Bare Branches

On my morning walk, I noticed that the week's rain had knocked most of the remaining leaves off the trees. Even the white oaks, which tend to stubbornly hang on to their leaves until January, were looking surprisingly bare. I was reminded that as much as I love the fall leaf color, winter is actually my favorite time for observing and photographing trees. Who can argue with the beauty of this Europeaan beech in winter?

Photo ©2009 Lee Anne White. All rights reserved.

Fun at the Fair

I always love it when the fair comes to town. It's just a mile or so from our house, and I get to pass by daily even if I don't stop for cotton candy or a ride on the ferris wheel. My schedule and the weather didn't cooperate this year, so I missed the rides, but thought I'd share a few pics from a previous night at the fair.

All photos ©2009 Lee Anne White. All rights reserved.

The Apple Harvest

It's fall. And in North Georgia, that means apple harvest time. Just 20 minutes up the road near Ellijay, the orchards are keeping busy and the roadside stands are ringing up sales.

 All photos ©2009 Lee Anne White. All rights reserved.

The Power of Reflection

Sometimes it seems there’s so much going on that all we ever do is plow ahead to the next assignment or activity. In truth, one of the most important things we can do is to take time to reflect on what we’ve just experienced or accomplished before moving ahead too quickly. This can be especially rewarding when wrapping up a major project, completing a workshop or conference, undergoing a transformational experience, rising to a special challenge or, yes, even making a mistake or failing to meet our goals somewhere along the way. (And I’d like to add that making mistakes is often a sign of something very positive—that we are growing, being creative, stretching our boundaries and learning new skills.)

It’s nice if we can take some time off to reflect. I love nothing more than a road trip or time alone on the beach to think. But in reality, we’re probably talking more about a walk around the block or snatching an hour here or there. I had a wonderful teacher this summer who said that she likes to take one hour “mini-vacations” during the day to reflect, or perhaps to sneak away a half day. This time could be spent journaling, discussing our experiences with a friend over happy hour, or just sitting quietly and thinking about what we learned and accomplished, how we might apply those lessons in the future, or what we might change if we had to do it all over again. Doing this helps us make sense of our experiences, to learn from them, and to grow. It’s the last step in any process and can provide us with direction, helping us to figure out what comes next.

Not Everyone Loves a Tripod...Why I Do

Granted, I cannot take a photograph without a camera of some kind. But as a landscape photographer, the features on my tripod are actually more important to me than the features on my camera. If I’m shooting in low light (which I often am) and want good depth of field (which I usually do), I’m typically shooting slow exposures. In fact, the majority of the exposures I make in the landscape are 1/15 second to 30 seconds—and handholding any camera at those shutter speeds won’t produce the results I want and have come to expect.

I don’t mind using a simple camera. But I am particular about my tripod. Its purpose is to steady and support my camera, so it has to be sturdy and stable—even in a brisk wind. I’m shooting in the landscape, so it has to be light enough to haul around. The landscape can be rugged and some of the close-ups I shoot are close to the ground, so the legs must be able to adjust independently and go very low (so avoid those horizontal support braces). Because light is constantly changing and I’m photographing a variety of subjects during a shoot, I need both legs and a ball head that are quickly and easily adjusted. Because I move around so much, I need the flexibility of a quick release plate so that I can explore different compositions before setting up the tripod. And because I travel extensively with my tripod, it needs to collapse into a size that easily fits in my suitcase, yet still extends to full height (which, for me, means four leg segments instead of three).

The truth is, there are few things worse than the wrong tripod. If it won’t go low enough, you can’t get the shot. If it’s flimsy, it serves no purpose and puts your camera and lenses at risk. If it doesn’t adjust easily, you simply won’t use it. If it’s too big or too heavy, you won’t pack it for a trip. So if you want tack-sharp landscape images with good depth of field, get a good tripod. It should last for years. I’m rough on my tripod, but have been using the same one for nearly 15 years. It ranks among the best equipment investments I’ve made.

While you’re at it, pick up a cable release. Pressing the shutter with your finger while it is on a tripod defeats the purpose of using a tripod. You can use the self-timer in a pinch, but this can be slow and you will frequently miss your shot.

And just for the record: No, I don’t believe every shot has to be taken on a tripod. In fact, tripods would hinder you for many types of photography. And even in landscape and garden photography, there are times I shoot handheld—usually for extreme close-ups with minimum depth of field. But for those tack-sharp garden photos with great depth of field, you’ll be amazed at the difference a sturdy tripod can make.