perhaps if we just spent a bit more time committing the controls to muscle memory that we would give ourselves a far better chance to create a strong photograph when we are next in the field. This is unfortunately not the advice a lot of people want to hear. They prefer to believe that the new model camera that will be out soon, will improve their photography and that there is always some piece of gear or equipment that is holding back their image making. As you can see, the marketing departments of the camera companies have been extraordinarily successful.

If you choose to take this advice to heart you will find several things happen. Firstly, your wallet (and probably your significant other) will thank you as you will avoid what is in all likely hood an unnecessary camera upgrade or spurious lens purchase. As a side benefit you will also now have money for photography books, prints and gallery / museum entrance fees. Secondly, as you continue to learn the camera you already own your photography will improve as your brain shifts from being a technician who used to struggle with knobs and dials to a photographer who is freed up to create. Thirdly, your knowledge of photography will improve because you will own, appreciate and be familiar with the work of more photographers in book and print form. And finally, your own creative vision will improve because you have made the effort to focus your attention on the vision and not the tool. You will have armed yourself with the knowledge of the work of other photographers so that when you next go out into the field you are seeing with better eyes.

Landscape Photography with Emotion and Mystery Part Two

Landscape Photographs, News and Updates, Photographs, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs

Yesterday I wrote a post (Creating Landscape Photographs with Emption and Mystery) in response to a question I received from Scott via Social Media that really got me thinking about creating evocative photographs. In fact, it got me thinking about a whole lot more than just making emotional images and I realised this morning I only just touched on what I was feeling when I drafted yesterdays post.

I want to pick up where I left off yesterday by first talking a bit more about what I have come to term ‘Wow’ images. A ‘Wow’ image is my term for the sort of photography referenced in the ‘Will the Real Landscape Photography Please Stand Up‘ article by Ugo Cei. These are photographs that make us go ‘Wow!’ on first glance but that lack any real substance once you strip back the colourful facade and frankly cliché composition. Incidently, these photographs are almost always also devoid of any discernible style as Ugo notes in his article.

The immediate impression on viewing such a photograph is usually ‘Wow!’ as our senses are overwhelmed with a beautiful scene full of vibrant saturated colour; hence my terminology. However, ‘Wow’ quickly turns to ‘Whats Next?’ because there just isn’t any real substance, emotion or intrigue there to hold the viewers attention once they have absorbed the scene and colour. There is no question posed, no mystery, or intrigue and usually no emotion or story. Its a fleeting experience perfectly suited to the nano-second attention span that is the social media experience. We look at these photographs, we ‘Wow!’, we ‘Like’ and we move on (Yes, I do it as well). We move on because we have already absorbed everything the photograph has to offer. We have been wowed by its vibrant colour and the experience is complete. The problem is, a few seconds later the experience is not only complete, but its completely forgotten. Our brain has moved onto the next thing that has drawn our attention (often another Wow image). This is something I have come to term ‘Fast Food Photography’.  Its cheap, easy and devoid of nutrition.

If you read my post from yesterday you already know that I have a strong personal preference for images that contain mystery, intrigue, drama and emotion. Suffice to say that photographs that contain these elements are not only more interesting than Wow images (at least to me) but they tend to grab and hold the viewers attention much longer. Straight up, these photographs will not get as many ‘Likes’ and as many comments as ‘Wow’ images on social media. But that has nothing to do with the power of the photograph and everything to do with the fact that these photographs require the viewer to actually pause and use their brain – something that many on social media seem unwilling to do. However, those viewers who do stop to look at the photograph will spend more time with it and it will likely make far more of a lasting impression than the next ‘Wow’ photograph that will come and go a few million times more that day.

Making ‘Wow’ photographs requires little in the way of artistic skill (Sorry if that offends anyone, but its true). Turn up to a beautiful location, setup your tripod and camera, wait for good light and practice being a technician. The net result will be a Wow photograph. It isn’t hard. In fact, its downright easy once you posses the technical skills. Probably the easiest and best example I can think of is the long exposure pier photograph that must run the social media channel highway a few million times a day in various iterations. We have all done it. Many of us continue to do it and those new to photography will do it in the future. In fact, its almost a right of passage or could perhaps more kindly be considered part of the photographer’s growth curve. Yet there is absolutely nothing of substance to the image once you strip back the sunset colour and the pier’s leading line. Its a standard cliché composition executed by millions of people that really only differs in the quality of light on offer. And here is the rub; I can guarantee someone has been there before you in better light. There are many more examples I could use to illustrate this point (Mesa Arch at sunrise springs to mind). If all you want to do is make these sort of photographs then all you need do is practice being a technician. But what if you want to create more than that?

Lets look at a couple of photographs of mine that I will use to illustrate a point. These two photographs were taken within seconds of each other near the Weddell Sea in Antarctica in November last year during gale force catabatic winds. The first photograph is a pretty standard composition. Yes, there is drama in this photograph courtesy of the weather conditions, but the composition doesn’t really hold the viewers attention. Is it a Wow image? Possibly.. although I would like to think it has enough drama and emotion to hold the viewers attention a little longer. In fact, I liked it enough to make it my photograph of the month for January this year. I still like it, but I also think I took a better photograph a few seconds later.Antarctic StormThis second photograph was taken just a few seconds later when I realised that this photograph should not be about the iceberg. Nor should it be about the ocean or the distant mountain partially obscured in cloud and fog. What this photograph was about was the jet trail like plume of snow being whipped off the top of the iceberg. This is where the real drama and emotion was to be found in this scene. The ocean is the stage, the distant mountain is the backdrop and the iceberg is merely a supporting actor. It is the vapour trail of snow that is the star of the show.Snow VapourAt the time I made these two photographs the decision to shoot the second image was a subconscious one. I knew I had captured the easy photograph – the entire scene; so I was now free to move on and ascertain what it was about the scene that was drawing me to photograph it. My subconscious took over and the result is the second photograph; which I personally feel, upon some reflection is a much more interesting image than the first.

It is the job of the photographer to dissect the scene through the viewfinder at the time of capture and to understand what should be excluded (See my post from yesterday about photography being a subtractive process). By cropping this image in camera I could much better focus the viewers attention on the real star, but still leave enough of the iceberg in frame to give context and create intrigue. We no longer know if this is a complete iceberg, or if its the edge of an ice shelf. We have left that decision to the viewer who will fill in the blank with their imagination. By comparison, the first image leaves nothing to the imagination and completes the story for the viewer – as a result its a ‘scene’. A dramatic scene, but just a scene nonetheless. In the second photograph we have still told the story, but we have excluded part of the iceberg to help fire the viewers imagination. We have given enough clues to help the viewer complete the scene in their mind without giving them just a pretty picture. In short, we have made them stop and think. Ultimately, it may well be a stronger photograph than the complete iceberg because it delivers a stronger message with deeper meaning.

I want to give one final example of how to achieve emotion in a photograph and it is one that comes courtesy of my six year old daughter. Last week she wandered into my studio as she is prone to do and asked me what I was doing whilst I was looking over a print I had just made. I told her I was looking at a print and she asked if she could see the photograph. Sure I said and turned the print to show her. This was the photograph in question.Antarctica-4470-Edit12014The first thing out of my daughters mouth after she spent a moment taking in the photograph was, and I quote: ‘The penguin looks sad Daddy“.

I smiled and asked her why she felt the penguin looked sad. She said, “Because he is all alone“.

As Yoda said – “Truly wonderful is the mind of a child“. My daughter nailed it.  And in one sentence understood exactly what this photograph was about – Solitude and loneliness.

I did not tell my daughter than just out of frame on the left hand side of the photograph there was an entire colony of over a hundred Gentoo Penguins going about their daily lives. It was not relevant to what I was trying to say with this photograph; so I excluded it from the frame. I wanted to give a sense of scale to this photograph and I chose to do so by framing just the one penguin in the corner with the huge mountains in the background. The heavy snowfall adds the magic element of drama and just a hint of mystery to this photograph, but it is the lone penguin set against the gigantic stage that carries the emotion.

In summary, I think it is worth thinking about what we are trying to say in our photography when we click the shutter and make a photograph. There is nothing wrong with wanting to create the Wow image (we all do it) and the world does need them for next years calendars and postcards. I challenge us all though, that we can do better and create more evocative photographs with deeper meaning if we just paused a little and thought about what we are trying to say with our photographs.

Landscape Photography with Emotion and Mystery

Antarctica, News and Updates, Photographs, Travel Photography, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs

I received an interesting message and question a couple of days ago via social media that I think is worth sharing here on my blog. Scott asks:

Hey Josh. As a hobbyist photog who doesn’t really participate in social media with my images nor enter comps, but shoots purely for relaxation and personal enjoyment and who struggles with creativity, how could you suggest I look to make landscape images with more emotion and mystery? I don’t really shoot the common haunts as I may as well just get a perfectly fine image off the web.

Its a good question and one I suspect Scott is not grappling with alone. Before I address his question though I think its worth taking a moment to look at what spawned the question.

A couple of days ago a blog post appeared on social media that got a number of photographers in a bit of a flap (the post is still doing the rounds on Facebook). Titled “Will the Real Landscape Photography Please Stand Up“, the essence of the post was that the internet is now awash with technically perfect landscape photographs that are soulless, lacing individuality and devoid of emotive content (You can read the original post HERE). As an aside, I am actually in complete agreement with the author and shared my thoughts about it on social media yesterday. I went as far to say that I felt the author had not gone far enough and that (to quote myself) “We live an age where prolificacy is rewarded over quality (at least on social media). Never before has the idea of less being more been so poignant in my mind.”

I have been feeling more strongly of late about these issues for all of those reasons already listed in the aforementioned blog post. In semi-frustration I kicked off my social media year with this comment on Facebook “2015: I want to see more mystery in photographs. Deeper relationships and more thoughtful and considered story telling. What is not shown matters more than what we show in a photograph. Give me a great story, mystery, drama and leave me longing for more…..”

What I didn’t do though was go on to talk about how to do that, which brings us to Scott’s question.

Photography is at its core a still medium that we use to tell stories. The problem with much of the photography that is referenced in the blog post ‘Will the Real Landscape Photography Please stand Up” is that there is no story being told by the photograph. Or rather, the story is one of technical perfection and a pretty picture.

Photography is the art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place or thing. It frequently has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them. And that brings us to the art of seeing. An art that is being lost in a sea of technical perfection. Sure it takes technical skill to set up a camera and tripod in a beautiful location with great light and make a pretty picture. It takes artistic skill however to create an evocative photograph with emotion and mystery.

Creating images with mystery and emotion starts with seeing with better eyes. Weather, light and composition all play a vital role in the process but the real emotion is going to come from the story you are trying to tell with your photograph. I wrote yesterday in my book review of La Nuit du Cerf (Night of the Deer) about how photography is a subtractive process and what we exclude is often more important than what we include. Photographs are often successfully emotive because of what the photographer chose to exclude, rather than what he or she has included – there are countless well known examples to illustrate this point. Giving a sense of something is often far stronger than showing the whole thing. Leave something to the imagination of the viewer in your photographic compositions and you will find your images become stronger, more emotive and mysterious. The story does not have to be completed in a wide angle frame that encompass absolutely everything. It is often well worth letting the viewer fill in the blanks in their minds eye. After all, no photograph can compete with a stimulated imagination. The more you can fire the imagination of the viewer the more successfully emotive your photograph will become.

I cannot recall who it was who was first quoted as saying “Don’t photograph what it is. Photograph what else it is” but this statement is great advice we should all keep in mind when we are out taking photographs.

I have judged many photographic competitions over the last few years and without doubt those photographs that are most successful are the ones that tug on my emotional strings. These photographs create a connection with the viewer that is deeper and more meaningful than the feeling a pretty picture might impart.

Learning to see with better eyes takes time but is something we can train ourselves to do. Looking at photography books or attending galleries (not just photographic galleries) and exhibitions are two good ways to improve your vision. Look a how other photographers whom you admire interpreted a scene or subject and analyse what it is that creates the connection for you to the work. Think about what it is you are trying to say with your photography before you click the shutter. I frequently ask workshop participants what their photograph is about when they ask for feedback on their images –  I often receive a blank stare in return. If the photographer doesn’t know what the image is about how is the viewer supposed to know? It might be a photograph of a Penguin and that might well be the answer, but the real answer should be about what the photographer is trying to say about the subject.

Lets look at this photograph of mine of Gentoo Penguins on the sea ice near the entrance to the Lemaire Channel in Antarctica as an example. This photograph is about “being left behind”. It tells the story of the Gentoo Penguins in their environment. We know (even though they are small in the frame) that these are penguins because of their distinctive shape. We know they are in Antarctica because of the giant icebergs in the back ground. We know they are in their natural environment as they are walking across the sea ice. Yet, it is that one lone penguin that is lagging behind that creates the emotion in the photograph. When this photograph was judged at the 2014 APPA awards the judges giggled and commented about the story being told. The mere fact the photograph illicited giggles speaks to the emotive content. The photograph subsequently received a Gold Award.March of the Penguins

Now, if you put your thumb over the screen and cover up that lagging penguin then suddenly the story is now nowhere near as strong and the real power and emotion of the photograph is gone.

The same applies to the overall composition of this photograph. To the left of the large iceberg just out of frame is a large island. To the right hand side is a mountainous peak, likewise just out of frame; but neither of these elements are important to the photograph so I excluded them to simplify the frame and distill it down the essence of what I wanted the photograph to be about. I wanted to tell the story about the penguins on the ice with the little feller playing catch-up. Excluding these extraneous elements not only cleaned up the frame, but it also left the imagination to fill in the blanks about what might lie just to the left and right. Our minds eye fills in the blanks and at least in my own case I imagine the sea ice continually stretching out in both directions. This is far stronger than seeing the Island and mountain that are just out of frame.

There are some wonderful articles available on the internet about the art of seeing, the art of composition and creating emotive imagery and its worth taking some time out of your day to research them. Personally, I regularly listen to and enjoy the podcasts from Brooks Jensen over at Lenswork. I find his musings on creativity, art and photography insightful and useful in my own image making. David Ward who is a master of the intimate landscape has also written some excellent articles on this subject that have appeared in On Landscape magazine. I recommend subscribing to this magazine as it contains a great many excellent articles as well as countless examples of wonderfully emotive imagery.

Learning to see with better eyes is a core aspect to creating emotion in your imagery. Learning to use the elements available is another. Those who have travelled with me to the Polar regions know I relish bad weather. Snow, blizzards, and dramatic weather provides the perfect canvas to create emotive imagery. It doesn’t have to be Polar though – a breaking rain storm or the edge of weather will almost always provide an opportunity to tell an emotive story. The take-away to remember is that the weather provides only some of the feeling and drama to the photograph. It is your composition and choice of what you include and exclude that is going to tell the story. Remember, like all good stories, a photograph should leave the viewer wanting more. And that is the key to getting emotion and mystery into your photographs.

Book Review: La Nuit du Cerf – Night of the Deer by Vincent Munier

Book Reviews, News and Updates, Reviews, Uncategorized

Photography book reviews are something I have been meaning to sink my teeth into for the last few years – I just frankly haven’t had the time to really make a start. Actually, that isn’t quite true, I did an informal review of my good friend Daniel Bergmann’s latest book Iceland Landscapes (now sold out) when it was released back in 2011 and I look forward to reviewing his next book when it is released hopefully later this year.

Like turning the wheel on a motor vehicle, it is much easier to do so once you have a little forward momentum and this new book review is going to be my momentum to kick start a series of book reviews over the coming months. Before I begin however, I want to get something off my chest. In my view, far too few photographers these days collect, read, study and treasure photographic books. Even fewer collect photographic prints, but thats a story (ok, a rant) for another post. In the era of the social media jpeg the quality photographic book is unfortunately slipping by the wayside. And that is a real shame as there is whole generation of photographers out there missing out on a wonderful learning tool.

Reading and studying photographic books can be one of the best ways to actually improve your own photography. And I am not necessarily talking about books on photographic technique. Studying the work of photographers you admire and respect will give you wonderful insight into your own image making and I promise it will improve your photography. As photographers, it is important that we spend time looking at the work of those in our profession who we admire and respect. Sitting down with a photographic book is a fantastic way to do this and something I try and do as often as I can. This is a habit I picked up when I was studying photography in my late teens. My teachers made a point of recommending a great many photographic books over the course of my studies so as to expose me to as much quality photography as I could consume (they also recommended attending galleries and shows on a frequent basis). I believe it has stood me in good stead in my own image making and if you are not currently reading and collecting photography books I recommend you make a start.

I plan to review quite a few books over the course of the coming months and years and am going to give them a rating based on my overall impressions of the photographic content, the presentation and finally the print quality. I am going to sum up each book with a rating out of five stars.

  1. * Give it a miss. There are better books on this subject you should consider adding to your library
  2. ** Consider buying this book if the subject matter appeals to you.
  3. *** Nice to own. A quality publication that should have a home in any serious photography library.
  4. **** You should own this book and consider it an important part of your photography library.
  5. ***** Must own. No photography library is complete without this book

I want to kick off my first book review for 2015 with a book from one of my favourite contemporary wildlife photographers – Vincent Munier. If you are not familiar with Vincent’s photography then you owe it to yourself to take some time out of your day and get to know his work. Vincent is a master of wildlife photography and his most recent book La Nuit du Cerf or Night of the Deer is going to be the subject of this review.demo

La Nuit du Cerf (and I will call it by its French name from here on) is a collection of photographs of wild deer from the darkest reaches of the French forests photographed at night. But it is much more than just a collection of wonderfully evocative wildlife photographs. The book is also accompanied by an audio CD that includes sounds of the deer and forest recorded by Marc Namblard during the time Vincent spent making the photographs. This is an unusual addition to a photography book but is one that in my opinion greatly enhances the experience of the book. The audio tracks are actually also available as a free download if you purchase the book along with a short (but very well filmed) video of some of the making of the photographs. The video is available on You Tube.

In the deep of the autumnal night, the deer shows up.

Dark shadows and pale moonlight, unreal atmospheres and surprising fuzziness bring to light the admired silhouette of the animal. Like in mysterious tales, the subtle and original pictures by French photographer Vincent Munier transport us into the heart of the deepest forest.

His photographs are accompanied by a CD of nature sounds, collected by Marc Namblard to offer the reader the thrill of a night approach and the power and energy of the rut season.

French writer and ecologist Yves Paccalet is the author of the prelude.

If you are not familiar with the style of Vincent’s wildlife imagery this book might seem like quite a shock to you on first reading. You will not find perfectly sharp photographs, highly saturated colours, super clean backgrounds or any of those traits that seem to dominate the plethora of banal wildlife imagery on the web today. What you will find instead is highly evocative imagery that is rich in emotion, feeling and drama. The photographs are powerful because they pose questions and leave us wanting more. They provide us a glimpse into the deepest recesses of the forest at night where wild deer still play and roam. The photographs are successful because of what Vincent has chosen to exclude, rather than what he has included. We are left with a sense of the deer in the forest at night, like ghosts and fleeting spirits we never really get a good look at them and that is real magic to the photographs in this book. There is mystery and drama here that tells a story and that story is not just about the deer, but it is about the environment in which these animals exist – the dark forest, the cold morning mist and the low fog are all working together to tell the story. It is a mystical world, hidden from the eye of the average person that is so well conveyed in the photographs in this book.

Photography is very much a subtractive process in my view. When framing an image in the viewfinder what we choose to exclude is often more important than what we include and it is this skill that Vincent employs so artfully in La Nuit du Cerf. What I particularly enjoy is what is left to to the imagination in these photographs. Everything is there to set the stage for a great photograph. Low mist, fog, dramatic cloud and light, are all in abundance, but it is the choice of framing and shutter speed that bring the image to life and paint the subject in such a mysterious shroud. This is artful and soulful wildlife photography executed by a master craftsman.

Many of the photographs are monochromatic in nature (although they are still clearly colour photographs) but it is important to note that although they are desaturated I am not left feeling as though there has been a deliberate attempt to win me over with post production. What we are looking at here is the natural muted palette of nature expertly crafted by a master.

Presentation – In terms of presentation La Nuit du Cerf leaves very little wanting. Hardbound on wonderfully heavy paper the presentation is excellent. The muted choice of colour for the cover is complimentary to the photographs and the entire book feels like a carefully considered package.

Personally, I dislike full bleed images in photography books as I prefer a white border around the images to help frame them and keep my eye from running off the page. I know some photographers like to include a few full bleed images to help break up a book but I personally feel this detracts from the photographs and works against the flow of a book. I was very pleased to see no full bleed photographs in this book. All of the photographs are framed by the white of the paper and this works well to contain the imagery from page to page. I particularly enjoyed the layout of this book and the use of small photographs on some of the pages to create a more intimate feeling. In an era where big is often seen as better it is nice to see the use of small images employed to help draw the viewer into this mystical world. I also appreciated the regular use of an empty page on the left hand side that allows the mind to take a slight pause and focus on just one photograph on the right hand side of the page. This is clever design that lets the eye really take in and enjoy each photograph without feeling overwhelmed.

The inside cover of the book contains a small envelope with the additional Compact Disc. As noted above, the audio tracks are also provided as downloadable FLAC lossless files when you purchase the book online.

Print Quality – It is hard to review the print quality in La Nuit du Cerf as many of the photographs are very dark in nature and on first impression you could be forgiven for feeling there should be more detail in some of the shadows. However, it is the use of solid blacks that really enhance many of the photographs and help convey their feeling so successfully. My feeling is that the print quality is best judged in the subtle tonalities of fog and mist in many of the images; the feeling and drama of which is well conveyed.

I feel somewhat spoiled in my experience with print quality. As a photographer who regularly makes and sells fine art prints I have a pretty good grasp of just how good modern day fine art inkjet prints can be. To date I have not yet seen an offset printing process that can match that of a finely crafted inkjet print. My feeling is that the print quality in La Nuit du Cerf is about as good as offset can achieve with current technology and in that respect it is very good.

Conclusion – Quite honestly, this book epitomises just about everything I love and enjoy about wildlife photography. Available in two versions via Kobalann Online Store, La Nuit du Cerf can be purchased for 50 Euro plus shipping in standard edition (as review here) or for 800 Euro as a limited edition (30 copies only) in a presentation box with a fine art print.

I highly recommend you consider adding La Nuit du Cerf to your collection of photography books. If you are not yet collecting books on Nature photography then this would make an excellent start and provide you many hours of enjoyment. Highly recommended.

Overall Review – **** You should own this book and consider it an important part of your photography library.

Happy New Year! Win a Free Fine Art Print of the Photo of the Month

Landscape Photographs, Media, News and Updates, Photographs, Store, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs

Another year has now come and gone – where do they go! In many ways I am quite sorry to see the back of 2014 (Read the Retrospective). It was an incredible year for me and in many ways I feel a turning point in my photography. However, it is now time to look forward and begin the new year in earnest. Before I leave for Yellowstone in Winter in a few weeks time I want to announce a new print project give-away that will kick off with my first Photograph of the Month post for 2015.

It has continually frustrated me over the last few years that I really only get to share a digital jpeg of my finished photography on the internet and not the finished fine art print as I envisioned it. The problem with sharing digital images online is that we are restricted to low quality jpeg images to protect our copyright ownership (and sadly images still get taken and used without permission). These low resolution jpegs are just poor facsimiles of the finished fine art print that fail to convey the wonderful tones, textures and subtelties that a well crafted print can convey.

Photography for me is all about the print and as I have written often before I never really feel like I have finished with an image until I have made a well-crafted print. Other than visiting one of the galleries that display my photography in Australia, Tasmania or Aspen in the USA and perhaps purchasing a large fine art print there has to date been no way for me to really share this aspect of my photography.  However, I have a plan to change that and beginning immediately, and with every photograph of the month for 2015 I will be giving away free a 13″ x 19″ inch signed, open edition fine art print to the first person who comments on the photograph of the month post here on the main page. Each print will be of the actual photograph of the month and will be made on my favourite fine art paper – Moab Somerset Museum Rag. I use X-Rite Colour Management products in my print workflow and my prints are made on Canon IPF6350 and IPF9400 Large Format Pigment ink printers. This is the same paper, printer and colour management solution I use for all my large gallery prints and the same paper my winning photographs were printed on at the 2014 Victorian Professional Photographer of the Year Awards and 2014 Australian Professional Photography Awards. All you need do to win the print is to be the first to comment on the photograph of the month here on the home page with your thoughts on why you like it and to share the post with your social media outlet of choice. It doesn’t have to be a long winded explanation on why you like the photograph. Just a few words about how it makes you feel, or why you would like to own a print of the photograph is sufficient. I will then send you a FREE 13″ x 19″ inch fine art print to your nominated address including free shipping worldwide.IMG_3519My reasons for giving away a print every month are two-fold. Firstly, this allows me to share in some small way the finished photograph in my medium of choice with someone who appreciates the photograph and who will hopefully cherish the print; but it also allows me to give back something to the photographic community and share my finished photography with other photographers.

Due to my hectic travel schedule it may take me some time to make and post out each print so if you are the lucky winner for a given month I ask that you jut exercise a little patience and as soon as I am back in my studio in Australia and as soon as practical I will make the print and send it to you – free of charge. Each print will be made and personally signed by me with the same care and attention to detail I exercise on my large gallery prints. There will be a total of twelve prints to win throughout the calendar year and the give away starts immediately with the 2015 January Photo of the Month – You just have to keep an eye out for the next post. Good luck and don’t forget in order to win the print you need to be the first to comment here on the home page on the post titled ‘Photo of the Month – [Insert Month]‘ for the 2015 calendar year with your thoughts on why you like the photograph or why you would like to own a print and to then share the post with your social media outlet of choice.

Hint: The fastest way to be notified of a new post to my blog is to subscribe to updates by entering your email address in the subscription section.

Testimonial from Garry Smith – Photographers South Georgia and Antarctica 2014

News and Updates, Testimonials, Uncategorized, Workshops and Expeditions

“Hi Josh, Back on land again in Ushuaia after 20 mind blowing days of amazing wildlife, amazing scenery, amazing seas etc etc in the Falklands, South Georgia and Antarctica. Still having trouble processing all the things I have seen and done. My thanks to you for providing an unforgettable photographic experience, for all your assistance and companionship.” Garry Smith

December Photograph of the Month: Arctic Fox Attack

Arctic, Iceland, News and Updates, Photographs, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs

One of my favourite Polar animals to photograph are Arctic Fox. They are incredible animals, with an amazing ability to adapt and survive. This photograph of a large male Arctic Fox was shot early this year in March in the extreme northeast of Iceland. It was taken from a snow blind where I spent the better part of a week sitting in a snow hole photographing these animals going about their daily lives. This male was keenly focused on a Gull that was hanging around the snow blind. It was photographed with the Canon EOS 1DX and Canon 600mm F4L IS MKII ISO400 wide open at F4.
Arctic Fox Attack

Arrived in Ushuaia South America – Antarctica Bound!

Antarctica, Landscape Photographs, News and Updates, Photographs, South Georgia, Travel Photography, Uncategorized, Workshops and Expeditions

After more than two days of constant travel, including five separate plane rides, I have now arrived in Ushuaia South America – the most permanent southerly settlement in the world. It is somewhat surreal for me to be back in Ushuaia and headed for South Georgia Island and Antarctica after being high in the Arctic and only 600 miles from the North Pole only a couple of months ago. This is not the first time I will have visited both the Arctic and Antarctic in a single year, but it is the closest in terms of time difference. It is fantastic to have arrived in Ushuaia in the middle of quite a steady snowfall and the Andes Mountain Range looks absolutely spectacular in fresh snow.The AndesAs I have previously written, Ushuaia itself is a wonderful town with some great restaurants, shops and cafe’s and it has been fantastic to meet up with both old friends with whom I have had the pleasure of travelling with many times now, but also new friends who will be experiencing the magnificence of the Great White Continent for the very first time. In some ways I envy those travelling for their first time to Antarctica. Seeing Antarctica for the very first time is an awe inspiring experience and photographing it with fresh eyes is something you only ever get to do once. I always get a huge thrill from the visceral and palpable air of excitement first time and repeat visitors radiate as they board the ship and we throw off our lines and sail down the Beagle Channel. I am very much looking forward to our experiences ahead and sharing everything we discover.

This will be my last ‘in person’ post now (I have a few automated posts scheduled) for at least the next twenty one days as we sail from Ushuaia, to the Falklands, South Georgia Island and then Antarctica. I do have a few posts automated for my time away and I hope to post an update on what our expedition was like after we dock back in Ushuaia on the 22nd of November and before I head to Patagonia on further travels. Until then, Bon Voyage.

South Georgia Island and Antarctica Expedition Packing List 2014

Antarctica, Equipment, News and Updates, South Georgia, Travel Photography, Uncategorized

In just under a week I will be making the long trek from Australia to Ushuaia in South America where I will be co-leading both a twenty one day photographic expedition to South Georgia Island and Antarctica with my friend Andy Biggs, as well as a second Antarctic Peninsula expedition just before Christmas. In between the two expeditions I am taking some personal time for photography at Mount Fitzroy in Patagonia with a few friends for ten days hiking, camping and photography in the Patagonian back-country. This will be my second visit to Patagonia in as many years, but my first to the Argentinian side. Last year on the Chile side we encountered horrendous winds that made photography impossible for six out of the seven days we were in the park. I have hopes for better conditions this year.

With a love of the Polar regions I really lucked out being born in Australia when it comes to travel time. With recent changes to airlines routes from Australia it is now necessary for me to fly Melbourne to Sydney, Sydney to Auckland, Auckland to Santiago, Santiago to Buenos Aires and finally Buenos Aires to Ushuaia. And thats before we even board ship for sailing time to South Georgia and Antarctica. I have not counted the number of hours that is going to mean sitting around in airports and on aeroplanes as I quite honestly I don’t really want to know. The reality is for me that I would endure just about any amount of travel pain to visit and photograph in Antarctica. The pain of international travel is quickly forgotten when that first call of iceberg ahead! is made on the Drake Passage. Antarctica is a miraculous location and with each visit my respect and love for this continent grows in leaps and bounds. One of the most fantastic things about these expeditions is the camaraderie with all on board and the shared passion for photography. Asa  result I am looking forward very much to sharing the experience with all aboard.

As has become traditional I like to do a packing list post before I depart on an expedition. The purpose of this list is to both help me make sure I have not forgotten anything, but also to share what it is I take with me for those either travelling with me on these trips or considering their own future trip. Packing for both two Antarctic expeditions as well as a hiking and camping expedition in Patagonia presents some rather unique challenges and I have spent a good deal of time weighing up all my options for both camera gear as well as clothing. Thankfully I do not have to transport all of my camping gear to South America as we will be hiring what we need on location. You might note that my choice of camera bodies for this time away is not ideally suited to hiking. As much as I love the Canon EOS1DX (I just recently purchased a second one) it is not exactly what I would consider a light weight hiking friendly camera. I will instead loan a 5DMKIII from one of my good friends for the hiking component of our Patagonia trip and leave my 1DX cameras in storage.antarctica-gear

In addition to the usual camera gear I am also carrying an Aquatech Delphin 1D underwater sport housing, dome port and ancillary accessories for one of my Canon EOS 1DX cameras. I have long wanted to pursue some underwater and split photography options (half above the surface / half below the surface) in Antarctica and I am very excited about the opportunity on these two expeditions thanks to a new sponsorship arrangement with Aquatech. I hope to post some still images and video of the housing in use in both Antarctica and South Georgia Island as well my thoughts and experience on this type of photography in the polar regions.

– 2 x Canon EOS 1DX bodies (I recently purchased a second 1DX and finally retired my 1DS MK3)
– 1 x Sigma 15mm Fish Eye Lens
– 1 x Canon 16-35mm F4L IS
– 1 x Canon 24-70mm F2.8L IS MK II
– 1 x Canon 70-200mm F2.8L IS MK II
– 1 x Canon 200-400mm F4L IS w/ inbuilt 1.4 TC
– 1 x LEE Foundation Kit
– 1 x LEE Foundation Kit and Polariser
– 1 x LEE 3 Filter Lens Wrap
– 1 x LEE 3-Stop Soft Graduated ND Filter
– 1 x LEE 3-Stop Hard Graduated Filter
– 1 x LEE Big Stopper Ten Stop Neutral Density Filter
– LEE Adapter Rings for 77mm and 82mm
– 1 x Canon Drop-in Circular Polariser

Gura Gear Chobe (Carry on Luggage)
– 1 x Apple MacBook Pro 15″ Retina
– 1 x Apple laptop charger
– 1 x Thunderbolt 1 TB external portable hard drive
– 1 x  USB CF card reader
– 1 x Sunglasses and sunglasses case
– 1 x Astell & Kern Hi-Rez Portable Audio Player
– 1 x Astell & Kern Charging Cable
– 1 x Inner Ear Stage Two Driver Headphones
– 1 x Leica Ultra-vid 10×42 HD Binoculars

Etcetera Case #1 (Inside Chobe)
– 1 x Canon 1-Series camera charger
– 2 x Power Adapters for on board ship
– 2 x Canon1DX spare Batteries

North Face Rolling Thunder Duffle
– 1 x Arćteryx Atom LT Hoody
– 1 x Arćteryx Kappa Jacket
– 1 x Arćteryx Kappa Pants
– 1 x Arćteryx Alpha SV Goretex Pro Bibs
– 1 x Arćteryx Alpha SV Goretex Jacket (For Patagonia)
– 1 x Arćteryx Gamma Pants
– 1 x Norona Svalbard Pants
– 1 x Devold Expedition Thermal Long Johns
– 2 x Devold Expedition Thermal Tops
– 1 x Scarpa Hiking Boots (For Patagonia)
– 1 x Skins Hiking Lycra (For Patagonia)
– Other regular Clothing
– 1 x Sleeping Bag Liner (For Patagonia)
– 1 x Jobu Deluxe Gimbal Head with Dovetail Base
– 1 x Petzl Headlamp
– 1 x Heat Company Heat 3 Cold Weather Gloves
– 1 x Sandles (For footwear inside ship)
– Personal Items
– 1 x Aquatech Delphin 1D Underwater Sport Housing
– 1 x Aquatech P-70 Extension Ring
– 1 x Aquatech PD-85 Dome Port (For Canon 16-35mm F4L IS)
– 1 x Aquatech Pole Shutter Kit
– 1 x Pair Aquatech Sensory Cold Weather Gloves
– 2 x Aquatech Sport Shields for 70-200mm and 200-400mm lenses

Etcetera Case #2 (Inside North Face Duffle)
– 1 x Arctic Butterfly Sensor Cleaner
– 1 x Filter Wrench
– 1 x Zeiss Cleaning Fluid and Lens Cleaning Tissue
– 1 x Micro Fibre Lens Cloth
– 1 x Rocket Blower with Hepa-Filter

Ortlieb 120 Litre Dry Duffle Bag
– 1 x Really Right Stuff TVC24L Carbon Fibre Tripod with RRS Levelling Base
– 1 x Really Right Stuff Set Tripod Spikes and fitting Alan-key
– 1 x Arctic Sport Muck Boots

There is one other important piece of documentation I will be taking with me on this expedition and that is an Australian Customs Declaration form. If you are travelling internationally from Australia you can read about the benefit arming yourself with this documentation HERE.

What Camera Gear is being left at home?

I always find myself in a bit of quandary when it comes to deciding what to leave at home when packing for a workshop or expedition. Despite my intentions, I often find a lens I planned to leave at home sneaks its way into my bag at the last minute as the fear of wanting it outweighs the thought of the extra weight in the camera bag. On this occasion however, I feel quite confident in my lens selection. I have all the major focal lengths covered and although some of my favourite glass is staying at home (The Canon 17mm F4L TSE and Canon 24mm F3.5L MKII TSE) I do have these focal lengths covered in the new 16-35mm F4L IS and 24-70mm F2.8L MKII. As much as I would like to also take the Canon 600mm F4L IS MKII the sheer weight and bulk of this lens in combination with everything else really preclude it as a viable option so in this instance it is staying at home.

The Bitter Sweet

It is always somewhat bitter sweet for me to be heading overseas on a photography expedition. On the one hand I love spending time in the outdoor polar regions with other photographers who are passionate about their craft. I am fortunate to meet and travel with some fabulous people who are not only talented photographers in their own right but also a source of continual inspiration. Many of these participants have become friends and I just want to take a moment to acknowledge their photography and thank them for their participation and input. The bitter for me is that I am leaving my two young kids for an extended period of time. Thank goodness for technology and Skype.

Purchasing Equipment

If you are considering purchasing any of the items listed in this packing list for your own photography please consider doing so by clicking on the links on this page. It helps me keep this blog running and pay for the hosting fees with a small commission on affiliate sales when you purchase through this site.