Peter Eastway writes an almost weekly newsletter from his Better Photography website (www.betterphotography.com). These are some of the more recent posts.
How Will AI Impact Travel Photography?
Young Monk, Bumthang.
Fujifilm X-H2, Fujinon XF200mmF2 R LM OIS WR, f2.0 @ 1/220 second, ISO 125. Composite. No AI.
It's so easy to edit your photographs with AI, what will happen to the genre of travel photography? Will we be able to believe anything we see anymore? Actually, it's not AI that is the culprit. Advertising agencies and photographers have been creating fully believable but fake photographs for well over half a century, but there's no doubt AI means more people can do it now – and can do it easily.
Whether we're talking about travel photography (penguins in the Sahara Desert), wildlife photography (a five legged elephant) or landscapes (a more interesting sky dropped in), AI and creative compositing rely on the integrity of the photographer. We shouldn't feel duped for believing an image that isn't real. We should be offended when we're told an image is real when it isn't. Weren't we all taught not to tell lies when we were children?
On the one hand, people are naive if they believe every image they see. On the other hand, people are now questioning some real photographs because they are difficult to believe. Most of the time we can tell whether a photo is fake or not, but this is going to change and most of us won't know whether a photo is real or not.
How does this impact travel photography? Well, maybe it won't make a huge difference. Already I see lots of travel photographs with blue skies and bright sunshine, but when I get to the destination it's overcast and storming! Mind you, there was only one Eiffel Tower in Paris, so a photo with five or six of them scattered around the town might not be believable!
How should photographers deal with it? Currently, I think it depends on how we use it. If we use AI to generate or significantly change a travel scene, then we need to tell people that's what we've done. On the other hand, if we use AI to remove some rubbish or fix up a cloud, has that significantly changed the authenticity of our subject?
This is a great subject for dinner and a glass of wine. In fact, I can think of no one better to talk this through than David Oliver – so why not join us on our trip to Bhutan this year and be a part of the conversation!
Using People for Perspective and Context In Travel
Early morning in Bukhara, Uzbekistan
Fujifilm X-H2, Fujinon XF8-16mmF2.8 R LM WR, f2.8 @ 1/40 second, ISO 3200
How big is the Taj Mahal? How tall are the Rocky Mountains? How small is a Lesser Hamelins Red Breasted hummingbird (and does it even exist)? Whether we're travelling or not, subjects photographed in isolation can be ambiguous for viewers to read and left unsure of a subject's size – and sometimes photographs with this ambiguity are exactly what we want.
On the other hand, placing a subject of a known size within the frame gives our viewers a clearer indication of size. The subject puts everything into perspective – sort of! For instance, a person standing in front of the Taj Mahal shows you how large the structure is, but how big is the person? A short person will make the Taj look taller, a tall person could take a touch of the Taj's majesty away.
Can placing a person in a photograph distort the subject's size? Think of using a wide-angle lens where a person is on one side and a mountain range in the background – the mountains will look very small in comparison to the giant human. Now step back and switch to a telephoto lens: the mountains might be a little out of focus, but they appear much larger and taller. So just because we have a figure within our scene doesn't necessarily mean we're telling the truth about a subject's size, just that we're comparing it with something else.
So while a figure might not tell the full truth, it does add to the story you're telling, And it can also be a great composition tool providing a centre of interest.
And you don't have to limit yourself to people – animals, cars, even empty drink cans can be used to give your subject a sense of scale.
But What About The Background?
Chinstrap penguin, Fournier Harbour, Antarctica
Fujifilm X-H2, Fujinon XF150-600mmF5.6-8 R LM OIS WR, f7.1 @ 1/1250 second, ISO 320
Professional photographers often say they'll shoot anything except wildlife and children, the rule coming from days in the studio when getting a dog to sit up and smile was probably easier than asking a toddler! Yet even on location, it seems everything is a bit of a challenge when it comes to wildlife and children.
Now, personally, I'm very happy with my photo of a Chinstrap penguin. I like the eye contact as the bird was definitely following us as we floated quietly past in our zodiac. I like the soft light. It was overcast and actually a bit murky, but if you lighten up the shadows and add in a touch of colour, I find this type of light can work quite well, especially to reveal all the fine detail in a subject.
I like the simplicity of the photograph, how there's just the penguin sitting on an iceberg and nothing much else. I like the central composition, but some will say the bird should have been to the left or the right. Bad luck. And I love the way the telephoto lens has thrown the background out of focus, so the subject is clearly delineated. In fact, the only problem was the position of the background iceberg, the wonderful blue blur with the edge coming right down the middle of the frame.
Now, I have other shots where the iceberg background is in a better position, but I don't like the angle or the pose of the penguin quite as much - and herein is the challenge for shooting wildlife. Not only do you have to nail the subject (figuratively speaking, of course), the background has to work as well.
So, it's back to the drawing board and I guess I'll just have to try harder on my next voyage south!
Choosing Your Exposure For Impact
Inner Kaikoura Range, Middlehurst, NZ
Fujifilm X-H2, XF150-600mm f5.6-8 R LM OIS WR, f9 @ 1/80 second, ISO 125.
Automatic cameras are great, but what would they do with a photo like this? The original exposure was 'good' because it retained tone throughout. It held a touch of tone in the highlights and there were some grey tones in the shadows, but in the end, it was a bit of nothing.
As long as you keep an eye on your histogram, chances are all the information you need is in the raw file. In fact, when I'm shooting, I like to think I'm just collecting pixels. It might have been Les Walkling who first talked about this concept with me, I've been thinking this way for so long I can no longer attribute the idea. But once you've captured the pixels, you take the file into Lightroom or Capture One where you make some decisions. Now, I could have used masking to carefully select the three areas - the sky, the snow and the mountain - and ensured all areas contained some detail, but was this what I wanted to show?
What I love about fresh snow is the perfectly smooth surface, the way it blankets the land form below, filling in the gaps and accentuating some bumps. An average exposure was going to kill this image, so I simply darkened it down. Is the foreground too dark? What do you mean by too dark? It is black! I like it black - I don't need tone in every area of every photograph and by having a fully black mountain, I am forcing the viewer to marvel at that fresh snow.
And while we know snow is white, in this photo it's lots of shades of very light grey - and to my eye it makes me happy! There is plenty of detail and the eye is given time to linger. I hope!
Also making me very happy are the two books on Middlehurst we received from Momento Pro last week. Participants in our Middlehurst workshops contribute half a dozen images they took around the property from which we design a beautiful art book. The pages are thick 'album style' and the resulting publication is lavish and impressive!
Of course, while we'd love you to come to Middlehurst, you can also make your own book with Momento Pro. In fact, I have some aerials that need printing given all the air time I've had this year - a Christmas project!
If you'd like access to our Better Photography discount page for Momento Pro, try this link for Australia - momentopro.com.au/eastway - and in New Zealand - momentopro.co.nz/eastway. These pages have all the information you need!
Clowns In Bhutan?
Atsara posing for the camera, Bhutan
Fujifilm X-H2, Fujinon XF 56mm f1.2 R, f1.2 @ 1/1800 second, ISO 125
David Oliver says the only clown in Bhutan is me, but I'm used to his poor and ill-founded attempts at humour. However, in some ways he's correct, because the costumed monks you see wandering around the festivals with masks on their heads and large wooden phalluses in their hands are called atsaras, even though they look like clowns!
Buddhism is fascinating in that it can be engaged with at many different levels. The festivals in Bhutan are generally put on for the local people who, in earlier years, would have had limited education. How do the monks instruct them? The dances are one approach, telling stories that they might not be able to read. The atsaras are another approach to teaching, breaking down the deeply spiritual world into a more accessible and profane flavour. No one is beyond the reach of the atsaras, even the head monks! Wandering around the festival, the atsaras are often making collections for the temple and tapping people on their heads with bright red phalluses. No donation, more taps on the head!
Of course, this is just what we observe when we're there (and yes, I do make donations to the temple). Behind what westerners see as unusual behaviour is a deeply considered approach to communicating the various Buddhist messages.
As with festivals around the world, when everyone is having fun, their guards are down. Photographers these days are very common and nearly everyone in Bhutan has a mobile phone, so taking pictures is commonplace. And while there aren't a lot of western tourists, the monks know that one with a camera is worth cultivating for a generous donation.
At one particular festival just outside Bumthang, access to the changing courtyard behind the festival quadrangle is allowed. At many festivals in the dzongs (fortified monasteries), the monks are getting changed inside where photographers are not welcome, but this courtyard is large enough to entertain a few extra visitors and so it was just a matter of sitting in the corner and wandering out when things looked interesting. I spent three or four hours there and found it far more interesting than the actual dances and presentations themselves.
While it's hard to tell when they are in costume, all the dancers and atsaras are young men and they're having fun. For this photo, a group of them were having a chat as I walked up. My subject happily looked directly at me and you can see his mate give me the victory sign (I am hoping) in the background. A little post-production has added in suitable extra atmosphere - but the costumes and masks are the real deal.
How Do I Sell Bhutan
Dancing monk, Phongmey, Eastern Bhutan
Fujifilm X-H2, Fujinon XF 56mm f1.2 R, f2.2 @ 1/4400 second, ISO 125
Over the weekend I saw the blockbuster film Napoleon. I love period pieces. I marvel at the costumes and the way they transform the atmosphere, the mood and the appeal of a scene. We possibly don't give the costume department sufficient credit for the success of a film.
Similarly, I'm not sure if I really appreciate just how magic it is when we travel around Bhutan. Okay, so David Oliver and I have a trip going there in April next year if you're interested, but there must be a reason we keep going back to take more photographs. And part of the reason is the variety of costume worn by most of the Bhutanese, most of the time. Bhutan really is like walking onto a movie set.
On every trip to Bhutan, we make sure it coincides with a religious festival where a dzong (a fortified Buddhist monastery) and its local community spend sometimes several days following a precise routine of dances and pantomimes. The monks wear elaborate costumes and masks so that it's hard to take a photograph that doesn't have appeal. Commonplace for the locals, exotic for us.
This festival was held outside. A huge yellow curtain was hung over the side of the temple building and the monks performed on a stone quadrangle, with a throng of villagers and school children sitting on the hill to one side and spectacular Himalayan mountain views on the other.
For me, it's the silhouette of the monk's head that draws the eye and the continuity of the printed pattern on the huge curtain that makes it such an otherworldly composition. I also like the colour contrast (the monks come in all different hues, so it was just a matter of waiting for one that worked best with the background) and I've washed in a few clouds as an overlay to add to the ethereal atmosphere. I'm sure that will annoy the hell out of David the purist!
Gesture In The Landscape
Detail, Derby Tidal Flats, Western Australia
Phase One XF 150MP, 110mm Schneider Kreuznach, f4 @ 1/2000 second, ISO 200
The secret is out! The next ‘big thing’ in aerial photography is to be found at Broome and Derby. Okay, so Tony Hewitt has been photographing this area for years, but unfortunately for him, I’m a bit of a blabber-mouth! And it’s hard to contain my excitement about the images I’ve been processing over the past couple of weeks (and posting on Instagram too).
In picking a shot for this newsletter, I had a surfeit of choice. I selected this one because I thought it might translate best into the ridiculously inadequate screens that the majority of people will use to view it – their phones. If it’s an Android, it will be dull and flat. An iPhone way too colourful and contrasty. (I’m looking forward to the hate mail about these comments!) Better results will be on a quality monitor like an Eizo, but I’m only posting a 1000 pixel image, so while the colour and contrast will be great, lost are the nuances of detail and texture I have carefully recorded.
Most aerial images in this genre need to be reproduced as an A3 or A2 print to see their potential. A one metre print (every now and then, I stick one up in the window of my shop for people to view through the tinted glass) looks fantastic and suddenly you can see the tiny ripples of water, the regular pillows of sand and little pieces of seaweed and driftwood.
So I have chosen something simple where an abrupt buttress of sand fights an incoming tide, its shape standing out strongly against the soft, undulating floor of the shallow bay.
I think I can safely say all the photographers who have come on aerial photography workshops with Tony and me have been convinced about the need to print, whether as prints or in a photo book. However, I concede that I get an immense amount of satisfaction simply by editing the photos. During this process, I get to view and enjoy the fine details, to watch as what is invariably a flat, low contrast raw file develops into a rounded, more considered presentation. In many ways, that enjoyment is enough, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit to enjoying the occasional pat on the back (or a like) when I post images on social media as well.
I just wish I could better share the full experience online – and perhaps in the years to come, we will!
If you’re interested in aerial photography, Tony Hewitt and I have two workshops next year, one to Shark Bay and a second to Broome/Derby where this photo was taken. Details on the Better Photography website.
Early Morning Walks For Travel Photographers
Above Broome, Western Australia, Aerial photo workshop with Tony Hewitt. And we didn't get up particularly early for this shot!
Phase One XF 150MP, 110mm Schneider Kreuznach, 1/2000 second @ f5, ISO 50
For many of us, the purpose of travel photography is to capture and communicate information about a destination. Invariably we find ourselves in a hotel room for the night, often with the early morning free before our travel plans begin. This is the perfect time to take a walk,
Now for most readers, walking around a big city like Sydney, London or New York might be very much like walking around at home, but there will be differences – red buses, yellow cabs, harbour ferries. People are focused on getting to work and today there are so many tourists and travellers, wandering around with our cameras is hardly going to be noticed. We can enjoy being flies on the wall, or we can interact directly with people if we wish. The circumstances usually dictate our approach.
When we travel to exotic locations, or to smaller towns and rural areas, there can be more activity for our cameras. City slickers like me will find these areas very interesting because they are so different to home. Again the locals are usually intent on their chores, making our photography quite easy. Often people are amused that we are interested in their 'boring' morning duties – of course, some don't want to be photographed at all, in which case we should respect their privacy. There's always another subject to photograph around the corner or the next day.
Pre-dawn light can give an otherwise ugly location an interesting beauty – and I just love this time of day for almost any subject. And once the sun rises, there are lots of opportunities to look for areas of light supported by long shadows.
And invariably you can be back to the hotel in time for a well-earned breakfast!
Photographing People You Meet While Travelling
Musician, Khiva, Uzbekistan. Photographing people who are performing for you solves the basic problem of permission when travelling.
Fujifilm X-H2, 8-16mm, f3.6 @ 1/25 second, ISO 3200
Perhaps the best aspect of travel with a camera is photographing the people you see and meet. Different faces, different clothing, different customs – there is a wealth of material for us to capture.
When it comes to photographing people, there are many traditions we can follow. We all know about Henri Cartier-Bresson and how he photographed as a silent observer. Richard Avedon used a more formal approach, inviting his subjects to pose on an improvised set. There's no right or wrong, as long as we are respectful.
My suggestion is to consider how you would feel if you were at home, going for a run or to pick up a coffee, and you saw a tourist sneaking a few photos of you with their phone (or camera). Or you caught someone across the road with a telephoto lens photographing you as you put out the rubbish. Even if the tourist walked up and started talking to you, how would you feel if they then asked if they could take your photograph? Yet this is exactly what most travel photographers do on a regular basis and all I can do is thank the world's population for being so (generally) very accommodating!
So, what should we do? I think the answer is to play it by ear. There will be occasions when life is busy and you can take candid photographs without being noticed. We all have our special techniques for pretending not to be taking a photograph, or shooting from the hip as we walk by. Then there will be other situations where our presence is quite obvious and our subjects not so tolerant – are we better off putting our cameras away and just enjoying the experience.
We can also smile and ask permission to take a photograph. The answer can depend on how you build up to your request. How would you react if someone walked up to you in the street and asked to take your photograph? Compare this with someone asking you for directions, having a conversation and then asking you? And the fact you can't speak their language can often be a benefit as facial expressions and gestures can communicate all that is needed.
We don't have to photograph every person we meet. We don't have to photograph every great character we see, just because we think they would make a great photograph. There will always be other great portraits around the corner.
Shooting At Night At Key Travel Locations
Khiva, Uzbekistan. Photographed just as light was discernible on the eastern horizon.
Fujifilm X-H2, 8-16mm lens, f2.8 @ 1/15 second, ISO 3200, no tripod.
With so many people travelling and taking photos with their phones, it can be a struggle to create something that is different about the locations you visit. And while phones are now incredibly good at taking photographs in very low light, shooting at night remains one way to be noticed, simply because most travel photos are still taken in the day (and the preference is with bright blue skies).
The main challenge for shooting at night is avoiding large expanses of black – either the sky or shadow areas. Many photographs have wonderful information along the horizon line (e.g. a city skyline), but above and below are often without purpose. One suggestion is to crop out unwanted black areas. Note, I'm not suggesting you remove all the blacks as we definitely want our viewers to know the photo is taken at night.
With this in mind, look for the light sources in the foreground. If shooting a skyline full of colour, put a courtyard or an old car or something in the foreground, just as you would when shooting in daylight.
Another solution is to cheat, just a little. Rather than shooting in the dead of night, shoot either an hour or so after sunset and an hour or so before sunrise. To the eye, the sky can look black, but to our cameras it can be recorded as a wonderfully deep blue.
If you have a lot of sky, clouds can assist. And if your travel destination is experiencing inclement weather, shooting at night is a great solution because invariably the night lights are reflected on wet roads and puddles.
Do you need a tripod? Modern phones allow you to hand-hold relatively long exposures with image stabilisation and high ISO settings. Modern cameras do the same and so you can probably shoot without a tripod. However, if you are wanting to make a print or feature the photo in a book, then a lower ISO setting will give you a superior technical result, or perhaps you'd be happy with the wonderful noise reduction algorithms now available in Lightroom and Topaz. The choice is yours!
