Tag Archives: iPhone 3Gs

It’s not photography I’m in love with

Dear all,

Over the last few months, I’ve been spending a lot of time out on the mountain bike. An activity which brought me to a shocking insight, namely that I may not be in love with photography. I had been wondering for some time why, here in Nepal, I tend to reach for my bike instead of for my camera? Because, let’s be honest, the photographic opportunities in Nepal are endless. Yet instead of looking for the golden light in and around Kathmandu, I find myself getting up early, crossing the ringroad and heading for one of the many steep climbs up the valley rim. Once there, if lucky, I’m treated with some of the most stunning views one can imagine, and not once did I miss my camera. Instead, I rejoyce in the moment, the achievement of the climb, absorbing the scenery, occasionally capturing the moment with my phone (which ain’t an easy task due to the scale of it all, we are in the Himalaya after all, hence sometimes you better go for the detail).

Kathmandu valley field detail, Nepal (2013)

And that’s where the insight hit me, I long for the outdoor, regardless of the means. What I search for is being out there, leaving the city behind and feeling the wild touching upon me. On the African plains, photography is the perfect means to do so, hence my love for nature and wildlife photography in that context, yet here in Nepal there is no way to do so on short notice. I can jump on my bike though, and within 20 minutes I can be in places which feel like they could be hours away from the capital city.

Trail bridge in the haze, Pharping, Nepal (2013)

 

To conclude, don’t get me wrong, I could spend my life being out in the wild, photographing nature and wildlife, and somewhere in the future, I’m sure my job will again bring me close to the animals I love so much, at which point I’m sure I’ll be reaching for my camera again. Till then, I’ll be shredding the Nepali hills on my MTB, in preparation of an ultra endurance event in September 2015.

I’ll be back,

Guy

 

A dangerous beauty

Dear all,

During the week, while talking on the phone, I tend to wander through the garden surrounding the office. Last week, I went through the parking lot, when some kind of irregularity in a flower caught my eye. Some closer inspection revealed this beauty, shot with my iPhone 3Gs, since I don’t carry my camera to work. I even disconnected the call not to miss out on a shot of this beautiful creature.

iPhone 3Gs, f/2.8, 1/390, ISO 64

Since that day, I pass by the area regularly and to my surprise the spider seems to be quite loyal to the flower she is on. Clearly a hunting spider, I thought she would feed on small ants and the like, yet yesterday, I saw to my surprise she was holding on to a bee allmost her own size.

iPhone 3Gs, f/2.8, 1/2400, ISO 64

Thinking this would keep her going for some time, I wondered where and how she would store her food. Yet next time around, there was no sign of the bee. Then again, this afternoon, she actually captured her next victim. Being a bee, you definitely don’t want to come close to this one. To my regret, I still didn’t carry my camera, so I used my phone again, not perfect, yet better than no picture at all. Considering the fact that these pictures are quite tight crops, I actually have to admit that I find the quality surprisingly good.

iPhone 3Gs, f/2.8, 1/1150, ISO 64

Quite an impressive little animal, as far as I’m concerned, and one that also shouldn’t get his teeth into you, since their bite seems to be quite painful. This being said, an idea has added to my photographic bucket list: capturing this one with a macro lens while it actually strikes, … guess I’ll have to spend a few Saturdays in the office parking lot ;-). Hoping she’ll stick around, I’ll try to start off with a decent macro shot next week. A nice urban wildlife photographic opportunity, showing you don’t always have to go far to find opportunities.

To end with, some internet research revealed this to be a flower crab spider (those who want more info regarding these creatures can check out this link).

All the best,

Guy

PS: next week, the first guest blog will be up and I will start a facebook page for picsfromthewild (Mark, a friend of mine who is a great photographer in his own right is working on the logo as we speak).