The Joys of Long-Exposure Photography

If you really love landscape photography, it can be more than a professional pursuit or a hobby, it can almost become a way of life. This awesome video shows how a day of shooting long exposures can become a meditative experience.

Thomas Heaton is an awesome vlogger to watch if you're ever stressed out about your editing piling up or that client wanting you to use the Liquify Tool on their cat. This video follows him as he does some long-exposure work, embracing the technique not just as a photographic tool, but as a reminder of the joyfully meditative effect nature landscape photography can have if one allows it.

I particularly appreciated the moment in which he realized that his desired composition had passed by (when the clouds had moved away), and instead of moving on, he chose to wait for more clouds to appear and was subsequently rewarded for his patience. I personally think the creative process blossoms with a little perseverance and willingness to wait for the right moment, and even that aside, that time spent gives one a moment to look around and appreciate the scenery for what it is in addition to trying to capture it. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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12 Comments

I enjoy books and movies that use the delivery to reinforce the message. When you read a page long description of mindless details regarding a long wait, you feel a bit of the character's situation. This video, I can only assume, purposely did the same thing but including that wretched music in an effort to allow me, the viewer, to experience the patience required for this kind of photography. :-)

I will admit the music was not my favorite. :P

In that case, I'm curious about your music. You've questioned its commercial acceptance before. Is there a site where I can hear it?

I've listened to Glow and Nocturne, so far. In the words of Gerard Depardieau in Green Card, "It's not Mozart." :-) I'll listen to other pieces as I have time.

Ha! The best review I ever got was a lovely old woman coming up to me and saying: "Young man, your piece was my favorite on the program. It was just so peaceful that I couldn't help but go to sleep right in the middle of it!" Thanks for listening. :)

When everybody these days is a blogger of one thing or another, how encouraging it is to see a well presented, nicely shot, thoughtful video that doesn't start with 'Hi Guys, my name is..., and today I'm going to show you how to...'

Thanks Thomas. A lovely 13 minutes. In answer to your question: I too am frustrated by the summer months and also retreat to the shoreline - (UK south coast)

Well said Thomas - great video!

Please include a still of the end result so we can decide if it's worth investing 13 mins of our time in this video. Watching someone have a meditative experience is not what most people come here for.

What are most of us here for? That probably sounds snarky but it's not meant to be. There are a lot of articles here that I don't care anything about. Most of them, in fact. I assumed there was no "most people" but rather varied interests with the commonality of recorded imagery.

I see myself in a lot of what the person in the video talks about.
And I learned to bring some cd's with me next time I am at the beach or a lake with mud. - brilliant idea.

I really enjoy Thomas's videos and his manner of presentation. In this one however the clouds which came for the final image promised something stunning but the extended exposure ruined their impact in my view.