Monday, November 29, 2010

Photography Tip: Honeymoon: Shoot First, Ask Questions Later (Photo)

No Peeping Tom here, if that's what you were thinking. I'm just a wildlife photographer trying to earn a living. It was a nice sunny day and the Ospreys were catching fish. I got a few great shots of them flying above the pines on a hill with humongous fish in their talons with my little Pentax 18-250mm lens stretched out as far as it would reach. That's when I decided to use the Sigma 50-500mm lens and a tripod. And never saw a bird with a fish again, the rest of the day. But, along came these honeymooners and their guide, paddling sea kayaks. Shoot first, ask questions later. That's what I do.


Meet Mr. and Mrs. Tsuyoshi from Hokkaido, Japan, led by their kayak sensei Masaki Takezawa. I'll be featuring the honeymooners on my homepage the next few days because they were nice folks and I promised them, when they returned to Hokkaido, they'd be on my front page to show friends and family.

They signed a release form for me, granting me consent to do whatever I want (within the limits of the law) with their photos. So, everybody got their pictures emailed to them and if they tell me which they like best, they'll get a full-sized file suitable for printing. That's what I do.

Now, Masaki, he's a local guy and my new friend. I'll probably drop by his kayak shack and deliver a framed photo to him whether he likes it or not. That's another, "That's what I do".

See, there really isn't much money to be made, hiding in the bushes like a Peeping Tom, trying to shoot Ospreys flying around with fish in their paws. If it's an art, then I'm a starving artist. But, it sure would be cool if I could hide in the bushes and watch for honeymooners, paddling sea kayaks and shoot first and have somebody else (Masaki Takezawa) ASK THE QUESTIONS LATER!



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