In chapter 1, Still Vision, he gives some ideas behind his methods and explains why he feels there is a place for still photography in this age of film and television. He suggests that the roots of style are to be found in personal vision rather than in technique. He says that he finds the process of photography expressed in technique unintelligible even though he is familiar with and practised in it. He says that vision is as much the work of the mind as it is of the eye and that the best photographs inspire us because they convey the excitement experienced by the photographer. He says that fine photographers do not just look, they see. He goes on to say that he is intent on preserving the integrity of still photography. He is passionate about wanting his subject matter to be part of a genuine experience rather than a scene created for the camera or taken out of context. He gives some timely advice when he admits that he has missed many shots by being too lazy to stop and take out his camera - I think we have all been there.
In Chapter 2, Mountain Vision, Galen expands on how his life became shaped by a love of mountains. His parents introduced him to the mountain environment through their membership of the Sierra Club of California whose meets they took him to. During his early years he developed a love of rock climbing, pushing himself to his physical limits as a means of becoming 'one' with the mountains. He later became one of America's top mountaineers both on Yosemite rock and in the Himalayas. Initially at the instigation of his parents he followed an academic career but, finding he was not fulfilled, he dropped out of university to found a car repair business. He was influenced by men who lived their lives through the mountains and wilderness areas and fighting for their conservation through their writings, legal battling and, crucially, in the case of Ansel Adams, photography. At the end of the chapter he says "Here were things that touched my soul, images that I wanted to share, but didn't know how."
The path to becoming a wilderness photojournalist was set.
In Chapter 3, Integrated Vision, Rowell explains how he gradually, by practise and reflection, learned to produce images that mirrored what he was seeing on the hill. He begins by explaining how he was disappointed with the results from his first SLR. He disliked the 'washed out' results in his first attempts and by trial and error discovered that he liked the saturated colours that he obtained by rating Kodachrome 64 at 80 ASA and Kodachrome II at 40 in much the same way that today I regularly dial in a slight minus exposure compensation. I wish I had read this book when I was taking transparencies and often disappointed with my results in the same way. He also learned how to deal with the exceptions to this rule in much the same way as today I dial in positive exposure compensation when photographing a bird in flight against the sky. He also relates how he learned to work with light. Instead of looking at the natural world for objects to photograph in colour, he began to look for light. When he found magical light he sought out something earthbound to match with it. He says that when the light is right his camera is already out before he has found anything to photograph. He finishes the chapter, however, by reminding us that technical competence is only half of the equation. The best images come from a blend of technical expertise and creative thought.
In Chapter 4 Galen explores what it is about a photograph that attracts viewers to it. He suggests that " our appreciation has little to do with how faithfully an images reproduces nature. Our eyes wander around looking for a purpose or point of interest, and these rarely occur in an image simply by chance." He goes on to argue that, when an image appeals to us we are responding to the "selective vision" of the photographer rather than how accurately it reflects a landscape. He suggests that, in the infancy of photography, the emphasis was on the development of the technology and fairly quickly images became as sharp and reproductions as faithful as they are today. As photographers developed as artists, he says, "funny things began to happen. Compromises in quality became acceptable."
He goes on to say that without compromise decisive moments are missed. He argues that if we become too hung up by equipment we can miss the shot. Good composition is vital and is one of the few parts of photography that has defied automation. He feels that, although the rules of composition are important, in the end it comes down to what is pleasing to the eye. Rather than stick rigidly to the compositional rules he adjusts the framing and his physical position until all the elements achieve a pleasing balance. I would argue that, more often than not, his "pleasing balance" intuitively fits the rules of composition unless he purposefully chooses to break them. Another 'home grown technique' that Rowell employs is that of "visual sea level", which involves including a visual reference point for a viewer to identify with in an otherwise difficult image to interpret. This might be a small part of the horizon, a tree or a figure. The most common example of this, he says, is a person but it is also one of the most difficult. Too small and it's effect is lost, too large and it becomes a portrait. This fits perfectly with project 7 in our course and he devotes a whole section of images to the subject. He also excludes anything from the periphery of his images that might distract the viewer's eye.
He discusses depth of field in this chapter and refers the reader to the DOF scale on lens barrels that we no longer have. He also talks about circle of confusion in this context in a way that I found easier to understand here than in other, more complicated, dissertations. I use the technique of using a small aperture f16 or f22 (bearing in mind that quality can degrade at too small apertures), combined with a tripod to account for slow shutter speeds and focus 1/3 of the way into the scene.
He concludes the chapter by writing, "All of the techniques, compromises and intuitive decisions I have discussed have a single purpose: they enable me to photograph in wild places with a minimum of baggage - both physical and mental. Because I wanted to record the full range of my experiences - landscapes, interplays of light, wild animals, plant life and people out there doing things - my methods have to be second nature, thereby providing the freedom of mind needed to explore the selective visions that make an image far more interesting than a single attempt to duplicate reality."
At the beginning of Chapter 5, Extraordinary Vision, Rowell discusses and explains atmospheric phenomena such as brocken spectres, rainbows, haloes and glories and then moves on to the colours at sunset and during the alpenglow. Interestingly (for me anyway) my brother has just emailed me some images he took while walking the Glyders in North Wales. He was fortunate to have a cloud inversion all day and managed to take photograph including an amazing brocken spectre of himself.
Following this introduction Rowell goes on to explain how he searches out images that show the borders of transmitted and scattered light which can turn a bland landscape into an intersection of ruby and sapphire hues. He goes on to say that often he is not able to wait for light and form to work together but by understanding how the balance of warm and cool light works when the balance is not readily apparent he is often able to elevate his photos above the commonplace in quite ordinary light.
I found one particularly interesting fact when he writes about our perception of colour. He describes a trip to the Himalayas during which he lived in a world of whites, greys and blues for three months. He sees the first green meadows as vivid intense colours. When he viewed the resulting transparencies back home he was disappointed to find the greens muted and grey. He later relates an experience where he did shoot a vivid green but then couldn't manage to replicate it. He comes to the conclusion that the intensity of colour is related to the colours adjacent. The darker the surroundings, the richer and more saturated the adjoining colour appears.
Galen goes on to list the categories into which all extraordinary visual events fit: 1) real phenomena that appear on film much as they do to the eye eg. rainbows; 2) real phenomena that appear differently on film eg. beams of light or 'god beams' which cam appear more intense on film; 3) psychological phenomena that cannot be photographed eg. the green meadow in the Himalayas; 4) psychological illusions that can be photographed eg. perspective distortion.
He concludes the chapter by discussing sun-stars and how to photograph them successfully.
Chapter 6, Operative Vision, sees Galen Rowell taking us on an expedition to the Karakoram Himalaya. During the chapter he describes the expedition but concentrates on relating to us the equipment he uses, his selection for different aspects of the shoot and his reasoning behind taking the pictures. The idea behind the chapter is to try to get us into his head during a shoot. It makes me wince to think of the weight of those 1980s Nikons and associated lenses and the 200 rolls of film - Kodachrome 64 and Kodachrome II - that he takes with him.
In the final chapter, Dynamic Vision, Galen Rowell tells us about the last weapon in his armoury: luck. He says that three components that need to come together to make a truly fine photograph are technical proficiency, personal vision and light and luck has a hand in each one of them. He says photographers who are consistently lucky put in a tremendous amount of work into acquiring knowledge of their field. Luck is with them because they have made themselves open and receptive to it and their style allows it to be part of their plan. As Arnold Palmer said 2 The more I practice, the luckier I get." I have wildlife photography friends who take amazing images and it is tempting to think that you could have done that if you were there - the thing is they were, you weren't. They made their own luck by putting in the time. From my own experience I have benefited from the luck factor. I wanted a particular image at sunrise from Higger Tor in Derbyshire - I had to visit 5 times before I had the magic light that Galen Rowell sought. I made my own luck.
The images in the book are wonderful. They are divided into eight sections:
- The Magic Hour - that special light that occurs around sunrise and sunset;
- Backlight
- Soft light - many of the images in this section would fit perfectly into Project 10 of the course on the use of soft muted colours. In this section Rowell explains how he works when the cloudy sky acts as a giant soft box diffuser. Then he concentrates on people and the more intimate side of mountains such as forests and flowers when he feels their colours "come alive". These images remind me of a quote I once read: 2There is no such thing as good light or bad light; just light." Mind I have also heard it said that "good light is everything." It certainly is if dramatic light is required. It is in these soft light situations that the subject becomes more important than the light;
- Sundown to sunrise - images taken during the hours of dark. I shall make use of the ideas in this section when it comes to the relevant projects later in the course;
- Artist's light - painterly images;
- Figures in a landscape - applicable to Project 7;
- Light against light - these images represent mountain light rather than mountain scenes. They have one main element in common: different colours and intensities of light are used to emphasize natural forms;
- Unexpected convergence - most of these images appear as if Rowell happened to be in the right place at the right time which is what he was attempting to achieve. He says that he starts with an unusual condition (cloud, light, rainbow etc.) and then uses thought and action to make it look as if he just happened to be there - far from the case.
I think my favourite images from the book are in the first section on the Magic Hour. I love the dramatic lighting and rich saturated colours. I particularly like the images from the Sierra of bristlecone pines.
A wonderfully inspiring book.
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