Archive for ‘Uncategorized’

Justin Black Interview with PhotographyTalk.com

In April 2015, Justin Black sat down with PhotographyTalk.com founder Alex Schult. Here’s the full interview. Alex: Hi Justin, welcome to Photography Talk. Justin: It’s a pleasure to be here, Alex. Alex: I understand that 2015 marks your 20th year as a professional photographer. How does that feel? Justin: Well, it’s been a wild ride, and […]

Getting Lucky on Safari

By Justin Black For Outdoor Photographer, October 2014 One of my most important photographic mentors, Galen Rowell, grew accustomed to being told how lucky he was to capture the stunning natural events that he photographed. He would chuckle politely, and respond that he tried to be prepared to receive luck. In other words, he went […]

Nikon D810 Follow-Up

September 09, 2014 04:19 PM
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As promised, here is the follow-up to the post in which I shared my first impressions of the new Nikon D810. During Visionary Wild’s recent safaris at Maasai Mara, Kenya, and Chobe River, Botswana, I put the D810 to the test as a camera for wildlife action. The camera got covered in dust, rained on, […]

Safari Update

September 09, 2014 03:56 PM
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On our recent safari in east Africa’s Maasai Mara / Serengeti ecosystem, we encountered three very special lions – Sikio, Morani, and Scarface (as viewed left to right above). These powerful brothers are the leaders of the Marsh Pride, made famous in BBC’s Big Cat Diary documentaries. They had crossed the Mara River to follow the bounty […]

Nikon D810 – First Impressions

July 07, 2014 02:01 AM
by / Topics: Equipment, Gear, Uncategorized

The decision was made: I would keep my Nikon D800E camera bodies. The D800E has been such a superb solution for the bulk of my work that I’ve had a hard time imaging how Nikon would improve upon it. When I first heard that Nikon was releasing an updated 36-megapixel camera, I took a quick […]

Vote for Wildlife Photographer of the Year

July 07, 2014 06:30 PM
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The judging panel of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition (operated by BBC Worldwide and London’s Natural History Museum) have selected photographs by Visionary Wild instructors Jack Dykinga and Justin Black from among 41,000 entries for inclusion in a set of fifty top images open to public voting for the inaugural People’s Choice Award. […]

JACK DYKINGA STATUS UPDATE – May 22, 2014

May 05, 2014 07:03 PM
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News of Jack’s hospitalization has been spreading, and outpouring of well-wishes via cards, email, and other means has been amazing. Jack is deeply touched by the tremendous expression of love and support! He does however ask that friends and fans PLEASE REFRAIN FROM CALLING. Jack’s iPhone has been ringing off the hook, but he is […]

Trip Report: Jaguars of the Pantanal, August 2013

September 09, 2013 05:41 PM
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Photos and text by Justin Black Last month, photographer Jeff Foott and I led a small group of six passionate photographers on a photo expedition to Brazil’s Pantanal wetland, where we enjoyed an experience that I would have thought to be a ridiculous fantasy just a few years ago. Back then, I shared the common […]

Blending Exposures – Lightroom to Photoshop and Back Again

May 05, 2013 03:43 PM
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By Justin Black Today’s digital cameras have the ability to capture a tremendous tonal range, which in the case of the Nikon D800 is 14-stops, an incredible 1:16,000 brightness ratio. Even so, from time to time we find that we wish to optimize the exposure for different parts of an image, much the way we used […]

Tools and Techniques for Creating Fine Prints

March 03, 2013 11:58 PM
by / Topics: Art of Photography, Media, Multimedia, Resources, Technique, Uncategorized, Video / Comments Off on Tools and Techniques for Creating Fine Prints

Our friends at Hunt’s Photo Video and Ilford are sponsoring a free webinar on fine print making, Join the Live Video Broadcast on March 29, 2013 at 1:00pm EDT What are the aspects and qualities that make for a Gallery-Quality Fine Art Print? Exacting color, smooth tonal transitions, a well-balanced contrast range and the best […]

Exposing to the Right… the FAR Right.

December 12, 2012 04:35 AM
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By John Shaw If you’re a RAW shooter you should already know about ETTR, Expose to the Right.  The theory behind ETTR is that the best image capture for the most possible information is when the histogram is pushed to the right, to the “bright” side.  Just keep adding exposure until that histogram is over […]

Visionary Wild supports the Sandy Hook School community

December 12, 2012 05:28 PM
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In memory of the innocent lives lost at Sandy Hook School in Connecticut, Visionary Wild has pledged to donate 5% of all new workshop enrollment fees received between December 15, 2012 and January 31, 2013. Funds will go to support organizations providing counseling and other vital services to the children, families, and staff of Sandy […]

John Shaw Interview

September 09, 2012 02:25 AM
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Visionary Wild instructor John Shaw talks about his forty year career in natural history photography, describing how he got hooked on photography, what keeps him inspired, and a little about his workflow.

Special Trips: High Sierra and Africa

July 07, 2012 12:41 AM
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Moonset at sunrise over Moonlight Lake and Picture Peak, High Sierra, California, by Justin Black On occasion, we offer special photo expeditions outside of the “regularly scheduled programming” listed in the Workshops section of this website. High Sierra Mule Pack Trip This September 20-26, we are offering a photo trip into the beautiful alpine High Sierra […]

Yucatan Expedition Report

June 06, 2012 05:41 PM
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Our January 2012 Yucatan Expedition was a great success thanks to the contributions of leader Jack Dykinga, our excellent guides Alfredo Medina and Sara Fuentes, and a superb group of participants. After meeting the group in Merida, we were welcomed by the friendly staff of Hacienda Itzincab-Cámara, a beautifully restored and updated 19th-century estate with […]

Grand Canyon by Raft Trip Report

May 05, 2012 09:48 PM
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On May 13th we completed our ten-day, 226-mile raft trip down the Grand Canyon, that I led with Visionary Wild instructor Jack Dykinga. An amazing group of ten clients plus our superb AZRA boat crew, Randy Tucker and Katie Proctor, made the trip one of the best we’ve ever done. Drawing on insights gained on […]

Grand Canyon by Raft: Multimedia

December 12, 2011 05:53 PM
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This video featuring photographs by Jack Dykinga and Justin Black from previous Grand Canyon raft trips captures the beauty, majesty, and intimacy of a photographic adventure in the canyon. Add marvelous camaraderie and bit of adventure and you’ve got an experience you’ll never forget! Click here for details about our Grand Canyon by Raft trip, […]

Photographing with Purpose

October 10, 2011 04:50 PM
by / Topics: Art of Photography, Essay, Media, Philosophy of Photography, Resources, Technique, Uncategorized / Comments Off on Photographing with Purpose

The November 2011 issue of Outdoor Photographer magazine features an article by Justin Black about ways to add greater meaning and purpose to your photography. You can read the full text and see the accompanying photos here: Photographing with Purpose by Justin Black

Being There

September 09, 2011 03:32 AM
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A new photography site called PhotographyTalk.com recently recruited me to serve as a professional contributor to their forums, and while browsing recent posts I came across a topic in one of the forums asking which is more important, the act of recording the original raw image or the post-processing necessary to create the final photograph that […]

Pro Tip from Jeff Foott: “Shooting the Scene”

August 08, 2011 04:48 PM
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There’s a story behind every image. A combination of visual cognition, emotional response, thoughtful investigation, composition, technical judgments, and timing (among other factors) play into the creation of the best photographs. It’s a process of purpose. Visionary Wild instructor Jeff Foott recently shared with us a series of teaching images that he uses to as […]

Bioluminescence on the Sonoma Coast, by Jerry Dodrill

Bioluminescence For years I’ve heard unbelievable stories about people’s surreal night time experiences in the ocean with glowing plankton blooms, but until recently I’d never seen it myself. The tip off came from Ellen Cruz, a friend from Bodega Bay who sent a note about an experience she’d just had on the Sonoma County coast: […]

Pocket Light Meter App for iPhone

August 08, 2011 03:35 PM
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My light meter of choice for close to two decades has been the Pentax Digital Spot. My first act when setting out into the landscape to photograph with my old 4×5 view camera was invariably to hang the pistol-gripped device around my neck. It went everywhere with me, and determining exposures with it, including filter […]

New Work: Jack Dykinga

August 08, 2011 02:44 AM
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Shooting lightning is easy.  Finding a situation where an active lightning storm completes the composition is really hard. In order to get this image, I trailed and passed through the storm front, continually finding potential cactus subjects…only to reject them as the storm continued to push onward.  Finally, I got far enough ahead to let […]

Thank you for joining us…

May 05, 2011 03:57 AM
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It’s an honor to have you join us! Whether you are an old friend or a new one, please register for our e-mail newsletter in the grey box at the bottom of the page. That will ensure that you are kept up to date on newly announced workshops and expeditions. Our clients also have the […]