The white stuff aplenty!

February 25 2010

Well what an night! It started off as a breezy suggestion of winter and ended up as a full-scale blizzard with drifts that swallowed my poor old spaniel whole!
Our Slice of the Arctic tour may not have turned out as guests had expected but the description was apt! Alongside my favourite creative best for the afternoon, is Amanda's car and half of our pioneering group who have remained good-humoured throughout. Mind you, they don't know that they can't get home yet!
Thanks to Steve (x 2), Karen, Annie, Chris, Gill and Graham for at least being brave!

Who judges your images?

February 22 2010

A casual conversation with a workshop guest over the weekend reminded me of the shackles that many nature photographers place upon themselves. Myself and co-guide Nigel Atkinson, worked hard at engineering a few images that might just put a different slant on what is considered 'conventional' - the two images below are examples of the result. After the shoot, our guest (sorry Barry I'm not singling you out) remarked 'nice to have but the judges would laugh at that'. By 'the judges', he was referring to those who govern, or perhaps limit, the creativity of photographers who enter competitions on the camera club circuit. I suggested to Barry that his photography might be more fulfilling if he was to judge his own images. I'm not sure he was convinced.

Thanks to a splendid group over the weekend - I hoped you enjoyed the sun and snow...and the 15c below!

There's a price to pay...

February 18 2010

...for snow I mean. Don't get me wrong, it looks fantastic and as camera fodder, it's unbeatable but boy can it be hard work.

This morning saw the conclusion of the latest in our series of Winter Wildlife photo-tours. Guests were 'privileged' to be in a Land Rover precariously sliding on ice next to a deep wooded ravine; having the opportunity to push an out-of-control VW minibus away from a guaranteed collision and finally, racing their prized motor cars full tilt up our snow-laden access track just to get home...and only one failed to accomplish their RAC Rally qualification (sorry Ken!) So, here I am back in the office where I can take a break from life on the knife-edge (and I wasn't even guiding!) Now I can get on filling in the claim form for Amanda's coming together with Emma's poor old VW Polo just yesterday.

Yes it looks great but my nerves and bank balance prefer life without the white stuff. But don't let any of this put you off coming!! And thanks to all those who (I think) enjoyed the snow-laden Highlands this last week.

Does photography make a difference?

February 17 2010

It's a question I ask myself much of the time. The answer? Yes, but how? Sharper minds than me can articulate this so over to Cristina Mittermeier of the International League of Conservation Photographers (www.ilcp.com)

"Are we all about pretty pictures? This is a question that has been asked many times and in many forums to define the work that conservation photographers do. The real question however, is, do we want to focus on inspiring people, or do we aim to shock them?

There is a constant tension in finding the right balance between images that seduce and move and those that horrify. I believe that finding the right mix means the difference between entertaining people and moving them to action.

A carefully edited mix of images, weaved into a compelling story, can show both the beauty of what we stand to lose as well as the devastation that our planet's ecosystems are enduring all around the world. Most importantly, if we do our jobs right, photography can help us connect the dots to show the impacts that this loss has on human societies, and especially on the most vulnerable among us.

Our most valuable currency continues to be credibility; the perception by the public that what we are showing is a true reflection of reality".

Tolerance for wolves

February 16 2010

This e-mail just in from a colleague which I agreed to pass on.

"Following the 2008 Wild, Free and Coming Back? conference (Nov 08) there was a lot of interest in taking positive steps to promote predator reintroduction in the UK. One very practical way in which this can be done is to support the Wolves and Humans Foundation's 'White Dog Fund'. Their aim is to reduce human-predator conflicts in places such as Slovakia by providing practical assistance (eg guarding dogs) to farmers experiencing conflicts with predators, which in turn fosters tolerance.

www.wolvesandhumans.org/how_to_help_pages/white_dog_fund.html

By contributing to the fund you can also demonstrate that the UK public are willing to share the responsibility for living with predators such as the lynx and wolf if they are reintroduced, and so create a stronger case for their return. Please pass the link on to anyone who may be interested.

Sometimes you've just got to do it.

February 12 2010

Some photographers - and I'm one of them - get so wrapped up in projects, outputs, submissions, features, books, tours, blog updating...the list goes on, they forget to do what set them on fire originally - engineering close encounters with wild places and wild creatures.

Today was a day I just had to get out of the office - and what a day! Not a breath of wind on the mountain, light to die for and fresh snow. Thanks to Sam, Chris and an obliging group of ptarmigan for good company.

The most precious of assets

February 11 2010

For the last few days, a young and aspiring nature photographer joined our Winter Wildlife photo-tour to 'see how it was done.' I'm not sure he achieved that, but many of the group remarked on his ability to effectively interact and engage with people.

Once guests had left this morning, I high-tailed down to Pitlochry, met with colleague Niall Benvie and we jointly met with the CEO of the John Muir Trust to discuss how we might enliven their strategic vision in the form of a full colour brochure.

Both experiences underline the importance of relationships. It is solidly-based relationships that nurture personal trust and at a business level, integrity. These relationships - with photo-tour guests, with colleagues and with individuals within the scientific and conservation sectors - are my most precious of assets. They take years to form and develop and there are no shortcuts.

Imagine then my sensitivity to these relationships being threatened. A few years ago, one such relationship (with a forester) lead me to a wonderful site where I have photographed a 'rogue' capercaillie - some of the images have been posted on this blog. In recent weeks, I've been made aware of certain photographers trying to establish where this site is - none of them have approached me directly, but have contacted friends and colleagues behind my back. I'm precious about this site - not only because of the sensitivity of the bird, but because of the erosion of the trust placed in me by my forester friend.

So a plea: respect my relationship with and within my local and professional community. If you want to know where the site is, ask me - don't embarrass others. If I trust you, I might help you.

Repeating repetition...again.

February 9 2010

We're in the middle of our Winter Wildlife photo-tours where I tire of the sound of my own voice. Yes, yes, I know our many valued guests do too, but one of the things we try and 'teach'(over and again) is the concept of revisiting well-photographed subjects and interpreting them in different ways. Yesterday as the light was fading, our group photographed this captive Eagle Owl in a setting I've covered several times before...but there's always a different take on a familiar subject...always. I'll repeat: there's always a different take...

Highland Tiger stamp.

February 7 2010

The Scottish Wildcat is celebrated on a new stamp from Royal Mail out this March. It features one of my wildcat images with a limited number of signed first-day covers available. Buckingham Covers are highly collected and often go up in value over time.

The covers cost £11.95 unsigned, or £22.95 signed by myself. 40% of every sale will be donated to the Highland Tiger project. Early ordering is advised as Buckingham Covers often sell-out pre-release. Visit http://www.buckinghamcovers.com/shop/productdisplay.php?productCode=BC407&affiliate=pc” title=”buy the Wildcat cover in the Buckingham Covers shop”>www.buckinghamcovers.com to find out more & order online or call them on +44(0)1303 278 137.

Too close!

February 4 2010

What are photographers like?

We're often found lamenting the difficulty in getting close to Britain's wary wildlife but our new workshop location for photographing red deer throws up a new challenge - they're too close! Are we ever happy? I think mildly satisfied is about as good as it gets.