Action, not words.

I discovered a long time ago after photographing countless static scenes, that I was not a "Still Life" kind of photographer. I wanted to capture action and drama in my photos and quickly realized that I had a passion for capturing peak moments. I honed my "skills" by snapping pics of my kids playing their sports. Next thing I knew, I was on a fantastic ride...

I read one of those "How many _____s does it take to change a light bulb?" things way back. It went like this...

"How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb?" Answer, "5. 1 to actually go up the ladder and do it, and 4 to stand there and say, That should be me up there!"

Armed with this mantra many years ago, I took my first real steps towards reaching my goal.

Action. Not words.

What Is Real?

Photoshop almost ruined my love of photography, until I realized the true potential. 

When I sat in class for the first of what was to be three college courses to learn the vast photo editing program and the instructor showed us a finely detailed image of a New York scene made entirely in a computer and without a camera, I just shook my head in awe. "Photography is dead", I thought.

Then one evening I was out with my camera. I saw an ultra-light aircraft off in the distance heading towards me. I had a vision in my mind of the image that I wanted to create. As the small plane approached I composed the shot and snapped a few frames, but the end result was not even close to what I had imagined. Later, at the computer, I started working on a composite using two of the frames that I captured and eventually produced the final piece above.

Is it real? Not according to some in the photographic community, but it is definitely a more "realistic" rendition of my vision. Besides, what has ever been real about photography. I have always believed that if a photograph is disclosed as a composite or digital illustration, then all is good. Some of my peers have revealed that they were afraid to use Auto-Focus on their cameras because "purists" would frown upon it. I say, use the technology. I say, use it to tell your story. I say, use it whether it's real or not.

Respect

© Dan Brodie

"So let's get one thing straight, once and for all. No one---and I mean no one--gives a hoot about your photo credit in a magazine. No one!!!! The only person who reads American Lacrosse Enthusiast and gets excited about the photo credit on page 26 is you and your mother."

The preceding quote was taken from an article published on Sportshooter.com that I read a long time ago. Follow the link to get the rest of the story...

http://www.sportsshooter.com/news/2009


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Photo credits don't pay the bills or feed the family but if they are lacking, it does show a disrespect to the photographer. 

The Smell of Freedom

© Dan Brodie

I have often said, "The smell of a wet dog is like the smell of freedom."

For me, there is no greater peace attained than that of the time spent in the field with a sporting dog. Autumn is especially fine as it is the time for bird dogs to do what they do. Early mornings and the changing weather seem to keep the crowds down and the world can sometimes feel like your own. Working with an animal that is so eager to please is an absolute delight and when you are able to communicate and operate as a team with very little distraction, the outings are very rewarding. It's too bad that the spaces to do this are becoming ever so hard to find. Very often, instead of exploring wild places, we end up at a dog park and just pretend to be Rene, the young orphan and Big Red, the champion Irish Setter, preparing to take the canine world by storm. lol

Maybe I'm just an idealist romanticizing about days better left behind, but honestly, is there anything better than the smell of freedom?

Back It Up!

Back up your positions, back up your equipment, back up your plans, and back up your files. After I shot the U19 Men's World Lacrosse Championship in 2008, I learned a hard lesson about backing up digital files. I learned that you can drive a loaded dump truck over an external hard drive, but you can't drop one from 12 inches off the ground! All the original files from my days of shooting this prestigious international tournament were unrecoverable after a little mishap that occurred while transferring the files from the single hard drive that I was using for temporary storage.

Everyone deserves a second chance, right? Right. But just because you deserve it, doesn't mean you will get it, so back it up and back it up again. Trust me.

I Can See Clearly Now

When Holly Cole sang her cool jazzy rendition of Johnny Nash's, "I Can See Clearly Now",  at the Holiday Festival On Ice held at the Langley Events Centre, it gave me chills up my spine.

As much as the night was frustrating for me as a photographer trying to get some recognition, it was also just as inspiring. I thought of my beloved grandmother, affectionately known as Betty to most, who absolutely loved figure skating and jazz.

On one of my last visits with her before she

passed on from this material world, she laid on her hospice bed and proudly addressed me to the other family members in the room as Dan Brodie...the Photographer. I shrugged it off like I do with almost any type of compliment. Who I was or what I did, was the last thing I cared about at the moment I was about to lose one of, if not the most important and influential people in my life, but during that performance, I knew whole-heartedly that I was indeed a photographer and that I was being lifted by my grandmother's ever-lasting spirit.

CoaCH

I was absolutely thrilled and honoured when the National Lacrosse League hired me to cover the 2014 Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

To bear witness and to be counted on to document great people receiving such prestigious awards is without question the greatest honour that can be bestowed upon a photographer. I believe that to make truly meaningful photos, the photographer must be a part of the photo and to do that, they must be accepted into the lives of their clients and trusted as one of their own.

Over the course of my photographic career, I have met some amazing people and formed some great relationships, so it should come as no surprise that I share the exhilaration of their successes and the sadness of their losses. As in my own personal world, the lacrosse world suffered a great deal of loss recently. We lost pioneers, leaders, players, and mentors of the game.

The following link is a very well written piece from the staff at Inside Lacrosse. Although it may seem trivial to some, I simply cannot express with words of how honoured I am to have the above photo chosen to accompany the story. The loss of these individuals touched me deeply. I am saddened yet blessed to know their stories. They have left their individual marks in this material world and now we owe it to them to continue to grow the great game.

http://www.insidelacrosse.com/article/chris-hall-was-a-winner-but-a-teacher-foremost/30370

For Love or Money

I'm no Liebovitz, but very recently, I got my first cover shoot for a major magazine and after nearly 35 years from when I held my first SLR, I feel like I'm just beginning to get to be where I want to be as a photographer.

Despite a half of a life time learning the craft, the opportunity actually came to me in a way I least expected. Although I had been shooting for Inside Lacrosse magazine as a freelancer for several years and had quite a few pics published in the pages of the mag, it was by virtue of the Professional Lacrosse team Washington Stealth relocating to Langley, B.C. to become the Vancouver Stealth and the newly appointed equipment sponsor of the National Lacrosse League, Under Armour taking the helm in the new year, that opened this door of opportunity for me. I was literally in the right place at the right time.

What is that saying? "Preparation + Opportunity = Success"? I can believe it, now.

The world is filled with people who are passionate about what they do and in sports it's no different. With lacrosse, that passion can run deep and sometimes borderlines pure obsession. The game is often referred to as "The Fastest Game On Two Feet" and justifiably so. The pace is fast and it makes for great entertainment and challenging photography. My #1 goal covering this game has always been to try and represent the athleticism, urgency, and emotion in the best and most honest manner possible. Easier said than done when you are shooting stills, but I try, and I try!

There has been a growing buzz in the lacrosse community for the past few months now and as we near the historical home opener on January 11, 2014, the excitement has got this guy restless enough to stay up late and write a blog! Seriously though, I hope for all the lovers of the game, that this "new" team is embraced by old and new fans alike and that financial stability keeps them here forever. I've said it before and I will say it again, this is the best sports entertainment value for your buck and with an overwhelming ratio of B.C. born players on the roster, the Stealth are the closest you will ever get to a true "Home" team in any professional sport anywhere. Check out a game or two this year. Take the family, it's affordable. Games are played mostly on Saturday nights at the Langley Events Centre.

With less than 48 hours to go to start the season, I am anxiously looking forward to being a part of it all with much anticipation and I plan to have more fun than ever trying to capture the action frame by frame...and if I get another cover shot for a magazine, it'll just be gravy, baby!

Year of the Raptor

Not the most stunning nature shot, but one that nonetheless, fit the category, "On the Prowl", and received an honourable mention in the Canadian Geographic 2012 Wildlife Photography of the Year Competition.

2012 was most definitely the year of the Raptor for me. Early in the year I travelled down to the Boundary Bay area in Delta, B.C. to photograph Bald Eagles. A place that I often passed on my commute to and from work but seemingly never having enough time to stop even for a while. With heavy concentrations of eagles in the area, I was quite content to park inland and start shooting. However, I quickly heard from word of mouth that there was a congregation of about 25 Snowy Owls wintering along the shoreline of the bay, so I made my way over. I was surprised to see busloads of birdwatchers doing the same. The owls were enjoying a bit of celebrity as hundreds of people came out to see them. But as fascinating as they were, I spotted other smaller and less noticeable raptors actively hunting, such as Northern Harriers and beautiful little Short-Eared Owls and I found them to be much more interesting. I captured a few good photos of the birds at rest and in flight and one of photos ended up with a Honourable Mention in the Canadian Geographic 2012 Wildlife Photography of the Year Competition.

Master falconer, Gary Worley and an exceptionally intelligent Great Horned Owl named Hagrid, have educated thousands over the years with their Radical Raptors show at the Greater Vancouver Zoo.

Later on during the summer months, I decided to put my son, Brad in a Falconry Camp put on by Radical Raptors at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. I’m not really sure why I thought he would like it but it was something a little bit different and I thought it would be a great experience. He reluctantly prepared himself for the first day with very little enthusiasm, but when I picked him up after the day was done, he was so jacked up, he couldn’t stop talking about it for the rest of the night, telling me what his responsibilities were, what birds were his favourites and why, and rattling off all sorts of newly learned facts about the fascinating animals. As the week came to a close, he somehow arranged to be a volunteer and we spent the next 4 or 5 weekends at the zoo. I took the opportunity to enjoy some weekend downtime and I of course took photos of the raptors as well as other animals in the zoo. I even had the privilege of holding a beautiful rescued Golden Eagle that was preparing for her future as an “Educational” bird. It was a fantastic couple of months.

A Short-Eared Owl 

Then in November, the editor of the Surrey Now, Beau Simpson, was in my son’s classroom as part of an ongoing project, and a discussion was overheard for the need of a “Bird Photographer”. Brad shot up and sang the praises of his dear old Dad to him and I was awarded with a small Freelance assignment to provide photos of birds to accompany a story that was going to run in the next paper. During a short telephone conversation, Mr. Simpson mentioned to me that it would be great if Brad had a photo to run as well, so we set out on the weekend to try and get something on file. Saturday was a bust as poor weather conditions hampered our efforts and we went home empty handed. However, we were still positive with the knowledge that we had another day to try again. The next morning, we got an early start knowing that if we wanted to get Brad a photo in the paper, we would have to yield some results, as that night was our deadline. There were good numbers of birds in the area, including a few Snowy Owls, but we spent hours without capturing anything worthwhile with our cameras. The Snowy Owls had to be accessed by way of cutting through hunting grounds and even though some people went there despite the warning signage, I refused to. I held firm in my belief that the area and it's residents should be respected and not harassed and at just about the time we were ready to call it quits, a gorgeous Short-Eared Owl miraculously came to perch on a fence post about 30 feet in front of us. It sat there and allowed us to photograph it for a good 20 minutes. Brad managed to snap a few and one of his shots ran in the paper. 

http://www.thenownewspaper.com/life/Birders+have+pacific+flyway+thank+spots/7614534/story.html

Finally, on Christmas Eve, as I entered my home with thoughts of family and Christmas vacation on my mind, I bent down to pick up the latest issue of the Now only to discover that it was the special issue that was put together by the Grade 6/7 kids from Latimer Road Elementary (of which my son is so lucky to be a part of). I smiled as I looked over the cover shot of the students and their teachers holding their iPads and newspaper copies with big smiles on their faces.

http://www.thenownewspaper.com/news/This+Christmas+gave+them+chair/7740441/story.html

I quickly made my way to the kitchen table where I could sit and read more and as I turned the page to see that Brad had photos published to accompany a story about a field trip that the kids took to Zion Park Manor to visit with the seniors, I was filled with pride. What an amazing feeling it was to see the kids doing such a good deed!

http://www.thenownewspaper.com/news/Visit+stirs+some+souls/7740442/story.html

As I read further in to the paper I came across a column that my son had written about how Birds of Prey had taught him lessons in life and I thought to myself, “This has got to be one of the best Christmas gifts ever!”

http://www.thenownewspaper.com/travel/What+birds+prey+taught+about+life/7740451/story.html

Open minds, open doors

Perspective

The difference between a good day and a bad day is usually only a day.


Keep it in perspective.