You could say our equipment needs are very small at Field and Forest. Because most of our photography is done with a macro lens.
Of course, we have a full range of equipment from a 300 f/2.8 to 17mm f/2.8 but more often, if you stumbled across us in an open field (or forest) we will probably be lying on our stomachs with a 50mm macro lens probing the underside of some leaf.
But, as I’m sure you realize by now, it’s not as simple as getting a close-up lens or filter and pointing your camera in the right direction. There is one piece of "equipment" we try to keep with us at all times. Our hearts.
Our philosophy is simple. The camera, lens, film ... whatever ... is merely a conduit for the most important aspect of the photographic experience. It’s more than just having fun pursuing a hobby. It’s more than making money with your photos. It’s even more than the joy of sharing your photos with others. It’s about a sense of mission defined by the heart which uses the camera and lens and film like a violinist uses more than his skill to define the notes on a page.
Secondly, the most successful photography is when we use our hearts and combine them with a sense of mission. What is your mission? What do you hope to accomplish with your photos? Rarely do we set out on a photo shoot with a goal to just make nice images. We try to see beyond that worthy ambition to something more holistic. In our case, an opportunity to reveal the marvelous beauty of God’s creation and thereby join with an army of like-minded people to do whatever we can in our own individual ways to protect this precious gift.
Wow. Seems kind of heady and high minded. Well ... it is. And it is for a good purpose. Kim and I take our photography very seriously. We are not just playing around when we shoot. We try to be extremely focused on the end goals and let our passion for our mission lead us. But, you should know something else about us; while we take our photography seriously, we do not take ourselves seriously.
We try to remain in the here and now. There is nothing that extraordinary about us. We are probably a lot like you - at least in our love of nature and photography. That’s a quality we want to keep close by as we shoot all those close-ups.
