Insights #1: Why was this photo made?

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

12/16/2004 05:14:50 PM · #4

Ah! the beauty and emotion he felt walking through the webster pine forests in winter, with the golden beams of light streaking in through the branches and the snow crunching underneat his feet. The cool fresh air tingled his nostrils and filled his lungs. His hands cold but with a firm deliberance held the camera steadfast as just one finger triggered the release to capture such a beautiful moment in time.

edit: didnt proof read

Message edited by author 2004-12-16 17:15:57.

jimmythefish

Canon EOS-10D

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM

12/16/2004 05:14:52 PM · #5

I took a similar photo this summer, on the coast of Spain.

I only mention it because I think I had the same motivation. These type of shots don't really ever do the scene as much justice as when you experience them. The feeling of being under a mature or thinned, planted forest canopy is surreal and very hard to capture in one image. That doesn't stop someone from trying. ;).

Message edited by author 2004-12-16 17:15:23.

Pentax DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF

12/16/2004 05:17:04 PM · #6

Hmm, well, I'll have a go at this...

A combination of lots of things - the light, the straight trunks, the 'corridor' effect of the trees as he looked through the lens and the trunks reaching both upward (and inward) and onward into infinity. His 'soul was moved' -for want of a better explanation. So, he was drawn to take the picture by some deep subconscious urge (etc etc).

Darn - reading above and it doesn't sound as eloquent as my imagination actually imagines. However - that's just one theory.

faidoi

Pentax K10D

12/16/2004 05:17:41 PM · #7

All their lives the trees are reaching for the skies. There must be something up there :P

RayEthier

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

12/16/2004 05:18:40 PM · #8

This is absolute speculation on my part, but here goes. The photographer was new to the art of photography and was walking about the forest in a effort to find scenes that s/he considered worthy.

Out of the blue, this individual noticed the awesome effect of the sun shining through the canopy and decided to take a pic for posterity. My belief is based on personal experiences, and to date I have not had much success, in that the photo was nowhere near as majestic as the scene I witnessed. In my case, I blame the photographer.

faidoi

Pentax K10D

Pentax DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF

12/16/2004 05:19:08 PM · #9

Originally posted by faidoi:

All their lives the trees are reaching for the skies. There must be something up there :P

Of course it's the sun, yet it seems to be something else too .

wkmen

Olympus SP-570 UZ

12/16/2004 05:19:17 PM · #10

Not to parse words, but I'll define "made" as: composed the shot, pressed the shutter, chose to post-process and include it in his portfolio.

My theory on "Why?": There are some interesting concepts he saw in this composition - alive/hibernating, white/black, color/shades of gray, parallelism/convergence, proximity/depth, clarity/haze, light source/deep shade without shadows. All within the constraints of his 5 or so levels of brightness from black to white.

In a nutshell, that's what I think was going on. I'll spare bloviating, but if there's something I said that makes you curious, fire away.

jpochard

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM

12/16/2004 05:20:05 PM · #11

I took my similar shot because I was struck by the lines created by these tall, straight trees and the lighting with the sun illuminating the tops. I think being in that spot, the photographer is trying to capture the perspective felt from standing amidst those trees.

It's difficult, I think, to really capture that feeling of being small and at the bottom of the shot, if you know what I mean.

Node

Nikon D300

Tamron SP AF 17-35mm f/2.8-4 Di LD Aspherical IF for Nikon

12/16/2004 05:21:45 PM · #12

What a great shot, I had not seen it before.

Delete: Don't critique.

I think what he was trying to (in my view captured) the vertigo effect of looking up in the forest. I love the way the photo changes as you scroll up and down.

Brad

Olympus OM-D E-M1

Olympus 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO M.Zuiko

12/16/2004 05:22:46 PM · #13

What would have inspired me besides the great perspective and composition, is the insgnificance of man versus what surrounds us in nature, and it's simplistic, yet majestic strength.

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6

12/16/2004 05:24:09 PM · #14

Originally posted by wkmen:

Not to parse words, but I'll define "made" as: composed the shot, pressed the shutter, chose to post-process and include it in his portfolio.

My theory on "Why?": There are some interesting concepts he saw in this composition - alive/hibernating, white/black, color/shades of gray, parallelism/convergence, proximity/depth, clarity/haze, light source/deep shade without shadows. All within the constraints of his 5 or so levels of brightness from black to white.

Yes - that too, I think. Seeing it with a photographer's eye? (though you said it much better)

In a nutshell, that's what I think was going on. I'll spare bloviating, but if there's something I said that makes you curious, fire away.

johnmk

Ricoh Caplio RR1

12/16/2004 05:24:36 PM · #15

This is a difficult but worthy question: what inspires a photographer, or rather someone with a camera, to suddenly 'see' his surroundings in new way that he/she wants to capture on photo.
For this particular photo I really have no clue, the explanation by the photographer does not really help either, I think it is more in the psyche of the photographer than in what he saw on that day. I mean, the pines had been there for a very long period, and the rendition of the wintery scene is not particularly striking.

HRoxas

Canon EOS-5D

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

12/16/2004 05:24:50 PM · #16

I think taking this photo from a low perspective the reason was to emphasize the height of the trees and to use the lines as a strong component of the composition.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

12/16/2004 05:31:40 PM · #17

Another theory might be that the snow in the air (which he mentions) wasn't there at the point where he stood - so it wasn't going to land on his camera lens and spoil the photo!

LindaLee

Canon EOS-40D

12/16/2004 05:32:41 PM · #18

I think he took it because he just loves trees.

I take hundreds of photos of trees, none as captivating as his perhaps, but I do it because I just love trees.

12/16/2004 05:44:06 PM · #19

It was a new camera he got for xmas (photo taken Jan 1st?). He decided to take it out on his favourite walk in the forest and try it out. He took lots of photos, but when he got home and downloaded this particular one it appealed to him. (He mentions on the photo details that it was taken before he knew much about photo composition etc).
The reason he pressed the shutter for this particular photo is simply because he was trying different angles at the time.

gloda

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

12/16/2004 05:46:06 PM · #20

Standing as a small human being among these Giants, these witnesses of time, makes an emphatic impression on a visitor of Nature. It is oppressive to see how majestic these simple beings reach up to the sky, how their elegance and grace sees the physical limits mankind is bound to, but thrones above them. The experience of standing all alone in the thick quietness of a population of bare trees laden with snow in winter is one of the very special things I learned in my many years with the boy scouts.

drydoc

Canon EOS-7D

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

12/16/2004 05:48:46 PM · #21

The first thought that popped into my head when I saw this scene was the movie, "Black Robe;" the scene where the priest is lost in the forest of an enemy indian tribe. As her runs in panic the movie camera follows him and looks up. The images on screen flash back and forth between the spires of trees and the spires of the cathedrals of Europe. That was my first though. Then, I read some of the other threads and went back to the image. What struck me was the thin towering trees. My next thought was something a little more mundane, he works for the telephone company! He has an interest in this stand of tree for commercial purposes. He is buying a piece of property and simply wants to record what is on the property. My point is the photographer doesn't need loft reasons for taking the photograph. Sometimes the everyday and praticle reasons suffice to take a picture. Simply a snap shaot.

John, You have done more to make us think with these last two threads than has ever been on this sight in a long time. Thanks for this mental challenge and inspiration for discussion.

dartompkins

Nikon D70s

Tamron SP AF 17-35mm f/2.8-4 Di LD Aspherical IF for Nikon

12/16/2004 05:50:18 PM · #22

Could have tripped over a branch and clicked the shutter button on the way down while trying desperately to save the camera . . . . it could happen :)

RayEthier