Leave No Trace for photographers

It’s a well-known fact that social media (#wanderlust) has had a role to play in the flagrant promotion of previously best-kept-secret locations, and we are all too aware of the potential for further environmental degradation if we continue to look at our planet as only a pretty backdrop – a resource for infinite exploitation. But we like to imagine a future where technology is a tool to advance the good stuff, like connection, education, and respect. Photography, after all, has historically been instrumental in cordoning off thousands of acres for wilderness protection. The photographs of Ansel Adams from the 1920s are testament to this – Yosemite, as we know it today, exists because of him.

These images show the impact going off trail can have on an ecosystem in only two weeks. The two images were taken 14 days apart during flower blooming season in California.

These days, in the age of Google Maps and Instagram, things are a little different. Flora and fauna has suffered greatly from large populations flocking to, trampling over, and selfie-sticking upon the land. When deciding to share the location of your photographs, be sure to only share those that were captured with the Leave No Trace principles in mind. We’re not all perfect, and if you dig deep enough I’m sure you’ll find skeletons (and plastic bags, straws, Amazon receipts) galore in our closets, but we’re trying to be better and we know it’s worth the effort. So maybe skip geotagging the photographs that you took while trespassing in a canola field, or off the trail at a National Park, or throwing plastic confetti near our waterways. Ask yourself what your images portray, and the impact this has or would have if thousands of other photographers followed suit. Remember that your visibility will compel others to copy you.

So how can we take a page out of old Ansel Adams’ book? How can our photographs serve as a force for good? And how can we share beautiful, natural places with one another without inadvertently destroying them?

If only there was a framework…

Wait, there is. If you haven’t heard of it it’s called Leave No Trace, and it’s an amazing set of guidelines that help us make responsible decisions that ensure we’ll be enjoying the outdoors for years to come. Here are 7 steps to becoming a “leave no trace” aware photographer...

1. Plan ahead and prepare

• Get your head around the rules and regulations of your location. Apply for permits if necessary.
• Check the weather (and the tides, if near the ocean), make sure you don’t get flooded in or out or struck by lightning. Avoid walking on soggy earth – it’s bad for your shoes, bad for the trails, and bad for the little mycelial network underfoot.
• Be real about your physical abilities. Don’t be that guy.
• Pack snacks and water!
• As a photographer, you’re generally looked upon as the guide. Prepare yourself to keep yourself and everyone else safe.

2. Travel and camp on durable surfaces

• Don’t break trail. If you do, only do so on sand, gravel, or rocks because they generally don’t mind. Though snakes love rocks too, so just remember that. Stomping on plants is definitely not cool. Walking on crypto (or cryptobiotic soil, as found in the desert) is also not cool because it’s a living crust that is super sensitive to bearing any weight and it can take decades to regenerate.

3. Dispose of waste properly

• Obviously!!!!
• Pack it in, pack it out. This includes organic matter such as apple cores, flowers from bouquets, toilet paper, egg shells, cigarette butts, and everything else you brought into the park.

4. Leave what you find

• Don’t pillage nature for a souvenir. Leave the flowers, the rocks, the leaves. Even sticks can be crucial fragments of insects and birds’ habitats.

5. Minimise campfire impacts

• Only build campfires in designated places, and only if there are no fire restrictions in place. Firewood has the potential to carry disease, so purchase local wood at your destination if you can.
• Clear the area around your fire pit, and keep an eye out for loose leaf litter that could catch.

6. Respect wildlife

• Don’t feed the bears, birds, otters, or unicorns. Don’t get your clients to feed the animals because you think it’ll make a cute photo.
• Hang back and observe wildlife from a distance. Birds, in particular, are extremely sensitive to sound, making them and their chicks more vulnerable to predators.
• Make sure pets are under control.
• Store your food and rubbish properly.

7. Be considerate of other visitors

• National Parks are meant to be shared. This means being conscientious of the people around you and not drowning out the birdsong with your UE BOOM. This means sharing the summit. This means not bossing people around just because you have a camera in your hand. This means making way for the hikers heading uphill if you’re going down.