Peter,
With regard to your response here
http://thedambook.com/smf/index.php?topic=2271.msg14327#msg14327, I'm glad I can help, and it's nice to know that others are benefiting. I of course, still have so much to learn about this amazing new world I've so unexpectedly embarked upon through my technical background. It's been a real eye-opener for me to venture into the creative side of this field. In so many ways, I've felt like I've been living in a cave.... it's kind of embarrasing ;-). I had the rare opportunity to spend an entire weekend listening to one of Art Wolfe's seminars as he came through St. Louis a few weeks ago. Words cannot describe the sense of awe I felt as he showed photo after photo of photographic art he had taken over the years. I must have seen over a thousand images in that single weekend; only to find that he has over a million images in his archive. He's 52 and stated that he has been very fortunate in his life to have seen the world with the camera as his passport. I found that truly inspiring. He's one of the few for sure. I learned allot from him in that weekend and walked away with a new awareness and appreciation for art and creativity. He's a master with the elements of design and is much more than just a nature and wildlife photographer. For those who might be interested in attending one of his seminars, I highly recommend it. I've realize that all areas of photography tend to overlap in some way or another. As an aspiring commercial photographer, I learned allot from his seminar. He uses these quite a bit for his landscape shots, so I purchased the 3-stop reverse graduated one
http://www.singh-ray.com/reversegrads.html. With camera on tripod, I just hand hold it in front of the lens, don't even use the Cokin P-holder. It truly makes a difference and keeps me from having to double expose and blend in photoshop.
For anyone looking for a little inspiration, check out a few of these
http://www.artwolfe.com/cgi/shop/prints_search.cgi?keywords=on&f=result_prints_search.html&b=a&category=Print_Collection&perpage=277&sortby=none.
Here is the info on his tour
http://www.artwolfe.com/creativesessions/index.html. Looks like he still has a few stops left.
Also, if you're so inclined, I just finished watching his DVD collection
http://www.artwolfe.com/store/store_15.html. Truly amazing! I've learned allot just watching how he handles and carries his gear. You can pick up on allot of the little things. It's sad to see our wildlife preserves deminishing over time. He made me aware more than ever how precious and vital a commodity they are.
Dan
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