Pont des Arts

Recently I have received a couple of requests for biographies to go with publications. I usually just send off a cut and paste job from the “About Me” page on my website. You may recall around the time I started this blog, I wrote an article “Writing a Photographer’s Bio”. It seems that each year, I prune off a few more sentences so decided I would just go the whole hog and the last bio I sent off just reads “Kah Kit Yoong (Photographer 2005-)”. I’m hoping that this approach will save me some time and a great deal of brain pain in the future.

Truth be told, how I came to become a photographer is not all that interesting. I used to spend a lot of time on my road bike and employed a point-and-shoot to record the places I cycled to. I’m sure most of us have asked ourselves the question “Why do I take photographs?” Answers to this question often involve some way of expressing stopping time. I think “Time Catcher”, a name coined by Patrick Di Fruscia was a particularly elegant way to put this.

A few weeks ago, while researching French photographers, I came across the work of Jeanloup Sieff and purchased his book “40 Years of Photography”. His talents covered the fields of landscape, fashion, street and portraits. Sieff’s first answer to the question was amusing yet probably true for many of us photographers. “Because someone gave me a camera”. Of course why we took photographs at the start of our journey may well be different to the reasons why we continue to take them now. Sieff’s final answer is simple – “sheer pleasure”.

Personally, there are many reasons why I take photographs. The most satisfying of these, is that my images allow me to go back in time. I can marvel at the way sunlight turned the raindrops into glittering diamonds at my leisure in “Paris is Most Beautiful in the Rain”. From the most trifling moments to the great dramatic memories, photos allow me to relive the moment. Sometimes they reveal aspects of the scene that may not be obvious in the frame. On other occasions, I might be delighted by a minor detail that I didn’t notice at the time.

St Germain Street Scene

In this street scene from St Germain des Pres, depicting the Parisian cafe life, there’s something interesting about every character in the scene. (You’ll need to see the large version to make out what each person is up to). Certainly there was more going on than I could take in while standing in the rain trying to blend in. I’m sure that without this record, it would be a memory which would disappear into the ether of everyday life.

Much less likely to be forgotten is my experience on the Cornwall coast a few weeks ago, being battered by storms and a gale force wind at sunset. With golden light illuminating the majestic cliffs and the strains of Peter Hurford’s towering performance of Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor powering through my headphones, the occasion certainly made an impression. Nevertheless, all memories become dulled by the passage of time and photographs make great time machines.

King of the World

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A few days ago, a comment was made on my blog article about perfect moments : “I hope you run a travel workshop in the near future. Something really laid back, relaxing and being about experiencing the place. It’s not always about the shot.” In response, I quipped something along the lines about how people would be unlikely to pay for a workshop not about getting the shot. Given that one of the most successful TV series of all time was based on the premise of a ‘show about nothing’, perhaps there is more to this idea than meets the eye.

This morning, I engaged in my first landscape shoot of the year. Driving into Bude after a week of fine weather in Paris, I was reacquainted with my old Cornish friends : dense fog, driving rain, strong winds and a featureless overcast sky. Nothing had changed by the time I drove out to the beach the next morning. Fortunately this was one of those locations that has never failed to deliver a memorable experience, whether I came back empty handed or not. Even when blowing a gale, the conditions only add to the windswept ruggedness of the place. I was content to walk up and down the shoreline and marvel at the rusty cliffs, smooth rock formations, orange sand and the aquamarine water in the tidal pools. There was no hurry; whether I even made a single exposure was of no consequence.

At its most transcendental level, landscape photography becomes an almost spiritual pursuit. Watching the elements of earth, sea and sky interact, you are confronted by higher powers whether you believe in a higher entity or science. To take this analogy a step further, does a person pray because they have faith or because they expect results? Is the success of a morning outing dependent on whether the photographer bagged a shot or not? What is the best measure of how good a workshop is? The number of images added to a portfolio. How much you learned? Or perhaps how much you enjoyed it?

One aspect of landscape photography that I find increasingly tiresome, is the persistent trophy-hunting style of making images. It’s photography on steroids : more extreme angles, more intense colours, more post-processing and the rush to nail a shot at the most recent discovered location. Of course there are times when it is necessary to pursue an idea relentlessly, after all photos don’t take themselves. However when the hunt becomes an ingrained part of the art, it’s time to slow down. Instead of trying to score a great sunrise or sunset, with time I’ve become more concerned with listening to the story a place has to tell and what I have to say.

Caressing the Sea

So what happened this morning on my first landscape shoot of the year? I eventually settled on a composition that incorporated the features that I had found most striking during my stroll. While setting up, a small break opened in the sea mist and sky – too long after sunrise to produce any colours but it added luminosity to the subtle colours of the scene and a touch of mystery. It was the perfect expression of my mood this morning.

Of course the large version on the website is much nicer and can be found here.

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Situated in the more remote western side of the Brecon Beacons National Park, Llyn y Fan Fawr is a natural lake lying at the foot of Fan Brycheiniog.  Surrounded by windswept moorland and mountains the lake is not somewhere you would accidentally stumble upon. 

While working on a book project to photograph landscapes of the Brecon Beacons I had long planned to visit both Llyn y Fan Fawr and it’s sister lake Llyny Fan Fach.  On a cold January trip to the western side of the National Park I decided the time was right to make my trip.  I wanted to capture the lake shore around sunrise, ideally bathed in some rich morning light.  Pre-visualisation is a crucial part of the planning process, but its just as important to be flexible and adaptable when things don’t happen according to plan, as I was to soon find out!

Parking up just off a small mountain road, I began my walk in the pre-dawn darkness.  There is a track up to the lake, but try as I might I couldnt find it, so I trudged on over the moor heading in the general direction of the lake. The snow from a few weeks back had melted, which made my off road wandering rather squelchy, but luckily I had come prepared with some wellies!

After around 45 minutes of walking steadily uphill in the darkness I was certain I should have reached the lake but in the gloom I was disappointed to not see it anywhere.  By now the darkness was fading and the first colours of dawn beginning to appear in the cloudy sky.  Any landscape photographer will recognise the sinking feeling when this moment arrives before they have reached their viewpoint.  Checking and rechecking my map I changed direction slightly and continued up the seemingly never ending hill, cursing myself for not being more prepared.

As the hill began to level out I was dismayed to encounter a new obstacle, hill fog!  Within moments every direction was choked with fog, if the lake was difficult to find before that task just got a whole lot more challenging!  Fortunately, minutes later I stumbled across a small stream and decided to follow it uphill which at last led me to my destination, Llyn y Fan Fawr! 

Through patches of swirling fog I could just about make out the lake, covered in ice and surrounded by deep snow.  By now any thoughts of capturing sunrise had faded, the wintry conditions presented before me were now something even more special.  I made my way towards the shore, enduring a couple of comical moments when I sank up to my waist in snow!  At one end of the lake the thick ice was cracked into various segments making rather appealing shapes for a photograph. 

I set up my gear in the snow, attaching my Canon 16-35mm lens to maximise the cracked ice in a wide angle composition.  In order to really show off the ice at its dramatic best I needed to get close, and that meant stepping into the water beside the cracked ice.  Thankful for my wellies I stepped into the freezing lake and carefully positioned my tripod amongst the chunks of ice, as close as I could without disturbing them.  By now the fog had swirled away enough to reveal the far side of the lake, providing enough detail to ensure my picture would feel more like a landscape and less of an abstract.

I used a 0.3 Lee ND Grad to hold back the brighter foggy sky and captured several exposures both in landscape and portrait before my frozen feet begged me to drag them onto the shore.

Reviewing the pictures on the cameras preview screen, I was really pleased with what I had captured.  They certainly weren’t the photographs of Llyn y Fan Fawr that I had pre-visualised but that didnt matter, I had adapted to the unexpected conditions presented before me and hopefully captured something far more special.

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Sand Patterns at Uluru

There have been a number of thought-provoking articles in the last year regarding the issues of copying, imitation and the never ending-stream of iconic views appearing on photography websites. Although the issue has been on my mind, I have not felt compelled to participate in those discussions till now. A recent blog article by David Leland Hyde has brought these thoughts to the surface again and prompted me to give my perspective.

Let me start off by stating how I personally operate. I’m not interested in imitating the work of other photographers. The goal of online research is to see what has already been accomplished at each location so that I’m not repeating similar shots taken by others. I have never contacted another photographer to ask where he or she made a particular shot. If someone volunteers information about where I can find a ‘great shot’, this will make me less interested in the location. I don’t want to do what has been done by others before. My preference is to scout, explore and work locations on my own. Being resourceful and learning how to assess the photographic potential of a location using your own eyes is a skill in itself. Those who constantly ask others for coordinates hoping to shoot something similar do not develop these skills and will always follow in the footsteps of others, figuratively and literally.

I believe that these concerns about copying and iconic locations becoming tarnished by over-exposure are a response to being bombarded by the glut of competent but often uninspired landscape photography. These are not new sentiments specific to the explosion of interest in photography during the digital age. In my research of street photography in Paris, I found this rather disdainful comment about photographers shooting Place de la Concorde by Robert Doisneau in 1962 :  “Like moths, photographers are drawn to the lights of Place de la Concorde. They circle around the splashing fountains, trying to get the perfect shot. This they will then foist on dinner guests back home.”

Magic Hour Concorde

While I have more original interpretations of Place de la Concorde, I think the glorious sunrise does enough to make this a distinctive view of the icon. 

It is important to note that many of those sharing their views in blog articles are very experienced and accomplished photographers who are well advanced down their creative paths. On the other hand, just like Doisneau’s photographers, most people are not seeking to become the next Galen Rowell. They are are just aiming to make a few prints that they like enough to put up on their walls. Even for those who have loftier goals in photography, during those first years of photography, one is consumed with developing the technical aspects of one’s craft and making aesthetically pleasing images rather than being concerned with originality or sharpening one’s vision. I know that in my first couple of years as a photographer, I regarded making a technically perfect postcard standard image in nice light as an accomplishment. Nowadays, unless I have something new to say about Uluru, or the Twelve Apostles, those images will never see light of day on my website galleries. I’ve photographed enough iconic locations to know that sometimes you do luck out on some unique conditions. And being able to come up with something out of the ordinary or an original take of a classic view can be very satisfying – the equivalent of pulling the proverbial rabbit out of the hat. However, if the conditions are ordinary or I’m lacking in inspiration, it’s often more satisfying to enjoy the view than go through the motions of getting ‘the shot’ to complete the collection.

Supernatural

I used my car’s headlights to ‘light paint’ the grasses in the foreground to create a unique look to this Uluru photograph.

The Island Arch

This photo of the Island Arch was one of the most famous landmarks on the Great Ocean Road. I’ve only visited the location once and was blessed with a spectacular sunset. Given it’s popularity as a ‘standard view’, I was not too fond of the shot at the time. However, shortly after my visit, the arch collapsed and the fact that this view is no longer possible makes me treasure the photo a little more.

The question to ponder when you’re lining up that classic shot is whether imitation will be merely a stepping stone towards a more creative approach or the end of the road. If the latter is acceptable then there is no problem with shooting what thousands have done before and many more will do in the future. However, if you’re seeking to distinguish yourself as an artist, learning to harness your personal vision should become a priority.

Forest Echoes, Blue Mountains

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Have you heard of HDR? Have you tried it? Here’s a recording from Jay’s recent Google+ Hangout with Alex Koloskov, where we discuss the HDR Workflow, the camera gear we use, and the different programs that we use to generate HDR images.

The original discussion was broadcast live using the Google+ Public Broadcast feature. For those who couldn’t join us for the original discussion, we hope you enjoy the recording! If you have questions, please feel free to leave a comment on this post.

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Samantha and my Fabulous Film Fridays project that we shared between our blogs and which started on December 31, 2010 has come to its year-end. It has been a blast shooting once a week with our film cameras. If you liked this project be sure to head over to our new website and blog and get the free Fabulous Film Friday eBook which will launch next Friday (January 6, 2012). As most of you know this blog will end on December 31st with its final entry; please join me over at oopoomoo where my new adventure begins!

Speaking of end projects, Samantha is giving her course: Learning to “Speak’ the Language of Visual Expression one last time. This course has gotten rave reviews and so if you are keen to ramp up your visual knowledge, be sure to sign up for the January 2nd, 2012 start date!

Both photos taken with Tachihara Tim using Fuji Instant Print Film

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This will be my last weekly photo post on this blog. I will no longer post to this blog after December 31st. After that all my blog postings and new images will appear over at oopoomoo. Be sure to sign up for the newsletter over there if you want first dibs on workshops, discounts and unpublished photo tips.

These two photos of Hoodoo Creek Bay at Abraham Lake were taken on one of the Fire and Ice Photo Tours this last November. If you are interested in the 2012 tour check out it out, it is nearly full!

©Darwin Wiggett

©Darwin Wiggett

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©Darwin Wiggett

Click on the photo to learn the back story of this photo (and my meet-up with famous photographers!) plus see a few more photos from the shoot.

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Shooting the Winning Image

I received an early Christmas present with the announcement of UK magazine’s Photographer of the Year honour roll. My image “Symphony of a Thousand” was the winner in the landscape category. I shot it this year in the Catlins while leading a workshop around New Zealand. You may recall that an almost identical shot was taken the year before but this time I went for a faster shutter speed to freeze the water action. The atomic sunrise we witnessed was almost a replay of the one I had photographed the year before.

The technical details : Canon 5DMkII, 16-35mm 2.8L, ISO 100, f6.3, 0.3s, reverse GND filter, Gitzo tripod. As you can see from the portrait photo, taken the same morning as my winning shot, I’m standing far enough away from my foreground subject to get away with a fairly open aperture of 6.3, which in turn allowed me to shoot with the fast shutter speed I wanted. With proper focussing it is amazing how much depth of field you can acquire without resorting to small apertures of f16 and above.

Interestingly this year, the judges went for three classic landscapes : not a long exposure, star or moonlit landscape in sight. It was good to see such a strong focus on those good old qualities – composition and light.

Digital Camera POTY 2011

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Jay’s work was recently published in Issue 15 of CameraPixo Magazine. This issue also features the beautiful work of Elena Kalis, Joel Santos and many other talented photographers. It was an honor to be selected alongside these talented photographers. You can either browse the issue online, or you can download a PDF file (Warning: It is a very large PDF file).

Browse Online: http://photographymagazineontablet.com/camerapixo/online/issue15/#/88
Free PDF Version: http://camerapixo.com/photographymagazine/

We hope you will enjoy the Free Online Photography Magazine.

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