I’m writing this article because frankly, I’m upset. It seems that everytime I meet with photographers who have attended a workshop, at least one of them has a horror story about a previous workshop they’ve attended. Often, I’m surprised they were able to put the bad experience behind and have the fortitude to try again with another workshop leader. What’s really upsetting about a lot of things I hear about the nature photography workshop business is that it…
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I’ve been facinated by the new hybrid DSLRs that can shoot both still and video images. And the video I saw from the 5D Mark II was really, really impressive. It’s ability to produce high definition video at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels (1080p) is really stunning. I’m a bit of a movie fanatic and I think part of me harbours a fantasy of…
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Whenever I teach wildlife photography, I go on at some length, about the necessity of getting your camera gear on the same level as your subject’s eyes. This concept doesn’t only apply to wildlife photography, it applies equally well to photography of children, pets or hobbits. When I teach this concept to a group of students, their eyes tend to glaze over until…
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Yeah, we get it! The camera brand you’ve chosen is the best and anyone who chose a different brand (or even a different model) is a freakin’ idiot. Please leave the fanatic mentality at home and let people wallow…
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I just returned from a very successful workshop focussed on spring Black Bears. The workshop was held at the Riding Mountain Guest Ranch just outside Riding Mountain National Park in south west Manitoba, Canada. If you’ve never been to this area of the world you really owe yourself a visit. It is truly a remarkable area of the continent with a huge variety…
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The winter that would never end; that’s how I’ll remember this spring. While we have occasional days of “normal” temperatures, we have had a very cold spring. For instance, as I write this, the temperature is hovering around freezing and the forecast is calling for up to 5cm (2 inches) of snow by tomorrow. But, I long ago learned that my whining has no influence on the weather and I’m hopeful that the weather for my upcoming…
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…I encourage my photography and workshops students to never, EVER, under penalty of death, use the digital zoom on their cameras. At a glance, I can usually guess when an image was taken with digital zoom and it really creates inferior images. But of course, like all “rules” there are exceptions. I’ve thought of three occasions when using the digital zoom on a camera would be acceptable…
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If you are using a large telephoto lens like a 200-400mm F4, a 300mm F2.8, a 500mm F4, a 600mm F4, a 300-800mm F5.6 or a 800mm F5.6, you need a really good tripod head. And in my opinion, you are foolish to consider anything other than…
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I’ve had a Khumbu photography vest from the Vested Interest folks for about 4 years now. They have different vests for different types of photographer. The models include the Still, Magnum, Pro Video and the one I use, the Khumbu. For the wildlife photographer the Khumbu vest is a very useful accessory for trecking gear around. Every once in a while I see folks in the various Internet photography forums enquiring about them and thought it would be a useful…
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Creating a tremendous wildlife photograph is an extremely rewarding pursuit. However, developing the skills and techniques necessary to create captivating wildlife images is more difficult than it might appear on the surface. Composition, lighting, equipment, natural history, and patience are just some of the areas…
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