Whether climbing a mountain or riding white water, the adventurous will want to share their enjoyment, but capturing the exhilaration and adrenaline rushes calls for careful preparation
The only way to photograph adventure is to participate in that adventure yourself. This doesn’t mean you have to be an athletic adrenalin junkie. You simply need a sense of adventure and the ability to stretch yourself beyond your normal comfort zone. But before you take off, you should practise your adventure shooting skills. Amateur team sports are a good place to start. There you will learn to follow the action and after some practice your reaction times and techniques will improve dramatically. You will soon see the games as a photographer rather than a spectator.
Adventure photography is about telling a story with pictures. Being close to the action enables you to photograph both the subject matter and people’s emotions as they unfold. Professional photographers will plan their trips from a mental image of each photo they want to shoot. This helps them decide which camera, lenses and other equipment they need to take and how best to carry them.
Invest in robust equipment. A strong camera body with a fast motor drive will give you an advantage when action is unfolding quickly. Good lenses with fast internal focus motors will also be worth their weight in gold – and are sometimes nearly as expensive. You get what you pay for. A camera pole can be made quite easily from a windsurfer mast and is valuable in many situations to provide unusual viewpoints. You will need a cordless remote. Also invest in a sizeable memory card: 8GB or larger is recommended.
There may also be environmental hazards. Safety should be a priority for yourself and those you are photographing. If you don’t think its safe, don’t do it! Above all, be positive and have a heap of fun. If you are having fun, you will take better pictures.
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Catching the drama of the action of river or sea requires swift responses, fast shutter speeds and the agility to get out of the way.
Surfing
If you have a desire to photograph surfers, first consider that you could suffer broken bones, get run over, drown or become shark tucker. But when you get that one shot, it will all be worth it.
The safest and easiest place to take surfing images is from the shore and this usually requires a long telephoto lens like a 400 or 500mm prime and a monopod. If you want a leading brand telephoto they come at a hefty price. Sometimes a wharf, jetty or rocky outcrop will provide a closer, side view.
If you are comfortable in the water getting smashed by big waves, an underwater housing is the way to go. A housed SLR with a fairly wide lens (20mm or fisheye) will enable you to capture a surfer coming towards you inside a tube (breaking wave) and dramatic results are achievable.
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This technique has potential dangers, so make sure the person you intend to photograph knows your location and your intentions. Wearing a helmet and a good pair of swim fins should be a common-sense priority. To gain confidence, and before making a huge camera gear investment, try a cheap throw-away waterproof camera or a compact digital underwater camera.
If your budget is huge, a door-less helicopter will allow you to shoot directly above the wave. Again, safety is paramount and a safety harness and tether line will allow you to hang out of the door for the best viewpoint. A 70–200mm zoom is your best option for aerial work. When surfers are changing direction at the top of a wave, it’s quick action – and your shutter speed should also be quick (1/1000 second).
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The one essential ingredient for great photos is good light. If you have some artistic flair and shoot around sunrise and sunset, outstanding images will often be created.
Kite surfing
In strong winds kite surfers will jump over waves, do rapid turns and launch themselves to astonishing heights. It’s all fast-paced action that needs shutter speeds of 1/1000 second or even faster.
Images of the kite surfer completely airborne against a blue-sky tend not to be stimulating. Trying to capture the kite surfer and the canopy all in one shot is okay if the canopy is low to the water. If, however, the canopy is high above the surfer, it will all be much smaller in the picture area and consequently less dramatic.
It’s easier to photograph kite surfers than surfers because they only need shallow water and often come close to shore. If they do come close, watch out for a huge plume of water from the board which can catch you out and give your camera a salt-water shower it doesn’t need. A plastic camera cover is good if you think it may come into the firing line.
If you only want to invest in one lens a 70–200mm zoom is the obvious choice. A spectacular shot to watch for is a high-speed kite surfer riding his/her board parallel and close to the shore on which you are standing. The board will be closest to you, creating a narrow triangular plume of wake in front of the surfer who is leaning back and almost skimming the water surface behind it. Use fast motor drive and try to catch this action near to sunrise or sunset when dramatic golden sunlight kisses every droplet of water.
Kayaking
It’s reasonably safe to shoot from a kayak provided it’s a long stable boat with a large cockpit. If you haven’t paddled a kayak before, get professional safety training and take a few trips before bringing your camera.
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You cannnot paddle and photograph at the same time. While you are paddling, your camera will be safest in a CPS (camera protection system). The main options are a clear bag (Aquapac), watertight plastic case (Pelican box), or a kayak dry bag. The first option is the easiest as it is small enough to stay on the deck attached by a bungee cord, whereas the other two will need to be stowed under the spray deck, making quick access more difficult.
Lenses from wide to telephoto can all be useful but a mid-range 24–70mm zoom is the most popular choice. A circular polarising filter will reduce reflection and enable you to see through the water surface. As you rotate the filter you will also see the sky become bluer. These only work well when your camera is at right angles to the sun.
Remember to get close and fill the frame with your subject. If you are panning with a moving kayak, experiment with slow shutter speeds (start at 1/15 sec) to emphasise the action. Watch out for overcast skies, which create flat lighting, especially on water.
Andy Belcher/APA
Rafting
Rafting can be wild and wet, depending on the grade of the river. A good vantage point on the riverbank will open exciting possibilities. Be sure to wear a wetsuit and a good lifejacket or buoyancy aid and have a safety line. Then you can concentrate on taking good photos.
Using a wide lens (24mm) and a slow shutter speed (start at ½ sec) will enable small apertures for good depth of field. Pan with the raft as it goes by and adjust shutter speeds so that bodies are sharp but arms and paddles are blurred with action. If you are close enough, fill flash set on rear curtain sync will produce fill light and sharp detail. If you get it right your preview screen will boast wild images which shout “action”.
On board the raft, your DSLR will need to be protected from wild water. The best option is a quality underwater camera housing, albeit rather expensive, with a glass dome port (better than plastic) to accommodate a wide lens. An underwater flash unit will help put light in shadow areas. Don’t overdo the flash. Just “kiss it with light”. F8 and 1/250 sec (flash sync speed for many cameras) should be close, although gorges can be dark and may require an increase in ISO.
Photographing activities that take place in the mountains is a combination of people shots, great views, close ups and wonderful scenery. The mix can provide a dramatic story.
Hiking
Carrying a DSLR on a long hiking trip can be tiring. If you have a serious kit with a body, several lenses, flash, batteries, tripod etc, it will be heavy. Think carefully about the type of images you wish to shoot and then make your gear selection accordingly. If you try to carry it all you will risk serious fatigue and a sore neck and shoulders.
A variety of lenses are used for landscape photography. Wide-angle lenses (14–24mm or even a 24–70mm) are fine if you are standing in front of a huge vista. Slight distortion is not an issue as there are not too many straight lines in nature to worry about. The telephoto, however, is by far the most impressive lens for landscapes and also distant people in the landscape shots. When a 70–200mm zoom is zoomed out to 200mm it tends to compress backgrounds and gives a real impression of size. You might also consider a lens that will be good for close-ups of plants and insects.
A dedicated or on-camera flash is handy for fill flash when including people who are close by in your landscapes. Number one priority is a well-padded camera bag with a comfortable harness and a high quality rain cover. If part or your entire hike includes forest or bush, you will need a tripod, a camera timer function or, better still, a cable release or wireless remote. A small compact lightweight tripod will do the job and easily attach to your bag. When walking long distances it’s easier to have your hands free.
Martyn Goddard/APA
In among tall trees on a clear sunny day contrast can make correct exposure difficult. This is a perfect case for shooting HDR (high dynamic range) images. Take five or seven images with one stop of exposure difference. If shooting seven you start at three stops under-exposed and finish at three stops over-exposed. The extra one is at normal exposure. You must use a tripod to shoot exactly the same scene and use aperture priority so only the shutter speed changes. You will then have recorded the correct exposure in virtually every part of the scene.
Some top-range DSLR’s will shoot all these images in one burst on motor drive. Back on your computer you will then blend all seven images together to make one. The finished image will show wonderful detail and correct exposure across the whole image, even areas normally in deep dark shadow. Photomatix is generally regarded as the best programme for blending HDRs and its quite user-friendly.
Climbing
To be an adventure sports photographer you often have no choice but to be part of the activity and good at it. Climbing certainly requires skill and strength even without a camera. Don’t even think about photographing climbing until you are at an advanced level of training. Suspended on a rock face is not the place to be opening and closing a large camera bag. Take only the camera body (a small light DSLR is perfect sense) and lens (24–70mm zoom is versatile) you intend to use and carry it in a small belt/bag which can be swivelled around your waist.
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Many climbing enthusiasts will already have a bucket load of butt shots, so look for better angles than below. A side view of a climber is often overlooked but has merit. One of the best options is to set up a fixed rope on another route. With a set of ascenders you could even take advantage of two or three different positions during a photo shoot.
Once you have settled in a steady position you will be ready to capture emotion on the climber’s face and also some dramatic background. The most dramatic viewpoint is from above and the best way to shoot it is to lead the climb yourself. If you need more camera gear haul it up in a Pelican box with plenty of inside foam padding and then pull up your rope so it’s out of the shot. A good zoom lens should enable you to shoot variations without constantly changing position.
You won’t get so many facial expressions from above because climbers, constantly looking for footholds, rarely look up. Try to persuade your climbing friends to wear photo-friendly coloured clothing and perhaps a red helmet, so they don’t get lost in the background. One simple piece of equipment will give viewers the impression you, as photographer, are hanging in space. It is the camera pole, which can be held away from the face or even lowered over an overhang.
Great care is needed to ensure every piece of equipment is well secured. You don’t want it falling on anyone.
Skiing
Follow a few simple rules and you will get the most from your photo shoots on the mountain slopes. You can’t take good photos if you are cold, so dress warmly and wear a hat. Fingerless gloves are better than none when handling the camera. You should not wear the camera dangling from your neck by its strap or under your jacket when skiing or snowboarding – if you fell, the camera could injure you. Snow, ice, water and cameras don’t mix so keep your electronics dry in a good quality bag and try to avoid falls. A hip pack integrated with a daypack is a nice stable way to carry it.
Be particularly careful to check all bag zips are in good condition and secured. You don’t want to see your gear plummeting into depths of snow when you are riding the chair lifts. Battery life will always be shorter in cold conditions, so always carry a fully charged spare in a pocket close to your body to keep it warmer. It will then perform better. Murphy’s Law says that the most outstanding photo opportunity will present itself at the moment that your battery runs out of power.
Martyn Goddard/APA
Watch out for other mountain users. Skiers and snowboarders move very fast and collisions can hurt. It is better not to stop under the crest of a hill or in fact anywhere where people coming from higher up the mountain cannot see you. It spoils the fun if you get injured or indeed injure someone else. If you absolutely must stop in a precarious spot to take a picture remove your skis or snowboard and stand them up in the snow to give other riders a clear indication of your whereabouts.
That’s got the rules out of the way, so let’s look at technique. Shoot when the winter sun is low in the sky and use a UV filter to protect your lens and reduce blue discolouration in spectacular mountain scenes. Use slow shutter speeds (1/125th second) for landscape shots and fast shutter speeds (1/1000th second) to freeze the action. Most skiers wear bright colours which look great against the white backdrop.
Snow is highly reflective and tends to fool most cameras’ metering systems. The camera will read from many different parts of your picture area and when they are all white and bright it thinks to itself “wow that’s bright” and reduces exposure value, making the shot too dark. This is easily resolved by simply adjusting your exposure compensation setting to plus 1 stop. Keep reviewing your images to check exposure and don’t forget to change the setting back to normal once you have finished on the mountain.
You may be able to capture some good action if you persuade your friends to build a jump and then photograph them as they do crazy tricks. Snow boarders are good at this so they may be keen for a photo shoot. Lying down in the snow and shooting as they go overhead makes everything look more dramatic.
Some fill flash can be useful to put in detail but don’t overdo it. Tuning its power down by up to one stop looks natural and it’s hard to tell that flash has been used.
If you have enthusiasm, dog-headed determination, work well with people and have an eye for a good picture, your patience will eventually be rewarded with a truly fantastic image.
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Mountain biking
Photographing mountain bikes and cycling in general can be an exhilarating experience with plenty of action and lycra. As well as the rural landscape, great views and colourful riders, there are opportunities to try out your technical skills such as “pull zooms” and using longer exposures.
A good medium range zoom (35m– 80mm) is ideal for most situations, meaning that you carry minimum gear and avoid having to change lenses in dusty, wet or dirty conditions.
For static shots at viewpoints make sure you place riders on “thirds” or at “strong points”. With action shots ensure that they are riding into positive space. Look around for suitable framing such as trees, but also be inventive and maybe try photographing riders through a bike wheel (spokes and all).
Taking photos of a race has gritty action. Try a few “pull zooms” by matching your pull back with the speed of the rider. If done well, the rider should be distinguishable and in focus, while lines of trees, ground and other riders streak towards the edges of the frame.
Less adventurous but equally pleasing are good longer exposure shots. If your camera is indicating that a shot should be taken at 1/250 second, go into shutter priority and bring this down to say 1/60–1/15 second. The camera will work out a newer, higher F-stop setting, giving greater depth of field. You can either use a tripod or hold the camera steady and let the rider come through the frame and be slightly blurred indicating speed and action. Or you can slowly pan with the rider as they pass, which should keep the rider reasonably sharp and give you a blurred background. See what works best. Take plenty of lens cleaner, cloths and plastic bags to protect the camera.
Placing a camera onto the bike or rider is sometimes referred to as using a “suicide camera”. With no guarantee that it will survive, it really should be nearing the end of its natural life. Gaffer tape can place the camera almost anywhere, but of course the main problem is how to release the shutter. Near to the handlebars is pretty easy, as is anywhere around the body or head of the rider. Beyond that, you need to have your own system for firing the shutter, either with an extension cable or remote control. These can be stunning shots, and make a fitting end for a retiring camera.
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Capturing a figure flying through the air is a tricky business that needs preparation and a head for heights.
Paragliding
Paragliding is freedom and about the closest you can get to flying like a bird. Pilots of these wide sleek canopies can glide at speed and cover a lot of ground in a short time, making photography difficult. Photographing paragliders from below tends to give rather boring results. Unless you can see dramatic cloud formations or the moon, the sky rarely provides an interesting background and doesn’t give the viewer a sense of place or scale.
A better option is to perch on top of a steep cliff, as paragliders will often fly at your level and sometimes below you. These adventurous men and women of the sky tend to relish the thought of seeing good images of themselves in action. You need to be ready, as they will often perform daredevil turns and swoops once they spot a photographer with a long lens.
A good 70–200mm zoom lens is perfect. Vibration reduction is a useful feature in low light. However, it makes little difference at shutter speeds faster than 1/500 second (recommended for paragliding) and should be turned off. You will need to pan with the subject and use focus tracking. As far as aperture is concerned, the old quote “f8 and be there” is a good one. If the sun is in front of you and low in the sky it will cause sun flare (odd-shaped blue spots) in the lens which will spoil your picture.
With good concentration and fast motor drive it’s worth trying to capture that split second when the paraglider blocks the sun as it glides through, making a stunning silhouette.
Alex Havrett/APA
Taking good photos of yourself while flying a paraglider may be restricted to holding out a lightweight camera at arm’s length. Mounting an expensive camera on the canopy or yourself probably isn’t an option, as it may become a dangerous appendage during landings. Many flying machines are used for aerial photography, including the powered paraglider.
Bungee Jumping
Viewpoint options for bungee jumping are from above, from below, from the side or even a camera going down with the jumper. If you can persuade the bungee operators to allow you access to the jump platform it provides a dramatic viewpoint. With a harness and tether line you could lean out over the edge beside the jumper and your photo will give the impression they are jumping off the edge of the world.
A fisheye lens is a perfect choice to give that “edge of the world curvature” and an aperture of f11 or smaller will give enormous depth of field. This will allow you to preset the focus to provide a DOF of 0.4 metre to infinity (at f11). Use aperture priority, aim the camera below and adjust your ISO to give a shutter speed of 1/1000 sec. Set your camera on its fastest motor drive. Some of the high-tech DSLRs will produce up to 11 frames per second. Finally, frame the shot and pick some points on the landscape to help you relocate your viewpoint quickly.
To ensure that your jumper will come into your picture area give them a quick briefing and also ask for a nice body position, although you won’t always get it. It’s a pretty crazy thing they are doing and nerves will be kicking in. If you have the luxury of deciding their clothing colour, too, pick something that won’t get lost in the background. Red always works well in a landscape as it complements the greens.
You are now ready to shoot, so organize a countdown with the jumpmaster. You need to be ready because it all happens extremely quickly. When it gets to “go” be aware of the jumper beside you. Once you sense that gravity is taking over, press and hold the button until the camera buffer fills and it stops shooting. This could be as many as 30 images in one burst. If you have done your work well, one of those images will be a winner.
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