landscapes photography workshops 2019

landscapes photography workshops 2019

 

Spain and Switzerland were on my radar in 2018. They are both perfect locations as bases for landscapes photography workshops (2019). In May a 7 day trip beginning with a flight from Marrakesh into Milan found me in the southern Swiss river valleys of Valle Verzasca. A geological tour de force with some of the cleanest waters in Europe, the Valle offers a compositional masterclass in how to frame rocks and river. The B&B kindly loaned me the use of their 4×4 which was an advantage over the hourly bus service. Driving the 15 km up and down the river hugging road looking for possible photo opps became the daily routine. Once identifying some potential areas, I’d pitch up river side and explore compositional possibilities.

Whilst the rocks inherently have fascinating patterns and colours I decided to set the framework that all photographs should include water. Secondly that flow should also be an important element in framing. Working to the lighting conditions of sun and cloud, I would wait until cloud had filtered the sun before exposing. All images were taken with a tripod using a small aperture and hyper-focal distance and with Format Hitech ND/polarising filters.

October saw me flying into Santander from Marrakesh and onwards to the easterly forests of Gorbea, Iraki and Ordessa with OK car rental. Some lovely early foggy conditions in Gorbea gave way to the autumnal colours in Ordessa. I kept an open mind about what I would find on the trip, but it became apparent early on that depth would be an interesting way forward. Unlike my Andalusian gallery from 2017 which was about flattening the wooded scenes, this time I was more thoughtful about foreground background juxtaposition. Overall, the set works well with some especially interesting tree formations in an Ordessa valley.

If you are interested in joining me for these two trips in 2019 get in touch: landscapes photography workshops 2019 | darren@photomaroc.co.uk

Morocco photos close to home

morocco photographyMorocco Photos

The forest reclaimed

For an alternative take on Morocco photos visit the hard wood forests in the region of Essaouira close to my home offer a source fuel for the local rural population who get by on subsistence income in many cases. Harvesting from these forests is very much accepted as a right for them; nuts produce their Argan dipping oil, grazing for animals, the abundance of rocks to construct house foundations with and wood to burn for heat and bread making.

The forests are owned by the government and chopping down trees is policed by the forestry commission but what are the cheap alternatives? So trees are felled and left out in the sun to dry and stripped of bark. To my wandering and roving camera eye, the forest reveals trees and branches at various stages of disintegration. Morocco photos off the beaten track.

North Facing north effects

One of the natural characteristics of the west coast of Morocco particularly in the region of Essaouira is the strident northern winds which despite the southerly location can bring a cold air. Some days in late August can bring the need for a jacket and scarf. whilst

After initial forest outings I began to notice that on the north side of trees there were greater amounts of moss and lichen which when bought into camera view revealed a range of textures and colours. I also noticed the branches of larger trees and tentacles of the smaller shrubs were bending to the wind’s leaving a swirling form ideal to forms compositions with.

50 sqm

The first time I ventured into a largely clear area within the forest I felt there would be photographic possibilities perhaps fuelled by the obvious change in terrain, although it’s standout features are few. I Immediately liked the idea of producing a sequence of images from just this small location, again the setting of boundaries appealed to me and with that a notion of having to look more intently.

As a general observation arriving earlier at a location to scout out possibilities doesn’t work for me as the light is so very different the scene itself offers no inspiration or indication of what to photograph.  Also a delayed return will often mean a potential image is removed. In the case of the lattice work cobweb, the next day it was no longer there. It only caught the light for just a few minutes on the day I photographed it. I didn’t have time to shoot various compositions as the dipping sun fell behind a tree. In fact all the webs were soon to vanish alongside the fallen branch taken for firewood by one of my neighbours soon after.

To the west

It’s one supposed rule of photography to be careful about shooting into or towards the sun not just for the obvious glare and eye damage but because of the contrast differential between the bright and shadow areas. I was always intrigued by the possibilities of shooting in the direction as the light offers a unique quality both with the warmth of the Moroccan sun and with filtering through trees.

Having a camera with dynamic rage of 14 stops or thereabouts allows previously untapped possibilities for recording shadow detail whilst maintaining highlight control. Keeping the camera’s histogram towards the right but not clipping and using software to bring up shadow detail reveals the possibilities of image making towards the sunset.

To see more of my Morocco photos then visit my personal website

Spain photography holidays gallery link

Spain photography holidays

Spain photography holidays

Our Spain photography holidays are targeted for photographers with a good grasp of how to use their camera but who would like to get some magical shots of nature. For this July and May next year I’m running an 8 night tour centred on Andalusia’s highlights. There’ll be a series of instructive ‘light’ workshops to a variety of locations including rivers, waterfalls, cork and oak forests and rocky coast shorelines. With group sizes limited to 5 it’s a unique opportunity to get the most from these unique locations. For more information take a look at the tour page.

Andalusia as a location is a day’s haul from me and one that gives a completely unique type of landscape. Woods, streams and craggy coastline are in close proximity and each provide extraordinary challenges. The primary regions of interest are in the Los Alcornocales Park Natural and the mining areas close to Seville. Photographing trees has always held an interest for me, the pre-occupation being to find form amongst the chaos. For this assignment I traveled in spring to western Andalusia and set myself a project of manufacturing a gallery in three weeks. Early on I started to see the locations in image pairs, in double page book form, so locating pictures that would work well together became a part of the plan and every day I would do some rudimentary processing to see how this panned out. Among the woods are cork and their bark gives robust textures. There’s also holm okay blending into a few wooded area scenes which adds colour variation. For those shots I wanted a classical timeless feel with a hint of abstraction. I have a tendency to scope for tighter compositions and mainly use a telephoto to assist attain this. Loaded Landscapes very kindly published my article and photographs from one of our recent Spain photography holidays.

Door step Morocco photography

Some musings on the green aspects of Morocco Photography

The forest reclaimed

The phrase Morocco photography doesn’t readily suggest trees and forests but those that cut a swatch through the region of Essaouira are vast and perhaps not the grandest forests they offer exploration. The forests close to where I live provide a source of materials for the local economically challenged rural population. Living off the land with electricity as the only mains connection, harvesting from the surrounding forests is essential to survive; nuts to produce oil, grazing for livestock, rocks to build with and wood to burn.

The forests are government owned and the culling of trees is prohibited and policed by the forestry commission and yet there are few if any alternatives to heat homes and cook with. So trees are partially felled and left to dry, stripped of bark and removed. Scouring the forest reveals trees and branches at various stages of disintegration left to dry out in the summer sun.

morocco-photography

North Facing north effects

One of the natural characteristics of the west coast of Morocco particularly in the region of Essaouira is the strident northern winds which despite the southerly location can bring a cold air. Some days in late August can bring the need for a jacket and scarf. whilst

After initial forest outings I began to notice that on the north side of trees there were greater amounts of moss and lichen which when bought into camera view revealed a range of textures and colours. I also noticed the branches of larger trees and tentacles of the smaller shrubs were bending to the wind’s leaving a swirling form ideal to forms compositions with.

50 sqm

The first time I ventured into a largely clear area within the forest I felt there would be photographic possibilities perhaps fuelled by the obvious change in terrain, although it’s standout features are few. I Immediately liked the idea of producing a sequence of images from just this small location, again the setting of boundaries appealed to me and with that a notion of having to look more intently.

As a general observation arriving earlier at a location to scout out possibilities doesn’t work for me as the light is so very different the scene itself offers no inspiration or indication of what to photograph.  Also a delayed return will often mean a potential image is removed. In the case of the lattice work cobweb, the next day it was no longer there. It only caught the light for just a few minutes on the day I photographed it. I didn’t have time to shoot various compositions as the dipping sun fell behind a tree. In fact all the webs were soon to vanish alongside the fallen branch taken for firewood by one of my neighbours soon after.

morocco-photography

To the west

It’s one supposed rule of photography to be careful about shooting into or towards the sun not just for the obvious glare and eye damage but because of the contrast differential between the bright and shadow areas. I was always intrigued by the possibilities of shooting in the direction as the light offers a unique quality both with the warmth of the Moroccan sun and with filtering through trees.

Having a camera with dynamic rage of 14 stops or thereabouts allows previously untapped possibilities for recording shadow detail whilst maintaining highlight control. Keeping the camera’s histogram towards the right but not clipping and using software to bring up shadow detail reveals the possibilities of image making towards the sunset. Morocco photography subjects can indeed surprise.