International Travel Photography Tours and Workshops
As a photographer, Cuba had always been on my bucket list. It was never a problem for me to visit because I’m British but for some inexplicable reason I never went.
You are always told, “If only you’d been here 30 years ago.” Well, I wasn’t and I was a little apprehensive as to what dramatic changes had taken place [Read more…]
Cuba, the energy of this place captivated me. The openness of the people, the rhythm of the music and dance, the layers of art, history, and culture. Can’t wait to return!
Two of my favorite preparations for a trip are reading books from other travelers capturing a feeling of place, and beginning a packing list of my favorite items [Read more…]
Last January Bob Holmes and I, through Lumaria Workshops, led a tour with Cuba-expert Chris Baker and a talented group of photographers.
Here’s a link to view our custom book from our group photos in Havana and Trinidad (best viewed in Chrome or Safari if on the iPhone):
http://www.blurb.com/b/7635841
Camel silhouettes, Thar Desert near Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. Although we set up this scene for our photo tour, it was still a
challenge to find a clear spot without background distractions, and enough distance to use my 300mm lens on my Nikon d500 (dx sensor making non dx lens focal length 400mm). I love the gesture of the camel leg kicking up the sand and the individual postures of each person & camel. I chose to bracket this scene, allowing for a little bit of detail to show in the camel’s decorative blankets. India’s skies are extremely polluted in comparison to what I’m accustomed to, in this circumstance it worked well to shoot straight into the sun for the orange glow (no filter needed).
One of the world’s largest camel fairs in the world is held in the town of Pushkar, India. Each November at the time of the full moon, historically over 11,000 camels, horses, and cattle are traded over this two week festival. The men were sifting the sand out of the grain to feed their their camels to be traded. We camped on site and witnessed this epic spectacle from dawn to dusk
I’ll never know exactly what this Camel trader at Pushkar festival was thinking, but I have a good idea. I took this photo the day after the USA presidential election results were announced (we were lucky -or not depending on your perspective – to get news via a borrowed cell phone hotspot in the middle of the remote Rajasthan desert). It was a surreal place to hear news that will effect the world, yet for these camel herders the big news was the sudden halt on the most common currency notes – 500 and 1,000 rupees in effort to stop counterfeiting of the current banknotes allegedly used for funding terroism and black money in the market. Though most agree the intent of this ban is good, it has had serious repercussions – especially for many of India’s 260 million farmers have no bank accounts. Although I typically don’t pay money for photos, this time I sympathized with the traders dilemma and am sure the tips he made from foreigners that day outweighed cash earned by camel trading. And the lessons I learned from those in India to be flexible and adaptable in the face of great adversity is priceless.
Photography secrets & tips on behind the scenes shoot with Bob Holmes.
via: SilberStudios.tv
Bob Holmes shares expert tips on using natural lighting in photography.
via: SilberStudios.tv
How often do you find yourself someplace and it’s a struggle to make even one good photograph?
I usually go out on assignment in a blind panic wondering if the muse will ever descend again. I know photographers, frequently misguided, who are supremely confident that they are going to make great photographs every time they go out.
I’m not one of them.
Every assignment is a challenge and to stay in this business, as I have for 35 years, I have to come back with the goods. Getting those winning shots can be like searching for a penguin in the Sahara but at other times it’s like shooting fish in a barrel [Read more…]
I am unapologetically an old-school photographer. I grew up in the era of film and darkrooms and the smell of fixer still fills me with nostalgia. Shooting film, particularly slide film with its narrow latitude, was great for building impeccable technique.
In the early 1980’s I did several shoots for National Geographic, always in some remote corner of the world for several months at a time and racking up huge expenses. I would shoot several hundred rolls of 35mm film, usually Kodachrome, and ship the exposed film back to Geographic in Washington DC for processing without having a clue if I’d got the shot or even the correct exposure. Mistakes were not an option. The first person to see the results was my editor.
Miraculously I rarely screwed up but if I had to shoot film now I would be terrified [Read more…]
