Sleeping Sea Lions

I often like to photograph sea lions, and I have been slowly working on a sea lion project that will perhaps someday be made into a an exhibit and/or book.

Besides their accessiblity, I am intrigued by the enigma of their behavior: When they are awake, they could hardly be more surly and belligerant toward each other. From the instant they wake up, they are quick to shout or snap at seemingly any other sea lion to enter their space. And yet, when they go to sleep, they huddle by the dozens, even hundreds, in such close proximity that you can hardly see a patch of ground between any of them. They pile over each other sometimes two or three deep, with any and every part of them pressed up against any and every part of each other... face to face, tail to face, and all other combinations. While they sleep, they seem to press into each other and cuddle in the most intimate ways with, as far as I can tell, any other, regardless of age, sex, status, or relation.

It's a bizarre and strangely beautiful sight which leaves me feeling touched.

They are very expressive, which also makes them a pleasure to photograph.

A lens full of them also makes for a very constrained color palette, which can be shown to beautiful effect. Add to this the way that the eye areas and snout are somewhat lighter in color than the dark bodies, and add the wonderful texture of the fur, and you could hardly ask for more, in terms of photogenicity.

For my project, I am shooting them in a somewhat "tenebrist" style. Tenebrism, from the Italian word tenebroso, meaning "murky", is an offshoot of chiaroscuro. Instead or rendering light and dark in gradual tonal transitions to create a sense of space and form, as in chiaroscuro, tenebrism renders light and dark in sharp contrast with each other, without much transition, often in order to express relative value. In the tenebrist style, darkness is often negative, metaphorically as well as literally the absence of light; and brightness is likewise where the light shines.

It can have an effect of luminous subjects emerging from shadowy void, and often suggests exalted status.

In this case, I use it to try to create (loosely speaking) a reverential sense about the intimacy the sea lions share when they sleep.

To find/create tenebrist effects, I look for situations where the background is much darker than the subject (or, at least, parts of the subject). It also helps if the subject is very close to the background, so that the subject's shadow is immediately adjacent to the subject. Lastly the effect can be somewhat heightened with a boost in contrast, during processing.

I took ths picture in fairly dim, but beautiful light. My exposure, if I'm remembering correctly, was 1/60th of a second at f/8, at ISO 1600. It was shot handheld with a 300 mm lens, with a 2x teleconverter. The entire frame, uncropped, is shown.

I hope you enjoy it.


© Mike Spinak

www.mikespinak.com

Mike,

I remember when you posted terns in flight and images of hawks riding with thermal currents over the mountains such that they could almost stay stationary high above their hunting fields. Your descriptions are so rich and interesting that they invite one to go out and try to emulate your work.

One thought of yours impressed me in particular:

Mike Spinak said:

This shot was the result of assessing the situation, understanding what was going on, and developing an effective strategy.

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Here again you provide generous insight to your thoughts in planning and making the picture.


This is where my postulate of an Arc of Intent works, the thinking and planning, working and experiencing, before and during making the picture, so that all these thoughts and feelings are embedded, ready to be reinvoked by the observer, allowing the joy to be experienced all over again!

We look at these sea lions and immediately we know we are looking at a warm bond. The dark background wastes no brain energy, just forces us to find meaning in the foreground and there's a lot to enjoy.

The expression of the sleeping sea lion on the left is almost that of a person in ecstatic comfort, proud and confidant, happy and comfortable, secure and in the best possible place. The closed eyes of the other animal confirms all these fealing without us seeing as much. The closed eyelids and the position of the head towards the first sea lion is sufficient for us to get it.

The seep of the whiskers on the left brings us into the picture and this is balanced by the triangular white patch on the fur of the other creature. The whiskers, half cut off by the frame on the latter animal, act as the achor for this picture to prevent it moveing clockwise or floating off somewhere in the darkness.

Two more aspects of interest to me. The pink fur provides an extraordinary extra signal to bridge to the human experience: the pink color. The gentle tonality in the fur, is the final touch that makes the picture a keeper!

Asher

Thank you, Asher.

Photographic intentionality is significant to me, as you know.

Perhaps some time you can join me for a sea lion photo excursion.

Hi Mike,
Thank you so much for sharing your image and revealing the thought process behind it. For somebody like me whose picture taking M.O. can best be described as 'trigger happy' (my camera is always on continuous shutter mode) , it is a good corrective to hear about the amount of work that took place in your brain before you even lifted the camera. And the results, wow. It's one of those rare and prized images that feel like an 'eternal moment'.

Although I think I'm always going to be rather impulsive and in-your-face as a photographer, you've inspired me to do a little thinking about what it is I'm going to do before I do it.

A very thought-provoking post, and image, Mike - well done!

I often think about the spontaneous vs planned approach in photography, and must admit that in general I lean toward the spontaneous. I think that in part this arises from my "day job" (eye surgeon) and other responsibilities necessitating very careful planning and execution. Going out to shoot nature provides a freedom of action that I find quite satisfying.

That said, there are definitely situations where I do try and anticipate possibilities and have particular shots in mind. Sometimes this works out, often it doesn't. And many of my favorite shots were the result of opportunities that arose while I was out trying to obtain a planned shot.

But your thoughtful preparation, and the wonderful results, will stay in my mind, as I continue to pursue my photography.

Thanks again for the great post.

You are welcome; and, thank you for the kindly responses.

I don't see thoughtful, intentional, planned photography as excluding a spontaneous and free-wheeling approach. This is particularly true with nature photography, where opportunity and unique dynamic exigencies are so fundamental to the endeavor.

To begin with: If, on my way to or from the sea lions, I have an opportunity for a quick grab shot of a sea otter hammering on a clamshell, or a brown pelican flying by, you can be sure I'll take it. I take advantage of whatever good opportunities I can.

More importantly, the intentional and the spontaneous are mixed with most every shot I take. Lengthy experience and reflection leads to the development of a honed sense of what resonates with one's vision, perception, and means of expression. Additionally, careful imagining of opportunities and strategizing (while going to sleep at night, while showering, etc.) helps take advantage of them, when such opportunities present themselves. Moreover, photographic thought processes ("What interests me about this photo opportunity?"; "Why do I want to photograph this?"; "What would I like to communicate with this picture?"; "How should I compose this to articulately express what I want to say?"; etc.) become reflexive and near-instantaneous.

Regarding spontaneous versus planned: Have your cake, and eat it, too.

www.mikespinak.com

I don't see thoughtful, intentional, planned photography as excluding a spontaneous and free-wheeling approach. This is particularly true with nature photography, where opportunity and unique dynamic exigencies are so fundamental to the endeavor.

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Hi Mike,
I guess that's like my approach to travelling -- plan meticulously because the nature of low-budget of travelling is bound to throw you plenty of curveballs for all the 'excitement' you can handle.

© Mike Spinak

www.mikespinak.com[/QUOTE]
So, folks, who has seen animal pictures with more love?

Asher