Puffin Man Photography by Rich Turk

15 months since the last blog post....

2011-06-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

After 5 trips in two summers to see the puffins on Machias Seal Island, I'm kind of 'puffined out' as far as the excursions, but am still working hard on sorting through and marketing the images I got.

Last August's exhibit at "Off the Beaten Path" Gallery in Belfast was a fun and rewarding event as I got to meet a lot of local artists and visitors to that town. Unfortunately, that co-op gallery closed it's doors last December.

Currently, Puffin Man prints and in some cases mugs or tee shirts can be found up and down the coast of Maine, in shops and galleries listed here, from North to South

Puffin Pines - Whiting
Unique Possibilities - Machias
Nelson Decoy, Jonesport
Seagull Shop, Pemaquid Point
Shaws Fish and Lobster, New Harbor
Ed Brown's Wharfside Gallery, Boothbay Harbor
Harbor View Gift Shop, Portland
Riptides, Wells Beach

Puffins are only a small part of these shops and restaurants. They all have wonderful art, giftware or souvenirs or food. Most of all, their owners and staff are super friendly and represent the best that Maine has to offer. Please visit them if you're in Maine.

The Republican Journal: Puffins and music, Off the Beaten Path

2010-08-19T19:01:00.000-07:00

The Republican Journal: Puffins and music, Off the Beaten Path

2010-08-19T18:57:00.001-07:00

SUMMER 2010 - MAINE PUFFIN ADVENTURES

2010-07-18T21:38:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to get to Machias Seal Island twice in late June. Both times with Andy Patterson of Bold Coast Tours on beautiful days for sailing and puffin watching. On the trip I had about an hour in the observation blinds at the far end of the island(from the lighthouse). On the second day, the scene changed as I was in the blind right behind the lighthouse.

The puffins gave me many opportunities for head shots, as well as the traditional photos of groups of puffins "loafing" on the rocks. I did not catch any puffins flying in with fish in their bills, as most of the eggs had not hatched. So I'm making one more long trip up to Machias, Cutler and Machias Seal Island in late July.

Hello Puff-anatics!!

2010-06-07T18:12:00.000-07:00

Gee, I haven't updated my blog in months!!! Been too busy shooting shorebirds in Florida, Ducks and Geese here around New England.

I am a member of the Meetup.com group Greater Boston Photography and have done some really neat field trips with them, including visits to World's End in Hingham, MA, The Crane Estate in Ipswich, MA and, most recently the Saugus Ironworks.

On the puffin front, my first exhibit at West Medford Open Studios went swimmingly, or should I say, fishingly.
The biggest hits were my baby suits(known by the trademarked name "Onesies"). Mousepads and adult T-s did well too.

The best news I have is that I'll be heading back to Puffin-land to see those cute creatures at the end of June.
I have TWO boat trips reserved with Andy Patterson's Bold Coast Tours. Let's pray for calm seas and clear weather. I have my transderm/scopolomine earpatches ready just in case.

Please check back here in July for some new puffin shots.

Top 5 tips for better Thanksgiving Photos -for any camera

2009-11-20T09:07:00.000-08:00

1) Take a lot of pictures of your subjects. Use different angles and zoom levels if you have a zoom. The more you take the better your odds. This works for me. Cost of taking digital photos = zero.

2) Review your shots on the pc before posting to flickr, snapfish, facebook etc. Throw out the bad shots and post the good ones

3) Try to avoid putting your main subject in the exact center. If your camera forces you to focus on the center spot, after focusing, keep the shutter button pressed half-way and recompose.

4) Remember that bright sunlight at mid day is the worst lighting for just about anything, especially people shots. Move them into the shade if possible

3 and 4 require you to forget everything that your parents or Kodak every taught you

5) If you must photograph people in direct sunlight, try turning on the flash. This may seem counterintuitive but it often helps. If you don't believe it, try "before and after" shots with and without flash.

Any questions? Post them here and I'll try to answer!

Happy Shooting

Ode to a Puffin

2009-11-18T18:50:00.000-08:00

Hello and welcome to the Puffin Man blog

I hadn't met a puffin until June 4th, 2009 and now 3 months later, I'm publishing a Puffin-centric blog, photo-site and web store! . In 15 years as a bird photographer, I was never inspired to open a website called "The Mallard Man", "The Heron Man" or the "White Ibis Man" ..........

So why puffins?
The answers lie on the rocks of Machias Seal Island, Maine and in my photo galleries.

Viewing the Puffins was an incredible experience

The creatures are as cute, lovable, and strikingly beautiful in person as they are in the photos and trinkets you see in gift shops.
Most of us tend to "anthropomorphize" about animals we see. There's the wise old owl, the cuddly bear, the wily coyote metaphors based mostly on physical features. "Owls really aren't very wise at all", a raptor expert recently told me. Try cuddling up with a bear, grisly or otherwise; you'll get mauled or worse. Can we know what a puffin is thinking or feeling? Nope. Yet, the indelible impression they make is one of joy, cuteness and need I say it, "humanity".
With the exception of my visits with captive parrots, I've never felt so much personal interaction with birds. Were the puffins really checking me out with curiosity when they peered up at me? Maybe. Those who landed with a few feet from my camera lens were definitely making "good, eye contact" with their visitors.Yes, these Puffins probably would do well in an interview!

The Photographs

The photography gods were with me on both puffin trips

Bright mid-day sunlight is rarely ideal for photographing living or inanimate subjects, but it's better than shooting in the fog, rain and gusty winds that can envelope the Bay of Fundy. The strong light allowed let me get blue seas and skies in the background, and good detail in the birds' feathers, bills and feet.

My photographic "technique" is usually to show up and shoot. While most professional nature photographers stress the value of "planning" and "pre-visualization" I rarely heed that advice. But I knew that chances to photograph puffins are few and brief, unless you're a harbor seal. (the number and length of visits to Machias Seal Island are tightly restricted by wildlife authorities)

The night before my trip I searched the web for other photographers' puffin images to get an idea of what to expect and mentally map out my shots. This helped me make the most of my brief opportunity.
Even with my planning I was overwhelmed by the number of birds and the spectacle that greeted me. Luckily I remembered to take pictures and filled all my 4gb media cards. "Take many shots, cover many angles" and use "auto-bracket"(3 different exposures for each shot.) Those are my trade secrets!

A lot of Photoshop editing

When I got home and uploaded my media cards, I knew I had high percentage of "keepers", probably the highest I've gotten on a photo trip. I flagged the best ones and got to work on tweaking colors, contrast and composition to come up with the images the shots you see on my websites.

A Big Audience
These images are very special for me because I got to spend a brief but intense time living amongst the puffin colony and many hours viewing them on my monitor. Judging by the number of comments and hits on my galleries, some other people were able to enjoy the experience with me.

Hence, the Puffin Man website, blog and store!!!

end of Puffin season

2009-09-16T11:13:00.000-07:00

The "puffin season" in Maine ended in August when the birds all left the coast islands for the open seas.
I'll be back for another tour of Machias Seal Island in June, armed with lots of gift products which I'll be designing over the winter.

BTW, the Puffin tote bag from Cafepress arrived today and it looks great. Cafe Press gets my designs over the web and does the production, I get a commission. I order my own products to see if they look ok. The mug I designed needs some work so I'm going to tweak the photo a bit. If anyone wants to create any products from your own photos or art, try Cafepress.com So far I've gotten great service and products from them.
After "puffin season", comes foliage season and I'll be spending a lot of time in October up in New Hamsphire. I'll be based in Newbury, NH near Lake Sunapee and will make side trips to the White Mountains, the Connecticut River Valley side of Vermont, and where ever else I can find "leaves of color".
My previous year's covered bridge and other scenic shots of New Hampshire and Vermont are on my main photo website

What is a Pelagic Bird?

2009-09-04T18:33:00.000-07:00

Pelagic (pronounced with a soft "a") or oceanic species spend most of their lives in the open seas.

An example is the albatross family, famous for their "wandering" about the oceans, and as a metaphor in Coleridge's The Ancient Mariner. Unfortunately, the great poem gave the Albatross a bad name. There's nothing scary or mean about an albatross. Coleridge used this as a metaphor because superstitious sailors of the day believed the bird contained 'the souls of dead sailors'. The Great/Wandering Albatross is the world's largest flying bird, and can have a wingspan of up to 11 feet and a weigh 25 lbs. Imagine having to carry one of those around your neck! (I'll never forgot the speech impaired Mayor of Boston who once said that "high taxes are like an Alcatraz around your neck")

Puffins and albatrosses may spend most of their days "out to sea" but birds lay eggs, unlike fish eggs, avian eggs need nests and nests need land. Atlantic Puffins nest on small islands like Machias Seal Island and others of the coast of Northern Maine and Canada. They arrive in large colonies in May, each female can lay one egg. After the eggs hatch and the young bird is ready to fledge, the parents head out back to sea for until the following spring. Oh yes, the Puffins are monogomous, one pair stays together "till death do them part"

some acknowledgements

2009-07-01T08:41:00.000-07:00

Now that the Puffin Man has flown after weeks of hacking away at website and blog, I want to thank some people who helped this web-luddite to get airborn: Andy Patterson who got me to Machias Seal Island smoothly and safely, Barbara who didnt laugh in my face when I suggested this idea(and who I can credit/blame for the title),Hil & Jo for long distance phone support, Tina my friend, colleague,artist and web expert, everyone at Smugmug.com and DigitalGrin.com who helped me w/coding on thepuffinman.com, everyone at Tufts Human Resources who puts up w/my "puffonery" every day