Lake in the Hills, Illinois
I’m excited to be taking part in Creek Gallery hosted by Willow Creek Crystal Lake. Opening night is Friday, July 11 from 6-9. For more information please check out
https://www.xculturearts.com/creekgallery.html.
The piece that I will have displayed until July 27th is “Lights and Darks” printed on aluminum. If you have never seen any of my prints in person you owe it to yourself to check one out. “Lights and Darks” is a large stunning piece that deserves to be out on display. read more
Personally I think that the photography world is filled with too many blog posts that explain “how to”. Yes a how to is an important part of learning your camera, developing, your software and using gear, but shouldn’t there be more.
Why should I use a softbox over my strobe? Why would a reflector help my natural light photograph?
The answers you know are still really technical, what I find is missing is an explanation of why a photographer would do a certain technique. What emotion were they trying to elicit, what was the intent of capturing the photo. read more
One of the greatest skills for a street photographer is the ability to anticipate. Picking out a stage, knowing who the players are and how the scene will unfold is crucial to capturing exactly what you envisioned.
For this photo in the old part of San Juan I noticed the girl walking from the right as well as the person walking towards the darkened hallway. I set the stage and anticipated when both players would be in the location I wanted to capture. (You can click on the image to see a larger version) read more
This past Friday, I had one of the busiest days in my recent memory. From being on Michigan Ave. across from the Art Institute at 8 am to teach day 2 of an all day workshop. To jumping on the train back and being at the Starline Gallery and Studios in Harvard by 6:30 pm it was a busy day.
This effort was well worth it by the end of the night! But I’m getting ahead of myself. On to Simply Learn | Critique Night. After turning in my print, I received a clipboard and section in order to critique, what I believe to be, around 30 photos. I have never taken part of a written art critique, but found I was able to quickly get into the groove. After fighting off some hand cramps (I haven’t written that much in years) I was excited to hear the guest expert, photographer, Cesar Augusto critique selected photos in front of the group. After the first few critiques I realized that although I have never critiqued other’s work before I shared similar thoughts to Cesar’s. At the same time I realized that I may have been a little too focused on technical aspects of photos over some great artistic expression. read more
On the recent holiday my wife asked if I could help her get some things prepared at the school where she is the principal. I made only one request, let me take a few photos. I brought my 7D and tripod along to make some long exposures and HDR photos in the empty school. I am excited to see them and will be sharing some of the photos from my mini project shortly.
Just give me some time.
If you want to waste some time, see if you can spot me in this photo. I’m there.
I am always amazed by my 2 year old. She is determined to always figure out a way. Once her mind is set on accomplishing something, usually getting herself into trouble, she will figure out a way to do it. I love the way she works out complicated situations and isn’t restrained to conventional uses of items.
What does this have to do with my photography? A lot actually. I am determined to get the photo I envisioned in my head. Sometimes that means figuring out a way to make it happen. That may mean using household or unusual items as props, backgrounds, light modifiers, or stands. It may mean working a scene by trying different angles. Or it could be something completely different. I don’t know what challenges or obstacles will present themselves when capturing images. I embrace the unknown and figure out a way. Much like my daughter. read more
A few weeks ago I was offered the opportunity to shoot with a wonderful vintage camera, a Hasselblad 500C. I have learned a few lessons with this camera.
Take your time.
There is no rush when using a medium format camera. The 500c doesn’t have an onboard meter, so I used a vintage light meter to check the exposure. Then you focus and then pop up a little magnifying glass to get the focus just right. This while looking down, the image is reversed so you have to really be aware of the direction the lens in pointed. This process takes time, then you do it again to make sure the photo will come out. Remember a tripod is your friend. read more
Last year I decided to enter a competition. Not surprising-I’m competitive. What was surprising is that I entered a nature photography competition. I have never been one to stand and wait for nature to come to me, or really been a big fan of taking landscape or nature photography. The reason I entered the contest was to push my comfort zone. I know where my strong points in photography are, but how could I strengthen my weak points? Could I take excellent pictures of nature? This pushed me to go outside of my typical photography style and learn new techniques. I learned to use a super telephoto lens correctly, how to wait for an animal to “pose” for the portrait and how to compose nature and wildlife shots. After months of waiting and photographing different aspects of an conservation area, as assigned by the contest, I finally came up with this photo. I, of course, had to stalk this green heron for an hour before he or she “posed” for me. Proudly this photo of the Green Heron won second place in the competition. I am glad I went outside of my usual photography comfort zone, and became a better photographer because of it. read more
