I can’t begin to think of how many times I was through shooting at some location and after we had wrapped things up to head back to the car, I turned around to see the dying moments of a spectacular sky streaming light that wasn’t there a moment ago, or a one in a million cloud formation. I can tell you that it’s been years and years and years since I made the mistake of putting all my equipment away before it was absolutely over.
What happens is that once you’ve taken a great photo or series of photos filled with wonderful light you become satisfied, mentally tired, and even a touch on the complacent side of smugness thinking you got all there was to get. So you sort of become anxious to get to the car and either head home or to the hotel where you’re staying to relax in the bar and mull over the last couple of hours of shooting with a cold beer or a very cold Bombay Martini in your hand, as I have.
Well, I’m here to say that it ain’t over until it’s over, as in dark!!! After forty-five years of shooting, I can tell you that you just never know when something can happen that you had better be ready for or you will surely miss it. As I tell my online students with the BPSOP, and the participants that take my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct around the planet, Mother Nature has an uncanny way of sneaking up on you when you’re not looking to provide you with an extraordinary opportunity to capture her in action. Remember that she’s stingy and won’t give you much time. She’s been known to tease the unprepared mortal, dressed up to look like a photographer, with literally seconds of incredible perhaps even once in a lifetime light.
How do I stay ready? As I’m headed back to the car I keep my camera on the tripod, I make sure I still have shots left on my card, the tripod is over my shoulder, and as I’m walking I keep turning around and looking over my shoulder. Also, even when I’m driving away I’m still looking in the rear view and side mirror. There’s been more than once when I made a quick ‘bat’ turn and went back and grabbed a great shot.
In this photo, we were through shooting the Suez Canal and were eating dinner in a restaurant. I had my 300mm F/2.8 lens still on my tripod right next to me. I turned around as I always do, saw this light, shot the photo and in less time it took me to write this one sentence it was gone.
By the way, I missed the light just once in my forty-five career and once was too much!!!
Here’s a few examples of when I turn around.
Visit my website at: www.joebaraban.com, and check out my 2012 workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.
Don’t forget to send me a photo and question to: AskJoeB@gmail.com
JoeB
