I went to Kenya last month with the usual mix of excitement and worry. Excitement for all the normal reasons, not the least of which was being in front of wonderful things in beautiful light with my camera in my hand. Worry because I really didn’t want to come back with different versions of the same photographs I’ve made before.
I had been taking some of my own advice and asking “what’s missing from my images?” and I had come up with a couple ideas I wanted to explore. Specifically, I wanted images with more scale, I wanted to do more high-key images, and I really wanted work with a sense of motion.
So much of my existing work felt a little static to me; it definitely felt like I was getting into a bit of a rut with the long lens. My first instinct seems to be to push in tight, so I was feeling like I wanted to make some images with room to breathe, to include a little more context. And, God help me, I really didn’t need another picture of a silhouetted animal in front of the sun. I love that kind of shot, but it has become my low-hanging fruit, and I wanted something more.
I had some very specific ideas of the kinds of photographs I wanted to challenge myself with, and that made such a difference: I wasn’t just looking for subjects, as in, “Oh my God, stop, it’s a rhino!” I have a million pictures of rhinos. Instead, I was looking for ideas. For compositions.
Specifically, I was looking for scenes that would play well if I pulled back and included some scale. I was looking for motion and a chance to play with panning and some slower shutter speeds. And I was looking for subjects that were a little darker against the sky so that, when exposed well, the sky would blow out and isolate them.
An unexpected side effect was that I was photographing subjects I wouldn’t otherwise explore. An ostrich. A starling. A hornbill. (Oh my God, I’m becoming a birder!).
They say we see what we look for, and suddenly I was looking for entirely different things.
That alone made my work different and I think among my best yet, though by best I really mean it’s among my most satisfying.
I think I learned and re-learned more on this trip than some of my others. The desire to do some panning and be less un-ready when those situations arose forced me to learn to use the memory recall on my camera so I could more quickly pull up a slower shutter and tighter aperture when needed. The desire to include more scale made me pickier about my compositions since the more you include in the frame the more you need to keep it simple and direct. I was looking at it all so differently.
Looking for ideasāfor specific kinds of opportunities and compositionsārather than just subject matter, made a huge difference!
I want to explore some of this with you in the coming weeks. I think we will always be a little reactive in our photography, a little opportunistic, but when the initial inspiration wears off, when the “Oh my God, a rhino!” becomes a “Well, now what? What do I DO with that rhino?” then we need not just subjects, but ideas. In my case, some of those ideas were about high-key images, others about motion, and others still about scale and context, all of which are ideas that can be applied to any genre of photography.
While I gather my thoughts on some of this I want to invite you to download a short monograph of my favourite images from this trip.
You can download your copy of Mwangaza! by clicking here or on the image above.Ā
I showed you a few of these photographs two weeks ago when I first got home, this is now a wider, more thoughtful collection of my work from Kenya and I think it will illustrate what I’m talking about. I hope you’ll take a moment to download it, put the coffee on, and enjoy the images.
For the Love of the Photograph,
David
Comments
I really like the honest way you talk about photography. Keep up the great work.
thank you for a visual lesson here – too many trips are focused on ‘helping’ photographers get that portait shot, without considering any creativity or context for a wider environmental shot. This body of work truly showcases what you can achieve with the creative eye, along with the perseverance, technical skill, and a bit of luck mixed in.
The backlit lion and elephant in the frame of the elephant along with the motion captures are all inspiring š
I have been wondering about how, if you are photographing in a new place or new subjects, you can get your head around the āIāve got to capture a photo of this bird or creatureā to āI should be looking for composition or emotion or light.ā I find when Iām in a new location I find Iām fighting with my first inclination which is to get pictures of all the species I can see or might be able to see, to I should be looking for opportunities to make better pictures. It seems easier when I have the thousand photos of the lionsā¦less so when Iām seeing a toucan for the first time. Any advice?
I think it probably has to be an intentional thing. No matter what you’re in front ofāa lion, a toucan, whateverāsurely you’re thinking some version of “how do I photograph this?” That, for me, is where there’s such value in knowing what makes a photograph interesting.
You need a starting point other than “Look, a lion!” because a lion might be very beautiful indeed but that doesn’t necessarily translate into a beautiful photograph. So what does that, and what does thatāspecificallyāfor you. For me it might be change in point of view, or to use backlight if it’s there. Maybe it’s adding a sense of scale by backing up. Maybe it’s adding a sense of motion if there’s movement there to be captured.
You have to do what satisfies you and I know after all this time that I’m not satisfied by “I got the shot.” I’m satisfied by something challenging. Something that has mood. Something that is an interpretation of the scene. Keep your eyes open over the next month, I’ll be talking a lot about this!
HI David
Thanks for always sharing with us your talent and process! The personality of the animals shine through. Showing scale, the compositions, pulling back. Fabulous!
Kind of you to say, thank you, Wendy!
Really liked your post. While I am light years away from being an accomplished photographer I have found myself growing tired of trying to photograph another one of the usual subjects. Your post has provided encouragement.
Loved your monograph.
Thank you, Mark! If I can encourage others I consider myself a lucky man.
Hi David
Really enjoyed your monograph and your blog post. A quick question if I may, you mention using the memory recall to quickly dial in a slower shutter speed, what was your go-to shutter speed for the panning/ movement photos?
I imagine you experimented with different speeds, but was there a sweet spot that gave the most success?
Many thanks.
Morning, Karl! Yes, there seemed to be a sweet spot at 1/20 of a second for the things I was photographing. The leopard tail was 1/20, the wildebeest was 1/8, the flamingoes were 1/20 as well. I set my memory recall to f/10 and 1/20 as a good starting point (and auto ISO).
I’m a little more than halfway through reading, The Heart of the Photograph. It has been pushing me to go beyond what I have been capturing in all of my photography, but especially my sports photography for my kids teams. Last spring, I played with motion while shooting for the high school team and using a slower shutter speed for soccer. Your comment about not needing another same old rhino photo or silohuette photo completely resonated. I have plenty of high shutter speed soccer photos after shooting soccer for 6 kids. At a recent tournament, I really played much more with slower shutter speeds with stronger results. Looking through your gorgeous Mwangaza photos, I’m excited for this upcoming spring season and the ability to “play” some more. Time to shoot for me and not just for the end of season video or yearbook.
Playing with motion is a “high failure” activity, though I prefer to look at it as a “high learning” instead. Takes a lot of practice! But what a feeling when you get it right! Good luck with the soccer games, I bet the images that work well will really feel special.
David,
Thank you for sharing the monograph from your latest visit to Africa. It certainly helps to have read your blog post before viewing the photos. I especially liked the images of animals framed at the bottom against a wide background and sky. Bravo!
This spring Iām making way through a second read of āLight, Space and Time.ā Your essays in the book are challenging and inspiring. Itās clear you have thought deeply into what it means to be an artist.
Through your books and online courses you have helped me become a better photographer. I am deeply grateful.
You just made my day, Larry. Thank you! What a pleasure to write for people like you. š
First, if youāre becoming a birder, congratulations! I find bird watching and photographing them to be a great way to relax and understand something about the world around me.
Second, do you think that scaling your work or āpulling backā allows you to create more story? I know the feeling that Iām shouting the low-hanging fruit again, and Iām looking for ways to be more creative, especially with the story Iām trying to convey.
Not becoming a birder. I’ve been interested in birds all my life, even working at a wild bird care centre that rehabilitated injured birds when I was in high school. I just lack the enthusiasm I think makes a true birder. I appreciate birds, but I don’t have a list. Your second question is insightful, and yes. I do think pulling back can give room for more story, though not always. Sometimes it’s just a visual choice to give a sense of vastness, or give the eye a little more room to move. To give a better sense of “look how small” or “look how large” relative to other elements. But if you want story, very often you have to pull back to you can include a greater sense of setting or more characters.
Do you make these monographs in Lightroom? I photograph mostly in the Smoky Mountains but have somehow become the photographer for family events. Doing these monographs would be something special I could send out after these events.
Hi David. Lightroom’s book module is excellent and I absolutely could do these monographs that way, though unless they changed things recently they limit you to certain page sizes and I prefer letter / 8.5″ x 11″ to the 8×10 offered as the closest option in LR. I use Adobe InDesign, but LR will do 95% of what I need for the monographs. Highly recommend trying it out. It’s definitely a more seamless process with LR.
Hi David,
Thank you so much for sharing images from your recent trip to Kenya. These images are truly awe-inspiring. They really got me thinking about what can I do differently and how can I better approach a difficult subject to get a composition where I may not typically see the potential. Please keep doing what you do. Your work truly brings me great joy!
Thank you so much. Trevor!
Hi David, I hope you’re doing well.
I like a lot this way to think about Ideas / Emotions / Scale / Sense of Motion / Panning / High Key, not only thinking about subject.
It’s making easier for me to see the link between the expertise you are using in Animal photography and these same expertises used in other Genres of photography. “Beaux Bonjours” from Sherbrooke. Claude b.
Thank you, Claude. I’m thrilled to know this helps. Always nice to see your name in the comments. I hope you’re well!
These latest images, all I can say is, Wow!
Aw, now you got me blushing over here, Tom. š Thank you.
Hi David
I see the difference in your Africa photos. The high key photos really worked as did the motion photos. Even the bird photos workedšš. You always inspire me. Iām practicing different things for our Faroe Islands trip in July so itās not a typical scenery photo. Movement will be one item Iāll be looking for. I also have an idea for a book cover photo for the one our daughter is writing. I have been reviewing your Shoot What it Feels Like course and have 8 items Iām working on. Thank you for pushing us to be better at what we do. Jim
Hi Jim! I’d love to see your Faroe Island work when you’re home. Drop me a link by email. Love to Jo!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and images. It is amazing for one to be able to make a decision to step out of one’s comfort zone and to create such innovative and evocative images right off the bat- inspiring to say the least. These images are beautiful.
Thank you, Patricia. I think it’s certainly easier to step out of that comfort zone when you have many chances to do this and you’ve made a lot of “safe” images. After 16 years i finally feel like I’m finding my feet. My work now thrills me in ways it hasn’t for a while.
Good morning DAVID, so I have no idea why Siri capitalize your name but hey is what it is. I trust you stayed relatively dry well in Kenya this last time. With regard to this most recent article, it reminded me of an exercise I used to do with my photography students. I would have them pick a subject that was no less than say 50 feet away. Take a photograph, and then move half the distance closer to now take a picture at 25 feet. Repeat the process continuing to cut your distance in half with each successive photo until you can get no closer. Then reverse the process go back to the same distances that you had shot at previously but this time donāt focus on your primary subject that you had on your way in, but rather what draws you in from that distance. No bear in mind this was an exercise we did on film and once done then we could lay the Prince out in a row and explore that process of what really is drawing your eye and how that changes with your perspective/distance to your subject/scale as you referred to. Also, one thing that I encouraged them to do is to use the same lens for the entire process because changing lenses changes the compression ratios thus changing the perspective on the image is immensely. Not an exercise you could do in Kenya under the circumstances of being captive in a vehicle, of courseš¤£š
Dry? Not a chance. Rained like crazy towards the end and we got out just ahead of multiple airstrip closures and flooding in Nairobi. But what an adventure!
Thanks for a good walk through your thought process as you altered your approaching to shooting. I took a first spin through Mwangaza, and especially liked the images that showed the animals in context. They have a lot more of a story to them.
A question: would you have changed your approach like this if you had not had the ideas before leaving on the trip? Or would the excitement have caused you to reach for the familiar?
Great question, Gord. I think it’s too easy for us to “reach for the familiar” and I always try to give myself a challenge. This time I gave myself 4 challenges! As the years add up and I do this more and more it’s both easier and harder to escape the familiar. But, yes, in the absence of other ideas I probably would have done more of the same. But that never seems to satisfy. I like the risk. I like the learning process. And the thrill of an image that finally does something I’ve not been able to do as well in the past. That’s the reward. The growth and evolution both for my work and for me personally.
Shot like a Pro, way to go
Just finished a first journey through your Mwangaza and wanted to thank you not only for the wisdom of your growth and change but for the absolute delight I felt in seeing this work. More so than any of your work that I’ve seen before, I felt the delight that I think perhaps children experience when interacting with the natural world. For me there was a sense of innocence and wonder in how you created these photographs putting them into the realm of the magical rather than just beautiful images. Congratulations because you definitely achieved what you set out to do!
You just made my day, Rory. This is exactly how I feel about this work. It’s more playful. Less rigid. I think there was more wonder, if not wonder in the presence of the animals (I always feel that) then wonder at the creative process. Going in with some challenges and low expectations was a good combination! š
Thank you, Sir!
Just immersed in Mwangaza with my morning coffee.
All the animals and the landscapes awakened to me because of your new visions and incredible ability.
My personal quest is to be able to tell the story of my oranges in their morning light right here in my tiny universe ā¦.
Thank you , once again, for the journeys and the lessons.
You’re welcome, Joanne. It’s such a privilege to write for people like you.