Panama on 50mm
By Henri Venable
19 July 2008
As a fairly recent photographer I had grown accustomed to my photography improving by leaps and bounds from week to week and month to month. Suffice it to say, I became distraught almost depressed when the steep upward slant of the "basic" learning curve leveled off at the "intermediate" level of photography. I grew disheartened at the apparent need for copious amounts of equipment and money in order to create the image I wanted. Our culture is a consumer's culture and photography is no exception. Cameras, tripods, memory cards (or film), flashes, batteries, and of course lenses (can't forget the lenses) cost us thousands of dollars and we need them all, or maybe not.
Here started my project. With a camera, a 50mm lens (80mm on my crop body) and some problem solving skills I headed off on a month long excursion through Panama's cities, mountains, and beaches. Where most sane individuals would have taken a telephoto lens, wide angle lens, laptop, extra batteries, a couple of flashes, and a tripod, I didn't. My strategy was creativity, thinking outside the box and making do with the paltry amount of equipment available. Included with this article are photos showing just how versatile a single lens can be when coupled with patience and the right mindset.
Did I get a photo of an alligator or tapir? Nope, but I never expected to. I knew from the start I wouldn't overcome all the limitations of my equipment (let alone have the luck to see those animals in the wild). This project was an effort to rejuvenate the fun of photography and it's done just that.
I encourage you all to exercise your creativity. Take a month with a prime lens (or a zoom fixed at a certain focal length) and photograph anything and everything that pleases you. Forget your flashes, tripods, light meters and what have you. Leave them all behind for a month, challenge yourself, but most importantly just have fun.
