Struan, don't take this the wrong way but I am so amused by the thought of an ex-marine "pootering" about. It takes a real man to admit that he pooters! LOL
But I do understand what you mean... some of my best work is from 'random' findings as opposed to organized photography trips.
Pooter on, Dude!
I never get stressed when using LF, it relaxes me compared to a busy day at work. I'm an amateur, but I can visualise how a professional may get stressed out. It can be stressfull geting to and from a remote location, but not the act of taking the photograph. For instance on Sunday I climbed a steep path, to find the path zig zaged to the ridge top, stones were loose and I had to clamber over rocks. When I got to the top, the path I intended to take looked unsafe for my walking abilities, and I didn't fancy going back down. A quick look at the map and I moved off in another direction. I'd taken my photographs earlier, all I was doing now was carrying a heavy bag and admiring the wonderfull views. Not knowing if I would come across anything I couldn't hack was a little stressfull, but at the end of the day I'd no regrets and would do it again.
The most stress comes when you are the only one shooting large format in a family situation. Especialy with teenagers; "Daddy you realy don't want to take a picture of that stupid stream do you" After they shot about a roll of the same scene, not trying different prespectives. It is hard to teach a know it all kid, and hurry up and do your thing at the same time. It is much more rewarding going alone or with just my wife, who like to take my notes and such.
Thanks Ellen. On reflection, "Pootering" should have a capital "P".
Of course, I could be bluffing to attract chicks.
There's more than one sort of photography. I have great respect for the arrangers and still lifers, but I know my own abilities tend more towards journalism than poetry. Physics, not Maths. When I set out to take a pre-visualised photograph the results are usually dull and predictable. My images always seem more interesting when I use my imagination to interpret the world and not subsitute for it. Photography thus involves cultivating humility while knowing my own worth.
One of my all-time favourite climbing routes was once described as "Overhanging an infinite drop on one side; and steeper and longer on the other". Taking myself seriously - in the nicest way, of course - can feel much the same.
For me stress is not being able to do something creative every day. Photography is my favorite medium. I "see" things everywhere, all the time, in all situations and places that just beg to be photographed. Its stressful not to be able to photograph all of these things. The "best" moment is seeing something in the viewfinder/groundglass that is wonderfully captivating and knowing that I'm going to get a picture of it. Having a print on the wall later reminds me of those moments and brings me repeated satisfaction and gratefulness of having the opportunity to see and photograph the image. I could see how for some people stress comes from putting pressure on one's self to do something "artistic." I think this is the wrong reason for doing it. I would suggest for those people to try to loosen up a little and think about what things really make him or her feel relaxed and satisfied.
Stress: Sitting on your roof for a week in 90 degree heat watching bodies float by, etc....
Suddenly I have no knowledge of stress in my own life--certainly not my photographic one. I hope this perspective lasts.
"Stress: Sitting on your roof for a week in 90 degree heat watching bodies float by, etc....
Suddenly I have no knowledge of stress in my own life--certainly not my photographic one. I hope this perspective lasts."
I expect most of us here have a relatively risk-free life compared to the rest of the world. I think Brian is trying to find more of that quiet, in-the-zone feeling. I know that's my most productive time. Maintaining perspective is certainly one aspect of achieving that balance, but I've found that a conscious effort to manage the smaller things makes a big difference. Given the choices now available, LF is probably not the right choice for a large majority of landscape photographers.
Sometimes the process is fun, sometimes meditative and sometimes a nightmare. But ultimately it is all and solely about the image. I dream about images. I daydream about images. All of my rare vacations are organized around making images etc. etc. My wife lives is under the curious notion that I am a workaholic. Imagine that. I call it passion. I have made great images during a stressful process and during an easy one, but I consider obstacles a test of my commitment and overcoming them to get a good image is especially sweet. The most memorable images (not necessarily the best) come from difficulty. They result in the best stories. I have been shot at, almost drowned, beaten up, accidentally started a forest fire, totalled a fcouple of vehicless and arrested twice in 27 years of large format photography. In retrospect I cherish those trips and the images they produced (or failed to produce).
Ed Abbey either told me or wrote somewhere or both, I can't remember which, that he wished the bears in the wilderness would eat more people. It would keep out the tourists. That the outdoors should be more dangerous or would degenerate into theme parks.
I am on my way in ten minutes to be interviewd by the local newspaper about my upcoming show. It will be full of artspeak and bull.... and won't be half as interesting as talking about the stressfull events that occured in the process of making those images.
Thanks,
Kirk
at age 73:
"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep"
I'm a little envious of "shot at". I've only been threatened by a man with a gun. I wouldn't say it's fun, but it is necessary. Most of my family/friends don't understand that these type of events will happen and don't matter.
For me, stress in shooting LF and ULF is two fold. The first involves the gathering of equipment. Having too much makes choosing difficult. The second involves what happens when I'm on location.
I can't tell you how much time I spend noodling what to take, what not to take, is it light enough, will it meet my needs. It's really quite silly, when I look at it. But this effort comes from not being able to photograph on a regular basis. I have a day job that pays the bills and I have far too much time on my hands to consider "all the angles".
Recently I started noodling what to carry to South Asia while away on business. It started with a simple proposition: get the verticals lined up right and avoid "keystoning" architecture. The 120 cameras I usually carry 1/2 way around the world failed in this one area. So the mossy rock starts rolling. The next thing I know, I have a super light weight 4x5 camera, a bunch of really light lenses, and a Kodak ReadyLoad film holder. In the arena of carrying LF gear to the other side of the world, I'm still working it in my mind. But I leave this Friday!
Which leads to the other thing that I spend too much time thinking about. Worry sets in about how much impact I will have on my co-workers (I travel on business, afterall). I only have so much room in my suitcase and I carry-on everything (I never check bags through for fear of having things get lost). After I get there, I'm worried that as we are wandering around various temples and places that 1) I'll be working on a scene and my co-workers will get bored of me taking so much time, 2) what kind of attention I will draw when I whip out the focusin cloth with a "fancy" camera sitting out in open heavily populated spaces, and 3) that I'll be able to even use a tripod at all. Many locations prohibit the use of "stands" (aka: tripods). Then there's the strong concern that I'll not be able to react quickly enough to a portrait situation (which is where the 120 format gear excels). And then there's the setting up of a scene. Foreground/background and interesting subjects properly framed.
All this noodling, just to get a big image onto a big piece of film and to have the architecture line up right from the otherside of the earth. Ack! It's nearly too much.
Sometimes I think I should just sell it all and cut back to one camera. But I can't do that. Hence the stress.
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