I hope you’ve enjoyed this small sample of the work I began in 1994. I have been seeking to create a detailed documentation of the current state of the Olympic wilderness ecosystem through immersion photography. My present catalog is approaching 26,000 still images and more than 12 hours of video, a body of work that I am presently editing and organizing.
My immediate goal — as far as work in the wilderness — is to complete a two-year, 52 base camp, in-depth study of the three ecosystems of the Olympic wilderness: alpine, lowland forest and wilderness estuaries and coastlines.
The information gathering power of digital camera has greatly enhanced the value of what I am creating.
First, relative to film, digital capture allows for almost unlimited capacity to create images without the expense of development. Due to budget constraints, when I was shooting film I would usually hold myself to only 10 shots a day, which clearly meant I did a lot of editing in the field before I even took a photo. There are so many shots I take with a digital camera that I would pass by with film. For example, a waterfall that I might have taken five or eight shots of on film I now can take 50 using digital, if I so choose.
With photography, all wildlife at all times are open season for “hunting.” This is one of great joys of this pursuit — even better, my “trophies” hang on the wall as photographs, and my subjects live to see another day. Now, when I’m engaged with wildlife, I give no consideration to the number of images I’m creating. I shoot as the moment inspires and then clean up the results at night when there’s plenty of time and dark solitude to revisit the light of the previous day.
Further, digital GPS and time/date information precisely places images in both time and space, significant information in the study of wildlife biology. From the perspective of landscape photography, this allows for the precise return to location to document the changes on the land. For example, how did a major flood change the course of a river run?
Finally, from a practical point of view, it is far easier to backpack with five SIM cards then 100 rolls of film.
Backpacking is a requirement to truly experience the Olympic wilderness. There are no roads that pass through the mountains. Note the photo of myself with my gear spread out: This is a photo of my gear haul out after two months in the Queets rainforest. This is a dual-pack load that I relay up trail. Thus, if I am seeking a base camp 10 miles from the trailhead, this becomes a 30-mile hike.
This is very difficult work, but the remote places and the amount of time this effort secures me is worth all the sweat and grind. Food is the other major weight of a backpacking expedition. I have developed a backcountry diet based on one pound of food per day, keeping it simple: 30 days, 30 pounds.
With base camp set, a daily walk through the forest with a light day pack and photography gear is key to catching moments of sublime beauty. With a special emphasis on the morning and evening light and wildlife activity, the days move peacefully. I walk in a quiet awe.
You can see more of Bryant Carlin’s work at his Visual Ballads Facebook page. His badge number for Venmo payments is 9059.
Read more of the Dec. 14-20, 2022 issue.