Newtown Study

I have a confession to make. I live near Newtown, Pa, a quaint old town in the middle of Bucks County. It has a lot of historic buildings and a nice main street. A great place to live.

But I simply cannot get inspired when I attempt to photograph this town. I often return to Newtown with the intention to overcome this deficiency of mine and to make some great images. But I usually leave disappointed. I don't want to simply document the historic buildings - I want to create interesting and unique compositions. I believe the town is so simple (not a detriment) that it does contain many eye-catching features that can be used as main subjects.

The following series of photographs are from a recent shoot that I think yielded some nice results. One feature that I have always like, even though it is not viewable along the main street, is the rear of the Newtown Hardware store. It is an old brick building with a rusty old fires escape and a smattering of windows. When I visited Newtown on this trip the sun was setting and it produced some really nice colors and shadows on this building.

I hope you enjoy them.

A Little Different

It's January and without snow this time of year yields few opportunities for scenic images, at least in my part of the world. The trees are bare, the skies are often dreary, and there is little color anywhere. Let's just say it is a "challenging" photographic environment.

I was out a week ago on the Washington Crossing bridge in the pre-dawn hour on a chilly morning. I was hoping to catch some nice morning light along the Delaware River. The cloudy skies worked against me, but as I walked along the bridge I was taken by some of the nuts and bolds holding this old bridge together. I liked the simple forms and shapes. And with the frost adding a bit of interest I just couldn't help making a few images of these things.

The image below is one example that I particularly like. It's nothing that I expect to sell (I may only make a print for myself) but I think it is a good example of simplicity that is so important in photography. The main subject is obvious, and I worked to get the threads in focus while throwing the background out of focus, since the background included the metal grating of the bridge's roadway.

From Then to Now

Below is a new image I made this weekend. When I go into Philadelphia for a shoot I have to think a little differently than when I shoot nature and scenics. In a city I am looking for compositions that include the architecture (almost impossible not to) but yet either tell a story or create a mood. This often involves making the image B&W, including people, or other techniques.

In this image I see something a little deeper than my usual compositions. As my son and I were standing near the Liberty Bell, trying to stay warm, and me realizing that the day's light was quickly waning I saw a few people make their way past the softly lit historical icon. I liked the way the bell was lit, and I also saw the potential for the effect of motion of the people near the bell.

A day later I see much more than just the bell. I see the old bell in a modern glass building. Above the bell I see the mid-section of very modern office building. Above that is the reflection of Independence Hall, clearly a piece (and place) of American history. (Also a key element of the movie National Treasure, of which the sequel is released a few days from this writing, and which my family and I greatly enjoy).

And to add to all this is the American flag, in its own little segment of the image.

So this one image encompasses historical American elements and modern-day architecture, all interacting.

Last Show of 2007

Now that I have participated in my last show of the year I would like to thank everyone who has either made a purchase or felt compelled to stop and take a look and possibly engage me in conversation. Although I hope that every "looker" results in a sale I realize that the purchase of a print must be made on your terms, to fill a need of yours and possibly to fill a space on your wall. If you don't think one of my prints will work for you then I am still glad that you took the time to flip through them anyway.

And it's the conversations and exchange of anecdotes that I enjoy very much. I meet a lot of people who have a connection to either the subject or location of one or more of my prints. (That is an advantage of selling locally.) I gain a greater appreciation for my own work when I learn more about the places that I have photographed. So again, even if a purchase is not made, I feel like I have gained something from the interchange.

If you are interested in making a purchase for the holidays, as a gift or for yourself, you can either go through my main website or you can visit the following store: The Unique Boutique in Yardley, Pa. The store has a large selection of unframed prints, and a small number of framed prints.

Colorless

So it looks like the fall foliage season this year will be a bust. The trees in the area of the Delaware Water Gap are still green, but turning pale. The lack of rain this fall will make it hard for the colors to appear. In a way I am not disappointed. I am trying to make my compositions stronger, not simply including brilliant color for the sake of it.

Below is a recent image from the Gap, in an area I've frequented before. One particular stream seems to yield numerous possible compositions, some I've dismissed before but as I persist I discover them over time.

Drama

Try as I may not to, I sometimes find myself getting into a photographic rut. I fear this happening again as the fall foliage season approaches (it is very late this year, due to the warm weather). It is very easy to go out and find beautiful color all over the countryside. Simply snapping photos of this color can yield many "pretty pictures", but making "pretty pictures" is just not enough. In fact when I hear the word "pretty" spoken during the shows I attend I cringe. When people see my photos simply as "pretty" then I think I have under-achieved. Anyone can create pretty pictures, but I want my portfolio to ultimately contain something a little deeper.

So in the limited time I typically have available to make images, I am more and more likely to try to think outside the "pretty" box. Maybe create a little drama. Try something a little different. In the image below I purposely grabbed my camera while heading out to work one morning, seeing the skies begin to clear from a few days of much-needed rain. I drove over to a local park and managed to catch a little drama in the skies. The image may need some more work but I am very happy to have created something that will elicit more than just the word "pretty".

What Was I Thinking

I'm starting a series of posts to delve a little deeper into particular images that I think could be somewhat instructional. I want to go through my thought process during the image-making process. Maybe this series will help you a bit in your own photographic endeavors.



I was walking in a local park this past weekend, trying to get inspired for the coming fall foliage season. I can across a tree with these very unique and interesting seed pods. It was an overcast day, with the fog slowly dissipating (which is normally a great time for nature photography) but I was concerned about the following things:
- Lighting
- Sharpness
- Background

Even before addressing these concerns I must say that these pods were mostly at or above eye level, so I would have had a very hard time setting up the camera to get a quality shot. So I immediately searched out a sample that I could remove from the tree and shoot elsewhere. I found a small branch with a series of pods, and with the last pod already open exposing the seeds.

I initially looked for a place that I could position the branch in the nice diffused light, but have a dark background, possibly a shady area below another tree. There was no wind, so that was helpful. But I couldn't really find a good place where I could secure the branch and setup my camera to make the shot.

So I decided to take the branch home and work with it there. I set it up so it angled down slightly. The background was some dark cloth, and I lit it with a large softbox. I used a good quality 50mm lens to achieve a very sharp image. I made sure the pod branch was parallel to the image plane.

I made a series of images and under such controlled conditions it was not long before I had an image I really liked. I still have the branch in case I want to try different lighting (such as back-light) or different backgrounds. But I am quite please with my first attempt.

Getting Started

As I mentioned in a previous post there are always a few people at shows that mention that they have a bunch of photographs that they might like to try to sell someday. The startup process can be very trying and very expensive if done right (it can also be done inexpensively if done right). And even if you've done a pretty good job preparing for your first show you may not see immediate results for a while. I have talked to a few first-time artists at shows that did very poorly (I must admit I also did very poorly in some of my early shows).

I don't want to list the steps getting into the art show circuit (maybe later), but I do want to list the risks and other issues that must be at least considered before starting.
- Is your work desirable to the masses? (you may have very unique, high-quality work, but if many people are mot willing to buy then you will have a difficult road)
- Do you have a substantial body of work? (10 good photos may not be enough - 20-40 would be better).
- Is your technique or style uncomplicated? (non-traditional techniques can be confusing to buyers)
- How is the current market for art? (it has been getting softer for a few years now)
- Are you willing to wait a year or two before showing a profit?
- Is your work high-quality (e.g. uncluttered, eye-catching, properly exposed and printed, etc.)
- Do you think you have identified good shows to start out with? (don't be afraid to ask other artists)

Some of these issues become less important if you are specifically targeting a high-end niche market (which I personally am not). But for many people looking to start at local art fairs these issues are very relevant.

Advice: Simplicity

Over the course of a show I get into many conversations with customers and non-customers alike. Many of these conversations are with other photographers, usually amateurs. Sometimes the discussions goes toward what it would take for someone to get starting in the art show business. Many people have a lot of potentially very good images sitting in storage, and they think about what it would take to take advantage of them and begin selling them. I give what advice I can.

During one particular conversation one woman acknowledged what I think is one of the most important aspect of image-making that many beginners pay very little, if any, attention to. And that is: Reducing Clutter (RC). Simplifying an image almost always makes it more powerful. This not only refers to framing or cropping to eliminate unwanted objects on the edges of the image, but also to the background. A bland or out-of-focus background, when appropriate, immediately puts more focus on the main subject. It can be a real challenge to achieve this. Often it takes longer lenses, careful camera positioning, manual removal of unwanted objects, and so on. The extra effort is almost always worth it.

Doylestown Show

I just completed a two-day show in Doylestown, Pa. This is a very nice show in a nice area. Today there was a bike race going right through town, and although it created traffic frustration for many (including myself) it did add a bit of excitement for a few hours today.

I met a lot of friendly people, and although I (again) got tired of hearing "Is this digital?" I also was able to connect with many people and even learn a few things along the way. I sometimes learn details about subjects I have previously photographed. As many of us do I often make photographs without really knowing much about the subject. It's helpful to learn a little history or new details about something I have enjoyed photographing.

I would say I am off to a good start show-wise for this fall. My next show is in Yardley at the end of September for Harvest Day. This is a very popular outdoor event and I hope to see some of you out there. How's this for a challenge: The first person to greet me and say you've read this blog I'll give you a special gift.