Photographing Evidence of Evil

In an age where there is always a camera present, when taking a photo has become an inevitable act in nearly every situation, sometimes we have to step back and ask ourselves, "Is this appropriate?"  Clearly, this thought doesn't enter into the minds of many.  Some view the selfie as a symptom of societal degradation, promoting narcissism and materialism.  Instead of focusing on an experience, people now focus on themselves.  Instead of participating in the moment, people are concerned with the angle of their selfie sticks, the tilt of their heads, the flawless application of makeup and accessories.  It is no surprise, of course, that such activities occur during events or in places where it is completely inappropriate.  The most famous of these instances is perhaps that moment when Helle Thorning-Schmidt, then Prime Minister of Denmark, British Prime Minister David Cameron, and the President of the United States Barack Obama sat down next to each other at Nelson Mandela's funeral, leaned in, and smirked into the camera of Thorning-Schmidt's smartphone.  Yes, we live in a time when leaders of the free world do not think twice about taking a selfie.  At a funeral.

So, with that in mind, there are times when I question the appropriateness of even taking a simple photograph.  I often wrestle with this problem even in normal situations.  Should I be concerned about taking a photograph or should I be completely in the moment? It's a struggle that many photographers deal with, especially, I think, travel photographers.  We must find the balance between appreciating and experiencing a place or moment and documenting it.

When we began planning a visit to the Dachau Concentration camp, I especially struggled with the question of photographing the experience.  I was concerned the act would not only be inappropriate and upsetting, but also would also inadvertently build a screen between us and the place.  This was a location that had to be respected with our complete attention.  However, after careful thought, I decided I would photograph it.  The purpose of these memorials and museums is to educate the public, to honor the victims of the holocaust, and to say once and for all, "Yes, this happened.  This is how it happened.  We must be vigilant that it does not happen again."  It is the responsibility of those of us who visit these places to not only honor them with our behavior while there, but also to tell others about them.   Photographs are documentation.  I could not go to this place and not fulfill my obligation to document it.

Interrogation room, Camp Prison.

This camp was the first concentration camp developed by the Nazis.   It was opened in an abandoned munitions factory near the city of Dachau (16km north of Munich) in March of 1933, just short of the two month anniversary of Hitler becoming chancellor of Germany.  Originally, it was a camp for around 5,000 German and Austrian political prisoners, those who did not agree with the new autocracy- members of opposing political parties, the clergy, members of the German and Austrian royal families, and those who participated in the German and Austrian resistance.  However, it was quickly expanded and eventually encompassed 100 subcamps. The complex contained a total of over 188,000 political prisoners, Jews, homosexuals, prisoners of war, "asocials", Sinti and Roma, and other undesirable immigrants from 1933 to 1945.  They were tortured, used for slave labor, and the subjects of medical experiments. It is known that at least 28,000 people were killed at this camp between 1940 and its liberation in 1945.  The numbers of the dead prior to 1940 are unknown.

Today the main camp location is a memorial and museum site.  The barracks were all destroyed, but two have been reconstructed.  The rest are marked in stone and gravel.

The camp prison, maintenance building, crematoriums, gates, watch towers, and fence still stand.  They serve as museums and memorial sites.  Religious chapels for various faiths were built on the northern end of the complex after the creation of the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site in 1965.

Camp prison courtyard.  The posts in the background were used for hanging torture.

Camp Prison cell block.

Crematorium

Gas chamber.  There is no evidence that the gas chamber in Dachau was ever used.

Crematory ovens.

Today it is becoming easier and easier for people to set aside the holocaust as being "so long ago" as to not be important.  "It's time to move on," is a phrase I've heard and read in several places.  "It was a bizarre historical anomaly that was the product of an extreme situation." But, is 70 years that long ago?  Should we move on?  Repurpose these sites? Place all of this in a file and seal it up with the other events of the past that we believe no longer matter, but are now just topics for historians?  Was the genocide of millions in Europe truly an anomaly?

Only a fool would answer yes.  The anger and hatred against those who are different has never actually subsided.  It festers underneath.  We have not moved on.  Terrible acts of genocide continue to occur in this time.  Patriotism quickly becomes nationalism.  Debates turn into exchanges of hate speech.  Stereotypes give birth to profiling which becomes the tool of discrimination and mistreatment.  In some parts of the world the "different" are beaten, raped, and beheaded; in others they are prosecuted.  And here?  Europe now faces a new crisis of conscience as refugees from the Middle East seek shelter within its borders.  The governments of some of these countries did not hesitate before immediately plunging into fear mongering rhetoric and enacting anti-migrant policies.  Others opened their doors.  However, as the crisis continues, it is becoming clear that even in these "safe havens" the scales are beginning to tip.  Baseball bat wielding gangs have been spotted here and there in the streets of Germany, on the exact mission the brown shirts once claimed. The same evil born of ignorance, fear, and hatred which was unleashed in the 1930's and 40's is waiting patiently for its chance to rise again in this century.  In some places, it already has.  The only way to stop it from spreading is by shining a light on it and calling it out for what it is.

We have not succeeded and probably never will in ridding humanity of its desire to destroy itself.  That does not mean we shouldn't try at least to recognize its symptoms within ourselves.  It is our responsibility to continue to share the stories of the holocaust and other tragedies and crimes of history with later generations, not sweep them under the rug.  We should be slapped in the face with their reality and all their horrors.  These camps, documentation centers, memorials, and museums must be visited.  They are certainly not places for portraits and selfies; here we must for once take our minds off ourselves, and stand in awe of history and the brink of a possible future.  Yes, they must be photographed, with respect and mindfulness.  They must be seen.  In a short time those who survived and witnessed these events will no longer be with us to share their stories.  From then on, we and future generations will be left with recordings, writings, and photographs.  They must be preserved and hallowed, and the ruins of the Nazi legacy which still stand should be photographed today.  Buildings too crumble into dust.  At no point should we be complacent enough leave this evidence of evil unexposed to the world.

Dachau Concentration Camp Museum and Memorial

Failing Days of Autumn

For me, the end of Autumn, the days around Halloween and the beginning of November, signify the end of the year.  The holidays are their own season, the bridge between calendar years.  In my mind, the year ends when the clocks change and the days become darker.  Everything becomes quieter and subdued.  The local festivities of September have ended, the Volksfests and outdoor concerts.  The biergartens have been closed up.

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 24 Exposure: f/7.1 1/60 ISO 800

Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 32.9
Exposure: f/2.8, 1/250, ISO 1250

Autumn takes on a different significance here in rural Bavaria than it does in Northeast Ohio.  People are more tied to the land and the harvest season is significant not because of pumpkin spiced everything or it being "sweater weather" again, but because it is still considered the time of year to prepare for Winter.  The walnut trees are dropping their hard-shelled nuts along the paths and roads and every morning you can spot folks with bags and baskets competing with the crows in collecting them from the ground.  Apples lay in piles in the orchards and in the evening the orchards' owners and their families are on ladders, picking the last from the branches.  The apples are for eating, for selling, and for turning into juice and Apfelwein.  The Schrebergarten have mostly yielded up their bounties for the year, but a few gourds and squash can be seen amongst the decaying leaves and shriveled vines, their white and golden bellies turned up to what remains of the watery daylight.  The gardeners, and almost every Bavarian is a gardener, are raking mulch, burning leaves, tying up bushes in burlap, and cleaning out the bottles and other paraphernalia from the sheds.   The ducks and swans have returned to the festplatz field in front of our house.  Crows are roosting once again in the trees along the walking path.  Spiderwebs woven in the night to the bridges and branches fall apart from the weight of the water drops which are strung on their fibers like so many crystal pearls.  The leaves have mostly all changed now, but they haven't all fallen yet.  I imagine in another week or two the brilliance of the leaves will have faded completely and the trees will be dormant and skeletal.  For two weeks, we've been blanketed in thick, Ardennes levels of fog in the mornings.  It is so thick the houses a few doors down are missing.  The town across the river has completely vanished.  As the sun creeps over the Spessart hills across the river, I hop aboard the Varsity and ride around the local bike paths from town to town snapping photos of leaves, the fog, and whatever else catches my eye.  By the afternoon, the skies have cleared and the sun lights up the hills in all their brilliance before it sets at 5:00pm.

Before long, this time of year will come to an end.  The leaves will be raked up and hauled off to the compost center at the edge of town or burned.  It will rain almost every day.  The land will go from gold and red to brown and grey.  Of course, then it won't be too much longer afterwards that the Christmas season will amp into full swing.  There will be lights in windows, markets to attend, and Glühwein to enjoy.  But, for now, we'll reflect and bask in this quiet closing of the year.

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 35 Exposure: f/3.6, 1/2500, ISO 2500

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 35 Exposure: f/3.6, 1/640, ISO 2500

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 35 Exposure: f/5, 1/1000, ISO 2500

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 24 Exposure: f/10, 1/32, ISO 800

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 13.8 Exposure: f/22, 1/40, ISO 1250

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 11.5 Exposure: f/6.4, 1/2000, ISO 800

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 128 Exposure: f/4.4, 1/2000, ISO 800

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 110.3 Exposure: f/13, 1/125, ISO 250

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 200 Exposure: f/4.8, 1/250, ISO 800

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 35.8 Exposure: f/5.6, 1/250, ISO 1000

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 44.4 Exposure: f/4, 1/320, ISO 1000 Fujifilm Velvia Simulation

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 42.5 Exposure: f/10, 1/125, ISO 1000 Fujifilm Velvia Simulation

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 21.4 Exposure: f/11, 1/125, ISO 1000 Fujifilm Velvia Simulation

Zazzle Shop & 2016 Wall Calendar Now Available

Buy the new 2016 Scenic Europe calendar here!

I've received a few requests over the last year to do a wall calendar.  Even though we all have online calendars and schedules on our phones, wall calendars still have some appeal.  Scrolling through the year on a phone doesn't have the same satisfaction as flipping the page over every month.  So, I'm happy to announce that my 2016 Scenic Europe calendar is now available!

You can find it on my new Zazzle shop.  The calendar is 14.25"x11" (36.2cm x 28cm) and spiral bound.  Each month features one of my most popular photographs from Austria, Belgium, The Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Hungary, or Norway.  So, for the price of three 11"x14" prints, you can have 12- and a nice way to stay organized in 2016!  And, there's another reason you may be interested in picking up a copy.  I will be donating a portion of my proceeds from each calendar sale to a very special program.

Even though we make our home in Germany, the U.S. is still where our hearts are.  While it may seem a little archaic, one of the ways we stay connected with home is through the radio.  There's an Armed Forces Network radio broadcast out of Wiesbaden and thankfully its broadcast area reaches all the way over to us.  Through it we stay up to date with what's going on at home in the States.  Also, and this is kind of difficult to explain, there's something really comforting about being able to hear the voices of people from the U.S.  We're very isolated where we live, completely immersed in rural Germany.  To be totally honest, there isn't a day that goes by that we aren't reminded of our status as outsiders.  This little radio station has brought a lot of comfort.  The AFN is, of course, a network for American Armed Forces bases, and the commercials and information relate to service members and their families.  So, these folks have been on my mind quite a bit.  I come from a family of veterans.  My grandfather served in the European theater of World War II, an uncle served in Korea, and my father fought in Vietnam.  Thankfully, they all came home without injuries or illness.  But, many service members are not blessed with that outcome.  Unfortunately, those that sacrifice everything for their country often receive the minimum help and the support they need when they are injured or seriously ill.  The sad reality is the federal government does not prioritize them.  Other organizations step in and try to fill the gap.  One of them is America's Fund.  It is one of the top rated veterans support non-profits out there and it provides help to members from every branch of the military.  This is the organization I've chosen to donate the calendar proceeds to.  I know people have varying opinions on the use of military force, foreign policy, and all that.  However, I don't think that the importance and value of service members and their families is up for debate.  No matter what our political views are, all Americans should all stand squarely behind these incredible people.

When you order you are given the option to choose the starting year (since this is labeled 2016, you'll probably want to leave that alone), the "culture" (which really means language), and the holiday listing.  Since these are sold from the U.S. store the only holiday options are for the States, so select "None" if you live somewhere else (unless you want to observe American holidays).  The calendar is available in Dutch, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swedish.  In order to retain print quality I've only made the calendar available in the large size.

Back cover.

The calendar isn't the only thing available in my Zazzle shop.  I've been adding a variety of products every few days.  Right now there's a line of products featuring the Schiessentumpel waterfall (phone cases, pillow, stationary, puzzle) and many home and kitchen items with an an Autumn theme (napkins, cups, plates).  There is also another calendar available that is a small single page wall calendar featuring photographs from Germany.  I'm really excited about opening up this shop option.  I know it's difficult to commit to the traditional photographic medium of print and wall art (we only have so much wall space!).  But, with this option you can purchase functional items for your home or office that feature my photographs.  And, just to be clear, the donations to America's Fund will only be coming out of the 2016 Scenic Europe calendar proceeds.

So, head on over to my Zazzle shop and check it out.  I'd really appreciate it!

Magic in the Mundane

In relation to last week's post, I'm still pondering a lot of subjects.  Besides what body to add to the kit before things amp again after the new year, I've been reflecting on the bigger picture (ha ha) of photography.  Why do we take pictures?  What is the purpose?  Why do I take pictures?  Why do I take the pictures that I do?  I've been doing a great deal of thinking, reading, and listening to podcasts.  Most of the time all that information and opinion overwhelms and sends my thoughts in a thousand different directions, but occasionally someone else writes or says something that turns the light on, the muddled thoughts drift away, and I get a sense of clarity.

The other day I listened to one of the We Shoot Fuji podcasts (#9) and it was one of those times that a light was shone into darkness.  That particular episode didn't talk so much about gear or technique, but covered exactly what I've been thinking about- what really matters in photography.  What I took away was that the goal is to capture a moment, to tell a story, and to document the world.  It's an excellent podcast episode and I highly recommend everyone listen to it even if they're just a casual shooter and no matter what they shoot with.  It kinda changed the way I see what I do.

When I first started seriously taking pictures with a real camera, I was shooting everything.  We had moved halfway around the world.  Everything, everything was different, new, and interesting.  As time passed, things weren't new and interesting anymore.  The people were just people, streets were streets, buildings were buildings.  Everything that was new had become normal.  So, I started focusing on scenes and subjects that still felt new and caught my eye.  That turned into scenic photography, and then filters and HDR blends.  While that was all well and good, and I love working those types of shots, I was neglecting the simple.  I got it in my head that I had to specialize.  I started only thinking about golden hour and blue hour and exposure times.  I was starting to lose the point.

Here's the thing, I don't have to specialize.  I don't work with clients.  I don't have to convince someone that I'm the best for the job.  It's me and the camera, not me and the camera and the person who hired me to take their picture.  I'm free from all of that, so why tie my own hands and mind? If I close doors on myself by just focusing on one type of shot, I'm preventing myself from experiencing why I started shooting in the first place.  Why did I?  To document as much as I could about this experience.  It's not just sunrises and sunsets and the early evening hours, its the whole day.  It's seeing everything as if it's for the first time again.  Not just wide, but tight.  Not just dramatic scapes, but the little things, the local character, the street scenes, the rainy days, and glorious days.  It's about capturing the truth.  Not just when we're on the road, but the days at home too.  It's not just pulling out the camera when we're visiting a new place, it's about seeing my town the same way.  It's about getting out there and using the camera and enjoying it, not about making it a job.

One of the photographers on the podcast compared it to portrait photography.  He said that even though those professional portraits of the family where everyone is looking their best are important and have value, the shots that really matter are the candids taken by you when everyone is relaxed and themselves.  They're not always perfectly lit and the subject's hair, outfit, or make-up may not be perfect either, but the moment is real.  What was going on in that photo actually happened, it was a authentic moment in time.  No one was out of shot posing the subject.  There weren't any reflectors bouncing the light just right.  It was true, a special instant worth capturing.  It tells a real story, not the story the subject wanted to be told.  He mentioned how when there is a house fire, people run to save their photos.  Those photos are even more special when they're of people who are no longer with us.  Which of those photographs are more meaningful, the professional portraits or the snapshots?  It's probably the snapshots, because those images show that person as they really were.

The same thing can be applied for other types of photography too.  In my case, the sweeping scenic shots are the professional portraits.  They are presenting a location at its best, when the light is just right.  A lot of work goes into those shots both during the moment and in post afterwards.  The other shots, the street shots and the tight shots, they're the ones that usually tell a story.  They're the ones that present the heart of a location, the ones that show a place for what it really is.  The scenic shots certainly have value.  They're eye candy, they say, "Hey, look at this beautiful place, don't ya wanna visit?"  When I see them after they're done I think of the process.  The other shots take the viewer a little deeper.  When I see them I remember the moment I took them.

So, what does that mean?  I'm not going to stop shooting scapes and scenery.  However, I am not going to neglect the other shots anymore.  It's going to take some retraining, but I don't want to miss the whole experience like I have been lately.  That means I'm going to be shooting a lot more stuff, and I'm going to be presenting it here, on Instagram, and I'll start using my Flickr account again.  I'll be presenting more tight shots and more street (I'm not going to worry so much about that anti-candid movement in the EU as much as I used to).  As a part of this, I'm going to take my camera around town with me and document the place that's the biggest part of my life.  We're not going to be living here forever, and it would be a crime not to have many photographs of it.  Since we're not heading anywhere out of town until Thanksgiving, this is the perfect time to work on this project, which I'm entitling "Magic in the Mundane."  Here are a couple shots from this week that I took while walking The Dog along the Main River.  One of the river locks is in our town and it's a favorite spot for dog walking.  I took the X-E2 out with the 18-55mm lens and took a few wide shots of the lock and the river, but my eye was really caught by what was going on at ground level.  The bollards along the docking area at the lock aren't used very often and several of them have plant life growing around them.  Right now, the leaves are turning red and something about these delicate leaves wrapped around that bollard on a rusty metal plate and asphalt fascinated me.  You open the door to nature and it jumps in.

Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 19.6 Ex: 1/1000, f/4.0, ISO 800

 River barges go by all day and when we first moved here, I loved watching them.  They're from all over Europe.  Each one has its own character, something that makes it unique.  Even though I've become quite accustomed to seeing them, I still stop what I'm doing sometimes to watch them go by.  Occasionally, one stops at the lock so the crew can make a supply run.  This doesn't happen very often since we're not a large town so I took the opportunity to take a photo.

Camera: X-E2 Focal length: 18mm Ex: 1/640, f/7.0, ISO 800

 This is one of the boats that went by today.  It moving pretty quickly and had one of those big old "chugga chugga" diesel engines.  I think it would be great to participate in a cruise on one of these barges; start out in someplace like Rotterdam and end at the Black Sea, passing through industrial cities, small towns like ours, and the incomparable European countryside along the way.

Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 34.4mm Ex: 1/400, f/8, ISO 1250

This last shot is one of those that begs the whole story.  I don't know it.  I'd love to.  I see this man pretty regularly from the opposite side of the river.  About once a week, there he is, fishing with at least three or four feline companions.  I don't know if he passes a few of his catch over to his pals or if they're there to take care of the guts, but it's quite the scene.  Lots of people fish along the river, usually with a human friend, sometimes with a dog.  I'm pretty sure he's the only one that fishes with a clowder of cats!  I was originally out with the 18-55mm, but had to come back out with the 55-200mm for this one.  Thankfully, they were still there when I returned.

Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 200mm Ex: 1/640, f/5, ISO 1250

These are the kinds of things I want to make sure I'm seeing and capturing again.  So, if you're interested in checking out some of these shots, follow on Instagram or check out my Flickr page (which I'll be updating over the next couple of days).  And, of course, there's always something new popping up on the website.  Check out the German Countryside gallery for the latest!

Questions for Fall Days

It's been pretty quite around here lately.  The weather turned from summer to fall to winter in about six days and we've been scrambling to cope with the fast plummet into dark days and cold rain.  We don't have any travel dates lined up until November when we head back to Ohio for the annual visit home.  So, we've been hanging around locally and spending a lot of time cycling (trying to stave off the inevitable holiday chub as long as possible, ha ha).  Of course, this time of year is probably the most dramatic visually.  I've been taking the camera out as much as possible when we get a break from the seasonal monsoon.  We did a quick shoot on Sunday and I got out early one morning this week when there was some fog on the river.  The rest of the time it's been pretty wet or we've been out on the bikes.

Every weekend morning when we're home we're cycling.  We also hit the roads a couple of weekday evenings after my husband gets home from work.  We see a lot of incredible stuff on the roads and paths and, of course, the light is always at its best when the sun is just coming over or heading below the hills.  I don't take a camera with me on these rides, just my iPhone, and that's starting to bug me.  It's very difficult to balance the two things I love to do when they both need the same time of day.  The X-E2 is too big to carry in my jersey pockets, and I don't want to carry it strapped to my back (because a. that's not cool and b. it's pretty uncomfortable).  So, I've been using my iPhone.  Every time I pull it out of my pocket to get a shot of a great sunset, like the one below, I curse the absence of a real camera in my hand.  Sorry, Apple fans, they still don't make a phone camera that can stand up to a real camera.

It's raised the question of what my gear priority should be.  Like a lot of X-Series photographers, I'm waiting and waiting for the official specs on the X-Pro2.  In the meantime, I'm kicking around adding a compact to the collection- something small enough to slide into a jersey pocket, but better performing than the iPhone (which wouldn't take too much.)  I originally looked into a waterproof sports camera, but their capabilities aren't too much better than a smartphone.  Plus, they're designed mostly for underwater applications.  So, keeping in mind that a compact wouldn't be weatherproof, I started to check out some models with higher end glass and a few other features that I would like to have access to.  That's dumped me at the door of Sony and it's Cyber-shot RX100 III (yeah, I realize there's a IV but the older model is cheaper).  It's small, has a slick pop-up view finder, tiltable screen, multiple shooting modes, WiFi, and good optics from the Zeiss lens.  It's a tantalizing choice.  The price, though, isn't.  Knowing that I will be adding another X-Series body for my regular shooting sometime next Spring, the cost of an RX100 III would dip into the budget quite a bit.  But, I'm missing a lot of shots while out on the bike...

Decisions, decisions...

While I ponder this dilemma, I'll keep heading out on the paths with the X-E2 in between the deluges.  It has been absolutely stunning out there lately.

Getting the Shot: The Crappy Truth

Last weekend we drove over to our old stomping grounds in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.  My Raleigh was in dire need of a drive train replacement and we decided that our old shop in Lux was the best place to do it for us.  My husband had a business trip there the previous Tuesday so he dropped the bike off and it was finished by the weekend.  We decided we might as well stay the weekend, meet up with some friends, and do a little hiking with The Dog.  One of the things we do miss about our old home is the hiking trails.  Luxembourg may be super small, but it does have some fabulous hiking.  The Mullerthal region is the premier hiking district in the country and there's a reason for that.  The Mullerthal is easily accessible from Belgium, Germany, and The Netherlands.  It's not the Alps or Scandinavia, but it's a good stand-in for a weekend getaway.  On the trail we met some Dutch, some Germans, some Belgians, and some French.  Clearly, the Mullerthal is the place to be.

I've done a lot of shooting on Luxembourg's trails, but not for about two years.  Also, the last time I was there I was shooting with my old DSLR set up.  I wanted another go with my Fuji, 3 Legged Thing, and the ND filters.  There was one spot in particular I really wanted to revisit.

The Schiessentümpel waterfall is the Mullerthal's most well known sight.  It's not the most impressive waterfall in Europe, but it has a bit of a fairytale feel about it.  I shot it with a Canon Powershot the first year we were there and we hadn't been back.  This time I wanted to spend some more time and craft with the location to capture not only the waterfall, but also to be able to create a scene that conveys the magic of the place.  Little did I know that this was going to be one of the most difficult projects of the year.

I had a conversation a while back about the different types of challenges that photographers deal with depending on their focus.  The person I was talking with seemed to be of the opinion that those of us who focus on scenery have it a little bit easier than those who shoot portraits or special events because our subjects don't move.  Well, my opinion is that every type of photography has its unique challenges and none of them are easier or harder than another- except photojournalism and combat photography, of course.  That's at a whole different level.

When you see a photograph of some natural space, it often looks like a pristine, secluded, nearly untouched place.  I've learned while shooting places like this in Europe (with a high tourist population and lack of definable wilderness) that these images don't tell the truth about their locations.  There are a lot of uncontrollable variables to take into account, the most common and difficult to work around is the human factor.  Our eyes are especially attracted to the human form, which is way people find the Virgin Mary in their bagels.  Unless the goal is to capture a particular individual (like a model) in a place like this, usually the focal point of the photograph is an object in the scene (in this case it is the waterfall) or an entire vista. If there is a person in the shot it immediately distracts the eye.  I wanted the waterfall as my focal point, but I also wanted the eye to take in the entire scene.  A photobomb by a portly tourist in fluorescent pink would, in my opinion, completely ruin the shot.

We came to the falls around 2:30pm on Saturday.  Normally I would try to get to a location early in the morning or later in the evening, but our schedule wouldn't allow that.  Plus, it would be almost totally dark at those times in this location (a deep valley with heavy tree cover).  There were a handful of hikers and tourists milling around, but no more than I usually have to deal with.  However, the falls' proximity to the roadside meant that more people could show up at any time.  I wanted to shoot the waterfall from two vantage points, straight on from a distance and from a large rock directly in front of the falls.  With the amount of people around we were probably looking at about an hour shoot.  It ended up being close to two, and we returned the next day for a second round.  Of the two views I wanted, I ended up with only one acceptable exposure from one of them (on right).  To get this I climbed down the wall (visible on the left) to a large boulder.  This position got me to a place where other tourists couldn't access easily.  The focal length and the tree coverage meant I could probably paint any bombers out.  Thankfully, there was a break in the traffic long enough that I could get a clean 52 secs to take the shot.  Only one person stepped in towards the end of the exposure and painting them out wasn't a problem at all.  In this case, the most difficult part of this shot was the climb down to the vantage point.  But that was fun, so no complaint.  Next, after climbing back up the wall, we crossed the footbridge to get to the other spot I was after.  That's when it got really challenging.

The large rock is visible in the previous shot in front of the falls.  It's a really common vantage point for this location.  By the time we got over to the bridge three other photographers had lined up to do the shot from the rock.  One specific hurdle that scenic photographers have to deal with is each other.  In a spot like this there's always going to be people taking photos.  In this case there was only a few places to set up.  So, there we all stood, waiting for the first guy to take his shot, so the next guy could go.  The trouble was, the first guy was waiting for someone else to move- either to get in the shot or out of it.  Then, he wanted a shot with his friend in it.  Then they wanted to switch to repeat the whole process.  Meanwhile, of course, there were lots of other people moving in and out of the scene trying to get their photos and selfies.  I was the only one using a tripod, so I figured that I would wait because everyone else would, theoretically, be much faster.  It became clear that the other guys must be trying out new cameras because a lot of their time was spent messing with settings and not taking pictures.  Then, some other guy with a steadicam began walking back and forth across the bridge, down the steps near the falls, then back over the bridge to the wall above.  That would have been fine for me since he was moving enough to be blurred out in a long exposure, but he was wearing a bright pink hat that would create an unsightly blur across the entire scene.  Plus, no one else wanted this guy in their shot so all the other photographers were just sitting there on the rock not doing anything but taking up space.  I was positioned down below by the pool at the base of the falls waiting and waiting for everyone else to clear the boulder so I could climb up.  But they weren't.  The clock was ticking and we had an appointment to get to.  Even though it was a dinner, we still had to hike out another 3km to get back to our car and then drive 45 minutes to our hotel and clean up.  As I was standing there wondering what the heck was taking everyone so long, I discovered that I really liked the angle from the pool.  So, I set up my tripod quickly and began shooting.  When I was done, more people began showing up, filling the entire space and the other guys weren't making any sign of moving on.  I was really frustrated and out of time, but I thought I had something good.  We hiked out, passing a lot of stunning samples of trailside fungi and this really cool tunnel through the trees.

I had my waterfall shot from a distance and, I thought, an interesting angle from below the falls.  But, when we got back to the hotel and I uploaded everything to my iPad I discovered that, to my dismay, I didn't have a satisfactory exposure from the pool.  Every single one had a large blur on the left from the elbow of one of the other photographers.  The other guy thought he was out of my shot, but didn't realize I was shooting so wide.  I hadn't seen it on my view screen because of the darkness caused by the ND filter.  It was too large of a distortion to paint out.  I had one clean exposure, but to my complete disappointment the foreground was out of focus.  I was really bummed.  Really bummed.

I decided I wanted, needed to go back out there the next morning.  It meant another 45 minute drive out of our way before a lunch appointment on Sunday, but this time we would just drive up to the falls without hiking in.  We had breakfast at the hotel as soon as we could and ended up at the falls at 9:00am.  It was much darker than it was in the afternoon, but, mercifully, no one else was around.  I immediately set up down at the pool again and started shooting.  We were alone there about 10 minutes before other people started showing up.  I wanted to get a couple of exposures to blend and this took awhile.  Several times I had to stop mid-exposure because someone (always wearing a garish color) stepped into frame.  Because I had to raise the ISO level for the really dark location, I had to wait for the failed exposure to write to the card, which takes the same amount of time as the length of the exposure.  A minute exposure takes a minute to write.  It was definitely a lesson in patience. It took much longer than usual to get the shot, but I finally finished down at the pool and this is the end result of two days and a lot of waiting.

Multiple exposure blend

Then, I immediately moved up to the rock directly in front of the falls.  It took about a half of a minute to get my tripod in a stable position, but when I looked up the previous somewhat empty location was filled, positively filled with people.  Since I didn't even get one shot in before they showed up, there was no painting them out.

If I was shooting an album cover for the band "Dutch Tour Bus" this would have been perfect.  But, it wasn't what I was here for.  Several members of the group joined me on the rock.  The rest seemed to just be hanging out on the bridge.  It's a beautiful place and I certainly don't blame them for wanting to soak it all in.  One of the guys that joined me on the rock asked if I was waiting for something special to happen.  "Yep," I answered, "I'm waiting for this group to move."  He apologized and we laughed about it.  I stood on that rock for about 30 minutes.  I was certain that any minute the bus would head out, but they didn't and more and more people kept showing up.  It must have been a field trip day because these huge groups of people just kept appearing.  I realized that the chances of getting this angle were next to impossible.  I had missed my window.  Again.  When there was a break in the traffic on the rock, I tore down and left it.  We climbed up a short side trail as I reassessed the situation.  We had to get to lunch and once again the clock was ticking.  As we were standing there my husband noticed the view from our vantage point might make a good shot.  It's not the first time he found a good location.  I set up and then, once again, we were playing the waiting game as yet another group of people bombed the shot just as I hit the shutter button.  For some reason, everyone that morning seemed to be wearing pink, so there was no way they would blur out in a long exposure.  I had to wait for a break in the crowds.  One or two people in shot were workable, but a group of 20 couldn't be photoshopped.  "Dutch Tour Bus" had hit the road, but there still wasn't an ebb in the flow of people.  The distance this time meant I didn't need to use the filter, just lower the ISO, use a small aperture, and take a 1-2 second exposure.  On paper this should have been much easier to take, but the crowds of people were still preventing me from getting what I was after.  It was another 30 minutes or so before I had enough unpolluted exposures to create this final result.

The crowds had died a bit, but when I thought I could finally get the angle from the boulder a small group of people showed up and laid out a picnic lunch on it.  We had to get going.  The boulder shot wasn't going to be mine, but I was ok with that.  The shots I did have were ones I was pretty pleased with.

But, this year's most frustrating location had one more parting gift for us.  And, fittingly, it would be caused by humans.  On the way back to the car we headed down a rarely used path and I felt my boot squish into something.  It took a half a second to realize with total horror what I had walked through.  There was no mistaking the smell.  The feces stuck to the bottom of my boot weren't from a woodland creature or someone's dog.  It was from a person.  A person.  Stranger things have happened to me in Luxembourg, but nothing quite this disgusting.  And people back home think all we do is travel to glamorous locations and have fun.

While at first scenic photography may seem pretty straight forward or easy because you don't have anything to direct, the truth is that it is actually very challenging because you can't direct anything.  Besides weather, light, and other uncontrollable variables, hands down the most difficult thing to work around are other people and, sometimes, other photographers (or I should say other people with cameras). You either want the person in the shot or you don't in scenic photography.  Most of the time you don't because they are just too distracting in the scene.  A lot of really scenic places attract tourists, especially in Europe.  Tourists generally dress really brightly and their presence completely diffuses the ambiance of a location, whether in a city or the forest.  Most tourists (no matter where they come from) don't understand or respect a photographer's goals because they're too focused on what they want pictures of.  If you're set up with a tripod, you immediately become interesting.  Instead of moving along, a lot of people tend to stop and watch, completely clueless to the fact they are standing right in front of you, ruining the shot.  Others think it is ok for them to encroach on your space while you're shooting to see what you're doing or they think it must be the best place for them to take a picture from too.  I actually had a guy stand right over my shoulder with his face next to mine while I was in Hallstatt to see what I was looking at in my LCD screen.  Over the weekend when I was taking a macro shot of a mushroom, a woman came up behind me, leaned over me, put her smartphone next to my camera and took her picture- disrespecting my space and the fact her shadow totally blocked the light I was using.  Unless I'm going someplace remote or I time it before people are up and moving, the human factor is always going to come into play.  I totally understand why people are where they are and I don't begrudge their desire for their own photographs, but sometimes it can cause me a lot of problems.  I love creating calm and atmospheric images of places that convey that vibe while I'm there.  It isn't easy; it takes a lot of time and extra equipment.  A lot goes on behind the scenes.  Sometimes I have to climb down a retaining wall.  Sometimes I have to wait 30 minutes to get a 50 second exposure.  I really hope, though, that stepping in human waste is a one time thing.

Head over here to view these images in larger format and to purchase them in print or digital download.

Science and Art

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 31.5 Exposure: f/3.6, 1/2,000, ISO 600

 My parents were visiting us for the last couple of weeks and we had a great time touring around southern Bavaria with them.  But, the beginning of the tour started in Austria, at one of our favorite places, Hallstatt, a spot we haven't been to since 2013.  Hallstatt is a small town perched on the side of a mountain and the Hallstätter See.  People have been living in this spot for about 7,000 years, mining the salt out of the mountain above.  They're still mining up there actually.  It was in Hallstatt that some of the first systematic archaeological excavations in history took place, back in 1846.  The finds there were so significant that they shed a bright light on prehistoric European culture.  That period of the archaeological record is now known as Hallstatt culture and it is the first recognizable period of Celtic civilization.

It was for these reasons that I wanted to visit Hallstatt back in 2013.  I wanted to see this famed archaeological site, its salt mines, and the material culture now on display in the town's museum.  It also had the attraction of being really easy on the eyes.  However, the visit in 2013 didn't go as planned.  A day or so before we were due to drive down there, I woke up with a nasty sinus infection.  I figured it was just a cold, and we headed down anyway.  Hallstatt was everything that I thought it would be.  It's the quintessential alpine village.  Timber buildings with wrap around balconies cling to the mountainside.  Narrow pathways take you up above the village for dramatic views (this way used to pass through attics).  There are two beautiful churches.  Flowers are everywhere.  Mountains tower above and the lake is calm and blue.  It's a pristine place.  In 2013, it was very wet.  It rained hard every day while we were there (pictures from that trip can be found here.)  I got sicker and sicker and woke up on the second day of the visit with a brutal ear infection.  I couldn't breathe, swallow, or hear out of one ear.  That led me to one of Hallstatt's lesser known attractions, the doctor's office.  Whatever I ended up having held on for a month.  But, all that aside, I still loved Hallstatt and it's now in my top three places to visit on the continent.  I always wanted to go back to Hallstatt without feeling like death, and, if we were lucky, with a bit more sunshine.  This second trip was a great improvement.

We spent about two days there.  Most of the time was spent in the village center where we had booked some rooms at the lovely Gasthof Zauner-Seewirt (they have an excellent restaurant, by the way).  Last time, except for a few breaks in the rain, I stuck mostly to tighter shots.  My photography goals for this visit were to capture broader landscape shots.  I had the equipment for it now, a solid tripod, ND filters, etc. and the weather was much more cooperative.  I decided to do all of this in the early mornings since the village faces east and the dinner hour this time of year overlaps sunset and evening blue hour.  Dawn shooting is our favorite anyway.  There's nothing like walking the streets of a place like this when the only other people up and moving around are the bakers.  There aren't any tourists with iPads and selfie sticks stepping in front of my tripod like there are in the evenings.  The atmospherics and light are very soft.  It's dead quiet.  Plus, we always get the freshest pastries and coffee when we're done.

But, it's not always a piece of cake.  Photography, as I've learned over the past few years, is all about, um, light.  Yeah, I know, duh.  But, it's more than the actual process of taking an image.  What the light is doing on the subject from one minute to the next can make the difference between ho-hum and wow.  It's also important where you are in relation to that light and the subject at any given time.  And, of course, it's kinda difficult to predict this sort of thing when you're working with weather and natural light.  No app is going to tell you exactly where and when the light is going to be perfect.  I've spent hours on cold mornings waiting for morning light that doesn't really show up.  Mountain locations are an extra challenge because the weather changes very quickly, very often.  The Alps aren't a studio location.  You can't set it up again if you missed the moment.  You have to wait until the next morning and hope that the sun shines in a cool way.  If it doesn't, oh well, get over it or come back and try again some other time.  Since I've started doing more land and city scapes, I've been trying to learn about more than correct exposure times, apertures, and Photoshop techniques.  I also spend a lot time studying things like weather patterns, light diffusion, and the rotation of the earth.  Photography really is a marriage between science and art, especially when it's being done in an uncontrolled location.  The challenge of getting the relationship just right is part of the fun.  I feel like I only succeed about an eighth of the time.  The really nice thing about a place like Hallstatt is that it's small.  Unlike Paris, where there are 1,001 places to shoot that are spread all over a huge space, old Hallstatt center is only 1 kilometer long.  Granted, there's a surprising amount packed into that space, but it is certainly easier to get around and get to know well.  There was good chance I could get a great shot or two with multiple mornings to work.

The main shot I wanted from this visit was a postcard style classic view of the village.  I had done it before, but I wanted a new version with sunlight, filters, and a tripod.  The first morning I decided to start on the north side of the village, looking down.  Then I would head over to the south side when the sun got higher.  It seemed like a promising morning.  The early colors were very brilliant.

Blend of three exposures.

When we headed uphill to shoot from above, the sun slowly came up and...meh.  I took about 30 or so exposures before heading south to the other side of the town to get this shot.  

Camera: Fujifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 35.8mm
Exposure: f/11, 8 secs, ISO 200

I really liked the effect of using the ND filter.  Hallstatt Lake is very deep and very smooth early in the morning, but by this time the boats had started running and the ducks were out chopping the water up.  The filter smoothed the water out again for me and created a touch of movement in the sky.  But, I had a sneaky feeling that I should have reversed my schedule.  So the next morning we started at this location before sunrise then headed up above for golden hour.

Camera: Fuljifilm X-E2 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: f/11, 15 secs, ISO 200

That's more like it!  It turned out that when the sun came up over the mountains and shined on the town, it was hitting the north side just a little bit more dramatically than the south.  This morning there weren't any clouds so the shots I took below near the water ended up being kind of dull without that interesting color reflection that had been going on the previous morning.  But, when I moved up to the higher location- Bam!  They had been calling for rain overnight, but none in the morning.  I had hoped for some clouds, but ended up being pleasantly surprised with visible moisture in the air instead.  I loved the way it caught the rays of the sun as they shown down on the town.

The two mornings in Hallstatt were the best lesson I've had so far about the importance of science in photography.  Photo sharing sites are a huge help when I'm looking for locations when we're heading to a new place to shoot.  But, they aren't going to predict the right moment.  That's a matter of practice, study, and, sometimes, a whole lot of luck.

These shots and others are available for purchase in the shop under the Austrian Countryside gallery.

End of Summer

XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 LM OIS

As it's been a few weeks, I figured it was good time to check in.  After Norway, we've had several weeks off.  By off I mean we have been at home, not jumping on a train, on a plane, or in the car every weekend.  As awesome as traveling is, it is nice to have some down time living out of a dresser instead of a suitcase.  The cats are no longer confused about who their people are.  And, The Dog?  Well, I'm not sure if he's ever really pleased about anything, but at least he's getting regular hikes every week.

But, we haven't really been off with our feet up either.  Our evenings and weekends have been taken up with cycling.  We originally planned out that we would aim to do a 200km ride by the end of the summer.  We ended up biting off a little more than we could chew with the traveling this year and didn't allow enough training time.  So, we knocked it back to a 160km goal.  But, there was a sudden death in the family and I had to head back to Akron at the end of July.  Our training and fitness isn't where we wanted it to be when we laid down our goals at the beginning of the year, but it isn't a total wash.  This weekend we're going to attempt that 160km ride.  And, I'll be doing it on a new bike.  Upon returning home from Akron, I discovered my bottom bracket was starting to fail on my Raleigh.  It was actually easier to purchase a new bike instead of waiting for a shop to make the repairs (shops around here only repair by appointment and they have to be scheduled weeks in advance).  The new ride is a Fuji Roubaix 1.3LTD.  No, I didn't buy it because I'm obsessed with brands named after Mt. Fuji.  It was the only brand the shop stocked.  But, I'm really pleased with it.  It is another level up from the Raleigh, and, I gotta say, that upgrade makes quite a difference.  So, that's what's been going on.

As for photography, I've been going back to my roots a bit and have been shooting handheld when out and about.  The camera is always with me when we take The Dog on his hikes.  We've been hitting some local trails after our Sunday rides and I've kept my kit to the minimum, using just the 18-55mm or the 35mm.

XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 LM OIS

XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 LM OIS

The cycling regime definitely cuts into shooting time, however.  This hot summer meant the rides had to start early, right when the light was perfect.  While the X-E2 is pretty small, it's not small enough to fit in a cycling jersey.  One of the things I would like to add to my kit is a high end compact.  We pass by some incredible sights on our rides, and the iPhone camera is not doing them justice in the least.   I kinda hate opening up my portfolio from this time of year and only seeing flat iPhone exposures.  I'm really interested in the Sony Cyber-shot DSC RX100 range because they have features that no other compact has, but those price tags (and it always comes down to the price tags) are making an upcoming purchase unlikely.  The #1 gear purchase priority is still a second Fuijifilm X Series body.  Once they finally announce what the X-Pro2 is going to be packing I'll be making a decision on which camera to acquire next Spring (economy dependent, of course).  Losing shooting time and light for cycling is a frustrating situation, but I am compiling a great list of locations for later in the year.  Right now, after 4+ hours on the bike in high temperatures, the last thing I want to do is jump in the car and shoot somewhere.  On the weekends it takes a lot to stay awake past 8:00pm.

But, next week my parents are coming in for a visit and we'll be hitting the road to show them around Bavaria and the Alps.  It'll be the last major trip for 2015 before we head back to Akron for our home leave visit around Thanksgiving.  It'll be good to give the legs a bit of a break and get back behind the lens!

XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 LM OIS