This post is for Rich Charpentier, Arizona-based photographer, producer of outstanding HDR landscapes, printer of canvases and author of the highly entertaining “Airstream Chronicles” blog.
A few months back, Rich posted a photo of his beloved Tilley hat, singing its praises. I commented that I, too, was a great fan of the product and promised to post a picture of my mucky headgear too. While pulling weeds in the garden this afternoon, I remembered my promise and, afterwards, shot a few images of my hat. Aside from giving me an excuse to stop weeding a bit earlier, I also used the opportunity to try out an outdoor fill flash technique I was taught during the Utah trip.
I bought this hat back in 2005 just before my first trip to Guatemala. It’s been worn for two trips now and is my usual headgear when gardening, while camping with my Cub Scouts and when photographing in the summer. It is currently at its dirtiest and is due a spin through the washing machine.
At the risk of sounding like the Tilley marketing department, this is a great hat. It’s indestructible (their web site mentions one which traveled unscathed through the digestive tract of an elephant – mine hasn’t seen quite that much action, thankfully), washable and squish-flatable. It has a secret pocket which is home to a copy of my passport and it comes with an owners’ manual. If you are heading to the rain forest, you could do a lot worse than check these hats out.
Hey Dave!
Just returned from a practice run for my upcoming White Pocket workshop, and guess what I was wearing? Yup, my Tilley hat! I even posted a very posed shot of myself in the amazing formations at WP with the Tilley.
Great fill flash by the way. Love the fact that you used the thin branches to create the super cool shadows! Oh, and yes, I’ve been toying with flash a lot lately as well.
Wanna start a Tilley Photographer’s Group? 🙂 LOL