Get OUT MORE and buy LESS gear (you told me)
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- Опубліковано 11 вер 2024
- We all regret things we do when were out photographing, and I go through some of the main ones you gave me whilst travelling to East Greenland.
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Funniest part of the trip was seeing Nigel videoing an entire sequence about the polar bear tracks, just for me to tell him they're human... 🤣
Brilliant Mads.
😅😅😅😅😅😅😅
That's Mad 🤣
Erm.... maybe
This is the BTS we needed. Gold 😂
My only regret when it comes to photography... is that I stopped too early many years back. Just because I had a job as a part time photographer and didn't liked it. I thought that all my life I would have to just smile and click a button all day. How wrong I was... and decided to give up too fast. The good part is that thanks to passionate people like you... since 2021 I keep thinking to get back to photography. Now with some hard times I've been through in the past few years, is a little hard on the gear side... but I play with what I have. The big thank you goes to YOU and other people like you, that somehow push me and others like me, to move forward and actually stop thinking about gear... and just start taking photos puting soul into that and just enjoy every little bit of it. Will they be perfect or amazing ? I guess after so many years away from the camera... clearly not. But for sure things will improve in time. Regrets and mistakes are always good. It will make you appreciate more what you do NOW... and enjoy the moment all the way. So yes I regret I gave up photography years back... but I am also happy that this year I finally decided to return... for a long time this time. Long comment so I stop as I don't want to write an eBook in your comments feed hahaha. Have a magical Sunday Nigel. And thanks again for all the nice videos. They help people like me more than you can imagine. Even though I don't always leave a comment to say this.
"Spend your money on travel, not gear." Sage advice! Spot on!
"If you take bad photographs it doesn't mean you're a bad photographer. It just means you're learning." Probably the BEST photography advice there is Nigel! Combine that with getting out more and just slowing down and you've learned more about taking better photographs than any gear review video can provide. Great stuff!
Well said,
getting out and shooting “whatever” whit reflective moments in Lightroom is the best preparation for a an exploration trip.
After x-xxxxx photos you start to se what can be amazing images.
My biggest regrets are like many others. Not getting out more and not slowing down to enjoy the moment. Great Video Nigel.
I have no regrets, whatsoever.
I’m 65 and took up photography as a hobby three years ago - and, mostly, retired my golf clubs except for occasional rounds with my sons and grandson. I freely admit to GAS but the technical aspects of photography suit my personality and I love experimenting with new gear. As my kit has grown and filled out, my purchases have trailed off; I’m very happy with the stuff I have.
I mostly shoot birds, wildlife and nature, including mediocre landscapes and love getting up any day at stupid o’clock, hopping in the truck and heading out in search of subjects. Living in Calgary, next door to the Rockies, with a second home on Vancouver Island, I’m blessed with endless opportunities. I’ve even hung out on workshops with your friends, Adam Gibbs and Alistair Benn. Photography has become a great adventure and is a part of all our travels.
So, regrets? Absolutely none, except when I muck up the shot.
PS that 24-120 f4 has become my go to lens as well. I first bought the 24-70 2.8 and the 70-200 2.8 but find the 24-70 mostly stays home these days.
Digital. It’s like free film, plus instant feed back. Makes us better photographers. Good video ND!
The trio Nigel, Mads Peter and James ✌big fan of you. You should going to Southgreenland too some day. 🙌
Thank you for your hard work Brian I will be looking forward to see what you come up this next I am from Canada but born in Britain
Love the “polar bear”! Great advice about slowing down. Awesome images
Another great video. Learning that it was important to just get out and shoot photos more often has helped me so much. I hate the concept of regret while I still have time on this earth. For me, it is learning to be better or do something differently. Love your style and videos (& James and Mads); you all helped reignite my love of photography and seeing the world more artistically. Thank you!
My biggest regret I guess relating to photography (as you mentioned) is not taking in the environment around you. This is something I think that is often missed by photographers at some point... we're so focused on getting shots / the shot, that we don't stop and enjoy the environment we are in, we don't enjoy our vacation as much as we should because we lose focus sometimes of what is REALLY important, and in one respect, it's not always about getting the photography especially if we are on vacation, say with our families or friends. I know I've fallen into this where Ill take a weeklong trip somewhere, have some great images, but realizing that while I enjoyed my vacation from a photographic standpoint, I also don't feel that it was a like a traditional vacation where you would relax. So my new thing is to try to get the shots I want, but don't over stress things, and ENJOY where you are particularly if you're traveling somewhere new/special. Enjoy your time there and take photos, but don't let the photography side of things overtake your enjoyment of your vacation. As someone once told me, sometimes you have to put the camera down if you want to get better or appreciate photography more. You can get burned out by taking too many photos or being overly obsessed with getting photos that you miss out on other stuff like the scenery around you and really taking it in and enjoying nature for what it is, because you're hyperfocused on getting "the shot".
My other biggest regret is not exploring some of the lesser known areas when I'm in a particular spot. For example, I only found out about Dead Horse Point State Park a few years ago but had been to Arches and Canyonlands before which are two popular national parks in the US. However, Dead Horse Point offers some great interesting views of the Colorado river bending through the canyons, but this place is perhaps drowned out by larger well known parks like Arches and Canyonlands, as it's not terribly busy much of the time, but offers some great views. Had I only known about this park the last few trips out there, I would have explored it even more (but I did go the last trip). Another thing that perhaps applies to both is not leaving enough time to really explore places, and trying to see too much in too little time. Rather I should focus on one or two spots and really explore them rather than trying to see 3-4 spots and only scratching the surface so to speak. Either way I would have to come back to those locations, so I might as well focus on fewer locations, although I am convinced to really do a location justice, you really have to go back at least once if not 2 more times... go back at least once to see what you missed from the first trip and reshoot things or do things over again, and a third just to be sure. And sometimes you may get a shot you really like in the second or subsequent trips to a location. I remember Bill Fortney telling people that he has gone back to Mesa Arch some 20 or 30 times and that probably 90% of the time the images were just OK, but he went back one time and it was literally, as he put it, just perfect. Heck, Ansel Adams went back to Yosemite repeatedly almost every year since he was a teenager and started photography.
I got the exciting opportunity to cycle through Dead Horse a couple of years ago. That place sure left an impression on me.
Hi Nigel, this kind of photo trips, when 3 photographers get together and visit and photograph the same places, are just so incredibly valuable, because everyone has a different photographic view of the same place. It's so great to watch and also to get the different approaches. I've already seen Mads and your video, now I'm still missing James. Great pictures and drone sequences. Just like always in your content.

Looking forward to next year's trip to Svalbard I would love to be on that trip.
My biggest regret is not doing more with my first camera. I found a process I liked and was comfortable with, and then stopped. So I kept making mistakes and didn't expand my knowledge. So in the first few months with my new camera I've spent far more time practicing all the things I didn't practice before. Even if a line of practice doesn't cause me to change what I do, I return to where I was with a complete understanding of what I'm doing and of photography. Migration to new technology is an opportunity, not merely a burden.
Love your work Nigel. Love the honesty and reflection in your photos and methodologies. I just wonder if you’d be better doing fortnightly uploads that had more content and to be frank less plugs.
Wonderful, Love the Greenland video as I'm going to Antarctica in November.
Such an enjoyable episode. Thank you. I live vicariously through your travels. This was beautiful.
Loved the video Nigel, thank you. BUT - I am going to put my paramedic hat on here. As someone else has mentioned - please do NOT ever place a magnet over your pacemaker - my heart went into my mouth when I saw you do that. Dependent on the type you have fitted, placing a magnet over it can actually deactivate the device completely - we actually carry magnets on the ambulance for exactly that purpose! That said, please carry on with the awesome content 😊
I live in Phoenix AZ so going out when it's over a certain heat level DOES NOT work for me! lol...I HATE IT! However, because I love nature and taking photos so much (it's my Zen place) I go in the car (not mine currently, getting my own soon) whenever possible and just go to a mountain park nearby or a couple of others or just drive anywhere I can that puts me back into nature. I'm 47 and got into photography late in life (due to eye issues) and discovered I actually had talent (people REALLY started to notice) and passion for it that has not relented since 2019. That going slow part is so true. I've been traveling more and when I'm there I'm always taking photos, I did slow down a bit on my last trip because I actually had the time TO slow down and just take some of it in...great video. I really enjoy your videos because you make them personable, informative and beautiful...thanks for your hard work!
My biggest regret over the years is never having enough time to be able to get out and do more photography, unfortunately other 'things' always seemed to get in the way i.e. marriage, children, work etc. eventually things did calm down and I retired (12 years ago) and I was able to visit Iceland (twice) Yellowstone National Park, Scotland several times but I don't think I really made the most of these trips but I really enjoyed them and for me that's what photography is now all about and surely that's why we all do photography because we ENJOY IT!!
Regrets...I could fill a book and not have room for pictures...🤣When I started, I was literally afraid that the wrong customizations of the camera would damage the camera, so I kept it box-stock. I have all the normal regrets about rushing instead of taking my time, not getting out often enough, not starting until I was in my 60s, etc. My current regret is that, once I discovered my passion for landscape photography, I stopped shooting anything else. The side effect of that is a failure to learn lessons from other forms of photography that can help all your photography, including landscapes. I recently realized that I've been in a cage of my own construction, and I've started tearing the cage down. Feels good!
I was so amazed by the black water and blue ice down in Antarctica... I found myself backing off the saturation in post because it was so vivid it looked unreal. Beautiful shots Nigel! Just stunning. Pully system ---> ski East Greenland ;-)
Super video, Thanks for the tips and advice, Much appreciated.
Another great video Nigel, my biggest regret is not pursuing my photography, I was always afraid to try and make a living from it, even way back in the day when I was using film! I will check out the saal book again I have been thinking about making one for some time , Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Nigel, awesome as always! That's Greenland added to my bucket list...
Looked like such a fun trip, great images man!
Beautiful shots. I’m thinking the insulation in that hut might be asbestos fiber. My biggest regret is not keeping up with the passion. I travelled Europe for a year while studying and photographing architecture as part of my degree in the late 70s. I gave it up when I moved to California for a job in Silicon Valley. I should have spent more time smelling the roses along the way, which means getting out and exploring with my camera. Fortunately, I retired 5 years ago and have picked up the passion again. It’s a bit harder to get around than it was 45 years ago, but there are still plenty of compositions within reach.
Yeah - I thought it might have been
1940s insulation, I am going to guess and say that was asbestos. I have limited experience with it, but looking at the picture briefly, that is what it reminds me of.
a particularly enjoyable video. Thanks.
As for buying less gear, I've bought and sold a ton over the last three years and have no regrets. I have treated this as part of the learning process and finding out what worked for me and what didn't.
I now have a wide range of bodies and lenses and I'm happy with it. I am planning a special long long trip to Chile and will be faced with a huge range of scenarios. I now know what worked through real world practice not YT videos. I know which half of my kit to take to cover the salt pans in the north, the lakes of centre and the antarctic fjords of the southern extreme.
I don't want to go there and regret not bringing lens X. Last time I went to Latin America, my pics were poor (late 80s) and now I can do the kind of photography and video I've always dreamed of.
I've also learned that the lenses I'd want for stills and motion are often very different. I also know now which kit to use when I want to do 75x50 blowups to hang and which will suffice for TV and photobook scale.
I also learnt I hate photoediting and am determined to get it right in the camera even if this means carrying a shift lens for cities. I'll also take a 70-200 not just a wide for landscapes. YT helped me explore what I wanted to do, what came naturally and the best way to achieve an effect.. Buying and selling was part of the learning process and thank god for eBay and MPB.
Thank you!
My suggestion to anybody just starting photography is to NOT buy gear based on what some UA-camr is using. Often they use the best of the best gear out there which you as a biginner defenetly don't need! All you need for landscapes is a used camera + zoom lens. After that you only need to think about what to photograph (subject), compsition, weather, light etc....
Amazing video! The scenery was just breathtaking. The end snippets were brilliant. "Watch more, shoot less" resonated strongly...off to order myself a calendar and hope I'm lucky enough to get a magnet or print 🤞
Thanks!
I definitely have to get out more and slow down. Thanks for this video.
Good to know I am not the only one having these regrets! It is okay 😊
THANK YOU!!! I needed to hear this. Lovely videos, Nigel! I watch every week.
Well done. Thank you Nigel.
What a great channel… just getting back into photography, you got the formula bang on for me, common sense and passion in equal measure… subscribed and watching all your vids
Thanks so much!
The main regret would be not shooting the same locations numerous times. It helps so much to know where to go; no time lost and to go there in different conditions to try different compositions. etc etc.
Great video, you sure make that 24-120 work for you. Makes me want to upgrade my 24-70 F4, but afraid of the hit I would take.
Nice results. So nice that James was able to find a shack to photograph. He migh have been lost otherwise. 😏 Carry on. 👍🥂
I had my pacemaker fitted last year (I was already running on spare parts, so an extra bit didn't matter 😅) They spent so much time warning me about getting magnetic items near my pacemaker that it's firmly in my head. And then along you come with your fridge magnets: "I wonder if it'll stick to my pacemaker..." You twit 😮😂 Good thing it was only a fridge magnet.
Interesting topic! Great photos! Thanks for taking me along!
My biggest regret up to now is not traveling enough. So this year, for my 70th birthday, I'm going to Rome. It'll take me a year to pay it off. It'll be totally worth it!
Amazing place to go and see. Looks like you enjoyed it. Stay well!
I watch you religiously on Sundays. Much enjoyed. I must admit, I do get a little nervous when I see you near the railing of the deck without straps on your gear. 😉
Absolutely stunning Nigel.
What size boots did the Bear's wear lol.
Looks like all of you had a trip of a lifetime.
The image's that you took were stunning.
I must admit when i get to a location i try to get as many image's as possible and i must slow down.
I thought the book with the screw's that can be removed so you can put your own image's in was great quality and a great idea.
Look forward to seeing your next video.
Interesting topic - thank you. Also, what you think are bad photos from your earlier experiences are not necessarily so. I have often looked back at what I thought were not up to standard but when viewed after time has gone by, they are quite interesting and as good as others I have seen in recent times. Sometimes technology has advanced greatly in that you can re-edit the image and create an improved version.
Another fantastic video , great photos
I actually don't regret much. Each failure was a lesson. Each wrong decision brought me a valuable lesson. 😅
Maybe the only regret was that foldable camouflage chair. Never used, always carried and i hit my toe like 20 times on it being folded next to my camera backpack 😂
My biggest regret is not traveling more to do photography when I was younger. Now that I'm older I do try to travel to do photography. But, I have physical limitations now that I didn't have when I was younger.
Hello Nigel, en tant qu'ambassadeur Nikon pourriez vous les suppliez à ce qu'il donne l'autorisation à TAMRON, d'installer la monture Z sur le 50-400mm F/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD 😍👍
Hello Nigel, as a Nikon ambassador could you beg them to give TAMRON permission to install the Z-mount on the 50-400mm F/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD 😍👍
Gradient with Mask in Light room, is that 10 years old yet? Select Sky is only 2or3 😁 Amazing how fast you forget what you did before. Great pics as always.
I think my biggest regret is gear envy. I know that's not a specific regret but it stopped me going out and taking pictures as I was thinking my gear wasn't good enough so why should I shoot sub-optimal pictures. So I do regret not going out and shooting.
Thanks for this week's topic. A thought that came up while watching one of James' last videos and now again today is, how do your comments about investing in travel vs. too much gear translate to the type of gear your workshop participants bring with them? I have wondered whether photography workshops (not just yours) are equally beneficial/rewarding for people with the most advanced equipment and others with not so state of the art equipment?
I can't beleive you have that camera with no strap hanging on the rail like that one quick jolt and its all over !!
( not all the time but once is enough)
That insulation is an old kind of glass wool, it's absolutely dreadful to work with..
My sister just visited Luskentyre beach. Your photobook was inspiring.
Thanks!
My biggest regret is not going to bed in time to be able to get up to photograph during the sunrise.
Me too
Спасибо! Все твои выпуски смотрю с удовольствием и за всё время узнал много полезного! Привет из России 👍
That... is probably asbestos 😅😬. That aside, thanks for a great little chat on starting. I've definitely made these mistakes myself.
Where can I buy a bobble hat like yours? Love your stuff by the way
I was told once that the difference between a good photographer and a great photographer is that the great photographer only shows their great photos.
I'm sure your cardiologist has told you not to place magnets over your pacemaker, right? Or maybe the pacemakers these days use other ways to alter the pacemaker settings.
Excellent video and phots as always. But I have to be concerned as to what James might do to you as you caught him in the video using a telephoto/zoom! That may be an additional regret.
Landscape photographers mostly go out for a day, take so many photos we declare crap. I hope for 4 or 5 I don’t hate and one that I do like.
Great video. Brilliant photos.
My heart was in my mouth every time you dangled your camera over the side with NO STRAP round your neck or shoulder. You of all people should know better 😆
My biggest regrets are not taking time before and after the shot. The other one is not going out often enough
Preorder for your abstraction book here 😊
My biggest regret is buying too much gear. I have 2 cameras(different brands) and over a dozen lens. I mainly use one camera and only two lenses.
Is there any way for us fans from the US to order your calendar?
My biggest regret that i cant spend 20k to go to greenland otherwise i got no regrets, no i got 1 i regret that i could not afford all gear which i wanted because i was young and broke, and i visited so many countries and made shit photos and now when i got all what i need i am not going to be in same places because i got other priorities
I often see you holding your camera, sometimes with a long tele on it, loosely in one hand, even when leaning on or over a boat railing. I imagine it's somehow glued to your hand. I would be afraid of dropping it and I would regret it forever ... Sorry, maybe I shouldn't have said this because now it might actually happen 🤔
Posting what I like has been an issue. I have gotten followed on Instagram by nature photographers I admire greatly so I feel compelled to post images in that nature genre. If I do post a sports photograph or event photograph I don't get likes from these people I admire. I am not a niche photographer and enjoy diverse subjects and I need to get over not getting likes for images that I really like.
Thanks for a great video 👍
Where on the Saal site it the 3-hole portfolio?
Not every LS pic has to be taken with a Glass filter ..
What is the mean or different between Exposure Bracketing S and C?????
Thanks for sharing your experiences and stunning images.
were you using auto ISO for the ice shots (up to 5 mins) ?
Yep
nigel i want your calendar where to get it
Being at the Grand Canyon and in the Rockies, forgetting to shoot panoramas 😓
Eek - I have been there and done that
Those seas are not always that flat. Guess everyone was a bit too 🤢 to get the rough bits on video.
No bear prints in this vlog.
How much does it cost to put ink in your printer. I am wondering if it is mire cost effective to buy my own printer or to continue just ordering prints.
Mine is a big printer - so quite a lot!
@@NigelDanson Thanks! I will keep ordering prints for a while then😁
Thumbnail😂
Hi Nigel, which external hard drive do you save your images to? thanks
Hi - I use a Lacie and a Seagate (solid state)
Thank you
Let's save our planet
As I said do your own thing and don't copy others but let others see your work, if you are asked to comment then comment! Spend your money on travel....
Struth mate, that could be some asbestos insulation you've got there
I thought it maybe was...
Odd video. You are in a spectacular place that few will have the opportunities to see, and you are talking about regrets? I feel there would be a better time and place for that debate.