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Sneaky Photo

22 August 2010 9 Comments

Every so often someone sneaks a photo of me. As with many photographers, I’m terribly non-photogenic, so I kinda like it when someone candidly catches me at work in the field. Here I am at exquisite Lake Louise in Alberta, Canada, in a position I often find myself, contorted over a must-have image. In this case the pickings were slim, as it was a cold, rainy, overcast day. I wasn’t even going to bother with a picture. I don’t particularly like Lake Louise for the huge crowds it draws in summer. Just then the sun tried to break through (it never really did), and I quickly got to work.

Trying to make lemonade from lemons (image by Bruno Stadelmann)

Lucky for me, Bruno and Angie Stadelmann from Riehen, Switzerland were passing by. Bruno is an avid amateur photographer and, unbeknownst to me, grabbed this shot. Thanks, Bruno!

(BTW, here is one of the images that I was taking when Bruno wandered by. It will be one of several images that I may combine into a panorama. With the lousy weather, however, there are absolutely no reflections in the water, so I may just can the whole thing. Stay tuned).

Part of a possible panorama

  • http://www.pbase.com/diplostat DiploStrat

    Ouch! What an expensive blog post! (For me that is, as it showed me what I ought to be doing with my tripod and/or why I might need to upgrade it.)

    And for the record, that picture with the rock and dark cloud is better than I got at Lake Louise!

    (Nice Tilley hat!)
    –
    DiploStrat ;-)

    • lpicker

      Yeah, all this accessory stuff adds up to real $$$. But a tripod is as critical to me as a camera. I shoot probably 90% of my non-people images on a tripod. The stability can make a difference between a magazine shot or not.

      Anyway, thanks for the nod to Tilley. I recently had a great experience with them. My hat, after years of use in desert heat and arctic cold, finally was worn to the point of holes (and I really do wash it often, as they recommend). I sent it back, with a note asking them to either bury it with dignity or else send it back so I could give it a special place on my desk. They sent me a new hat AND my old one (which is what you see me wearing, since my new one isn’t broken in yet). What a terrific company!

  • http://missusk76@wordpress.com Cindy Kilpatrick

    Love the Tilly story, the shooting story and the image. I hope you do keep with it, the foreground and drama in the sky more than make up for the lack of reflections in the water in my very humble opinion. Is that one of those gorilla tripods I’ve heard about?

    • lpicker

      Thanks for the compliment, Cindy. I’ll post some better images on my blog in the next few weeks. In terms of the tripod, although I will sometimes use my Joby to fasten my flash to a tree or a chair, the tripod you see in the photo is a Gitzo 3541 XLS. The ballhead is a Really Right Stuff BH-55.

      Happy shooting!

      Les

      PS: Tilley rocks!

  • http://missusk76@wordpress.com Cindy Kilpatrick

    Thank you Les. I googled the tripod and I see that it’s pretty amazing, but way out of my league, which I suspected. :(

    • lpicker

      Cindy:

      Don’t give up. The key point here is to use any decent tripod as much as possible to improve your photos. You’ll be amazed at the difference it makes. I also recommend buying tripods used, since they are pretty hard to destroy. Think about the head, though. You’ll probably invest in quick release camera brackets that allow you to mount your camera(s) easily. Again, the used market is good, so long as you trust the seller.

  • http://missusk76.wordpress.com Cindy Kilpatrick

    Thanks,Les. I have an old tripod that I use. It’s a little cumbersome with screw in attachment and adjustments, but it does the trick. I will keep your advice to buy used in mind, though, if I do decide to upgrade some day.

    • lpicker

      Hi Cindy.

      I completely understand your thinking on this. However, after visiting your blog site and seeing your heart-felt images, let me offer this observation. If a “cumbersome” screw-in tripod is in any way hindering your actually using it when you should, then upgrade NOW. For a self-described landscape/nature photographer like yourself, a tripod should be an extension of you and your camera. Save your hand-helds for people shots and exceptions. Just something to consider…

      Les

  • http://missusk76.wordpress.com Cindy Kilpatrick

    Thanks Les, I appreciate you advice very much and a better tripod is definitely on my wish list.

    Cindy