What camera/lens do you use?

This is probably the most common question I get. While I generally consider the equipment to be a bit lower on the list of things I consider “interesting” about a photograph, I’m also an engineer and I definitely understand the desire to know what equipment was used.

Currently, the main camera body I use is a Nikon Z9. Previous to the Z9 I used a Nikon D850 (and I sometimes still use it). And while it’s been a long time since I’ve used it, some photos are from an old Nikon Coolpix 8700.

More often than not, when someone is asking about my equipment it’s because they’re seeing a closer or more detailed photo than they’re used to. Those shots are probably using my Nikon 800mm/F5.6E lens, which is a beast of a lens in every sense of the term. It weighs a ton, but takes outstanding photos. It comes paired with a factory-matched 1.25X teleconverter, which can get you to 1000mm at F7.1 which can be very helpful when shooting whales, Peregrine Falcons and other critters where it’s not possible/practical to “zoom with your feet”. This is also the lens I use for my astrophotography shots (except for the wide shots like the Milky Way).

I won’t bother listing out the other lenses I use. They’re primarily Nikon/Nikkor lenses in both F-mount and Z-mount. I have a few Sigma and Tamron lenses too.

Did you use a filter?

Second only to the equipment question is one of these similar questions: “Did you use a filter?”, “What filter did you use?”, “Did you tweak it?”. Sometimes this question comes from a genuine curiosity and desire to learn and understand. More often than not, it feels like it’s a subtle criticism/critique, something to the effect of “My photos may not look quite as good as yours, but that’s because mine are straight out of the camera and more ‘real’.” I could go on at length on this subject, and I might write my own page on the topic some day. In the mean-time Brad Hill, a renowned photographer wrote an excellent article on this topic: Reality in the Age of Digital Photography

But to answer the direct question, I typically don’t use “filters” (which is a somewhat nebulous term in photography these days), but I do shoot in RAW format, which essentially mandates that I process them and make changes/decisions on how to render the photograph. I typically also adjust for exposure, tone, balance, etc. I rarely add/remove things from my photographs or create composites (with the exception of exposure-stacking and focus-stacking). I have absolutely nothing against composites or making more extreme changes - I just don’t tend to do that. I will sometimes try to de-emphasize certain elements in a scene by dodging/burning or other similar techniques. My goal is to try and recreate my perception of the scene. Perception can be affected by a variety of things, including one’s mood while viewing a scene. What I try to do is create something that helps others feel what I felt. Here are a couple quotes from the great Ansel Adams, saying better and more succinctly what I have attempted to convey.

“You don’t improve nature. You reveal your impression of nature or nature’s impact on you.”

“Photograph not only what you see but also what you feel.”

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.”

I do occasionally use actual filters (the glass type that you put on the end of your lens). I have ND (Neutral Density) filters which I use if I want to reduce the amount of light so that I can use a slower shutter speed. I also have polarizing filters which I use to reduce reflections.

How much do you charge?

My fee depends on a variety of factors. Rather than create and post a fixed price list, I’d prefer to have a conversation. Feel free to send me an email at david@chamberlinnature.com.