So you want to go on safari?

Safari Photography

With a large collection of material in circulation and along with my teaching I often get asked about equipment, plans, etc. Hopefully I can answer some questions here.

Lion kill from my frist safari (1985)

A lot of the guess work concerning tricky lighting etc has now been removed with the use of a digital workflow. It also thankfully means your gear is a great deal lighter and the days of carrying along temperature and xray sensitive film is gone. You still need some essentials though which I will highlight.

You might expect a safari will get you a few feet away from the wild animals and sometimes it will. However you will often find you quite a distance especially from the elephants and buffalo. For this reason its important to have a variety of lenses to allow for various conditions or a couple of zoom lens that will give you some flexibility. Here are the minimal requirements based on price:

Economy:

18 -55mm (landscapes, etc)

55 or 70 – 300mm (wildlife, people and close ups)

Expensive:

17-35mm f2.8

80-200 f2.8

200-400 f4

Remember that some of your game drives will be at sunrise and sunset (early morning is my favorite time to shoot). This is where fast expensive lenses have the edge and allow for a slower iso settings leading to finer grain and better images at any given shutter speed. The more expensive lenses also have a better build and anti dust seals. – Always try to get the best glass you can afford, you’ll be amazed at what a difference it can make! Don’t forget to add high quality UV filters to your lenses and pack a blower brush and/or cleaning tools, they are essential in the the dryer regions.

If you don’t want to lug a bag full of gear around you can get a compact camera with a wide optical zoom NOT a digital zoom. X10 or above is essential, a bigger diameter lens will allow better light collection so don’t be mislead by small cameras with their tiny lenses and large megapixel specs, its pointless having 14mpix if your lens is slow and captures a low quality image.

Speaking of quality the majority of single focal length fast (prime) lenses are of superior quality to zoom lenses. So if you have a trusted assistant, plus lots of cash and don’t mind a workout, you might consider adding a 400mm or 600mm lens ($6000-$8000).  I would avoid using tele-converters with economical lenses, the drop in quality to your images will be amplified and you will be forced into a higher iso for all but the brightest days.

Needless to say holding a large lens can be tricky. Common methods of support include bean bags (take an empty bag and fill it with sand on arrival) monopods and various vehicle door/window clamps. Try a number off arrangements for what suits you best. The monopod is the most popular but I sometimes find it cumbersome. I also prefer a lower seat rather than standing so im more on eye level with many of the animals. If possible always try and get a dedicated vehicle, sharing transport means you are at the whim of the group who might not be so willing to spend the extra time waiting for the perfect picture.

Don’t get too hung up on gear though one of my first published safari images over 20 years ago was taken using a slow Vivitar 75-300mm lens on a Minolta film camera.

If you only use the automatic modes on your camera, the sports mode is probably your best bet to capture the wildlife while avoiding any motion blur. Although, a little blur using a panning can  be benefical to the image. Action can happen very quickly in the wild so continuous shooting and fast continuous autofocus are crucial. Along with these settings you will need a fairly robust and fast memory card.

Many people like to take the biggest memory card they can get, I like to use smaller cards that I back up every evening. My last trip to East Africa yielded over 5000 images so maintaining a stringent back up and post production flow is important. Consider back up methods such as ipods, etc before you go. If you can spare the cash there are several dedicated back up units on the market.

The most important tip is to have some patience and be prepared for when something exciting does happen. If you by any new gear visit a zoo before your trip and spend as much time as you can learning the controls.

Im setting up some safari photography projects for next year so look out for more pictures!

Summer in the City – KLM shoot

I got an email back in April from KLM wanting to know if I would be interested in working with a local writer on a 5-9 page spread covering ‘summer in Toronto’ 

Normally I wouldn’t hesitate but as I looked outside at the pouring rain and grey clouds I realized the shoot would be a major challenge!

The brief was for original ‘sunny scenes’ to be submitted in 3 weeks with no previously shot images being allowed (even those that are unpublished). I attempted to push for a later submission date but the press was booked.

I began drawing up my shoot list and working with the writer on concepts, etc. My initial focus was on capturing the ethnic mix and culture of the city. China town, Little India and few other areas were easy to shoot, I tried to include as many locals as I could, and scenes varied form posed to candid. I normally like to get release forms signed but felt I could return later if they were required (turns out they were not) these areas were shot at peak time to capture the atmosphere

To represent the strong afro-Caribbean culture I would have liked to shoot the annual Caribana parade but this only occurs in late July. The next best thing was to shoot some steel band members. The weather still wasn’t cooperating and my first shoot was held indoors. Later in the day I got some sunshine so I went for a high key look, shot tightly from a low angle. The result meant I didn’t have to worry about the environment (we actually shot it in the musicians back garden)

I found myself using a fill in flash for most of the portraits due to the overcast skies. I used the same approach for some of the landscape shots, shooting more or less directly into the sun with spot metering allowing me to avoid a silhouette image. Full frame cameras have a great dynamic range so capturing a wide range of tones is possible without banding or loss of shadow detail. The high key image is very popular at the moment; I actually find flare looks a little amateurish. Given the choice I would prefer a more structured image but if it’s what the editor wants than I tend to shoot a number of variations to cover their wishes.

Next I selected some of our unique neighborhoods’. Everything from Yorkville with its up market shoppers too Kensington market and its hippy crowd.  Museums and galleries were also included both interior and exterior images. The initial submission request was for 100 images. I now had almost 250 shots that were good enough to go.

Toronto islands was the last area to be shot. It required 3 visits before I got a sky that didn’t look like a hurricane was about to come together.  

The assignment gave me the opportunity to wonder around the city, see interesting neighborhoods and meet interesting characters. Something I don’t normally get the time to do. I’ve chosen to feature some of my personal favorites here.

Something a little different…

I’ve been wanting to do a black and white fine art style shoot for a couple of years but haven’t been able to get it together until I got an email from Rachael. As someone new to modeling I decided to do a mix of headshots and several nude poses to show off her tattoos and piercings (she works as a professional body piercer in Toronto)

Alaa worked on make-up ideas and we choose to go with Smokey eyes and bright lipstick for the studio sets.  The other option was a more goth looking concept which I felt would be too aggressive. In addition in a few weeks I will be shooting a documentary style set on location, with available light.

The leather jacket from Danier was the main wardrobe item, I liked the hood which added an modern yet mysterious ‘Assassin Creed’ element to the sexy look.

On the technical side I used a ringflash for the head and shoulder shots and some of the half lengths to give it a dramatic single light look which I emphasized by overpowering it slightly. A reflector and diffused SB800 were used in the sitting and lying shots with a SB600 synched to add some backlight. My lens choice was a 60mm prime and a 80-200 2.8  mostly at 100mm. A  85mm prime would have been handy for the shoot. All exposures were manual.

The 50K Nikon Upgrade

I love Nikon, but will now come clean and admit ive been having a passionate on/off affair with Hasselblad for many years.

1/320 f8 80mm 3xSB800 pocket wizard sync

It all started in the early 80’s when some of my travel work was featured in their monthly magazine. Most of the images in that project were for a Travel shoot in Kenya and primarily required the use of 500cm body and lenses ranging from wide and macro to 400mm. Of course in those days I was also shooting slide film so you can imagine how many rolls a 2 week assignment required!

1/400 f4.8 28mm

I was interested in seeing how the company handled 20 years of technological development. So after making a few calls I got the opportunity to test out their new medium format H4D (31meg) system plus a selection of lenses and other goodies totaling well over $50,000 (I think my insurance broker had a restless weekend)

1/60th f6.7 80mm

I planned shooting a mixture of landscape, fashion and buildings to really put the gear though its paces in a variety of lighting conditions and scenes.

I booked several locations including a church for the day. Caitlyn the model flew in from Nova Scotia to start the shoot on a beach in Toronto at 5:00 am. As the Hasselblad system did not support dedicated TTL flash metering (unless you use a Metz or the popup flash) this part of the shoot was the hardest as the light levels change dramatically within minutes. These early shots used 2-3 SB 800 Units synched with pocket wizard. Exposure had to be determined by trial with careful consideration going to ensuring the background colors remained correctly saturated. Focusing when shooting directly into the sun was also tricky, not to mention blinding!

Final 1/400th f5.6 80mm

Full Frame with space for titling

Crop still showing detail

I managed to grab a few landscape and wildlife images while the light was good. Once the sun was up, I was less rushed and able to focus more on composition and structure in the images. Apart from the stunning resolution the dynamic range alone is fantastic, and yes, in my opinion exceeded the range of the D3X or MkIII. Textures especially benefit from the larger chip ability to retail detail and tones (eg caits leather boots) As well as the potential to crop images without loss of quality.

The 80mm and the 50-110mm zoom were my favorite lenses, both were very responsive and well worth their value. A shift lens would have been beneficial for the building shots but I decided the extra item wasn’t worth it for a couple of test frames. Hasselblad has its own workflow architecture which I found to be fantastic. One unique aspect was the ability to grade images as you take them so that when you upload you have your choices already made thus saving another run through the shots. The only thing I do miss is the truly square format which I’ve always enjoyed for fashion and portrait work

For my kind of work where fps or shooting speed is not critical the Blad system is still a winner even given the price and weight premium.

Postcard from Paris

60th f4 100iso 80mm x3 SB800

I had been thinking of doing a Black and White set for a while so when a project involving a $1,000+ Montblanc Greta Garbo inspired pen came along it seemed like the perfect opportunity.

The concept was fairly easy but as always the details require extra attention. Total planning time was around 4-5 months. I selected Jessica, a former Miss Toronto Model for the shoot. She had the timeless beauty that was required, stunning eyes, great hair and a wonderful attitude. Several props had to be found to complete the set. A vintage flip out camera from the 20’s (which I kept and used in my Cairo shoot-  http://couturephotography.blog.com/?p=3 ) A postcard hand written with a fountain pen, a travel journal.

Wardrobe also had to authentic. The wide brim hat was a must but my concern here was lack of contrast due to the blond hair, we found the perfect solution with one that had both an inside and outer black rim. Other items such as the pencil skirt, wrap and jewellery didn’t present any major problems. I decided to shoot both a higher end looking image and a more casual look ,the wardrobe would be totally different for both and for one we would introduce a Jeannie Lottie clutch back to give the scene some extra sparkle.

1/10 sec to give it a 30′s style blur f4 80mm

Location wasn’t as much of an issue as I had imagined it might become. After a few weeks scouting I found a bistro that had authentic furniture and a suitable outdoor area.  As with my other shoots I pecked an early sunday morning to start with make-up and hair being done on site at around 8:00 am.

Lighting was a mixture of ambient sunlight and 4 Nikon speedlights (800’s and a 600) plus a couple of reflectors. I wanted enough backlight but needed the fill in light to render detail but not overexpose the highlights. The Bistros wrought iron railings and plant stands could not be moved so positioning the light units was very tricky to say the least.

The hardest shots were probably the ones that look the easiest to take. You would think the pen close up to be easy but the reflections are a nightmare. Dulling spray or hairspray can sometimes help with this but I was concerned the fine mist would clog the fine detail on the nib and be visible in the shot. I ended up using some small reflectors and translucent paper to help control the highlights and shadows while still trying to convey the look of a sunny day. I used a Nikon bellow unit for the extreme close up as it allowed me to shift the distortion and focus as the focal plane can be moved (much like architectural photography)

I think there is very little if anything I would change in the set. Both the product shots on its own and the model images, both casual and high end came together as I expected.

1/10 sec f4 reflector and slow sync fill in flash

Venice – 4 Day Shoot

Thanks for all the emails asking to see and hear more about my Venice shoot!

I was booked to cover an event in the UK and just before leaving got a call asking if I would be interested in going to Venice to do a short article for an Bridal magazine. Having visited Italy 3 times but never going to Venice I could hardly say no!

The first tip in my travel guide blog was research your location. Most visitors to venice live away from the island and only come for a day or two. With the public transport starting around 5:00 am I would just make it for sunrise shots, taking a private boat to get there early would cost $200 per run. Even though the island hotels are a bit expensive, it made better sense to be where the action was and have all my gear close by. I spent a couple of days figuring out where and when to shoot, and putting a rough plan together. My trips to Europe are always rushed so having a schedule and backup plans is always vital.

On the topic of gear. When it comes to equipment im a heavy packer. For both London and Venice my kit consisted of the following:

X2 SB 800 x1 SB 600 with pocket wizards – I find the built in wireless can be limiting for exterior shoots where the signals get lost. Various diffusers, cones, etc

Nikon D700 & Nikon D80 back-up – Ive never had to use the D80 but its nice to have a back up that uses the same battery cells (unlike the D3) when travelling with space/weight being critical.

Canon G10. My trusted portable with some great features like a built in ND filter, manual exposure and RAW mode

All Nikon lenses : 80-200 2.8, 17-35 2.8, 60mm 2.8 and lastly one of the best Nikon lenses ever made (in my opinion) 50mm 1.2. I think I might have to dedicate a blog to this lens on its own!

I have no less than 4 tripods balanced for different cameras. Most commonly I use a Gitzo  Basalt series2 (GT2942L with a 1679 Low profile quick release head – whatever tripod you get make sure it has metal screws/locks on its QR plate. I don’t like most of the new ‘traveler’ tripods. I find them way to light and prefer a sturdy feel.

Extras of course include, batteries x1 chargers, filters, cleaning gear – arctic butterfly kit + heavy duty blower blush (don’t by the small cheap ones) remote cable release

I pack a few extra items too, Velcro strips, electrical tape, penknife, etc.

Instead of giving you a day by day account. I figured I would pick my favorite shots and tell you a little about each (all at 200 iso unless otherwise stated)

People often ask me about making this shot into a postcard. I had the composition in mind when I set up but it took over an hour to wait for the components to get together. Firstly the light, I set up around 6:00 pm looking for some warm evening color to add a glow to the image and the building. Secondly although the structures were in place I needed some foreground interest like the iconic Gondola. As with most of my shots this was a tripod set up, due to the dropping light conditions and the fact that I had my composition carefully planned and didn’t want or need to move around. The reason it took so long for this shot was that the modern boat busses and speed boats kept appearing along the canal along with this I would also have a whole host of gondolas appearing as a tour group came along. Eventually I got my shot, with a couple of framing variations and several placements of the gondola. It ended up being the opening image for a 3 page spread. (see below) The art director threw in a few extra birds so the one I had didn’t look so lonely.

Shoot at 1/250^th  f4.0 to capture the bird. 60mm

Its rare to see the Riato bridge as disserted as this. Set up for this shot started around 4:30 am. Picking the perfect spot was tricky though mostly because of the angles. I decided to include some foreground structures to add extra depth. I use the shot in my classes to demonstrate DOF (depth of field) usage. I took several exposures with a number of different grad filters from standard ND through to graduated tobacco. A composite was than done with the best effects in Photoshop.

F22, 4 seconds -1EV (to increase contrast) 35mm

The classic gondola shot.

I have a few variations on the number of boats and the angles.  Selecting the correct shutter speed with this type of image takes a bit of practice. I wanted some movement but nothing that would completely blur the boats. Matching that with a aperture to give you enough depth can also be tricky. Lucky it was early so there wasn’t too much call for the boats or traffic along the canal. Ofcouse a tripod is vital to get the non moving elements to remain sharp. Shooting wide angle automatically gave me a little extra DOF and the ability to get really close to the foreground.

1/13^th , f8, 17mm

A variation shot at 60mm 1.3seconds f29 to maximize DOF and add just the right amount of motion

I knew the effects of shooting this scene at 25mm would be a lot of distortion. I wanted to give it a panoramic wide open feel though. The exposure was 8 seconds (yes the figure sat still during that time) This allowed the post sunset colors to filter through slowly and the lamp lights to be correctly exposed. Aperture was set at f22 to give me the correct sharpness and depth. The image is used as a cover warp for my photobook about the trip. Its possibly one of my favorite shots with no postproduction work done except for cropping.

Ofcourse I have to include a mask image. I had less than 5 seconds to compose and take this shot, with no time for a retake. I could have chosen to leave the background out, pick a fast shutter, perhaps add some fill in flash and just shoot the figure. Instead I wanted some of the environment, the problem was the distance across the canal to the structures would require me to stop down but still have a high enough speed to keep the figure sharp.  I went down to 1/40^th at f18 which only just allowed me to hand hold the shot, I would have liked to shoot at around 1/125^th  but the DOF would be much lower. I didn’t want to risk using a fill in flash to both keep my aperture narrow and my shutterspeed high as there was no chance for a retake and the TTL can sometime get a little confused in these types of scenes (full sun, high contrast subject)

This view caught my eye while wondering around. It might appear simple but you have a couple of options. Do you expose to lighten the shadows in the alley and risk blowing out the highlights or go the other way. Given the centre average meting I use would want to lighten those shadows, I decided to dial in -2/3 of a stop. This insured the white wall will not blow out and the walls would retain some contast.

I felt like shooting some black and white images while I was there. Both wide tones as well as grainy old style shots.

This image looks like a snapshop but I actually had to wait around a hour for the birds to come along the path I wanted to fill the composition it was kind of like that scene from ‘A Beautiful Mind’ where the main character was trying to study and predict the movement of pigeons. It was shot in the very early hours of the morning lit only by moonlight and a few street lamps. I know the only option I had was to up the iso. Instead of fretting about what it might do to my image quality, I decided to use the noise to my advantage and go for a monochrome grainey look. It might appear like a crop but this is the full frame composed the way I wanted it, some people find the bird at the top a little distracting, I don’t mind it. shot at 1/8000 to freeze all motion f4.5, 60mm, iso 25,600!

I threw this last image in because it always surprise people that it was taken at 11:30 at night! Lit by one spotlight on the realto bridge I had to push the iso to 640 and rely on the D700 amazing low noise features to keep some detail. For me it sums up the romance of Venice, like a image from a modern day Romeo and Juliet.

¼ second hand held (no space for a tripod -used a bistro table to rest) f2.8, 200mm  I dialed in -1EV to reduce the flare due to the whiteness of the structures and to keep the shadows dark.

Here are some of my other favourites, hope you like them

Best Stores In Town!

My Client Laura, an executive shopper in Toronto asked me to shoot a collection of images showing various high end store fronts to demonstrate where she shops. Working in the area I know the location well and decided that it would be best to meet early on Sunday morning (my favorite time for this kind of shoot)

To add some variety to the images we got permission to also do a few promo shots inside the Swarovski store (more about that in a later blog)

In keeping with the modern concept of her other images I shot a lot of the signage at an angle rather than straight on. Several store fronts and signs had difficult backgrounds so instead of trying to rework them in postproduction I took advantage of the interest/contrast that this provides. Cole Haan, being a prime example and an image that I really like.

As most of the stores are in the same area it was easy to go back and forth to avoid difficult lighting (all shot with available light) or crowds.

10 Points to Better Holiday Pictures

1- Research your location – Use search engines to select interesting points and use google earth to pick the best photo spots! Its a great way to visit a place before you get there

2- Dont Rush – Make sure your schedule gives you enough time for the type of pictures you like to take. Some things are worth waiting for.

3- Be Flexable –  get up early or stay late to get shots with fewer other tourists

4-Take along copies of all your camera receipts, incase you get asked by customs. It will save you alot of red tape especially in developing countries

5- Make sure you have protection from the elements dependent on your location (blower brush for sand, waterproof bags for rain, etc)

6- Instead of taking large memory cards use a selection of smaller 2-4 gig cards. This is to avoid losing all you images if your cards are lost, stolen or damaged (it happens.. even to professionals)

7-Put together a back up process – laptop, ipod, etc whatever works for you

8- Respect the people and culture of the place you are visiting

9-Use accessories such as filters, etc sparingly

10-Make sure you take extra batteries and if you have space a light weight tripod

Shooting the Shopper

An executive shopper recently hired me to shoot all her marketing material. Her client base is in Toronto so we decided to focus on the Yorkville area, not only because of the high end stores (Gucci, Prada, etc) but also because it’s very photogenic and has a European feel. I spent a couple of days scooting the best spots and taking test shots with a small camera (Canon G10) It’s always a good idea to check out where you plan to shoot at different times of the day. This is particularly important in the city with buildings can easily block out light and hard shadows can be distracting in backgrounds.

I hate shooting at busy times where you have to constantly watch the background in case a stranger wonders into you field of view. It also means that when it’s busy you absolutely have to dedicate one assistant to watch your gear. To avoid these issues we booked the shoot early Sunday morning, giving the client time for hair and make-up before arriving.

Laura the client, was a natural in front of the camera so we were able to try a number of different poses and angles. Given that some of the images would be used for web banners, etc I framed several shots with plenty of space for text. I tried to produce of mixture of formal and modern images in terms of framing and style.

Hardest part was balancing the light especially as we approached midday and the sun was higher and uncovered. 2-3 speedlights provided the fill in flash I required. Occasionally a reflector added some warmth back into the subject.

Laura was extremely happy with the images and I was booked to shoot a number of interior ‘office style’ images which I will blog about soon.

Journey into the White Desert

For most visitors to Egypt the Pyramid in Cairo, temples along the Nile and the Eastern Sea resorts are the main attractions. If you want to get away from the crowds and souvenirs you have to head west into the remote and barren desert areas.

One of the highlights of my trip was the White Desert. Calm and peaceful, I expect even the recent political troubles would barely be audible in this area. The geography is largely flat but outcrops of calcium like rock punctuate the landscape shaped by the elements into structures that mimic everything from faces to animals.

As the sun rises and falls the white rocks take on the changing colors from a hint of pink to dark orange. With the temperature dropping in the evenings you have to be prepared with a warm fire and blankets. If your lucky you might be visited by friendly desert foxes who patiently wait for any dinner scraps you might wish to donate.

Images from the trip were published in various online and print publications and held by several stock agencies