We had several registered walkers withdraw, leaving only a handful of us to take the walk.  A disappointing turnout, but it was great for getting to know everyone.  Before we even started walking, there was a drawing for the highly-prized, official Worldwide Photowalk sweatshirt.  Mark is wearing his in our group shot.

Even in our small group, we had the a good mix of characters.  We had one professional photographer. There was the normal mix of Canons and Nikons and ribbing on both sides.  As usual, there was someone trying a different path – a pinhole camera setup.  Cool.  Strangely, only two of our walkers were from nearby.  Most of us were from northern Virginia, and one came from Pennsylvania.  This is one of my favorite parts of photowalks – you always have a big variety in skill levels, photographic agendas, and equipment.  Everyone is there to have fun with photography.

A modern Canon camera, with a pinhole, instead of a lens.

We left the visitor’s center and barely got started, and the crowd was drawn to a big cow.  How many photographers does it take to take a cow’s portrait?

Yeah, I know it isn’t a cow, but, I am a people photographer.  I started after a young maiden in the field, but she was in a big hurry.  She said something about needing to get to her grandmother’s house.

As soon as we turned the first corner, people began stopping and spreading out.  Not unusual.  A photowalk leader lays out a course, but people wander off to follow their own interests.  A photowalk has very few rules; creatives don’t like rules.   We had discussed the general route before we started – two miles, in two hours – but no one is restricted to any boundaries.

I split off from the group for a while and went after some of the actors in the reconstructed stores and shops where the craftsmen demonstrate how things were made back in the 1700s.  These folks are always in character, telling the history of their little piece of Williamsburg.  I really like the cabinetmaker’s shop.  The items they make with period-correct tools show top-notch craftsmanship.  The cabinetmaker/actor was waiting in the front room to explain all aspects of his world.

I went out to Duke of Gloucester Street to catch up with the group and ran across a painter with watercolors, capturing his view.  I’ve always wanted to paint, but he spent all day capturing his one image.  I’ll keep the camera.

We walked along the street, taking in all the sights.  We had a nice, leisurely walk.  The weather was cool and cloudy, with a couple minutes of drizzle.  We stopped into the general store, but there were no Cokes in the 1700s, so I was out of luck.  The proprietor tried to sell me some of his colonial candy.  I was more interested in a portrait of him with his wares.

Colonial Williamsburg, as we’ve told you before, is loaded with photo opportunities.  If you get the chance to stop by, make sure you have your camera with you.  Several of us stopped into a nice restaurant at the end of the walk.  We did some chimping and solved many of the world’s problems while we dined on some fine modern food.  You should plan to come with us next year.  It’s always a fun time.

We had the opportunity to meet the oxen on the farm.

Olly, olly, oxen free

They seemed to be enjoying their day off, but that cud (sic) just be my imagination.  We cobbled together a full day of sightseeing.  Photographically, I tried to exclude the evidence of this century from the pictures. The cooler temps helped keep the crowds down, which made the framing of the shots much easier. One of the neat things the visitor center now provides is the opportunity to rent period costumes for the day.  This little girl seemed right at home. The town crier was happily announcing a merchandise sale on the green, while the apothecary worked away in her shop.  Each of the craftsmen and women really get into the details of preserving the skills of their trades.  The wheelwright was ironing out some of his issues, while we watched.  At the end of the day we visited the Governor’s palace.  I can remember visiting here and being duly impressed when I was 6.  It still impresses today.   All I will show of the photowalk is the picture we took of the photographer shooting our group portrait.  Tough to shoot when you are laughing.  

Well, here it is on the Tuesday before the World-Wide Photowalk Weekend and I am beginning to get excited about the walk already.  As of today there are over 1100 walks with more than 25,000 walkers. There is still time to sign up; wherever you are, there is a site nearby. 

Hmmm, what should I do to get ready to go?

Prepare your camera.  Before the walk it is a good idea to go through a few things which will make your day much better.

1. Make sure all your batteries are fully charged.  Almost nothing is worse than taking out your system and turning it on only to find it is dead.   It is smart to keep an extra set with you.

2. Clean out your memory cards.  I try and reformat my cards after I have safely downloaded them and backed them up.  Reformatting helps prevent corruption errors caused by old data.  Be sure and have lots of memory with you.  I’m planning on carrying 2 16GB cards and will have another 20 GB or so with me in the camera bag. You want to shoot LOTS of pictures.

3. Try and pick out your lenses before you go.  You don’t want to haul a giant TEMBA backpack with every gadget in the known universe inside.  My recommendation is to select one or two and stick with them.  I plan on taking my 105mm 2.8 Macro lens and my big lens as well.  Williamsburg has lots of neat details and that is what I really like to shoot. 

4. Now that you have the lenses picked out, CLEAN THEM.  Yep, use your lens brush or soft lens cloth and ensure those lenses are as clean as you can make them. If your camera has an image sensor cleaning mode, clean that as well.  Please do not try and put anything on the sensor, unless you really know what you are doing.

5. If you haven’t done it in a while, take out the manual for your camera and look it over.  Just refreshing your memory on what all of those buttons and dials are supposed to do can stimulate you to try something new.  What does that Auto Focus lock button really do?

6. Pick out some comfortable clothes and shoes, and take a hat.  You will be walking a couple of miles-hopefully- and you want nice loose-fitting stuff so you can bend down and get that perfect shot.  If you need it, take sunscreen. 

7. Take a bottle or two of water; it is important to stay hydrated.

8.  Part of the fun is sitting around in some local watering hole or ice cream shop at the end of the walk and “chimping” with your fellow shooters as you share the images taken along the way. You’ll need a few dollars in your pocket for those snacks so you can hang around and chat.  Half the fun is meeting others who share your passion.  OBTW, it is called chimping because photogs always go “Ooooh, oooh, ooooh” when they see a good picture.

9. Lastly, but most importantly—Have fun!  Talk to the people, share tips.  Ask about their equipment and be engaged when people ask about your toys as well.  There will always be someone there with more expensive equipment.  So what?  It is the vision behind the camera that counts.  The 12-year old kid with the point-and-shoot might just get the best pic of the day!

Street photography has a long and storied history.  Many photographers have made it their primary effort.  They captured little slices of everyday life, making great photos from seemingly mundane settings.

There are many great examples of street photography for you to discover, and I urge you to look at them.  Find the photographs that talk to you, and try to figure out what you like about them.  This is a great way to learn, and the price is right.  Many are presented in black and white.  Since, historically, you had to load film, you made that choice at the beginning of your photo session.  (And, of course, the farther back you go, that was your only choice.)

Today, we have the choice.  There are lots of reasons to stick with traditional black and white.  Colors can distract your viewer’s attention away from your subject.  Maybe you just want to make your images in the style of the old street photographers.  You can hit the topic cloud at the bottom of the current blogs to find black and white topics from our earlier entries.

I usually expand the definition beyond just images of people on a street since I don’t live in a crowded, urban area.  I make my “street” images wherever I happen to be.  It might be in Fairbanks, Alaska, with a street musician (they’re always happy to let you snap some shots).

Street performers are another group that will gladly cooperate with your efforts.  You don’t have to worry about asking them if you’re a shy person.  They are out there to be seen.

But there really is no reason to be shy.  I have rarely been refused when I asked for permission to take a quick photo.  I found the next photo in Alexandria, Virginia.  There we were, in one of the historical parts of our state, with a big flag on the building behind this New Age tea vendor.  How could you pass this one up?  As soon as he saw what I wanted, he happily posed for several shots.

Last weekend, I was up in Boston, walking downtown, and we stopped into the open air market.  The vendors completely ignored my camera.  They were trying to get a few more sales while the weather was nice.

For someone who likes making images of people, it’s just another fun way to practice your craft with spontaneity, shooting without all the reflectors and lights. You get to meet lots of new people and share interesting stories.  While we were out, we ran into Kevin McBride.

You don’t know Kevin?  Well, Kevin is an Irishman who currently resides in Boston.  He was a heavy weight boxer, and, in June 2005, he beat Mike Tyson in a 6th round TKO.  We met Kevin near Harvard Square.  He talked with us for a while and had no problems with me shooting some up-close shots, including this typical boxing pose.

So get out there and make some images of new acquaintances and people just enjoying themselves.  You’ll have fun, too.

Great Hat

I’ve been visiting to Colonial Williamsburg for a very, very long time.  Each and every time I visit, I find something new.  Pretty good for a place that is so “old”, ok most of it has been rebuilt since the 1930’s.  This year they moved the World Wide Photowalk to October, because July was just too hot.  Fall in Williamsburg is just beautiful.  So this is your chance to stroll around the scenic corners of Duke of Gloucester Street with your camera, and a bunch of photographic friends.  It is really easy to sign up online at:  http://worldwidephotowalk.com/walk/williamsburg-va-united-states/

This will be my fifth annual walk. Each time I go, I am surprised to see just how photographer can each walk along the same path and yet see such different things.  Just the slightest variation in composition, aperture and shutter speed make each image unique. 

Did we mention there is literally thousands of dollars worth of prizes?  Each walker gets to submit their best image and the group leader has to select that for submission to the world wide contest.   As of today, there are only 892 walks scheduled and only 16936 other photographers who will be trying for those prizes.

If you are within a few hours of Williamsburg, come out and join us.  It will be