Aperture Jackson Hole – Scotland Kickstart Project

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Hamish

Scotland Kickstart Project by T.Hamish Tear www.HTPhotographics.com www.ScotlandPhotoWorkshops.com

The remote Outer Hebridean islands of NorthWest Scotland are the main Stronghold of Scotland’s remaining Gaelic speakers – just 1.2% of the population – and declining. See Video about Kickstart project to photograph and document these unique people, their stunningly beautiful and wild islands, and theScottish government’s efforts to bring back the Gaelic language by teaching it in schools and recognizing it as Scotland’s official second language. This Kickstart project will not be launched until August 2012

Aperture Jackson Hole and GYE – Cat and Dog

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Hamish

An ‘Essence’ of Pet Photography

Images Copyright T. Hamish Tear http://photos.htphotographics.com/ , www.JacksonHolePhototours.com (Click on Images to enlarge.)

: Nikon D700, Nikon 70 – 200mm @ 200mm, ISO 200, f/4, 1/2500 sec.

Taking photographs of pets is about capturing an ‘essence’ of the subject from the pet’s perspective. I say ‘an’ essence, not ‘the’ essence of the pet because there are many within their day. In these subjects, the dog, Bluto, bursts into a delightful and happy romp whenever he’s playing fetch. The ball becomes his world and the endorphin-rush of fast exercise is clearly greatly beneficial and oh, so much better than being left on the porch (like in the image below).

Nikon D300, Lens: Nikon 135mm f2.0 DC; ISO 280, f/2, 1/250 sec. © T. Hamish Tear: Nikon D300, Lens: Nikon 135mm f2.0 DC; ISO 280, f/2, 1/250 sec. © T. Hamish Tear

I made the first shot lying on my stomach! No motion-blur? Well, it could have been nice to bring some ‘movement’ to the feet / legs, but shooting at f/4, even with the lowest ISO (minus 1 stop on the Nikon D700), I couldn’t get the right exposure without ND filters etc. and didn’t have one. Besides, with a longer exposure, I would never have got the eyes sharp, which is where the viewer’s eye finally rests and expresses the essence of that moment in Bluto’s time; and somehow the paws being frozen and sharp in mid-air above the snow accentuates that ‘air’ and truly grabs that fleeting moment. I think the fence shadows helped bring some relief to the snow-covered path and adds some ‘geometry’ to the image without being distracting.

And below we have Taggart the King. A pose that says, basically, “don’t f%$#k with me”.

: Nikon D700, Lens: Nikon 70-200mm @ 200mm, ISO, 640 f/2.8, 1/3200 sec. © T. Hamish Tear

So here’s a regal, confident moment in Taggart’s time – giving the look that tells a mouse – “might as well give it up now”. And yet Taggart lets his guard down now and again – and here he is napping:

Nikon D300, Nikon 135mm 2.0 DC, ISO 800, f/2.0, 1/4000 sec. © T. Hamish Tear: Nikon D300, Nikon 135mm 2.0 DC, ISO 800, f/2.0, 1/4000 sec © T. Hamish Tear

Next issue, a few from a February descent of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon

Resources: www.NikonUSA.com http://photos.htphotographics.com/pets

Aperture Jackson Hole and GYE – Teton Moonset

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Hamish

Photography by T. Hamish Tear. www.HTPhotographics.com

All images Copyright T. Hamish Tear (Click on images to enlarge.)

This post really doesn’t require much in the way of words. A pre-dawn drive into Grand Teton National Park, a full moon, a cold morning (12 degrees) delivered some pleasing results.

: Nikon D700, 70-200mm f2.8 @ 70mm, ISO 200, f/13, 3.0 sec

Immediately after the above shot, I decided to drive North into Grand Teton National Park and was delighted and surprised to find that the moon has passed behind the Grand Teton to pop out again to the North of it. What a beautiful setting that was.

: Nikon D700, 70-200mm f2.8 @ 200mm, ISO 200, f/16, 1/3 sec Teton Moonset

The last image is of a subtle effect from the morning sun happening just as the moon was setting behind the Grand Teton.

Nikon D700, 70-200mm f2.8 @ 82mm, ISO 200, f/16, 1/6 sec

Next Post will show a couple of bonus shots I got as a reward for a pre-dawn start from Jackson Hole.

ALl images taken with tripod-mounted Nikon D700 and Nikon 70 – 200mm f/2.8 lens.

Resources:

Nikon D700: http://www.nikonusa.com/Nikon-Products/Product/Digital-SLR-Cameras/25444/D700.html

Nikon 70 – 200mm f/2.8 Lens http://www.nikonusa.com/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Camera-Lenses/2139/AF-S-VR-Zoom-NIKKOR-70-200mm-f%252F2.8G-IF-ED.html

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Aperture Jackson Hole and GYE – Thomas Macker

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Hamish

Photography Exhibition by Thomas Macker www.Thomasmacker.com

With an opening reception on Friday evening January 13, 2012, at
the Center for the Arts, (5.30pm) Thomas Macker’s exhibition, ‘From/For All Our
Failings’, will hang in the Loft Gallery until March 10th, hosted by the
Jackson Hole Art Association.

Thomas Macker is the Jackson Hole Art Association’s new
photography department head. He is also co-curator with of the galleries with
Jenny Dowd.

Although I consider myself a writer, nothing could explain this
photographer’s work more exquisitely than his own words: “I essay to make
contact with the sublime, the numinous, the mysterium tremendum. This is
especially urgent now in an era of shallow cleverness, technology-drunk speed,
scientism, blind progress, wing-clipping hyper-reason, fundamentalist
secularity, and general alienation from the earth. As an artist I aim to
overthrow, or at least wildly rattle, what Rene Guenon called the “reign of
quantity.” May we all remember Mahatma Marley of Trenchtown, Jamaica who once
sang: “There is a natural mystic blowing through the air.” Thomas Macker

Macker’s resume boasts an MFA in Photography and Media from
California Institute of the Arts, and a BFA in Visual Art at Carnegie Mellon
University. Macker’s CV is an impressive list since 2004 under headings Solo
Exhibitions, Selected Group Exhibitions and Curatorial Projects. His
residencies were at ACRE Residency, Steuben, WI; and Harold Arts Residency,
Chesterhill, OH. Continue reading →

Aperture Jackson Hole and GYE – News Release

Aside

Photos and Ferries – A Presentation on Scotland’s Islands by T. Hamish Tear www.ScotlandPhotoWorkshops.com

What: ‘Photos and Ferries’ – Scottish Islands; The Inner Hebrides. Where: Teton County Parks and Recreation Center; When: Thursday, Jan 12, 6.30pm; cost $3.00

Hosted by the Teton CountyParks and Recreation department, and the first of their Armchair Adventure Series for this winter, I will be giving a presentation on three of Scotland’s Western Isles, including two that are of the ‘Inner Hebrides’ group.

Specifically, the islands are Arran (also known as Scotland in Miniature), in trhe Firth of Clyde, Islay – of island whisky fame -, and the Isle of Mull, with its fabulous sea-scapes and mountains. The images feature areas visited by my Scottish photography tours this spring and summer.

All images copyright T. Hamish Tear – Using Nikon D300 and D700 bodies with various Nikon Lenses.

Resources: www.ScotlandPhotoWorkshops.com; http://www.tetonwyo.org/AgencyHome.asp?dept_id=parks www.Nikonusa.com Hamish Tear Photographics

ISSUE XXXVIII – Pat Clayton, Fisheye Guy

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Hamish

GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER – Pat Clayton, Fisheye Guy. www.fisheyeguy.com

All images copyright Pat Clayton (Click images to enlarge)

Canon 20mm, ISO 250 f/5.0 1/200sec

Pat Clayton, aka FisheyeGuy is best known for his incredibly beautiful underwater images of Rocky Mountain Trout. He spends his summer summer months ‘trying to document our native trout species in their natural environment’ (according to his web site) - that is – under water. When you think of the technological challenges that creates, his photography is all the more remarkable. Reading between the lines of his photographs you can see the

Canon 20mm, ISO 250 f/8.0 1/200sec

perferctly content naturalist that also exists within this photographer’s interests. He fishes for images – not for meat. Pat’s business tag line is “Native trout and Salmon in their natural habitat.”

Pat explains that rivers are probably the most dynamic

Canon 20mm, ISO 250 f/5.0 1/200sec

environment on earth, and therefore the trout he is trying to photograph are constantly adjusting to that environment. That is – they are always moving around either singly or in schools under the water and in and around eddies, rocks, ledges, overhags, in and out of the current, in and out of the sun, and suddenly darting to wherever food is or away in flight at the slightest hint of an intruder – such as a photographer! Pat reports that ‘it takes a confluence of events to capture an image that will make an impact’. And he certainly has a large showing of them on his web site and in various galleries.

Canon 70mm, ISO 160 f/11.0 1/250sec

An idea of what Pat goes through in order to achieve these images may be gleaned from this passage in his web site: ”The first hard frost of the year sees me pouring over google earth, searching for potential freshwater seeps in the most remote corners of Yellowstone’s deadfall-infested marshes, where I know brilliantly colored brookies will be staging for their spawn. Just after the first heavy snow in the high country,
when the Cottonwoods are a deep yellow, finds me stumbling over barb wire fences
in search of a plug of hook nose browns charging headlong out of a reservoir for
their fall ritual. Finding these spots during these moments is the key to having
a chance to get that shot.

Canon 24mm, ISO 160 f/3.2 1192.0sec

Pat is quite honest in admitting that modern digital technology and the ability to take thousands of frames is what allows him to get maybe one image out of thousands, or out of a 10-day shooting session. He is obviously an out-doorsman quite at home in the wilderness who knows the vast Yellowstone Ecosystem well enough to be able to second-guess where the best fish and surroundings will be at certain specific times of year. Pat has endless patience and stamina to be able to set up and stay out there for many hours and days at a time just to get that perfect shot. And perfect they are: his iconic images show the beauty of various types of trout in the Rocky Mountain rivers, streams and lakes – along with the dappled light on the fish and on the colorful pebbles among which they swim and in which they spawn.

Canon 23mm, ISO 100 f/4.2 1/800 sec.

Pat’s work doesn’t stop there – he is equally adept at producing stunning mountain panoramas, generally within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem or further afield in Wyoming, Montana and Alaska. A plethora of steep and deep ski action images shows a photographer of multiple talents and personal physical abilities, and his technical photographic expertise shines in his newest collection of night time images, where star trail shots show clear night skies with long exposures over the well known mountain ridges of the region. An interesting trick is bulb exposures of a mountain route with the trails of headlamps as climbers labor up mountain routes in the dark.

Pat’s work is an example of how it’s not about the gear – he started out with a point-and-shoot, moved up to a Canon Rebel and then into his current Canon 5D MkI - with a Canon EF 20mm f/2.8 USM lens. Pat reports that this is as wide as he likes to go without introducing distortion.

Pat’s images are currently showing here: http://www.altitudegallerybozeman.com/ His framed art is also available at local art shows throughout the Rocky Mountain Region.

Resources: http://www.fisheyeguyphotography.com/index.asp, http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-20mm-f-2.8-USM-Lens-Review.aspx , www.Canon.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Fish-Eye-Guy-Photography/360786338758

Pat Clayton, Fisheyeguy, resides in Boseman Montana. His work features wildlife, mountains and skiing primarily within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. www.ApertureJacksonHole.com exists to share any news and joys about photography and photographers in the Jackson Hole / Greater Yellowstone area. Please participate by sending me your photo news, photos or recommended guest photographers. To subscribe, please use the RSS feed button on the site.

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ISSUE XXXVII – David Stubbs

Posted on December 26, 2011 by Hamish

GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER – David Stubbs. www.davidstubbs.com

All images copyright David Stubbs. (Click images to enlarge)

It was at Tom Turiano’s 45th. birthday party that I met David Stubbs. Having seen and admired his photography for quite a few years, I was both delighted to make his acquaintance – and surprised as to his apparent youth – for being such an accomplished photographer.

His career path is similar to many Jackson Hole photographers I have interviewed for Aperture Jackson Hole – yet again there were differences. Far and wide exotic travel with camera (South AAmerica, Asia, Europe) and all the while photographing like crazy prompted him to change from a literature and German degree at Grady College of Journalism, University of Georgia, to a photogjournalism major – having been encouraged to do so by a university head of photography department who liked David’s work. This professor had won a Pulizer prize and had been a photo editor for the Miami Herald and the St. Petersburg Times - David took his advice. Whilst at university, David also wrote and photographed for ’Flagpole’ Magazine in Athens.

From there, dedication and hard work resulted in a solid career path, leading David to eventually enjoy photographic successes and a life-stile to be admired in Jackson Hole.

Moving on to his first newspaper reporting job for Ogden’s Standard Examiner wasn’t quite such a blast – “I seemed to do nothing but photograph dead people.” David told me. He was first on the scene at a truck wreck near Snow Basin Ski Area: “The wheels on the overturned semi were still spinning when I got there – and there was the driver…who had been ejected and flattened.”

The Jackson Hole Guide (precursor to Jackson Hole News and Guide) was David’s next gig in 1999. “I saw the posting and looked at where Jackson Hole was and thought to myself “Now that’s where I want to be.” He was taken on by the head of photography, David O’Connor; our very own Tom Dewell was editor.

All thje while David had been steadily building his stock portfoilio during an active life of the activities we all love in the out-doors in the Greater Yellowstone Area and Rocky Mountains - punctuated by more travels to Europe (his sweetheart lived in Germany). That continued with a cushy number he got working for the Forest Service as a hydrology surveyor mapping for water rights issues (he also has a degree in geology). Abuse of wetlands and riparian corridors got him interested in conservation photography – and all the while his stock was growing and improving.

By 2004 Getty Images was selling David’s images to the big names in the out-doors industries in the explosive 80′s and 90′s, bringing a handsome income but which now has had its day. Furthermore, David looks at the whole problem of loving the out-doors to death with disdain and perplexity. We all want to be in it and be paid for working there – but at what cost?

A stint with Tom Mangelsen (Images of Nature, head office in Jackson Hole) as an assistant in the editing department was most valuable to David as this taught him so much about the business of photography from one of the best in the photography business. “Working with Tom taught me to value my work and how to charge for it accordingly.” David explained.

David is keen to use his keen photojournalistic skills to highlight the plight of those in need around the world – those in war zones, refugees, famine-crippled countries. He is passionate about lending his photography to a cause. However, in conversations with many, including iconic photographers like Rick Clarkson, David was advised that photographers in this line of business have high divorce rates. Plus it can be very dangerous and photographers die. With wife, daughter of three and another on the way, David has decided to stick around and has sculpted his business in a way that keeps him closer to home much of the time. Weddings in Jackson Hole are plentiful, are a topic he shoots extremely well and from which he enjoys satisfying success.

But it would be wrong to pigeon-hole David’s work. He will expertly shoot any of photography’s specialties and is now also working in video, able to turn his hand to whatever will work in these changing and challenging times for photographers.

David’s primary cameras are a pair of Canon 5D MkII bodies with an assortment of Canon lenses.

Resources: http://www.davidstubbs.com/david-stubbs-photography-l.html www.jacksonholenewsandguide.com www.idojacksonhole.com Tom Mangelsesen

ISSUE XXXVI – News Update

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Hamish

CODY BRINTON - Wins Awards for Himself and the Teton County Fair.

Press Release from Teton County Fair in Jackson Hole:

The Teton County Fair has received two first place awards in the 2011 International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE) contests in the category of Agricultural Photo Series for photos taken by Cody Brinton of The Way Eye See It � this is the 3^rd consecutive year Cody has won an award for his images of of fair and rodeos across the west. In the category of Best Display Photo for a photo taken by Lee Judge. The Fair also won for a photo submitted by fairgoer Catherine Harward. That photo is on the 2012 STAATS calendar.

In conversation with Cody Brinton, he also informs me that no less than 37 of his images were used in print last month alone. Cody had the PRCA Circuit finals photography contract and all the rodeo and sports magazines were buying his ‘official’ materials. He also had a double truck in the Pro Rodeo Sports News.

Well Done Cody Brinton.

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ISSUE XXXVI – Tom Mangelsen Wins

Aside

Tom Mangelsen Wins Prestigious Photography Award

Tom Mangelsen is undoubtedly Jackson Hole’s most prestigious wildlife photographer with accolades and awards won over 30 years of solid nature photography specialization. Mangelsen has now won an international competition, naming him as Conservation Photographer of the Year.

As reported in the Jackson Hole Daily, his photographs will soon be displayed in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C.

Mangelsen’s work has also been featured on CNN, BBC, NBC and he has won the BBC’s WIldlife Photographer of the Year.

The competition, as part of the 2011 Nature’s Best Photography WIndland Smith Rice International Awards, goes well beyond photography. Mangelsen’s continuous work as an ambassador for many of his subjects and ‘nature’ as a whole were recognized in the part of the competition that required implementation of meaningful and measurable conservation efforts that inform and educate the public about environmental concerns and resolution opportunities. Mangelsen’s letters to the Jackson Hole News and Guide concerning wildlife (especially grizzly bears) management in Grand Teton National Park have certainly placed him as a local expert and conservation advocate. He was also a founding member of The Cougar Fund and works closely with Jane Goodall in her conservation efforts, especially with African primates.

Sandra Windland Smith Rice, for whom the Conservation Photographer of the Year competition was named, was a photographer who devoted much of her life to supporting emerging photographers.

More than a photographer, Mangelsen is an astute business man. He has well-known and highly regarded retail stores, Images of Nature) in several states, with the flagship store right here in Jackson Wyoming.

Resources: Images of Nature; Sandra Windland ‘Wendy’ Smith Rice, Conservation Photographer of the Year

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ISSUE XXXV – The Last Ocean (Continued)

Posted on December 9, 2011 by Hamish

THE LAST OCEAN – ANTARCTICA’S ROSS SEA (Continued) Photos By John Weller www.johnbweller.com All images © John Weller.

The Ocean Conservation Project site is: http://www.oceanfdn.org/ocean-conservation-projects/listings/the-last-ocean-project See also: www.lastocean.co.nz

This is the first time I have been so moved by a project or a photographer’s work that I am writing a second post about it. If you missed the last one, it is about the exhibit currently hanging in the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I had written yesterday’s post only having seen the display – but before spekaing with John Weller himself – which I did yesterday. So this post is more about the man than the photographs.

For starters, John B Weller is a self-made man when it comes to photography and underwater specialties. His photography came from a life of always having a camera in hand from boyhood – his SCUBA diving prowess came from three years of hard work to get the most advanced certifications – upon realizing that the only way to tell the true story of life in the Antarctic was to get into the sea, under the ice, and onto the sea floor.

Weller is also adept at grant-writing and does so in great part as a means to finance his own travels to this Polar region in the name of raising awareness to the dangers facing the ecosystem. When asked if his original profession as an economist helped him in his grant-writing efforts, he jests: “No – it only helps me to realize just how poor I am at any given moment.”

This is another great truth about Weller and his work / cause – he is generous and humble to a fault. He downplays his photography expertise by explaining that, with visibility in The Ross Sea at about ten times that of other marine environments, and no currents to combat - who could fail to take good photos? And the dangers of diving under the ice…makes me shiver. At 37 years old he is pouring all of his energy into The Last Ocean Project (and has done so for seven years). Rather than seeking fame and fortune from his tremendous talents and achievements as a photographer – he is dedicated to funding the cause and sells the images only as a way of rasing funds. He was quick to recommend that I refer to the Ocean Foundation web site over his own photography web site (although I have done both). On one occasion, his images of the Sand Dunes in Colorado’s San Luis Valley (also under threat) prompted one philanthropic buyer to purchase five complete sets of the entire show.

That Sand Dunes show and his work on ‘Sanctuary – The Last Stand for Sharks’ – photographed in the Bahamas in conjunction with the Pew Environment Group and the Bahamas National Trust were instrumental in getting Weller started on this almost accidental ‘career’ path of conservation photography – especially marine.

Weller’s under-sea conservation imagery is so powerful that he is now in demand in many areas of the world that are in similar need. Weller himself is the director of The Last Ocean Project. This excerpt from that web site illustrates the great dedication that goes into making his images be seen nationwide, Worldwide if possible, and the cause known:

“In addition to producing media on the Ross Sea, we are working towards producing a global exposé on vitally important ocean issues and places. To show our media, we’ve developed An Ocean Outdoor Cinema – a touring theater that brings the power of the ocean to underserved communities; and The Ocean Voice Website – an ocean news and information service built in web platform that presents media in a powerful, elegant framework.”

Weller’s images were made with a Canon 1D MkII in a ‘Sea-Cam’ housing, and Canon lenses from the ubiquitous 16 – 35mm lense up to an amazing 600mm – almosy unheard of in ocean photography.

Prints may be purchased here: http://www.johnbweller.com/contact-and-prints.php

Resources: Canon, Pew Environment Group, Sand Dunes National Park, National Wildlife Art Museum, John Weller, http://www.oceanfdn.org/ocean-conservation-projects/listings/the-last-ocean-project, www.lastocean.co.nz.

This post is also being posted to The Last Ocean Project Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Ocean-Voice/200644736673129 and http://www.facebook.com/thelastocean

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