"Creative Crossroads: A Nikon Ambassador's Tale"

[00:00:00] I have an arrangement with the birds.

[00:00:04] So, yes.

[00:00:06] So, I have those road wireless, little small microphones

[00:00:09] and the wireless one is connected to my camera

[00:00:12] and the other one actually put under the feeder.

[00:00:16] It's like, I don't want to say a feeder,

[00:00:18] it's just a little platform

[00:00:19] and I have some branches and things like that.

[00:00:22] But when you do that, it's so beautiful

[00:00:25] because you're hearing that to be invited into that world

[00:00:28] it's just so beautiful and so magnificent

[00:00:30] and to hear this because when we shoot stills

[00:00:34] or you know, that's not part of the experience.

[00:00:36] When you shoot video, that it is.

[00:00:39] And I think that's one of the things I follow with too

[00:00:40] is that well-rounded experience of hearing

[00:00:43] what is going on at the same time

[00:00:45] if you get the call of a woodpecker

[00:00:47] or if you hear the baby birds chattering, you know that.

[00:00:51] That's beautiful.

[00:00:52] Those are really intimate, gorgeous things I love to hear.

[00:01:00] Welcome everyone to another episode of the Camera Cafe Show

[00:01:04] a podcast where we blew up inspiration for your photography journey.

[00:01:08] I'm your host Tom Jacob

[00:01:10] and behind the scenes we've got Richard Clark

[00:01:12] and Tatiana Malovana

[00:01:13] helping a hand to make this podcast move your photography.

[00:01:17] You can find all the info about us back on our new web page.

[00:01:21] Hey folks and thanks everyone for all the messages, emails

[00:01:24] and reviews from the past week.

[00:01:26] It means a lot to us and it's fantastic

[00:01:28] how the podcast has grown in such a short time.

[00:01:32] I hope everyone is having a wonderful time now.

[00:01:34] Autumn has come and I'm sure many of you

[00:01:36] will go out there to see nature's changes

[00:01:39] and making pictures of it.

[00:01:41] If you're out early waiting in your car

[00:01:43] then it's a perfect time to push play now

[00:01:45] on one of our podcast episodes

[00:01:46] until the sunlight comes through.

[00:01:48] Now then folks, today finally

[00:01:50] I managed to get a friend and a wonderful photographer

[00:01:53] on the podcast

[00:01:54] and I'm thrilled to bring you a conversation

[00:01:56] with Deborah Sandwich from the USA.

[00:02:00] She will need little introduction

[00:02:01] but Deborah is an accomplished NACAN ambassador

[00:02:04] and well known for her stunning infrared

[00:02:06] landscapes captivating long exposure

[00:02:08] and nowadays shooting the most vibrant

[00:02:11] wildlife pictures.

[00:02:13] She for sure has mastered

[00:02:14] this art of visual storytelling

[00:02:16] across multiple genres

[00:02:17] and finds still time in between

[00:02:19] to write books,

[00:02:21] many articles for magazines,

[00:02:23] do workshops,

[00:02:24] do speaker events

[00:02:26] or even waiting to see a bear pass

[00:02:28] in her garden.

[00:02:29] Talking about speaker events folks

[00:02:32] Photoshop World is coming

[00:02:34] the event packed with innovative

[00:02:36] sessions and inspiring content

[00:02:38] online 24 to 26 of September

[00:02:41] you'll get folks there

[00:02:43] like Scott Calbee,

[00:02:44] Richard Barnaby,

[00:02:45] Matt Kloskowski, Joe McNally,

[00:02:47] Moose Peterson,

[00:02:48] Rick Salmon many more but also Deborah

[00:02:50] will give a class there

[00:02:52] her class is about avian portrait

[00:02:55] fly chester and beyond

[00:02:56] so be sure to check it out

[00:02:59] now in our talk

[00:03:00] Deborah will share with her journey

[00:03:02] we have lots of gear talk this time

[00:03:05] including the new Nikon Z6-3

[00:03:07] and some of the artistic

[00:03:09] philosophies that guide her approach to photography.

[00:03:11] We discussed shooting

[00:03:12] birds behaviors, long exposure techniques

[00:03:15] and how she stays inspired

[00:03:16] in a constant evolving field

[00:03:18] be sure to listen all until the end

[00:03:20] where we explore a bit her thoughts on the future of photography

[00:03:23] and the importance of embracing all the new tools and techniques

[00:03:26] so now go grab your coffee

[00:03:28] while you're waiting to click pictures

[00:03:30] sit back, join us for an inspiring chat

[00:03:33] with Deborah Sandwich

[00:03:34] let's get rolling

[00:03:36] Good afternoon Deborah there in Florida

[00:03:39] how was your day today?

[00:03:41] Very good, thank you

[00:03:42] how about yourself?

[00:03:44] Mine was very good

[00:03:45] it was not so hot at least today

[00:03:47] in Spain as the other days

[00:03:48] and I was thinking all day about the podcast

[00:03:51] today with finally having time

[00:03:54] to chat with my friend for years

[00:03:55] I know you and finally we can sit down

[00:03:57] for a bit longer podcast talk

[00:04:00] Yes, absolutely

[00:04:01] So for everybody out there

[00:04:04] listening or watching this YouTube video later

[00:04:07] if you don't know Deborah

[00:04:08] which I suppose you will know

[00:04:10] and if you don't know where you have to click right now

[00:04:12] that subscribe button to follow her

[00:04:14] She's very interested in

[00:04:16] spoon builds and night herons

[00:04:19] Have they been behaving lately Deborah

[00:04:21] have you learned something new about them?

[00:04:24] Oh my goodness

[00:04:25] Well the night herons are growing up

[00:04:27] they're migratory

[00:04:28] so I'm looking forward to their return

[00:04:31] slowly they'll make their way up

[00:04:33] the east coast of Florida

[00:04:34] so yeah they're absolutely beautiful

[00:04:36] so I've been focused a little bit on the smaller birds

[00:04:39] that are coming to this area

[00:04:40] at this moment

[00:04:41] so it's been a lot of fun

[00:04:43] Deborah I want to go a bit back

[00:04:45] like say like Deborah

[00:04:47] from 9 or 10 years old

[00:04:49] you know when this creativity starts

[00:04:51] you always been interested in arts and crafts

[00:04:54] Yes

[00:04:55] I have

[00:04:56] I was very interested in a lot of different things

[00:04:59] I ended up studying studio art

[00:05:02] and that was interesting

[00:05:03] with the special interest in photography

[00:05:05] and I kind of did the thing

[00:05:08] where I was interested in Photoshop

[00:05:09] so I was working in Photoshop a little bit

[00:05:11] before I was doing any real photography

[00:05:13] so it was learning scripts

[00:05:15] and things like that

[00:05:16] so it was in a good place when I started to

[00:05:18] move into editing images

[00:05:21] And picking up a camera

[00:05:23] it came from

[00:05:24] your parents or it came from an experience

[00:05:28] or a book you read

[00:05:30] So

[00:05:31] my parents had cameras

[00:05:32] they actually had the instant kind

[00:05:36] which was pretty magical

[00:05:37] you know the kind that expels the film

[00:05:40] and you shake it

[00:05:40] 60 seconds later you have this picture

[00:05:43] so it's pretty magical

[00:05:44] My first camera that I purchased

[00:05:46] was an F100

[00:05:48] which is back there somewhere

[00:05:51] I kept that

[00:05:52] So film photography was really interesting

[00:05:55] so that's where it's so hands on

[00:05:57] and that's what's really attracted to me

[00:05:59] So I set up like a little dark room

[00:06:01] and was developing

[00:06:02] I really liked the hands-on approach

[00:06:05] to doing that

[00:06:06] I mean you saw, you captured

[00:06:07] you developed and you brought it to life

[00:06:10] and that was very interesting to me

[00:06:12] I also had

[00:06:14] I think when I was 12 or 14

[00:06:16] in the attic of my parents house

[00:06:18] and I all make dark room

[00:06:20] and I still

[00:06:21] I always tell people

[00:06:22] still to this day I can smell

[00:06:24] the developer, the fluid

[00:06:26] how it smells

[00:06:27] It never goes away

[00:06:29] It's probably still in

[00:06:31] Yeah, in the skin and the close

[00:06:33] Yes, so we don't have

[00:06:35] that issue today certainly

[00:06:37] Although you know it's funny

[00:06:39] because about the time digital came out

[00:06:41] then I started getting really interested

[00:06:43] in Polaroid Emulsion Transfers again

[00:06:46] So I was taking my digital images

[00:06:48] and then transferring

[00:06:49] to digitally

[00:06:51] to like other surfaces

[00:06:52] so I was working with it kind of backwards

[00:06:55] so putting them on different

[00:06:56] like glass or that kind of thing

[00:06:59] but they were digital images

[00:07:00] that I turned back into film

[00:07:02] so through I had a day lab

[00:07:04] So I was really into it as far as

[00:07:06] that aspect

[00:07:08] It's always this debate that people say

[00:07:11] that have been doing film

[00:07:13] Would you ever go back?

[00:07:15] I don't think so, not full time

[00:07:16] because there is just too many advantages

[00:07:19] The only thing maybe

[00:07:21] I would like to see

[00:07:23] in a digital back is that

[00:07:24] the image appears

[00:07:25] a bit more slower

[00:07:27] just like when you develop film

[00:07:29] that you get this anticipation moment

[00:07:32] because now you make the picture

[00:07:34] and straight away we see it

[00:07:35] so maybe they should build a little timer

[00:07:37] and see it slower

[00:07:39] Oh I don't know

[00:07:40] I'm sort of into instant gratification

[00:07:43] I like to see what it is

[00:07:46] then I capture

[00:07:47] and I'm so sorry about the thunder

[00:07:49] So hopefully I won't

[00:07:53] It's actually inspiring

[00:07:55] I try not to really look a lot

[00:07:57] when I'm shooting

[00:07:58] I don't really look at the pictures

[00:07:59] but sometimes I'll look at the action

[00:08:02] and think, oh yes

[00:08:04] I want to do that

[00:08:04] but I want to do it this way

[00:08:05] or try something a little bit different

[00:08:07] but it's so fascinating

[00:08:09] to have that option

[00:08:10] to review images

[00:08:12] but as I'm shooting

[00:08:14] I find I don't

[00:08:22] I want to make sure

[00:08:23] I was guessing that exposure right

[00:08:25] it's like 5 minutes

[00:08:26] Did I calculate correctly?

[00:08:30] No, it's very good

[00:08:31] because people for example

[00:08:33] in wedding photography

[00:08:34] they can see directly what they are doing

[00:08:37] just in case something went wrong

[00:08:39] Yes

[00:08:39] Deborah, then came along

[00:08:42] Nikon Ambassador

[00:08:44] Do you remember the moment you got the call

[00:08:46] or the email?

[00:08:48] Yes, I remember being invited

[00:08:50] and it was so tremendous

[00:08:51] I had done a lot of work for Nikon over the years

[00:08:54] so I was very grateful

[00:08:56] and as I still

[00:08:57] very excited as I still am

[00:08:59] to be able to work with a company

[00:09:01] that I just felt really strongly about

[00:09:03] because when I was at USF

[00:09:05] that camera that

[00:09:06] if you had an Nikon camera

[00:09:09] you were it

[00:09:10] and I continued to use it

[00:09:13] and it was just so interesting to me

[00:09:15] Yes

[00:09:16] to be invited into the Ambassador program

[00:09:19] was a huge honor and a privilege

[00:09:21] and I'm very grateful

[00:09:23] and thrilled to represent the brand

[00:09:26] and continue to do this

[00:09:28] in so many different ways

[00:09:29] that's evolving

[00:09:31] as we move through different social media

[00:09:33] and speaking

[00:09:34] and just shooting

[00:09:36] but I love the technology

[00:09:37] and I love the creativity

[00:09:39] but I love the technology

[00:09:40] and marrying those two

[00:09:42] has just been absolutely fascinating

[00:09:45] It's always fascinating

[00:09:46] waiting with what the engineers come up

[00:09:48] for the next model

[00:09:50] Yes

[00:09:51] so my last assignment

[00:09:53] I was invited to work on the Nikon Z63

[00:09:57] which is our newest camera

[00:09:59] and it's so phenomenal

[00:10:00] I was very excited

[00:10:02] and you know, it's really given this camera

[00:10:04] working with that Nikon

[00:10:06] right out of the box

[00:10:07] I hadn't seen it, I didn't know anything about it

[00:10:09] but working on this

[00:10:11] it was just exciting

[00:10:13] and it has some features that I am excited about

[00:10:15] it has a 240 frames per second

[00:10:18] that can be used for slow motion

[00:10:20] and you can capture things

[00:10:22] or just exquisite behaviors

[00:10:25] or actions

[00:10:26] and things that you wouldn't ordinarily

[00:10:29] be able to slow down

[00:10:30] but you can do that

[00:10:32] so it's fun

[00:10:32] I thought that was a really interesting feature

[00:10:35] and it was a cool camera

[00:10:37] so yeah, I love working with it

[00:10:39] Deborah, I see you're very excited about the gear

[00:10:42] then dive, we dive straight into the

[00:10:44] the gear question

[00:10:45] as an Nikon ambassador

[00:10:47] your backpack will be filled

[00:10:49] with nice cameras and lenses

[00:10:52] what's nowadays

[00:10:53] in your backpack when you open it

[00:10:55] what you take to go outside

[00:10:57] Okay, so that's a great question

[00:10:59] what do I take to go outside

[00:11:00] so it depends on what outside is

[00:11:02] so if I'm going to shoot landscapes

[00:11:05] in my camera back

[00:11:07] I will have a 14-24mm

[00:11:10] wide-angle lens

[00:11:11] I will also have a

[00:11:12] 7-8-200mm

[00:11:15] I'll have a body plate

[00:11:16] so I can shoot from portrait

[00:11:18] or landscape orientation

[00:11:20] I will have a little bag of

[00:11:22] or maybe a big bag of filters

[00:11:24] so I carry a 3-stop

[00:11:26] a 10-stop

[00:11:28] a 15-stop

[00:11:29] a 2-stop reverse

[00:11:31] graduated neutral density filter

[00:11:33] and what that does is holds back

[00:11:35] light at a certain part of the frame

[00:11:37] and also just a regular grab

[00:11:38] so those are the filters

[00:11:40] that I carry

[00:11:42] that I enjoy working with as far as landscape

[00:11:45] if I'm heading out to the wetlands

[00:11:47] I'm generally going to

[00:11:49] I'm doing bird photography

[00:11:50] so I'm carrying a 600mm

[00:11:53] F4 TC lens

[00:11:54] that has a built-in teleconverter

[00:11:56] so I'll have my Nikon Z9

[00:11:59] and probably a Nikon Z8

[00:12:00] with another lens

[00:12:01] so I want to be able to get the birds

[00:12:04] that are really in a distance

[00:12:05] they're not bothered by my presence

[00:12:09] they carry on

[00:12:10] and so that's where I can get these beautiful

[00:12:12] moves of the birds

[00:12:14] and the actions and gestures

[00:12:16] to me that's so important

[00:12:17] I actually just sort of tune out

[00:12:19] when I'm shooting

[00:12:20] if in the same thing with the landscapes

[00:12:22] so that's what I'll do

[00:12:24] you'll see this

[00:12:25] as far as gear

[00:12:26] I have a tripod head

[00:12:29] with the heavier gear

[00:12:31] I use a Wimberley

[00:12:32] which allows for flexibility

[00:12:33] the lenses are fairly heavy

[00:12:36] so you have to be strong enough to work out

[00:12:39] and carry those

[00:12:40] so yes, I have two different packs

[00:12:43] for landscapes

[00:12:44] and cityscapes

[00:12:45] for travel

[00:12:46] and then something different

[00:12:48] for the bird photography

[00:12:51] it's not exactly

[00:12:52] traveling light

[00:12:54] um

[00:12:56] yeah

[00:12:58] so what you carry is

[00:12:59] what you're going to be carrying through

[00:13:02] I do have to think about that

[00:13:04] sometimes it's destination

[00:13:06] like if I'm going to the beach

[00:13:07] I can just throw my gear on a rock

[00:13:09] and not worry about that

[00:13:11] if I'm going to be walking long distances

[00:13:13] so I need to think more economically

[00:13:15] as far as weight

[00:13:18] but generally

[00:13:19] it's just the one lens

[00:13:20] and the one camera

[00:13:21] an additional one

[00:13:23] but basically we're going to be shooting with that

[00:13:26] 600mm f4

[00:13:28] with the built-in telecover

[00:13:29] that pretty much gets me

[00:13:31] all the range that I need to get

[00:13:33] I don't have the 600mm

[00:13:35] so you can hand hold it

[00:13:36] or you have it on a tripod

[00:13:37] yes

[00:13:38] you can hand hold it

[00:13:39] as with some of the 800mm

[00:13:42] it's a lot lighter

[00:13:43] this 600mm

[00:13:45] because it has the built-in teleconverter

[00:13:48] so you're reaching at 840mm

[00:13:50] it's a heftier camera

[00:13:52] you can hand hold it

[00:13:53] I've hand held it

[00:13:54] and a lot of people just do that exclusively

[00:13:56] but you have to be used to it

[00:13:58] you have to understand the dynamics of the weight

[00:14:00] and be able to shift that weight

[00:14:02] and so it's balanced

[00:14:04] I like to use the tripod

[00:14:06] in a wimberly gimbal

[00:14:08] so the gimbal will have that entire flexibility

[00:14:11] on how I need to shoot

[00:14:12] I've even shot birds in flight with it

[00:14:14] but I can hold that

[00:14:16] it's not a problem

[00:14:18] but I make sure that I can do it

[00:14:20] so I do make sure I stay healthy

[00:14:22] and eat right and be able to do this

[00:14:25] and go rowing

[00:14:26] I think you're rowing, no? Deborah?

[00:14:28] yes

[00:14:29] yeah, I love to row

[00:14:30] the LSE probably

[00:14:32] over 3, probably 3.5 million meters

[00:14:36] so it's

[00:14:37] I like to row

[00:14:38] and I like to actually doing incline hiking

[00:14:42] which is like

[00:14:43] treadmill with an incline

[00:14:44] I do that every morning

[00:14:46] so basically yeah

[00:14:48] have to stay in shape to do it

[00:14:51] yes

[00:14:51] I'm not worried you cannot lift 800mm

[00:14:54] no, Deborah

[00:14:56] I got it

[00:14:58] apart from being the Nikon ambassador

[00:15:01] and you follow

[00:15:02] what they bring out

[00:15:03] what was your point

[00:15:06] you decided to go mirrorless

[00:15:08] what you were most excited about

[00:15:10] we had talked about that

[00:15:12] so I was very embedded into

[00:15:15] I had a D5

[00:15:16] and a D850

[00:15:17] and the Nikon came out

[00:15:19] with the Z7s

[00:15:21] and it was really pretty exciting

[00:15:24] it was a big production

[00:15:26] we all went to New York

[00:15:27] it was so exciting

[00:15:30] and then really

[00:15:31] with the magics after you use this camera for a bit

[00:15:34] and then you're looking at images

[00:15:35] and you're reviewing them

[00:15:37] and you're comparing them

[00:15:38] and you realize oh my goodness

[00:15:40] this is really mind bending here

[00:15:43] so we've got some incredibly sharp

[00:15:45] detailed images that made it so easy

[00:15:48] to step into the world of mirrorless

[00:15:51] I think some people

[00:15:52] are still hold out

[00:15:53] because they have the gear and they're invested in the gear

[00:15:55] but now it can be a bridge of camera

[00:15:58] you can get a mirrorless camera

[00:16:00] and there is an adapter

[00:16:01] so you can take your lenses

[00:16:03] and use them

[00:16:04] I did that for a while

[00:16:05] I had a 500mm

[00:16:07] and then we started getting to the point where we had these beautiful lenses

[00:16:10] I couldn't resist

[00:16:11] and that's an interesting thing

[00:16:13] because I started out

[00:16:14] I had a 200-400mm

[00:16:16] and I could use a teleconverter

[00:16:17] but that's all I had

[00:16:18] so when I did my early bird shots

[00:16:20] I was limited to that

[00:16:22] but I loved it

[00:16:23] it was just so beautiful

[00:16:24] just as peaceful now as it was then

[00:16:27] but now with the new gear

[00:16:28] and being able to shoot video

[00:16:30] I think that made it tremendously different

[00:16:34] and highly addictive

[00:16:35] working with the idea of video

[00:16:37] and seeing what the camera can do

[00:16:38] and creating these things

[00:16:40] that people respond to

[00:16:41] they also feel what you felt

[00:16:44] as you were shooting

[00:16:45] it became very important

[00:16:46] people want to see that

[00:16:49] maybe they're just artists

[00:16:52] or nature lovers

[00:16:53] bird photographers also

[00:16:55] but it's interesting to share that

[00:16:57] and have that connection with other people

[00:17:00] video is a big part in mirrorless

[00:17:03] we will come back a bit later

[00:17:04] I remember when I asked this

[00:17:06] to Moose Peterson

[00:17:07] but he told

[00:17:08] he said no more crackity-crackity-clack

[00:17:11] of the shutter

[00:17:14] you know

[00:17:15] that is so true

[00:17:16] and it's funny because

[00:17:18] you can turn all that off

[00:17:20] so when I shoot

[00:17:21] I am completely silent

[00:17:23] so I was shooting

[00:17:25] with some of my friends

[00:17:27] they had no idea

[00:17:29] I had already shot

[00:17:30] I was recording video

[00:17:31] they didn't even know

[00:17:33] because it was so obscure

[00:17:36] I'm shooting but not making the sound

[00:17:38] so what is she going to start shooting?

[00:17:41] I was done

[00:17:42] I already got a really cool video

[00:17:44] and I was excited

[00:17:45] but I prefer that

[00:17:47] so when I'm out and shooting

[00:17:49] and I have other people shooting

[00:17:51] who are very loud

[00:17:52] I really feel it

[00:17:54] before I was just accepted

[00:17:56] that's what the sound was

[00:17:57] so now I want to go out

[00:17:58] I'm pretty stealthy

[00:18:00] and a lot of other people are too

[00:18:02] and I think that's one less thing

[00:18:04] to deter the wildlife

[00:18:06] something to make them uncomfortable

[00:18:08] this doesn't do it

[00:18:10] Deborah, wildlife

[00:18:12] no you touch wildlife

[00:18:13] I think we can describe yourself

[00:18:16] as multi-genre photographer

[00:18:18] as travel

[00:18:20] landscapes, infrared

[00:18:22] long exposures

[00:18:23] now let's say

[00:18:25] very active in nature photography

[00:18:28] what is it that draws you

[00:18:30] inside nature so much now?

[00:18:32] so I think there is something

[00:18:33] about nature where

[00:18:35] you have this connection

[00:18:37] and it's a feeling

[00:18:39] you have this deep

[00:18:41] respect and a reverence

[00:18:43] for nature

[00:18:44] and when you're shooting and you're seeing this

[00:18:48] I think part of it

[00:18:49] just sort of takes you away

[00:18:50] you are so involved in

[00:18:52] what the action is

[00:18:54] of whatever you're shooting

[00:18:55] maybe it's a wolf

[00:18:57] in my case I adore the waiting birds

[00:19:01] and I can anticipate

[00:19:03] their actions

[00:19:04] they're going to do a thing at a certain time

[00:19:06] so I'm waiting for that with the camera

[00:19:07] and when it's successful

[00:19:09] when you've done something like that

[00:19:11] there's a real sense of accomplishment

[00:19:12] and then you get to share it

[00:19:14] because all these things sort of live there

[00:19:16] and your camera until you present them

[00:19:18] to other people

[00:19:19] and I think that's a great connector

[00:19:21] other people like this

[00:19:22] get to know you from that

[00:19:25] so really when you're sharing a picture

[00:19:26] when you're sharing a video

[00:19:28] you are sharing a part of yourself

[00:19:30] in a part of the world beyond that

[00:19:33] and there is a part in

[00:19:34] your nature photography

[00:19:36] that let's say brings it

[00:19:39] not only to photography

[00:19:40] but in trying to get to know

[00:19:43] the bird or the animal

[00:19:45] you are making pictures of better

[00:19:47] maybe you come home

[00:19:49] and you start looking online

[00:19:50] and you start reading

[00:19:51] and there is also this part in your nature photography

[00:19:54] yes so I think that's interesting

[00:19:57] things so there's always a new bird

[00:19:59] or something a new behavior

[00:20:01] or something I didn't realize

[00:20:02] I would say this

[00:20:04] the last two years

[00:20:05] we're getting back into

[00:20:08] the bird photography as far as the waiting birds

[00:20:10] and there were things that I didn't notice before

[00:20:12] that I noticed this year

[00:20:14] it's just so interesting

[00:20:15] like the great egrets

[00:20:17] in the time frame that they are breeding

[00:20:20] their colors get amazing

[00:20:22] you know they have this green around their eyes

[00:20:24] and these really long bridal veil of feathers

[00:20:27] so those physical changes

[00:20:28] that happen to the birds to attract mates

[00:20:31] and also behaviors

[00:20:32] which are so interesting

[00:20:34] there's captured a

[00:20:35] it was an anhinga on top of a pole

[00:20:38] and they alternate their wings to attract

[00:20:40] other anhingas

[00:20:41] I briefly seen that

[00:20:44] but I hadn't captured it yet

[00:20:45] so it was something I really wanted to capture

[00:20:48] and I was able to photograph that

[00:20:49] so there's a lot of things that they do

[00:20:51] and other people say I've never seen them do that

[00:20:54] you know that's so interesting

[00:20:55] how is it that

[00:20:57] what are they doing

[00:20:58] and then you explain this

[00:21:00] this is part of this action

[00:21:01] so it really brings you in touch

[00:21:04] closer to nature

[00:21:05] and there's always something different

[00:21:07] the little birds out of its last

[00:21:10] photographing were the night herons

[00:21:11] the black crown night herons

[00:21:14] and they were so adorable

[00:21:15] and they're fearless

[00:21:16] they come right out in the open

[00:21:19] and they're beautiful to photograph

[00:21:21] and as they were learning to fly

[00:21:22] I was able to get some really fun flight shots

[00:21:25] and then they totally changed

[00:21:27] because they look nothing like the parents

[00:21:28] you know why is that

[00:21:30] they look so different

[00:21:31] you learn more about nature

[00:21:34] about the world

[00:21:36] and how things work in that world

[00:21:38] but it's exciting

[00:21:40] and it's different

[00:21:42] let's get a bit back to

[00:21:44] the video capabilities

[00:21:46] because it's always interesting for me

[00:21:50] that if you are

[00:21:50] long time

[00:21:51] like we are doing photography

[00:21:53] you remember when came out the first cameras

[00:21:55] with video

[00:21:56] very poor video

[00:21:57] and the photographers they would say

[00:21:59] this is not something for me

[00:22:01] I'm a photographer

[00:22:02] and this changed completely now

[00:22:06] so many people are using

[00:22:08] now these video capabilities

[00:22:10] in a whole new creative way

[00:22:12] and I see you too

[00:22:14] on Instagram you have a lot of videos

[00:22:16] so I think you also really moved

[00:22:18] into this creative side of video

[00:22:21] no Deborah?

[00:22:22] Yes absolutely

[00:22:23] was taken by

[00:22:25] certain actions

[00:22:26] especially with the waiting birds

[00:22:28] I had been shooting a lot of pictures

[00:22:29] and I saw a bird pretty far off

[00:22:33] and I was like ok let's just set this up

[00:22:35] and see what happens

[00:22:37] it's not hard

[00:22:38] I think there is a mindset where you've done photography

[00:22:41] for so long it's really hard

[00:22:42] just click a button

[00:22:44] it's really actually very simple

[00:22:46] but I had put it over on video

[00:22:49] which I had been photographing smaller birds

[00:22:50] but to do the bigger birds

[00:22:51] and now have them so close

[00:22:53] I watched this bird

[00:22:56] and I was shooting against the light

[00:22:58] so it was backlit

[00:22:59] and this bird was shaking her beautiful pink feathers

[00:23:02] and there was feathered us just going over

[00:23:04] and there was focal bubbles

[00:23:05] and it was so incredibly magical

[00:23:09] I was holding my breath

[00:23:11] and I couldn't believe that this just happened

[00:23:13] that I sure did

[00:23:14] I literally got goosebumps

[00:23:16] and I went back home

[00:23:18] and I reviewed the picture

[00:23:19] that's it

[00:23:20] I don't think I shot any stills after that for a while

[00:23:23] this is what I want to do

[00:23:24] I love this aspect

[00:23:27] what it is

[00:23:28] because I'm shooting at 120 frames per second

[00:23:31] with the new camera 240

[00:23:32] but I was shooting at 120

[00:23:34] and then you slow this down

[00:23:36] and pose

[00:23:37] so if a lot of cameras are set up to do maybe 30 or 60

[00:23:41] which is 30, 24

[00:23:42] very cinematic

[00:23:43] but it doesn't freeze the action enough

[00:23:45] for that bird activity

[00:23:47] 120 frames per second

[00:23:50] you can get a lot of this beautiful action

[00:23:54] and then when you slow it down

[00:23:55] maybe that action

[00:23:56] existed in time frame

[00:23:58] of like 5 or 6 seconds

[00:24:00] but then when you double that

[00:24:02] you see all the in-between moments

[00:24:06] and that's the part

[00:24:07] that just gets me every time

[00:24:09] it happened so fast

[00:24:11] I mean you saw this bird

[00:24:12] it was preening, it was doing this

[00:24:13] but when you slow it down

[00:24:14] it's a whole new world

[00:24:16] it's absolutely beautiful

[00:24:18] and I really it just sold my heart

[00:24:21] and I just felt like this is absolutely beautiful

[00:24:23] I want to be able to do this again

[00:24:25] and of course you know after that

[00:24:27] I was completely hooked on a spoonbill

[00:24:30] I mean how could you resist big

[00:24:32] pink bird

[00:24:34] they're just tremendous

[00:24:35] and you know they have these goofy bills

[00:24:38] so there's a part of them

[00:24:39] that is exquisitely beautiful

[00:24:41] and there's a part of them that is so goofy

[00:24:44] when they fly

[00:24:44] doesn't seem possible because of their shape

[00:24:47] and then now you know over on

[00:24:49] we've had a lot of hurricanes

[00:24:51] and it's displaced some of the wildlife

[00:24:53] so we actually have flamingos

[00:24:55] on the east coast

[00:24:56] I've been shooting some of the wild flamingos

[00:24:59] on the east coast

[00:24:59] of where I live

[00:25:01] you know I can access it through a boat

[00:25:03] and that's a whole other whole other rig

[00:25:05] but it's beautiful

[00:25:07] that's what led me to the video world

[00:25:10] and I just

[00:25:11] I think that's a totally different story

[00:25:14] but it also supports the stills

[00:25:16] so you have some stills

[00:25:17] and maybe you want to show videos

[00:25:18] people can soak it in on a still

[00:25:21] but then they can experience it

[00:25:23] with a video and those are the things

[00:25:25] exciting

[00:25:27] I think it's really magical

[00:25:29] like you told we can have a 5 second

[00:25:32] piece of a film

[00:25:33] and with so emotion we can stretch it

[00:25:36] and it becomes something totally different

[00:25:38] these 5 seconds

[00:25:39] it does

[00:25:40] it really changes the whole dynamics

[00:25:42] and you could appreciate what happens in a fraction of a second

[00:25:45] but like a long exposure

[00:25:48] you know it's over time

[00:25:49] it has its roots

[00:25:52] where I love long exposure

[00:25:53] it has its roots sort of in that

[00:25:55] convey what happens over time

[00:25:57] so yes

[00:25:59] then I think every genre we want

[00:26:02] or every genre we shoot photography

[00:26:04] we want to let's say master it

[00:26:06] what's until now the biggest

[00:26:09] challenge you had in nature photography

[00:26:12] I would

[00:26:12] I would say

[00:26:14] finding environments

[00:26:15] that are

[00:26:17] going to lend itself to what I like to do

[00:26:20] I very much again

[00:26:22] want the viewer to feel like they're there

[00:26:24] at the moment that there's nothing else

[00:26:26] there's no other people

[00:26:27] I mean it's just an experience

[00:26:30] it's really difficult to do that

[00:26:32] as you're shooting because generally there's other people around

[00:26:34] and you know

[00:26:35] they each have different goals

[00:26:37] they want to shoot

[00:26:38] they want birds in flight

[00:26:40] and they want this or that

[00:26:42] I don't think

[00:26:45] there's any heavy obstacles

[00:26:47] it's just being able to get out there

[00:26:49] and show up

[00:26:49] and while you have that opportunity

[00:26:52] I always like it to be more quiet

[00:26:53] but for a lot of people

[00:26:55] it's just a social experience

[00:26:57] so

[00:26:59] but I do carry

[00:27:00] the earbuds that I can connect into

[00:27:03] my camera to review this

[00:27:04] because I really like to share that sound

[00:27:07] sometimes it's not always possible to share that

[00:27:10] at moment

[00:27:10] so in the drone of normal existence

[00:27:13] like shooting the birds out

[00:27:15] out my window if I'm shooting a video

[00:27:17] you've got the pool sound

[00:27:19] or the air conditioner

[00:27:21] or the street

[00:27:22] the car is on the street

[00:27:24] it's a neighborhood where I live

[00:27:26] so getting that quiet environment

[00:27:28] that's a hard obstacle

[00:27:30] so often I'll record sound separately

[00:27:32] to do that

[00:27:33] but I love to collect sound

[00:27:35] so I will do that

[00:27:36] I'll find a spot where you just like

[00:27:38] you hear crickets

[00:27:40] and then maybe you hear a few car dolls

[00:27:43] or different birds I call

[00:27:44] and I'll try to record

[00:27:45] when it's beautiful like that

[00:27:47] I'll just record that with my camera

[00:27:49] not worrying about the video but just having that sound

[00:27:52] and being able to put that together

[00:27:54] you know I really enjoy that

[00:27:56] but a lot of people

[00:27:57] it's a social experience so they're excited

[00:27:58] or they have these cameras that make a lot of sound

[00:28:00] and that's hard

[00:28:03] so

[00:28:05] well talking about sound

[00:28:06] I think you're the one who puts sneakily

[00:28:09] a microphone

[00:28:10] in your birth feeder

[00:28:12] or your birth bath

[00:28:13] oh I did

[00:28:15] so yes

[00:28:16] I have an arrangement

[00:28:19] with the birds

[00:28:21] so

[00:28:22] I have those road wireless

[00:28:25] little small microphones

[00:28:27] and the wireless one is connected

[00:28:29] to my camera

[00:28:30] and the other one actually put under the feeder

[00:28:33] it's like

[00:28:35] it's just a little platform

[00:28:36] and I have some branches

[00:28:38] but when you do that

[00:28:40] it's so beautiful

[00:28:42] because you're hearing that

[00:28:44] in between moments

[00:28:46] if you're in your house

[00:28:49] and you hear a bird outside

[00:28:50] you hear a call

[00:28:51] but if you're listening

[00:28:55] through a microphone like that

[00:28:56] there is a conversation between none of the birds

[00:28:59] it's quiet

[00:28:59] and you can hear their wings

[00:29:01] and you can hear the tiniest little chirps

[00:29:03] it's a whole different conversation

[00:29:05] and to listen to that

[00:29:07] it's so beautiful

[00:29:08] I can do this more in the

[00:29:10] I would say winter

[00:29:12] be that as it may in Florida

[00:29:14] but in the cooler months where I can have

[00:29:16] a little bit more quiet

[00:29:18] and super early in the morning

[00:29:20] to be invited into that world

[00:29:23] is just so beautiful

[00:29:25] and so magnificent

[00:29:25] and to hear this

[00:29:27] because when we shoot stills

[00:29:30] that's not part of the experience

[00:29:32] when you shoot video

[00:29:33] that it is

[00:29:34] and I think that's one of the things I fell in love with too

[00:29:36] is that well rounded experience

[00:29:38] of hearing what is going on at the same time

[00:29:41] if you get the call of a woodpecker

[00:29:42] if you hear the baby birds chattering

[00:29:45] you know that

[00:29:46] that's beautiful

[00:29:47] those are really intimate, gorgeous things

[00:29:50] I love to hear

[00:29:51] I almost imagine you

[00:29:53] at night when you go to sleep

[00:29:55] you put your airpods in

[00:29:56] and you have the sound of the crickets to fall asleep

[00:30:00] yes

[00:30:01] I tell you by the time I fall asleep

[00:30:03] I don't hear a thing

[00:30:05] it's just early days

[00:30:07] getting up and going

[00:30:09] and shooting

[00:30:10] so when it happens that

[00:30:12] the spoonbills return to this area

[00:30:14] which generally in March

[00:30:16] they come back but I start going out earlier

[00:30:19] I usually start

[00:30:20] because it's different birds that come to different areas

[00:30:22] migratory birds

[00:30:24] we had hooded mergue answers

[00:30:26] they're so beautiful

[00:30:28] I had a blast with these

[00:30:29] this was in December

[00:30:30] it wasn't a glorious area

[00:30:34] it was like a retention pond

[00:30:35] it wasn't like some magnificent place

[00:30:38] or park or something

[00:30:39] and I said if the camera

[00:30:41] it's almost at night

[00:30:43] so that's where the low light capabilities of the camera

[00:30:46] really come in

[00:30:47] there were reflections that were happening

[00:30:51] from buildings

[00:30:52] and from passing cars

[00:30:53] and of course the birds couldn't see it

[00:30:55] but I could from my angle

[00:30:57] like I'm shooting 20 frames per second

[00:30:59] and the colors

[00:31:01] are just like kaleidoscope on top of the water

[00:31:04] and then there's a bird

[00:31:05] so you're not just shooting birds

[00:31:07] you're shooting these magnificent reflections

[00:31:09] and I was shooting video

[00:31:12] and I had stopped when I saw that

[00:31:13] I thought what just happened

[00:31:15] there were so many

[00:31:16] how could the color change that fast

[00:31:18] red car, blue car, green car

[00:31:20] so as the reflections were cast

[00:31:23] on the water

[00:31:24] I was able to capture this

[00:31:26] that was such a blast

[00:31:28] I continued to try to do that

[00:31:30] and again it was one of those perfect storms

[00:31:32] of the water level needed to be high

[00:31:34] the light needed to be sort of diffuse

[00:31:37] so it wasn't super harsh

[00:31:39] in one area or when you get those beautiful reflections

[00:31:41] but I did that over and over

[00:31:42] and I got all kinds of crazy pictures of

[00:31:44] a duck

[00:31:45] and there were burghans, hooded burghans

[00:31:47] but they're beautiful and they're fascinating

[00:31:49] to watch

[00:31:50] I had never seen a bird like that before

[00:31:53] so there's all kinds of environments

[00:31:54] and things that happen

[00:31:55] that are so interesting to draw you in

[00:31:59] if you're just in the right place

[00:32:01] at the right moment

[00:32:02] and you have your camera of course with you

[00:32:05] yes, yes

[00:32:06] so also our friend told me this

[00:32:09] she said you've got to go

[00:32:10] you've got to shoot video

[00:32:11] you have to do this

[00:32:12] and that's the nice thing about photographers

[00:32:15] is they're always texting each other

[00:32:17] saying hey, we've got this situation

[00:32:19] there's birds here

[00:32:20] you need to come here

[00:32:21] we'll shoot this

[00:32:23] so everybody's connecting with everybody

[00:32:25] because everybody wants everybody else to succeed

[00:32:28] and that's what I really found

[00:32:29] in photography and the bird world

[00:32:32] and I answer questions

[00:32:33] you volunteer

[00:32:34] so it's a beautiful community

[00:32:36] and I wouldn't have found out about the birds

[00:32:38] my friend not mentioned them so

[00:32:40] you see

[00:32:41] Deborah, let's talk a moment about

[00:32:44] something else I really

[00:32:46] enjoy seeing your pictures

[00:32:47] it's the long exposure ones

[00:32:48] I remember the scenes from the beach

[00:32:52] with I think our lifeguard houses

[00:32:55] standing with all these fluffy long streak clouds

[00:32:58] talk me quick a bit

[00:33:00] through what

[00:33:00] what is your process there to capture them

[00:33:03] well those are fun

[00:33:05] that is down in Miami beach

[00:33:07] I've shot there many many times

[00:33:09] it's a fun, target rich

[00:33:11] place to shoot

[00:33:12] because there's so many different things

[00:33:15] when I go to the beach

[00:33:17] and I'm shooting sunrise

[00:33:18] I'm not shooting at sunrise

[00:33:20] I always start an hour before

[00:33:22] so that's where to me the beautiful light is

[00:33:25] so I had framed up

[00:33:26] one of the lifeguard stands

[00:33:27] and it was pitch dark

[00:33:29] but I have my tripod

[00:33:30] I had a cable release

[00:33:31] and I knew from experience with the clouds

[00:33:35] and being that dark

[00:33:36] it was going to probably be about

[00:33:38] a 4 minute 5 minute exposure time

[00:33:41] you know just set that up

[00:33:42] so I didn't need any filters

[00:33:43] because it was totally dark

[00:33:45] I also noted that the lifeguard

[00:33:48] tower was illuminated

[00:33:50] from the city lights behind me

[00:33:52] so that light was falling

[00:33:54] so over time

[00:33:55] there would be enough light gathered

[00:33:57] on the lifeguard tower

[00:33:59] lost the illumination of the impending sunrise

[00:34:02] so we've got sort of the blue hour

[00:34:04] if you saw that photo

[00:34:06] there's the blue at the

[00:34:08] horizon line

[00:34:09] but yet we had these amazing pink clouds

[00:34:12] that were in the sky

[00:34:14] so the idea was

[00:34:15] to illustrate what happens over time

[00:34:18] and so shooting that

[00:34:20] getting prepared for that shot

[00:34:21] and my history with the long exposure

[00:34:24] I felt comfortable

[00:34:25] that that was going to work out

[00:34:26] and again I swear you always double check

[00:34:28] when you see the back of the viewfinder

[00:34:30] because you don't know

[00:34:31] you're shooting for 4 or 5 minutes

[00:34:34] and a lot of my long exposures live in that realm

[00:34:36] so you don't really know

[00:34:38] the clouds may do something fantastic

[00:34:41] and that's what you live for

[00:34:42] so yes that's what happened

[00:34:44] I looked at the camera and I was just

[00:34:45] gosh

[00:34:48] I'm so grateful that things come together

[00:34:51] like that

[00:34:52] so I do love that

[00:34:54] so starting an hour before

[00:34:56] it changes the dynamics of the shot

[00:34:58] you're not shooting at 120

[00:34:59] for the second or that kind of thing

[00:35:01] you're shooting 4 or 5 minutes

[00:35:03] and over time

[00:35:06] the picture will evolve

[00:35:08] with the clouds

[00:35:09] with the light conditions

[00:35:10] and that was one of my favorite pictures

[00:35:11] so thank you for mentioning that

[00:35:14] it's an amazing picture

[00:35:15] post processing wise

[00:35:17] you have a lot of work on them

[00:35:20] or it's something you enjoy

[00:35:22] post processing in Photoshop

[00:35:24] or working seeing your image

[00:35:26] come more to life

[00:35:28] so to speak

[00:35:28] yes so I want to envision it

[00:35:31] like I experienced that

[00:35:33] of course obviously what I experienced

[00:35:35] wasn't that in result

[00:35:37] because you and I are

[00:35:39] experienced things

[00:35:40] in seconds but this was a 4 minute type of thing

[00:35:43] so yes so

[00:35:44] once it was done

[00:35:46] there's only very small adjustments

[00:35:48] so I do enjoy that

[00:35:50] since I had started out with

[00:35:51] I always thought that Photoshop had interesting tools

[00:35:54] and things that you could do

[00:35:56] and certainly to nudge the image

[00:35:58] more towards what you need to do

[00:36:01] any corrections or anything

[00:36:03] I always try to make sure the camera is level

[00:36:04] the first thing so

[00:36:06] anything less that you can do

[00:36:08] I definitely have that horizon grid

[00:36:10] for those that type of shot

[00:36:12] but generally there isn't

[00:36:13] like most photographers

[00:36:15] there's going to be contrast adjustments

[00:36:18] saturation

[00:36:18] we do have the linear gradients

[00:36:22] or the radial gradients

[00:36:24] that you can use to control light

[00:36:26] in certain parts of the frame

[00:36:28] if there's any noise

[00:36:30] unless you're shooting

[00:36:33] really rough conditions

[00:36:34] but then you have that option

[00:36:35] you do have that opportunity

[00:36:37] Photoshop is really enhancing

[00:36:39] their tools obviously

[00:36:40] to be more user friendly

[00:36:43] but also have more control

[00:36:45] so yeah I don't mind

[00:36:46] again it's like reliving the experience

[00:36:49] you know I put on some good music

[00:36:50] and just work it that way

[00:36:54] you know so

[00:36:54] seeing the long exposure shots

[00:36:56] when I do that

[00:36:57] then it always nudges me

[00:36:59] oh this is okay

[00:37:01] so next time I'll do this

[00:37:04] there's an inspiration that happens

[00:37:06] so I actually take notes

[00:37:08] you know like my five notes

[00:37:10] I'll go back and it's like

[00:37:11] okay that's the note I wrote

[00:37:13] I'll try this next time

[00:37:15] there's something that I want to do

[00:37:17] or be aware of

[00:37:19] so I think that

[00:37:21] long exposure is really fascinating

[00:37:23] because it's part of an exploration

[00:37:25] as part of it's creative

[00:37:28] there's a lot of different steps

[00:37:29] and you can do different things

[00:37:32] certainly I think

[00:37:33] this can be really fun

[00:37:35] and that's what I love

[00:37:36] so one of the things I was working with

[00:37:39] when I was working with the daytime shots

[00:37:41] that's when you really have to

[00:37:42] dig into resource

[00:37:44] the neutral density filters

[00:37:46] so I thought well what would happen if I did like a long exposure

[00:37:50] multiple exposure

[00:37:51] that would be fun

[00:37:53] so getting this

[00:37:54] where you're building on a certain

[00:37:57] when I did it

[00:37:58] when I actually got to the point where I did it

[00:38:01] it was neat

[00:38:02] so the clouds instead of having like this one

[00:38:05] stretched out action like you saw in the Miami Beach

[00:38:07] so the clouds had this evolution of like a rolling effect

[00:38:10] so we had this real sense of motion

[00:38:13] but the way the clouds were moving that day

[00:38:15] and again that's independent

[00:38:17] of any other day

[00:38:18] but that day then I tried it

[00:38:19] I really liked the effect

[00:38:21] so I love to blend

[00:38:22] idea you know the multiple exposure

[00:38:24] long exposure

[00:38:25] putting things into video

[00:38:27] you can shoot a time lapse

[00:38:29] but you could actually merge all those images together

[00:38:32] and get like a time

[00:38:33] stack people call them

[00:38:35] so there's a lot of different things

[00:38:36] that you can do

[00:38:38] but I love long exposure

[00:38:40] I think that it's just a world that's so untapped

[00:38:43] and it's interesting to see

[00:38:45] so that's one of my favorites

[00:38:47] and then you did a lot of infrared

[00:38:49] travel photography

[00:38:50] but travel I think it's based on landscapes

[00:38:54] because portraits

[00:38:55] how are your portraits there?

[00:38:58] so I wrote a book on infrared

[00:39:00] I don't know if you know this

[00:39:00] and it was a lot of fun to do

[00:39:02] because it was for a company called Wiley

[00:39:05] they do textbooks

[00:39:06] and this book they had specific ideas

[00:39:08] on how it should be structured

[00:39:10] and so I really wanted to cover the basis

[00:39:12] so definitely landscape

[00:39:14] or it was my primary objective in the book

[00:39:17] but also I did include a lot of portraits

[00:39:20] and things like that

[00:39:21] there's something that

[00:39:22] because infrared sort of penetrates

[00:39:24] like a millimeter or so

[00:39:26] it really has a different effect

[00:39:29] so you'll see

[00:39:29] fine art photographers using

[00:39:32] infrared for portraits

[00:39:33] or weddings

[00:39:35] because it gives it an ethereal beautiful look

[00:39:38] but my love is landscapes

[00:39:40] so that's primarily what I would do

[00:39:42] I love the seascapes

[00:39:44] I had a great time

[00:39:46] photographing out in the Palouse

[00:39:48] so anytime Palouse out west

[00:39:50] and here

[00:39:52] in the United States it was absolutely gorgeous

[00:39:54] so there's a lot of things that are interesting in color

[00:39:56] but then when you shoot that same

[00:39:59] story in infrared

[00:40:00] it's basically

[00:40:02] in black and white

[00:40:03] it changes the dynamics of this story

[00:40:06] and it's really quite beautiful

[00:40:08] Deborah, you would say that

[00:40:10] you have found

[00:40:11] now when maybe you're editing

[00:40:14] your pictures

[00:40:15] that you have found your own style

[00:40:17] so to speak

[00:40:19] oh I think so

[00:40:20] I don't feel like

[00:40:23] I think other photographers

[00:40:25] gain inspiration from other people

[00:40:27] but definitely retain

[00:40:29] your own style

[00:40:30] I think that is just

[00:40:33] so innate

[00:40:34] I mean I wouldn't know how to shoot in any other way

[00:40:36] so it comes from the heart

[00:40:38] that's how

[00:40:40] it ends up

[00:40:41] so I would only be able to

[00:40:44] portray things in a certain way

[00:40:47] and if I saw something that I thought

[00:40:48] was inspirational

[00:40:49] it still has your take on it

[00:40:52] so yeah, so your style develops

[00:40:54] from your soul

[00:40:55] from your experience

[00:40:56] and you have seen your own development

[00:41:01] throughout the years

[00:41:02] when you look at maybe lightroom

[00:41:04] and you see pictures from years back

[00:41:05] and now you think

[00:41:07] oh my god I don't know why I edit it like this

[00:41:10] oh that's a fun question

[00:41:12] so it's a two part answer

[00:41:15] so what I

[00:41:16] I was looking

[00:41:17] I used to think it's a bird photograph

[00:41:19] actually it was one of the first photos

[00:41:22] that I had put out

[00:41:23] and it ended up

[00:41:25] that's one of the things that Nikon noticed

[00:41:27] they loved that picture

[00:41:28] and I still really connect to that picture

[00:41:29] I wouldn't have shot it any other way

[00:41:31] and it was just

[00:41:33] I really had thought about how the approach was

[00:41:35] to it and I still love that

[00:41:37] that is great

[00:41:38] then we get back to the world of the fuzzy HDR

[00:41:41] pictures that you want to tear your house

[00:41:43] like why were we doing this

[00:41:45] it was so you know

[00:41:46] it took all the shadows out

[00:41:48] they were all so hyper

[00:41:51] so yeah I think we all did that

[00:41:52] because we were super drawn to it

[00:41:54] it was like a thing

[00:41:55] we all did it

[00:41:56] and then we looked back and it's like

[00:41:58] what were we thinking to do a proper HDR

[00:42:01] there's a good way

[00:42:03] but the bad way was really

[00:42:05] so attractive back then

[00:42:07] well we all learned

[00:42:09] there are any new

[00:42:11] techniques or genres of photography

[00:42:14] or you're exploring now

[00:42:17] maybe

[00:42:17] well I'm really intrigued

[00:42:19] because of working with the Nikon Z63

[00:42:22] it had

[00:42:23] the 240 frames per second

[00:42:26] capability which is twice

[00:42:28] what I'm used to

[00:42:29] with my Z89

[00:42:30] I was really really intrigued

[00:42:33] by that and I have a lot of

[00:42:35] things that I want to turn into

[00:42:37] opportunities to do

[00:42:39] with that particular camera

[00:42:40] because there's a lot of things with super slow motion

[00:42:43] so that to me

[00:42:44] is I'm really excited about going in that direction

[00:42:47] so I like to

[00:42:49] I don't know

[00:42:50] I just you know

[00:42:51] I kind of follow my intuition

[00:42:53] there's things that I'll do

[00:42:56] and then I think oh but if I did this

[00:42:58] or you know it's dug in deeper

[00:42:59] I shot this woodpecker out the window

[00:43:01] you see a whole picture of a woodpecker

[00:43:03] whole bird they're beautiful

[00:43:05] this one was quite large

[00:43:07] so I'm zooming in and just getting

[00:43:09] really tight but I wanted to even go tighter

[00:43:11] I was afraid he was going to fly away

[00:43:13] shooting video you have

[00:43:15] in the Nikon cameras you have this DX

[00:43:18] crop would get to

[00:43:19] like literally insanely close

[00:43:21] but I wanted to be even closer

[00:43:23] and I wanted to

[00:43:25] have this in slow motion so the woodpecker

[00:43:27] how they collect food

[00:43:28] is fascinating because they use their beak

[00:43:30] which is interesting but they also use their tongue

[00:43:32] and you can see this action

[00:43:34] so I recorded

[00:43:36] several of them a couple last year

[00:43:38] but then I want to be like up close

[00:43:41] just ahead of the bird

[00:43:42] and you know into this action

[00:43:44] so there's always something

[00:43:45] so it's not on my goal my goal list

[00:43:48] just to get really close but also super slow

[00:43:51] and I can't wait

[00:43:52] to explore that a bit more

[00:43:55] I was going to ask you Debra

[00:43:57] if you

[00:43:58] ever in your career had like a creative

[00:44:00] block but

[00:44:02] hearing you I don't think you ever have been

[00:44:05] blocked you always find something new to do

[00:44:08] I think that you can get stuck

[00:44:10] when there's not enough

[00:44:11] activity you know like

[00:44:13] towards the end of this birding season

[00:44:16] I was really wanting to photograph birds

[00:44:18] but you know there's a point where they just leave

[00:44:20] you know in your

[00:44:21] down to your last wood

[00:44:23] stalk or something

[00:44:25] so yeah I think

[00:44:27] that's when it you

[00:44:29] no I'm not ever bored but you're right

[00:44:32] there's always something

[00:44:34] I have like a master list of things

[00:44:36] and really the trick is just being able to find

[00:44:38] the time because I want to get back

[00:44:40] and do some of the landscape

[00:44:42] so it's on my list

[00:44:43] I want to work more with video

[00:44:45] with landscapes I only did some this year

[00:44:48] but I really wanted to get more into the lungs

[00:44:50] exposure part

[00:44:52] I adore time lapse

[00:44:54] anytime I can do that

[00:44:55] so just really

[00:44:57] I need more depth

[00:44:58] that is what I need more time

[00:45:00] so

[00:45:03] Deborah apart from photography

[00:45:06] you also do workshops

[00:45:08] seminars

[00:45:09] you wrote a book as you told

[00:45:12] you write for magazines

[00:45:14] you think

[00:45:16] like

[00:45:17] it's a bit the same question I asked

[00:45:19] Moose Peters and you think that

[00:45:20] having the ability of

[00:45:22] making a good picture

[00:45:25] and having a way with words

[00:45:27] opens a bit more doors

[00:45:29] to have both of these

[00:45:30] capabilities

[00:45:33] I believe so

[00:45:34] Moose observed that

[00:45:36] he's a very talented and wonderful individual

[00:45:39] I'm proud to know him

[00:45:40] and certainly amazing

[00:45:42] for what he does so prolific

[00:45:44] and you know

[00:45:44] so impressive

[00:45:46] but I would say absolutely yes

[00:45:48] so working with

[00:45:51] writing a book

[00:45:52] that was huge

[00:45:54] so there's all the things you know that

[00:45:56] back years ago when I did that

[00:45:58] a lot of doors opened

[00:46:00] but being able to talk about your work

[00:46:01] and I think that's essential for any photographer

[00:46:04] doing work

[00:46:05] but being able to talk about it

[00:46:08] is really important

[00:46:09] so that's how other people

[00:46:10] learn so writing a book

[00:46:12] that was a huge calling card

[00:46:14] for the future definitely was able to do that

[00:46:17] when I did the first article

[00:46:19] it was actually written by someone else

[00:46:21] but being able to communicate with that person

[00:46:23] explain what I was doing

[00:46:24] and having that and then writing articles

[00:46:27] yes it's just absolutely

[00:46:29] a big part of communication

[00:46:31] so

[00:46:33] I would say that is really important

[00:46:35] if you can speak about your work

[00:46:37] that's

[00:46:38] where it's at

[00:46:39] you can be a good photographer

[00:46:41] but really being able to market being able to speak about your work

[00:46:44] is also very important

[00:46:47] so you also

[00:46:48] enjoy the writing part

[00:46:50] I do

[00:46:51] actually I got so into the photography

[00:46:54] part because I wanted to do the videos

[00:46:56] so it's really hard to juggle

[00:46:58] I would say it's really hard

[00:46:59] to juggle everything

[00:47:01] so writing is super important

[00:47:03] so that is part of what I do

[00:47:06] and

[00:47:07] part of my job basically

[00:47:08] so anytime you do something

[00:47:11] like a social media post

[00:47:12] that involves

[00:47:14] discussing what you did, how you did it

[00:47:16] how someone else can do it

[00:47:18] and giving a really short story

[00:47:20] on how this image came to exist

[00:47:23] and why you might want to try

[00:47:25] this idea too

[00:47:26] so the writing part is essential

[00:47:28] absolutely

[00:47:30] and let's say

[00:47:32] years from now

[00:47:33] Deborah

[00:47:35] what you want to achieve with your photography

[00:47:37] or how do you want

[00:47:39] people get impacted

[00:47:41] by the pictures you made

[00:47:43] I would say

[00:47:45] that it's really important

[00:47:47] to be able to reach

[00:47:49] other people

[00:47:50] and show them and illustrate ideas

[00:47:53] conceptually

[00:47:55] the things that

[00:47:56] that photography is changing

[00:47:58] so incredibly dramatically

[00:48:00] fast and how we

[00:48:03] give information

[00:48:04] exchange information is also

[00:48:07] light speed

[00:48:07] so I would say just staying with the times

[00:48:10] being ahead of it

[00:48:11] like this whole AI thing

[00:48:13] a lot of people are just

[00:48:14] there was a lot of finger and craziness in the beginning

[00:48:17] but you know the thing about AI

[00:48:19] is really staying in front of it

[00:48:21] it's not coming, it's already here

[00:48:23] and it's not going anywhere

[00:48:24] staying in front of it

[00:48:26] understanding the tools that will help us

[00:48:29] as photographers and working towards

[00:48:31] how that will interact

[00:48:33] with you as a photographer

[00:48:34] as a videographer

[00:48:36] so those things are evolving

[00:48:38] so I think it's really important to stay with it

[00:48:40] and cameras are changing

[00:48:42] so interesting

[00:48:44] the cameras are really evolving

[00:48:46] so people who had red cameras

[00:48:48] now Nikon has acquired red cameras

[00:48:50] now you know the typical videographers

[00:48:52] cameras now really

[00:48:53] merged into

[00:48:54] so that's going to change

[00:48:56] so I'm really excited about these things that are changing

[00:48:59] and being a part of it

[00:49:00] so I would say embrace change

[00:49:02] ride the wave, keep going

[00:49:04] staying in front of all the things that are happening

[00:49:07] in the forefront

[00:49:08] and I think that to me is very exciting

[00:49:12] to close off

[00:49:13] this interview Debra

[00:49:15] sell me the

[00:49:17] the Z6

[00:49:19] 3 please

[00:49:20] sell you the Z6

[00:49:22] give it the best shot right by tomorrow

[00:49:25] so you'll be

[00:49:26] experiencing

[00:49:28] experiencing a camera that has

[00:49:30] phenomenal low light capabilities

[00:49:32] so if you're like me and you want to shoot

[00:49:35] when it's almost dark

[00:49:37] whether it be

[00:49:39] night or just beginning of morning

[00:49:40] it has super low light capabilities

[00:49:42] that make it exceptional

[00:49:44] so that's different from some of the other cameras

[00:49:47] that we have now

[00:49:48] it has the video capabilities

[00:49:51] of a lot of

[00:49:52] what's in it has the DNA

[00:49:54] of the Nikon Z8 and the Z9

[00:49:56] as far as you know the video part

[00:49:58] so that's phenomenal

[00:49:59] so anybody who's reaching into a camera

[00:50:01] and wants to work with the video aspect

[00:50:03] will have those features

[00:50:05] you also have that 240 frames per second

[00:50:09] and that's at 1080

[00:50:10] so you'll be able to

[00:50:12] just work with this

[00:50:13] it's not hard

[00:50:15] I think there's only three basic things

[00:50:18] to remember about video

[00:50:19] everybody should step into that world

[00:50:21] it's a very desirable camera

[00:50:23] and I think it reaches a market

[00:50:25] that is very accessible to everyone

[00:50:28] so yes

[00:50:28] especially for the 240 frames per second

[00:50:33] there we go

[00:50:34] Debra it's been an amazing talk

[00:50:38] I see because I'm looking on the screen

[00:50:39] we are already talking for one hour

[00:50:41] and I think we can go on one hour more

[00:50:43] about many days

[00:50:45] but I will keep it for next year

[00:50:47] and we will do an update talk

[00:50:48] thank you very much

[00:50:51] for joining us here on the podcast

[00:50:53] tonight

[00:50:54] it's been an honor for me to

[00:50:58] finally talk to you

[00:50:59] it's been a pleasure and honor

[00:51:01] and thank you so much for your time

[00:51:02] and your thoughtful questions

[00:51:04] and I'm grateful to have a part

[00:51:05] thanks so much

[00:51:07] thank you Debra

[00:51:08] have a nice day still there

[00:51:10] whatever you're going to do

[00:51:11] and enjoy it

[00:51:12] we keep in touch and I see you later

[00:51:14] alright thank you so much

[00:51:16] bye

[00:51:17] and that's it for today's episode of the camera cafe show folks

[00:51:22] I hope you enjoyed our talk with Debra

[00:51:23] into this ever fascinating world of photography

[00:51:26] we talked about long exposure

[00:51:28] all the way going to wildlife and beyond

[00:51:31] I promised you a great episode

[00:51:32] and I think we delivered

[00:51:34] Debra's passion and expertise

[00:51:35] truly shines through in every image and rewards

[00:51:38] and I hope you found some inspiration in her insights

[00:51:40] as always

[00:51:42] if you enjoyed this episode make sure to subscribe

[00:51:44] on your favorite podcast platform

[00:51:46] and leave us a review which is super easy

[00:51:48] and quick also be sure to check out

[00:51:50] our brand new website

[00:51:51] and stay updated with our latest content

[00:51:53] upcoming guest and subscribe to our newsletter

[00:51:56] thanks for tuning in keep exploring

[00:51:58] and remember every great photo starts

[00:52:00] with just a little passion and then a lot of creativity

[00:52:02] until next time keep your shirt

[00:52:04] clicking and keep moving your photography

[00:52:07] adios