I had to put my newly acquired reading glasses on for this one.  I had read the message without it, but since I passed 40 I don’t trust what I see anymore.  This time I may as well have, as the message was the same.  My mouth went dry and the palms of my hands went slightly sweaty.  Gerry wants me to write something for the blog.  He wants me to write about how I take my photographs, what goes through my mind and things like that…  Extremely flattered I tried to think of some reason to decline, not because I did not want to, but simply because I tend to just DO things without really thinking about these things he now asked me to actually WRITE about.

Some time ago I was thinking about photography and what it was I was trying to achieve through photography.  I came up with the following thought: “I may be wrong, but I think you create a picture when you try and capture a moment with a camera, but create art when you try and capture eternity.”  Eternity to me is achieved when I manage to capture what I believe to be the essence of a subject, usually any of the three fields of photography I love most which are sea / landscapes, portraiture and macro.  I’m sure anyone who has ever achieved any form of success in photography has to agree that the success in any image is to find that something which makes it different from the rest, that different angle, that slightly different approach and the presentation of that which is out of the ordinary.

This is a little jumping spider, around 4mm in size.  I just love jumping spiders because of their huge eyes and the fact that they move their heads around to look at things, very much like humans.  This was the first one I came across since getting my 100mm f2.8 Canon macro lens, so I was very excited finding it.  After spending a little time with it I think it became curious of me and came out from under some leaves to get a better look at me.  I saw it turning upside down on a blade of grass and I moved in quickly for the shot.  As I got focus, it saw me and turned its head to look at me through its legs, in a “peek-a-boo” kind of a way.  For that split second we looked each other in the eye, I felt we had some sort of connection.  Silly isn’t it?

My daughter has fantastic eyes.  They just come alive in a photograph.  I must have a million photographs of her.  Only few are really nice in my eyes though and this happens to be one of them.  In this case she was sitting next to a north facing window and the light was falling just right as I got her to look up at me and at the same time it also created that angle which is different to all the rest.  With so many distractions in the background and a mix and match of colours, black and white was the way to go.  Not perfect by any means, but one I really love.

My first passion though is seascapes and landscapes.  Being full time employed from 8 to 5 weekdays, I am a photographic weekend warrior.  That does not mean that I do not take photography seriously or even less seriously than anyone else, be they professional or not.  Being full time employed simply means that I have less time available and I have to make use of any and all opportunity to get the shots, whether the sky is clouded over and gale force winds are blowing or not.

When it comes to sea and landscapes I am a bit of an adventurer.  I know that the pro’s  sometimes take days scouting the right locations, marking out composition spots and the like and then sometimes waiting for days, even weeks for just the right conditions in order to take the shot.  Time does not allow for me to do that, but I am blessed with a myriad of really great seascape spots around the East London coast.  I will randomly decide on a Friday to drive out the next morning to a spot, usually a spot I have not been to in a while or some times even a new place I’ve never been to.  In summer it’s rise and shine at 3:15am to get up and go and still reach the destination about an hour before sunrise.  Not even knowing the tide or what the beach looks like since the last time I’d been there makes it so much more exciting for me.  I am a believer in that I go to a spot ready to capture whatever is presented to me.

I’ve learnt that cloudy is not always bad either.  East Londen often has 364 days of them!

The hour before sunrise is the time I try and find a spot that I think may make a good composition and then get ready for things to start happening.  The half an hour before the sun breaks out over the horizon is usually the best time and then there is no time for fumbling around (as the sun breaks I usually do…).  I try and find as many compositions possible on a shoot, so I move around quite a bit.  When you only have one or at most two days a week to capture shots you try and collect as many keepers as possible.

As with macro and portraiture, finding the scene or composition that is different is what I always aim for.

This was shot at a spot that is regularly shot at Chintsa West, however everyone always go for the rock formation that looks like a little bridge between two sets of rocks with water gushing through it.  I also photograph that.  A lot.  But then I saw this exclamation mark and immediately recognised it as one of those out of the ordinary scenes that deserves to be photographed.  The light was not the best, but true to my motto I at least tried to capture whatever was presented to me in the best way I could.

The ocean is alive.  It is dynamic and full of energy.  I just love to try and capture that.  I was challenged in the past to do more landscapes as I mostly do seascapes.  In comparison and to some extent I found landscapes so much easier as it is stagnant and timing and the randomness of waves and white water does not come into play.  I just missed the dynamics of the sea.  I generally like streaky water in my seascapes but even where there are none I still try and capture something showing the dynamic of the sea.  Shutter speeds of between 1 and 3 seconds work best for me and apart from filters I will use f-stop to try and achieve this.

If given a choice I actually prefer late afternoon shoots to morning shoots.  In my opinion the light is softer and stays usable for longer.  It also opens other opportunities like the near full moon rising over the ocean the night before Good Friday in 2009.  Not an easy task I found, but very worthwhile attempting.  Here along the east coast we do not have the sun setting over the ocean, so we have to create our own opportunities!

My first visit to Hole in the Wall in March 2010 presented its own challenge.  This spot has been photographed so many times and from so many angles.  Going there I knew that my challenge was to find at least one new angle on this landmark spot.  Being there for a long weekend only this was going to be a big challenge too.  You be the judge if I succeeded.

My equipment - Until February 2010 I used a Canon 400D and am now using a Canon 50D.  My seascapes and landscapes are mostly taken with a Sigma 10-20 lens.  I regularly use a Cokin ND8 soft grad filter with good results if I can make the magenta cast work for me.  Even when using filters I sometimes find that the camera cannot manage the dynamic range and in such cases I resort to blending multiple exposures as described by Hougaard Malan elsewhere on this blog.

If you made it this far, thank you for reading!  Maybe I should just post pics in future and leave the writing parts to someone who can…!

Marius Potgieter – Amateur wrestling with photography.

Marius’s Links:

• Website: Creative Images

I originally discovered David Lloyd’s site after ‘meeting’ him on Twitter and I am very glad I did.

David is a New Zealand born photographer living in the UK and after traveling to Africa, and other countries, has been able to put together a fantastic portfolio of wildlife & nature images.

When visiting David’s blog you will  not only be able to check out some amazing wildlife images which range from gorillas and lions to birds and scottish wildcats.  His images are well thought out and makes the viewer connect with the subject or scene instantly.  David’s color images are strikingly realistic but but I reckon that it is with his monochrome work where he raises it to another level.  It takes something special to see, capture and ultimately present a wildlife image in black & white while at the same time still keeping image real and natural and David does this very well as you can seen from the image above.

When arriving at David Lloyd’s Wildlife & Travel Photography blog you will see the latest post on the top of the page.  From here on the blog is very easy to navigate with menus on both side of the screen with which you can link to various galleries and post archives.   You can also link to a collection of images that David has for sale which I have no doubt make amazing prints.

To visit David Lloyd’s blog you can click here or on any of the images in this post.  You can also follow David on Twitter by clicking here or join his page on Facebook by clicking here. For an interesting read check out one of David’s recent posts, Altered States, where he shares his thoughts on digital photography, digital artists and how the two do, or don’t, speak the same language.  Great article.

If you have any blogs that you think people need to know about let me know!

More soon.

Gerry

The winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year has been disqualified.

At the end of last year questions were raised about the authenticity of the  winning image.  You can check out this post for a little more background info but the short version is that the authenticity of the image was questioned.  Was the wolf really wild?  Was the image taken on the wild?

The judges and owners of the competition have released an official statement in which they confirm that the image is in fact of a tame, trained wolf.  Images of tame animals are allowed in the competition but this has to be made clear from the start.  To that end, the winning image has been disqualified from the competition.

The winning photographer, José Luis Rodríguez, denies the allegations but the breach of rule 10 of the competition has resulted in him not being awarded the £10,000 prize money and being stripped of the prestigious title of WIldlife Photographer of the Year.

You can read the official statement from the competition organizers by clicking here.

I have no doubt that the debate will continue for a whole and that we will never truly now whether the image was in fact of a wild wolf or not but I am sure that the judges will be looking at this year’s entires a with a little voice in the back of their heads.

It is a sad thing that this had to happen but it only serves to remind us all as to what wildlife photography truly is – wild animals, in their natural environment.

Well respected professional wildlife photographer Andy Rouse shares his thoughts about the incident here.

When you are out in the field, remember to keep it real!

Gerry

I once read a now obscure book or article on success.  It advised that one should take time to reflect on the successes along life’s path no matter how big or small they may be. Seemingly, by way of cerebral osmosis, this notion was archived in my long-term memory. Now, years later, two recent achievements cause me to take a moment and reflect on my career as a wildlife photographer…

The job of a wildlife photographer is hard to define and even harder to describe? The work is at times exhilarating but most of the time just plain infuriating! The pay is almost always nonexistent and the lifestyle is quite simply invigorating! I am grateful that I never left a conventional career to become a wildlife photographer (and I pity those who did), but rather that my life’s journey brought me here. Where you ask? Well, to a place where I am so overwhelmed by the beauty of the natural world that I simply have to document it and share it with others! To a place where the Creator’s creativity has ignited my own and a camera has become an extension of my soul! Ok, so you get the point, wildlife photographers are often fanatical nature junkies at best and at worst, we are hopeless eccentric artists! We can be likened to crack cocaine addicts or surfers but I prefer the surfer analogy.

I recently attended a two-day symposium in London during which we were addressed by some of the world’s leading wildlife photographers. As each spoke about his life and career, I was greatly relieved to discover that being a wildlife photographer is tough for everyone, not just for my own third-world self-sympathetic existence. Listening to the photographers as they each presented their stories, the one clear message that came through, was that to succeed as a wildlife photographer, one needs dogged determination with an endless supply of stamina and patience (both financial and mental)! Hey, I guess there might well be more brain surgeons in the world than professional wildlife photographers? To succeed as the latter, you need the temperament of a honey badger. Grab that proverbial buffalo bull between the legs, lock your jaws, and ride out the ups and downs of a career that for the most part, except for a select few, remains a fantasy occupation. The symposium included a talk by Thomas Peschack, a world-renowned and National Geographic published photographer. When asked what advice he would give youngsters wanting to enter the profession he replied that “It is possible? If one becomes obsessed about ones work and thinks about it 24 hours a day”.

My personal journey as a wildlife photographer began back in 2001 when I bought my first SLR Pentax MZ30 camera with a 70-300 Sigma lens. The purchase was a combination of my 21st birthday money as well as a couple years of savings. I was chuffed with my buy but still not yet sold on the whole concept of photography? I was completely green to both the mechanics of a camera and the artistry involved! My goal back then was simply to document the many wildlife encounters that I was experiencing living in the African bush. I wanted to share these with my family and friends and nothing more really. Little did I know that I was poised over a gasoline soaked pile of Leadwood with a lit match in my hand! Soon after my first purchase I discovered a creative side to my being, that had remained largely hidden during my childhood. A seed was planted and in a short time self-germinated, resulting in an intense desire for me to become a professional wildlife photographer. I sought advice on the feasibility of the career by seasoned professionals and everywhere I turned I was told to forget about it, that the market was over-saturated and that money was scarce? Looking back, that advice was not altogether incorrect but it served only to spur me on!

In 2003, I took a loan and upgraded my equipment to the Nikon brand. Starring at my two golden Nikon boxes I was elated and figured that if I had a Nikon, I had all that was needed to be a professional wildlife photographer. Yes, unequivocal ignorance is an essential ingredient to anyone wanting to pursue a career in wildlife photography!  I guess it was in 2004 with a Nikon F100 and an 80-400mm VR lens, that I began my quest in earnest to become a professional wildlife photographer!

Although I had a camera body and a lens, I had no film or filters. What to do? With reckless abandonment, I decided to sell my only car, a much loved and lemon cream yellow Volkswagen Beetle! I walked into my local camera store and purchased one large brown bag filled with Fuji Sensia, Provia and Velvia film. With the change I purchased a polarizer and a few split ND filters, which went into a separate bag. Walking out the shop door with a brown bag in each hand, I paused momentarily as I realized that my only significant asset had been reduced to nothing more than two film filled paper bags? It was a long walk home!

Moving to Kenya with my wife (Claire), we set out to manage a community run safari camp, which to me was nothing more than a smoke screen to embark on my journey of becoming a wildlife photographer. The next four years involved me spending not only every cent I had on film and developing but also every spare minute of my time!  Holding down a job as a safari camp manager; hosting guests and managing a contingent of 60 Maasai staff was no simple task let alone trying to work on a photographic portfolio!  I simply could not have dreamt of doing this without the support of Claire who took up a bulk of the camp duties! I recall how often I had no vehicle in camp as they were all being used for guest safaris. I would then have to walk to my photographic locations. At first I took a rifle but the combined weight of the .375, my camera and searing equatorial heat meant that I soon began leaving the rifle behind. Subsequently I had many a close encounter, including walking into a lioness and her seven cubs TWICE!

Fast-forwarding the story to the present day and hour, I have recently received news that a couple of my images have received honorable mention in two prestigious wildlife competitions.

My image titled ‘Crossing Frenzy’ (seen in the right) received Highly Commended status in the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition which received 43 000 entries this year from 94 different countries (see the website here). Another image titled Maasai Warrior has been Honorably Commended in the Smithsonian Nature’s Best competition which received in excess of 20 000 entries this year and from 56 different countries (see the website here). This news was refreshingly welcome but not really appreciated until my recent trip to London to attend the BBC Wildlife Photographer awards dinner. Upon checking into my hotel I decided to take a walk through Kensington and quite by chance, I happened to stumble upon the Natural History Museum. Perhaps it was the late evening light or possibly the Victorian-style architecture?  Whatever might have been the reason, the building that stood before me was impressively large and decidedly beautiful, causing me to stop dead in my tracks!

Outside the main entrance stood three massive green banners advertising the opening of the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Gallery. Standing on that sidewalk in Kensington, staring at the beautiful building, it slowly began to dawn on me that a picture I had taken in Kenya years earlier was now on display in one of London’s most beautiful museums.  I myself had never before traveled to London and now not only was I there, but a picture of mine had arrived ahead of me! A few days later, while still in London, I received news that my Maasai Warrior image has been Highly Honored in this years Nature’s Best competition hosted by the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C, United States.

Minutes passed as I stood on the sidewalk in Kensington. Surprised by my emotional response, I recalled how five years earlier and in a moment of panic followed by a long walk home, I had traded my Beetle for two brown paper bags filled with film and filters!

My ongoing journey to become a professional wildlife photographer has had its fair share of ups and downs. In my endeavours over the last few years, I have shed blood, sweat, and yes, rather embarrassingly – even tears! I have unwittingly contracted malaria 5 times, bilharzia and a host of parasitic worms after sharing a waterhole with baboons.  Not to mention the copious pints of blood that I generously donated to legions of Tsetse flies in southern Tanzania! Furthermore, financially, I am still trying to figure out how I can make my photography profitable (Nikon, if you listening, sponsor me)?  The recent achievement of having my work exhibited in London’s Natural History Museum and featuring in a special Collector’s Edition of the Smithsonian Nature’s Best publication is also more a personal milestone than a major career breaking accomplishment.

There are quite simply more established photographers, achieving far more note worthy results. For example, Nick Nichol’s 1000 plus mile expedition through central Africa on a National Geographic assignment that lead to the formation of 13 national parks!  So why write this article?

Following a piece of random advice read in a book years ago, has allowed me to take a moment to pause and reflect. This has proved a worthwhile exercise. Not only has it produced a lengthy article where the words ‘wildlife photographer’ have been repeated endlessly to help google search engines, but it has reminded me of where I began and the journey I have taken. Perhaps most importantly, it has reminded me why I photograph?

My photographic voyage has allowed me to experience nature in an undiluted, intense and beautiful way. These many moments, some of which have been successfully recorded on camera, I would not trade for all the money in the world!  The purpose of my photography is to generously share such moments with others. I may have purchased my first camera to share my life and passion for the wild with just friends and family but now, with two images appearing in either museums, websites or publications abroad, I am able to share my work with literally millions of people.

I now also place value on my work from a conservation point of view and I hope that in some small way, by me presenting the natural world in a unique and special way, I am helping it to be better appreciated.  Over the years, I have come to understand that I live a privileged lifestyle that allows me to spend a large portion of my time with wildlife. Through my photography I am able to hopefully share the beauty and diversity of the natural world with others that, for whatever reason, are unable to experience the wild in the same awesome way that I do.

I have never been to Washington D.C, but I take solace and encouragement that one of my Fuji Sensia slides traveled across the Atlantic on my behalf.  My VW Beetle would never have gotten me there anyway! The BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Portfolio 19 is out. This coffee-table book features all the winning and highly commended images from what has become known as the ‘most prestigious wildlife competition’ in the world. The book showcases the wondrous diversity on our planet.  I am pleased to feature on page 55.

This year the Nature’s Best portfolio includes 138 images selected from 20 000 entries and 56 different countries. The portfolio is published in a special awards collector’s edition of the Nature’s Best publication. A selection of these images will be exhibited in the Smithsonian Museum, Washington D.C.  Order your copy here.  Below are brief outlines of the two museums and gallery exhibits:

The Natural History Museum, London

The BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition finds the best wildlife images taken by the world’s top wildlife professionals and amateur photographers. The winning and commended images go on display in the Natural History Museum (NHM), London. This exhibit has proved over the years to be one of the museums most popular. The gallery is on exhibit in the NHM from Nov 2009 – April 2010 before it travels the globe to be seen by millions of viewers. The winning images are compiled into a coffee table book each year by BBC Books and this year will see the publication of the 19 Portfolio. A selection of images is also featured in the BBC Wildlife Magazine. The NHM is a world-renowned centre of research and conservation. Built in 1881, collections hold great historical and scientific evidence such as specimens collected by Darwin himself.

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

The Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards are hosted by the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). The competition celebrates the beauty and diversity of nature through the art of photography. The winning portfolio of images is viewed by more than 10 million internet users as well as millions of visitors attending the gallery exhibition between Nov 12th and May 2nd 2010 in Washington D.C. (United States). The winning portfolio is published in a special collector’s edition of the elite Nature’s Best publication. The museum itself is the size of 18 football fields and is open 364 days of the year. The NMNH serves as one of the world’s great repositories of scientific and cultural heritage and houses 185 professional natural history scientists.

If you would like to view more of my images or read more of my picture essays feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Greg du Toit

Greg’s Links

• Website: Greg du Toit Photographic & Safaris
• Blog: Greg du Toit’s Blog

I recently looked through this year’s winning and highly commended images when I paged through Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 19. By looking through the images in this coffee table book you can see why the Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year is the ultimate competition for wildlife photographers around the globe.  The wildlife photography  Academy Awards.

It seems, however, that there is a bit of a controversy brewing about the overall winning image.

The image on the right by José Luis Rodríguez from Spain, entitled ‘The StoryBook Wolf’, won the Animal Portraits section and went on to also be announced as the overall winner.  It now seems that the image and how it was captured is being investigated  for fraud.  The short version of the story, thus far, is that the image is being looked at with regards to whether the animal was in fact  a wild animal and whether the image was captured in the wild.

At this stage I believe it would be unfair to point fingers at anybody until the judges and competition organizers have completed their investigation but for now you can check out these links.

• Click here to read the photographer’s description of how he managed to capture the image.
• Click here to read more on the allegations and questions that are being asked about the image.

If you look through some of the comments on the various websites you will see that there a quite a few questions that has been raised and that needs answering.  The outcome of this very contentious matter will bring a lot of answers but will it help to more clearly define what is considered wildlife photography?

During the last few days I have found some truly amazing and inspirational wildlife images on the net.  The problem is, that when you read and look deeper, that some of these images were taken in zoos.  Ok, small problem.  Yes, the photographer might have been able to capture a technically brilliant image of a wild animal in captivity but is it truly wildlife photography?  Would it make a difference if the photographer was to be honest and disclose the real facts as to how they managed to create such a stunning image?   You see, the fact remains that whether the above image was taken in the wild or not and whether the animal was tame or wild – it is still an absolutely brilliant image.

For me wildlife photography is the genre of our craft where a wild animal is photographed in it’s natural habitat.  Again, there is a problem.  Some zoos have beautiful, and quite large,  enclosures for animals which mimic it’s natural habitat.  Does that mean photographing an animal in a large , natural looking zoo enclosure constitutes wildlife photography?  It just does not seem right.  That then leads to the next question.  Does natural environment mean the environment where a specific animal would have been found, naturally,  before humans started intruding on their territory?  One question just keeps on leading to the next.

A lot has been written about the ethics in wildlife photography.  (You can check out two posts on Photo-Africa here and here and another by Shem Compion by clicking here.)  I feel the most important thing in all of this is honesty.  The ultimate goal in what we do is to create beautiful and thought provoking images of wildlife in their natural habitat.  That is true and honest wildlife photography.  There is nothing wrong with photographing animals in a zoo or enclosure.  It can actually be a fantastic way to train your eye and create portrait images of shy and seldomly seen animals as long as those images are not portrayed as sold as wildlife images, because it isn’t.  Beautiful animal portrait.  Great mammal photograph.  But not a wildlife image.

I guess this is something that is not going to go away but as long as there are still photographers out there who have a passion for wildlife photography there will still be people who create truly authentic images of animals in the natural world.  Even though there have been, and probably will be many more, instances where it would be so easy to get involved to create better images I am proud to say that all my images of wild animals have been taken in the wild.  I feel very strongly, and this goes for both wildlife photography and guiding, that the moment you influence the behavior of the animal your are photographing you have failed.  Simple as that but no doubt the debate will continue.

Whatever the outcome of the investigation into the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition winner, I will keep you posted. If  you have any thoughts on this matter please feel free to comment!

Bye 4 now and keep it honest!

Gerry

This week’s featured blog is The Global Photographer.

I have only had the pleasure of chatting to Andy Biggs on Facebook and via email but all going well we will be meeting up sometime during next year.  The reason that we have not already met up is that Andy is probably one of the top photographic safari guides in the world.  You only have to look at the feedback form the safaris that he has run in countries such as Namibia, Botswana and Tanzania to know that he is the real deal.

The Global Photographer is Andy’s blog where you will find info on his safaris and workshops.  You will also find links to Gura Gear which is Andy’s range of camera bags specifically designed for photographic safaris.  All going well I will be ordering mine very soon!

WHen you have a moment make sure to stop in at The Global Photographer.  Even if it is just for the Photo of the Day you won’t be disappointed.

Till later.

Gerry