Creativity for large format photographers

[Graeme Hird]

Those interested in the work of one of Australia's greatest landscape photographers can look here. His work and ideology are still some of the main inspirations for my craft.



I also "go with the flow" when I'm out looking for images, and Steve Murray above said it best: hone in on whatever is visually stimulating in the scene about me.



Cheers,
Graeme

[dangal]

I've seen his work at the newly renovated NGV (National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne Australia)just recently. I live in Melbourne by the way. I have seen the video that ABC has broadcasted a few months ago aswell. I think it is fair to describe him as a conservationist~photographer. No doubt that his shot of the Franklin river has captured not only the beauty of the region but also the atention of the nation to conserve the remaining old growth forest in the State of Tasmania.

Personally, I like the contribution that he has made but the fight to conserve the remaining old growth forest is still on. I find this very hard to accept that Australia as a developed nation is still degrading its natural environment! A developing nation relying on its natural environment for survival is a hard pill to swallow but what can we do, Australia is a developed nation though so it has no acceptable excuse.

I am a practicing conservation biologist and a landscape photographer. I am currently working in the newly created National Park in North-West Panay Island in the Philippines. I am trying to create awareness just like what Carleton Watkins, Ansel Adams and Peter Dombrovskis amongst others.

Photographically, Peter's style is very Ansel like, technically and aesthetically. But Peter explore the landscape on foot and long distances! Ansel drives and use donkeys? When one walks long distances, one inevitably gets more closer to nature. I know this because when I do my fieldwork (conservation and photography)I will walk 20 kms deep in the tropical jungle without following any trail for most of it. At the end of this initial walk is where my semi-permanent research station is located near a rigde top. This is where I set base camp and call this home for many weeks. From here I will walk radially for 10 hours per day to do my study and take shots whenever I see something inspiring to photograph.

What I am doing is similar to what Peter Dombrovskis did. Although he just walk and take photographs which is the best way to get to know nature and ultimately ourselves.........

[james mickelson]

I can go out and look about, see much to shoot, and create that way. Or I can look at others work, dream, and come up with many, many ideas. I look at lots and lots of images throughout the day and get quite a lot of ideas from this. I have literally 100's of scraps of paper emblazoned with ideas. Time to work on them is what I lack. Most of my ideas have little in common with what the work was about. I just let my mind do the walking. My camera does the talking.

[Leonard Metcalf]

Some fantastic suggestions, thanks... as described; gets easier with experience, practice, just start, emerse oneself, be ready, stop looking, do something different, dream, take a walk, and free the mind of distractions.

Yes I am an Australian, I didn't think I'd spark so much attention on Peters work. Just for the record he was inducted into the International Hall of Fame and Muesum in Oklahoma USA in 2003. He didn't actually write very much about photography that has been published (despite numerous books of his work). It is just that what he wrote struck such a chord with me.

I tend to photograph is frantic bursts, when I can get away from my other parts of my life. Sometimes I come back with stiff images as if I am trying too hard, at other times it takes weeks to stop the head swirling from my other worries and to get into the photographic mode... as if I have to process my problems before I can relax.

For me this photographic mode is about being in an intuitive state. Tuning into ones feelings. For me a great photograph is often one that I am compelled to take - rather than being clever with my camera- but to get that feeling I find that I have to be in that very intuitive state.

But on some days / trips / weeks it just doesn't come very easily... so what I a would like to hear more about is what do you do to get into that state. The creative state... Thanks... Len