Posts Tagged ‘Manatee Photography’

Photographing from a new perspective

Our guests were surprised by today’s morning activity – photographing from the back on an elepha”nt while it takes them on a game “drive”. Each guest had an elephant fitted with a comfortable saddle and an expert handler/driver. While out in the reserve they encountered giraffes, zebra and other plains game that were unfazed by the presence of elephants. They even came upon some lions resting in the grass. The lions and elephants were completely at ease and this gave our guests the chance to get some really close shots.

Our afternoon was a great time to learn some Photoshop and Lightroom skills from Greg’s wife Karen and when our brains were full we ventured down to the archery range for some fun competitive target practice while the eland and giraffes munched in the grass nearby.

Edited: April 24th, 2012

See them now before they are gone

A Publisher’s  by Stephen Frink in Alert Diver Magazine put in writing some feelings I have had for a long time  (sorry no reprint of the editorial that I can find). The article was about his feelings and observations of urgency among divers and photographers  to see large critters, reefs, and the like.   He related a few examples where he squandered chances to see and photograph reefs and corals which are now gone.

I too feel this urgency and not always for reasons of environmental or habitat destruction.  I too mourn a favorite staghorn coral garden now deceased, but I also fear our opportunities to experience manatees,  whales, sharks will be regulated away while rhinos, gorillas, and sailfish will be poached out of existence.

I will continue to  offer trips to see these natural wonders and be frustrated when I have empty slots unfilled – don’t people release that every year could be the last chance to see these wonderful sites?

Edited: March 11th, 2012

Using Lightroom Metadata to Research Best Settings

I use Lightroom 3 primarily for organization and secondly for quick to medium difficulty adjustments.  My advanced work and preparation for print are still done in PS.  Many times LR  is all I need to select photos, prep them for use on the web, and export them.

With all of these features and with more integration tools, added image adjustment capabilities, and printing options going into the program, it is easy to forget that LR is a database. Like all databases, it is only as good as the data is complete and detailed, but if you manage the detail you can create a powerful learning and efficiency tool.

I am a wildlife photographer and a habitual photographer who photographs in the same location over and over and with the same subjects.  The conditions and sometimes fast action do not leave much time to fuss with settings and adjust.  I do get some chances to experiment, but I want to be in the ball park when I enter the water or get in the game vehicle.  This is where a little extra time in LR  provides me with a valuable learning tool.  I consult it before each trip and keep charts for each camera and lens as a quick cheat sheet based on real data.

Settings, time of image, flash use, and equipment are all recorded in the metadata automatically (make sure you adjust the time on your camera for time zones and daylight savings!) but I also enforce the discipline of  recording the location in detail  (for example: north corner or in canal), the sky and lighting conditions, and for underwater – the visibility.  Next I will try to add tides to that.  I also rate each photo before I do much adjusting to it and I keep all but the really embarrassing shots – at least until my disk gets full.

I have learned some surprising things such as all of my best manatee photographs happened between 9am and 9:30am.  There was a significant drop off in number of quality shots before and after this time and the golden time ranges later as it gets later in the season. This makes sense due to the lengthening of days and the sunrise getting later.  Knowing this, I no longer have to get up before dawn!

Using the Library Filter panel in LR I can use it like a query tool to see a count of images with the keywords I have chosen and combinations of the ISO, flash, rating, etc that I choose.  The tool is not a perfectly flexible query tool but you can be clever with your keywords and how you record data to get it to track and measure what you are interested in.  Maybe improvements to this will make it into a future release.

When I have my manatee workshop next week I will be able to look at the time, weather, and water conditions and recommend settings.  I prepared the following chart using meta data in LR.

7am to 9 am
	Cloudy and/or  low visibility	ISO 640	F2.8	1/80 – 1/100
	Bright and clear visibility	ISO 320	F3.2 – f5.0	1/60 – 1/80
9 am – 10 am
	Cloudy and/or  low visibility	ISO 640	F6.3	1/100
	Bright and clear visibility	ISO 400	F4.0 – 6.3	1/80 – 1/125
10 am – 11:30	Cloudy and/or  low visibility	ISO 500 – 320	F6.3 – 8.0	1/80
	Bright and clear visibility	ISO 160 ISO 250	F7.1 – f8.0 F6.3	1/60 1/250

For use on my safaris, I am using the  data to come up with animal specific settings given lighting conditions.  Of course you can use the histogram on the camera screen and your experience to do the same thing, but many times I cant take the time to analyze and adjust in the field (while cageless with sharks or at a lion hunt) Thus is the nature of wildlife and sports photography.

If you needed another reason to keep you photos organized and properly loaded, taking this “big picture” look at a collection of images of your favorite subject  is very rewarding.

Edited: January 19th, 2012

A Year of Travel and Photography

It has been a great year and with the holidays, I have some time to organize and work on photos.  I thought it would make a nice post to pick a favorite image or story from each of my trips.

The sailfish trip was physically demanding but very humbling to witness this incredible feat of nature. I was enthralled watching the sailfish work together to keep the bait ball and catch fish.

To properly photograph a manatee you have to be manatee-like.  By patiently hanging out in the springs and moving slowly the manatees accept your presence and you will be rewarded with great photo ops. The clear water is so beautiful that is a pleasure to stay in the springs.

We have to leave early to get to where the manatees overnight and it takes a while at idle speed. The sunrise is an event worth getting up for.

Our charter to the Bahamas is for tiger sharks,  but I really love to look and sleek lines of the reef sharks. They take some really good images and have a personality that comes through into the image

It is nice to go on a trip once in a while and stay dry.  I love it when we find a pride of lions and can just spend time watching them.  This young cub was a showoff indeed.

This year was the first time I traveled down to Mexico for the whale shark aggregation.  It exceeded all my expectations and was a very fun place to spend a few days. I look forward to my trips back in 2012.

These elephants were having so much fun – as much fun as we had watching them.  The mid day sun and water were a challenge, but this afternoon in Kruger really sticks in my mind as a pure pleasure.

Edited: December 20th, 2011

Manatee Photography Tips from my Manatee Photography Workshop Jan 2012

see more of my cinemagraphs and a tutorial on how to make them in a post  Cinemagraph Tutorial
I have only a few spots still open for my Manatee Photography Workshop in Crystal River,  FL  Jan 22 – 28th 2012.  Contact me soon to secure your spot.

We will be in the water nearly all day with the manatees which gives you plenty of time to practice your techniques and get some really great shots.  Unlike other underwater creatures that are gone in one exposure, manatees are slow and linger. Take advantage of this by planning each shot and doing some in the field analysis and learning from images you just made.

Getting a Great Shot of a Manatee Up for a Breath

The Situation:

There is a manatee asleep on the bottom near you.  Regulations say that you are not allowed to disturb them – especially diving down to get pictures of them asleep.  They can stay under for 10 minutes which is way to long to hover just underwater and wait. How do you get a good image of them coming up for a breath?

1) Choose a manatee who is facing such that there will be light on its face (not in the shade from a tree) and is preferably not facing such that you will be shooting into the sun.

2) Decide your angle; 3/4  shot, directly on, full side pose, vertical or horizontal camera position.  Scan what will be the background and plan to place undesirable elements like people behind the manatee or out of frame.

3) Get into position and float relaxed. Think about your settings, take test shots, adjust.  Take special note of the view of the sky through the water. The deeper you are the more sky will show. This may not be ideal.

4) When it is time, you will want to force some air out of your lungs which will make you sink a bit (you have already tested this and set your weights correctly). Push water up slowly but firmly with one hand to get you under – Do not move your legs or you will cloud your own picture and possibly freak out the manatee.

5) Watch the manatee. They usually have a “tell” when they are preparing to surface. Their body will rock a bit then begin to rise.  Exhale and sink, snapping pictures and keeping your body still and compact to limit movement.

6) snap shots  while the manatee is on the way up. Watch the framing of your shot to get the whole animal – nose to tail- in the shot.

7) Get a shot as he breaks the surface and takes in air. Then some on the way back down with the ripples on the surface.  The manatee may fall pretty fast.  Sometimes they dont get enough air and go right back up or linger.  Just hold your breath and be still .  Get the shot. You will have 10 minutes to rest and try again.

While you wait for the next breath examine your shots. Make a new plan.  Try a different manatee if this one is not in a good spot.

Edited: December 10th, 2011

My Image Appears as the Cover Shot on Save the Manatee Club Calendar

I am honored to have my image selected to appear on the cover of the 2012 Save the Manatee Club Calendar.

Save the Manatee Club  works to protect ample healthy habitat to sustain and grow  the manatee population and works to reduce harassments, injuries, and deaths from human activity.

You can buy the calendar from Save the Manatee Club at the link below

http://www.savethemanatee.org/shop/

Greg will be holding a manatee photography workshop this January 22 – 28  Join us if you would like to get some really good manatee photos and learn from a practiced professional.    details on Greg’s Photo Tour Website  http://www.gregorysweeney.com

Edited: September 4th, 2011