©2000-2017 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
©2000-2017 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
On February 4th, 2017 I taught another “learn and shoot” workshop for West Photo, my favorite “brick and mortar” camera store. Held at Bachman’s Floral, Gift and Garden headquarters, the location offered my twenty-two students a ready supply of interesting macro subjects. As a special surprise for the participants, I invited my biology student, and neophyte herpetologist, to join us on location. Armed with four tree frogs and two geckos, she provided some live models for the shoot. Lasting nearly five hours, it appeared that everyone gleaned a little something they could add to their toolkit of image-making tricks.
My lessons included discussions about vision and intent, macro-techniques and stretching depth of field in the digital darkroom. Following our day-long shoot, I noted four aspects of my talk that seemed to resonate the most with the participants.
Thanks to all those who signed up on Saturday, I look forward to crossing paths in the future. Special thanks goes to Tamron, Manfrotto and Bachman’s for sponsoring the event.
©2000-2017 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
How is it possible to reconcile the unavoidable dichotomies we encounter every day? Fundamental to the human psyche is a core need to experience and resolve opposing forces. Steeped in ancient Daoist philosophy, the existential battle between dark and light is as old as conscious thought. This idea of a yin and a yang embodies the notion that while polarities exist, each is complementary to the other.
Thoughts of opposite energies have never been so prevalent in my life and my mind. As we enter a new era with a president who represents everything I oppose, I have begun to search within myself to better understand the paradigm I am now forced to live. In a country where 49% defines the discourse for the majority, I can’t help but question that nature of this “democracy.” Today, male thinking overshadows female, false data supersedes science, and the needs of the many are marginalized to benefit the few.
Like the body politic that defines the course of the present, the present defines the course of my vision. With the ugliness of the 2016 election season, I sought out beauty to oppose the oppressive nature of the news. While I read and listened to daily reports, I also retreated to the simplicity of my art. My concerns of corruption, abuse and environmental decay have emboldened a desire to get involved physically, emotionally and financially. We, who are concerned about a sustainable future, are now faced with the ultimate yin and yang; do you stay at home and mourn a loss, or do you stand out and speak for those who can not?
©2000-2017 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
A shared adventure is a relived adventure. Like the fallen tree that isn't heard, the thrill of travel becomes lost in the noise of a busy life. Fortunately, pictures can add permanence to the ephemeral. They are visual representations of memories that might have otherwise drifted aimlessly out of consciousness. Some photos serve as simple reminders of fun times with family and friends, while others represent something much more. Herein lies the power of the animal landscape. These photographs tell a story of a place and time, they stimulate intense emotions about an experience, or teach us something about an ecosystem or a "day in the life." Art or natural history, animal landscapes can evoke emotions that transport the viewer somewhere new or somewhere deep in the recesses of the mind.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
While in Iceland, Tamy and I photographed an equal mix of wildlife and landscapes. While each was intriguing on its own, the two would occasionally collide. Much like the blend of chocolate and peanut butter in a Reese’s Cup™, when serendipity happens, two good things can make something great.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
Few things are more exciting than an intimate encounter with free ranging wildlife. The adrenaline rush is like a thrill ride with a hint of fear and ecstasy that fades as fast as it appears. So intense are the feelings, wildlife photographers can become addicted to the rush, and will experience withdrawals when deprived of the opportunity to make images in the field. The obsession to be close is evident by what we deem to be a successful image. We photographers often speak about filling the frame, or that no lens is long enough; yet the products, an ultra tight portrait or bust shot that allows the viewer to count every hair, are often some of the most boring photographs. Throughout the years, I have found that many of my most compelling wildlife images are those where the environment and light are as prominent as the subject. While portraits have their place and often elicit a “wow” factor, they tend to impress other wildlife artists but do little to evoke emotions in the causal viewer. In contrast, wildlife landscapes are dynamic. The play between light, environment and subject invites the viewer to morph their own life experience with the non-human subjects captured by the artist. In fact, the wildlife landscape can become a catalyst for change and a transformative experience for the viewer. These types of photographs often promote thoughts about preservation and the compulsion to conserve. Herein lies the power of wildlife photography, and a reason for us to pursue the rush.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
November 5th, 2016 was the “deer opener” in Minnesota; I’m no hunter, heck, I’m a vegetarian and have been for longer than I can recall. To celebrate the lives of the living, I chose not to wear blaze orange, climb a tree stand or drive back country road,; instead I headed to protected land in search of some regal and aging bucks.
Much like those readying themselves for “the hunt," Tamy and I woke long before sunrise, packed the car and made our way to a favorite spot to see and photograph deer. Far from captive, these herds roam between national and state park lands, and thus have a highly coveted status… protected wildlife. Able to wander for miles along thick river corridors, the herds brave non-human predators, starvation and the occasional drive-by collision. Without the human selected pressure to “bag” the biggest buck with the most points, these deer can grow large and survive up to eight years.
On this atypical November morning, temperatures fell to a balmy 37℉ (3℃) and plateaued at a whopping 75℉ (24℃). following a brief hike, we stumbled upon a pair of bucks staking out breeding territories just as the mist was beginning to rise. Rather than move in for a tight profile, I chose to include the foreground and background elements to suggest something about the time and place. In this wildlife landscape, the buck has curled his upper lip in what is known as a “flehmen response” to female pheromones. The contraction of lip muscles exposes the vomeronasal organs (VMO) near the roof of the mouth to the volatilized chemicals in urine and feces deposited by interested does.
With heavy hunting pressures close to our location, this male and others like him need only worry about the paparazzi during his pursuit of some love. While I’m not one to bash those who enjoy the hunt, I often wonder why the kill is a necessary prerequisite to enjoying a quiet morning in the woods.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
Have we reached a point in wildlife photography where it can't get any better? With the ever crashing prices of high quality digital gear, the pursuit of wildlife imagery has become "every man's (or woman's)" game. In 1994 I spent $2000 for a previously owned Carl Zeiss 300mm f/4.0 lens because I desperately wanted to photograph the wildlife of Costa Rica, Minnesota and the West Coast. A fortune to me at the time, the choice to buy the lens translated into real sacrifices. Rather than splurge on a nice car, an apartment in a trendy neighborhood or pay off my debts, I chose to embellish my photographic and travel desires.
In stark contrast to when I began taking my photography seriously, today I could spend the same $2000 and purchase an amazing 150-600mm lens and prosumer DSLR camera with a wide-angle to mid-range zoom lens. What's more, rather than risking the unknown of the used market, all of my gear would be new and under a manufacturer's warranty. The obstacle that was once the price of quality gear, is not an impediment to making quality images today.
In 1995 I took my first of ten trips to Costa Rica. As a formally trained ecologist and evolutionary biologist, a trip to the tropics was high on my "future travels list." Even by the mid-90's Costa Rica was less exotic than other destinations, but it remained a relatively low-touristed hot-spot for photography. With one bag packed with thirty rolls of film and the other with quick drying clothes, I can still recall that primitive outdoor airport the greeted us in San Jose. A trip that might cost $1500 per person today was about double the expense in 1995. So, much like the democratization of gear, travel to lesser-visited wildlife destinations have become easier to find and increasingly affordable.
And what of the art in image making. Quite honestly, the photographs I see today during a random Google Search, on forums and on blogs match or surpass what was once the "gold standard for nature photography,..." National Geographic. Digital image making rewards those willing to engage in trial and error and inquiry-based learning. It has never been easier to take a picture, review the product and modify the process on the spot. No more waiting for film to be developed by a lab, the digital artist is free to experiment, invent and grow faster than I ever could when analog (aka film) was king.
So, can it get any better? Well at this point, I am not sure that the answer is yes. Every day people are producing photographs of hummingbirds where every feather can be visualized with light refracting through prismatic barbs, while others capture lions (or insert the predator of your choice) leaping, biting or chasing their quarry in a display that was once only producible by the "professional" nature photographer. While I am beginning to doubt that images of the future can get better, I do believe they will be different. Every photographer sees and interprets their world through their eyes. While many try to emulate the "masters," it is still the individual image maker who decides to snap and share or withhold a given picture. Even if nothing new can be made, anyone who holds a camera and treasures the image making process has the capacity to see "it" and photograph "it" before "it" or they are gone. So, it is likely that my initial query is not the question that needs be asked, rather than "Can it..., maybe I'm wondering... "Does it matter if it can't get any better?"
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.
©2000-2016 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.