It's no secret that I love winter. Other folks bemoan the cold and the ice and the snow but as a photographer, I revel in it. Winter gives me many photographic opportunities that simply don't exist during the rest of the year. To walk on an ice-bound lake or pond. To visit places that no longer attract crowds simply because it's "too cold." Did I mention I love winter?
Well, one of my favorite photographers has released a Craft & Vision ebook about one of my favorite things. Darwin Wiggett, a truly gifted landscape and nature photographer, has published Winter in the Canadian Rockies, part of The Print and the Process series at Craft & Vision. Darwin takes us on a journey to some astounding places in Canada using his terrific photographs. Some of the photographs are recent images and some are from the late 80s and early 90s, when he was first starting out as a photographer. Both are beautiful and inspirational.
Following the established format of The Print and The Process books, Darwin initially shows us a series of images ranging from broad, sweeping landscapes to intimate frozen details of the season. He moves from color to black and white; from bold colors to subdued tones, all of which show us the sometimes different world of winter. He presents his own version of a leaf frozen in the ice, as well as my personal favorite: ice-capped rocks seemingly floating in a smooth, cotton-like water flow.
The Process section of the book goes on to talk about the challenges—and the rewards–of making photographs in the snow and cold, along with some tips about how to keep your camera functioning and yourself comfortable. The biggest takeaway for me, though, comes from the section on cultivating the right attitude. As he says, "Winter is full of glorious rewards; you just need to seek them."
Darwin also offers some excellent practical tips on how to dress properly for winter photography and how to keep your equipment happy (the same as you, keep it warm!), along with some real "insider" tips on winter photography. For example, did you know that if you're handholding filters, such as ND grads, you need to hold them at the top? Darwin tells you why.
Finally, the last section of the book presents Darwin's commentary on each of the photographs from the first section, including exposure and lens data. It's also interesting to see the range of cameras, both film and digital, that Darwin has used over his career.
Craft & Vision's Print and Process series is a great way to learn more about a particular photographer and their photographs that inspire you. For me, Darwin Wiggett's Winter in the Canadian Rockies pays homage to a photographic subject I dearly love and shows us a beautiful place in via his inspirational images.
Special Offer for the PDF Version of Winter in the Canadian Rockies For the first five days only, if you use the promotional code ROCKIES4 when you checkout, you can have the PDF version of Winter in the Canadian Rockies for only $4 OR use the code ROCKIES20 to get 20% off when you buy 5 or more PDF ebooks from the Craft & Vision collection. These codes expire at 11:59pm PST January 22nd, 2011.