“Life,” said Helen Keller, “is either a daring adventure, or it is nothing.”
Picasso is reported to have said, when asked if he knew what his painting would look like before he even put paint on the canvas, replied, “No, of course not. If I knew, then I wouldn’t bother doing it.”
David DuChemin, recently wrote, “You don’t have to photograph bears, or climb mountains, or hang out of helicopters. You don’t have to go, “On on an adventure”, to make great photographs. But, I think, making great photographs should be an adventure.”
Winnie the Pooh says, “Going on an Expotition?” said Pooh eagerly. “I don’t think I’ve ever been on one of those. Where are we going to on this Expotition?” and
Sing Ho! for the life of a Bear! Sing Ho! for the life of a Bear! I don't much mind if it rains or snows
Tis a known fact this blog does not do, ‘Tips and Tricks’, ‘How-to tutorials’, attention grabbing product reviews, nor influencer opinions for more hits and ‘followers’.
We just do photography, and the enjoyment of both birds and the act of photographing them.
The journey is never-ending and nor would I, and I’m guessing, you, want it to be.
If you’re battling with shutter or aperture priority, or should I use manual (wait for next week’s blog) or what is Auto ISO, or does EV really do anything, then join in with the rest of us. We all struggle with Light, with Composition, with Camera Settings and with finding the right bird—or subject— just to show I’m not biased :-).
Did you ever walk out and say, “Oh, Wow, this light is so nice!” It takes more than appreciation to be able to understand what you like about it. The angle, the intensity, the direction, the overall quality, and how it might add, or not to the subject.
I might lament on the days when the sky is porridge and the exposure drops by 5 stops to normal days, and the grey birds become lost in the grey surrounds, but, by looking, experimenting and exploring, there may be a mood to capture.
A word that has come up recently to be a catchall for those varying elements is “Amplify”. The mood, the choices we make for camera, angle and framing all bring their own special character to our photos.
We don’t want people to view the end result, and think about what ISO, Shutter, Aperture, Focal length, or camera brand we used. Nor to spend time interpreting the way the light works, the emphasis on texture, or tone, or shape, or any of the other language of light principles.
Nor do we want them pondering the hours spent in the Digital Darkroom enhancing the pixel values.
Hopefully, they see the result and connect with the subject.
I love Kestrels. Of all the raptors, Kestrels are my heart-tugging favourite. They seem to have such ‘sweet faces’ compared to other raptors. We are photographers of the open paddocks and plains. We rarely venture these days into the amazing rich forests, to explore and search among the myriad bushes, ferns and overhanging branches.
And
Because of that, we see many of the great birds of the wide open areas. Kestrels, Kites, Harriers, Eagles, Goshawks, and occasionally on the beach areas, Sea-eagles.
But of all of them, my heart is set on Kestrels.
So it was a great delight to drive down a farm paddock track, and find this lass sitting enjoying the morning sunshine. She was in no hurry to leave and nor was I. Lost were the technicalities of photography. Found was the enjoyment of experiencing a small moment in this bird’s life.
Enjoy
Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER - --doesn't mean I'm LOST 