Wildlife and Landscape Photography by David Williams

https://davidwilliams.photoshelter.com/

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Echoes of Tradition: Understanding the Hopi and Navajo War Dances

Mon, 17 Nov 2025 00:56:12 GMT

A deeper look at the cultural meaning, history, and misunderstood purpose behind Hopi and Navajo “War Dances.”

I am fascinated by the rich cultures of Indigenous peoples and have studied the Indigenous peoples in America as well as in Africa. Recently, I attended an Indigenous Peoples' Day Celebration where the festivities started with a Choctaw Prayer Dance and later War Dances were performed by both he Hopi and Navajo Nation.

Choctaw Prayer Dance:

This Prayer Dance started with a young Choctaw man in full regalia standing in complete stillness as the drums began to beat, and slowly a wonderful cultural dance emerged with colors, flamboyance, beauty and grace, a true site to behold. The Choctaw dances, or Chahta hihla, are all a form of prayer to their creator. They were used for various purposes, including preparing for war, remembrance of difficult times, and social gatherings. Many dances are centered around animals such as the Snake, Garfish, or Duck Dance and are used to express characteristics of the natural world and the cycles of life which the Choctaw closely revere.

Above: A Choctaw Indian stands in silence at the beginning of his Prayer Dance - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Hopi War Dance:

The term "War Dance" as a descriptor does not fully capture the rich nuances and can be deceiving. You see, Hopi dances are rooted in spiritual beliefs, with the main emphasis being on harmony with nature and their ancestors. In ancient times, these ornate dances were performed to the Gods to ensure rainfall, fertile fields and a successful crop season, which was essential in the arid Southwest.

Many dances were heavily based on animals such as the Snake Dance, where snakes were believed to be the messengers to the underworld where they would carry prayers to Gods and spirits of ancestors for rain, harmony and peace. These dances are carried out in modern times as a living tradition connecting the past to the present and honoring their heritage, ancestors and Creator. However, many of the Hopi ceremonial dances are closed to the public, which shows the sacred nature of their intent with these dances.

Above: A Hopi dancer performs a traditional ceremony often mislabeled as a “War Dance,” - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Navajo War Dance:

The Navajo Nation's traditions are different, emphasizing healing, harmony and balance. The War Dance as it is known by outsiders is actually called the "Enemy Way" or in the Dine language "Ana Ndaa". This dance is actually a medicine dance used for the purpose of healing, not a dance for battle or war. Navajo ceremonies are a portion of a very complex system of healing chants designed to restore "Hozho" which in Dine is balance and harmony to individuals who are out of balance.

In ancient times, these ceremonies would use songs, prayers, drums, and purification rites like a sweat lodge to cleanse individuals of the harmful effects of war or conflict, and hence the term War Dance was born. In modern times, the Enemy Way is still widely practiced today for Navajo Veterans, or military personnel and is used to heal them from combat stress or PTSD, and to restore a sense of internal balance and harmony.

Above: A Navajo dancer in a traditional ceremony misinterpreted as a “War Dance” by outsiders - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

In summary:

I ndigenous people guard their heritage with great honor. The dances help to sustain their connections to family, community and the Native culture in contemporary life. Modern Powwows show traditional ceremonies and dances including variations of the War Dance, but these events also serve as a venue for competition cultural pride, and honoring service members across many tribes.

The evening was rich in culture, food, music and dancing. I met a few of the performers and was excited to see their children dressed in full dress regalia and joining in many of the traditional dances.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://davidwilliams.photoshelter.com/

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

PPA.com Masters Program, is it worth it?

Sat, 02 Aug 2025 22:37:51 GMT

Is the PPA Masters Program Worth It? Costs & Benefits Explained

Standing out in the competitive world of photography is no small feat—and for many, earning credentials is one way to gain an edge. After earning my Master’s Degree through PPA, I’d like to offer an honest critique of their program.

A PPA Master's Degree consists of 25 merits.13 must be obtained via the MIR or Merit Image Review. 12 images can be earned by taking classes or continuing to earn image merits. Photos are submitted online and critiques are delivered online as well. The MIR is completed through PPA.com, but it's intended that you get involved with the local chapter, mine was called IPPA. Local chapters have monthly meetings, contests, guest speakers etc. It offers a great way to network but the merits must be earned though PPA.com not the local chapter.

The MIR process:

You are allowed to submit 4 images per month February thru November at a cost of $25 + $10 if you want a recorded video of the critique. So in other words, $140 per month for 4 images with video. A panel of 4-6 people judge the images submitted and give you 3 outcomes: No Merit, No Merit but Potential, or Merit. You may make edits and resubmit images with potential. You also have the possibility of earning an 'IE' which stands for Image Excellence and is PPA's highest award. I have included some IE images here in this article.

Judging:

The judges use 12 Elements to judge an image: impact, technical excellence, creativity, style, composition, color balance, center of interest, lighting, subject matter, technique and storytelling. You must score well in all 12 areas to receive a Merit. Critiques include what is right with the image and what improvements are needed, even if the merit is earned. The critique is where the magic is, a huge learning opportunity.

I am primarily an African Wildlife Photographer but I break a lot of rules; shooting into the sun, selective focus, blurring, etc., so I thought it would be easier to submit only Landscape photos to the MIR where everything is in focus and the lighting is even. It worked.

Sunrise over fresh snow at Mather Point, Grand Canyon, available as a Fine Art Print

Judging Credentials:

The judges all have Masters Degrees as well as other degrees and have completed extensive training; they are certainly qualified. The judges are highly critical of everything in the photo, it's quite alarming. They have no qualms about moving objects, warping, changing skies or whatever it takes to balance the image. It's refreshing, but again, they are seeking perfection.

You will learn a ton from the Merit reviews and sometimes will get your feelings hurt, but in the end you will emerge with a stronger sense of everything photographically. You will make friends in the process and meet many people who can help or mentor you.

Time to earn the degree:

Earning my Master’s Degree through PPA took 20 months—longer than expected, largely because I didn’t realize classes were only offered in the spring and fall. As a result, I earned nearly all of my merits through the monthly Merit Image Review, limited to four images per month, which extended the process. I invested around $3,200 in the program—quite reasonable by today’s standards. Overall, it’s a well-structured program led by knowledgeable, supportive professionals who are passionate about elevating the craft. Now that my degree is complete and I’m no longer affiliated with PPA, I can confidently say this is an honest review. For photographers looking to stand out, earning credentials like this is a meaningful and worthwhile step.

However you choose to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous cultures, Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple art.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Photography, Who Do You Want To Be?

Mon, 06 Jan 2025 23:21:18 GMT

Discover Your Identity as a Photographer: Who Will You Be?

Fine Art Wildlife Photograph of a Reticulated Giraffe, Kenya, Africa

The camera is a magical tool that can create dreams, sell products, report news, document history...the list goes on and on. The question is how do you break into the world of photography and create success? This is the question all photographers must answer, at least in the beginning.

I don't claim to have the answers as I'm constantly learning as well, but here are some concepts that might be helpful if you are trying to sell your images. I am primarily an African Wildlife photographer and my area of focus is editorial, print and fine art sales.

Many people I meet haven't asked the simple question of who they want to be photographically. They just put images on social media and hope gaining a large following will turn into a career. While that may happen to some, it has been my experience that the people who do well from Facebook and Instagram are people who also have a monster presence on YouTube, they seem to go hand in hand.

So how do you carve out your own path to success?

1. Choose where you want to start.

I have met people who only care about winning photo contests, others just want huge likes and followers on FB and IG. Maybe it's just sharing photos with family and friends, or maybe you have set your sights on fashion and someday the cover of Vogue. Who do you want to be? The reason it's important to define is because taking and editing an image to hang in a home or business is very different from what will get you likes on social media, and again, very different from what a photo editor or graphic designer might choose for their next editorial project.

Case in point:

A few months ago I attended a seminar sponsored by a camera manufacturer. I met a man there from a large photographic education corporation. We spoke about the industry and he agreed he submits one type of image to the contests and something completely different to his gallery for sales.

Fine Art Photography of an Impala in the greenery of Kenya, Africa

2. Become capable and consistent

Become very capable of consistently producing high quality images that are engaging and unique. If you are taking pictures of all of the Instagram fame spots think again. A graphic designer or photo editor has been seeing images of those places from pros for decades, he also knows some of them and trusts them. Being able to copy the pros prior work most likely won't get you work, you will need to present something they haven't seen a 1,000 times.

3. Be Careful Who You Listen To

When crafting your photographic style, be very careful who you listen to or learn from. You would be surprised at how many people are creating content on how to shoot and edit your images, and yet, are unable to sell their own images. Yes, they make money from social media, but it's through ads, photo tours, gear reviews, etc.

Case in point:

I follow a You-tuber who creates instructional videos on shooting and editing photos. He has a large following and is quite well known in the industry. At year end he posted a video about his income and revenue streams. He stated his income from photo sales was so low he removed the photo sales portion from his website. The moral is be careful who you let guide you through your photographic journey.

So back to the question, Who do you want to be photographically? Define it, pick mentors carefully and stay positive.

However you chose to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

A Wildlife Photographer's Wife's Experience on Safari in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda

Sat, 24 Aug 2024 01:41:41 GMT

A Wildlife Photographer's Wife's Experience on Safari in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda

An African Fish Eagle catching a fish, available as a fine art print

It is 2 pm at the Salt Lake Airport as we eagerly wait for our flight to Paris before heading to Kenya. This is our third trip to Africa so we have learned a few things. First, noise canceling headphones are really nice. Movies without airplane noise in the background are much better. The next is taking advantage of the hotel’s laundry service. Third, we each packed a smaller and lighter suitcase than before enabling us to meet the size and weight restrictions of domestic flights in Africa. Lastly, the camera gear needs to be in cases with wheels not on our backs. With all this we are ready for a great trip.

It’s 10 pm when we finally arrive in Nairobi. It's been 17 hours of cramped seating, little sleep, and airplane food, but I’ll take it because coming here on a ship or train would have had other challenges. We get to the opened airplane steps and breathe deeply to take in the warm Nairobi air. This is our third trip with our guide Charles, so seeing him again is like seeing an old friend you haven't seen for a year. We exchange hugs and catch up and then it's off to our Hotel where we can’t wait for a bed, shower and another adventure.

We awake the next morning after just a few hours of sleep excited for the sights and sounds of a familiar country. Our first stop is the orphanage. This is not a normal orphanage. Dephney Sheldrick’s Elephant Orphanage is for baby elephants and rhinos and is one of my favorite places in Kenya. Only a rope separates us from these remarkable creatures allowing us to be very close to them. The caretakers bring the elephants into a roped off area where we learn their names and a little about each one. While we listen, the elephants roll in the dirt, climb on each other’s backs, and drink from large bottles of milk. They are close enough to be touched and have their picture taken with people. This year there was a baby rhino, so young he had to be covered with a blanket to help maintain his body heat. When he was being introduced, he followed behind his caretaker as they walked back and forth in front of us. I was amazed at how innocent and trusting this rhinoceros looks at this volatile age compared to how much he will be feared in years to come.

A rescued elephant calf is being bottle fed, Kenya, available for editorial licensing

Young orphan elephants covered in red mud, Kenya, available for editorial licensing

A Black Rhino calf wrapped in a blanket, Kenya, available for editorial licensing

After the orphanage, we head north to Lake Naivasha. Lake Naivasha is Kenya’s leading wetland. It is home to hippos and flamingos but we are there to see Fish Eagles in action. It is a sunny, cool morning, not a cloud in the sky, and we are sitting in a motorized canoe equipped with old fashioned orange life jackets we wore as kids. The guide takes us out a little ways onto the lake, faces us toward the shore and points to the Fish Eagle that is going to fly. Before he throws the fish into the water, he signals to the Fish Eagle there’s food by whistling. He chucks a tilapia 30 feet in front of our boat. Seconds later, we see a Fish Eagle fly out of a tree and fly towards the water. We hear flapping noises made from their 6 foot wingspan. As it gets closer, the large claws are opened and ready for a catch. The eagle hits the water creating a splash, and grabs the fish. It does this without looking down to see where the catch is. The eagle then flies back to the trees. What a spectacle of nature. I was amazed at its ability to catch the fish in flight. I wonder if it takes a lot of practice to nail each fish it catches. I loved the wetlands because of the beauty, the experience seeing the Fish Eagles, the canoe ride, and perfect weather. All of this made for a surprisingly delightful experience. One I would do again.

An African Fish Eagle as it picks a fish, available as a fine art print

An African Fish Eagle with claws in water on fish, available as a fine art print

We are now in Tanzania heading north to see where Tanzanite is mined from. It is a rare, bluish purplish gem that is only mined in one place in the world, Tanzania. This exclusivity makes this stone rare, 1,000 times more rare than diamonds and is slated to become an heirloom piece. It was discovered in 1967 in the Merelani Hills, near the base of Mount Kilimanjaro and the city of Arusha. Close to the mine is a large shop called The Tanzanite Experience. If you know how to negotiate, you can buy tanzanite jewelry at reasonable prices. I had no intention of buying, but started thinking about having this rare gem as an heirloom piece. After a little deliberation, we decided a tennis bracelet would be the piece to have so Dave worked his negotiating magic and got me a great deal.

We left the jewelry shop and drove to our lodging which was through fields of corn then on top of a hill overlooking the farmland we had just passed through. Every place we have stayed in has mosquito netting around the beds. But, in spite of the mosquito netting here, a spider got in and bit me, giving me a bad “Botox job”. I felt my right upper lip swelling at 3:30 am and then my bottom right lip a little later. I thought, Oh great! I knew there was nothing I could do so I just laid there and tried to sleep. It wasn’t painful, it just felt swollen and I knew I would look bad. I just didn’t know how bad. I finally got out of bed and looked in the mirror. I was horrified, it looked worse than I thought. As I examined my face I saw a red dot on my forehead where the spider bit me. Because I was lying on my right side the venom affected that side of my mouth, making it swell. My face reminded me of the distortion mirrors at the amusement park. Unfortunately, the group we were traveling with had to look at me for the whole day, but as the day went on I looked a little better and even had a few comments on my return to normalcy. Luckily, after 24 hours I was back to normal.

The food needs to be acknowledged. On our first trip here, I was worried about what we would be eating, this being a third world country and all. I have since discovered that when you stay at nice lodges, the chefs create great buffet meals including many foods from India. Each dinner came with all you can eat soup, rolls, different kinds of fruit, meat and dessert options. I used to be perplexed at how the chefs can create such a variety when they are so far from a store, then I learned that the tourist industry is huge so they ship food to tourist lodges on large trucks. We saw this as we were driving through a remote part of the Serengeti. Two large trucks covered with tarps passed us on their way to the Serengeti. I asked our driver what the trucks were transporting and he said it was food for tourist camps.

There’s a few ways to get around the countries in Africa; plane, highway and scenic route. We chose the scenic route for our next travel option which is slow but more picturesque than the highway. This route took us over rolling hills sparsely populated by flat topped acacia trees where the Massai tribal people live. We never would have seen these villages and people had we been driving on a highway. After the rolling hills, we found ourselves on the flat lands on simple tire tracks. We had no idea we would soon be driving on just the grasslands with no tracks whatsoever as we made our way across the Serengeti. It was scary not having a hint of a path to drive on. All I could do was trust that the drivers knew where they were going and wouldn’t get us lost. While driving we saw a baby Wildebeest alone jumping around on new legs. It was so young it still had the umbilical cord hanging from its stomach and mom was nowhere in sight. We were hoping he would get back to his mom so he wouldn’t become a snack.

After arriving in this part of the country, my eyes have been opened to hippos. We were crossing a bridge with water strea ming on top and the most putrid smell came from it. What was that smell and where was it coming from? We drove around until we got to the hippo area and saw 20 in the water. The source of the stench was confirmed when I saw a hippo standing in the water having just relieved his bowels. To my surprise and disgust he swished it with his tail to clean himself off and resubmerged. Multiply this by 20 hippos and there's no more mystery to the smell.

A close up of a Hippo's eyes and ears, available as a fine art print

A group of hippos resting on each other, Kenya - editorial wildlife image by David Williams

Our last camp in the Serengeti was mobile, moving every three months. For being mobile it was amazingly sturdy and well put together. When Charles, our tour guide, told us about it we were a little nervous but trusted him that it would be safe. Then he jokingly said we would wash our hair with a bucket of water. But this was just showering from a bucket of warm water set outside our tent and piped in. In the end it was a lot better than anticipated. A man from the camp stood outside our tent with a bucket of warm water. When we wanted water we just needed to pull on a strap hanging from the top of the tent. The other strap was used to turn it off. At first I was nervous knowing there was someone standing just outside my canvas tent waiting for me to shower in a rudimentarily built room. Plus, I had a new on-off mechanism that I had to quickly figure out so the water wouldn’t run constantly. However, as I stood beneath the shower head and looked up to experiment with the straps that controlled the water flow, it made sense and I enjoyed a very warm, but brief, shower. For being a mobile camp, it was a delightful experience.

Our time in Tanzania is over. Next, we fly to Rwanda to see the Mountain Gorillas. A quick overview first. The Mountain Gorillas live in the mountains which border the Republic of The Congo and Rwanda. So to see them we were just over the mountain from a country that could hold 3 states the size of Texas in it. Whereas, Rwanda is only the size of Maryland. In the 80’s the Mountain Gorillas were declared endangered. At that time, only 400 existed, but thanks to government interventions, Dian Fossey and Jane Goodall, the numbers of Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda and Uganda are increasing and are now over 1,000. Last year we visited the Mountain Gorillas in Uganda where the program is newer. This year we get to see them in Rwanda where the program has existed since 1970, about 50 years. With a life expectancy of 50 years every gorilla in Rwanda has been raised around humans; this makes it safer for us than it would have been when the program began. With an older program, the rangers are more comfortable with us being closer to the Gorillas and let us move around more.

To find them we went on a short hike through empty corn fields until we reached the edge of the forest where the Gorillas were. We had barely hiked into the forest when we saw our 1st Silverback. He was just sitting there looking around eating leaves he had pulled off a branch. He looked so calm and peaceful yet dangerous. We were about 10 feet away from him watching him eat when behind me, I could hear branches breaking and leaves rustling so I turned around and coming right toward me on a narrow dirt path was a mom with the cutest baby gorilla on her back. I stood there mesmerized while watching to see what she would do. She walked right by me and brushed against my leg as though I were a part of the forest. So amazing! She continued walking and I turned around just in time to see the Silverback start heading down the mountain creating a scene. Maybe he was concerned with the attention the mom and baby were getting or maybe he was being protective, I don't know, but as the Silverback headed down the mountain he intentionally bumped into a man in our group. For a moment I thought the man would lose his balance and fall causing a domino effect with all of us, but he didn’t. One thing I realized, there were 7 of us and only one Silverback and in that one second he established complete dominance over the entire group, rangers and all. It was the ultimate display of power. Watching the Silverback move so gracefully through the forest while we scrambled after him trying to keep up was scary and exhilarating and a little comical. We obviously lacked the same prowess he had moving through the jungle. When we got to the bottom of the mountain and to an open corn field, there were more Gorillas including the mom and baby. At one point the baby wanted to come see us but the rangers wouldn’t let it because nobody is allowed in between a mother and her baby. She gets jealous. So to discourage the baby from coming over the rangers made grunting noises. The baby kept trying to approach us but the guides kept grunting. Watching the small bundle of fur, so close to us, go back and forth was adorable and fascinating. I could see why the rangers had to warn us about no contact with the baby because it looked so innocent and cuddly. I wanted to bend down and touch it. It was an unforgettable experience.

A mother mountain gorilla with baby, Volcanoes NP, Rwanda - available as a fine art print

A close up of a Silverback Gorilla in Volcanoes NP, Rwanda - available as a fine art print

In Summary:

Our 19 day adventure is over. It is time to fly back to Kenya before returning to the USA. We have eaten like royalty, seen elusive leopards seeking shade in trees and 10 female lions crouch down and simply disappear in the tall grass. We have seen people balance pots on their heads and bundles of grass and sticks on bicycles. We have been so close to the Mountain Gorillas that it should have been scary yet felt safe, exhilarating and unbelievable. Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda have opened my eyes to how people struggle and survive surrounded by beauty. Africa has definitely found a place in my heart and I can’t wait to return.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

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The Photography Lenses I Use

Sun, 07 Apr 2024 19:55:20 GMT

The Photography Lenses I Use for Wildlife, Travel & Prints

A tight shot of a lion's head, Masai Mara, Kenya, shot with a Nikon 160-600mm, available as a fine art print

Purchasing quality lenses can get crazy expensive and it's hard to know which specific lenses belong in your bag. Obviously, it depends on the type of photography you intend to pursue, but it's an an expensive and daunting task nevertheless.

I am primarily an African Wildlife photographer, but I have a secondary love of Landscape Photography, Indigenous People Photography (portraits), LDS Temple Art and Commercial Photography. I realize this is a rather wide scope of subjects, but it's what I enjoy and it takes quite a few lenses to cover this diverse group of subjects. I am a Nikon shooter currently using the Z8 and Z9, but every lens manufacturer has a version of the lenses listed below. Additionally, see my previous blog discussing the pros and cons of purchasing used gear: https://www.davidwilliamsphotography.com/wildlife-photography-gear-on-the-cheap

3 Maasai boys with dirty ragged clothing, Kenya, shot with a Nikon 24-70mm, available for editorial license

Here is what I own, what I use each lens for, and which ones I don't use as much.

F 14-24 f2.8. Landscape, Commercial work. Fantastic lens for buildings and cityscapes. 14mm is quite wide and mostly used indoors or in small spaces. Most of my Landscape Photography is shot between 24-35mm. I suggest purchasing the 24-70mm and look at this as a secondary lens unless your primary field is Landscape, Commercial Photography or Real Estate.

Nikon Z S 24-70 f2.8. Portraits, Landscape, Commercial, just about everything. One of the most versatile lenses I own. Everyone should own one and is always in my bag.

Nikon F PC 19 mm Shift f4. LDS Temple Art, Commercial, and Landscapes. This corrects converging lines which can also be accomplished in Lightroom or Photoshop, but this lens does it without distortion. Actually a newer purchase for me; this lens has a huge learning curve, but I love the lines it creates. This is a specialty lens and most likely not needed unless shooting primarily Commercial or Real Estate.

Nikon Z 24-200mm f4-6.3. Haven't used this lens much, and not as sharp as the 2.8 lenses, but 24-200mm covers a ton of ground. Mostly purchased so I can travel and leave one lens on the camera. I would look at this as a secondary lens.

Nikon Z 35mm f1.8. Awesome lens for Landscape, environmental portraits (showing some background), portraits. I have 35mm within the 24-70mm lens but the magic of this lens is the 1.8 bokeh. A secondary lens.

Nikon Z S 70-200mm f2.8. A must have lens that should be in anyone's bag, very versatile and is always in mine.

Nikon Z 85mm f1.8. Wonderful portrait lens. Again, I have an 85mm within the 70-200mm lens but the magic is the 1.8 bokeh. Most likely a secondary lens.

Nikon Z 180-600mm f5.6-6.3. This is a must have for Wildlife Photography and a tremendous lens for the money. Nikon's 200-500mm F mount lens is a wonderful lens as well.

Nikon Z 800mm f6.3 PF. Wildlife Photography. For me, I am more interested in getting up close and personal with an animal than showing the animal within a landscape or habitat, therefore I opt for the longest lenses possible. I am using this lens more and more as I travel to Africa.

So define your genre and get out and shoot, but however you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you. Please reach out to me if you have any additional questions, I am always happy to help.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Wildlife Photography Gear On the Cheap?

Fri, 09 Feb 2024 02:03:33 GMT

Wildlife Photography Gear on a Budget: What I Really Use

A male lion relaxing in the golden grasses, Africa, shot with a used Nikon D7500 - Available as fine art print

Confused about what gear to buy for Wildlife Photography? It's not as complicated as it seems. There is a ton of great used gear out there. I'll go through a few pros and cons on buying used gear.

I spend quite a bit of time in Africa as a wildlife photographer. A few years ago, my camera setup was a Nikon D850 and Nikon D7500 as my back up camera. My D850 was limping along because it had water damage from a river I fell into in the prior year. I went to Africa shooting wildlife again and towards the end of my trip the shutter blew out of the D850 leaving me no choice except to use the D7500 for the last 4 days of the trip. Upon returning home, I was surprised at the superb image quality. You see, the D7500 has the same components as the Nikon D5 but without the fast frame rate speed and pro video. The D5 shoots 14 frames per second (FPS) and the D7500 8 FPS. It has a smaller sensor creating smaller file sizes, but if you can live with that, you can get great features in a camera that is a step down from the extreme stuff, and buying used saves a great deal. If you are concerned about the small file size of a crop camera, just enlarge the file in Photoshop making sure to use Preserve Details 2.0. Topaz Photo AI does a good job as well.

Expensive cameras definitely give you a leg up with tons of features like eye detection, fast frames rates, etc., but Pros have been shooting wildlife images for decades without all the bells and whistles. All images in this blog post from a Nikon D7500 and 200-500mm 5.6 lens.

A close up of eyes, face and horns of a Waterbuck, Africa - Nikon 200-500mm f5.6 - available as fine art print

As an example, you can buy a used D7500 for $500-600. A used Nikon 200-500mm F5.6 lens is $650-700. Plus, with the 1.5 crop sensor on the D7500, the 200-500 lens effectively becomes a 300-750mm at f5.6 which is awesome and covers just about everything needed in wildlife photography. By comparison, I paid $6500 for a Nikon Z 800mm 6.3. Maybe I'm the idiot.

In other words, you can spend just over $1,000 and get a great setup that will create fantastic sellable imagery.

Here are a few pros and cons to think about when buying used gear.

Pros:

Great gear at reasonable prices

The inventory of used gear is fabulous, everything is available

You can build a good setup quickly rather than over the years

Cons:

The gear could be faulty

No warranty

Usually no return policy

Camera could have a high shutter count

Mold in the lenses

Scratched glass

Could be refurbished

Protect yourself with a few tips:

Spend most of your money on glass. Good glass can last decades, camera bodies last 5-6 years. I have a 20 year old Nikon 300mm F4 that's still a fantastic lens. In fact, Nikon still sells it new.

Buy Lenses with VR, it's needed.

Buy used gear from a reputable source like B&H with condition ratings you can trust, or Craigslist locally where you can hold and test the equipment.

Read gear reviews to find the best gear for what you intend to shoot.

Stay clear of refurbished gear, it's not a viable option.

Buy a crop sensor camera, it helps you get extra reach on lenses as stated above, which is great for wildlife, but be aware, it hinders you on the wide angle landscape photography, because a 35mm lens with 1.5 crop turns into 52mm.

A close up face of a Spotted or Laughing Hyena, Kenya - Nikon 200-500mm f5.6 - available for editorial licensing

However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

An Average Day, Wildlife Photographer

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 02:00:58 GMT

Inside a Wildlife Photographer’s Routine: Field to Marketing

An African or Cape Buffalo feeding in colorful algae water, Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

People seem to think being a Wildlife Photographer is a dream job. Although that may be true part of the time, it's certainly not true all of the time.

Here are 3 points to consider:

1. Shooting:

I am primarily an African Wildlife Photographer. One of the hardest things about this is I have to fly to the other side of the planet to create images. I do not shoot images in zoos or the like, so the expense and work it takes is staggering. Each day in Africa is an 18 hour day. We shoot in the mornings and evenings and use afternoons to fly to different locations/countries. It seems I barely have enough time to grab dinner and unload my memory cards before midnight. This goes on daily for 3 weeks and by the time I get back to Utah, I'm exhausted. Covid, Customs, and carrying heavy camera gear through several airports all take its toll. Shooting locally could alleviate some of this stress.

2. Editing:

Everyone's style of editing is different. I tend to do lots of post production. I don't use any type of pre-sets, it's all manual. I start with a vision for each image and work until I have completed the vision. I usually return home from Africa with somewhere around 10-12k images. Each image is viewed in Lightroom and a determination is made as to which images I will edit and use. Editing is started in Lightroom and finished in Photoshop. Needless to say, it takes a lot of time to sift through 10,000 images. I would estimate I spend a total of 2 months a year actually out shooting and 10 months of the year editing. It's hard to keep up on editing, for example, at this time I still have 14 days of a recent Africa trip to edit. Plus, I recently moved back to Utah and I'm planning on adding other types of animals to my portfolio, and as a result, I just returned from a trip to Yellowstone, and from Antelope Island photographing Bison. I am crazy behind in editing but I still want to get to Glacier and Grand Teton National Parks for the Winter snow. There just isn't enough time each day.

Cheetah cubs playing while looking at camera, Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

3. Marketing:

Marketing a portfolio takes considerable time. Creating a website and crafting the correct SEO is no easy task, and it's continual. There is image re-sizing, watermarking, copyright info that needs to be dealt with. There's also metadata, alt tags, and keywords that have to be entered into each image in the File Info tab (photoshop) otherwise Google will never find you. This is actually the hardest part of Wildlife Photography.

In summary:

Travel, editing, marketing, printing, websites, SEO, etc., all add considerable stress to the situation and need to be considered as part of the deal. However, the joy associated with shooting Wildlife photography is off the charts. On my 1st trip to Africa years ago, a family of elephants were blocking the road. We tried to pass, but the mother elephant put her ears out which was a warning for me to back off. We were 20 feet from her and my heart was racing. It made me feel alive and those alive moments make it all worthwhile.

I hope you can find the passion in Wildlife Photography as I have, but however you decide to proceed, good light and good luck to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

African Safari, a photographer's Wife's Perspective

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 01:57:18 GMT

African Safari, Kenya and Uganda, the perspective of a photographer's wife

A family of elephants holding their ground against another family - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Our Kenya trips : July 31-August 14, 2021

After 26 ½ hours of planes and airports we arrived in Nairobi, Kenya. A few hours of sleep later, we were welcomed to Nairobi National Park by giraffes roaming freely against the skyline of the city. This National park is significant because most reserves are located in remote areas, this one is 10 mins from a big city. Next stop was the Baby Elephant Orphanage where we were in close proximity to 20 orphans with the ability to pet a few. The workers are responsible for keeping these beautiful creatures alive until they can be put back into the wild.

Masai Giraffes walking in single file with Nairobi in background - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Day 2 had us driving 4 hours south on bumpy, dirt roads to arrive at Amboseli, a reserve famous for elephants. One evening we were able to watch about 20 elephants eat and interact with each other.

At one point, they walked so close to our vehicle that I could have reached over and touched one.

While at Amboseli, we went to the Maasai Village and met Joseph, the chief’s son. We thought the village would be a great photography opportunity but it turned out to be a place to buy their goods. They had many rugs covered with bracelets and such so we bought a few trinkets to help the village. In the end, we took pictures of them in their unique clothing.

Sharing a moment with the Maasai Chief during our visit — a reminder of connection and gratitude.

My wife sharing a moment with our new Maasai Tribal friends in the Mara, Kenya, Africa

For the next reserve, we flew back to Nairobi to head North. Driving out of Nairobi was so chaotic we were surprised there were not more accidents. The traffic was slow and I noticed a bus in the middle lane stop and a lady got out and walked across a lane of cars. Other people walked on the lines against traffic to sell their goods. Outside

of Nairobi, I noticed a street sweeper. He consisted of one person with a broom and dustpan.

The poverty was amazing. Driving through each town, I noticed themes; some vendors sold fruit and bananas, the next town sold coal and potatoes in small stands that look like 2x4’s hammered together for a 4 feet wide shanty.

Handmade shanty markets line the streets through Kenya - Available for editorial licensing

This brought us to a reserve with the largest concentration of rhinos in the world. Over 100 of them. Rhinos aren’t very exciting but they have a cute trot. Here, we pet and fed Baranka, a blind black rhino.

The author holding the horns of Baranka, a blind Black Rhino

We took another small airplane south to the Masai Mara instead of driving 10 hours. The Mara is grassy with tall trees sparsely interspersed. Our accommodations are magnificent and our driver, Antony, is fabulous. He goes off road, goes fast when needed and anticipates what the animals will do before they do it. He’s been driving the Mara for 15 years. He’s Maasai and wears the Maasai garb complete with machete.

We were required to be at the hotel before dark, but sometimes a good photo op made us late, forcing us to drive back in the dark. T o avoid getting a ticket, Antony turned off the headlights and drove back through the Mara in the dark. An adventure to say the least.

My husband and photographer David Williams with driver Antony MaraMajor, Kenya, Africa

To find lions the drivers tell each other via radio where they are. One time we saw Morani, a famous male lion. When we arrived, he was lying down. Soon, he stood up and started to walk away so Antony repositioned the vehicle. As a result, we watched the lion head right to the back of the van. For a moment, we thought he was going to climb in the vehicle on top of Dave. Instead, he walked calmly into some bushes.

A male lion in golden hour walking in golden grasses, Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Not only were the animals an adventure but the terrain was as well. We traveled down muddy ravines with rocks and water that I didn’t think we would make it out of, but we did.

Our last hotel is where the largest migration of wildebeests in the world takes place and the main reason we are in Kenya. Between August and October every year, two million wildebeest move from Tanzania to Kenya to find new areas of fresh grass. Their journey forces them to cross the Mara River many times where the crocodiles await their next meal. The appeal of the migration to photographers is to get a picture of thousands of wildebeests running down the steep, dusty embankment, crossing the river, and running back up the other side. Unfortunately this crossing always ends with casualties to the wildebeests. This crossing, it turns out, is hard to capture. We struck out twice.

Nile crocodiles basking in golden light, Kenya - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Kenya/ Uganda July 30 - August 17, 2022

On our next trip to Kenya, we had the option to continue onto Uganda to see the Chimpanzees and Silverback Apes. We thought that sounded adventurous and decided to do it.

The travel schedule in Kenya was the same as our prior trip with the exception of The Ark. The Ark is a small lodge with 3 balconies overlooking a water hole and salt lick. Upon arrival it was foggy and cold but we watched elephants splashing and trumpeting in the water hole from the top balcony. The bedrooms are small and equipped with a buzzer so the night guard can alert you when nocturnal animals appear. This is where I celebrated my 54th birthday, Kenyan style.

After 2 weeks in Kenya it was time to venture onto Uganda.

To get into Uganda Charles arranged for a small plane. During the flight, we learned we couldn't just arrive in Uganda. We had to check out of Kenya first and then fly into Uganda. Two flights later, we touched down.

Part of our group waiting for our plane to Uganda - prop planes and dirt runways

Uganda is surprisingly green. As we drove, I noticed how lush the landscape of banana and tea farms is. As we continued on rudimentary roads, the poverty became more evident and was as obvious as the landscape. We thought the poverty levels in Kenya were disturbing but Uganda went to a whole new level. It was mind boggling.

Uganda is a very young country with high unemployment. Young meaning 50% of the country is under the age of 18. The unemployment among people ages 17-34 is 80+%. By contrast, Kenya has 40% unemployment. The government is trying to give more funding so more children can attend primary school but the success rate is low. Parents can only afford to send one child.

There are no cars and only a few motor bikes which can carry up to 5 people. “Pebbles and Bam Bamm” scooters were often seen. Locals waited by the roadside trying to sell bananas or wood carvings. As we drove by, the children jumped and yelled with big smiles to get the tourist’s attention and some money. We are told not to give money to them because the country is trying to teach them a work ethic instead of begging from tourists.

A local boy on a bike he built from wood, Uganda - Available for editorial licensing

Local Ugandan children running to say hi as we passed - Available for editorial licensing

Our first excursion, the chimpanzees, was less eventful than expected. It was almost a non-event. The few that were there didn’t cooperate by climbing out of the trees so we could see them. The potentially rainy weather was keeping them too high. We saw a couple of chimpanzees climb up into the trees but they were too fast so minimal pictures were taken.

That same day we caught a plane to see the Silverback gorillas. Our lodging, at the top of a wet, bumpy road, required 4x4 access. The next morning we drove 2 hours to meet the rangers who would take us into the mountains to find the gorillas. To provide jobs, the company hired people from nearby villages to carry our gear into the jungle.

After 2 hours of trekking and waiting with the rangers and guides we finally saw the gorillas. There were five. They climbed out of the trees and started eating the leaves on our level, we all scrambled for a good view point. When the mother gorilla climbed down the tree we noticed she had a baby on her shoulder. She made her way to a tree 6 feet in front of us. The guides let us know where to sit and do it quickly so we were on their level. We watched for an hour as she fed her baby and he played on her shoulders and arms. Then the large male gorilla started walking in front of us. I was to the left of the group and a foot closer when the male silverback walked in front of me on his way out. It was amazing to be this close without a cage between us. He let out a loud grunt and the family followed. It was time to move on. It was time for us to move on as well. It was a great ending to a great trip. Back to Kenya and back home.

A female mountain gorilla with infant in golden light, Uganda, Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

The author wife with photographer and Ugandan drivers

In Summary:

Uganda is a beautiful place to visit. It's been 18 days of non-stop adventure, especially the Uganda portion. Five flights later we arrived in Phoenix. We were so grateful to return to the USA and grateful for a wonderful experience.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Keeping Your Passion for Photography Alive, Part II

Sat, 06 May 2023 23:19:33 GMT

Keep Your Passion for Photography: Part II – How to Stay Inspired

A B17 at the Commemorative Air Force Museum, AZ - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

In May of 2022, I wrote a blog post entitled "Keeping Your Passion for Photography Alive". The topic was about overcoming the doldrums that set in causing you to lose your passion and creative edge. To recap, I listed 4 things you can do:

1, Carry a camera with you everywhere

2, Shoot images in a completely different genre

3, Search new photography trends and try your hand

4. Experiment, we are happiest when learning

Today, I would like to continue with Part 2 and add some additional ideas.

Join a camera club:

Camera clubs go on monthly field trips which will provide many photographic opportunities. I admit some trips didn't sound interesting, but stepping outside your comfort zone is a great way to beat the doldrums and increase your skills.

Find a local race track and head to the races:

Try panning with the subject to learn how to blur the background keeping the subject tack-sharp. It doesn't matter whether it's horses, cars, or motorcycles, learning this trick will come in handy in most photography genres.

Go to a local lake and photograph water sports:

You can photograph jet skies, wake boarders, water skiers or how about a friend on the rock climbing wall at REI? Opportunities are everywhere.

I am primarily an African Wildlife photographer but live in Phoenix. Sometimes I visit the zoo just to see the animals or test new lenses. Try shooting to eliminate all fencing and man-made structures, it's not as easy as one would think. It's all about perspective and depth of field. In addition, there are many other animal sanctuaries, for example, The World Wildlife Zoo, Bearizona, Gilbert Water Ranch, Boyce Thompson, Out of Africa, just to name a few. Maybe there are sanctuaries in your areas that will provide learning opportunities.

For the image above, my camera club arranged to go to the Commemorative Air Force Museum where I was able to stand on the tarmac and watch two WWII planes, (a B17 and B25) land and then photograph them at sunset outside of their hangars. I had never shot any type of aviation photography so I thought it would be a good idea to step outside of my comfort zone. I showed up with a bag of lenses and a tripod and in the end, I had a great night and learned a few things as well.

Here is how I created the lead photo:

I took 3 bracketed images, The 1st image was 2 stops overexposed to increase the details in the shadows, the 2nd image was 2 stops underexposed for the sky, and the 3rd image was shot at the normal exposure. I opened up the shadows in Lightroom and made a few adjustments like darkening the foreground, etc., then opened as 3 layers in Photoshop. I used Luminosity masking to mask-in the sky and details in the shadows. Then I created a stamped visible layer, opened the image back up in Camera Raw, and added quite a bit of clarity to the entire photo. Then I pushed the image back to Photoshop and put a black mask on the clarity layer. I then painted the clarity where I wanted it by using a white brush. The Clarity adds shine to silver tones and I wanted the plane to have a certain amount of pop. From there it was just a matter of a little dodging and burning and I had my 1st aviation image.

However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

How I Travel with Camera Gear

Sun, 26 Feb 2023 22:26:32 GMT

How I Travel with Camera Gear: Backpacks, Hard Cases & Tips

David Williams with Maasai driver and guide Antony Maramajor in a safari vehicle in Kenya

Today's photographers travel with multiple camera bodies, several lenses, and a vast array of tech. Plus, some trips are local, while others can be hiking, camping, driving or flying. Each type of travel requires different gear to carry your camera equipment. So how do you know what to use? I have experimented with multiple systems and here is what works for me.

My photography consists of African Wildlife, Landscapes, LDS Temples and Indigenous People's Cultural Photography. What I have found works best for me is convertibility, meaning, each pack or case must be able to be converted for multiple uses. Simply put, I use a series of backpacks and cases that are interchangeable as follows:

My backpacks, smallest to largest:

F-stop Loka 37L Ultra-Light Travel Camera Backpack. I bought 2 inserts: Slope Medium and a Pro Large. This way I have the option to carry minimal camera equipment plus clothing, or lots of camera gear, or I can switch to a bigger backpack which is a Mystery Ranch Bridger 35, which will hold either of the inserts plus lots of camping gear. The Mystery Ranch backpack is not a camera backpack but a true mountaineering backpack. I bought this because I am 6' 6" and need a pack that fits my body. The square shape is ideal for the inserts as well. My largest backpack is a Z Pack Arc Zip Ultra 62L Backpack. This is an ultralight gear and crazy expensive but this pack only weighs 1.5 lbs and is a 62-liter pack. I can fit both inserts in this pack but rarely do because the Pro Large insert gives me enough room for my camera equipment and the rest of the space can be used for tents, sleeping bag and food. Below are the links to the products. I do not receive any compensation for the products in this article.

https://shop.fstopgear.com/camera-bags/loka-37l-ultra-light-travel-camera-backpack/

https://www.mysteryranch.com/bridger-35-pack

https://zpacks.com/products/arc-zip-ultra-62l-backpack

International Flights:

For my Africa trips, I use the Think Tank International V3. There are tighter carry-on size restrictions when flying international, so this bag is about 1/2 inch smaller on all sides. The larger size is the Think Tank Airport Security, but some people get flagged and are forced to check the bag due to the larger size. No thanks. This bag has wheels and carries a grundle of gear including tech and a laptop. This bag, coupled with a backpack will get most of your gear on the plane.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=think%20tank%20international&sts=ma

Hard Cases:

I took a chance and bought a hard case from Harbor Freight made by Apache for my Nikon 800mm lens. The lens takes up the entire case but it fits like a glove and works extremely well. For my trips to Africa, I can't take 2 carry-ons so I have my wife take this case as her carry-on. When doing wildlife photography, there is usually a lot of dust and bumpy roads getting to the location and this case is perfect. This case was on sale and I bought 2 at $80 each. https://www.harborfreight.com/5800-weatherproof-protective-rolling-carry-on-case-x-large-64819.html?utm_source=go&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=shortener&cid=go_social

Now that I am in my 60s, it's important to get gear that will get my gear to the location, but also to have an ultralight solution for when hiking or camping. Whatever gear you choose, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Which Camera lenses do I use?

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Mon, 02 Jan 2023 01:22:55 GMT

Which Camera Lenses I Use for Wildlife, Travel, Culture & Architecture

B+W Elephants walking diagonally towards camera - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

In today's world, there are many camera lens options for use in professional photography ranging from cheap to crazy expensive. What do you really need and how expensive of lens should you buy? It can be a huge investment and is a question I am asked quite often.

The 1st consideration depends on what you intend to photograph because every style of photography seems to have an area of focal point that works best. For example, Wildlife photographers usually rely on big lenses like 500mm, 600mm and 800mm, whereas landscape photographers lean toward wide-angle lenses. Portrait photographers are usually around 85mm with huge apertures ranging from f1.2 or f1.8, or lower.

What do I use?

I primarily shoot Wildlife photography and specialize in the animals of Africa. The problem is I have to go to the other side of the planet to shoot the big 5. I currently live in Phoenix, Arizona so when I'm not in Africa, I photograph Landscapes, Indigenous People, LDS Temples along with some commercial work. So as you can imagine, I need quite a few lenses. I have lenses that range from 14mm to 800mm, plus a few specialty lenses like a macro, a shift/tilt lens for architectural images, and an f1.8 85mm portrait lens.

Cameras:

I shoot with the Nikon Z9 with Z lenses but my backup camera is a Nikon DSLR so at this point I still use some Nikon F lenses. Someday I hope to upgrade to all Z bodies and lenses.

Lenses, below is a listing of lenses in order of use:

Wildlife Photography: 200-500mm f5.6, 70-200mm f2.8, 800mm f6.3

Landscape Photography: 24-70mm f2.8, 70-200mm f2.8, and 14-24mm f2.8

Indigenous People: 85mm f1.8 and 24-70mm f2.8 for people, 14-24mm f2.8 and 24-70mm f2.8 for structures.

LDS Temples and Architectural: 24-70mm f2.8, 19mm f/4 Shift/PC lens, 14-24mm f2.8

If I only could choose one lens for each genre what would I choose? That's a tough question but here goes:

Wildlife: Either Nikon's 200-500mm f5.6 or the 150-600mm made by Sigma or Tameron. I saw images from a friend using the Sigma 150-600mm on my last trip to Africa and they were stunning. The 600 gives a little more reach than my 500mm. Nikon is slated to build a new Z 200-600mm which I will purchase as soon as it is available.

Landscapes: 24-70mm f2.8. The 14-24mm f2.8 is awesome but it's crazy wide and needs intense foreground interest to be at its best.

Indigenous People: 85mm f1.8, but anywhere from 50mm to 105mm would work well.

Architectural: 14-24mm f2.8 with the 19mm f/4 Shift/PC lens being a very close 2nd if not an equal lens.

There is always a question of whether or not to purchase the fast f2.8 lenses or f4 lenses. First of all, I know plenty of pros that use the F4 lenses because they are lighter allowing the option to take more lenses on an excursion, especially if hiking. The f4's are not quite as sharp in the corners which really only causes concern if printing big but being light and inexpensive makes them a great option.

In summary:

I personally believe in investing money into lenses over camera bodies because you can use a good lens for 20 years but will have to upgrade your camera much more often.

Whatever lenses you choose, good light and good luck to you

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

4 Steps to Perfectly Match Your Printed Photos to Your Monitor

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 22:25:36 GMT

4 Steps to Match Your Photo Prints to Your Monitor Perfectly

The rising sun over the hoodoos in Bryce Canyon National Park, Ut - Fine art landscape photography by David Williams

Do your photography prints look flat and dull when compared to your monitor? Follow these 4 steps to print your photography precisely as they appear on your monitor.

1) Buy a monitor calibration device and calibrate your monitor regularly.

Here is a great one: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1649339-REG/calibrite_ccdis3_colorchecker_display_pro.html

2). Match the Colorspace to all of your devices.

Colorspace is a set of defined colors that guide the output of the colors to the medium you are using, such as your camera, monitor/display, printer, Lightroom, and/or Photoshop. All must match. The 3 most common colorspaces are sRGB, Adobe 1998, and ProPhoto. Determine what colorspaces work best for your workflow. I have chosen to shoot, edit and print all my artwork using Adobe 1998, and convert my images to sRGB later if I need them for web use. Youtube has tons of videos on how to set the proper colorspace for all of your devices.

3). ICC Paper Profiles.

Gone are the days of buying generic printing paper and printing. To get the correct consistency, only purchase professional printing papers from companies that will provide you with the ICC paper profile for that specific paper. I use 3 main companies: Canon, Ilford, and Moab; each company provided a free ICC print profile for the paper I selected.

Following the above 3 steps greatly increased results consistently, but I found I always needed to brighten the image by 10 points, add yellow and red to warm the image, and boost the contrast to make the image print identical to my monitor. Step #4 is the magic. I am not receiving compensation for any part of this document, I am simply stating what I have done to get superior printing results.

4). Custom ICC Printer Profiles.

Every printer will render colors differently, even 2 of the same printers will render colors differently. For example, "Ferrari Red" is a specific color of red. It's hex #ff2800 and is composed of 100% red, 15.7% green, and 0% blue. It would be a shame to render an image of a Ferrari in a color that is the incorrect color/hue of red. To complicate things further, sRGB has 16.7 million colors available at 8 bits per channel. Adobe 1998 and ProPhoto are both larger colorspaces numbering colors into the trillions when you work in 16 bit. This leaves a huge possibility of colors being rendered incorrectly, hence, giving you a print that doesn't match your monitor or funky tones on the web. The magic for me was to purchase custom ICC profiles. I used Michael at https://www.greatprinterprofiles.com/.

To create a custom profile, you simply download a color grid from the custom ICC profiling company which will contain a myriad of colors, and print it on the paper and printer you will use. Then you send the printed document to the profiler who will scan the document. Any color that needs to be corrected will be adjusted and a new ICC profile will be created and sent to you. You load the ICC profiles into your printer and computer and use that ICC profile every time you use that paper. I have created 3 custom ICC profiles and my prints look identical to my monitor every time. I have not needed to make any adjustments before printing since purchasing the custom profiles.

Relieve your printing frustrations by following the steps above. However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

3 Epic Ways to Use a Tilt-Shift Lens

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Mon, 04 Jul 2022 01:50:47 GMT

3 Epic Ways to Use a Tilt-Shift Lens for Creative Photography

Beautiful morning at sunrise, LDS Provo Temple, UT - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Tilt Shift Lenses are used to correct converging lines occurring when you tilt a lens up at a subject. This is most prevalent when shooting architecture photography with wide angle lenses but can happen with any lens. Converging lines may be OK in certain types of photography but they won't fly in architectural photography. Lightroom and Photoshop have tools that fix perspective so why are these lenses still so heavily used today?

The easy answer is control. Editing software will crop or cut certain portions of the image out in an attempt to straighten the converging lines and you end up with what the software dictates, not what vision you have for the image. Plus, using the guides to stretch and straighten the image always causes a loss of sharpness. A Tilt Shift lens allows you to adjust the lens and get the exact composition in camera.

So what is Tilt and Shift? In general terms, shift is used to raise the lens up or down keeping the focal plane flat to the sensor so you don't have to tilt the camera up toward the subject. Tilt is generally used to alter the focal plane of the lens to align closer to what is being photographed. This can bring much more depth of field into focus at wide open apertures such as F4 rather than F16.

I use the Nikon 19mm PC F4 lens which has the capability to shift or tilt up/down, left/right or diagonally. I can even tilt or shift diagonally and use both shift and tilt at the same. The shift and tilt functions operate independently and each function can rotate 360 degrees providing endless opportunities.

Here are 3 ways I use myTilt Shift Lens:

1) Panoramas:

I adjust the shift function to move left to right. I leave the camera in the same position shooting 3 images: left, center and right. I then stitch the images together in photoshop. There is no curvature to the image as there would be when you move the camera position left to right. It's easier to compose the image and the image turns out exactly as planned

2) Landscape:

Foreground interest is usually hard to get in focus without focus stacking. Most of the time you are adjusting the aperture or film speed to keep the motion blur out of the flowers in the foreground. The Tilt Shift lens offers a unique solution. Using the tilt function, you can focus on the background and then tilt the camera lens down a degree or so and check the focus on the foreground. It may take some time but you can rock this back and forth until you get it perfect. This will allow you to shoot the entire scene at F4 with complete focus from front to back giving you higher shutter speeds and without noise being added from faster film speeds.

3). Architectural:

Whether you are shooting buildings or hotel rooms, the lines need to be straight and this lens is paramount in making this happen without the unwanted side effects of cropping or stretching the image.

If you are in the market for a Tilt Shift lens, purchase one allowing you to shift and tilt simultaneously and independently.

The image above: Notice the tree trunks, lamp posts and building lines are all straight. The image below shows the tilt and shift functions on the lens.

Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography

A close up of the Tilt Shift mechanism on a Nikon 19mm F4 ED lens - by David Williams Photography

Keeping Your Passion for Photography Alive

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Sun, 01 May 2022 16:26:31 GMT

Keeping Your Passion for Photography Alive: 4 Simple Strategies

B+W of a girl leaning against columns at an old church - Fine art landscape photography by David Williams

We have all felt the doldrums creep into our photography whether it's a career or a hobby. Follow these 4 tips to ignite your passions again:

1. Carry a camera everywhere.

As an African Wildlife and Nature photographer, I usually use very large or extremely specific lenses, and as such, I am not accustomed to walking through life with a camera around my neck. This is primarily because of the the fear of leaving a crazy expensive camera and lens combo in the car and having it stolen. Recently, I began carrying around a Nikon D7500 which is a back up camera with one of my old lenses I never got around to selling. I wanted to get away from the waiting game that's so prevalent with shooting wildlife, nature and landscape images.

2. Shoot images in a completely different genre or style to challenge yourself.

Years ago, I started out shooting film and fell in love with the rich saturation of Fuji Provia and Velvia films. Because of that, I never really dabbled in black and white photography, or certainly not street photography which has become such a rage. I recently decided to try my hand at both which forced me to do some discovery about styles, methods and a different type of post production. After learning a little about each, I booked a hotel in Tucson Arizona for the weekend and planned to enjoy the weekend with my family taking a few photos along the way as we explored. I had a riot and felt a new connection to the camera. I began carrying the camera on most weekends and experimenting in Lightroom and Photoshop to explore the possibilities. I learned that everything I already knew still applied, but an entirely new set of skills would be required.

Image above:

My daughter was leaning against a column at an old church as she waited for me to take a few images. I asked to her to move to a different column so I could utilize the Rule of Thirds and snapped the picture. Images below: The electric bike caught my eye and was shot as the sun was setting on a vacant street. The 3rd image is the converging lines into the sun at the Tempe ASU campus.

3. Search out new photography trends in the marketplace and give them a try.

For example, a new rage is to shoot portraits with huge blur in the background referred to as bokeh. Did you know you can buy a used Nikon 50mm F1.4 AF lens for $120 on ebay? This would be a great starter lens to explore this genre with. How about outdoor beauty portraiture with a Godox flash and High Speed Sync?

4. Experiment.

Find the joy through new photography styles and skills. I have found I am the happiest when I am consistently learning, but my focus has always been in improving the areas I specialize in. Jumping out of my comfort zone and genre has been a challenge but insanely rewarding. It's a new set of rules and wonderful new possibilities. Because of that, I felt the passion return to my photography, and I learned a few things that will transfer over to my Wildlife and Nature Photography.

So step out of your box, start learning and ignite your passions.

Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

A B+W image of a EV bike at a vacant street fair - Fine art landscape photography by David Williams

Reflections in the glass, a B+W of a building at sunset - available as a fine art print by David Williams

Should I Join a Camera Club?

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Tue, 22 Mar 2022 02:03:45 GMT

Should I Join a Camera Club? Pros and Cons for Photographers

A male lion resting in the golden grasses of Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

The answer is simple, it's an emphatic YES! However, there are a few things you should know.

Camera clubs cater to 3 things; photo competitions, monthly field trips and guest speakers. All are extremely helpful in the photographic learning curve and it's an incredible resource when you compare the benefits of the cost to join.

Photo Competitions:

The photo contests are where the magic begins. Not all images entered in the contest are from the recent field trips, but when they are, you get to see how everyone else visualized, framed and edited their images. I always walk away realizing what I could have done differently. Maybe I should have had a lower camera angle, framed the shot tighter, or shot the birds at 1600 iso instead of 1200. The beauty is you can learn from the program whether you enter the contests or not. Some clubs have a Class A for the seasoned photographers and a Class B for beginners. Class B is judged a little differently and doesn't have as much competition. You can choose which class you intend to compete in, and can move up when ready.

Field Trips:

In many cases, the monthly field trips are out of state and provide a wonderful opportunity to get somewhere remote with a group of like minded people. I have always had fun on the adventures and usually return with usable images. Below is an image I took on a field trip to Yosemite with my club.

Beautiful stormy skies, Tunnel View, Yosemite - Award winning fine art photograph by David Williams

Guest Speakers:

Each month a guest speaker will give a presentation to the club. This is a wonderful opportunity to talk to a working pro and ask questions. I learn something each time, even if they shoot in a completely different style of genre.

Being a Wildlife, Nature or Landscape photographer can be lonely at times. Sure it's spellbinding to sit on a ledge on the side of a mountain and photograph Mother Nature at her best, but sometimes, we fail to get the shot because of conditions, lack of preparation or whatever, and it's a lonely drive back to the tent or hotel. The field trips offer a different perspective because there is always a warm meal and great conversations after the shoot whether you get the shot or not. You'll make great friends in the club. My 1st trip to Africa was with a friend I met in the camera club, in fact, I'm going back again this year but this time there are 12 members from the club going.

In Summary:

I found 1 thing to be challenging. In most cases the judges for the contests are in their 60's or 70's, and I have wondered if these old cats are still living in the 90's. Does winning photo contests mean you will sell images? Are the winning images similar to the images a recent grad in graphic design would choose when putting together an ad campaign? This is something I have struggled to find out. In the end, I realize a great photo taken 60 years ago is still a great photo today. There is no modern replacement for a great story, lighting and composition.

I would love to hear your experiences with camera clubs and photo contests, please leave a comment. However you choose to proceed, here are some great resources to consider, each having info that can help you.

https://ppa.com

https://psa-photo.org

https://asmp.org

However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Considering Wildlife Photography?

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Sun, 06 Feb 2022 21:16:19 GMT

Considering Wildlife Photography? Tips from Years in the Field

An adult male African elephant with large tusks feeding, Kenya - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

We've all seen captivating images of wildlife that stir our soul and ask "should I be considering entering this genre of photography?" Let's start by defining it. Wikipedia defines as: Wildlife photography is a genre of photography concerned with documenting various forms of wildlife in their natural habitat. Sounds easy, right?

Here are 4 things to consider:

1, Interest: What are you interested in photographing, and is this type of wildlife available close to where you live or does it require travel?

2, Equipment: Telephotos and/or super telephotos are required as getting close to certain wildlife is difficult and in many cases crazy dangerous.

3, Story: What story do you intend to convey through imagery?

4, Purpose: Selling images as fine art, or for use in hunting magazines, textbooks, advertising, etc., or personal collection? This is what I believe to be the hardest part.

I started out as a landscape photographer which entails finding a scene, capturing a strong composition in captivating light, and being able to bring the image to life in post production. Wildlife photography adds several dimensions to this already complicated process. You don't get to choose your background, or have the ability to wait for the light to improve, and in most cases you only have a fleeting moment to capture the image. Oh, but the joy and the majesty of these wonderful animals. It is certainly addicting.

The image below taken at 300mm F20, IS0 3200, Masai Mara, Kenya, Africa

4 African Cheetahs walking toward camera in single file, Kenya - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Develop your skills:

Being a Nikon shooter, you can purchase a Nikon 200-500mm F5.6 lens for $1400 which goes on sell for $1200 twice a year. Buy a season pass to your local zoo and practice hand holding your camera and lens combo. Learn to get sharp images that are bang on. On my last trip to Africa I never even pulled out the tripod, everything was handheld. I had wonderful shots that were soft and hence throw-aways. Hand holding a large lens is still a skill I am trying to perfect. Practice!

Learn your camera:

Learn how to work your camera, you will be switching focusing modes, and all settings constantly. Some animals are stationary, where you can use single point focus, others like birds, require shutter speeds around 2500 and continuous focus.

You will most likely be shooting wide open to get enough light into the scene. This is also helpful in blurring the background of the image. Here is a blogpost I wrote on Bokeh I believe will help: https://www.davidwilliamsphotography.com/creating-bokeh-and-why-it-s-important

Learn about the animals you intend to photograph:

Learn as much as possible about the wildlife you intend to photograph. This will enable you to understand the animal and allow you to get closer. Try to get eye contact in your images, but understand eye contact is a threat in the animal world and the dangers are real. For example, hippos kill more people than any other animal in Africa, yet they are vegetarians. They are simply being protective.

Continue learning:

There are tricks to getting closer to the animals, like shooting from blinds, or getting a remote trigger and triggering the camera from afar. I even know of a guy who gets in a shark cage and lure animals in with raw meat. Others have the money to purchase a 600m F4 and use with a teleconverter.

For me, I want to show the heart of the animal, the emotions, the battle-scars, the loneliness, and through this effort I intend to drench myself in conservation efforts. What ever you decide good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Creating Bokeh and Why it's Important

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Tue, 14 Dec 2021 00:01:29 GMT

Creating Bokeh and Why It’s Important: 5 Steps for Beautiful Blur

Bokeh can enhance a photo artistically but there are other reasons why bokeh is an important tool. Let's first define bokeh and how it's used, then I'll show some examples of how I use bokeh.

Bokeh is a term created in 1997 and basically refers to the out of focus area of the background of a photo. Modern cameras and smart phones have made bokeh easy to create and there are even programs like Luminar AI that will turn any portrait into a bokeh portrait.

Let's look at the origin of the word. Bokeh is a word with Japanese origins, defined as “the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light. ” The word comes from the Japanese word boke (暈け or ボケ), which means “haze” or “blur.” (The “h” was introduced to help English speakers pronounce the word correctly [BO - KEH].)

Bokeh creates wonderful artifacts in the image usually in circular or hexagonal shapes. This is caused by beams of light moving through the lens and passing through your aperture and on to your light sensor. The shape of the artifacts are directly related to the shape of your aperture. If the blades on your aperture are rendering a hexagonal shape, then the artifacts will render a hexagonal shape. These artifacts will be most visible when there are lights in the background. Christmas lights, city lights or any object with extremely high shine will make great bokeh candidates.

Follow these steps to create a bokeh image:

1) Use an extremely shallow depth of field, in other words, shoot with the lens wide open. Most pro lenses have a wide open aperture somewhere around ƒ 2.8 with many new lenses rendering f-stops of ƒ 2.0, ƒ 1.2 or even lower. The closer the aperture is set to wide open the better the bokeh effect will be.

2) Place the subject close to the camera lens and have distance between the subject and the background.

3) Look for locations with lights or shiny objects in the background. However, if you don't have lights or shiny objects in the background you'll still get a wonderful blur in the background but not the fabulous artifacts.

4) The longer the lens the better the bokeh effect, in fact, it's really hard to get great bokeh with a wide angle lens because they have such a deep depth of field, so stick to your longer zoom or telephoto lenses.

5) For shots using your camera phone, simply get close to the subject and focus on them. The effect can be amazing.

Below is an example of a model car with a Christmas tree in the background, you can clearly see the lights are displayed as hexagons.

A close up of a model race car with bokeh - photography by Master Photographer David Williams

There is no right or wrong way to use bokeh, it's all left to personal interpretation. Our brain directs our eyes to scan the image and key into the areas that are the most in focus. I use bokeh to draw attention to certain parts of the image and away from other parts of the image directing the viewers eyes to what I want them to see. In the images below, I didn't want the artifacts to compete with the subject, plus, the bokeh background clears the clutter and adds visual interest.

A Pied Kingfisher perched in the sun, Africa - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

The rich color and feather details of a Lilac-breasted Roller - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

In Summary:

Bokeh is an important tool and can certainly enhance or add artistry to an image. So go ahead and find some lights and give it a try! Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.davidwilliams.photoshelter.com

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

5 Steps to Stop Wind-Induced Motion Blur in Your Landscape Photos

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Wed, 27 Oct 2021 00:34:47 GMT

5 Steps to Prevent Wind Blur in Landscape Photography

Golden grass and autumn leaves in the Mogollon Rim, AZ - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Shooting landscape photography has always had its challenges, but shooting in the wind presents an entirely different set of obstacles. Trees, grasses and flowers showing motion blur can take the magic away from your hard earned photograph.

The conundrum is simple:

If you raise the film speed, you'll get noise in the image. That's easy, you can use a great program like Topaz Noise to reduce the noise but it will cost you dearly in the details and could prevent you from printing larger prints.

If you open the aperture to raise the shutter speed you lose depth of field. That's easy as well, just focus stack and stitch the images together in Photoshop later. Ultimately, that won't work either because the trees, leaves etc., will be in a different position for each shot with the movement of the wind and the ghosting issues make this option unviable.

What's the answer? Balance. You need to find the right balance between the aperture, shutter and film speed.

Follow these 5 steps to overcome moderate wind.

1. Use one image. As mentioned, focus stacking will have too many ghosting issues so you'll need to get the entire image in one shot. You can bracket but the same is true, very little will line up correctly. Try bracketing and picking the one exposure that is the best all around exposure and start there.

2. Listen! Listen to the wind moving through the trees, it's an audible sound and when you hear a lull in the wind, wait a few of seconds then take the next shot.

3. Hang your camera backpack from your tripod for additional camera stabilization.

4. Use the widest lens you can to get the shot you want. Remember the wider the lens the better the depth of field. You will be better off using a 14-24mm and cropping the image than using a 24-70mm. After the crop you will have a smaller image, but it will have greater depth of field.

5. Rotate through all possible combinations of shutter speed, aperture and film speeds. In aperture priority, start at ISO 200 and F4, then take the photo in increments raising the film speed all the way to 800. Once complete, start over with an aperture of F5.6 and do the same drill. Shoot every combination all the way to ISO 800 and F8 or so, as each situation will be different. Generally, you need a shutter speed between 200 and 400 to stop most motion blur. You will end up with a ton of images but then you can throw them into Lightroom and work out which image has the best starting point and chance for success.

In Summary:

The image above was taken in the mountains of the Arizona desert. The winds were between 10 and 18mph with gusts even higher. At times, the wind was blowing so hard my backpack hanging from the tripod was swinging in the wind far enough to hit the legs of my tripod, and this is a 7 ft tripod. I found myself pushing the shutter which is on a 2 second lag, then quickly reaching down and holding the backpack stationary so it wouldn't hit the tripod legs.

The sun popped out from the cloud cover which helped me greatly, so in the end, the chosen image was -0+, 21mm, 1/320, F8, and ISO 200.

I hope these tips help, so give them a try.

Good luck and good light.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.davidwilliams.photoshelter.com

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Perspective Made Easier: Landscape Photography

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Mon, 06 Sep 2021 22:41:24 GMT

Landscape Photography Perspective Explained: Tips & Techniques

Sunrise over the reflection pool, LDS Mesa Temple, AZ - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

We all want to create better images. What's the secret photographers possess to consistently create great images? There are many facets to creating a great photo but let's concentrate on composition. If the composition is wrong the image will always suffer, whereas, sometimes there can be leeway in the other areas if the composition is strong.

The secret to improved composition is perspective. Perspective is the tool used to structure your composition.

We need an easy way to think about composition, and the easiest starting point is the Rule of Thirds, which is basically a tic-tac-toe grid mentally superimposed over an image. Some modern cameras have this feature built in, but most of us have to visualize the grid mentally. The point of the grid is to place the subject and important elements of the image on the intersections of the grid.

Don't forget your heart. Many famous photographers believe the camera sees both ways, which means it also sees backwards into our heart and soul. We need to feel and experience everything in the scene and become one with the scene, then allow our inner selves to dictate the placement of the elements within our mental grid, even if it violates the rule of thirds. This is precisely how photographers learn to break the rules. So often I see wonderful imagery but get confused because all of the rules were broken, yet the photo is stunning.

Perspective made simple:

If you stand in the middle of the road and snap a picture, the sides of the road will narrow in the distance of the image. The straight lines of our reality become diagonal lines in photography. Another example would be if you stand front and center of a restaurant and snap a picture, the bottom of the building will be a level horizontal line, if you move 30 feet to the right, the image will show the horizontal line shift to a diagonal line. How far you move right will dictate the extent of diagonal. This is the basis of perspective.

A composition is a series of lines:

Landscape photographers love leading lines, and you can create or alter the composition by the placement and direction of the lines. The subject and important elements of the image are then placed on the intersections of the grid. When things don't line up as you wish, make adjustments such as moving left or right in the scene, changing lenses, or isolating to bring elements into alignment with your mental grid.

Shoot at ground level or varying heights:

Drone photography has added a fresh new perspective by shooting from high above, but because many areas are now a no drone zone, this genre unfortunately is being limited. To combat this, I purchased a Gitzo GT5563GS 10 ft tripod and Little Giant Flip-n-Lite 4 ft step ladder so I can add a higher perspective to my own photography. Below are 2 examples. The 1st is a shot I took laying on my stomach with the camera on the ground, and the 2nd is taken from my step ladder with the camera at 10 feet. Each brings a different perspective through height.

Using perspective to change and create pleasing lines in the image and placing elements within the rule of thirds grid will greatly improve your landscape photography.

Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.davidwilliams.photoshelter.com

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Sunset from Schnebly Hill Road, Sedona, Arizona - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

My Top 4 Tips for Creating Beautiful Landscape Photography

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 01:38:10 GMT

4 Essential Tips for Creating Beautiful Landscape Photography

Sunrise colors reflect on Madison River, Yellowstone - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Interested in learning how to create awesome landscape imagery? Here are 4 tips I recommend to propel you forward into the world of Landscape Photography

1). Get your camera off of Program (P) mode and set it to either Aperture Priority (A) or Shutter Priority (S). Aperture Priority lets you set the aperture and the camera will set the shutter speed. Shutter Priority lets you set the shutter speed and the camera sets the aperture. Because most images are taken on a tripod, shutter speed is less of an issue in my opinion (unless there is wind) so aperture priority would be my preference to start with.

2). Shoot in Raw format. Shooting in raw format gives you a huge amount of data in the file to work with, especially in the shadows and highlights of the photo. The downside is images taken in raw look flat and won't impress anyone. The colors, textures and light must be coaxed out of the image which can be done through an image processor like Lightroom, Photoshop, Luminar AI, Topaz, etc. I use Lightroom and Photoshop.

3). Learn how to read the histogram on the back of your camera. To ensure you are capturing all of the data you can, you need to understand the histogram. Clipping occurs when you are leaving data out of the image either in the highlights or the shadows. Use your +/- "Exposure" camera dial to move the data as far to the right as possible in the histogram without clipping any highlights. Shooting to the right creates less noise in the image which in some cases is hard to deal with.

4). Purchase Lightroom and Photoshop and learn how to use them manually. I was told early on to never use presets, looks, or LUTs and it turned out to be the best piece of advice I ever received. LUTs are buttons or sliders that allow you to select the "look" you like. You see, with the world moving to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in photo editing, many people are selling these one button solutions or sliders. The problem is your image will look like everyone else's because the AI will dictate how the photo should look within a few variations. My advice is start with Lightroom, there are plenty of free lessons on Youtube and if you want to email me, I will forward you several names who have helped me over the years. Then, once you are ready to move on, try your hand at Photoshop.

Photoshop is a little more difficult, you create layers and each has the capacity to contain several corrections or enhancements to the image. If you make a mistake, you can delete the layer and start over, leaving your original photo untouched. I do all of my photo editing in a series of layers. In the image above, there were 35 layers, each named with the specific enhancement. In a year or 2 from now, when I have increased my skills further, I may return to certain images, delete a particular layer(s) and create a new one using improved skills. I believe understanding how to make manual adjustments in Lightroom and Photoshop is imperative, but however you decide to proceed, create your own style that will separate you from the pack and AI.

Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_

Finding the Joy in Landscape Photography

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 22:31:56 GMT

Finding Joy in Landscape Photography: 4 Ways to Enjoy the Process

A foggy sunrise over a burned forest in Yellowstone National Park, WY - award winning photo by David Willams

Maybe you are new to photography or maybe you need to rekindle your love affair with the camera. I have found the best way to find joy is to have success in the field. Getting the shot can quickly erase the day's list of hardships. It's funny how getting a flat tire in the mud or fighting with heat and bugs all day dissipates when you know you got the shot.

Finding success really boils down to being seriously prepared and hoping for a little luck. I believe the 2 go hand in hand. Follow these simple tips to prepare yourself to get the shot:

Research:

There are many tools available for photographers. Google Earth Pro, Photo Pills, Sky Candy, blogs, State Park Resources and even Instagram can help us understand more about the location we intend to shoot. Gone are the days where we stumble into an area and explore an hour before sunset. We should understand exactly where and when the sun will set before we get there. I use Photo Pills for this and it's the best $10 bucks I've ever spent. Things don't always go as intended but you can increase your odds by doing the preliminary research before you go. It's amazing how I seem to get more when I prepare more.

Relax:

I n my early years I missed a lot of shots because I was so wound up and nervous about missing the shot. The stress of the moment can be overwhelming. I try to get to the location around 3-4pm for a sunset shoot and in the mornings I am usually hiking in the dark long before the sun comes up. I like to have time to shoot the scene and then study the composition through a loupe I press up against the back of my camera. I make small adjustments then take additional shots. Sometimes I only shoot one composition the entire evening, other times I shoot multiple compositions depending on the location and what the light is doing. The image above was the only composition I shot at this location. The risk is if I don't get the shot I have to plan another trip, which has happened more than I would like to admit but sometimes you know what you want. I worked with the composition until I was happy then waited for the light.

Comfort:

I need to be comfortable so I pack plenty of food, water, layers of clothing and I make sure to bring my Helinox folding chair in case I need to wait for the light. I spend a fortune on foot and hand warmers because some of these locations can be crazy cold at 4am.

Connection:

I used to feel separated from what I was photographing. I felt as if I was standing in one spot and photographing another spot. I learned there is a connection with the earth, the planet, Mother Nature, or however you want to describe it that is important. I learned to become one with the scene, to the point I am in the scene as part of it, or part of the experience. I immerse myself in the sights, sounds, smells and all that is going on. It greatly adds to the enjoyment but is also a crucial part of the connection that promotes success.

In Summary:

So do your research, get prepared and keep your cool to get the shot but most of all, enjoy the experience.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

Bracketing for Precise Exposure in Landscape Photography

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Fri, 28 May 2021 17:56:00 GMT

How to Use Bracketing for Perfect Landscape Exposures

Vivid sunset over granite rocks, Watson Lake, AZ - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Bracketing is a simple process where we can add additional dynamic range to an image. Dynamic range is the camera's ability to see the brightest highlights and the deepest shadows, and to have detail in both.

Normally, when focusing on the sky, the sky will look good but the foreground will be almost black with no shadow detail. When focusing on the mountain, the mountain and foreground will have the correct exposure, but the sky will get blown out. That's because the camera captures less light than the human eye can see. Light is measured in "stops". Think of "stops" as an amount, like a gallon of gas. 10 gallons of gas is more than 5 gallons and 10 stops of light is more than 8 stops. The human eye can see roughly 14 stops of light whereas the best pro cameras capture 8-9 stops of light. As you can see, there is a deficit of 5-6 stops of light being left out of the image severely impacting the extreme highlights and deep shadows of the image.

So how do we compensate?

With bracketing, which first requires making a few choices. You'll need to determine how many images to take and the differences in stops between them. Most people take either 3 or 5 images. I use 3 images and I set the bracketing sequence at 2 stops each, meaning 2 stops underexposed and 2 stops overexposed. This means I take the first photo at the correct exposure, the second exposure at -2, and the 3rd photo at +2.

Bracketing Solution:

By bracketing this way, I am adding 4 stops of light (2+2) to my approximate 9 stops in camera for a total of 13 stops (4+9) which is pretty close to the 14 stops my eyes can see. The rest I can make up in Photoshop or by using neutral density filters.

I set my camera's dial to "continuous" so when I press the shutter the camera automatically takes all 3 photos at the pre-assigned exposure. For those that need to do this with a manual camera, you will simply take the correct exposure for the 1st shot, then change the dials on the camera to shoot the next image underexposed with the 3rd shot being overexposed.

The secret to bracketing is in post production:

In theory, you will be using the the overexposed image for the details in the foreground and the underexposed image for the details and deep colors of the sky. The easiest way to accomplish this is with the HDR feature in Lightroom or you can manually blend your images together using Photoshop. I usually blend everything manually using luminosity masks, then I paint the areas I need into the normal exposure through each layer.

The image above was taken at Watson Lake just outside of Prescott Arizona at sunset. I wanted the sky colors to come through, yet I wanted to have all of the details in the shadows and between the rocks. I shoot with a Nikon D850 and I don't believe there was any chance I could have gotten the shot with just a single image. It all sounds complicated but there are tons of Youtube videos on how to do this and it's an easy process to learn.

However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you!

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

3 Secrets to Photographing the Bisti Badlands of New Mexico

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 19:13:41 GMT

How to Photograph the Bisti Badlands in New Mexico

Sunrise over the Bisti Badlands of New Mexico - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

The Bisti Badlands just outside of Farmington New Mexico is a wonderful location for Landscape Photographers with a wide array of photographic opportunities. However, the area is extremely tricky and cell coverage can be spotty, so follow these 3 tips to ensure your safety as well as snagging some incredible landscape photos.

#1, Prepare for your safety, seriously.

This place is like the twilight zone and it's amazing how easy it is to get turned around. In fact, I rescued a photographer on my way back to the car that had become disoriented. He had lost cell coverage and his manual compass had pointed him in the basic general direction, but I drove him around for 20 minutes before we spotted his car.

I suggest the following: Mark the location of your car on your phone. Bring a manual compass and make note of the numerical heading as you start out, checking it from time to time. Once you get a few hundred feet from your car, turn around and line your car up with a mountain peak or something in the distance behind your car, so you can navigate back. When returning, subtract180 degrees from your starting compass heading, and it will send you back in the direction of your car. I use a Garmin 66i which hooks to the Iridium satellite and has with no black out areas on earth, and I still saw the compass jumping around. It reminded me of the Bermuda Triangle. I would also take plenty of food and water, and of course a headlamp in case you are coming back after dark.

#2, Always know where the sun will rise or set.

I use the PhotoPills app on my phone which you can purchase for $10. Open the app and push the "Sun" button in the upper right corner, then touch the "AR" button at the very bottom center of the screen. Hold your phone up towards the sky and the app will tell you exactly where and when the sun hits the horizon. I composed my images in the afternoon knowing exactly where the sun would set.

#3, Getting the Shot.

Bring a wide array of lenses. I shot mostly with a 24-70mm lens but be prepared to do some isolating with a longer lens. Some of the hoodoos are smaller and you'll find yourself getting very close to the subject, so focus stacking may be necessary. I found the area to be so diverse that images can look a bit cluttered if you are using a 14-24mm, so I leaned more toward isolating the hoodoos against a colorful sky at sunset. If you are into astrophotography, this is the perfect place because you can get down low and shoot upwards to include the night sky. Take a sturdy tripod, this is no time to be hand holding the camera, especially if you are doing time blending or exposure blending, etc.

There are a series of large washes through the Badlands and you can use them to get into the general areas you want to explore, saving you much time. Study the topo maps, google maps etc., and do your homework before you go, it will be helpful. The Badlands only receive about 3,000 visitors a year so that equates to roughly 8 people per day. It's still a wonderful secret.

Good Luck and Good Light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

See my work at:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

LDS Temple Photography - Taking Better Images, Part 3

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Sun, 28 Mar 2021 19:53:53 GMT

LDS Temple Photography: Advanced Editing Tips (Part III)

Sunrise at the Gilbert Latter Day Saint Temple, Gilbert AZ - Fine art landscape photography by David Williams

This is the 3rd and final installment in this series to improve LDS Temple Photography. In this article, we'll explore some of the more complex processes in post production. This is not a how-to guide, but instead, information so you can see the possibilities that exist in the current environment.

Image Processing:

The amount of processing is a personal choice based on many factors. Some photographers are realists and want to replicate the original scene exactly, whereas others will replace anything, including shrubs, cars, and skies etc., to add as much visual interest as possible. We all know what a fake photo is but where is the line in the sand that defines this? It's a personal decision we all have to make.

Raw Files:

Pro photographers will shoot their Images in RAW format (rather than jpeg) which will contain much more information and detail in the file. However RAW files usually look a bit washed out and hence will need some coaxing to bring out the original color, clarity, contrast or other enhancements you have in mind. This is done through a RAW Converter with the most popular being Lightroom but many other programs exist and each do a great job.

Layers:

Layers are a wonderful way to make corrections to an image nondestructively. If you make corrections to a layer and decide later you don't like it, simply delete the layer. Making changes to an original image is problematic because many of those steps cannot be undone. Photoshop is probably the most widely used editor, but again, many other programs have great capabilities.

Focus Stacking:

The style in landscape photography today is having everything in the frame completely in focus. To render those blades of grass in the foreground along with the clouds in the background with complete clarity can be difficult. Focus stacking can be done in-camera in the field on most prosumer cameras or can be accomplished by taking several images at different focus points, then loading the images into Photoshop as layers and blending them together.

Luminosity Masking:

This process breaks an image into a black and white mask showing every value from pure black to pure white. Total black in an image has a numeric value of "0" with pure white as "255" with all values of gray in-between. Luminosity masking allows you to select a range of lights or darks and make corrections only to those light values. As an example, if you wanted to darken just the lightest part of the sky or lighten the darkest portion of shadows, you can select that specific range and apply the necessary corrections.

Time Blending:

This is the process of taking multiple images over time then blending them together as layers in Photoshop. Example: Take an image of the Temple with the lights on before the sun rises. Next, shoot the colors in the sky as the sun rises. Lastly, wait for the sun to spread dappled light over the gardens and then combine all 3 images in Photoshop. The outcome is an image with Temple lights on, color in the sky and dappled light on the beautiful gardens. Many photographers in landscape photography will shoot the sunset colors, wait several hours for a milky way shot and paint the milky way in above the sunset to show the best of both worlds.

In Summary:

You will need to decide how deep or how far you will go with your photography, it's all a matter of personal choice. However you decide to proceed, good luck and good light to you!

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

Standing Out in a Sea of Similar Photos

Sun, 07 Feb 2021 00:25:45 GMT

What Sets Me Apart as a Photographer? My Personal Approach

Sunrise over fresh snow at Mather Point, South Rim, Grand Canyon - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

My name is David Williams. I am a PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

People have asked me, "what sets you apart from the other photographers taking the same photo?"

That's a fair question and I'll do my best to answer.

First of all:

On my website I state "To me, life is a beautiful friction; we are surrounded with natural beauty surpassing the imagination, juxtaposed against our hectic and busy lives. My hope is to inspire others to see the beauty that was meant to inspire, motivate and heal us." I truly believe in this statement and seek to connect with viewers on an emotional level with each image. A photograph is simply a series of lines, colors and light, but larger than that, there is a story that can be told using these lines, colors and light. This story can create an emotional response with the viewer. Great photographers have mastered the ability to create specific emotions through their imagery. I strive to create emotion or drama in my images and one of the tools I use are the beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Some of my images have dark ominous skies, while others show pastel peaceful colors, but all will tell a story. I hope one feels the peace, beauty and serenity that can be present in this tumultuous world in which we live.

Secondly:

I am a student of the art, meaning I still believe in learning and training in my craft on a daily basis. Photography is an ever changing world and it takes time and effort to learn and increase new skills. Gone are the days of taking a hand-held picture and sending it off to the printer. Today's photography world is 3 fold; with image capture, post processing and printing. You need the best image capture possible which usually means multiple exposures and lots of focus stacking. Post production is required to blend and shape the light and colors through exposure blending, color grading, luminosity masking, light painting and a host of other tools to breathe and coax emotion into the images. The camera, computer monitor, Lightroom, Photoshop and printer all have to have regular scheduled color calibration to bring the emotions to the print. Finally, there is a myriad of paper types with each one designed to create a different nuance which has to be taken into account.

Thirdly:

I believe in a divine nature to everything in life and there is a Spirit present in our world. I love to feel this Spirit as I spend time in the outdoors. I believe the American Indian culture has exemplified this very well, and for this reason, I spend lots of time shooting in the indigenous lands of the Southwest. Many never catch the vision of why we are here on this earth. Could it be that the sunrises and sunsets all over the world are meant to remind us of beauty, the beauty of who we are and who we are trying to be? Are we learning the things we need to learn, are we focused on the things we should be? Do we understand no matter how bad our day has been, tomorrow can be a bright new day? I love to ponder these questions as I stand at the edge of a canyon somewhere in the Southwest and I try to bring all of these emotions through to the viewer in my imagery.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

LDS Temple Photography - Taking Better Images, Part 2

183:780370045 (David Williams) — Thu, 12 Nov 2020 21:28:37 GMT

LDS Temple Photography: Intermediate Tips for Better Images Part 2

Pastel sunrise, Snowflake LDS Temple, AZ - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

My 1st article of this series covered light, color, composition and defining the subject. This time, we'll get a touch more technical with entry level post production you can do on your phone.

Post Production:

Everyone has their own opinion on how much post production is the right amount, let's skip that argument and assume you want to add some basics to up your game. Here's a simple concept that will make huge improvements.

The Secret is the Amount of Light:

In general, the term "stop" in photography refers to a measurement of light. Think of a "stop" similar to a gallon of gas, 10 gallons is a measurement of gas, and 10 gallons is more than 5 gallons. Your camera measures light in f-stops allowing adjustments to the aperture in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments or the amount of time the shutter stays open.

The human eye sees somewhere in the proximity of 12-14 stops of light, yet cameras can only see 5-7 stops with pro cameras reaching as high as 8-11 stops or so. The problem is the eye sees more light waves than the camera, so portions of the light falling into certain zones will be left out. This usually means highlights and shadows are left out leaving you primarily with mid-tone values and a washed-out looking landscape picture. We need to squeeze a little more dynamic range into the image and this can be done by bringing down the highlights of the image 1 or 2 stops and increasing the shadow detail a stop or 2.

If the eye can see 14 stops of light and the camera can only see 8, you are missing 6 stops, generally meaning the shadows will appear all black without detail and/or highlights as all white without details. Example: If you lift the shadows 2 stops and bring the highlights down 2 stops then you can actually squeeze an extra 4 stops into the 8 stops of the camera. Going this far will cause halos which is a whitening around dark edges, but you get the point; a little goes a long way.

Graduated neutral density filters are filters used in front of the lens to darken the top half of the image frame reducing brightness of the sky and helping with the dynamic range problem. They do a great job, but I don't use them for my LDS Temple photography because the filter darkens the top half of the steeples along with the sky which is unacceptable.

An easier way:

Photoshop and Lightroom are fantastic at adjusting shadows and highlights, but did you know you can use your phone to do the same? Try this: Take a picture then click edit. Find the highlights slider and slide to the left (-) to darken the sky, then find the shadows slider and move the slider to the right (+). By doing this you are pushing additional details into the image greatly enhancing it. Then, adjust exposure, contrast and color to bring the image back around to where it it pleasing.

Give it a try!

For the next article, we'll move to Photoshop and define layers, layer masks and luminosity masking for those of you who want to venture further into post production processing.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography:

https://www.instagram.com/david_williams_photography_/

LDS Temple Photography - Taking Better Images, Part 1

Tue, 27 Oct 2020 22:44:52 GMT

LDS Temple Photography: Beginner Tips to Take Better Images (Part 1)

Beautiful storm at the Tucson LDS Temple, Tucson, Arizona - Available as fine art print or editorial licensing

Temple photography can be complicated especially when we try to compete with others who use post processing programs like Photoshop. Don't get me wrong, I love and use Photoshop, but if post production isn't your thing follow these simple tips:

Communication is Key:

An image lacks the sounds, smells, and noises of the original scene so you must communicate those senses intentionally yet differently. Great photographers have mastered communication through imagery. It's really that simple. You communicate through color, light, composition, simplicity, and depth etc. Understanding exactly what you are trying to communicate before taking the picture will help you make better images. Start with these tips:

Always Define the Subject:

Are you trying to show beautiful gardens of the Temple or it's structure? If both, which is more important? Think about balance. How does the sky play into the image? The human eye is always attracted to the brightest area of the image with the possible exception of the color red. If you are trying to show the Temple and gardens but the brightest area is the sky, you are sending the wrong message.

Light:

Avoid mid-day harsh sun at all cost, the blue cast of mid-day sun is generally unattractive. Remember the eye sees differently than the camera. Always shoot within 30-45 minutes of sunrise and sunset to get that beautiful red light.

Color:

Colors are emotions, seriously. The warmer colors of reds, oranges and yellows evoke feelings of happiness, optimism and energy. Cool colors like green, blue and purple evoke soothing and calmness but can also express sadness. Bright colors can uplift your mood, whereas dark, muted or grey colors can evoke sadness. Use color to communicate your emotion. For example, take 3 different images, a dark foggy forest, a blue night time cityscape or kids in brightly colored clothing eating ice cream. All 3 images portray different emotions. Define the emotion you are trying to portray.

Composition:

The lines in the image, or where the elements of the image are placed is paramount. There are many ways to achieve great composition but the easiest is the "Rule of Thirds". This is simply a large "Tic Tack Toe" grid superimposed on the viewfinder; make sure important elements of the image fall on one of the connecting points, and other lines of the image fall close to the vertical or horizontal grid lines. Using leading lines such as paths or retaining walls will draw the viewer's eyes into the image, but make sure the weight of the subject is on or close to connecting points.

Putting it all together:

Go out and shoot! Pre-visualize what you are trying to do before taking the shot, and practice. Don't just take an image, make an image and communicate.

Good luck and good light to you.

About David Williams Photography | PPA Master Photographer specializing in African wildlife, indigenous culture, American Southwest landscapes, and LDS Temple fine art prints.

Explore my fine art and editorial photography: