Foggy January

I’m really appreciating being able to get back to making photographs. Earlier this week I saw fog again when I awoke and took off, straight to my favorite lake! There were Canada Geese in large numbers and a distant Bald Eagle perched on the opposite shore high in a tree.

Even when working at a location I’ve been to a thousand times, I need to take time to absorb what I’m seeing and feeling. What moved me to start the process was the mist rising off the water against a winter woodland and a large stone in the foreground.

In the field, I used a Canon 5D Mark II camera and a Canon 70-200mm f2.8 L IS II lens on a Gitzo tripod with a Really Right Stuff  head. I like to work with the mirror locked up and a 2 second self-timer. This image was made in color and converted to black & white. I developed the image further using levels, curves, shadows/highlights, and some sharpening. When all was finished I applied sepia toning to emphasize the mood.

(c) 2013 Paul Grecian

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Pennsylvania Guild Show this weekend – Aug. 4-5

The Chase Center in Wilmington, DE is a great venue for a show and no one puts together a better show than the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen! I’ll be exhibiting and selling my work this weekend at the Chase Center and looking forward to seeing current collectors and meeting new ones as well.

Red Fox in Golden Grasses

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Audubon Show – Recapped

The Audubon Art and Craft Festival was well attended and a fun event. I missed having a couple of friends there who had previously participated but was pleased to find other familiar faces I haven’t seen in a while. Such is the nature of these types of shows. The weather could not have been better and the new location for the show worked out well.

The magazine This Week in the Poconos did a cover feature about the show accompanied by my image which I’ve titled simply- Blue Bird. It is an image I made here in Pennsylvania some years back and one which is part of many private home art collections.

 

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Audubon Show – Hawley, PA (July 21-22)

This weekend I will be participating in the Audubon Art and Craft Festival (http://www.audubonfestival.com/)  in Hawley, PA. This is a fun show with a nature oriented theme. There are live animal shows and a variety of some fine craft and artworks. Held around Lake Wallenpaupack, it’s also just a nice day out.

Great Blue Herons are wonderful birds and a favorite subject of mine. These two images are titled after the yoga poses that this bird is “obviously” holding (Warrior III on left and Downward-facing Dog on right). Both images were made at Lake Galena in Bucks County, PA . I used a Canon EOS 1D Mark III camera with Canon EF 500mm f4.0 L IS and Canon TC 1.4 (700mm optic equivalent). To hold this system stable and yet still have mobility, I use a Foba Superball tripod- head and Wimberley Sidekick.

“Warrior III”

Warrior III – The Yoga Bird Returns

I have selected a new image to accompany Downward-facing Dog, an image of a Great Blue Heron stretching in a posture that reminded me of the famous yoga pose of the same name. This new print, which is of an image made the same morning as Downward-facing Dog, is of the same bird in yet another yoga-like posture – Warrior III. Warrior III is a more difficult position to achieve, at least for me, though this heron seemingly does it with little difficulty.

As you have probably guessed, the new print will be titled – Warrior III. Like Downward-facing Dog, I use the  reflection to create a Zen-like symmetry in the image and the overcast lighting (acting like a huge softbox) to eliminate shadow and harsh reflections. My composition does not reveal any real horizon line so the bird and it’s reflection almost seem to be floating in air. The tree limb that breaks the water’s surface and a few water bubbles are all that “ground” the bird to a terrestrial sphere.

"Warrior III"

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Some Good Press….

It never hurts to get good press coverage. I was especially pleased with the coverage in the Entertainment section of the Lancaster Intelligencer this past weekend. In addition to a teaser spot on the front page, my image Three’s Company (three cardinals) was given full-page representation on the cover of the pull-out Entertainment section. Inside was the interview I gave last week and another image of mine – Beach Sitter (red fox).

The Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen show was a fine success with record crowd. The Lancaster Convention Center also happens to be a very attractive venue. We’ll be back next year.

Here’s a link to the article – Newspaper 

Cover of Entertainment Section

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Back to Lancaster, PA

This weekend I will be a featured artist at the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen show   Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen show at the Lancaster Convention Center in Lancaster, PA. As a featured artist at this show, I was interviewed today by Lancaster Newspapers, Inc. The interview should appear in the Friday Entertainment section of the paper.

The Convention Center is a new venue for this fine Guild show and will allow a clean floor plan for patrons to enjoy all the great, original work to be purchased.

The image below is one I made in the White Mountains of New Hampshire during a fall trip. Somewhat ironically, I am shipping a framed print back to New Hampshire for a client who is making it a gift.

Kangamangus Palette

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Kutztown University – this weekend (Oct. 29-30)

According to the weather forecast it may be feeling much more like the Holidays this weekend than typical for October.  That sets the mood well for you to come out to Kutztown for some holiday shopping! I will be with the Reading-Berks Chapter of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen this weekend offering my work to patrons for their own collections and as holiday gifts.

A new print of mine that is now available is entitled Hidden. It is an image of a Red Fox hidden among the golden grasses in Bucks County, PA. Look carefully and you will find this fox licking its lips suggesting either the completion of a good meal or anticipation of a meal yet to come.

The image was composed to place the fox high in the frame and centered in order to add attention on to the face (especially the eye which picks up the sunlight). I wanted most of the image to be about color and texture with the fox alone breaking the pattern of the grasses. The fox’s right eye is hidden behind the tall grasses which further emphasizes viewer attention onto the visible eye. The fact that the tongue is also seen on the same side of the face as the visible eye of the fox further draws the viewer’s eye.

It is an image I made with a Canon EOS 1D Mark II and Canon EF 500mm f4.0 L IS lens on a Gitzo tripod with Foba Superball tripod head and Wimbley Sidekick.

 

(c) Paul Grecian - http://www.paulgrecianphoto.com

 

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Peddler’s Village Fine Art and Craft Show 2011

Since 1997 the Peddler’s Village Fine Art show has been an event in which I have looked forward to participating. Set up right inside the heart of a great village of shops and restaurants, the show is a must see event in Bucks County. The show offers awards in several categories and a Founder’s Award to exhibitors. Last year I was very pleased to both receive a second place award in the Photography category as well as the Founder’s Award (a purchase award).

It’s always wonderful to receive recognition in the form of an award, but I’ll be very pleased with a weekend of fair weather.

New 24"x36" canvas giclee

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Strawberries

It’s the Strawberry Festival at Peddler’s Village in Lahaska, PA this weekend! I will be set up in my gallery-on-the-go canopy both Saturday and Sunday. The forecast looks great! Oh, and did I mention there will be strawberries?

In this colorful image bellow of a brilliant red flower, I have isolated the stamen with emphasis on the bright yellow anther. This is one of the fun and creative ways I like to work with macro photography. Simple form and strong color can make for a dynamic image. Here I was using a Panasonic G2 with a Lensbaby attachment that allows me to use a Nikon 55mm micro lens.

(c) 2011 Paul Grecian

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