Hannah and Jarrett leapt across the ditch as I retreated a safe distance with my camera in hand. As they spread out the blanket, I brought the picnic scene into the sights of my telephoto lens. While they dealt a hand of Go-Fish, I looped around them, walking deep into the field of canola. Well, at least, I attempted to. I hadn’t walked further than three steps when the canola had wound it’s tight grip around my body and I was stuck. Canola’s thicker than it looks.

These two wanted to get some couples portraits done, but Jarrett confessed to being painfully camera shy. As I mentioned in a previous post, the camera can be an obtrusive piece of machinery putting a physical barrier between myself and the subject. It also has the secondary effect of making people feel incredibly self-conscious as they’re aware that every move they make is trained by my scope. Keen to make Jarrett feel at ease, I pulled out my telephoto so he would hardly be aware of my presence. I suggested that we go on a casual shoot, incorporating the idea of a prairie picnic and a game of cards. Judging by his radiant smile as he stole pairs of cards from Hannah, I think my clever trick worked.

As both of Hannah and Jarrett are farm kids, it made sense to incorporate the prairiescape into our photos. We had timed the shoot impeccably with the time of year that the canola’s vibrant yellows were at their peak. I used this prairie crop to create layers and obstructions in the shots, creating optical intrigue for the viewer.

Enjoy a visual escape from winter and join me on this throwback to a prairie picnic!