Paul Grecian - Photography

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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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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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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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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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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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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Nicer weather brought about a large early crowd. Several previous customers came out today and selected new pieces. That is always gratifying. I love hearing I’ll see you again next year as well. I had time to walk through the fairgrounds a bit this morning and all I can say is, if you like to eat, this is the show to be at. I mean the variety and quantity of food is staggering. This is also a show where people bring their dogs and here too the variety is amazing. I could do an great photo essay just on the dogs that are brought to the show. Day 4 tomorrow will be strange as I’m not used to shows longer than 3 days. One at a time though is the way I approach it.

It is typical during shows to be invited to do other shows or events. I was asked to consider participating in an interesting show in upstate PA as well as go on a cruise which sounding very enticing. I always take the information and see what my calendar will allow. Sometimes someone will make me an offer for my work that is unusual as well. I received a barter offer from a gentlemen today who liked my seascape images. He offered me a trade of my work for a week stay in his beachfront house in North Carolina. I gave him my card.

The first sale I made today was of the image Winter Reds, a 5×7 print matted to 11×14. This is a newer image made this past winter during what was probably the nicest snow we had during the season. It is an image I blogged about previously as well.

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Another hot day at Kutztown but no real rain. The crowd seemed larger today. I met several folks who live near me in Quakertown (Q-town to us) who added a piece of my work for their home or office. I also had conversations with nice people who shared my enthusiasm for birds and Colonial Williamsburg. It was not so crowded today that I couldn’t afford a bit of talk.

Today’s first sale was of my newer image - L’il Bugger. I’ve recently blogged about this image which seems to have been enjoyed by many at the festival this past weekend. The weather for the rest of the week looks pretty darn nice!

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Day 1 went smoothly enough. It was hot however and I think that may have resulted in a thinner crowd. A bit of passing rain too meant quickly closing the barn doors (Building A pretty much is a barn). The plus side to a smaller crowd is more time to spend with each customer, which I enjoy. Another plus is smaller lines for food and drink! I am set up again across from my Canadian friend Karen and her assistant Sandy. Sandy has a great Canadian accent.

Last year I blogged on which of my images represented my first sale and I will do that again this year. So, today’s first sale was an 8×10 print matted to 11×14 of White-throated Sparrow.  This is a winter image made early morning. The sparrow is puffed up to trap heat within its feathers, giving it a very plump look. The morning light is warm in color and emphasizes the red in the berries. I was able to find an opening in the brush to get a clear view of the bird’s eye while allowing the surrounding brush to frame the bird in soft reds. This is a film-based image made with a Nikon camera and a Nikkor 400mm f3.5 with 2x teleconverter (a very sharp 800mm equivalent focal length).

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I often read artists assert that their best work is yet to be made and if they knew then what they know now, their work would have been better. Maybe photography is a different medium in this respect from others. I’ve never felt that I was waiting for my best work to be created. In fact much of my favorite work and many of my more popular pieces are ones that represent my earlier visions and efforts. That is not to say that I have stopped growing as a photographer and artist, it’s just that I feel much of my growth is lateral. That is, I believe my style has changed over time and will continue to do so as I change in interests, and discoveries, and personality. But, is this work necessarily better than work I’ve already created? Or is it different and new.

Certainly I learn new things about the medium and what I can do with it all the time. In this way my growth is definitely vertical. But again, I’m not sure that knowledge of the medium equates to better images. If that were true, wouldn’t we all be the best photographers who ever lived because we would have more knowledge and experience than any of our predecessors. The fact that we are not necessarily better image makers because of increased knowledge, expereince, and better tools is because photography is still and primarily so - an art form.

This is an image I made some ten years ago and has found it’s way into over 100 homes, an Audubon calendar, and a book project. It’s one of my earlier pieces. Had I made this image last week, I’d be equally pleased with it.

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