Before You Leave.....Turn Around

When it comes to photography, I have always found turning around to be good advice. It sounds quite trite, but, nonetheless, it is often helpful.

When concentrating on trying to photograph one particular scene, we often have blinders on and don't keep our minds open to other possibilities. It can be hard, and perhaps even detrimental, to try and break one's focus in the middle of photographing and, therefore, I do like to finish what I am concentrating on before moving. Once finished, my mind can then be receptive to new possibilities....and so I force myself to turn around and look behind me at what else there is that I might have missed or overlooked.

It sounds quite simple, after all, once you are done photographing at a particular site you pack up and can't help but see what's around you before leaving. Sure, but are you receptive to what is around you, or is your mind already in the 'I'm done and leaving' mode? It is one thing to look at what is around you when packing up and another to see what is around you with the idea of making images.

It really is amazing to me how often what I find behind me ends up making a more interesting photograph than what I had been concentrating on. This might be because once my attention has been caught by something I am unable to give ample consideration to other possibilities or because some aspect of the scene behind me, such as the lighting, might have changed. Either way, I am often glad that I took the opportunity to turn around while keeping an open mind.

This occurred during the recent workshop I attended in the Smoky Mountains. I had been photographing a field of tall grasses in front of colorful fall foliage, but wasn't really happy with the compositions I was coming up with. I was planning to move on but 'turned around' before I left and was treated to this magnificent dew covered tree in a bit of fog that looked gem covered, sparkling while it was being backlit by the sun. I underexposed a bit to make the glistening stand out against a darker background.

'Sparkle'
Copyright Howard Grill

This image was far more satisfying and interesting than anything I had been concentrating on before making the turn!

Waiting For The Sun

It has been said that one of the biggest mistakes that can be made in photographing sunrises and sunsets is leaving too soon. Often, there is beautiful color to be seen and photographed for twenty or thirty minutes after the sun sets. Likewise, when waiting to photograph sunrise, things can change rapidly and unexpectedly. Such was the case when we were photographing sunrise during the recent Smoky Mountain Fall Workshop that I attended with Nancy Rotenberg, Don McGowan, and Les Saucier.

And what a glorious sunrise it was:

Sunrise Over The Smokies

Copyright Howard Grill

But it didn't start out that way. When our group arrived at the overlook that had been chosen for that morning's shoot, the sky seemed quite densely 'fogged in'. It didn't appear that we were likely to be able to make good images from that location and there was talk of trying to move to a different spot, perhaps one at a different elevation in the hopes of getting better conditions for photographing. By that time, however, it was getting late and it was a bit questionable that we would be able to find a new locale and be able to get set up in time for sunrise. So, with a tiny sliver of clearing in the distance, we decided to stick it out in the hopes that the dense fog would lift as the sun came up.

What developed was unexpected and truly exhilarating. Over the next few minutes, the little sliver of clearing continued to open and we were treated to a truly moving experience. The cloud cover was such that there was a number of 'God Rays' that emerged and, one by one, they swept across the valley below in a spectacle that was akin to a natural laser light show, only better. As I rapidly 'play back' the many images I took that morning by quickly viewing them one after another in Lightroom, they seem like a movie that allows one to relive the entire experience, complete with the rays sweeping and dancing rhythmically along one side of the mountain, into the valley, and back up the other side.

Rather than frenetically chasing after the perfect shot, sometimes it is better to stay put and let the shot come to you.

Away In The Smokies

No, the blog is not dead! I haven’t posted in over a week because I have been away and didn’t think it prudent to broadcast that fact over the internet.

I have been off on a photographic journey to the Smoky Mountains on my second workshop with Nancy Rotenberg. Since my first workshop with her, she has been joined by Don McGowan and Les Saucier to form ‘Photography With Heart’. I could talk on and on trying to describe what a workshop with Nancy, Les, and Don is like, but I am sure that I would not be able do the experience justice. Let’s just say that their workshops embody all the emotional and spiritual journey that photography can and should be. It simply doesn't get any better.

I will certainly post more images and thoughts from the trip, but for the moment, and until I unpack, I offer just an image or two:

'Balance'

Copyright Howard Grill

'The Road Less Traveled'
Copyright Howard Grill