I Left My Heart in San Simeon...

I was trying out a scanner last week and scanned in a number of 35mm slides. This image which I just processed yesterday, reminded me of how much I love the California Central Coast. Call me weird but I absolutely love gloomy overcast weather, the salty ocean breeze, and cool temperatures. It is inevitable that I will move to Morro Bay or the coastal Bay Area again sooner or later.

Picture: Spring Wildflowers and Storm Clouds Along William Randolph Hearst Memorial State Beach with Pier in Background, San Simeon, California

When I lived in San Francisco, people would always remark how depressing it was to live west of the Golden Gate Bridge due to the fog. I loved it. Well aside from the fact that it was impossible to keep my car clean, but that is a different story. For full disclosure purposes however I must admit that I lived on the backside of the ridge where the coastal mountains started in Pacifica, so I wasn't getting blasted by the cold air 24/7. That would have been a little too much to handle.

For this photo which was taken at William Randolph Hearst Memorial State Beach, I used a Cokin Graduated Grey 2 filter because the sky was gray but had also cloud definition, so I knew that the Cokin would help accentuate the clouds by balacing out my exposure. Normally I wouldn’t recommend a Cokin for sunsets or anything other than a gray sky because it can cause an unnatural color cast, but for overcast conditions it does serve a purpose. For more typical landscape shooting situations where you need to control contrast however, I’d recommend Singh-Ray Galen Rowell graduated neutral-density filters as those have no color cast. There are cheaper GND filters that other photographers use made by Lee and Hi-Tech but I have no experience with those so I can’t personally recommend those.

I shot this photo five years ago on Fuji Velvia 50 slide film. I only shot maybe three or four frames in this area because the cost of film, which is a shame. I only shot maybe two or three rolls per outing at most. Not very prolific compared to the digital age nowadays where a photographer can easily shoot several hundred images and really work a scene while not feel any shame about it. That is one of the reasons why I plan on re-photographing many of the places that I have visited over the years.

California Central Coast places of interest include:

Hearst Castle
Elephant Seals at Point Piedras Blancas
Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History
Morro Rock
Morro Bay Waterfront
Oceano Dunes
Montana de Oro State Park
Mission La Purisima
Solvang
17 Mile Drive
Point Lobos SR
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Big Sur
Elkhorn Slough NERR
The National Steinbeck Center
Andersen's Split Pea Soup Restaurant
Carmel
Carmel Mission

Misguided Priorities

Renowned photographer rights' attorney, Carolyn Wright emailed me a link to this East Bay Express article today after I emailed her my December story about getting harassed at Little Corona del Mar Beach.

Worth a Thousand Hassles?

Ignoring the fact that the photographer gives away his "stock photos" for free perhaps the question should be, "Homeland security or homeland harassment?"

I'll Stand by You

I just finished watching today's episode of American Idol "Gives Back". There was a video of Carrie Underwood singing an acoustic version of The Pretenders, "I'll Stand by You" to a group of African children. I obviously have a crush on Carrie and she has the most amazing voice so I had to purchase it on iTunes just right now. :-) The proceeds go to benefit Hurricane Katrina victims and African Aids victims so I shouldn't feel too guilty for my bit of self-indulgence.

"I'll stand by you. I won't let nobody hurt you. I'll stand by you..."

Photo: Female Mother Wood Duck and Baby Chicks Resting Near Pond, CSU Fullerton, California

A children's book anybody?

A Day in the Life of a Baby Wood Duck

My new addiction to bird photography is growing. What I am posting here pretty much sums up why I find this type of photography to be so exciting. I took these over the course of three hours at the Cal State Fullerton University Arboretum on Thursday afternoon.

Picture: Baby Wood Duck Chick (Aix sponsa) With Earthworm in Mouth, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

I spotted a family of wood ducks almost immediately after arriving, but some poorly-parented little girls kept scaring them back into the water by running after them and throwing bread at them. That was really frustrating to see. I wanted to throw those stupid little kids and their ignorant parents into the pond and see how they felt. Once they left, the baby wood ducks kept approaching me and looking for earthworms near my feet because they knew who I am apparently and wanted some publicity on the internet for their cause. So I laid my tripod on it's side flat on the ground and took eye-level photos of these baby wood duck chicks within touching distance. The cutest moment I have ever seen in my life.

Photo: Female Mother Wood Duck Protecting Family of Chicks by Fighting Off Rival Mallard Duck, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

While a thrill-seeking photographer such as myself posed no threat to the birds, other ducks were. Notice the baby wood duck chicks hiding behind the mother wood duck as a mallard approaches them. Might be a little hard to see in this little thumbnail but they are clearly visible in the original file. When I was photographing the ducks at the L.A. County Arboretum I couldn't figure out why the ducks were so hostile and defensive to other birds. Well this photo below might offer an insight as to why that is.

Picture: Great Blue Heron Kills Baby Wood Duck Chick for Meal, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

By the time I took the 2nd photo, the mother was protecting four wood duck chicks. My initial photos of the wood duck family when I arrived at the CSU Fullerton Arboretum consisted five or six chicks... This is a day in the life of a baby wood duck.

Beware of Internet Scammers

Photographers with websites are frequent targets of Internet scammers. Counterfeit checks, excess payments then requesting for a wire transfer of money to make up the difference, etc… are common strategies with these lowlifes. The banks will hold the photographer responsible, regardless of who cut the check originally. Investigate thoroughly first if you are going to cash cashiers checks, money orders, etc… There’s been several threads on popular photography forums dealing with this. I’ve seen enough of comments by various photographers to know to be very cautious when it comes to financial transactions. Lastly, don’t be afraid to turn down “sales” if anything seems suspicious. This hasn’t happened to me yet, and I don’t plan on it happening either.

Here are a couple links to important information that you should read up on:

Naturescapes.net: http://www.naturescapes.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=84965

Craigslist.org: http://losangeles.craigslist.org/about/scams.html

The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center: http://www.ic3.gov/crimeschemes.aspx

Now that we have gotten the ugly stuff out of the way, I am happy to report that Google has become my friend again. A number of my photos have been re-indexed by Google Images and doing better than before. I won’t get into great detail but Google Images is currently blowing my MSN and Yahoo searches out of the water; and those numbers aren’t too shabby either. As a result, my website visitation is increasing at a rapid rate. Since November, my number of daily visitors has nearly tripled. So thank you to everyone who stops by my site. I appreciate the support.

I’m currently prepping a big batch of files to submit to Alamy so it’s time to get back to work. I am long overdue for a submission.

Birds As Savages

My birding skills are mediocre at best, but I do have somewhat of an addiction to bird photography. I'm not really interested in shooting traditional bird portraits though. While I do shoot some for stock photography, many people can do those much better than I can with much better equipment that I can afford. What I am interested in is photographing the chaos and action in a bird's life. My approach is similar to that of a photojournalist. The birds are territorial and hostile toward each other and I wanted to photograph that. The L.A. County Arboretum is a great local place for photographing active waterfowl. I sat there for hours yesterday watching Wood Ducks and mallards fighting over food with squirrels. A bird I had never seen before, a Black-crowned Night Heron and an immature breed were hunting for fish infront of my face, inbetween perching in a cypress tree and from the shoreline. I was fascinated.

Photo: Black-crowned Night Heron Immature (Nycticorax nycticorax) in Cypress Tree Stalking Fish in Lagoon at Los Angeles County Arboretum, Arcadia, California

I have always been a fan of the National Geographic style of wildlife photography and that is what I tried to incorporate into my photos with just enough mixed ambient light flash to stop action with a slight motion blur. What do you think of BirdsAsSavages.com for my new website? :-) Wood ducks aren't so cute when they are angry...

Picture: Aggressive Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) Chasing Another Duck, Los Angeles County Arboretum, Arcadia, California

See my New Photos gallery soon for more birding photos.

The It Factor

There was a question posted on a popular nature photography forum the other day, where the poster was asking when and how photographers self-critique their own photos. There was a wide range of answers. Several mentioned consciously thinking of the technical aspects that others would nitpick on. Another photographer mentioned that he doesn’t know all of the technical stuff anyway so he does whatever pleases him regardless of technique. My response was that I ask myself one question. “Does this feel like the story I want to tell? If the answer is yes, then I try whatever I need to do to get the shot. If no, then I try something else.”

Most pictures that I take fall into the latter category, and I suspect that is the case for most other photographers as well. However, it is that small percentage of “Yes” photos that defines a photographer’s vision. A “successful” photographer typically has a very low percentage of successful shots because they are constantly taking chances in the quest of getting that great picture. What I mean by great picture isn’t necessarily a textbook perfect photo. Photography how-to books are great when you want to take learn the basics of photography. To get to the next level though you can’t fall into a trap by thinking of formulaic rules while shooting. Photography is an art. Not a science.

That brought me to my next argument: “There could be 10 technical things wrong with the shot, but if it captures the spirit of the moment then it is a successful image. On the flip side, a technical masterpiece can still be worthless if it doesn't have that one thing, "It" factor, that unexplained thing it is that gives it charm.”

Keep in mind that evaluating photography is purely subjective. The images that I think have “It” factor might not mean anything to you and vice versa. But some great examples in my mind are:

Ansel Adams’ “Clearing Winter Storm” – Yosemite Valley’s Tunnel View might be the most iconic scenic landscape on the planet and the most photographed. It has been photographed well by millions of photographers. Yet Adams’ black and white classic from the 1940’s still stands out in my mind as being THE image of Yosemite and perhaps the greatest scenic landscape photo ever. I don’t feel this way because of the technique, burning / dodging, composition, photographer’s reputation, etc… many have done a great job at the same things as well since. Why I feel this has the “It” factor is because when I think of Yosemite or when I go to Yosemite, this photo is what I see in my mind. I feel it. To me, Clearing Winter Storm is synonymous with Yosemite. I can’t avoid thinking of it nor do I want to avoid it.

William Albert Allard’s “Portraits of America” book – Bill Allard is a long-time National Geographic photographer who is best known for his revealing photos of American culture. His photos and stories of the Amish, Hutterites and Cowboys played a major role into shaping the Geographic’s legendary reputation. Allard’s photos have IT Factor not because of technical excellence (his photos would probably be picked apart in a “fine art” critique) but because they capture the soul of his subjects.

I can’t think of two any different examples than the two photographers I mentioned above. That brings me back to my point that technique doesn’t make or break an image. It’s the content of the image that matters. All great photos have substance. They connect with someone. The photo might connect with a million people or just one person. In either case, that is a successful photo. I think we can all learn a lot from seeing other people’s pictures as well as our own, and evaluating photos on a deeper level than merely judging a photo’s merits on aesthetics.

Picture Caption: Rodeo at Cowtown Coliseum, Fort Worth Stockyards, Texas

The photographer who posted the question responded that he felt that my rodeo picture posted here connected with him. I was flattered and was glad that someone could relate to what I felt while shooting this. My thoughts while shooting this was, “This is crazy. I could potentially be capturing a frame of someone’s death!” My heart was beating like mad and I tried to incorporate those feelings into photo. From a technical standpoint this photo isn’t very good but I don’t think I could have captured this moment any better than this. So I asked myself, “Does this feel like the story I want to tell?” Yes.