Refining Your Photographic Vision « Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Refining Your Photographic Vision

Which telephoto lenses do I bring? Traveling with big glass and more

Check out my guest blog post, “Which telephoto lenses do I bring? Traveling with big glass and more” on the Canon Digital Learning Center here.

This was created with the Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS EF USM AF Lens ( hand held at 24mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X Digital SLR Camera (Body Only). ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/250 sec. at f/13 in Av mode.

Central sensor/AI Servo Rear Focus AF on the trunk of the tree and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Refining Your Photographic Vision

In many of our seminars denise and I do a segment entitled “Refining Your Photographic Vision.” This portion of the program is designed to help folks understand how professional photographers see and think, to teach them about what excites us and how we go about choosing the right lens for a given situation.

Take a close look at the image above. Does anything excite you? Does anything catch your eye. Do you see any unusual colors or textures. Read on to see what I saw.

This image was created with the Todd-pod mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/10 in Av mode.

Central sensor (Surround)/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

My Vision

The first thing that I noticed when we drove by this tree in early morning light was the large yellow scar on the right side of the trunk. I asked the driver about the cause. He stated that it was an elephant scratching post, that they cleaned and sharpened their tusks by rubbing them against the trunk. I grabbed the 600 and had him re-position the van. The others immediately joined in the fun.

Your Favorite?

Take a moment to leave a comment and let us know which of the two images above is your favorite. And be sure to let us know why.

Exhibition Opening, American Museum of Bird Art at Mass Audubon, Canton, MA

BIRDS AS ART/The Bird Photography of Arthur Morris

All are invited to the exhibition opening at the American Museum of Bird Art at Mass Audubon at 1pm on Sunday, September 28, 2013. (963 Washington Street, Canton, MA 02021. 1-781-821-8853.) The exhibition, which is being sponsored by Canon USA/Explorers of Light, will run from September 29, 2013 – January 12, 2014. Open Tuesday through Sunday, 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.

35 framed images. Denise Ippolito and I will be there and hope that you will be too. Click here for additional details.

Expanding Your Creative Vision Nature Photography Seminar

Sept 30, 2013 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Canton, MA.

Sponsored by Mass Audubon/Museum of American Bird Art

Non-members: $89.00/Members: $79.00

Click here to register

Spend an amazing day with Arthur Morris and Denise Ippolito in a full day nature photography seminar. Learn more about Denise on her website; be sure to visit her beautiful image galleries. You know me. 🙂 If you live withing 3 hours of Boston and love photographing nature this experience is not to be missed. Artie will be doing a Tuesday night program for Mass Audubon. Both events will held be in conjunction with the opening of a 35-image exhibition of his work at the Museum of American Bird Art on Sunday, September 29, 2013. See details above.

Schedule:

9:00 to 10:45am: Choosing and Using Lenses for Nature Photography BIRDS AS ART Style – Artie Morris
10:45 to 11:00am: break
11:00 to 12:00 noon: Blooming Ideas – Denise Ippolito
12:00 to 1:00pm: Lunch
1:00 to 2:00pm: Refining Your Photographic Vision: Artie Morris and Denise Ippolito
2:00 to 2:30: Pro Gear Handling Tips – Artie Morris and Denise Ippolito
2:30 to 2:45: break
2:45 to 3:45: Creating Pleasing Blur – Artie Morris and Denise Ippolito s
3:45 to 5pm: Image Critiquing. Registrants will be asked to submit no more than three 1400 (wide) or 1050 (tall) sharpened JPEGs via e-mail 2-4 weeks before the seminar. At least one image from each participant will be selected for review.

Click here to register

Mass Audubon Special Event: A Bird Photographer’s Story

I will be presenting ” A Bird Photographer’s Story” on Tuesday, October 1, 2103 from 7:00-9:00pm for Mass Audubon. This event, which will be held at the auditorium, Canton High School, 900 Washington St, Canton MA 02021, is being sponsored by Canon USA/Explorers of Light and will be free and open to the public. The event is being hosted by The Museum of American Bird Art at Mass Audubon.

Click here for additional details.

Typos

On all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or leave a comment regarding any typos, wrong words, misspellings, omissions, or grammatical errors. Just be right. 🙂

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6 comments to Refining Your Photographic Vision

  • avatar Les Greenberg

    Artie, I prefer the second for two reasons. It’s fascinating to me about the contrast and texture of the photo. And it would make a fine texture overlay for other photographs. The first one is an overall environmental photograph.

  • Artie, neither image really excites me, but the first one is my favorite. I think it would have been better if you have done an in-camera HDR with the 5DM3.

  • avatar Pieter van Kampen

    Hi Arthur, both images are beautiful. My favorite is the first. It has a great composition, and it shows the vast space where you almost feel the intruder of the space where the elephant has left its mark.

  • While the second photo is interesting once you understand what the scar is, if viewed alone it lacks context for me. The first image shows the scar in context in that large trees, in an area where trees are widely dispersed, provides elephants an opportunity to clean their tusks. The first image is necessary to tell the larger story of how these animals function within their habitat, so I like it better. The second image is valuable in further showing the scar, but doesn’t work very well if viewed without the first. Just my opinion.

  • avatar Ruth Schueler

    On the first picture the orange patch upsets the exquisite calmness of the landscape…I feel like asking “What is it doing there?” But I like both pictures, I have no favourite.

  • Hi Arthur, the second image by far holds much more interest for me.The details left behind by the tusks is superb and I love the colors of the exposed inner bark.