Article in Digital SLR Photography Magazine

The August issue of Digital SLR Photography Magazine now features an article called The Complete Picture, in which several of the world's top photographers (their words!) give their tips on how to master travel photography. Marsel's famous Victoria Falls image was used as the opening spread, as well as 8 other wildlife images. In the wildlife section Marsel talks about how to plan for your trip and about his favorite places to shoot wildlife.

Serenity In White

This was shot on our last White & Wild Japan tour.

On this trip we visit the main island Honshu to photograph the snow monkeys, and we visit the Northern island Hokkaido to photograph Japan's spectacular birdlife; white-tailed eagles, Steller's sea eagles, the endangered Japanese cranes, and whooper swans. These swans can also be photographed outside of Japan, but nowhere do you get to shoot them with such stunning scenery and backdrops as on Hokkaido. We visit this great lake that freezes over in winter, except for a few parts close to shore where warm water from natural hot springs runs into the lake. Obviously, the swans like to swim there, and as the rest of the lake is frozen, there are many swans in a few relatively small areas - perfect for photographers.

On this particular morning the conditions were very good - a crystal clear sky with a good view of the mountains in the background, fog, some soft sunlight, and a lot of swan activity. We got flocks flying low over our heads, fly-by's, landings, take-offs, wing flapping and dancing.

What I like about this shot are the different activities all in one image; sitting, sleeping, flying, landing and calling (the one on the far right in the distance). It's a shame there's no sound with this picture, because that can be pretty impressive.

If you would like to join us on our next White & Wild Japan workshop, please check out the White & Wild Japan page on our website for more information, pictures and tour impression video clips.

Marsel

At The Gates

Of all the National Parks that I have ever visited in the US, Arches NP is without a doubt the most iconic one. Millions of photographs have been shot here, and to come up with something different is not easy. That does not mean one shouldn't try though, and I personally greatly enjoy thinking of new possibilities to photograph iconic subjects.

Double Arch is one of them. When you're standing below this imposing marvel of nature, it's hard not to be impressed by the size and the beauty of this amazing structure. From my research before my visit to Arches, I learned that 99.9% of all the images of this arch are more or less taken from the same viewpoint. I'm sure one of the reasons for this is that you need some distance to get the whole thing to fit inside your frame - standing inside the arch is not going to work. Unless of course you have a 14mm on a full frame camera. :-) But even then it was tough to find a position where I could get all the openings and the lines at the right places - it only worked with a vertical composition. And I was perfectly fine with that, because the vast majority of images taken of this arch are all horizontals.

I also decided to photograph the arch at night and to bring out the details and colors by using a flashlight. The advantage of doing this also meant that there would be stars, and stars are nice. I wanted to include part of the Milky Way, which meant that I had only a very short window of time to take the shot. These decisions were all very important in order to create something original, but the most important one for me was to include a human figure. As always, Daniella was so kind to risk her life by climbing into the arch Her presence really brings the shot to life and it acts as a vital scale element. The fact that most landscape photographers don't like humans in their pictures is always a nice bonus when you're trying to create something original. :-)

This was shot three years ago as a double exposure - one for the sky with my lovely assistant, one for the light painting. We tried to shoot it again with our group on this year's Arches Under The Stars workshop, but the weather gods did not want to cooperate. They gave use snow the next day though, so that made up for that.

If you would like to join us on our next Arches Under The Stars workshop, have a look on our website for more information.

Marsel

Interview in N-Photo Magazine

We just returned from Africa - without our luggage of course. What else is new?

We started 7 weeks ago in Namibia with this year's Namibia Untamed tour, after that we spent two weeks in South Africa scouting for a new (and still top secret) tour, we then returned to Namibia to try some new ideas for a personal project I've been working on since last year, and we finished it all off with a week in the Kalahari desert.

Life goes on, so there are some things we missed while we were away. One of them was Holland getting kicked out of Euro 2012, another one was my interview in N-Photo magazine. N-Photo is the world's only independent magazine for Nikon DSLR photographers, and their June issue featured an extensive article on my photography with lots of pictures to go with it. If you're a Nikon user and have never read the magazine - give it a try.

Silent Remains

We just returned from this year's Namibia workshop - great as always. Even though this was already our 9th or 10th visit, I still consider it a huge privilege to be able to walk around in the incredibly stunning landscapes this amazing country has to offer. What surprises me every time, is that even though I know most of the locations we visit by heart, and have taken thousands of images there, I still see new compositions that I missed on previous visits. This changes from year to year. Last year for instance, I suddenly saw way more possibilities than the years before, and I still wonder what caused that. One day you're really struggling to get anything decent, the next you see nothing but great shots to be taken all around you. Anyway, this is one from last year's visit to Namibia's most iconic location: Deadvlei. Shot early morning during pre-glow.



If you would like to join us on next year's Namibia Untamed tour, please check out our website for more information, images, dates, prices and tour impression video clips.

Marsel

Review: RainCoat Pro by LensCoat

Introduction

For years I've been using rain covers from StormJacket for a number of reasons: they're compact, lightweight, quick and easy to put on, effective, and cheap. But you can't get all that without making some compromises. The StormJackets are not breathable, not quiet, and offer no easy access to the controls. Although this is not necessarily a problem, there are occasions where it is.

Most 'serious' rain covers however, are complicated, bulky designs that take forever to put on, and are often expensive. Some of those designs require you to use a dedicated eyepiece. My first serious rain cover was one from Kata. I don't recall the exact name, but it must have been the most time-consuming and complicated rain cover ever. We were going to visit Kenya during the rainy season, and I needed something to protect my 600 mm so that I could continue shooting in the rain. Bad weather is good weather for a nature photographer, so a rain cover is a standard item in my bag. But this one was designed by a hamster, so it made absolutely no sense - I literally had to take the lens off to be able to put the cover on. Not something you want to do in pouring rain. Needless to say that it took too much time and hassle to use it, so I ended up using a towel or a rain jacket instead. 

Enter the RainCoat by LensCoat. You probably know LensCoat from the neoprene covers they offer for lenses and tripod legs, as well as a range of pouches for various photography items. They now also offer a rain cover, and from looking at the specs, I was interested enough to give it a try.

The RainCoat is best described as something between a StormJacket and the more bulky, complicated and expensive covers.

There are two versions: the RainCoat Standard and the RainCoat Pro. The standard version fits DSLRs with small lenses up to 100-400/400mm f5.6., whereas the Pro version is designed for DSLRs with lenses from 200-400/300mm f/2.8 - 800mm. I have the Pro version to fit my 600/4.0.

The RainCoat is available in different designs; three solid colors and four camo patterns. At the time when I got mine, the Realtree Max4camo version was the only option, so that's what I use now. I always think the camo gear looks a bit silly, especially when you're not hiding underneath a ton of branches. You're not fooling anyone - the animals will notice you.

The Fabric

The first thing I noticed, was the fabric - it's different from all the other rain covers I have used and seen. The fabric is called poly tricot, and it is much softer to the touch, less plasticky. The most obvious advantage of this is that the rain cover is super quiet. Sound may not be an issue when you're shooting landscapes, but when you're shooting some shy animal, you don't want sound like a bag of crisps every time you try to access your rain cover.

Another advantage of this fabric is that it is breathable. Both my StormJacket and Kata rain covers are not, and this often leads to condensation inside the cover. The moment you access the rain cover with your warm, wet hand(s), this can already happen. It's nothing serious for the camera, but it usually fogs up your viewfinder - not something you want to happen when you're about to shoot those two snow leopards fighting in the rain.

Obviously, a rain cover needs to be waterproof. Based on my short field test, I'd say it is. Every time I used the RainCoat, the camera and lens stayed completely dry.

Shooting sea birds: wind, waves and sea spray

The Design

Even though the quiet material and the breathability are important features, the design is the most important one for me. I don't want to waste valuable shooting time figuring out how to put my rain cover on. When it's too much hassle, it's very likely that I won't use it, or too late. That means that the camera will already be wet from the first drizzle and condensation will occur when you put the rain cover on then. Luckily, the RainCoat is extremely simple to put on, and it only takes a few seconds. 

At the bottom of the RainCoat is a large velcro opening - you simply shove the lens in there and then the rest of the set up. You'll be able to do this very fast, and when you've done so, your gear is already protected from the rain. What follows is just a matter of fine tuning the cover to get a tight fit. You can either close the velcro at the bottom, or you can leave it open for even better breathability. This will also give you easy access to the focus or zoom ring.

As always, the difference between a good product and a great product, is in the details. The front end of the hood section has a thin rubber coating that will prevent it from moving or slipping off. A big improvement over my StormJackets that don't have this. The RainCoat uses a velcro strap to tighten this part of the cover, and it does the trick quickly.

At the other end things are just as simple. The RainCoat is not a completely closed system - the part where your body is, is open and can be closed with a drawstring. You might think that this is not the most waterproof solution, and it isn't. But, I greatly prefer this over the closed designs that necessitate a dedicated eye piece. Those covers take way more time to put on, they condensate easily and often fast, and each camera requires a different eye piece. On our tours and workshops I've seen many different systems, and without exception the eye piece designs took ages to put on, and to take off again. It's just not for me. The drawstring works fine. I can leave the whole thing open when there's not a lot of rain or when I want quick and easy access to the buttons, and I can close it in a second by pulling the drawstring. This is the same way the StormJackets work, but the RainCoat has something extra.

The RainCoat features an integrated pocket with a foldaway arm sleeve, located next to where the grip of your camera is. You simply open the pocket, and the arm sleeve appears. The sleeve gives easy access to the camera controls, and I see no reason not to use it. The alternative is to keep it closed and access the controls from the back. This works, but it means you have to keep the opening rather wide, which might not be what you want when there is a lot of rain or wind. Inside the pocket there is a small compartment where you can keep a lens cloth and cards - good thinking.

Another great feature of the RainCoat is the cinch straps. With these straps you can adjust the cover length by folding the material over itself, and keep cover snug. This is particularly useful when there is a lot of wind - no flapping of loose material.

The Pro version comes with a hood extension sleeve for 600mm and 800mm lenses that I have not used yet, but it seems very simple to attach.

Shooting in areas with geothermal activity, means shooting in sulphuric steam. No problem with the RainCoat.

In The Field

I have used the RainCoat on my recent trip to Iceland, the perfect country for testing a rain cover. One of the things that Iceland is famous for, is horizontal rain. Especially in the Southern part of the country the wind can be pretty wild. It was because of those strong winds that I quickly learned to appreciate the cinch straps.

But in Iceland there is more to worry about than only rain, snow and wind. It's an island, so it has plenty of coast, and some parts are incredibly beautiful. Strong winds mean high waves, and high waves mean lots of spray. Sea spray may resemble drizzle, but the difference is that sea spray contains salt. Salt is corrosive and therefore bad for your gear, so you don't want it on your camera or lens.

On dry days, away from the sea, I still ended up using the RainCoat for very specific circumstances I hadn't thought of before. Iceland has 180 volcanoes, of which 18 are known to be active. As a result, there are a lot of places with geothermal activity where shot steam rises from deep inside the earth. These locations are extremely photogenic, but the steam is something to watch out for. Not only will your cold camera condensate in a second when you walk through it, the steam also contains a lot of sulphur - really bad for your gear. I felt much more comfortable walking around with my gear protected by the RainCoat.

At the end of a shoot, removing the LensCoat is as easy as putting it on. It's not really important how you fold the thing, the mesh storage pouch is big enough for it to fit. And the fact that it's mesh, means that it will continue to dry inside the pouch.

Conclusion

This is a great rain cover. It's tape seam sealed, so completely waterproof, but that's what you expect from a rain cover. The RainCoat may be larger, heavier and more expensive than my StormJackets, it also has a lot more to offer. At the same time, the RainCoat is still much more compact, more lightweight, more quiet, more flexible, easier to put on and less expensive than most of the competition. For me, that makes the RainCoat the rain cover of my choice for all my long lenses. For shooting with lenses up to a 70-200, I will continue to use my StormJackets.

Highly Recommended.

Marsel

New Iceland photo tour now online!

As most of you will know, we have traveled in Iceland extensively last month to set up a new photo tour there. It was a truly spectacular experience and we're excited that we can now officially introduce the Iceland Winter Wilderness Tour 2013.

We already got so many enthusiastic reactions on the iPhone shots that Daniella posted on her Facebook page when we were still in Iceland, and on the awesome video impression she made soon after, that the first tour was already fully booked before it even officially existed. Which is why we set up a second tour that will start a few days after the first one:

Iceland Winter Wilderness: 14-23 March 2013

Here's the introduction text from the Iceland photo tour page on our website:

Iceland is a country of boiling mud pools, spurting geysers, vast glaciers and countless waterfalls. Its breathtaking landscape is even more spectacular in winter. Snow accentuates the black lava fields, and in the evening we may marvel at the dancing lights of the aurora in the night sky. We will photograph magnificent waterfalls, vast glaciers and seascapes, and along the way pass lava fields, craters, volcanoes, and fields of volcanic ash. One of the highlights is Jökulsárlón, the largest glacial lagoon in Iceland with floating icebergs and surreal ice-covered black beaches. This tour offers you more photography and less driving; a chartered plane will fly us to the North for some of Iceland’s most scenic landscapes.

If you want more information, please visit the Iceland page on our website. You can also download a 14 page PDF with even more info there.

This trip is suitable for photographers of all experience levels. There will be daily briefings, in the field instructions, and image reviews. You'll return with spectacular images!

Spouses and non-photographing travel companions will also enjoy this amazing trip!

If you're interested, don't wait too long with your booking - the second tour is filling up very fast as well...

Marsel & Daniella

Interview on 500px

Marsel has been interviewed by 500px. You can read the entire interview here.

Marsel's Images Featured on WeTransfer

Ever since they first started, WeTransfer has been our favorite way to transfer large files. Their interface is the cleanest and easiest around, they allow you to send files up to 2GB, and best of all: it's free!

We're proud that WeTransfer has chosen two of Marsel's images to be featured as a wallpaper on their website. When you're going to use their services in the next days, you should see either his star trail shot or his running oryx shot, both from Namibia.

New video: Iceland Winter Wilderness

The video impression of our Squiver Photo Tour is ready! On 23 April the tour will go live on our website. And when it does, you will be able to find detailed information and make a booking for this spectacular tour.

We noticed when posting the new video for Turkey, that subscribers to our blog receive an email where the embedded video is not visible. We apologize for this - something is not going well between Blogger and Vimeo. So for all of our subscribers: please have a look at the video on Vimeo.

Iceland - Part III

(all shots made by Daniëlla with her iPhone and some funky iPhone post-processing apps)

We have returned from Iceland and it was absolutely wonderful. Can't wait to go back again! So let me share with you our last ten days.

In the north there was still a lot of snow, which prevented us from visiting some of the places we had in mind. We wanted to go to a nice waterfall, but it was located along a treacherous small road. When the road turned into a trail through a grassland, we decided not to test the car again as there was no other traffic around to pull us out of the mud. But there were some nice Icelandic horses. They stay out in the open all year round, so they get this beautiful furry coat. Really fluffy and good looking. And they are very docile too. So Marsel picked his target and decided to lie flat on his tummy in the snow. Brave man :-) The horses however were so curious, that they constantly came too close to get a sniff at us and they even followed us around when we went walking. They make nice subjects, looking very handsome in the snow. 

Although they are small in size, the Icelandic horse is very strong and can handle the cold weather very well.
But don't make the mistake of calling them ponies. They will start kicking & screaming!

For our last week in Iceland we wanted to return to the south again, because we skipped a lot of good spots there at the start of the trip. They say about Iceland that the wind always blows and the rain always falls horizontally - well... they are right! It was raining so hard when we were there early March, that it was not possible to make any shots at the time. 

We rented a small cottage, so we did not have to adjust to a schedule for breakfast or dinner at a hotel. Luckily for us, the weather around Vik was dry, so we were able to scout the area very well and take some nice shots.

We went back to Skogafoss, one of the well known waterfalls in Iceland. Although we were there in the middle of the day and the sun was out, we had a great time. Funny how you can shoot in Iceland practically all day long. As long is it is relatively dry, it works. The sun played with the spray of the waterfall and gave us a gorgeous rainbow. Did you know, that if you move closer to the waterfall, the rainbow becomes smaller and changes shape? I didn't. For one of the pictures Marsel took, he wanted me to stand really close to the waterfall. I got very very wet from all the spray, but also saw a circular rainbow. No, no picture. My iPhone would not have survived all that water.

Skogafoss, one of the most famous waterfalls in the south of Iceland.

There are a number of very well known sea scapes in the south as well, which make nice subjects for sunrise or sunset.... provided there is one :-) But we also discovered some very nice caves on the beach with beautiful basalt columns. Always wonderful to work with and to shoot details. You have to watch out for the tides in order to ge there, so it involves some planning to go.

When driving in Iceland, it is hard to keep going and not stop for something that you see along the way. One thing we noticed is that there are a lot of abandoned or run down farm houses. Here I have included one, while taking a picture of a waterfall, just to show you some of the surroundings and the atmosphere of the country. 

Another absolute highlight of our trip were the glaciers. There are many of them and Europe's largest glacier is in Iceland. Although it is very tempting to go and walk on them to get a closer look, it is very dangerous. At one of the glaciers there was a plaque mentioning two men that went for a walk and never returned. So if you'd like to do some glacier walking, book a guided tour!

When the sun is gone, the blue ice of the glacier can give the clouds a blueish tint.
All the blue colors in the ice and the sky reflect nicely in the still water.

If you have never seen a glacier with your own eyes (like me) it is quite overwhelming. The size, the colors, the shapes, the high mountains in the background. Really impressive. It makes you feel very small and humble. 

At the end of a glacier, there are usually lakes formed by the melting water and chunks of ice that break off where the glacier ends. The glaciers recede each year, so it will all be different next year. But I am sure it will be just as spectacular!

We will show you some of Marsel's images from Iceland and my video in our next post, when we announce the Squiver Photo Tour in Iceland, which will start end of February 2013. Are you ready to go to Iceland? Join us! A PDF with a detailed tour schedule, tour photos and a video impression of the trip will all be posted on our website and this blog within the next two weeks. So keep your eyes open and make sure to make a booking - we expect the tour to fill really quickly!

Second post from Iceland

(all shots made by Daniëlla with her iPhone and some goofy post-processing apps)
We spent a number of days at the glacier lake, hoping to get some good shots of the northern lights with the huge blocks of glacier ice that were lying on the beach. But it was very hard. The weather in Iceland can change in 5 minutes from clear to completely overcast with a blizzard blowing right into your face. And there were a lot of clouds hiding the northern light from our view. During the day we visited the glacier that produces all the ice blocks in the glacier lake. The colors on the glacier were beautiful.

It is amazing to see the blue and black ice of the glacier Breidamerkurjokull
that expands into the glacier lake Jokulsarlón.  

During our stay at the glacier lake it was full moon, which helped a lot with bringing out the ice blocks on the beach at night. As the northern light seems to come and go really quickly here, we didn't want to miss anything and decided not to have dinner in the guesthouse, but to take hot water with us and have noodle soup in the car. When the moon was out, we started working on a composition, hoping the northern lights would cooperate and appear at the right spot. It was freezing cold and the wind was blowing hard, and we had to wait a long time in the cold, but in the end we got the shot we were looking for. Patience is key. Oh, and lots of warm layers to avoid you from freezing :-)

Speaking of freezing.... we are so glad we came to Iceland at this time of year. The frozen water on all the waterfalls really adds character and makes this beautiful country even prettier to photograph! The spray of the water clings to the rocks and the most interesting ice formations and patterns are formed on the rocks. A real feast!

The half frozen Selfoss waterfall had amazing ice sculptures on both sides.

Last week we traveled to the northern part of Iceland, to well known places like Lake Myvatn and some of Icelands most iconic waterfalls: Dettifoss and Selfoss.

It is always nice to see a location from various sides, as it clearly changes your view on it. In most cases, you just walk to the other side, but with a waterfall.... hm... different story! Below you can see Dettifoss from the east side. You can see the full scale of the waterfall, but the view is somewhat obscured by the snow on the side. But you can also use it to frame your shot :-)

Dettifoss from the east side, where they made a new road in order to give easy access for everyone.

Visiting Dettifoss on the west side was another story. It was quite difficult to get there, as there was a lot of snow. But it was interesting to see it from both the east and the west, as the perspective on the waterfall was quite different. Below is a small movie clip that I made with my iPhone, showing you the view from the west side, where you can get very low and close to the waterfall.

There are several craters in the Myvatn area that you can visit. It is not easy to climb to the rim when the tracks are covered with snow and ice, but the view is worth the effort; both on the crater and the surroundings. Unfortunately, Marsel didn't know I was photographing him, and the distance was too great to shout at him and ask him to stand still, so he is a bit blurry in the shot. But it does give you an idea of how big this crater is. 

Apart from the beauty of the ice and snow, another advantage of traveling here in winter, is that there are hardly any tourists around. In summer it can be really busy in Iceland, because all the roads are easily accessible during the milder summer months. This means that you can visit the highlands of Iceland, which are in the center of the island. However, we prefer the current weather conditions and solitude. We often had the most spectacular locations all to ourselves. A very nice experience.

The only time we were extremely happy to see other people, was when we got stuck! 

We were exploring the back country to look for interesting locations off the beaten track for next year's photo workshop in Iceland, when we suddenly sunk deep into the snow. Hidden underneath it was a large pool of mud that was way too deep for our jeep. Reversing only resulted in spinning wheels and mud being thrown up into the air and onto the car. After various attempts with floor mats, we gave up. Luckily, there was a nice Icelandic man that spotted us waving for help and he offered to pull us out with his big jeep with huge tires. That did the trick. 

The lava from age-old eruptions has solidified and left interesting formations and rock arches behind.
 I swear the arch in the middle is trying to imitate Turret Arch - one of the most iconic arches in Utah :-)

We are glad we have taken the time to do the scouting, because it is actually quite difficult to stick to our plan of getting somewhere around a certain time when we travel. We see so many interesting things along the way, that we stop after driving for just 10 minutes for something that we want to photograph or have a closer look at. No, I am not complaining about it - it just shows how beautiful this country is.

As we were traveling north, the river next to the road gave us a spectacular sight: once frozen over, the water level had risen and all the ice broke. At the curves it was all pushed on the shores by the force of the water, forming two more rivers of ice :-) We drove back and tried a small road that was on the other side of the river, which came much closer and lower to the river than the main road. We asked a farmer for permission to walk on his land and went down to the river. The blocks of ice where huge and stacked up about 3 meters high. We had to be careful walking on the ice, as there were big gaps in between them. And needless to say - the ice was quite slippery.

We are currently staying in a wonderful guesthouse near Godafoss and had another great morning shoot. We left before sunrise and made our way to one of the most impressive waterfalls Iceland has to offer. In order to get a good perspective of the waterfall, we had to climb down, which was a huge challenge. The snow made it difficult to see where we were putting our feet, and at some parts the snow had accumulated, so it was extremely deep and our legs sank right in at times. Getting down to the river's edge was very steep, but we made it... and it sure was worth all the trouble! 

Godafoss is one of the waterfalls in the Skjálfandafljót river.
It runs across a lava field, which is approximately 7000 years old. 

The canyon just below Godafoss is about 100m wide.The waterfall is shaped in the form of a horseshoe and divided into two main falls and a few smaller ones, depending on the amount of water flowing through the river. 

Tonight we are going back to shoot Godafoss after sunset. Northern light predictions are good, so we are planning to stay out for a long time, hoping for the sky to clear a bit later in the evening. I am already looking forward to it :-) 

Daniëlla