Tag Archives: landscape

photography, random thought

Daring to Begin

All glory comes from daring to begin.

— Eugene Fitch Ware

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What does it take to be a “doer”?

Let’s be honest, it doesn’t take much.

Not a lot of brains or money, or even talent…

It just takes a little bit of courage.

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Well… here’s to a little bit of courage….

Happy Friday, my friends. May we all dare to begin today.

— andrew

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If you are interested in learning more about photography, taking your art to a new level please check out my new workshop dates:
 
Grand Teton Photographic Tour/ Workshops 2014
More Destination Photo Tours/ Workshops 2014
 
If you are interested in licensing any of the images/ video from this post, please visit my stock agency:
 
Tandem Stills + Motion // andrew r. slaton
 
If you are interested in purchasing prints from this post, please check my prints for sale, or email me directly for a custom request:
 
andrew r. slaton // photographer // prints
 
For assignment work requests, please email me: andrew@andrewslatonphoto.com
 
Thanks for visiting AndrewSlatonBlog.com!
 
all images and content © ARS Media, LLC 2014
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composition, photography

Layering // Landscapes

If you’ve seen my work, you know that I love negative space.  And in landscapes, that often means lots of sky.

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It’s a more fine art look. Where the sky is an actor in the play. Usually dramatic clouds, color, and or celestial bodies give weight and relevance to the otherwise vast expanse of negative space.

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But that’s not the “postcard” look.  The more I shoot for stock, the more I’ve learned to layer my landscapes to give them more dimension and a greater sense of depth.

It’s a very basic concept, that to many of you is a “duh”.  But it wasn’t to me.  I learned to shoot from feeling; to convey deep emotions and artistic expression.  And the way that manifests often times in my work, is with a very two dimensional feel where the depth is stripped away and the viewer is left with light, color, and basic shape.

Neither way is better than the other.  Some people have an eye for the 3-D postcard, and others, the 2-D expression.

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I have had to learn to see the postcard. And I’m really enjoying the challenge of seeing in this new way.  It sounds simple, but it’s oh so interestingly complicated… to frame a balanced and compelling photograph that incorporates all three elements: foreground, middle ground, background.

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These three elements working together, with lines leading the viewer into the image, colors complimenting one another, and light dancing and playing makes for a supremely sellable image.

And I would argue, that beyond the sellable, if you can also incorporate the artistic expression, you have made truly great art.

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Those are the kind of images I’m striving to make.

— andrew

___________________________________________________________________________________________________
 
If you are interested in learning more about photography, taking your art to a new level please check out my new workshop dates:
 
Grand Teton Photographic Tour/ Workshops 2014
More Destination Photo Tours/ Workshops 2014
 
If you are interested in licensing any of the images/ video from this post, please visit my stock agency:
 
Tandem Stills + Motion // andrew r. slaton
 
If you are interested in purchasing prints from this post, please check my prints for sale, or email me directly for a custom request:
 
andrew r. slaton // photographer // prints
 
For assignment work requests, please email me: andrew@andrewslatonphoto.com
 
Thanks for visiting AndrewSlatonBlog.com!
 
all images and content © ARS Media, LLC 2014
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city, composition, photography

san francisco // from every angle

How creative do you get with the same subject?

It can be challenging, but I always try to push myself to see all the angles, different qualities of light, and unending compositions that I can create with my camera.

Last week, my subject was the city of San Francisco… and here are a few of my favorites.

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

I hope this gets you thinking about your next subject and how to explore it photographically.

And  wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!  Hope to see you all in 2014!

all images and content © andrew r. slaton | photographer 2013

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equipment review, photography

5D MK III // Field Review / Everglades

Before the Canon 5D MK III came out, I remember talking shop with a few other photographers about whether the change would be significant enough to justify purchasing a new camera body.  I thought not.

Wrongly.

Canon sent me new MK III a few weeks ago for my Everglades adventure, and from moment one, I was impressed.

It would seem impossible to improve on the color, clarity, and ease of use from the MK II, but they did.

And it is very quiet.  So, immensely helpful with wildlife.  I never realized how loud my MK II’s shutter is until I shot with the MK III.

roseate spoonbill

roseate spoonbill

a pair of burrowing owls on marco island

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brown anole on the anhinga trail in everglades national park

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lubber grasshopper

The color and the contrast straight out of the camera in RAW is incredible.  I would actually liken it to some of the more advanced Nikon bodies I’ve tested before.

I know, I know, sacrilege, right?  Well, I have always been a Canon guy… literally from day one (AE-1, 35mm).  But I have played around with Nikons as well, and I’m not afraid to criticize my brand and give credit where credit is due.  Often times the color and contrast that came out standard on raw files from Nikon seemed to have more punch to me.  Finally, Canon has an answer.  It is partly due to the lateral color fringe correction (that most newer Nikons have).

brown anole on the anhinga trail in everglades national park

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american crocodile at flamingo bay

american crocodile at flamingo bay

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road through pineland forest

I’m not much of an HDR fan, though I am asked all the time whether my work is processed as such.  The MK III has an in camera HDR function that I found fascinating and tastefully done.

And the internal processing is incredibly fast.

sunset at long pine key

sunset over the pines at long pine key

night sky and stars with palm at flamingo bay campground

The high ISO noise reduction is of course, phenomenal.  And truly, it would be difficult to see much of a noticeable difference from its predecessor, but you absolutely can.  It’s that much better!

night sky lightning storm through palms at flamingo bay campground

night sky and stars with palm at flamingo bay campground

morning at flamingo bay

green treefrog in dwarf palmetto

green treefrog in dwarf palmetto

american alligator

tricolored heron

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burns lake at dusk with passing storm

morning at flamingo bay

green treefrog

green treefrog

green treefrog

green treefrog

green treefrog

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centipede in dwarf palmetto

brown anole mating

white tailed deer doe at dawn near bear island campground

white tailed deer doe at dawn near bear island campground

nightfall over burns lake

sunrise over burns lake

green treefrog near big cypress bend boardwalk trail

green treefrog near big cypress bend boardwalk trail

stormy chokoloskee bay

men on a tour boat in chokoloskee bay

green treefrog

river of grass with pineland forest in the distance

orb weaver spider

great white egret

american alligator at long pine key

great blue heron in flight at flamingo bay

red shouldered hawk with kill

great blue heron

american crocodile at flamingo bay

red shouldered hawk drying off after rain

barred owl at dawn

cypress forest swamp landscape

boardwalk trail in big cypress national preserve

tricolored heron hunting

great white egret

mosquito on human hand

lingus tree snail

green treefrog on dwarf palmetto

giant swallowtail butterfly

sunset over the river of grass and pine forests near bear island campground

 

I’ve never been one of those guys who just buys the new thing right when it comes out… I’m a little bit more cautious than that.  But to all those who did with the Canon 5D MK III… kudos.

Canon really changed the game with the 5D MK II, but after spending a week in the Everglades with the MK III, I’m reassured that they continued the game changing camera bodies with this one!

There are so many improvements made with the MK III like color fringe correction, copyright and shooter info embed (not to mention you can finally customize file name in camera!), and dual memory card slots.  I highly recommend it as a huge improvement over its predecessor…

The two main improvements though that I would like to see, and my only criticisms would be the lack of built in WiFi or GPS.  I would assume that the MKIV will incorporate these (now) necessities.  But I don’t see myself waiting until Fall 2015…

For further tech specs, please visit: CANON 5D MK III

– andrew

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are interested in learning more about photography, taking your art to a new level please check out my new workshop dates:

Big Bend Photographic Tour/ Workshops 2013-2014

More Destination Photo Tours/ Workshops 2013-2014

If you are interested in licensing any of the images/ video from this post, please visit my stock agency:

Tandem Stills + Motion // andrew r. slaton

If you are interested in purchasing prints from this post, please check my prints for sale, or email me directly for a custom request:

andrew r. slaton // photographer // prints

For assignment work requests, please email me: andrew@andrewslatonphoto.com

Thanks for visiting AndrewSlatonBlog.com!

all images and content © andrew r. slaton | photographer 2013

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nature, photography

everglades // non-traditional fall colors

Color!  This time of year I start to think in terms of reds, oranges, and yellows.  But unfortunately, I will not be spending my autumn in the mountains in 2013.

However, it was massively inspiring to spend September in the Everglades, enjoying some deep greens and blues, purples and pinks.

sunset at long pine key

sunset over the pines at long pine key

brown anole mating

green treefrog

sunset over the river of grass and pine forests near bear island campground

– andrew

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are interested in learning more about photography, taking your art to a new level please check out my new workshop dates:

Big Bend Photographic Tour/ Workshops 2013-2014

More Destination Photo Tours/ Workshops 2013-2014

If you are interested in licensing any of the images/ video from this post, please visit my stock agency:

Tandem Stills + Motion // andrew r. slaton

If you are interested in purchasing prints from this post, please check my prints for sale, or email me directly for a custom request:

andrew r. slaton // photographer // prints

For assignment work requests, please email me: andrew@andrewslatonphoto.com

Thanks for visiting AndrewSlatonBlog.com!

all images and content © andrew r. slaton | photographer 2013

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