Whisky or Beer?

Rusty Shutter – Words to Live By

“In this saloon, the beer is cold, the whisky is slow, and the tequila stays on the floor.”
— John A Smith

Beer, Whisky, and the Way I Photograph the West

If you wander into the Rusty Shutter Saloon and pull up a stool long enough, sooner or later someone will ask me the same question.

“John, what do you enjoy photographing more… landscapes or wildlife?”

My answer usually depends on what’s in the glass.

Landscape photography is beer.
Reliable. Always available. The mountains aren’t packing up and moving anytime soon, and the desert shows up every single morning whether you’re ready or not. The light rolls across Arizona like a bartender sliding another cold one down the counter.

The funny thing is, I grew up here and never really saw it.

Not until I slowed down somewhere around my thirties did I start paying attention. Once I did, I realized Arizona had been putting on a show the whole time. The saguaros standing like old ranch hands, the Catalina Mountains changing color as the sun climbs, the desert quietly reminding you that beauty doesn’t have to shout to be noticed.

Turns out all you have to do is pause long enough to look.

Wildlife photography though… that’s whisky.

You know it’s going to be good, but it demands patience.

I’ve spent hours sitting in a blind while the sun crawls over the horizon. Sometimes nothing happens at all. Just silence, wind through the grass, and a lot of time to think.

That kind of waiting teaches patience, which if you know me is probably the hardest skill I’ve ever tried to learn.

But then the moment arrives.

A bear wanders into view.
A bobcat slips quietly through the brush.
A rare bird lands exactly where the morning light is falling.

And suddenly every hour of waiting makes sense. Just like a good glass of whisky, it’s not about rushing it. It’s about appreciating the moment when it finally arrives.

And portrait photography?

Well… if landscape photography is beer and wildlife is whisky, then portrait photography is the drink I politely slide back across the bar.

Let’s just say it’s not my thing.

I’ll take a quiet desert sunrise, a wandering bobcat, or a stubborn saguaro any day of the week.

So if you ever find yourself wandering into The Rusty Shutter Saloon, pull up a chair. We’ll talk about the desert, the patience photography teaches you, and why the best images often come from simply slowing down long enough to notice what’s been there all along.

— John A Smith
John A Smith Photography