| Photographing the National Parks | |
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Q. Let's talk a little about the photographic equipment you use and why.
Film
Fuji Velvia almost exclusively. Occasionally I'll grab a roll of Provia or print film if I really need the speed. But 99% of my pictures are taken with Velvia. First and foremost, it's a slide film with great color saturation (it has "punch" as a lot of people like to say). Since it is an ISO 50 film I'm forced to use a tripod for most of my shots but the payoff is excellent sharpness in my photographs.
Camera and lenses
The first real camera I bought was a Nikon FG that I could barely afford at
the time. I had been looking at a camera with lots of fancy automatic features
until my Dad set me straight and steered me towards the Nikon. I had never
heard of Nikon until we were in the camera store that day. Looking back now I
can say that learning photography on a manual camera was one of the best moves
I ever made, even if it wasn't a planned effort on my part.
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I've been a Nikon fan ever since, in part because I could always use my old lens with newer Nikon cameras. I currently use a Nikon F5, which has a terrific meter and autofocus to match (I moved to autofocus cameras when my eyesight started to deteriorate). And this past summer I picked up a Nikon n80 for my trip to Australia; there was no way I was going to lug my heavy F5 around in a backpack for two months. As it was, my camera gear displaced a layer of fleece I really could've used in the mountains of Tasmania!
As for lenses, I have a 24mm f2.8, 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5D, and 70-210mm f/4-5.6 (all Nikon).
I do consider it a waste of time to argue about why camera brand X is better than camera brand Y. It's much more important to simply be comfortable and familiar with the camera you have. Believe me, it's a lot easier to make great shots if you can quickly change the aperture or adjust the exposure compensation.
Filters Other accessories (tripod, etc.) What good advice
could you give to someone who is interested in
becoming a good nature photographer, particularly as it relates to
photographing the national parks? If you have the time I also suggest repeat visits to particularly good spots
to get the shot you want. The last time I was in Yellowstone I went to the
same spot for sunset 4 of the 5 nights I was in the park. Zip, nada, zilch
the first 3 times. But the 4th night was simply wonderful and made up for the
less than impressive sunsets on the previous nights. In photography, patience
really is a virtue.
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This is the question I get most frequently. I have two filters I use on a
regular basis: a polarizer and a neutral density (ND) filter.
I consider my tripod one of the most crucial pieces of equipment I own.
Currently I have a Gitzo 1227 carbon fiber tripod with an Arca Swiss B1
ballhead. I think anyone with a personal net worth less than Bill Gates' would
be taken aback by the cost of the carbon fiber tripods. I know I had to work
up my nerve (and save up for awhile) in order to willingly pay that kind of
money for a tripod. But what a difference it makes to have a tripod I can
actually carry with me on long day hikes. But ANY tripod will help your
photography: it allows you to use slower shutter speeds and often forces you
to think about your composition more.
This is easy and rather mundane advice, but it's worked for me over the years.
Get up early and stay out late. I'm talking about getting up before sunrise.
By the time the sun hits the horizon chances are the best colors in the sky
have disappeared. You want to be out shooting 20-30 minutes before sunrise.
Reverse that scenario for sunset. Stay after the sun goes down. On most nights
you'll get nothing for your effort (except maybe some wonderful peace and
quiet since invariably you'll be by yourself at this point) but every once in
a while something special will happen and your patience will be rewarded.
photo property of
Kim Steinbacher