Galapagos « Through the lens with Chris Gamel

New Galapagos Family Photo Adventure Announced

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Announcing a new Galapagos Family Photo Adventure for this summer (July 30 – August 7, 2011). Gather your family and join me on the photographic adventure of a lifetime. Explore Incan ruins and discover cultural marvels as we travel through the Andrean Highlands of Ecuador. Complete the adventure with the sights and sounds of the Galapagos Islands. Follow in Charles Darwin’s footsteps as we come face to face with some of the tamest wildlife on earth. For further details about this and other photographic adventures, click here.

Written on January 3rd, 2011 , Announcements, Ecuador, Galapagos, Photography Workshops

Getting the Shot – Giant Tortoise

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Anyone can photograph an animal. The challenge is capturing a unique image that stands out from the crowd. Such was the situation during a recent trip to the Galapagos Islands. In the highlands of Santa Cruz Island, I had the opportunity to photograph a wildlife icon, the giant Galapagos Tortoise. Lets face it, hundreds of thousands of people come to see these 300 pound giants every year and all of them take pictures. How was I going to capture something unique?

While watching the tortoises, I tried to to think outside the box (or possibly inside the shell). My first instinct when photographing wildlife is to reach for the telephoto lens. The wildlife of the Galapagos, however, is totally unafraid, therefore getting close is not a problem. With that in mind, I decided to take a different approach. Leaving the telephoto lens in the bag, I pulled out the wide angle (17-35mm lens). Next I looked around and realized that everyone was busy taking the same basic shot; standing a few feet away and photographing the tortoises from a height of five feet. So I knew what I didn’t want.

My first step was to get down on the tortoise’s level. I wanted to create an image that took the viewer inside the tortoise’s world and shooting from the subject’s level is one of the quickest ways to do this. With that in mind, I waited for everyone else to finish (it always amazes me how quickly people become bored with new experiences) and then I sat down in the grass a few feet away from the tortoise. Over the next few minutes, I captured several shots. As I photographed, the tortoise approached me to get at the tasty grass I was sitting next to. The repeated pattern of extending the neck and eating the grass got me thinking. With that, I placed my camera on the ground and waited for the next bite. Seeing a tasty bit of grass a mere two inches in front of my lens, the tortoise extended into the frame and helped me to capture what I think is a dramatic and unique image.

Written on December 30th, 2010 , Ecuador, Galapagos, Getting the Shot, Understanding Photography Series

Technique Tuesday: Elements of Composition – Angle of View

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Want to take better wildlife pictures? Get down on your knees. Better yet, drop to your belly. Day after day, we watch the world pass by from somewhere between five and six feet off the ground. It is easy to take pictures from here, unfortunately, it is also boring because it is what we see every day. If you want your shots to stand out, get down to your subject’s level. If you are photographing a giant tortoise, you should be on your belly. Who cares if the ground is wet, learn to love the mud. We’re wildlife photographers! Dirt is part of the image. Get down and dirty and get the shot that everyone else passed up.

Shooting from the subject’s eye level creates an intimate connection between us and the subject. One of the goals wildlife photographers aim for is to get viewers to stop thinking about the physical photograph and move themselves into the picture. Share my vision, share my experience with this animal. Meeting a wildlife animal at eye level is a new experience for most people and can result in a shift, making them feel like part of the pack (or the creep in the case of a group of giant tortoises). So, stop standing around and get down in the mud. Your viewers will thank you.

The image of the Lucas and Philip photographing the Galapagos Tortoise was taken in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos, Ecuador during one of my Galapagos photo tours. Despite the fence seen in the background, the tortoise was a free ranging, wild tortoise. The image was created using a Canon 1Ds mark 3, 17-35mm lens, at 400 ISO. The camera was mounted on a Gitzo tripod using a ballhead.

Written on December 7th, 2010 , Composition, Ecuador, Galapagos, Photography Information, Technique Tuesday, Understanding Photography Series

Image of the day – chatting with wildlife

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In case you haven’t heard, the wildlife of the Galapagos lets you get amazingly close. One a recent photo tour, Sarah decided to sit downa nd have a little chat with the local marine iguanas. I’m not sure what they talked about, but I think they both learned a lot.

Image captured with a Canon 1D mark 4, 120-300mm lens (set at 168mm), at 200 ISO. The camera was mounted on a monopod to provide extra support.

Written on September 27th, 2010 , Galapagos, Image of the Day

Photo Safari Testimonial – Glenn and Marcy Bauman

The following is a testimonial from Glenn and Marcy Bauman. Glenn and Marcy (along with their two children Sara and Lucas) joined me on a recent photo safari in the Galapagos and highlands of Ecuador. The image shows Marcy sharing her images with a group of women we met during a visit to a local school. The garden in the background was the site of much fun as we assisted the families in picking the ripe vegetables.

During our trip with Thomson Family Adventures: Equador and Galapagos Through the Lens we had the great fortune to have Chris as our photographer mentor/guru to guide us through the multitude of wonderful photo opportunities that exist in the region. Our group was a mixture of adults and kids with varying degrees of photographic experience, interest and equipment and Chris was able to establish a warm and natural rapport with all members of our group right from the start. As an instructor, Chris has a very open, inclusive style of teaching and was able to connect with all members of our group to help us improve our photography techniques. Through provision of basic tips and presentations on composition through to interactive small group tutorials on the nuances of digital imaging workflow and advanced photographic techniques Chris was able to meet the diverse learning needs of our group. In addition to being a great teacher it is clear that Chris is an exceptional nature photographer with a fantastic ability to capture the special moments that occur on a trip like this. We feel very fortunate indeed to have had such a generous and talented mentor with us on our trip and look forward to future opportunities to work with Chris!

Glenn and Marcy Bauman, Canada.

Written on September 9th, 2010 , Galapagos, Testimonials

Image of the Day – Something to talk about

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Sometimes the best thing you can do when photographing wildlife is to wait for something to happen. It is amazing how often patience pays off.

The image was crated using a Canon 1D mark 4, 120-300mm Sigma lens with a 1.4 teleconverter attached, at 400 ISO. The lens was mounted on a Gitzo tripod with a ball head.

Written on August 30th, 2010 , Galapagos, Image of the Day

Image of the day – I think I am being watched

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North Seymour Island in the Galapagos is a bird photographer’s paradise. Trails wind around the island, bring you close to numerous birds, including blue footed boobies, frigate birds, and gulls. As I wandered around the island, this blue footed boobie took an intense interest in my passing. I wonder what was going through his head as I passed?

Image was captured using a Canon 1D mark 4, 120-300mm Sigma lens with a 1.4 teleconverter attached, at 400 ISO. The camera was mounted on a Gitzo tripod and ball head for support.

Written on August 23rd, 2010 , Galapagos, Image of the Day

Image of the day – Friends

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This image was captured during a recent Galapagos trip. As I came around a bend in the trail, I encountered Calli sitting close to this Galapagos sea lion in what looked like a casual conversation between friends.

The image was made using a Canon 1D mark 4, 120-300mm Sigma lens, at 400 ISO. The camera was handheld and the final image was cropped into the panoramic format.

Written on August 19th, 2010 , Galapagos, Image of the Day

Image of the day – marine iguana

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The Galapagos is a wonderful place to experience wildlife up close and personal. This image is an example of what can be done with a medium telephoto lens, a low camera angle, and a desire to create a strong image.

The image was created using a Canon 1D mark 4, 120-300mm sigma lens with a 1.4 teleconverter attached, at 1250 ISO. The camera was placed on the sand for extra support. I have been constantly amazed at the image quality of the mark 4 at high ISO settings (no noise reduction was applied to the image).

Written on August 17th, 2010 , Galapagos, Image of the Day

Thinking outside the rectangle

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Cameras make rectangular pictures. They can be vertical or horizontal rectangles, but they are still rectangles. As photographers, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that all images must follow this format. Sometimes, however, it is better to break away from our self imposed limitations and try something different.

On Santiago Island in the Galapagos, I saw these beautiful cliffs just before the sun dropped below the horizon. The light was beautiful, but there was a problem. Traditionally, wide angle landscape images work best when you combine a foreground and background element. A large plant, or flower in the foreground can help to anchor the image and provide a sense of depth. In this case, there was nothing to place in the foreground. The beach was flat sand and the nearby rocks were devoid of character. Changing to a longer lens was not an option because it would cut out part of the cliff. After a few moments, I decided that the image I wanted to create was about the light on the cliffs and anything else would be a distraction.

The solution was to think beyond the initial capture and realize that I could alter the aspect ratio during post production. No set rectangles for me. I captured the image including too much both above and below the cliffs. Once the image was in Adobe Lightroom, I applied a panoramic crop to both the top and bottom, removing those portions. The final image capturs the beauty of the cliffs while successfully removing distractions.

The image was created using a Canon 1Ds mark 3, 17-35mm lens (set to 28mm), at 800 ISO. The camera was handheld.

Written on August 12th, 2010 , Galapagos, Photography Information, Understanding Photography Series

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