Lucky Image???..... well not always!!

[Jack Graham]

My viewpoint on luck, when it comes to nature photography.
Article posted on my blog www.jackgrahamsblog.com
JG

[Don Thompson]

I read you post and for the most part I agree. But how much is preparation and how much is luck? As an example; I recently took what I think is my best picture to date, of an Eastern Bluebird. I spent 1 1/2 to 2 hours each morning over a 5 day period standing, waiting, and taking pictures in a area where I knew there were Bluebirds. I got many pictures of them on boxes, on perches that while nice, didn't produce the picture I wanted. Eventually on the 5th day, a male landed on a perch with a good background, close enough for me to get at 400mm, yet sufficiently fill the frame.

Luck, a bit. Preparation and patients, a lot. Or a bit of both?

[Ed Cordes]

Ah, Luck! That evasive component of every outstanding nature photograph. I agree that pure luck is a component, but only one of many. Preparation, knowledge of the subject, mastery of the equipment and understanding of all the photographic principles is very important. However, you can have all these things perfectly in place on a major photography trip only to the weather crap out or not have the famous birds of the area decide it was that day they would "take a vacation".

I do believe a certain amount of luck is involved for even the most prepared photographer. That said, I believe that a very prepared photographer has the highest potential to direct good luck his/her way.

[John Chardine]

Jack- Thanks for the link to a thought-provoking article.

Clearly both preparation and contingency or "luck" play a role in making great photographs. If contingency is not involved at all then I suggest it might be more profitable, though not as much fun, to start playing the stock market or visiting casinos as this essentially means that you can predict the future with certainty. As none of us can do this, we try our best to be as prepared as we can be, and the chips then fall where they may.

[Michelle C. Battista]

Boy is that the million dollar question. So many times people say, what a lucky shot you got. My comment is I just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Just thought I'd put some more twist to, the lucky shot or not question. See what others thought. I agree with comments below. I just also wonder if I wasn't there at that right time, I wouldn't have seen what this beautiful world had to offer. Some times with great success and other times not so successful. That's what's so awesome about being able to take photo's you never know what you're going to see, even when the trip is planned. Jack thanks for the viewpoint. Michelle

[Charles Glatzer]

"I do believe a certain amount of luck is involved for even the most prepared photographer. That said, I believe that a very prepared photographer has the highest potential to direct good luck his/her way."

Well said!

Chas

[Kevin Hall]

Chance favors the prepared mind.

[Ken Watkins]

I think that Gary Player summed this up best
"the more I practice the luckier I get"

[Mark Theriot]

Right Ken!
"luck favors the prepared . . ."

[Mike Lentz]

Chance favors the prepared mind.

Thats my motto bro!:D

[Dave Mills]

Old expression...You Make Your Own Luck!!

[Charlie Woodrich]

"I think that Gary Player summed this up best
"the more I practice the luckier I get"


I think that was Walter Hagen.

[Sabyasachi Patra]

I agree. Most of the times people talk about luck. However, if you are unable to read and interpret the signs and sound in the forest, then you are definitely going to curse yourself as unlucky.

There have been times when I have been following a tiger, and I had been outwitted. I can't say that I was unlucky. But my reading of the signs were wrong. For eg. a Sambar deer was resting and didn't get the hint of the tiger. So I went back and only after hearing the alarm call by a barking deer I knew that the tiger has given me the slip. On that day, I had not taken into consideration the wind direction. The wind was blowing away from the Sambar and hence the Sambar had no clue about the tiger.

My article on the subject:
http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/13

So I agree that, the more prepared and knowledgeable we are, the more is the luck. :D

Cheers,
Sabyasachi

[Charlie Woodrich]

I looked it up. Actually it was Billy Casper that said "the more I practice the luckier I get."