THE TRAVELING PHOTOGRAPHER: Part 2
location, location, location
Lighting and location are two sides of the same coin.
Erbalunga at dusk, Corsica, France
One of the aspects of travelling that I love so much is the stimulation of a new environment. I don't think of it as an increase in creativity as much as an opportunity when the mind is automatically open to its environment due to the circumstances. When we stay in the same environment day after day for months or years, there is a tendency to become dulled by the familiarity around us. This doesn't only mean our immediate physical environment but can actually include our cultural environment too, so that when we travel to another country, and often another culture, this can have a positive effect on how we interact in new and creative ways. Staying at home on the other hand, requires more effort (at least it does for me) to extract something new from the familiar. When I am planning a trip somewhere I always research my chosen destination to include those types of locations that will probably be quite different from what i am accustomed to. How I know whether a locale will be (photographically) rewarding is due to a combination of experience, guesswork sometimes based on tiny clues, research and intuition, the last of which is difficult for some people to accept but is more than likely a combination of the first two plus other "hunches". Regardless of how I choose locations within a chosen destination I am usually disappointed only when I have relied upon someone elses description or recommendation, especially when they aren't such a visually oriented type of person as I am (eg. a photographer).
Women's talk.
Sorata, Bolivia
The importance of location will vary from person to person depending upon the way they choose to express their vision, or whatever other reason they take photographs for. I'm pretty lazy when it comes down to it, but my mental state when in a new environment is very animated and enthusiastic so you could say travel is the lazy man's creative inspiration - when it's affordable! If I stayed in any environment long enough for it to become familiar, I doubt I would have as much enthusiasm to climb mountains, hike for days or put up with the myriad of minor discomforts so often experienced when traveling. How long it might take for a given environment to become familiar though would be highly variable, as some places are just so diverse that the possibilities seem endless sometimes. Often I have noticed that the local people in what I consider to be an amazing locality, seem desensitized to their surroundings and I therefore consider myself fortunate to be able to travel and to be conscious of my surroundings (I have to sometimes remind myself that I live in a beautiful place too, surrounded by world heritage areas, but I do appreciate it). It's the change that I find so rewarding however, so I will concentrate on the aspects of location that I wish to elaborate upon.
Window Dressing. Details can work well in urban environments.
Valparaiso, Chile.
Some locations just don't work for me, full stop. Others you would have to almost drag me away after hours (as my wife has occasionally intimated) because there is so much I can explore and find there. The locations may differ for you but I'm sure some places will be better than others. Cities and most urban environments don't do it so much for me but there are always exceptions - somewhere like Valparaiso in Chile comes to mind. Mountains can be fantastic but I have definitely found that I can become over-saturated with this sort of "beautiful" environment and consequently I like to search for places that are not the usual or standard destinations. I am surrounded by tropical rainforest with the Great Barrier Reef on my doorstep, so something similar just in a different locality isn't going to interest me much. Likewise if you live surrounded by snow-capped mountains and lakes you might not want to go somewhere that has a landscape of a similar nature, although there is no reason why not either, as no two environments are ever really that similar. Then we come to the type of environment that can become a magnet for travelers when the word gets out, either because of its sheer natural beauty or some other unique quality. This type of location can be incredibly attractive to people, and photographers in particular, but I am also very cautious about such places for this very same reason - I like to got to and photograph subjects that haven't necessarily been done to death or are crawling with people. Don't get me wrong, everyone has the same right to visit anywhere they wish (or are allowed to) and I am often a tourist too, but if possible I just prefer to be where other people are not.
Where other people are not...
4900m on Cerro Illampu, Bolivia
I think it very difficult to categorize locations into anything more general than natural, urban, rural and historic, with the many sub-categories possible. If you like to photograph natural landscapes then places with mountains, lakes, forests, plains and the like are going to be attractive whereas if you want to capture more of the "life" of a country or region then hanging around cities, towns or anywhere there are people is going to suit you best. I am interested in a variety of subjects, especially when travelling, which makes choice and hence prioritization a necessity if I want to feel satisfied with what I have covered. This is also the unfortunate negative consequence of thoroughly researching a destination if you find too many places of interest to visit within the alotted time! Wherever you go thogh, it is highly unlikely that you will be the first person to have visited there, or even the one hundred and first. What you will be is the first person with your unique way of looking at things, which brings us to the trap of seeing a location through the eyes of someone else, be it another photographer, a writer or a local guide. Visiting a location without any of these pre-visualized expectations is not easy if you research the way I do. However, I'm always open to any suggestions or clues given to me by locals, other travellers or informants of any kind once I am at my destination as these can sometimes lead to outstanding and relatively unknown sites.
I found this deteriorating abandoned estancia a great source of possibilites.
Estancia San Gregorio, Southern Patagonia, Chile
What you make of a location is up to you and your personal style. When we have already seen photographs of somewhere taken by someone else it can, to some extent, compromose our creativity and originality if we/re not careful, when we visit that same place. It is good to be inspired by and learn from other photographers but I try not to mimic them or their viewpoint and is a good reason for me to go to the less traveled and photographed areas of the planet. I won't be the first, or the last, to go wherever I go, but I would like to think I can at least make a unique portrayal of the sense of place I feel while there. and can express it in a way that others can hopefully enjoy. This makes me realize that landscape or travel photographers are in fact, portrait photographers (which is the one type of photographer that I have never thought of myself as) capturing a portrait of place that is also a flattering likeness of the subject.