Finding the Intimate Scene

Abstract image of terraces near Grand Prismatic Spring.

So, you're out on a big adventure to that national park that you always wanted to visit. Or maybe you're out to photograph birds or some other wildlife at a local park. What happens if the weather isn't cooperating or the light is too harsh? What if the wildlife isn't active and you can't find it? Do you give up and go home? Maybe. Do you let it ruin your day? Hopefully not because you are still out in nature. When I run into these issues I reevaluate and start looking for something more intimate to shoot. I don't want to just go home and not photograph anything. 

This also applies when you get to a grand vista. There are a lot of beautiful places in the world but they just don't make a good or interesting photo. Or those grand vistas have been shot by everyone and you want to get a different photo of it to make you stand out from all the rest. If you look for the intimate scene within the grand vista, you can come away with something all your own that other people aren't photographing. I recommend getting a photo of that large vista so you have it but then look for those smaller scenes within the scene. Find that photo that fits your style that no-one else has. Find that photo that makes people wonder where you were because it's a smaller abstract scene within the larger scene everyone knows.

I was out at Yellowstone National Park and decided to hike to the overlook of Grand Prismatic Spring along the Fairy Falls Trail. As I made my way to the viewpoint, I realized that I wouldn't be able to photograph Grand Prismatic like I wanted to. It was early in the morning and the weather was still chilly so there was a lot of steam rising off the spring. I still enjoyed my hike and looking out over the scene, but I knew I wanted to come away with a photo. I looked across the scene and found an area where there was no steam rising. This area was a terraced area where the cooler water was running away from the spring. I pulled out my 100-500mm lens and zoomed in on this area. What I came away with was an intimate abstract photo of the blue water with the terraces looking like cracks running through the scene. I could have let the bad conditions shut my photography down but instead I allowed the conditions to help me find the more intimate scene to photograph.

An intimate shot of the twisted wood of a dead cherry tree.

One day I was out walking around a woodland looking for birds to photograph and I wasn't having any luck. The birds weren't active and the few birds that were around were in the tops of the trees. I decided to change my approach and look for something more intimate to photograph. I came across this fallen cherry tree that had been laying there for a long time. The bark was rotted off the tree and the orange hardwood was all that was left. The wood was all twisted and very interesting to look at so I took my time to find the right spot that I wanted to frame in my photograph. I came up with this frame where I lined up to allow the cracks in the wood to flow diagonally through the photo. To me, this helps give the photo more interest instead of just allowing the cracks to flow straight across. I love how the light made the colors of the wood really pop and contradict with the green colors of the moss that had grown in some of the cracks. Also, the added interest of the hole in the log that fades into darkness.

A man overlooks the vastness of the Grand Canyon.

Maybe you're at a scene for sunrise and you get that shot that you want. Does this mean that you go home or back to the hotel? Nope, this means you look for the next shot of the smaller scene within the larger scene. This is what I did when I was visiting Grand Canyon National Park. I got the shot of the full landscape but it wasn't the most interesting photo. I looked over the scene while the light was still good trying to find a more interesting and intimate photo. That's when I discovered this man sitting along the edge of the cliff overlooking the Grand Canyon. I pulled out my 100-500mm lens and framed this shot. I love the way that the light is playing with this more intimate scene. By having this man in the scene, it helped give scale to the canyon. That was the problem with my photo of the entire scene, there was nothing to give it scale. Add in the fact that he is wearing a blue shirt making him stand out from the red rocks along with framing him with a shadowed cliff face in the background and I captured my favorite photo from the entire national park. 

Next time you are out doing some photography, don't let bad conditions, no wildlife, getting the grand shot or anything else get in your way of making more photos. Look for the intimate shots and you may come away with a portfolio worthy image that you were not expecting.