Picture: Flowing water next to rock in waterfall (Detail), Horsetail Falls, Desolation Wilderness, California
Does this ever happen to you?
You follow a moderately difficult trail a mile and a half (mostly uphill) through mountainous terrain at an elevation over 6,000 feet, on a trail you’ve never been on, to reach a waterfall you’ve seen but not been to, and come face to face with a wonderful cascade of water tumbling hundreds and hundreds of feet over steep Sierra granite…?
… then do you also (like me) spend most of your time shooting tiny little detail shots with a telephoto lens on pictures that perhaps show only 0.0025% of said waterfall?
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Image ID#: 110809a_LTAS-0086
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Do I? No, Should I? Yes. Or at least I should spend more time taking detail shots; I tend to go for the wide view, taking in as much as possible. I need to do more detail shots, however.
I think it depends on my mood for that day but if it required that much effort to get there detail shots would probably a secondary priority.
Sure…why not? The whole undertaking is to capture the beauty we see before us and not that which is prescribed by expectations. I think Richard’s response fits well as our mood will definitely affect what we see.
I have had similar situations when the wider view just wasn’t coming together for me. I might take a shot as a snapshot, but cherish the detail shots more.
If your vision was recorded, does it matter? (I’m like you, frequently absorbed by the details and sometimes forgetting about the “big picture.”
To me, rarely, but Charles Cramer photographed just a tree after hiking all the way to the Diving Board which is harder than Half-Dome.
I’m quite easily distracted. The “landmark” is just a means to an end…but it rarely ends up being the end.