Pre-visualization and Patience Can Pay Off

Posted by scottbourne on December 2, 2008
Posted in: Technique & Tutorials. Tagged: .
Copyright Scott Bourne 2008 - All Rights Reserved

Copyright Scott Bourne 2008 - All Rights Reserved

Here’s the story of my image – “Cranes in the Fire Mist.”

Slightly more than 12 years ago, I saw an image by my friend Arthur Morris. It contained a lake full of Sandhill Cranes, Snow Geese and Ross’ Geese, backlit by a blazing, golden sun.

The image struck me to the point that I spent the last 12 years trying to re-create my own version of it.

In the image I pre-visualized, there would be one or two birds flying into the pond while the others waited to take off. It’s an almost impossible scenario because a number of factors have to converge in a perfect storm for it to work.

First, I knew it would probably have to be made at Bosque del Apache. This is one of the few places where that particular combination of birds occurs in large quantities.

Next, it would have to be made in the winter when both the birds, and the weather conditions would provide the chance for the visuals to work.

Next, you have to find a pond that the birds like, which offers a good view to the east so that the sunrise will backlight the pond.

The fourth step in this improbable scenario involves the fog and/or mist. This occurs when the ground temperature is cold, around freezing, and warm humid air collides – causing the temperature of the air to lower to the point that you get fog. In other words, if it’s too dry, too warm, or too cold, you don’t get mist.

Fifth hope that the birds show up at all.

Next on the list, you need a cloudless day. This is important because that produces a golden sunset. If there are lots of clouds, you’ll get different colors, which might be nice, but in my mind, I wanted a golden hue to be the basis for the image. So no clouds.

Then, you need the birds to wait for the sunrise before they take off. You never know when they’ll take off for the day. The two days previous to making this shot, the birds flew out before dawn – in the dark, so when the sun rose, there were no birds in the scene.

Next, I had to hope for a moment when one or two birds were isolated enough to fly into the pond before the rest of the flock took off. I thought this was important for balance. I knew this last bit would involve the most luck, but I really wanted it.

Lastly, you have to hope for a west or northwest wind. There is only a 25% chance of this happening on any given day.

So if you’re following along thus far, you should have the following requirements on your list.

1. Travel to New Mexico
2. Be there in the winter
3. Find the right pond – one that allows an eastern exposure
4. Hope for fog/mist
5. Make sure that you get the right mixture of birds
6. Hope for no clouds
7. The birds have to wait for the sunrise before they fly-out
8. Wait for birds to fly into the scene before the others leave
9. The winds have to come from the west or northwest

So here I found myself faced with the perfect conditions. For years I had been traveling to find this image, and the day had come.

The image I pre-visualized was very strong in my mind. I credit the success of the final shot to having such a strong idea of what I wanted to create.

As I drove to the refuge that morning, my heart started to beat a little quicker than usual. I saw the bald, blue sky that I had bemoaned the night before, since it kept me from making the sunset shot I wanted.

I looked at the thermometer on my truck and saw that the temperature was exactly 32 degrees – the freezing point.

I saw the golden glow of the sun starting to creep up over the far eastern mountain range.

I had my D3 already set up and ready to go, mounted with the Sigma 300-800 f/5.6 zoom lens. I had preset my ISO to 800 and my shooting mode to Aperture-priority. I wanted to make sure I was wide open to keep the background from becoming too prominent against the foreground birds.

Because fog and backlit subjects often confuse camera meters, I dialed in plus two stops of exposure compensation to allow a little more light into the shot.

I sat the Sigmonster on a Wimberley Head II, mounted atop a sturdy Gitzo tripod. I made double sure to tighten, and re-tighten the tripod legs to get a sturdy mount. I also made sure the KirkPhoto lens plate was securely affixed to the head. I didn’t want any accidents.

I extended the big zoom lens out to 800mm, took a deep breath, tried to steady myself, assumed the best shooting posture I could, and said a quick prayer to the photo-Gods, reminding them of all the time I put into getting this shot over the years, asking that this time, THIS time, all things could come together for that perfect moment.

I saw the sun coming up. The mist began to glow. For a moment I was fearful that the birds were about to blast off before the time was perfect. I knew I’d only have about a two-minute window to get the perfect shot.

I made a quick test exposure and checked my histogram. Fortunately, I had it right. The shot was at 1/4000th of a second.

As the sun came over the mountain I began to fire. Out of excitement, I was shooting a little too carelessly. Part of me was thinking “safety shot.” After 12 years I wanted to get SOMETHING! Then, I guess my experience and training took over. I started being more deliberate. But despite that fact, the next two minutes were a blur. I later realized that I made 43 exposures – in short bursts, at nine frames per second.

It dawned on me that the perfect storm of circumstances was nearly upon me. Then the truly improbable happened. I spotted two lone Snow Geese just out of my field of vision on the right. They were headed straight for the pond. This was the perfect moment. As Bresson called it – “The Decisive Moment.”

I took a deep breath, lined up the angle of the geese on approach, guessed at their flight path, and let go with a nine-shot burst. The birds landed. The rest took off. The sun rose so high the color left the scene. The decisive moment had passed. There would be no second chance. And it didn’t matter, the buffer was full anyway. I breathlessly waited for the image to appear on the back of the camera.

I almost yelled like a little kid when I saw it. You can’t really tell if something is sharp on the DSLR LCD but I knew it. I knew that I had it. I am not sure, but I think I let out a little “woot.” Some photographers standing a few yards looked in my direction.

I immediately left the field, took that flash card out of the camera, and safely put it into my card carrier.

The remainder of the morning I busied myself helping workshop participants make great images. But the hours that ensued were agonizing. I couldn’t wait until the lunch break so I could get back to the hotel room, offload the card, back it up and then check the image in Aperture.

When I first saw it full screen on the MacBook Pro I knew I had it. A few minutes of clean up, cropping and levels adjustment, aided by some slight tweaking of the existing color–gave me the prize.

I am grateful for the result, and hope that by talking about this experience here with everyone else, you’ll see that pre-visualization and patience can pay off. Regardless of whether or not you like my image, I hope you can see that never giving up can give YOU the chance you need to make YOUR dream photograph.

Thanks for indulging me and letting me share this personal experience with you.

P.S. I forgot to mention that for some strange, weird reason that I can’t articulate, I was hearing the score to Jurassic Park – (the closing credits) in my mind as I made the final shot. Imagine that!

UPDATE: You can buy a copy of the print of “Cranes in the Fire Mist” here.

94 comments on “Pre-visualization and Patience Can Pay Off”

  1. This is really very true. It takes a lot of self-discipline to get it down and it’s something I’m still working on. I’m not a ‘chimper’, and usually I know whether I got the shot I wanted based on whether I used a pre-visualized technique or not without even looking at the photos. It’s a good reminder, especially in nature, landscape, wildlife, etc…congrats on getting the shot of a lifetime – 12 years in the making has to feel pretty darn good :)

  2. I am glad you finally got Your Shot after all these years. I have to admit that my wife and I (who always listen to TWIP podcast together, so we can pause-and-discuss) said last week that we didn’t have the patience to do the wildlife shooting that you do. I can only congratulate you and wish we could get the same shot in our couple hours at a site… :-)

    Uh… any word on the 5D Mk II? Waiting and deciding if I more “up to MK II” or “out to D3x”…

  3. yeah I agree and thanks so much for the great article.
    I just realized how very important previs really can just last weekend. I had my first real modelshoot so to speak and I had a little series of picture in my mind for a few month now that I wanted to make. and over this time I had it all figured out to the last detail. so we started off with some warming up pics and some stuff the modell wanted to do, just to get into the right mode. all was ok, but not so great in my opinion. it also is the lack of experience for sure, but when we started shooting the stuff I had in my mind all the time it felt so much better, I could direct her much better and the results were just a I imagined them.
    It really makes a difference.

    regards
    teymur

  4. Scott, you have beautifully expressed why I love photography. The moment of anticipation just before the image pops up on the screen takes me back to Christmas morning as a 6 year old. Of course, now we get instant gratification instead of the slow agony of watching the image appear through the developer. I’m not sure which is better but the joy of photography is there in both. You’ve inspired me to brave the cold and go capture some more images. Thanks.

  6. Wow Scott! What an amazing photograph and an amazing story! Im glad that you were able to capture exactly what you visualized for so long.

  7. Congratulations on the pic Scott, of course it’s a beautiful shot but it’s also just satisfying to look at – as I’m sure it was to take. Cheers.

  9. Hey Scott–first off: congrats on nailing the shot! Also, thanks for taking the time to write about the entire experience for us to share. Well done.

  11. That is an incredible image! It was a pleasure meeting you in the Bosque. And thanks so much for the tips you gave me down there and on your podcasts. I will continue listening and reading the blogs I have learned so much from you and all the TWIP’ers.

  12. Scott – Congrats on the shot. It is great to hear how you were inspired by Arthur’s photo and made it your goal to make your own version. It is also great to read about how excited you are about the shot. Way to Go and thanks for all of your enthusiasm…it is infectious!

  13. Scott,

    Great narration of an awesome almost spiritual experience. Patience and pre-visualization are so vital to capture exceptional images and you are a master of both. The times that we have shot together I have been impressed that while others shutters are clicking, you are waiting. At the precise moment you have anticipated you activate the shutter, proclaim “I’ve got it” and move on. When we see the image later it is precisely as you had intended. As I mentioned “pretty impressive”. Thanks for sharing this journey. Look forward to seeing you when you return home.

  16. Nice one Scott! Great story behind that image and in the image itself.

    Made me smile.

    James
    Freiburg, Germany

  17. Thank you for sharing your story Scott; it’s very inspiring! and the image is absolutely breathtaking! Bravo

  18. I never imagined I’d feel a rush of excitement reading an account of someone else taking a photograph. I hope the rush of that moment stays with you. Thank you so much for sharing, and for inspiring the rest of us along the way.

  19. Experience induced endorphines are the best.
    Even better you get another shot of them every time you look at the breathtaking shot.
    Congrats, Scott.

    Ashville, NC

  21. Congrats Scott – with that kind of perseverance, dedication and focus, you deserve your dream shot. A genuinely inspirational story.

    Bucks, UK

  24. Congratulations Scott.
    Exquisite image, and a wonderfully inspiring story. I had chills while reading it.
    Thank you for sharing such a special moment.

  27. BTW – meant to add – I really enjoy these types of posts. Technique and post processing tips are always nice, but this kind of post is really beneficial to making better images (for me anyway!) and I’d love to see more.

  28. Great shot! It was sure worth it to spend 12 years to get it! I wish I had that much patience. Your story is very inspiring! Thank you for sharing.

  29. Congratulations on achieving the dream shot !

    1. The narration was inspiring!! I never knew that it would take so much perseverance and so much pre-visualisation involved in a photo! It always looked like you’d just get lucky and happen to get two birds in a frame…

    2. I learn here that getting a shot could be so very complex! Almost every factor you mentioned is due to natural forces! It’s unlike a studio shot that you control all factors. You had to put yourself in nature’s mercy to get that perfect moment… again.. inspiring

    3. Nicely written narration. Great read!

    Looking forward to hearing about this in TWIP!

  32. Fantastic Scott ! ! I have a dream to get out there to Bosque for a workshop with you and Artie just as soon as I can scrape up the money. This image will be in mind until I get there ! I hope prints are available to purchase soon. Id love to have one.

    Thanks for sharing the story with us.

  33. Absolutely virtuoso!!!! I would by a framed version of that image if I had the money. The complexity an nuisances dazzle me.

  35. one of the singlemost capturing images i have ever seen along with a great story as to how it was captured… truly an inspiration
    thank you for sharing

  37. Awesome image Scott. Made even better by knowing the story behind it. Thanks for the details.

    (I have an urge to go buy an SLR and start shooting ..good job I have a simple iPhone to keep my aspirations in check ..maybe if I bought one of those apps that lets me do vignetting) :)

  38. Congratulations, Scott, on a truly beautiful photograph and thank you for sharing the story of your personal quest for it.

    My first thought was how different this story is from the Ansel Adams’ account of Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico yet there is are two connecting themes: extraordinary craftsmanship in terms of technical mastery of your gear and a fundamental understanding of the dynamics of the nature behind the shot.
    http://www.anseladams.com/content/ansel_info/ansel_ancedotes.html

    At a deeper level, however, I agree with some of the earlier responses here. Your story does demonstrate the kind of dedication and focus that we often encounter in religious practices. Not surprising. Until the other day, this “pre-viz” vision existed only in your head and your heart – a silent vision which had the power to bring you back, year after year, for over a decade. Your actions speak louder than any of our words.

    The other religious aspect seems to be your focus – devotion – to an idea over which you have absolutely no control. You certainly learned all that you could about the natural factors behind the shot but you never controlled them. Unlike much of the wonderful creative work that we see here and listen to on the podcast, your artistry focuses on the beauty of things over which you have no control. When Alex goes to Japan to make a movie, there are scripts, pre-viz storyboards, etc and the idea is to create the reality from the initial concept. Even in much of the commercial photography surrounding product advertising, the idea seems to be to create the result from scratch, often under studio conditions. My guess is that this has less appeal to you because your gift is to know how to “show up prepared” to interact with beauty that you do not control.

    In that sense, I’ll close by saying that “I am sorry for your loss.” You have the photograph to remind you of “the good times” of your pursuit of Cranes in the Fire Mist and to learn from it. But that pursuit is over. I wish you all the best and pray that you will soon discover your next inner vision.

  40. Scott,
    couple of questions if you don’t mind me trying to “peek behind the curtain”…

    1) Why were winds from the west or northwest important?
    2) Would it be possible for you to post a contact sheet of the full ‘burst’ that produced this image? I’d be really keen to see what the original series looked like, and have a better sense of what post-production work was done on the final image.

    Overall though, a great shot and a fantastic insight into what goes into a shot like this. Thank you for the inspiration and guidance.

  41. Scott,
    couple of questions if you don’t mind me trying to “peek behind the curtain”…

    1) Why were winds from the west or northwest important?
    2) Would it be possible for you to post a contact sheet of the full ‘burst’ that produced this image? I’d be really keen to see what the original series looked like, and have a better sense of what post-production work was done on the final image.

    Overall though, a great shot and a fantastic insight into what goes into a shot like this. Thank you for the inspiration and guidance.

  44. @ScottH the birds land into the wind. In order to get the birds coming into the frame from the right like I did requires a wind in that direction. Also, the birds primarily sit facing the wind.

    As for the contact sheet I’ll think about that. One problem is time. I’ll see what I can do.

  45. @ScottH the birds land into the wind. In order to get the birds coming into the frame from the right like I did requires a wind in that direction. Also, the birds primarily sit facing the wind.

    As for the contact sheet I’ll think about that. One problem is time. I’ll see what I can do.

  46. oh my photo-gods… my eyes teared up as i read your description… i assume that u feel amazing… congrats!!!!! same thing happened to me as i imagined an photo of an astronaut and the moon and stars at the background and the moonlight shined onto the astronaut’s face… and when i did it… i fell in love with photography once again… :)

  47. Hello .. This was the BEST photo story post I have ever read ..

    And the photo itself is something AMAZING .. Thanks for posting!

  48. Scott:

    God bless you for continuing to give of yourself and help the students on the workshop even though you knew you had this incredible image buried on your memory card

  49. Scott:

    God bless you for continuing to give of yourself and help the students on the workshop even though you knew you had this incredible image buried on your memory card

  50. Wow! That’s an amazing story. I never thought anyone would plan a photograph in so much detail!!! I am thoroughly inspired. Thanks so much for sharing this experience. The picture is very very beautiful!

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  56. Hello Scott,

    My husband sent me a link to this article because I am a photo-head, too. I love TWIP, but don’t get to indulge as much as I’d like.

    I loved the story that went along with this photo. I often get impatient reading other people’s blogs, but this was truly inspiring!

    The photo itself makes me think of many things. Mainly, it evokes a feeling of knowing oneself. I don’t know why, but that’s what I thought of. That, and warmth. I admire the lengths you went through to get the shot. I often get flustered knowing that one image I see in my head may never happen in real life. But, knowing what you went through, maybe I just have to be patient and seek it out to make it happen.

    Thanks for the inspiration, and a bloody marvelous photograph!!!

    Take care,

    Christa Belle

  57. Thanks, for sharing your story and photo, Scott. I heard about it on the This Week in Tech podcast. I’m delighted they weren’t sold out. Your photo is my wife and my Xmas present to each other. I take an occasional photo through my Swarovski birding scope. You are in inspiration!
    RP

  58. Thanks, for sharing your story and photo, Scott. I heard about it on the This Week in Tech podcast. I’m delighted they weren’t sold out. Your photo is my wife and my Xmas present to each other. I take an occasional photo through my Swarovski birding scope. You are in inspiration!
    RP

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  63. I just caught the MacBreak podcast today. Awesome shot! Just brilliant.

    I have a question from a technical standpoint– With so many birds out there in the shot, did you set to manual focus or did you use auto focus? Help us weekenders out!

    I probably would have gotten the trees in the background sharp and the birds mushy– if I remembered to take the lens cap off– haha.

    Great stuff! Congrats!

  64. @Michael I’ll work backwards on your post. The very last thing I wanted was a sharp background. Why would you want to make the background sharp at all? The birds are the story and my very deliberate choice to make the background soft by opening up to f/5.6 was designed to draw attention to the subject – i.e., the birds. Now if I were taking a picture of the trees, then yes they need to be sharp.

    As for focus, I used Nikon’s 51 point autofocus which perfectly tracked the birds flying in from the right, although manual focus would be a safer choice.

  65. @Michael I’ll work backwards on your post. The very last thing I wanted was a sharp background. Why would you want to make the background sharp at all? The birds are the story and my very deliberate choice to make the background soft by opening up to f/5.6 was designed to draw attention to the subject – i.e., the birds. Now if I were taking a picture of the trees, then yes they need to be sharp.

    As for focus, I used Nikon’s 51 point autofocus which perfectly tracked the birds flying in from the right, although manual focus would be a safer choice.

  66. Sorry Scott– that was my lame attempt at humor (about the background)!

    I didn’t realize the 51-point AF is that quick and accurate! I assume you went continuous focus.

    Awesome!

  68. Great shot. I also enjoyed this blog post and hearing about the photo on the TWIP podcast. What an awesome process of attempting to recreate your own unique version of a photo. At first I thought it sounded unoriginal to try to re-create a photo but after listening to Scott talk about the process and reading this pose, I see that I was being close-minded. We are told to look at a lot of photos (I remember Scott said that in an early TWIP episode). I think I’ll make a project out of looking at some of my favorite photos to then trying to re-create some of them. It sounds like an awesome challenge !

  69. Scott great shot.
    Any chance you will make this available as a wallpaper 1440×900 (MacBook Pro resolution)? I wouldn’t even mind paying a few bucks for it.

    Or you could put it up with your website or whatever information in one of the corners like your webimage.

    I just think this would make a great background for my laptop.

  70. Scott great shot.
    Any chance you will make this available as a wallpaper 1440×900 (MacBook Pro resolution)? I wouldn’t even mind paying a few bucks for it.

    Or you could put it up with your website or whatever information in one of the corners like your webimage.

    I just think this would make a great background for my laptop.

  71. @Phillip sorry but if I make that large a version and put it online it will be like handing the keys to Corvette to a bunch of teenagers. Too many people don’t respect Copyrights. Sorry.

  72. @Phillip sorry but if I make that large a version and put it online it will be like handing the keys to Corvette to a bunch of teenagers. Too many people don’t respect Copyrights. Sorry.

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  77. love the photo. quite beautiful. regular twit/mbw listener. can you make bigger prints than 16×24, or would that be not so aesthetically pleasing? seems that this shot screams to be hung on a wall on a huge print.

  78. love the photo. quite beautiful. regular twit/mbw listener. can you make bigger prints than 16×24, or would that be not so aesthetically pleasing? seems that this shot screams to be hung on a wall on a huge print.

  79. @Allen we decided to keep it at perfect resolution without interpolation. It looks really good at this size and it’s a compromise to make it as affordable for everyone as we can. Thanks.

  80. @Allen we decided to keep it at perfect resolution without interpolation. It looks really good at this size and it’s a compromise to make it as affordable for everyone as we can. Thanks.

  81. Scott,

    I kind of got confused when you kept going back and forth between sunrise and sunset in the article. However, great story on your tenacity in getting just the shot you wanted.

    I and my wife just went to the Whitewater Draw Conservation area, just south of Willcox Arizona for the first time. It is also known for the numbers of Sand Hill Cranes that visit there. On New Years Eve we arrived around 10 a.m. and there was not a single crane to be seen. We did see about 150 snow geese and many different types of ducks. Since it has been one of my wife’s long time dreams to see the cranes, we returned on Friday, January 2nd and were completely blown away by the sheer number of cranes. There had to be at least 20,000 and maybe as many as 30,000. For over two hours we watched and photographed them standing on the shores, taking flight, and landing. We also got to see a bald eagle and a heron too!

    Anyway, to the point of the story. I was using my mediocre Minolta Dimage Z2 to take as many pictures as I could, but the shutter lag was excruciatingly slow and I know I missed several good photos because of it. So, because of this I was able to talk the wife into purchasing a newer camera, the Canon EOS 40D. I know that this is not on par with your D3 but I hope to get many better photos after my new camera arrives.

    Have you thought of visiting Southern Arizona for some bird photos? In the Huachuca mountains near us in Sierra Vista we are visited by 15 of the 16 varieties of hummingbirds of North America.

    Mike

  82. Scott,

    I kind of got confused when you kept going back and forth between sunrise and sunset in the article. However, great story on your tenacity in getting just the shot you wanted.

    I and my wife just went to the Whitewater Draw Conservation area, just south of Willcox Arizona for the first time. It is also known for the numbers of Sand Hill Cranes that visit there. On New Years Eve we arrived around 10 a.m. and there was not a single crane to be seen. We did see about 150 snow geese and many different types of ducks. Since it has been one of my wife’s long time dreams to see the cranes, we returned on Friday, January 2nd and were completely blown away by the sheer number of cranes. There had to be at least 20,000 and maybe as many as 30,000. For over two hours we watched and photographed them standing on the shores, taking flight, and landing. We also got to see a bald eagle and a heron too!

    Anyway, to the point of the story. I was using my mediocre Minolta Dimage Z2 to take as many pictures as I could, but the shutter lag was excruciatingly slow and I know I missed several good photos because of it. So, because of this I was able to talk the wife into purchasing a newer camera, the Canon EOS 40D. I know that this is not on par with your D3 but I hope to get many better photos after my new camera arrives.

    Have you thought of visiting Southern Arizona for some bird photos? In the Huachuca mountains near us in Sierra Vista we are visited by 15 of the 16 varieties of hummingbirds of North America.

    Mike

  83. Scott, that’s an absolutely stunning photo. I think that too often we see amazing photographs and think that the photographer was lucky or at the right place at the right time. Not only is it important that people know how much professionals put into their work, but it really enhances our appreciation of the work to understand what goes into it. Thanks for giving us this insight and for everything you’ve done with TWIP.

  84. Scott, that’s an absolutely stunning photo. I think that too often we see amazing photographs and think that the photographer was lucky or at the right place at the right time. Not only is it important that people know how much professionals put into their work, but it really enhances our appreciation of the work to understand what goes into it. Thanks for giving us this insight and for everything you’ve done with TWIP.

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