Hit me up…!
What is Dopamine?
The dictionary definition according to Collins is; a chemical found in the brain that acts as a neurotransmitter and is an intermediate compound in the synthesis of noradrenaline. Harvard Health even refer to is as ‘the pathway to pleasure’.
We often refer to moments of pure exhilaration and excitement as an ‘adrenaline rush’. It is a euphoric feeling that is addictive - symptoms include increased heart rate, sweating, rapid breathing, heightened senses and a decreased ability to feel pain. It is euphoric.
Society has long recognised the term ‘adrenaline junkie’ as a pleasure seeker, often someone that has a compulsion for taking part in exciting, dangerous or intense activities that allow them to live life on the edge. Why then, am I even considering labelling wildlife photographers as adrenaline junkies? I will tell you why, because we are.
We seek the same thrill, the hit of adrenaline that releases dopamine and gives us that euphoric feeling of pleasure.
Wildlife photography is like any other thrill seeking activity, we sit for hours, building a level of anticipation of capturing a target species - if and when that moment arrives, we have a sudden spike of pleasure leading to increased heart rate. The ‘if’ in that previous statement, the unknown and uncertainty only heightens the level of anxiety and nervous tension - its like being a ‘coiled spring’.
I have regularly found myself in situations created by wildlife encounters, when my heart is almost beating out of my chest after the anxious wait is quickly interrupted by abrupt excitement! No-one can tell me that isn’t an adrenaline rush.
So, how do we find our opportunities for pleasure?
Research.
Of species, habitats and locations. I learned a lesson in the RAF - the 7 Ps! Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance. It has always stuck with me, and now provides a timely reminder, each and every time I am researching a new species, composing an image in my mind, or checking out a new location. In doing this research and planning, we commence the journey towards pleasure, a journey that is likely to also include the exertion of energy through walking, hiking, kayaking, climbing to reach said location, and (hopefully) find the species in question.
Then we have the unplanned and unexpected thrill! The one that hits us out of nowhere, like an uppercut from Fury!
Last bank holiday weekend, T and I decided to take the camper van down to the coast. The forecast, as it has been for some time in the UK, was unsettled, so we headed for the one place that offered us the most chance of dry weather! Kent.
We had a wonderful weekend, doing all the things we love, walking, relaxing, taking in stunning scenery and spending quality time together - the simple things that mean the most and ironically cost the least!
On Sunday afternoon, we were walking along the white cliffs of Dover, when T was stopped in her tracks - he body became rigid, she gestured towards me with index finger against pursed lips, and then pointed in a downward direction. I edged nervously towards her, staying low and making as little noise as possible. Beneath us, perched on a cliff ledge, surrounded by spring flowers, and only just visible through a ‘v shaped’ gap in the cliff edge, was a Peregrine Falcon. The fastest creature in the world, had made time stand still. My heart pounded as I reached for my camera and seated myself on the edge of the cliff, with the precision of a surgeon.
The Peregrine was unfazed, and sat there preening for a good 30 minutes, unaware of the amount of images that I was capturing - the joys of silent mirrorless shutters!
I can’t describe the feeling that I got seeing that stunning falcon perched there no more than 20ft away from me, it was completely unexpected, out of the blue, unplanned, yet wonderful, awe inspiring and euphoric.
Some might even say an adrenaline rush!