#144 Leap of Faith

Was it a leap of faith?

We were photographing harvest in the Hapao country-side, in Hungduan, Ifugao. The land is mostly mountainous so rice is grown on terraces cut in concentric rings along their slopes. The fields are golden & awaiting harvest, but to get there, you have to balance yourself on narrow earthen dikes that eventually lead to the edge of a cliff, overlooking a ravine over a hundred feet deep. 

I had dreamt of following the farmers to the fields and photographing them while they harvested, but the terrain was too difficult. So I opted for the next best thing: shoot with a telephoto lens from a more comfortable vantage point. I saw this farmer jump over several gaps on the trail, right on the edge of the ravine, so I looked ahead to find the next gap, in an effort to catch her in mid-leap. A leap of faith. I eventually did. Enjoy.

(Pixel-peepers: This shot is so sharp it can cut! The usual rule of thumb is to use a shutter speed that is equivalent to the focal length of your lens. Unfortunately, that is incorrect for today’s digital captures. That’s because we look at our photographs at 100% magnification nowadays, and in my experience, a better rule would be to use two times the focal length. E.g, for a 200mm lens, use 1/400th of a second. Are you sure? It works for me. But you still have to support your camera properly and learn how to squeeze the trigger with ease. Or you can simply use a tripod. Most of my shots were taken on one anyway.)

Where in the world is Hungduan in Ifugao?

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