If you have been capturing nature or landscape photography for any period of time, I am sure you have encountered the admonition to use a tripod. Generally the arguments for using a tripod are:

1. It slows you down and makes you think about the composition and framing (what you include in the frame) more carefully.
2. You will get sharper and more stable images (no hand shake, etc.)

While both of these statments are true, I would like to come at it from a little different perspective. You probably paid a few $$$ for a nice camera and lenses. If you really want to be able to fully use what you paid for, you need a tripod (more $$$). Why do I say that?  Do you…

1. Want to really use the full range of f-stops on your camera as your personal vision requires? You need a tripod. If you want a nice bokeh in the background but want the tip of the stamen of the flower in sharp focus, you need a tripod so you can get that focus dead on. Or maybe you want everything sharp from front to back when the sun is not full and bright -you need a tripod so you can go to f16+ and not get blur due to shake.
2. Want to use those slower shutter speeds to maximum advantage? You need a tripod. Do you like the look of a still calm ocean or a soft flowing waterfall? Then you need a tripod to let you shoot those long exposures.
3. Want to get the crisp sharp images your expensive telephoto can provide? You need a tripod. Even with image stabilization you are typically limited on the shutter speed/f-stop combination you can use without some loss of sharpness. The more you zoom in, the more you need that tripod.
4. Want to create images with a wide dynamic range? You need a tripod. If you want to participate in the world of HDR photography, you really need a tripod to make sure all those multiple exposure shots are perfectly aligned. While software can help a lot with the alignment, it isn’t perfect and the edges may not be clean as you enlarge the image.

But maybe you say a tripod cramps your style. To that I would say two things. One, not being able to fully use your camera’s capabilities should be cramping your style. Two, take that camera off the tripod when you are deciding how to compose the image. Walk all around, move in, move out, up and down. Once you find the shot, set up the tripod and capture the image.

Blog image: This shot of a pier in the ocean required a very long exposure, 20 sec, plus great depth of field, f22. Something you just can’t do without something like a tripod.

With my temporary relocation to California, I ended up in the heart of Silicon Valley. An area covered with hundreds of buildings and myriads of industrial parks. While I used weekends to explore areas outside of the valley, I also captured images within.

One of the first things I noticed in my immediate surroundings were all the various textures and stone work on many of the buildings. There was also a wide variety of trees around the buildings (some not native to the NW). As a result I started collecting images of the unique textures and those textures juxtaposed with the trees. Will this become a new body of work in time? Maybe.

Challenge yourself to see the common threads in the area you live. What characteristics make your area unique?  – ones that identify where you are. Look at the flora, trees, buildings, homes, sky, land, industry, etc. This is typically easier when you first arrive in a new area so it will take some effort to put on new eyes where you live. Is there a body of work you could create or put together unique to your area?

It often seems to be the case when you are at the ocean that a cloud layer comes in from the west just before sunset. That was the case when I went out to shoot near Cambria, California. An hour before sunset the clouds rolled in and there went the nice warm glow on the cliffs. Instead of hanging it up, I decided to drive back to a pier I had seen earlier. A nice pier jutting off into the ocean near Harmony, CA. I wanted to work more with long exposures (5+ sec) that night and the waves breaking at the base of the pier would work nicely.

As always, when working a subject, you should try different compositions, framing options – vertical and horizontal, abstract parts of the subject, visualize different post processing, etc. I have included just a couple of the images here from that evening shoot.

The first image is a 30 sec exposure which is what gives the water such a mysterious look – large waves really add to this effect. The blue water and sky add to the very soothing yet mysterious image where the pier draws you in.

The second image exposure time is less than that of the first, only about 8 seconds. It was timed so that the wave was receding into the ocean, creating lead in lines using the trails from the stones. There was one larger stone that I carefully placed in the frame before the wave came in.

The third image has a simple rhythm. Note that your eye is drawn to the break in the rhythm. The rule of thirds was applied here, not by placing the subject there but the absence of one (negative space). In this case, a 15 sec exposure was sufficient to smooth the water and eliminate strong distracting details in the water. The sky and water were becoming nearly one in tone as the evening came on.

Recently I was reading an article by Mark Lissick  in Outdoor Photographer. He asked a very important question – What is a camera? How would you answer? The typical answers are “a device that records an image or an object that captures light”. As Mark points out, how you view your camera can limit how you use it – does it just capture or record? As I thought about it, I realized my view of my camera has evolved over time. In the beginning I probably thought of it in the classical terms above (especially with my engineering background). However, at some point for me it became a tool or perhaps a canvas where I could paint most any image that I could imagine.

As I learned to use every control and capability of my camera I began to craft images as I visualized them in my head. I could slow down the shutter and paint moments of time on the back or canvas (sensor) of my camera creating brush strokes; I could blur out the backgrounds to create flowers floating in a sea of color; changing the focal length I could create depth. In this creative process the camera is just one of the many tools at your disposal. Reflectors, filters, lights, lens, etc. are additional tools. But as with any tool how well you know its capabilities and possibilities can limit or enhance your ability to create.

Take the time and get to really know the tools in your hands.

What is your camera for you?

Blog Images:

1. A slow shutter speed pan of the SE Oregon grasslands creating an impressionist painting of the landscape.
2. A slow shutter speed shot of flowers using the camera as a brush in circular motions.
3. A shallow depth of field to create a place a yellow flower in a sea of blue.

There are probably times when you look around and think “There is nothing here to shoot.”. Maybe the subject matter around you isn’t that interesting or doesn’t ring your bell. That is a good time to think about abstraction. Try looking at how you can frame just pieces of the subject matter around you – get in tight. Don’t worry if you are losing subject context. Look for graphic patterns (triangles, circles, squares, diagonals, V’s, etc) or interesting textures. See if you can come up with an interesting composition or design. Think about ways you might post process the subject matter to add interest, deal with boring or clashing colors (B&W is good for that) or bring out texture (using contrast or clarity). With strong graphic abstracts, keep other distracting objects/materials out of the image or clone them out later if you have to.

The blog image was taken in a rental car parking garage. The car rental agent said “Follow the yellow lines to the elevator…”. Parking garages can often provide interesting graphic subjects. There wasn’t anything standing out to me in this one so I stopped and composed this diagonal view of the “yellow” line. It not only had strong graphic value, the concrete had a heavy texture. I found that processing the image as a high contrast cool B&W image added the punch the image needed and brought out the texture. I also burned in (darkened) the edges and corners to give it more depth.

Now look closely around you today and see what abstracts you can create.

Now and then we just pause and contemplate life. When we do, we often fixate on an object or stare into the distance. Where am I going? Where is life taking me? Is it going where I want? What lens should I buy next?

To me, each of these blog images have a sense of contemplation, each with a different feel. The first image is calming and neutral emotionally. The heron staring in the distance and the overall blue tones support this calm feel.

The second image is a bit more negative emotionally and moody. A hole or dip in the ground, the burned in edges and the black and white processing add to this feel.

And the third image is more warm, optimistic and refreshing. Can’t you feel the balmy air soothing your soul. The strong warm tones and the familiar subject matter of breaking waves give the image a positive energy.

Color, light and subject matter all impact the viewer. Sometimes it will be different than yours, but often a common or shared subject and/or experience like the ocean at sunset is a good way to strike a common emotional chord.

Life as with these images can sometimes be the pits, just flowing along or bright and optimistic. I hope you are getting to experience some of the latter!