This past weekend was the “photography” weekend I have been waiting for all year.

April 7 was the spring Vancouver Camera Swap-Meet and Used Camera Sale and my photo pal Jo McAvany and I made the drive the day before to stay two nights at the Inn at Quay in New Westminster. Our reserved, fourth floor room had a great view of the boardwalk with its food, shops, moored tugboats and the wonderfully scenic Fraser River.

I saw other guests arrive and go to their room to relax after their journey, but as tired as I was after that four-hour-plus drive the last thing I wanted to do was lounge in my room.

I was throwing my suitcase on the bed, looking out from the balcony, picking up my camera, letting Jo know we can look for some snacks, then we left the hotel to start pointing my camera at everything.

“The camera makes you forget you’re there. It’s not like you are hiding but you forget, you are just looking so much,” said Annie Leibovitz

There was so much to photograph; pigeons outside a restaurant, seagulls along the pier, two big yellow tugboats, a bright red 32-foot-tall tin soldier, the cable Skytrain Metro railway and the Pattullo bridge going high across the Fraser River, and so much more.

We also browsed the many craft shops, chose an eatery that had takeout, and wandered along the waterfront. I kept making Jo pose beside and on everything, but she is used to me always wanting that. Hmm… who said “Once photography enters your bloodstream, it is like a disease?”

A note here: For my wandering opportunity type of photographs I usually choose aperture priority. I want the aperture to be small enough so I can have lots of depth-of-field and even thought the day was bright I had my camera set at ISO 800. That high ISO means the camera will always be choosing a fast shutter speed that stops subject movement and reduces the chance of camera shake.

I enjoyed that location and absolutely intend to go back there again. This time most of my photos included lots of background and space around my central subject. I think that’s because I wanted to see everything in that new place. Next time I will be able to be more specific with my image’s frame.

Influential American teacher, editor, and photographer Aaron Siskind wrote, “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film (or memory card) is captured forever… It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.”

Stay safe and be creative. These are my thoughts for this week. Contact me at www.enmanscamera.com or emcam@telus.net.

Photographer James Balog on documenting climate change: “Adventure with a purpose” – CBS News

The second in the monthly series by WWF-India that highlights niche and unconventional green careers through the stories of well-known personalities from the field of environment and conservation.

My journey as a photographer began in 1997 when I purchased my first camera. Initially, I shot anything and everything I could. But it wasn’t until 1999 that I truly delved into wildlife photography, a decision that would shape the rest of my life. In fact, I sold my first photograph, of a swamp deer or barasingha, to WWF-India!

When I came to this field, I knew I would have to do something that set me apart. I chose places that not many photographers used to work in and that allowed me to explore species and ecosystems that have rarely been photographed before. While the success rate was low and it was difficult to get results, being able to contribute to science through photography is what kept me content. In a field like this, we must be patient; the impact is not immediately visible. We’ll see it only years later.

Collaborations

Today, I have successfully explored every corner, habitat, and ecosystem of India and have been to 42 countries! This journey was gradual and involved a lot of collaborations with researchers, scientists, and organisations. It was never just about me and my camera, but about the countless individuals who continue to inspire me. From porters to drivers to field guides, their contributions have been invaluable in shaping my career.

There is no set route or model that one can follow to become a photographer. But if someone asks me, my mantra is simple: step out of your comfort zone.

A challenge has been achieving financial stability. But I refuse to have a Plan B and have fully committed myself to the field of photography for conservation. I lead a minimalist lifestyle, prioritising my passion for photography over material possessions.

In the last 27 years, I have witnessed some of Nature’s most breathtaking moments, from diving in front of an active volcano in the Andamans to trekking in the snow-capped Himalayas. What inspires me the most is the unpredictability of my work. Every day presents a new challenge and new opportunity to capture something extraordinary. Whether photographing lions in Gir or waiting patiently in a hide for the elusive Western tragopan, I never know what to expect. It is this element of surprise that keeps me coming back for more.

Catching the snow leopard in the wild
| Photo Credit:
Dhritiman Mukherjee

With every photograph I capture, I try leveraging it as a tool to raise awareness and connect people with nature. Photography for conservation is more than just taking pictures; it’s about telling stories that resonate with people on a deep and emotional level. I know I have achieved this when people come and share their positive stories with me. In 2020, I was in Spiti, a high-altitude region in the Himalayas, when a few porters thanked me for photographing the snow leopard, probably for the first time in the wild. Such photographs led to the area being marked on the world map, ecotourism being established, and earning them their livelihood.

Looking ahead, I’m excited to continue pushing the boundaries of wildlife photography and exploring new ways to engage and inspire audiences globally. Whether it’s capturing rare and endangered species or documenting the effects of climate change on our planet, I’m dedicated to using my camera as a tool for conservation. My advice to aspiring photographers is simple: strive not to be the best but to connect the disconnected and be a contributor to science and society.

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On some level, we know that the best camera phones have placed some incredible picture-taking capabilities into our hands, turning an amateur shutterbug into a digital Ansel Adams. But it’s easy to take for granted just what today’s smartphones can do with imaging until you see it up close.

That’s what happened to me on a recent family vacation when my teenage daughter commandeered an iPhone 13 and started shooting one photo after another of the places we visited. Some of the photos were fine, some less so — but more than a few looked like they had been sized up and captured by a professional photographer. For all her considerable charms and capabilities, my teenager is definitely not that, so I’m going to give a lot of the credit to the iPhone’s photo-processing moxie and the imaging features Apple builds in to its camera app.

By way of background, my daughter is not exactly a novice when it comes to photography. On past family trips, she’s lugged around a throwback Polaroid camera for capturing snapshots, and she’s taken an after-school photography class or two, so she’s not entirely at sea when it comes to framing a shot. But she’s never owned her own phone — iPhone or otherwise — and I’ve never sat down with her to walk her through the different camera settings and controls.

In fact, the only reason she had the iPhone 13 was that I gave her a device from the stockpile of Tom’s Guide-supplied devices I keep around for testing purposes so that she could have a screen to watch stuff on during the 5-hour plane ride. But as we started hiking down the trails of the Hawaiian Tropical Botanical Garden outside of Hilo, I noticed she had brought the iPhone 13 with her. After a silent prayer that this excursion would not end with me explaining to my bosses why the $799 device they left to my care had taken up permanent residence at the bottom of a waterfall, I let my daughter do her thing.

Hand a kid an iPhone and about 128GB of storage to stash all those photos in, and they can produce some pretty eye-catching stuff, as it turns out.

My daughter became particularly adept at shooting flowers, as one might expect when you spend a couple hours in a tropical botanical garden. That photo of the orange hibiscus is an early effort of hers, but it really shows how adept the iPhone’s cameras are at recreating surfaces, whether it’s the creases on the hibiscus petal or the patterns of the nearby green leafs.

The other two shots in that collection represent my daughter’s experiments with the iPhone’s portrait mode, which she quickly realized is not just for framing portraits of people. The purple rose grapes really stand out from their blurred background, and while the bokeh effect isn’t perfectly applied — some of the buds toward the rear of the cluster got caught up in the blur — it still turns out to be a striking shot. 

With the pink hibiscus image, my daughter has discovered the lighting effects that accompany the iPhone’s portrait mode, specifically the stage light effect. The filter manages to highlight the flower while blackening out the surrounding jungle. It’s quite an artistic effect which some people might find over the top, but I find the overall look to be pretty pleasing.

The photo of Onomea Bay on the left side was shot by my daughter while the one on the right was captured by me. Mine comes from the iPhone 12’s ultrawide lens, and I’ve cropped it to have the same orientation as the photo taken by my daughter, who insists on shooting everything vertically. The kids these days, I tell you…

Arguments over whether landscape shots should be in… well, landscape orientation aside, I’m really impressed with what my daughter did here with framing. Rather than leave a tree in the middle of her photo like her old man did — an old man who takes photos all the time for this very website, mind you — my daughter found a different perspective that better highlights the bay. She also kept the portrait mode on so that the focus is one the foreground — an interesting approach that I wouldn’t have thought to try. But the nature of digital photography allows you to experiment.

Finally, here’s how my daughter captured Waialea Beach at sunset. It’s not a perfect shot, as shooting directly into the sun has left a bit of a digital artifact in the form of that blue dot in the lower third of the photo. Still, I think Apple’s Smart HDR feature is on display here, as you can still see the colors, highlights and textures even with the shadows resulting from the harsh sunlight. The pattern on the sand and the shape of the waves are still easily visible, even with the sun beating down on the camera lens.

Digital camera outlook

We’re focusing on the iPhone here, as that’s the device we had on hand. But I imagine if I had grabbed a recent Pixel phone or a Galaxy S24, the results would have been the same. These are very well-designed camera phones that take a lot of the guesswork out of digital photography. A more advanced user could probably dig into the settings and fiddle with things to produce a perfect shot, but the devices that Apple, Google, Samsung and others are making are really democratizing photography.

Again, not every photo my daughter took on her trip is a masterpiece. We’re certainly not sharing the one she took of me crossing a bridge that’s framed at an angle like the 1960s Batman TV series and prominently features my rear end. But the beauty of digital photography is that you can retain the gems and discard the photos that didn’t quite work out, and you’ll stillhave ample storage space left.

And keep in mind, these photos were captured with a phone that’s two years old. Camera phones don’t stay in one place, as you can see just be reviewing the iPhone’s recent history. If I had given my daughter an iPhone 15 instead, she’d have a camera powered by a 48MP sensor instead of a 12MP one. And she’d be able to approximate a 2x zoom by cropping in on shots captured by the main camera for a closer look at the subject of her photos.

Then again, imagine explaining to my bosses if an accident befell an iPhone 15. I think on the next trip we’ll stick with the older iPhones for photo purposes.

More from Tom’s Guide

Capturing the essence of a city during a momentous occasion presents a unique challenge for photographers. You need to go beyond the obvious celebratory visuals and find images that tell a deeper story, conveying the emotions and atmosphere of the event. This is especially true when documenting a significant historical milestone, like the 1,000-year anniversary of Hanoi, Vietnam.

Coming to you from Justin Mott, this insightful video takes you behind the scenes of his experience photographing this historic event for The New York Times. Mott, a seasoned professional photographer, shares his approach to capturing the spirit of Hanoi during its millennial celebration. He emphasizes the importance of going beyond the official ceremonies and parades, opting instead to explore the city’s streets and capture candid moments that reveal the true essence of the occasion. His focus on “street photography with a theme” offers a valuable lesson for photographers of all levels, encouraging you to seek out unique perspectives and capture the often-overlooked details that contribute to the larger narrative.

Mott’s commentary on his past work is both honest and insightful. He openly discusses his stylistic choices, including his tendency to tilt the horizon in his images, acknowledging that it might not have been the best approach. This self-awareness and willingness to learn from past experiences is a valuable trait for any photographer. He also emphasizes the importance of preparation and understanding the flow of events, highlighting the benefits of attending rehearsals to gain a better sense of where to position yourself for optimal shots. His dedication to capturing the “moments after” – the often-unseen aftermath of major events – serves as a reminder to look beyond the obvious and seek out the unique perspectives that set your work apart. 

One of the key takeaways from Mott’s video is the importance of creating your own assignments. He encourages you to challenge yourself by setting themes and exploring your surroundings with a specific goal in mind. This practice not only helps you improve your photography skills but also allows you to develop your own unique style and perspective. By actively seeking out opportunities to document the world around you, you can transform everyday experiences into compelling visual stories. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Mott.
 

Melbourne is a city that bursts with photographic potential. From its iconic landmarks and bustling laneways to its sprawling gardens and hidden gems, there’s something for every photographer to capture. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, here are the top 10 photography locations around Melbourne that will inspire your next photoshoot:

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Flinders Street Station

This grand dame of Melbourne’s architecture is a must-visit for any photographer. The ornate facade and bustling crowds provide endless opportunities to capture the city’s energy.

Royal Botanic Gardens

Escape the urban jungle and delve into the serene beauty of the Royal Botanic Gardens. Lush greenery, vibrant flowers, and tranquil ponds create a picturesque backdrop for any portrait or landscape shot.

Hosier Lane & Street Art

Melbourne’s laneways are a haven for street art enthusiasts. Hosier Lane is particularly famous for its ever-changing murals, providing a vibrant and colorful canvas for photographers.

St. Kilda Beach & Pier

Capture the essence of Melbourne’s beach culture at St Kilda. The iconic pier, colorful bathing boxes, and playful penguins offer a variety of subjects to photograph.

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Princes Pier

Visit with Melbourne’s history, a favourite for long exposure with local photographers.

Carlton Gardens

Home to the magnificent Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton Gardens is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The sprawling lawns, ornamental gardens, and historical architecture provide a touch of grandeur to your photographs. Don’t forget to take a tour of The Dome too.

The Yarra River

The Yarra River snakes its way through the heart of Melbourne, offering a variety of photographic opportunities. Capture the city skyline reflected in the water, photograph rowers gliding downstream, or take a scenic stroll along the Southbank promenade.

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Williamstown

This historic maritime village boasts charming waterfront cottages, cobblestone streets, and a relaxed atmosphere. Capture colorful boats docked in the harbor, wander through the Nelson Place Shipwreck Galleries, or photograph the historic lighthouse at sunset.

Melbourne Zoo

A must for animal lovers, with exotic and endangered animals. My favourite is the Butterfly house and the Lions.

Fitzroy Gardens

Visit Cooks Cottage, the Conservatory and more. Also a short stroll from The Shrine.

This is just a starting point, of course. Melbourne is a city that’s constantly evolving, so keep your eyes peeled for new and interesting places to photograph. With a little creativity and exploration, you’re sure to capture some stunning images that capture the essence of this vibrant city.

Bonus tip

Venture beyond the city center and explore Melbourne’s suburbs and surrounding areas. You’ll find hidden gems like Brighton Beach with its colorful bathing boxes, the Dandenong Ranges with their lush rainforests, and the Mornington Peninsula with its stunning coastline.

So, grab your camera, get out there, and start exploring! Melbourne is waiting to be captured through your lens.

Things to consider

• Melbourne’s weather can change from hot to cold, so check daily temperature guides and dress in layers.
• Bring a hat, sunglasses and good walking shoes.
• Public transport can be an easy way to get around, but you need a Miky card.
• Wide-angle or prime lenses like 35mm or even 50mm are great for architecture, street photography and more. A wide-angle to get you shots in confined spaces like Melbourne’s iconic alleyways.
• Don’t forget to try a coffee in one of the many Melbourne cafes. We’re famous for it!

The Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA) 2024 winners have been revealed, hand-picked from a staggering 380,000 entries. I was one of the lucky few to attend the press conference, exhibition and awards ceremony for the public announcement on April 18. 

The legendary Sebastião Salgado was there in person to receive the Outstanding Contribution to Photography accolade – do check out his vast and profoundly moving catalog of black and white photos – as were the 10 award winners across categories such as Creative, Portrait and Still Life, plus the sustainability, youth and student winners.  

Some pictures stopped me in my tracks, pulled me in – revealing hidden details as I ruminated on the backstory – and left me wanting to know and see more, especially the series A Thousand Cuts by Sujata Setia from the UK and Father and Son by Valery Poshtarov from Bulgaria. The creators being there to personally walk me through those stories and peel back the layers, made it all the more special.

During the exhibition, a topic that’s been buzzing around in my mind for over a year came to the fore – AI-generated images in photo competitions. It was a headline that dominated the previous year’s awards: one of the category-winning images was generated using AI – the result of a few word prompts and millions of random pixels from unknown sources coming together faster than it takes my kettle to boil.

Even now, twelve months later, AI is a topic that photography awards organizers appear keen to avoid and there was no acknowledgment of its presence during the awards.

Appreciating the superb photos on display: the time, expense and dedication of the photographers, and the bravery of their human subjects, I was keener than ever to discuss the subject that largely stood at odds with what I was witnessing. Is there a place for AI-generated images in photo competitions? How should photo competitions respond?

I sought out my favorite creatives from the awards, including ‘Portrait’ category winner Valery Poshtarov, ‘Creative’ category winner Sujata Setia and ‘Still Life’ category winner Federico Scarchilli from Italy with his Flora series, to find out what they think.

“I’m a hardcore traditionalist. For me, I haven’t tried to create yet with AI”

In Sujata Setia’s words, A Thousand Cuts is “an ongoing series of portraits and stories that present a photographic study of patterns of domestic abuse in the South Asian community. I have borrowed the metaphorical meaning of lingchi to showcase the cyclical nature of domestic abuse.

“The continuous act of chipping at the soul of the abused is expressed by making cuts on the portrait of the participant, while the prints are made on thin paper to depict the fragility of the existence. The final artwork is photographed in a tight crop to create a sense of suffocation and absence of room for movement.”

We spoke at length about her moving series and I urge you to discover A Thousand Cuts for yourself, too. Here’s what she said about AI:

“I’m a hardcore traditionalist. For me, I haven’t tried to create yet with AI. I find it fascinating, but it’s a completely different genre. It’s nothing to do with photography and I don’t think it should be brought into the same domain as human-produced photographic images.

“SWPA could definitely have a category for AI-generated images, which is a different category of course, but I believe it’s not part of a portrait category or a creative category.”

“The tech is going forward and as artists we need to follow the tech as it develops.”

Flora won the Still Life category at SWPA 2024. Created by Federico Scarchilli who says, “Plants are among the main suppliers of medicinal substances and should be considered as the producers and dynamic containers of chemical substances. In their evolution, they have developed innumerable secondary metabolites that perform various ecological functions for the plant, such as repellence, defense from herbivores, fighting against other plant species for resource control, defense from parasites and attraction to pollinators.

“These secondary metabolites have also shown important pharmacological activities in humans, which constitute the active ingredients or the main components on which the curative action of a drug depends; in fact, 40 percent of monomolecular drugs derive from plant species. This series highlights the important role of pharmacognosy in modern biology.”

Federico has a different stance on AI-generated images to Sujita.

“Yes, I think AI-generated images are totally fine. AI is a normal part of the process, the tech is going forward and as artists, we need to follow the tech as it develops. However, whether on the internet or those that are visiting exhibitions – it’s a must that the viewer knows what they are seeing is generated by AI.

“Photography is developing more and more every year, but as artists, we must follow the new way of doing art. It’s not a problem. But the viewer needs to know it. People not knowing it’s AI is the problem. Reality can be manipulated by not knowing what you are seeing – if it’s used in the wrong way it could be the worst thing. But it’s up to us how we use it.”

“These people are authentic human beings… present and connected”

Every man that I spoke to at the awards was touched by the symbolic action of holding hands in Valery Poshtarov’s Father and Son photos – we’re sons, many of us fathers. Here’s what Valery has to say about his ongoing project:

“In a world that is already growing apart, holding hands becomes a silent prayer – a way to come together again. While posing, fathers and sons hold hands for the first time in years, sometimes decades. It’s a powerful moment, often filled with hesitation or even resistance. This act of intimacy became the project’s main purpose, the photographs being just a mere testament to the long-unspoken love between the men.

“Spanning cultures, reaching corners of Bulgaria, Georgia, Turkey, Armenia, Serbia and Greece, this project has become a beacon of emotional expression and cultural preservation. It serves as a global stage, encouraging fathers and sons from around the world to join the act. By leaving the narratives behind, these portraits become open to interpretation and I invite viewers to add their own layers of meaning, making us all contributors to this evolving story of humanity.”

Valery passionately spoke about AI with me in the context of his work.

“These people are authentic human beings, living, experiencing something that they have never experienced before, being present and connected, is unique in its own way and cannot be replicated. If AI is able to produce aesthetically pleasing images with an infinite number of creative ideas, what would still be missing is this presence of real life. This forces me to continue, with each new portrait, with each new father and son, I see a completely new story. There’s two more people holding hands. There’s humanity waiting to be involved in this shared act.”

A deafening silence

For me, photo competition organizers’ silence regarding AI is deafening, and open conversations like the ones I had with several professional and award-winning photographers need to take place. We human creatives cannot afford to ignore AI image generation. 

The people I spoke with had wide-ranging stances on utilizing AI and its potential place in photo competitions. But a common thread throughout our conversations was one of transparency. Better to allow AI by creating a defined space for it within competitions – an AI category, if you will – than to cut it out altogether, although the issue of copyright cannot be ignored. 

Will organizations like Creo and the World Photography Organisation, which look after the Sony World Photography Awards, create an AI-generated category? I think there’s an element of wishful thinking within such photography circles that AI image generation is a fad. Better to let in blow over than to adapt. Beyond a vague sentiment from Creo Founder and CEO Scott Gray to TechRadar in February 2023 that “photography is at the forefront, constantly adapting and evolving”, we simply don’t know its stance, and that’s more worrying given the need for transparency.

• The Sony World Photo Awards 2024 exhibition is open to the public from April 19 to April 25 and takes place in Somerset House, London. Tickets can be booked on the SWPA website, starting at £7.50.

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GREENSBURG – Art on the Square Gallery and the Decatur County Arts Connection are hosting a regional community photography show at the gallery May 3 through June 1.

Photographers of any age from Decatur, Rush, Shelby, Bartholomew, Ripley and Franklin counties are invited to submit photographic works to the gallery before April 27 for inclusion in the show.

Each may submit up to three photographic works of any topic no larger than 16” x 20.” Each should be framed, matted or on canvas and ready to hang.

Photos will be judged in three categories: the Critics’ Choice Award (winner to receive $100), the Adult People’s Choice award ($50), and the Youth People’s Choice Award ($25).

Winners will be announced at a wine and cheese reception set for 4 to 6 p.m. May 10 at the gallery. The reception is open to the public.

The paintings and stained glass works of Ed Parker and Margaret Couch Parker will be on display at the gallery through June.

Coming June 24 to 27, kids 6 and up can register for the gallery’s annual Summer Art Camp; visit www.artonthesquaregallery.com/ to download an application. A $15 non-refundable fee will secure a child’s place at the camp; the $30 balance must be paid by June 10. Make checks payable to Decatur County Arts Connection.

Art on the Square Gallery is located at 114 E. Washington Street on the Greensburg Square.

Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 2 to 6 p.m. Friday, and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.