Posted by Jack Garrett on July 25, 2012 at 2:04 AM
So you want to know why landscape photographers charge so much for a picture? here's why:
This morning I set off to shoot Mystic Falls near Telluride. I took a wrong turn and went 30 miles out of my way. By the time I got to the falls it was beginning to drizzle. I put on my waders because it is a half mile trek upstream. I put on a poncho to cover my backpack as the rain was beginning to get a little heavier. After slipping and sliding on rocks, I finally got to my destination. Just as I set up my tripod, the skies opened up and it began raining pretty heavy. I spied a somewhat dry area on the opposite side of the stream where I could sit under a tree until things got better. About 3 minutes later, as I was sitting there, a large rock disengaged itself from the 100 foot high canyon wall and came crashing down, landing 6 feet from my tripod. I'm no fool so I decided today was not the day to take pictures in this place! I headed back downstream and about half way down. lost my balance and wound up on my side in the middle of a cold stream...not that I was dry anyways. Fortunately my camera equipment stayed dry and I made it back to my car.....with NO prize photo.
Next time you visit a landscape photographers gallery and wonder why it costs a lot for an image, think about what it takes for the photographer to get that super shot you want on your wall!!
That also doesn't count the cost of gas, wear and tear on 4WD roads, photo equipment...and a hundred bucks for the waders...lol!
Ya know what? I'll be 66 in 2 months..maybe I should find a new hobby..just kidding.
I'm glad you and your gear survived, Jack.
Have you considered shooting flowers in a studio setting?
This time of year in the San Juans can be exciting. Most of my best "war" stories are from there....
Lightning, intense cloud bursts, flash floods, mudslides blocking the road.
But when it all comes together, you can't beat that feeling.
Sorry to hear that you went 30 miles out of your way and that you chose to walk upstream from the road .
Posted by Richard Olsen on July 25, 2012 at 10:20 AM
Good story Jack! ahhhh the pains we suffer and enjoy doing it
Here's to a better today!
I was just telling my wife that just as I get my post back surgery drivers license back tomorrow, the forcast is for clear skies. It's been killing me to lay here every evening with thunder storms and awsome clouds and light and be confined to the house.
Posted by Jack Garrett on July 25, 2012 at 10:40 AM
John, I had been there before but not under these conditions..fall is a much better time to shoot this. The main reason I went 30 miles out of the way was they were doing construction at the int. of 62 and 145. Instead of turning left, I went straight...next thing I knew I was going up Norwood hill...yuck. Did you find an easier access that going upstream?
This was the first time I ever experienced falling rock and I gotta tell you, that wasn't fun. I had just spent 2 nights in Porphyry Basin with big thunder storms but that rock actually scared me!
Man, I hate it when things don't go the way I plan them. Wait, that's just about every time I go out.
Sorry for the struggles and to come up empty is maddening. I know this, too. Especially for us that only have a few opportunities each month to even try to get something worthwhile. And, the rock would have prompted me to leave immediately, too.
Posted by Doug Beezley on July 25, 2012 at 12:04 PM
Jack,
You're too young to quit. Get back in the saddle and hear upstream. Just remember, "old age and treachery will overcome youth and enthusiasm everytime".
Doug "Older than you" Beezley
Snellville, GA
Posted by Pam Colander on July 25, 2012 at 1:47 PM
I would brave what Jack went through WAAAAAY before I would ever to portrait stuff again
Coming back with a photo would have made your trip "another photo trip" . But this trip will be remembered far longer and more vividly!
Glad you survived the rock fall and the stream fall, now you'll be ready for the real fall in a few months!
Posted by Monika Chace on July 25, 2012 at 5:21 PM
Hmmm... all I do to get photos from locations like that is go to Google Earth, zoom in, click the "photos" checkbox, scan for decent shot, right click and save. I can't charge as much of course, but c'est la vie.
Honestly, some of my favorite experiences have resulted in no captures. Jennifer jokes that my best pictures are my "mental images", collected while scurrying to find safe haven from lightning, slinking away from grizzly bears, or just sitting and contemplating a sunset instead of photographing it. Sometimes the experience is worth just as much as a photograph; sometimes more, since it's exclusively yours....
Sounds pretty sketchy to me. I was in the Zion narrows last year and some small rocks came down probably a 100 feet or more away from me and it still weirded me out. Glad you made it out ok Jack.
Sorry to thread jack, but does your route descend from here John? I figured this out, but it looked dicey getting to the stream without rappel rope to me.
Posted by Jeff Hackett on July 26, 2012 at 11:53 AM
Those falling rocks are very scary! Two close calls with geology in action for me, one with a torso sized boulder that came within about twenty feet while climbing in the Crestones and the other in Zion was about shotput sized and slammed into the trail three feet in front of me. I heard the hissing and stopped, then the next second - SLAM! - right on the trail. Scared the feces right out of me. Be careful out there.
Posted by Jack Garrett on July 26, 2012 at 1:32 PM
I've been doing this for about 7 years now..not nearly as long as many others. I think we have a tendency to look from side to side and down so we don't trip on stuff but how many of us look up? This was a real wake up call for me. I will continue to make these treks but I will be watching weather conditions a lot more, knowing that rain and moisture can make those rocks unsafe...and wind can bring down tree limbs in a heartbeat!
Discussion
15 repliesThis morning I set off to shoot Mystic Falls near Telluride. I took a wrong turn and went 30 miles out of my way. By the time I got to the falls it was beginning to drizzle. I put on my waders because it is a half mile trek upstream. I put on a poncho to cover my backpack as the rain was beginning to get a little heavier. After slipping and sliding on rocks, I finally got to my destination. Just as I set up my tripod, the skies opened up and it began raining pretty heavy. I spied a somewhat dry area on the opposite side of the stream where I could sit under a tree until things got better. About 3 minutes later, as I was sitting there, a large rock disengaged itself from the 100 foot high canyon wall and came crashing down, landing 6 feet from my tripod. I'm no fool so I decided today was not the day to take pictures in this place! I headed back downstream and about half way down. lost my balance and wound up on my side in the middle of a cold stream...not that I was dry anyways. Fortunately my camera equipment stayed dry and I made it back to my car.....with NO prize photo.
Next time you visit a landscape photographers gallery and wonder why it costs a lot for an image, think about what it takes for the photographer to get that super shot you want on your wall!!
That also doesn't count the cost of gas, wear and tear on 4WD roads, photo equipment...and a hundred bucks for the waders...lol!
Ya know what? I'll be 66 in 2 months..maybe I should find a new hobby..just kidding.
Have you considered shooting flowers in a studio setting?
This time of year in the San Juans can be exciting. Most of my best "war" stories are from there....
Lightning, intense cloud bursts, flash floods, mudslides blocking the road.
But when it all comes together, you can't beat that feeling.
Here's to a better today!
I was just telling my wife that just as I get my post back surgery drivers license back tomorrow, the forcast is for clear skies. It's been killing me to lay here every evening with thunder storms and awsome clouds and light and be confined to the house.
This was the first time I ever experienced falling rock and I gotta tell you, that wasn't fun. I had just spent 2 nights in Porphyry Basin with big thunder storms but that rock actually scared me!
Man, I hate it when things don't go the way I plan them. Wait, that's just about every time I go out.
Sorry for the struggles and to come up empty is maddening. I know this, too. Especially for us that only have a few opportunities each month to even try to get something worthwhile. And, the rock would have prompted me to leave immediately, too.
You're too young to quit. Get back in the saddle and hear upstream. Just remember, "old age and treachery will overcome youth and enthusiasm everytime".
Doug "Older than you" Beezley
Snellville, GA
Glad you survived the rock fall and the stream fall, now you'll be ready for the real fall in a few months!
I'm glad you're OK & your gear stayed dry! But it makes for a good story in hindsight, right? Maybe you should check out these http://www.patagonia.com/us/product/river-crampon?p=79195-0-775
Honestly, some of my favorite experiences have resulted in no captures. Jennifer jokes that my best pictures are my "mental images", collected while scurrying to find safe haven from lightning, slinking away from grizzly bears, or just sitting and contemplating a sunset instead of photographing it. Sometimes the experience is worth just as much as a photograph; sometimes more, since it's exclusively yours....