Perfectly Imperfect
November 7, 2023 by Chad -
Picking and choosing which photos we include in the blog can be a daunting task. I can’t speak for my fellow caregivers, but there’s always some kind of embellishment that makes the photo unusable in my eyes. Whether it be bad lighting, a piece of poop center stage in the photo, a wound, caging getting in the way, a slow shutter speed which makes the photo blurry, etc. There is just always that one tiny thing that makes me call the photo bad, delete it, and move on.
Today is no exception. Between cleaning the enclosures to training new staff members, it has been a busy day here. When I finally got some time to go around and take some photos, I will admit I rushed it a bit. Mostly because though cleaning is over, training still continues into the afternoon as well as other Chimp House chores. I knew right off the bat that most of the photos I took were unusable (in my eyes at least) but I had some confidence there was at least a few decent ones in there some where.
Wrong! The vast majority I wasn’t a fan of. In fact, there wasn’t a single one I’m particularly attached to. There were, however, several that had potential to be great if it wasn’t for one thing or another I saw wrong in them. You might be wondering, “Why don’t you just Photoshop them?” Though Photoshop or any photo editing software is a great tool, we don’t use it in order to maintain our transparency to you all. Other than some basic color correcting, we don’t edit something out or in. Back in a former life as a photojournalist, our rule was simple as it relates to photo editing software. If you can’t do it in a dark room, then you shouldn’t do it in the software. We more or less follow that same basic rule.
That being said, here are some photos from today that had the potential of being great. Enjoy photos that would have been deleted on any other day.
Mave in mid-chew
This photo isn’t the portrayal of Mave I would want. Please trust me when I say she’s not scared here. She was just looking up and chewing snap peas when I took the photo
Honey B during a lunch forage
I forgot to reset the white balance on our camera which is why this and some other photos are either overexposed or have a orange/warm color hue to them. Plus she has a small scrape on her brow probably caused while chasing somebody
Gordo during the forage
I had the shutter speed lower than I thought, which is why this one is overexposed and blurry
Gordo again foraging
The caging got in the way which is why the center of the photo seems lighter than the rest
Gordo again!
The cause of lack of vibrant coloring is because the caging again was in the way. This means the caging was right smack dab in the middle of the lens’ focus
Also, I did spend some time trying correct that last one but it didn’t turn out like I had hoped for
Willy B and Honey B during the forage
This one isn’t terrible. I just took it with my camera phone, which the photographer in me thinks is cheating (I know. It absolutely is not and that’s a mindset that I’ve been trying to break for some time)
Honey B munching on some green onions
Again with my camera phone
Burrito during breakfast with his apples
Low shutter speed again is the culprit in this blurry photo
Dora and Lucky head-to-head
Camera phone again plus it automatically set to a slower shutter speed and blurred Lucky out just a tad
Cy perusing through a magazine after lunch
Caging is off to the side
Rayne watching me yesterday as I was cleaning the mezzanine
This was through a window that wasn’t cleaned yet. I tried to be creative with it, but it didn’t work out
Terry’s foot hanging off the platform in the one of his greenhouses after lunch
Though the caging got in front of the lens messing with the color scheme, this photo is still perfect because Terry is perfect!
Speaking of Terry, have you seen the Teeny Tiny Terry book in the Comfort & Joy auction? It truly is amazing and one of a kind! The auction is up and running through November 18th! Be sure to register and bid high and bid often!Good luck to everyone!
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Chad, you’re too hard on yourself! Any photo of our beloved chimpy people is a bonus, but these are lovely…..if you hadn’t commented, I wouldn’t have critized any of them. Perhaps the next training module for them should be ‘posing and keeping still for the camera’??? Good luck with that one….ha! ha!
Chad, i think i like these more because they ARENT perfect! and my goodness that photo of Dora and Lucky!!! love it! fyi – you must be a great photog because these look great to me!
I love these photos, Chad! Nice action shots, showing these chimp people busily and intently doing what they most enjoy, showing the essence of who they are (a touch of Annie Leibovitz, maybe?). Burrito looking unmistakenly like himself, no matter what he’s doing. I’m viewing on my camera, and I believe they’ll be equally satisfying on my relatively huge desktop monitor. Thank you!
:grin:Are you kidding….. they’re Great pictures and really bring out their personalities …..I love an open mouth of food….More More More
Makes me appreciate your and everyone’s efforts even more! and I already had appreciated them immensely!!
Chad, these photographs are fabulous. Even if they are not to your aesthetic and professional standards, the people you photograped are beautiful.
I’ve seen the Teeny Tiny Terry book. I hope that it gets a better review than my Teeny Tiny Terry tale. A 4-year-old who reviewed it thought that Terry was “too big” to sit on a little block. Ah, there goes our Pulitzer…
Chad, I love the pics of Honey B and Willy B, Dora and Lucky, and your fav dude of all times, Bubba! I wouldn’t have noticed had you not point things out. we can be our own worst critics.
(I also went kicking and screaming to digital. But got a great pic of a Barbary macaque in Gibraltar, and digital allowed me to Zoom in a way that I couldn’t have done myself without a dark room or help).
Chad I agree with everyone you are too hard on yourself. These photos depict the life and joy these chimps bring to me. Having a small window into your life also is great. ?
Chad, we might have moved from dark room to digital but honestly these photos of the chimps are a joy to see and you have caught the personalities 100%. When I think of the million and one tasks you all perform daily at the sanctuary and yet still make time with the camera to snap and share the daily lives of the residents, I think you are amazing. These pics are perfect.
We are all so very blessed to have this little hope, love, home sanctuary that offers us the privilege of intimacy with these precious beings. Every photo brings us joy. We aren’t looking for perfection, we are looking for connection, and we get it every single day. Thank you, all of you blog writers. You don’t realize what your words and photos mean to us. Truly.
I agree with your words Paulette!
But I also understand Chad’s perfectionmode; it has been his job so that comes with that territory.
Tough to let some thing go isn’t it Chad? :kissing_heart:
When I was in college I had a Pentax K1000 camera, purchased for my first photography class. I carried it with me throughout my life. The day I could no longer (readily) purchase film crushed me! Like Linda stated above….”I went kicking and screaming” into the digital world, too. But now we all have the ability to capture moments simply by pulling a device out of our pocket. The coolest part is that you can take tons of “bad” photos and trash them if you don’t like them. With film, being costly, that wasn’t an option.
Nature, pets, and your chimpanzee models are often on the move, or worse, turning away from the camera as soon as you set up the shot! But sometimes in the blur if it all, you capture a true essence that wouldn’t have been seen. Burrito as a laughing blurr truly is Burrito. Mave with mouth wide open munching away is the best part of seeing them eating (but I totally get the need to caption such photos so no one misunderstands her expression!) Like everyone here, I love these photos. You nailed it, imperfectly perfect. It’s what YOU see, caging and all and sometimes a little poop, getting in the way. In the end it’s the chimps, your time and effort, and storytelling we love so much. Seriously….. there are no “bad” photos.
I enjoyed each and every one of those photos!!! Thank you for your efforts!