Saturday, November 26, 2011

Moments in Nature 2011: Best of Langell Photography for 2011


"Great photography isn't about documenting that you saw it...

...it's about capturing how you experienced the moment!

--Lisa Langell

At the end of each year, Langell Photography, LLC publishes the best work of award-winning wildlife and nature photographer, Lisa Langell.

Moments in Nature 2011: Best of Langell Photography for 2011

(Be sure to turn on your speakers! Choose "Full Screen" for optimal viewing.)


A few words from Lisa

I am proud to present this montage of my favorite moments from 2011. It is my way of giving back to each customer, fan, friend, family member, and the people I meet along the trail as I capture the natural world in which we live.

Nature is such a restorative thing for me. As such, I’ve chosen my favorite moments from behind my lens…which have been transformed into a gift to you.

This year I lost two close family members who bravely battled long-term illnesses. Traveling to be close to their sides kept me from being out in the field the majority of the year. Even so, I discovered that even in the most fleeting of minutes between hospital visits, supporting family, grieving, juggling the demands of both my “day job” and my photography business, there are opportunities to experience wonderful moments in nature. You just have to be ready for them—and look!

One such example, “A Mother’s Love,” is the very first full-screen image in the montage. It’s an image of a doe and fawn White-Tailed Deer that I captured near a temporary residence of mine in Michigan, which my fiancĂ© and I rented so that we could temporarily relocate from Arizona as needed to care for our ill family members.

This image was captured at a time when, for months, family took priority and I had not had so much as a moment to pick up my camera. My fiancĂ© looked out the window one afternoon and said, “Lisa, grab your camera and sneak outside!” Luckily I still had my Canon 100-400mm IS USM lens mounted to my Canon 7D (with a charged battery!). I stepped outside just in time to see a tender moment between doe and fawn. They nuzzled one another for a split second, got up, and wandered slowly away. The whole experience lasted about three minutes, but was enough to give this nature photographer a much needed “moment” together the natural world around her. Given the illness and sadness around us, it was as if Mother Nature knew exactly what I needed---and sent it directly my way…hence the dual meaning of the title, “A Mother’s Love.”


Earlier in the year, I had more time for travel. For 2011, my chosen images originate from Alaska, California, Louisiana, Michigan, Arizona, and Nevada. They include moose, black-tailed and white-tailed deer, Cackling Geese, Aleutian Geese, Dippers, Orange Crowned Warblers, Great Horned Owls, Common and Red-Throated Loons, Double Crested Cormorants, Tufted Puffins, Common and Snowy Egrets, American Avocet, Common Murres, Pine Grosbeaks, Alligators, Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Pigeon Guillemot, Stellar's Sea Lions, California Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Eagles, and much more, including an adorable cow, one of the “Happy Cows,” (I presume!), from the rolling hills of Point Reyes, California.

In gratitude for nature providing these incredible and tender moments each year, Langell Photography, LLC. also donates a portion of profits to charities which support wildlife and environmental preservation.

Sit back, relax, and enjoy my favorite moments from 2011. You are welcome to share this video with your friends, or visit http://www.langellphotography.com for additional images, artwork, workshop information, and more.

This is a gift from Mother Nature and I, to you...

--Lisa Langell