I'm Alex Noriega, ask me anything!

[Alex_Noriega]

@Sarah_Marino

Hi Alex - Thank you for sharing your knowledge through this NPN-AMA. A lot of accomplished photographers use the terms “personal expression” and creating “expressive photography” but that concept can seem elusive to those newer to this craft. How do you define and think about those ideas with regard to your own work?

Hi Sarah! I think that concept can be elusive even to accomplished photographers. I’ll admit that I often make images without trying to express anything in particular. I may have intuitively felt something about the subject and the light that drove me to compose the image, but it’s often not until further study and reflection on the finished product that I realize what it is that spoke to me about it. And even if I do come to a solid conclusion, the image may not say anything remotely similar to a given beholder. People more often than not see different stories and ideas in my images than I had in mind! I can hint at my story with the title, but the image may not always be presented with the title. What I may see as dire and foreboding may simply be “beautiful” to someone else. What I see as a vast alien expanse in my imagination may just be a rocky pattern to the viewer. So I tend to concern myself mostly with what an image makes me think or feel personally, and not with what it’s expressing outwardly to anyone else.

[Alex_Noriega]

@Bill_Chambers

Hi Alex. Love your images!
My question - your images have a clarity about them that most images simply do not have. Even when comparing your images to other great images (Sean Bagshaw, Guy Tal, Colleen Minuik, Alister Benn, and many shooters on NPN) yours always seem to be somewhat clearer. Is this due to processing or some other little secret?
Bill Chambers

Hi Bill! I’m not sure exactly what the clarity you see is referring to, nor do I wish to compare my images to anyone in particular (I love the work of all of those you named!) But maybe it comes from a number of things I like to do:

• I always work to emphasize light in post in a very precise way–I dodge up existing light using color and luminosity masks until it has the strength I desire.
• I tend to make compositions with obvious or singular subjects, and then I remove distractions around them and around the edges of the frame.
• I emphasize highlights and upper midtones more than shadows, always making sure the edge of my histogram reaches the right side in at least one channel (except in certain low-contrast scenarios like fog)
• I shy away from any global usage of clarity, dehaze, or any other texture-altering effect, instead only carefully and locally introducing these things where necessary (if everything is 100% clear, then nothing stands out!)
• I generally don’t use the Orton effect or any sort of blur.

I hope this helps!

[Alex_Noriega]

@Alister_Benn

Hi Alex,

Obviously your images are all beautifully crafted. What prompted your change from shooting big wide landscape to increasingly more intimate anonymous scenes?

Can’t wait for our workshop together in October

Hi Alister, thanks!

I think that my transition was primarily due to two factors:

One, I got bored of shooting the same scenes in the same standard way. I felt like I was never doing anything differently or progressing artistically. I was just “getting” different light by chance each time I went out, or I was fabricating some new effect in processing to make the same old compositions and subjects look a little different.

And two, I wanted my images to feel like they were really mine. With grand landscapes, I often felt I was merely making variations of other people’s work. When I started to focus on specific subjects rather than the whole scene before me, the images really started to feel like my own little slices and moments of nature, that nobody else would ever be able to find or replicate. This made me feel more attached to my photographs, because they felt like my own creations rather than replicas (of course with plenty of inspiration still drawn from all over).

I also can’t wait for October!

[Alex_Noriega]

@Casperson_CJ

Thanks for doing this Alex!

My question was related to the one you answered above.

I really enjoy photographing the night, or sunrise and sunset. Unless the case of a very short hike from the car, all 3 of the above cases seem to involve hiking and being in nature in the dark. This is something i enjoy much less, especially if alone or in unfamiliar territory.

Do you do much shooting or hiking at night? If so, how do you manage that without scouting or otherwise knowing the area? I have concerns about wildlife, injuries in new terrain, getting lost, etc.

Hi CJ!

When the light gets low, I try to stay near the trail and not be cross-country or anywhere unexplored. I almost always study maps ahead of time if I’m going out alone, and I use Gaia GPS on my iPhone to track my hike and mark locations, such as landmarks or where I parked the car. You really should also have a paper topo map and a compass, but I admit I rely on my phone most of the time (though usually with my girlfriend and/or my friends who also have Gaia on their phones for redundancy). I always have a headlamp if I’m shooting near the edges of day. I don’t go alone in the dark in bear country or anywhere with serious wildlife concerns. I also carry a GPS communicator (Garmin inReach) so that I could get help even without cell service in an emergency.

[Alex_Noriega]

Thanks so much for participating, everyone! I really enjoyed reading and answering your questions. It warms my heart that you’re all so interested in how I make my art. We’re at 24 hours since we started, so we’ll be shutting down the thread now. Until next time!