Landscapes can take you places

I was recently showing a new client some of my work. She had visited the exhibit on imperiled birds at the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature but was more enamored with my landscape photography. She was particularly fascinated with the black and white landscapes for what they reveal and what she saw in them.

We discussed the textures, the focal point, the mood, the sky, the horizon, the things you might miss in a color photo. We also talked about the memory of place, how a photo can take you to a certain time or event in your mind. She had grown up on Longboat Key and worked in Sarasota for decades. I showed her my photo titled Longboat Light and she immediately went back to her childhood and sitting under the trees at Beer Can Island reading books. Her story reminded me that there is power and emotion in place.

Because I have the exhibit on imperiled birds, I have spent much of 2019 more focused on my bird photography than my sea and landscape photography. In some ways birds are easier. They can be comical, they have personality, their colors are vibrant and they usually are active. While getting those shots can be tough, I always come back with something I am willing to share.

Landscape photography is a different sort of challenge. So much depends on the mood, the perspective, the light and the scene. It takes patience and care to find just the right shot. When I come back with a landscape or seascape photo, unlike bird photos, there is usually just one that stands out — only one I will print from a day of shooting.

I love landscape photography for several reasons. The first is that landscapes change, so I know that when I get that shot I want, it won’t be duplicated. The light will never be exactly the same against the plants and grasses; the water levels ebb and flow; there may be footprints next time where there were none. The second reason is that landscape photography is as much about preservation as my bird photography is. The birds are disappearing because their habitats are disappearing. Part of my mission as a photographer is to raise awareness about our environment so we all have the good sense to preserve it for the future. My third reason is that landscape photography evokes emotion. It can bring a sense of serenity, prompt memories and take you away from the chaos of the moment into some place wild and wonderful and can cause people to reflect on what’s important..

The conversation about landscape photography prompted me to think about what I love and it got me itching to go back out there and look around Florida for something I want to bring home and print.

The photograph below was taken in Myakka River State Park with a Nikon 810 using a Nikkor 19mm PC lens. It is two photographs stiched together using Photomerge in Photoshop. What you do not see is the mud that I am sharing with tripod.

Why I Love Black and White

Recently I had someone make a comment about the inherent value of color over black and white photography. I was surprised at the comment because I consider both of them to be valuable with their own unique qualities.

I photograph most birds in color, because God made each bird unique, including the differences in their hues and markings. That is easier to see in color and a viewer can take his or her time examining what is unique about each bird. It also is often easier to identify the birds when they are in color. I want to see the red markings of a red-shouldered hawk or a red-winged black bird, the blues of a threatened Florida scrub jay, but even in bird photography there are times when a black and white photo takes the picture to a different level.

As with many photographers, a black and white takes me back to the many hours spent in a small bathroom or closet glued to a timer, tapping a film can filled with D-76 on the counter, and that magic moment when under a red light, an image appears through a mixture of Dektol. But even more, I love black and white for what it reveals. When the viewer isn’t looking at color, but at the texture, the contrast, and deeper into the world between deep black and glowing whites. It is a study of shadows, white space, a world that we do not normally see with “our eyes.” When I see a black and white photograph I tend spend time with the image, study it and look for what’s hidden. Black and white tends to draw me into a different space.

Then there is the mood and emotions they can illicit. One of my friends considers them “broody,” while her daughter loves them for the light and shadows. I want to reach out and touch the textures, or step inside the frame and walk through the mysterious landscape. I want to see everything it holds.

In portrait photography, taking out the color can prompt the viewer to look deeply at the face and see the emotion in each line. The viewer may see something in the way the eyes shine or the way it seems as if the subject is about to tell some secret. Black and white portraits reveal a face laid bare and often let the beauty shine through in a different way than color can.

Black and white photography allows the viewer into the photograph in a different way than color does. Sometimes it’s what the viewer brings to the experience that determines how they interpret the photo. But of course that is true for every photograph.