MASS AUDUBON BROADMOOR WILDLIFE SANCTUARY—Exhibition of my Roger Tory Peterson Institute collection of bird photographs entitled “The Art of Backyard Bird Photography,” from my book BACKYARD BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY (Scheduled for 2016)
I’m very excited about this. I want the RTPI collection to travel and be seen by lots of people. Thanks to the Broadmoor for their interest in working together in 2016.
Note the husband cheering on his wife; the wife raising her hands, acknowledging his support, two to three miles from the finish. Very touching. This was my first crop. I went back to it the next day and reconsidered as my subject is lost with the other runners.
A second crop shows the subject more highlighted.
But I still wasn’t satisfied. Then I tried a vertical crop. This becomes an intimate portrayal. I think this one works the best.
Lesson: Whenever you see a photo, especially by the pros, remember that they have often been composed using cropping and other things to make the image more dramatic. Now, just for fun, here’s the original image. Sometimes, the story is within the frame but you just have to draw it out.
Jane Johnson is the Communications & Public Programs Coordinator at the RTPI and she took these photos of my exhibit. The RTPI has done a wonderful job of presenting my bird photographs. I can’t thank them enough! For those of you who don’t know, Roger Tory Peterson was the greatest bird artist since John James Audubon, and I am honored to be in his company for this exhibit. 
Working with high shutter speeds, panning with the subject, high-speed continuous, and maybe you get something. I think they call this street photography.
I got out of the house today and look what I saw. In the third shot, I left the leaf on the street in the photo. I’ve seen so many shots by famous photographers with things on the ground, that galleries charge thousands for per shot, so I figure, maybe I’ll leave things alone and some of that commercial magic will rub off on me. Who knows? Survey: Leave the leaf in or take the leaf out?
The nice folks at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute sent me these photos of my exhibit that is currently going on there, called “The Art of Backyard Bird Photography.” For me, it’s like winning the Oscar. Thanks to Elyse Henshaw of the RTPI for taking these great photos.
