Josh Andrews Photography

Journal

Feather and Sand

January 01 2009

The image of the month for January was taken on one of the last days of my expedition to Greenland. We landed at Kap Stewart in Scoresbysund, a large, wide beach that lies just west of the Inuit village of Ittoqqortoormitt on the eastern edge of Greenland. I cruised the beach in search of a subject and eventually found this gull feather, unscathed by the elements.  My favorite images (both my own and those of other photographers) are those with an abstract quality, images that turn everyday subjects into extraordinary ones.  Macro photography is a great vehicle for creating an abstract and less familiar version of a common subject.  This image of grains of sand on a gull feather was taken on a tripod with a 100mm macro lens. I used an extension tube to move my minimum focusing distance closer to the subject, and used a cable release and my “mirror lock-up” feature to keep the camera vibration free.  Closing down my aperture for increased depth of field, I popped a flash beneath the feather to add depth and contrast to the scene.  For the month of January, this image is available at a 20% discount off of my standard print prices.