Dance of the Fireflies

I’ve always been enamored with fireflies, or lightning bugs if you prefer. These little beacons of summer have always held a childlike fascination for me. My memories of them as a kid and of time spent with my own kid, catching, releasing and just being bewildered by their glow and maneuvering, are among my favorite. In years past I’ve made efforts to create images of them with a camera to little success. As I’ve learned more and new tools have lent themselves more to exploring these little bugs (beetles really), I’ve begun again to try to make images that represent their almost mystical nature.

My most recent attempts were enlightening (sorry), but I have other approaches I want to try. The image below was one I made this week using a 30 second exposure. I think is has elements that convey some of the magic of the firefly. I have more work to do…..

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Last Prep before Kutztown Folk Festival

Heading into the home stretch before the 9-day marathon called the Kutztown Folk Festival. From Saturday July3-Sunday July 11 and from 9am-6pm each day, I will be in Building “A” talking with and selling my work to people from around the country. This is the half way mark for the calendar year, but really the beginning of the my biggest show period (July-November).

This is a fun show with lots to see, hear and taste. It is a sensory overload of experience and an institution of entertainment in this area. There is also a fine array of art and quality craft to choose from.

Hannah enjoying a lemon treat at Kutztown

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Red-Spotted Purple

One subject that I never seem to spend enough time with are butterflies. We have them of course here in Bucks County, but I don’t see them often. Even more rare is coming across one that is willing to model for me.

On this occasion I seemed to have a very willing subject and quite a beauty at that. It was very content seemingly, to just rest on the ground of a bridge I was working from. It is a Red-Spotted Purple butterfly, a not-uncommon variety that has magnificent color on both sides of its wings. In this posture below, it is the blues and purples that dominate, the undersides of its wings have the red spots.

I worked from above with a macro lens making sure I was as parallel to its wingspan as possible so that I would keep all of it in focus. the warm tones of the ground add tonal contrast and a textural contrast to the delicate scales of its wings. Composing to maximize symmetry both simplifies and balances the image.

 

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Nights at the Museum (ok more like late afternoons)

When I was in school there was only one clear path for me, I wanted to be a biologist. In my senior year in high school and then again during college, I worked at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia (ANSP). I worked in several departments including the Live Animal Unit, Malacology Dept, Vertebrate Paleontology Dept. and Invertebrate Paleontology Dept. Those years of working behind the scenes in the collections of the oldest museum in the country were exciting and educational.

Me at ANSP in 1983

I was already passionate about photography and working with the various collections made me realize how visually interesting shells, rocks, and even bone could be. I often envisioned abstract imagery that I could make with the specimens I worked with. During the years after working at ANSP I began to accumulate a small collection of fossils, shells and other natural items for their visual interest.  Most recently I have began to explore these items for their visual interest again.

As a full time photographer, I see how my life experiences are still reflected in my work. And while I haven’t worked as a biologist for almost 7 years, I still use that education in making each new image.

The image below is a detail of sandstone from out west that I purchased from a local specialist shop. The pattern so seemingly reflects a western desert landscape, I had to work with it in my studio.

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Garden Tour – Lambertville, NJ

(c) Paul Grecian

This year again, the Artists’ Gallery participated in the Kalmia Club’s Hidden Gardens of Lambertville tour, We had a very nice reception this past Friday evening where I enjoyed a variety of  h’orderves and then a quick walk (not that quick really) through the gardens included in this years tour. 

On Saturday, I selected a few gardens to spend some time and create images like the ones shown here. Garden photography is an area I am interested in and have always enjoyed, but want to do more of. The Hidden Gardens Tour was a fun and well organized event. I was pleased to be a part of this annual tradition and hope to participate again next year. 

Passion Flower in hidden garden on Elm St.

For the garden imagery, I selected 2 Canon bodies (40D and 5D) and 4 lenses (EF100mm IS macro, EF 85mm f1.2, EF 70-200mm f4.0 IS, and a Lensbaby). These leness allowed me to be very deliberate about point of focus and depth of field. As I had visited most of the gardens during the Friday evening preview and knew they would be full of visitors, I chose an isolation approach as my visual strategy. 

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A Hot Day at Peddler’s Village

Yea it was hot and humid today for the first day of the annual Peddler’s Village Fine Art and Contemporary Craft Show. But patrons did come out and support the artists. It was also a hot day for me winning both the Founder’s Award  and Second Place in the Photography Category. This was especially encouraging to me because there are more photographers this year and all are accomplished and talented.

I was very pleased to be awarded the Founder’s Award which is a purchase award for the Jamison Family permanent collection. Their support of the arts is greatly appreciated and so important. I am the first photographer whose work has been selected for this award. That feels good. The image selected for the Founder’s Award was Three’s Company framed to 22″x28″.  The Second Prize in Photography is a much appreciated cash award.

The show continues tomorrow, supposed to be hot again.

Peddler's Village Founder's Award Selection

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Peddler’s Village Fine Art and Contemporary Craft Show

This weekend, June 5-6, come out to Peddler’s Village  in Lahaska, PA for their annual show featuring fine art and an array of contemporary crafts. Stroll through the walkways inside this village of shops and find me on the main green near the Cock and Bull restaurant.

"Delicate Balance" available as an 11x14 matted print - $47.

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