Interview with National Geographic Photographer Bill Ellzey

Q. What spurred your interest in photography?

A. I suppose what caused photography to get completely out of hand when I was cowboying was the beauty of the natural world in which I worked. The clouds, sunrises and sunsets, changes of season, storms and landscapes, animals. In short, I wanted to arrest moments of beauty and show them to people who are too busy to notice.

Q. What was the most challenging part of working at The Autumn Eye photography workshop?

A. After the first year of Autumn Eye I found myself running it. That lasted eleven years. The most challenging part was being the administrator of a successful workshop program while trying to grow my own photography business. Autumn Eye morphed into Western Photo Workshops when Eastman Kodak asked to sponsor it and I expanded the program into more workshops keeping Autumn Eye as the flagship. It took a great deal of time to create fun photo education for others.

Q. Cameras have gone digital in the past few decades. In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of this conversion?

A. Digital photography has only one con, IMHO, and that comes with a caveat. It's the amount of time necessary to bring RAW photo files into their glory. Without going into detail about RAW and JPEG files suffice it to say that shooting RAW means going back into the darkroom and processing the image, only it's a digital darkroom nowadays. And that isn't much of a downside since it gives me total control of how I want the finished image to look. It just takes time.

Q. Do you miss instructing at institutions such as the Anderson Ranch Arts and Winona International School of Professional Photography, or do you prefer working in the intimate environment of your home studio?

A. I don't miss teaching because I'm still doing it more than ever. Just finished a great workshop at Anderson Ranch Arts Center last week. I love teaching about as much as I do photographing. It's clichéd I know, but there's such a beautiful world out there and so many people know it and like to take pictures but don't know how to translate what they're seeing into good photographs. How to see as a camera sees takes some knowledge and practice. I like helping them along.

Q. What are, in your opinion, the key features of Victoria Falls and South Luangwa?

A. It is one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. I try to imagine being David Livingstone when he first laid eyes on the falls. What an incredible discovery for the outside world. South Luangwa? Haven't been there yet. The pictures and descriptions make it sound like the place to be in the heart of African wildlife country, from the biggest animals to birds and butterflies.

Q. Is there any particular species you would like to see while you are doing the workshop?

A. I want to see as many as possible. I will say, though, that elephants and giraffes are a favorite. I know the big cats are a lot of what people go on safari for, and I know we'll see them and rhinos and hippos too. As the saying goes, it's all good.

Q. What can people expect to gain from your workshop?

A. In addition to just being in the presence of magnificent animals that we might know only from books and television, I make workshop participants aware of composition, backgrounds, settings that create more than just snapshots of animals but an artful image of them.

Q. What are the unique challenges of wildlife photography?

A. Wildlife photography brings the hunter out in a person. Quiet, slow movements, attentiveness, knowledge of habits, sense of body language, anticipation, caution, wind direction are all things to be aware of. On safari animals almost always know you're there so guides knowledgeable about photography and animal behavior are necessary and invaluable.

Q. How did you select the camps that are involved in this workshop?

A. The camps were selected by the safari company, EXPLORE Inc. that contacted me to lead the trip.

Q. Is this your first visit to Southern Africa?

A. Yes. Three trips in Egypt are as close as I've been.

Q. You have travelled extensively to many places around the world, including Egypt and Ireland. What has been your favourite travel experience, and why?

A. Seeing as much of the planet as possible before I check out is how I envision the rest of my life. My favorite travel experience is creating great images of what I'm seeing. And when I'm leading a group, helping them do the same is immensely gratifying. Of course there are language, customs and food differences that vary so being good at sign language, curious about other cultures and an omnivore makes foreign travel go easier.

Q. What are your favorite photographic destinations?

A. Everywhere I've been has been fascinating. They've all been favorites for different reasons like, for example, Australia for its wide regions of few humans and then the humans I did encounter were personable had good humor and three was no language barrier. Bhutan for its remoteness, palpable spirituality, friendliness. India for its ancientness interspersed with modernity and the neither yes nor no head wobble. And on and on%u2026

Bill Ellzey's photographic career only instigated after he spent 4 years in the Air Force. He is a self-taught photographer whose passion is to teach others how to translate what they see into great photographs. For 11 years, he was the director of Western Photo Workshops. Bill has also taught and hosted workshops at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center, and the Winona International School of Professional Photography. Bill has experience in a wide range of photography, which includes black and white, industrial, aerial, sports action and stock. He has photographed a wide variety of places, from India and China to Mexico and Ireland. Bill's work can be seen in publications such as National Geographic, Easy Living and Texas Magazine.

The Victoria Falls and Zambia workshop will take place from the 30th of October to the 10th of November. Participants will visit Victoria Falls, South Luangwa National Park and Lower Zambezi. They will stay at Elephant Camp, Kaingo Camp and Kanyemba Lodge. They will be able to see a wonderful selection of wildlife, such as kudu, buffalo and over 50 species of birds. Activities on offer include elephant back rides and sunset cruises.

For inquiries or bookings on this trip email info@exploreafrica.net or call (970) 871-0065.

Please note: There have been amendments to the dates of the workshop, please contact Explore for more details