Anyone can take good pictures in Iceland…

T

TwoWheeler

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…or on safari in Africa!

Let’s see some of the Youtube hotshots come here and get good photos between November and April, when the sky is always one giant 18% gray card, the foliage is dead and the birds and animals have hibernated or migrated. :mad:
 
This is something I often think of as well, living in a place that I feel doesn't have a whole lot of visual appeal much of the time. For me it's always an impetus to go to try to look at things in an interesting way.

The one stereotypically interesting feature of my region is waterfalls. There are many close by. So my own version of this thought has always been that anyone can take a a good picture of a waterfall.
 
miuzi said:
The one stereotypically interesting feature of my region is waterfalls. There are many close by. So my own version of this thought has always been that anyone can take a a good picture of a waterfall.
Click to expand...
I beg to differ! I have taken many a crappy photo of a waterfall! To me, the appealing things about waterfalls can't be captured in a still photo - the motion and the sound. Here's a case in point - and it also reinforces my contention about this being a crappy time of year for photos around here:

031A6082.jpg


miuzi said:
This is something I often think of as well, living in a place that I feel doesn't have a whole lot of visual appeal much of the time. For me it's always an impetus to go to try to look at things in an interesting way.
Click to expand...
Yeah, this thread it tongue-in-cheek humor (or "humour" if you prefer...) about poor conditions making it a lot harder to get good shots. I believe there are always good photos to be had (but not GREAT ones - those are a gift), but you have to work a lot harder and maybe change your perspective,

Again, case in point: after wasting my time and risking an Urgent Care visit last weekend climbing down in a 150' gorge to get the above photo that I think is -meh-, I got this one that I am happier with, one further upstream:

031A6075.jpg


Not quite the same as flying my drone over a volcano, but think of how much I saved in plane fare....
 
I saw a video recently that discussed what a "professional" photographer will generally do to get the shot, compared to a "hobbyist". He talked about the financial outlay to get to a location, the physical effort need (trekking for hours with a backpack full of gear), the dangers (cliffs, frostbite, etc), the time needed (perhaps many hours or a whole day just sitting there in the cold waiting for the light to be right), the time alone and away from family, the potential that you can do all this and still get nothing good, etc. I think even in Iceland, it's not about just leaning out the car window and pressing the shutter button.
 
paulr5 said:
I saw a video recently that discussed what a "professional" photographer will generally do to get the shot, compared to a "hobbyist".
Click to expand...

This is very tongue in cheek humor about crappy conditions- not really an attempt to throw shade on what they do. Pretty sure I could stand right next to them, with the same equipment and not get as good photos as they do, but…
paulr5 said:
He talked about the financial outlay to get to a location, the physical effort need (trekking for hours with a backpack full of gear), the dangers
Click to expand...

Exactly my point. They’re not taking photos in their own neighborhoods either - even they go to a “target rich” environment! It’s even more important to increase your odds of success when your livelihood depends on it.
 
Wonderful images David. Unfortunately, from the looks of it, despite living in Canada, I'm about as far from those regions of Canada as I am from Iceland. I still do what I can to spot opportunities for compelling images even on the streets of my neighbourhood.
IMG_0557.JPG
 
miuzi said:
I still do what I can to spot opportunities for compelling images even on the streets of my neighbourhood.
Click to expand...
The struggle is real! ;)

(I like that shot…and that’s not really my thing. I like the mood and the leading line of streetlights makes me want to know what’s down there.)

I think lack of a predetermined subject is actually a good learning experience for me. It forces me out of boxed in thinking about what I’m going to shoot…which kind of ties into why I shoot in the first place: to open my damned eyes to what’s around me.
 
Hey Paul - you could take a shot of anything in Canada and I would be jealous, have literally just booked our next visit for this time next year - the planning begins YEAH
 

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