On 31st March I will be part of a masterclass photography seminar for Campkins cameras in the grounds of University of Cambridge. Photographers from the world of portrait, landscape , street, food and wildlife will be there to inspire you with their work, techniques and advice. The day is designed to help in all aspects of photography.
Campkins Cameras is an independent, family-run retail business specialising in the sale of new and second hand cameras both modern and vintage, binoculars and telescopes. They have been a feature of the Cambridge High Street, serving the photographic and optical needs of the local community since 1955. In a time when you really struggle to find any camera shops on our high streets its wonderful that this independent shop is still going and its nice to be asked to help them by being part of this event.
During my talk I will be going through the simple ways in which I work in the field, breaking down the minefield of settings and techniques in order to present a easy to remember workflow that works in the theater of wildlife. I will touch on ethics, fieldcraft, respecting wildlife and workings as seen and the importance of being transparent within your photography.
I will also go through the not so nice things we as humans are doing to our planet and those species we share it with. Its always been very important to me as a wildlife photographer to not only show the beauty of the natural world but the not so beautiful things Ive seen and witnessed and this is where my conservation side of my photography comes in.
Ethics for me is a massive issue that seems to be getting out of hand with very few charities, organisations and photographers saying anything. This was highlighted in the Cairngorms National park when I came across three men , feeding a wild mountain hare in the Cairngorms National Park and using flash. So close they could even touch this wild creature. I slowly walked up to them, watched and filmed them before asking them to get back from the mountain hare and give it the space it deserved.
I posted the video of this online and it got over 5000 views. Many of the public and photographers agreed with me, while others saw it as a way to promote themselves, and their services they provide there while having a dig at me. But the facts are very little is being spoken about when it comes to ethics and how we use, treat wildlife in the ever growing and popular world of wildlife photography.
Ethics and respecting wildlife to get a photograph has such a long way to go. In this false age we live in it seems many photographers don’t really care as long as they get their photos and I will be touching on this and more with this talk.
It will be a wonderful event and part two will be sometime after where we will visit Wicker Fen in Cambridge, a place I know well that has such an incredibly diverse range of wildlife there. I look forward to meeting those attending the event, and for the list of inspiring photographers taking part and all the information please click on the following link, many thanks.