Upcoming Show: Peddler's Village

I haven't posted in a while, but it' time to remind you of two upcoming shows. Next weekend, June 5 and 6, I will be at Peddler's Village in Lahaska, Pa. My spot has moved since last year - I am now along the path between the lower area and the upper areas (near the ice cream shop). If you are in the area stop by to see what new work I have.

The following Sunday (June 13) I will be at Newtown Welcome Day. I am hoping for better weather than the last two years., which were both ruined by heavy rain.

Here is a newer image of some budding flowers. I tried a few different compositions of this bunch, and this horizontal rendition seems to work best. This is one of many images that I have used my 90mm macro lens to make. Without this lens I would not be able to get close enough to do these kinds of shots justice.

Beautiful Princeton

We had a fabulous time in Princeton yesterday during the Communiversity event. This show drew throngs of people who took advantage of the great weather to partake of the food and drink and the many events for the kids. Below is a shot after I had set-up but before the people arrived.



I also wanted to post a photo I shot recently. As you know I try to look for unique perspectives on the subjects I shoot. Azalea bushes are very common, and their flowers don't really have distinctive features. But I really liked the way these flowers hung over this park bench. I used my macro lens to shorten the depth of field and provide some selective focus.

Spring Has Sprung

There is a progression to spring, at least in the Northeast U.S. The very first sign of spring is the appearance of the crocuses. Then come the daffodils and other bulb-based perennials. Next come the flowering trees, including the yellow forsythia, followed by the emergence of leaves on the smaller trees. Later in spring comes the more hardier flowering plants, such as the rhododendron and the day-lilies. Then finally the wildflowers and the leaf-growth on the larger trees. I may not have the order perfect, but it's pretty close.

Due to the recent warm weather we've had I think the progression is moving pretty quickly. I am not able to get out to photograph as often as I used to, due to slight changes in work and family schedules. But this is a season where you can't procrastinate, since in a day or two the flowers on the plants or trees you've been wanting to photograph may be gone. (Summer is a different story - the same conditions can last for weeks).

Below is a beautiful pond scene near New Hope, Pa. I was hoping to find a nesting pair of swans here but they were absent this day. I don't know the habits of these birds, so I don't know if they've moved to another location or are simply migrating.



Main Website: Photography by Matt Schrier

Central Park

On a day-trip to NYC in January I was looking for unique images. If you've been to this iconic city you'll probably have seen the dozens of street vendors hawking photos of the city. These are not artists - most vendors are selling the EXACT SAME PHOTOS. I have no idea if these images are properly licensed for sale, but regardless I was looking for my own perspective, not some image I've seen a thousand times.

Walking through Central Park I was amazed by the trees along this main walkway called The Mall. The silhouette of the long, bare branches provided interesting scale compared with the crowd below.

First Round of 2010 Shows

I start with my shows in about 3 weeks. My first is in Princeton NJ on April 24, and after a vacant May I have Peddler's Village June 5-6, followed by Newtown Welcome Day on June 13.

Spring is upon us, and I found this flowering tree at a local arboretum. One thing I like about it is the splash of background color.

Starfish

This is another unique find of mine on the beach at Sandy Hook, NJ.

Beachcombing

I took a trip up to Sandy Hook in New Jersey yesterday, not knowing exactly what I was planning to shoot. There are a couple of schools of thought in this regard. I've read that some people think you are more focused and can yield better images if you have a game plan in mind when you go out to shoot. In fact they say it is preferable that you take only certain equipment with you, say your 50mm lens, to purposely restrict your flexibility (in a good way). This will force you to think more strongly about composition since you can't just slap on a different lens to get the shot.

The other side feels that that can be too limiting, that you can be more creative if you don't have any expectations of what you are going to shoot. This allows your creative juices to flow when you are out shooting, being able to select any lens that is necessary to get the shot that you see at the moment.

In reality I think both sides hold water, and as you might expect each photographer can chose when and where to apply each philosophy. There are times when I just want to meander through a park, with only my cameras a "standard" lens, because I don't want to drag around my telephoto lenses and tripod. There are times when I'm going to a bird blind, and I know that I'll need my telephoto equipment, and possibly my tripod.

Sometimes I'll be heading to a new place or very varied place and I bring everything along. This was the case at Sandy Hook yesterday. I wanted to leave my options wide open. I brought my telephoto lenses because I know that there are ponds that ducks like to frequent. Of course my wide-angle lenses for the potential beach sunrise shots (yes I was up at 4:45 AM and on the beach by 6:30). But I really did not know what I would be spending my time shooting - this short trip was wide open.

In my bag I also carry along my 90mm macro lens. I never know when I'll need it, but it's very handy to have around. And it turns out I made good use of it on the beach, as I found a few interesting subjects that really required the macro lens to do justice to. These shells below were three of many such shells I found along the beach, along with the beautiful water-worn pebbles, and even a live starfish that the birds had not discovered yet. If I had gone to the beach without this lens I would have not have been able to make as many nice images as I did.



Main Website: Photography by Matt Schrier

 

New Show - Princeton NJ

Every artist that sells at art fairs goes through the process of re-evaluating the shows that he or she participates in. I only commit to a few shows a year compared to full-timers, so I try to pick the best ones I can. There are a few shows in Princeton that interest me, so I'm going to try one this spring. Princeton University holds a Communiversity event throughout town and the campus. The show this year will be on April 24.

Below is an image I made of a yellow rose a few weeks ago. I like the composition, and this is one image that just does not work as a 8x10 or 11x14. The "native" aspect ratio of the image, which is the 8:12 ratio of my camera, is just right. Cropping it horizontally will ruin the photo in my eyes.

New Images Added

I've collected nine images that I've made over the past two months and added them to my main website. As always these images can be made into traditional prints, canvas prints, and notecards. As you'll see these include a bunch of bird photos, two fox photos, and a Bucks County scenic.

View new images at Photography by Matt Schrier

Braving the Storm

Another shot taken during last Saturday's snowstorm. These goldfinches are in their winter plumage and as you can see the wind is really blowing at this point The thick snowfall covers most other natural sources of food, so the birds are drawn in large numbers to the man-made sources. That makes life easy for us photographers.