Very few things in the world compare to stepping off of an airplane onto the Tibetan plateau in Lhasa. Going from just above sea level to around 13,000 feet, coupled with landing in the famous Yarlung Valley surrounded by 20,000 foot peaks, literally takes ones breath away… mostly from lack of oxygen.
Try to walk 100 feet – you’re tired.
Try to breath – you’re tired.
Try to talk – you’re tired.
Simply exist – you’re tired
A few times I noticed people start a sentence – stop, catch their breath, and with hands on knees struggle to get the rest out. Yeah. It’s that kind of place!
Rest
Though oxygen starvation demanded it, I’m absolutely horrible at resting. I was bad at it as a child, and I’m bad at it as an adult. Sitting still is just so … boring! Call it “Restless Photographer Syndrome.” Call it whatever you want. But slowing down hardly seems natural. However, there is real value in resting. Slowing down. Simply observing.
As photographers we should try to see the long-term benefits of slowing down and observing a new culture. Think about it: What can we intelligently and accurately photograph seconds after we get off of a plane? The risks of telling inaccurate, ill-informed, and incomplete stories is real if we don’t slow down just a bit and think about our approach.
Research only goes so far as to inform our photography. Observation can fill in the gaps that research often leaves. Observation develops questions, which in turn creates interest/intrigue, which in turn creates well-thought-out compositions as well as informed and culturally accurate photographs. There are rich stories that we can miss if we don’t spend the time to look for them. Beyond that, we can miss out on actually just experiencing a place when we don’t get the cameras out from in front of our faces.
So with observation in mind—as well as the need for some oxygen—we intentionally took the first day to simply soak in the culture. Now don’t get me wrong: This doesn’t mean we didn’t spend some time taking pictures. But on this day I took about 25 percent of the photos I took on the other days—and I believe it made all the other photos better.
Join the conversation. What benefits have you noticed from slowing down, resting, and simply observing.
Workshop: Lhasa, Everest, Nepal – Day 1 – Images by Brian Hirschy
Well, I certainly can’t wait to join Brian on a workshop. More than technique or gear, slowing down and paying attention to what’s actually in front of you and what it is you’re trying to say with your photographs is the most important improvement you can work on. This principle applies universally to all types of photography, even if only to prepare to react quickly later.
Great post.
Stuart – That’d be a great trip.
Thanks for the comments!
Brian
I find I go to extremes in regard to slowing down. If I’m alone, I often don’t have the patience and end up wandering elsewhere to photograph something else. If I’m with other people, I can easily slow down but sometimes too much and I end up chatting and not shooting. But yeah, being able to approach things gradually and take your time is the way to go. Usually when I travel, unless it’s on assignment and I’m on someone else’s schedule, I choose to go to fewer places and spend more time in them. I really dislike rushing from place to place with barely a moment soak in any atmosphere. Give me a month in a place most people see in 3 days and I’m happy.
Agreed – I’ve heard a few photographers who even say they don’t bring the camera with them the first day – I wont go THAT far because I often times use photos as reference for future photos. Nonetheless, I think its important for people showing up in a new place the first time to at least have an observers mentality – we can often miss the trees through the forrest.
Thanks for the comments Craig.
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