So, what’s your plan B?
The best-made plans don’t always work out, so it’s always a good idea to have a plan B
Acouple of years ago I went to the Dolomites in northern Italy at the end of May with the main intention to shoot videos for our Youtube Channel, Landscape Photography iq. My business partner Jon Hopper and I had planned to photograph a list of beautiful mountain locations and video various landscape topics. In the immortal words of Benjamin Franklin, “failing to plan is planning to fail”. Everything was going to plan until the plane landed… late. By the time we hit the road, I estimated we would arrive at our first location at a high alpine lake right at sunset, so time was going to be tight.
There would be no time to check into our hotel so we decided to hit the ground running and go directly to the location next to a lake. As we drove higher and higher into the mountains, something I didn’t plan on seeing was snow on the ground. Sure, I expected to have it on the mountaintops, but when we reach the pass the snow was knee-deep! Of course, the road to the lake was closed and, even if we could get there in time, chances are the lake would be completely frozen, ruining our plans to capture the late afternoon light on the mountains reflecting in a perfectly still lake.
Mother Nature wasn’t cooperating, so we had to switch to plan B and work with her to come up with an image and video centred around creating the final image. Fortunately, I knew a location right next to the hotel with a beautiful little chapel backed by the rugged mountains. We had to come up with a theme for the video and, most appropriately, it was working with a plan B when things don’t go as expected.
Check-in was quick as I knew the owner well from staying many times before. With camera gear and cold beers in hand, we walked behind the hotel into deep, virgin snow to set up for the shot. No problem keeping the beers cold as we set them into the snow. The light was gorgeous, with a warm glow on the scene and a blanket of clouds hugging the mountain peaks. There wasn’t a moment to spare as the shadow from the hotel was creeping up to the chapel.
I had to get the final image in the bag, otherwise there wouldn’t be a video; similar to how a chef is rated on how good the end product is, photographers illustrate their work at the end of videos. I feel education starts with inspiration. In the end, I felt my plan B shot turned out so much better than my plan A shot.
Times change
I enjoy photographing the Dolomites so much I go back every October to lead a workshop there. There is a lot of planning that goes into a workshop, especially when it comes to being in the right place at the right time to capture the best images. One of the classic lakes that we photograph is Lago di Braies. This lake has become a victim of its own success, mainly thanks to social media. When I first came here back in 2006, there was a small free car park next to the hotel. Now there is a very large, expensive car park that is regulated by a booking system in peak season, as there are just too many people that want that Instagram shot.
October is much quieter with no need to book, but I know from experience the best time for those perfect reflections of the mountain is in the morning before 10am when the boat rental opens. Once the boats are let loose, the peace and tranquillity are gone. The morning light skims the mountain to provide
In the immortal words of Benjamin Franklin, “failing to plan is planning to fail”
beautiful side lighting that picks out the important details. Other less important details, such as the boats and a dark line of pine trees, are thrown into shadow, but help to provide a more symmetrical balance to the tones in the composition.
If you would like to capture scenes like this, why not join me this October? We were fortunate to have perfect conditions that morning, but what if it were windy or overcast? You can be assured that I would throw plan B into action.