“You got lucky and have a couple good photos. I imagine everyone has a few great pictures on their computer.” These were the words spoken to me today by a “photographer” who saw me selling prints at Folk Fest. It was interesting to hear, and I agreed with him. After all, it is true that many people have a few great photos; it is also true that I occasionally get lucky while taking photos. But I think he was implying that photographers (maybe nature photographers specifically) don’t have control over the quality of their photos. And that is completely false.
I don’t control the weather, the sun, the way the trees grow, or the layout of the mountains. This is the challenge of nature photography – adapting to the environment, finding strong compositions, waiting for or creating the right light. It’s about working with what is there to create a mood, a story, a little world within a frame. This takes a great deal of practice and skill, along with some experimenting. But there’s always a little luck involved.
These are from the Moss Lake trail in Elk Island National Park last night between 10 and midnight. It was overcast and a new moon so – pretty dark. (For what it’s worth, I was trying to create my own luck and time my visit right to catch the perseid meteor shower. As it turns out I had to work with an overcast sky, so I got these instead)
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Tags: compositions, couple good photos, elk island national park, folk fest, great photos, great pictures, interesting, lucky, meteor shower, moss lake, moss lake trail, nature photographers, nature photography, new moon, overcast sky, parks canada, perseid meteor shower, perseids, radiant, right light, strong compositions, sun, taking photos, trees, weather
HARUMPH!!! I think that you have way more than luck going for you. Your work is exquisite.
That, and you must have a really nice camera…
Seriously though, beautiful photos. I especially like the symmetry of the clouds and water in the first one.