Big Black Box

The Wilmington Hall at the Chase Center on the River Front in Wilmington, Delaware was like being in a big black box. But, it was roomy, elegant, and I liked the flow of the set up. Attendance at this Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen State Show was good and I was pleased with weekend results. I saw some previous patrons and met some new ones. I also had a chance to see a friend from years back – hi Terry!

I’ll be back at this same location at the end of September with the Sugarloaf Show. I sure like not having to deal with sales tax! Well, at least twice a year anyway. I had great neighbors at this past weekend’s show. George, Sue and Frank made the slow times fun and made them slip by. I also shared a ride in a couple days with Karen which made the trip much easier to take.

A large frame order arrived on the first day of the show and basically closed off our living room. Unpacking those was the first order of business today. It also allowed me to start working on orders already a few weeks waiting.

Here’s a look down the aisle from my booth in Wilmington Hall.

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Patience

I listen carefully to what show attendees say to me when seeing my work. At this last show in Hawley, as in many others, a regular comment is that I must be a very patient person. I often hesitate at this because I simply feel it misses the mark on how I approach making an image. Truth is I’m not a very patient person.  I don’t just stand or sit waiting for something to happen or some creature to pass my position.

I think the confusion is that many people equate wildlife photography and nature photography in general, with hunting. I am not hunting with a camera. Maybe a better description is that I am exploring with my camera and then communicating with as much emotion as I can, the visual experience. Sometimes my images are the result of pre-visualization, maybe for months or just seconds before making the image. Sometimes I just walk around and allow myself to respond to what I see and feel. Other times I do stand or sit in a spot where I have pre-visualized a certain image or type of image I want to make. Usually though, I am on the move observing and thinking about color, form, perspective, and compositions, but mostly letting myself respond to the visual experience I am having.

It is more often true that any image I make was made as I came upon a subject or situation in the field. Many of my images are the result of planning to be in a certain location under specific conditions in order to attempt to make an image I had already considered. This means being in the desired spot often while it’s still dark with the needed equipment and a predetermined creative approach. In fact, this approach may be considered the exact opposite of patience. I’m not saying I never exhibit patience, it’s just not my strongest character trait (at least with regards to making photographs).

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Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair – July 25-27

For the second year, this fine show will be held at the Chase Center on the riverfront in Wilmington Delaware. I set up this Thursday for the show that begins on Friday and runs through Sunday. The Chase Center is an attractive location and the riverfront a relaxed environment to come and do some shopping for fine art and other fine handmade craft.

Having just returned from the Audubon Art and Craft Festival in Hawley this weekend, I don’t have much time to catch up. My wife, daughter and I had a fine time in Hawley. It was great seeing some artist friends at the show and over dinner.  I appreciate greatly the support of patrons who came back to see me and select new pieces for their homes.

I really am anxious though to have some time to get into the field again.

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Audubon Art and Craft Festival

This coming weekend (July 19-20) I will be participating in the Audubon Art and Craft Festival in Hawley, PA. This is a show of talented artists and crafters in a range of mediums. Some of the artists are truly of national renown and specialize in the wildlife genre. I have been showing my work with some of these artists since 1995, sometimes several times a year. This show has become the last one in which I get to exhibit with them. The other shows have dissolved over time. The wildlife art show genre seems to be less successful than it was during the ’90′s, so the Audubon Festival has become a standout event.

This is also the only show event in which my wife and daughter travel with me, so it’s special for that reason as well. In fact, my daughter Hannah has been looking forward to it for weeks. I working late into the night preparing for this show and one in Delaware the weekend after. Lots to do.

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 9 (a bit late)

Day 9 was this past Sunday and was the last day of the show. Whew! Overall, it was a very good show. The weather was not as great as last year and the crowds didn’t seem as big, but I’m not complaining. I did see quite a number of previous patrons who came to add another piece or pieces for their homes or offices. I also met many new people and had purchases made by several who live near me. Having people close to home buy my work is fun because my work generally is done close to home. This means we both have an intimate knowledge of the subjects.

My first sale on day 9 was of The Gathering. With all the colors in this piece, frame choices are endless. The image itself is one I made on the Outer Banks of North Carolina with a Canon camera and Fujichrome film. I used a 100mm macro lens designed specifically for this kind of close-up work. A tripod allowed me to lock the composition in place and use a small enough aperture to gain sharpness and depth.

I have two weeks to prepare for my next show in Hawley, PA and to begin working on  several orders taken at the show. It was nice though to wake up yesterday and not have to hit the road. I took my daughter to breakfast and actually was able to sit down while drinking my coffee. That said, I’ll be looking forward to the Kutztown Festival next year. My application payment has already been made.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the show!

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 8

Yes, day 8. The EverReady Bunny of shows keeps going and going. Tomorrow is the last day. Today was a fun day in that I met some interesting people. I met a man who tagged butterflies for migration tracking, an RN that used an episode of Sponge Bob Square Pants for her research, and a man you needed a piece of mine because it had iron in it. I’ll explain that one. A gentlemen came into my booth saying he had a “strange” question and proceeded to ask me if I had any pictures with “iron” in them. Any iron in any form by any stretch of the meaning of iron. I thought of an image I made at Longwood Gardens in the orchid room that had pots hanging on ironwork. Well, that was perfect. Turns out he needed a gift for someones 6th wedding anniversary – yea the “iron” anniversary!

Today’s first sale was to a couple with my work already. This time they purchased Foot Falls, an image I made on the trails at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Kempton, PA. This is a medium format image made with a Pentax 645 camera. I enjoyed this camera and especially the larger transparencies I was able to make with it. I no longer have it, but I do still have the images.

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 7

Independence Day here was rainy, but that didn’t hold back an early crowd that enthusiastically came for a good time. I was busy right away. I was very pleased with people’s response to my work, including two young girls who were at the festival with their parents. For fourth graders, these two young girls spoke excitedly and intelligently about both the images and the subjects. Wow!

There are also a lot of kids who work this festival and all of the ones I have interacted with have been friendly, mature, and hard working. In my building, a wet floor can get slippery. At all times there was a young woman reminding folks to be careful as they walked in and there was a young man constantly mopping the floor to try to keep things dry.

Today’s first sale was of the image Her Grace. This is an image of a female cardinal in a spruce tree(?). The female cardinal’s warm coloration makes for a nice contrast with the cool background colors. Working in a blind, I used a long lens on a tripod to isolate the female against a smooth backdrop.

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 6

My first three sales today were neat. The first was to a woman for herself on her birthday. The second was by a mother for her son for his birthday. The third was to a couple for their anniversary (though they admitted it was not today, or this week for that matter). 

My day for this festival starts at 6:30 am when I wake to shower, dress (yea including suspenders as this is a German folk festival). The show runs from 9:00am to 6:00pm. I usually am home by 7:00pm. I was tired this evening. My daughter and I went to Subway for dinner and I tried to open the Subway door with my car key remote. I’ll be in bed by 11:00 tonight after some matting and framing work.

Today’s first sale was of the image The Gate. This is an image I made in Colonial Williamsburg, VA. The woman who purchased the framed print was drawn to the image and even more so when I told her where I made it. She has a special attachment for Williamsburg and so the piece made a great birthday gift for herself.

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 5

“Summer breeze, makes me feel fine” – you know that Seals and Crofts lyric right?. It was a nice day! I spoke to several people who said they checked the weather forecast for the week and selected today for their visit. The first piece selected today was Flowers for Him an 8×10 print matted to 11×14. I told the young woman who selected it that she represented my first sale of the day and that I was blogging about it. She told me she already knew.

Still 4 days to go with the big July 4th weekend coming up. I did finally get some funnel cake. Actually I split a serving of it with Sandy from Canada who is in the space across from me. When the show got slow towards the end of the day, I spent some time with Al (just outside the door of building A where I’m set up) solving the world’s problems. More work to do tomorrow.

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Kutztown Festival 2008 – Day 4

Another fine day weather wise. I am beginning to feel the drain of a marathon show. A large root beer added some needed boost after noon. So far I have avoided the call of funnel cake being made right outside the barn door and wafting in. With the size of the crowd at this show, I’m surprised that I don’t often see people I know. Today however I did have my daughter’s teacher come by to say hello. It was a nice visit. She tells me that Hannah was saying she wants to be a photographer “like her dad”.

Today’s first sale was again L’il Bugger. Some people spot the fly in the image and others are more fixed on the expression of the young fox. The fly though is what the fox is looking at. It was amazing to see the fox though my camera lens with a fly on it’s head and then photograph the fly take-off and the little foxes gaze go up to follow the fly’s flight.

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