We just got back from an utterly fantastic whirlwind trip. Kevin (hereafter known as “Kevin the Amazing”) took me on a road trip south to Yellowstone National Park, north to Calgary, west into the Rockies, north to Jasper via the Icefield Highway, east over to Hinton, and then south again down to Regina. Between two cameras (my faithful Panasonic Lumix FZ20 and Kevin’s shiny new Canon Powershot SX20) we took over 600 photos. I’m positively itching with delight at the thought of all the scratchboards that exist in those photos!
Here’s one example of a photo that is destined to become a scratchboard in the near future:
Akela: Grey Wolf at the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center, West Yellowstone. Photograph, 5 x 7 in. Copyright 2010, Tania Nault.
The Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg announced today that Debby, their beloved 42 year-old Polar Bear, died yesterday. Her veterinarian over the past 24 years, Dr Gordon Glover, made the decision to euthanise Debby when she suffered from multiple organ failure.
Regular readers of my blog will remember me mentioning Debby earlier this year after my husband and I took a photo reference trip to Winnipeg. Kevin got a couple touching photos of Debby as she rested in her enclosure:
Debby Resting: Polar Bear. Photograph, 7 x 5 in. Copyright 2008, Kevin Gates. Used with permission.
Having done a scratchboard of a Polar Bear earlier in the year, I hadn’t considered doing another soon. But I think, for Debby, I will.
Long-eared Owl, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Photograph, 7 x 5 in. Copyright 2008, Tania Nault.
When you get home from your zoo trip, with your memory card chock full of photos, what do you do? Organise, organise, organise and back-up, back-up, back-up (or, if you’re reading from the United States: Organize, organize, organize and backup, backup, backup). The more photos you take, the more important organising and backing up your photographs becomes, because a great photo can’t help you make great wildlife art if you can’t find it.
There are two ways to organise photos: using folders or using photo management software, and I’m in the midst of making a transition between the two methods. When I first got my digital camera I don’t think I understood just how many photos I’d take - it didn’t take long before I was swimming in images. I started with a series of sub-folders under the My Pictures folder: one for personal images, one for reference photos, and one for photos of my art. I created futher sub-folders under those categories to make a logical folder structure. Well, logical to me, at least. For example, my Reference Photo folder is sub-divided by subject: “Mammals” is sub-divided into “Mammals-Wild” and “Mammals-Domestic”. “Mammals-Wild” is further sub-divided into “Exotics” and North American species folders. It makes perfect sense to me and I can find photos quite quickly, but another structure might make more sense to you: dividing by date of your reference trips, year and month, for example. Whatever works for you.
I’ve had Adobe Photoshop Elements on my system for some time, but until recently, have only ever made use of the photo editing features. I came across a series of tutorials on the About.com graphics software pages: Organize your Photos with Photoshop Elements 3 and I’ve been working my way through the series. I’m not sure yet if it will make finding/using my photos easier - maybe I’ll write another post when I’ve had more of a chance to work with the program.
Whatever your organisational method you, make sure you back-up your photos to an alternate media: CD, DVD, or external hard drive. For added security, make a copy to store off-site (away from your studio/home computer). You could also save your best/favourite images in an online digital storage service (like Photoshop Express) just make sure the one you choose doesn’t resize your images. Doing these things will ensure you can find, and if need be *shudder* restore, your reference photos when you need them.
Amur Leopard, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Photograph, 7 x 5 in. Copyright 2008, Tania Nault.
The first thing usually I do when I get to the zoo is head straight to my target animal’s enclosure and make myself comfortable. Animals, even those living in zoos, aren’t 100% predictable and the only way you’re going to get decent reference photos of them is to be there, be patient and wait for something to happen. On this trip, however, I’d signed up for a “behind the scenes” tour of the zoo for first thing in the morning. We arrived about an hour before the zoo opened to the public and were taken to several different enclosures to watch and learn while they fed the animals and talked about those species. Although I’m not sure which was my favourite part: watching the female Siberian Tiger avoid the eggs as she delicately ate her whole chicken breakfast (feathers and all) or when she would stop eating to make eyes at her keeper (she was coming off the tail end of a heat and the male Siberian wasn’t interested) I do know which experience I will never forget: the feeling of holding a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach the size of an egg. No one else in the group would even touch him. (And yes, it was a him.)
When I finally got to the Amur Leopard enclosure, my subject was taking a nap in the sun on top of his hide, some ten feet off the ground. Even when the zoo staff arrived to do something in the building behind the leopard enclosures (the Assiniboine Park Zoo keeps a Snow Leopard, Amur Leopard and a positively ancient, 23 year-old, Persian Leopard). So, I waited. And waited. I was starting to wonder about the Amur when the Persian in the adjoining enclosure came out of his hide and my boy finally woke up. He crept to the edge of the roof and watched the Persian intently as he moved about. I was able to reposition myself and get the shot you see above. Now, I’m not saying that it’s a super-fantastic photograph, but it’s in focus, decently exposed, the wire isn’t covering crucial bits like his eyes, and I like the hint of shadow on the left side of his face (on our right) it’s something I could definitely push in a scratchboard. And that’s why I go to the zoo: to get decent reference photographs I can use in my scratchboard art.
Now, if you’re lucky enough someone will go with you to the zoo. And maybe that someone will agree to carry a second camera and take additional photos for you. While I was camped out waiting for my leopard to wake up, my husband was wandering about snapping shots of whatever caught his eye, including this rather touching photograph of the Assiniboine Park Zoo’s most famous resident, Debbie, a Polar Bear:
Polar Bear, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Photograph, 7 x 5 in. Copyright 2008, Kevin Gates. Used with permission.
Even though I hadn’t planned to get a photograph of this bear, when I met up with Kevin later in the day and he showed me the photo I was almost in tears. Debbie arrived at the Assiniboine Park Zoo in 1967 and in the early 1970’s when I was a toddler, my parents took me to the zoo. I don’t remember the trip very well, but I’m sure I remember watching this bear swim in her pool.
When I spoke to one of the zoo staff about Debbie she commented that this spring is the first time they’ve ever really worried about her health: arthritis has set in and some time ago they added steps to the front of her hide to allow her to enter it more easily, but this is the first spring she hasn’t gone swimming. At age 41, she’s twice as old as an average Polar Bear would get in the wild and is the oldest captive Polar Bear in the world.
Because this was a two-day trip, and I got the Amur photos I wanted on the first day, I spent the second day wandering. Kevin and I took a variety of photos, from this Snow Leopard:
Snow Leopard, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Photograph, 5 x 7 in. Copyright 2008, Tania Nault.
To this Snowy Owl:
Snowy Owl, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Photograph, 5 x 7 in. Copyright 2008, Tania Nault.
All in all, a good trip, with references I’ll definitely put to good use in the near future… Saskatchewan Wildlife Art Association Reflections of Naure Show 2008, here I come!
He who would travel happily must travel light. - Antoine de Saint Exupéry
According to Doug Dyment of OneBag.com, the worst time to decide what to pack for a trip is while you’re packing for that trip! and that is why he advocates using a packing list. I’m a big fan of lists (thanks, Mom) so the site naturally appealed to me. I do have one slight issue with a statement on his “What to Pack: Using a Packing List” page:
Add items if you must, to address your business needs, hobbies, personal requirements, etc., but resist the temptation to add non-essentials. If you’re thinking “I might need this”, you’re likely mistaken; if it’s “I can’t survive without this”, you may be right. But consider it carefully and dispassionately… Do you truly need that 200mm lens?
The answer on a photography trip, is “Yes!” You do totally need that 200mm lens. Unless, of course you have a zoom lens that covers that range…
But back to the list. No, I’m not going to tell you how many pairs of underwear to pack (at least one more than days of your trip, unless you’ll have access to laundry facilities or don’t mind washing your unmentionables in the hotel sink) nor am I actually sure I can write a list for you - one that would address all your needs as an artist - but I would like to offer you a list of things I’ve found useful on my trips:
Comfort items:
- comfortable shoes: zoos are a lot, a lot, of walking. And most of it’s on concrete sidewalks and pathways. This is not the time to try a new pair of cute heels. Pick two of your most comfortable pairs of walking shoes, wear one pair and pack the other. If you’re wondering, “Why two?” you’ll thank me after it rains or snows (ah, the joys of Calgary weather, in late June no less!!) and your first pair are soaking wet.
- appropriate outerwear: sunglasses, hat, weatherproof jacket. Regardless of the weather when you step out the door, dress in light layers. You can always peel off layers as the mercury rises, but your coat’s not going to keep you dry if you left it in your closet.
- small backpack for your wallet, sketch supplies, sunscreen, small snacks and couple bottles of water: freeze one of the bottles of water, if possible, and you’ll have cool water to drink later in the day.
Photo Equipment:
I’m not a professional photographer so I’m not going to offer you any advice on what camera to buy, remember: I’m an “enthusiastic amateur” taking reference photographs for her artwork. However, I do have a few recommendations about photography equipment:
1.) If you buy new equipment, spend some time before your trip getting to know how it works. If you’re new to digital photography I recommend Jim Miotke’s book, The Betterphoto Guide to Digital Nature Photography for its conversational style, focus on nature photography, chapter on composition, and assignments at the end of each section to reinforce what you’ve just read.
2.) If you’re flying, your photo equipment is carry-on. End of discussion. You can wear the same clothes for three days straight, but you can’t take any photos if you land in Toronto and your camera lands in Timbuktu.
3.) You’ll need twice as many batteries as you think you will. Even if your camera uses rechargeables, always take at least one extra fully-charged battery.
4.) You’ll need three times as many rolls of film/room on memory cards as you think you will; okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but make sure you take extra film/memory cards.
5.) Seriously consider taking a monopod with you: first it will steady the camera during shots with less than ideal lighting, and second you’ll be shooting all day and eventually that camera will begin to feel like it weighs more than it does. Although, do be mindful of where you set up - don’t block walkways, or the viewing area, for other zoo visitors.
6.) If you’re going for more than one day with a digital camera, consider taking a laptop to download your memory cards at night.
Sketching/Drawing:
Take at least one sketchbook with your favourite sketch media and at some point during the day sit down in front of your target animal and draw. Yes, I said draw. I firmly believe that as useful as reference materials like photographs are, they are no substitute for drawing from life. Why? Drawing forces the eye to slow down, look and really see the animal: how is it put together, what are the colours, textures and patterns of its coat/feathers, how does it move? Drawing from life will help you remember those things in a way that photographs never will.
