Intuitive Creativity, but……

I create images mostly as an intuitive process. I react in the moment to a stimulus that attracts me and then work to make a picture that satisfies my response. I know when I’ve been successful when there’s almost a feeling of relief. Then I keep exploring to discover what else about my visual experience needs satisfying. Sometimes during the process, I talk to myself to achieve the result I want (it actually helps calm me down so that I can be analytical about camera settings).

Because I work intuitively (after 40 years of making images), I don’t do any real analysis of the images while in the field. Back in the studio however, I can spend as much time staring at the images as I please, or need. On a screen I can evaluate what about the images, and my intuition, worked. Then I determine what steps are needed in the development of the images to fully realize the emotion I was feeling.

I typically don’t venture out with any preconceived ideas about particular images I want to make. Generally, my motivation to go out is based on situational elements like, it’s cloudy, the leaves are colorful, I have time to explore.

Below is an analysis that I went through in the studio while developing this image.

Bringing this image into Lightroom and doing some basic developing of color, contrast, and shadow/highlights adjustments, I can then evaluate the image overall. After looking at it for a while, I can judge whether the image is balanced. Since we tend to look at images from left-to-right (the same way we read), I begin there. The left side (1) is heavy with trees, so the visual weight there needs to be balanced on the right. The red sumac leaves (2) progress lower left to upper right, drawing the eye in that direction, good. At point (3), the green leaves are brighter and encompass a larger part of the image, which also drives the viewer to the right. Lastly, the distant trees (4), draw the eye to the upper right, good again. Overall, I feel the image is well balanced and pleasing. This process of analysis serves as a kind of feedback loop which enhances my intuition next time in the field.

Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY 03) – Shortlisted image #3

Having had three images Shortlisted in this international competition was very rewarding. The first two images I shared were in the Insects category, this one was in the Intimate Landscape category. I have been working on a body of images exploring the esthetics of shape and line for some time. Over the last few winters, ice formations have caught my attention especially. Being able to create on our own property (a small 7+ acre farm with a creek running through), has been a great asset.

I find composing the complex geometry of ice very exciting, but also challenging. I am drawn to the abstractness of the formations, but organizing those abstract forms into a thing that is new, is the goal. This is not a picture of ice as much as it is of triangular shapes, curved line, circles. This type of imagery is what gets me out of the studio….

Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY 03) – Shortlisted image #2

The second of my three images which achieved Short-listing in this international competition was also made on our farm property. Another of my “backyard” images. Made earlier this year in March, it was a warm early spring day. Colonies of ants on our walkway had become very active, congregating in large numbers. As the sun was setting, I became fascinated by a large group of ants and grabbed my Olympus camera and Laowa 50mm f2.8 macro lens.

With the sun behind the ants, light reflected off their exoskeletons, and out-of-focus highlights became glowing circles. I held the camera on the ground at very close range trying not to have my hand touch the ants. Using the rear LCD to compose and focus, I watched as the ants battled each other in a way that reminded me of a Game of Thrones episode. It was intense and fierce. I wanted to convey a sense of extreme fighting by creating a layered composition with the heap of ant bodies in the middle layer. It was such a melee that I felt the image needed a few individuals clearly isolated in order to make sense of it all. I used a shallow depth of field and selective focusing to achieve the isolation of the ants on the right. The stone on which the fighting was happening was elevated above the ground level so that I was able to compose from a position at ant eye-level. This made for a more intense view.

I felt this image was quite unique and was very pleased that it received recognition in this prestigious competition.

Close-up Photographer of the Year 03 – Short-listed image #2

Close-up Photographer of the Year – Shortlisted Image #1

Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY), is an international competition now in its third year. It has drawn some of the best image makers in the world, and the results have been marvelous. This year’s competition – CUPOTY 03, set a new standard with around 10,000 submissions! The Shortlisted images were announced this past Wednesday. Being Shortlisted is the goal of every image maker entering this prestigious event. A Shortlisted image is one that is recognized to be in the top echelon of the genre. You can see the Shortlisted images on the CUPOTY website – HERE. Throughout several categories you will find stunning imagery with artistic merit as well as craftsmanship.

I was very pleased to be recognized in this year’s competition by having three images make the shortlist; two in the Insects category and one in the Intimate Landscapes category (I have also made the Shortlist in CUPOTY 02, and CUPOTY Color, both last year). I’d like to tell you about each one of this year’s Shortlisted images (I’ll do it in separate posts).

The first image is of a leafhopper on the stem of a plant with Dahlia flowers in the background. It is an image about color and form more than anything else. I didn’t make the image to inform about what a leafhopper looks like. Rather I wanted to use the brilliant colors of the leafhopper as a foundation for an image which is about the impact it had on me. The repetition of color between the insect and its background was exciting. I composed the solid green line of the stem, broken by the colorful form of the leafhopper, against the brilliant Dahlia flower reds because that combination elicited the greatest response in me. Ultimately, my goal is to have an esthetic experience, and this image fulfilled that goal. I am especially interested in esthetic experiences that can take place in everyday settings, in this case the gardens of our farm. Through this imagery I hope that others will find these everyday esthetic experiences in their own spaces.

I used an Olympus OM-D E-M5 camera with an Olympus 60mm M Zuiko lens at f8 and 1/100th sec. at ISO 800. I use Olympus often for close-up/macro work because its small size allows me to get into niches where a larger camera-lens combination would be awkward. The system is great for this type of work.

Close-up Photographer of the Year – CUPOTY 03, Shortlisted image

Winter Bird Project

Buy Prints Here

As part of my overall effort to make the farm into an “outdoor studio,” I’ve spent much of the year getting to know the creatures that reside here with us. Because of travel restrictions, my wife and I have made great strides to improve the farm’s landscaping and gardens. We have a nicely diverse 7 1/2 acres of field, woods, wetland, and flower beds.

Among our many projects, we wanted to create a couple areas dedicated to birds. For this purpose, I allocated a couple pieces of white-picket fencing. These I placed in a back field overlooking a grassy wetland area where birds often naturally feed. It is also an area that I can watch from my second floor studio window.

My aesthetic goal for this series is to make photographs with visual simplicity, strong geometry, and expressiveness. Birds take on a variety of postures which we translate as body language. We do this naturally with other people as we try to gage someone’s mood. And while it is certainly an exercise in anthropomorphism to suggest that a birds body position always signifies their inner feelings, it is likely to be true at least some of the time. Even if it is never true, their posture certainly speaks to us which is all that really matters.

One of my favorite winer birds is the iconic “Snowbird” – the Dark-eyed Junco. This familiar, two-toned visitor is perfect for the type of minimalist winter imagery I want to make. The red berries add vibrance to an otherwise monochromatic scene. I composed in order that the Junco’s colors were in contrast with its background and yet still harmonious to the color palette of the image overall. Titles Snowbird, this image is available now as a Limited Edition print at my on-line gallery – HERE

For this series so far, I have been working entirely without a tripod, something that is rare for me. But the freedom to respond using a handheld lens has been very beneficial. In this case I am using an Olympus 100-400mm on an Olympus E-M1 X which I am finding to be a wonderful combination. I am still not happy wearing gloves though, so despite the cold, I am working bare-handed.

It’s Not Puppy Love……but it’s still cute

This spring our barn was selected by a pair of Black Vultures as their nesting spot. Ultimately two eggs were laid and the incubating began. We checked on their progress regularly. One egg hatched, the other never did. Black Vultures mate for life and share in rearing the little ones. They are romantic birds engaging in a variety of courtship displays including one called “billing.” Billing is a behavior where the two birds touch beaks together which appears to strengthen the pair bond.

In our side yard, we have an old snag that is kind of a perfect perching tree. We’ve had Bald Eagles, various hawks, kestrel , pileated woodpeckers, and others use it to scan the fields. The snag is also a favorite spot for the vultures to hang out. One evening I spotted the two of them at the very top of the dead tree. They were silhouetted against a featureless sky. I ran outside with a camera and long lens and began to work at creating some minimalist images. When they starting “billing,” I recomposed to make sure their bodies didn’t overlap. I exposed to emphasize the silhouette.

I held off in printing the image because I suspected I would be able to combine it with another image in future. Last week I made that image; a wonderful large moon rising over the ridge across from our farm.

Moonstruck is now available as a Limited edition print in a variety of sizes and can be ordered as a canvas print as well (contact me for the canvas). Prints are available on my website HERE

Fulfill Your Dreams

Animals have always had symbolic meaning for people. Many cultures and individuals still consider the sighting of certain animals as highly significant events. One of the most cherished of sightings is of a bird that is thought to represent many of life’s best experiences – joy, love, peace, overcoming adversity, the fulfilling of dreams. What bird can signify so much all by itself? Well, its the amazing little hummingbird!

And no wonder, right? It’s incredible flight ability, it’s diminutive size, it’s great power and resilience to migrate enormous distances, all make for the things of myth and legend. It’s both magnificently delicate and fierce at the same time.

We have always had a few plants which attract hummingbirds to our farm. This year my wife Lin made sure we had Bee Balm as well. Beautiful red flowers are hard to resist, especially for the hummers doing their tour around the farm.

I read during afternoon coffee time on our front porch which puts me in view of the Bee Balm. I had established that the hummers visit the plant around that time. In addition to my coffee mug and Kindle, I’ll have my camera with a long telephoto lens attached. I prefocus, preset the exposure, and previsualize compositions. Hummingbirds are fast and don’t typically hang around for long. My last quick decisions have to happen on the fly (sorry), but the result was marvelous. I hope you like it too.

For a print of this image, go to my website HERE.

Red Wing

I recently asked friends of mine to list questions they had about the artistic process. One of the questions asked was why do I work in my chosen medium and not another. What is it about the medium of photography that has kept me so engaged for over 40 years? The image that I have titled Red Wing is very much pertinent to the answer. For me, being able to create in the moment when my emotions are running highest is very important. I appreciate the rush I get when I observe something extraordinary. To most fully experience something remarkable, I need to engage with it in real time. I can achieve that engagement uniquely through the medium of Photography.

This image was made recently in a wooded section on our farm.  It was a cloudy afternoon. I saw the flock through my studio window and almost just chose to observe. Then a rather desperate urge came upon me to engage. I’ve been working in a rather impulsive way recently, just grabbing gear and going. I knew which lens I wanted to use, which camera body to attach it to, and that time was fleeting. I also knew these birds would not like me approaching them. I began adjusting settings as I worked my way closer and when in position, my gut instinct took over.

This is a very significant image for me. It is an image that defines the kind of work I have come to make over the last five years, and especially within the last couple.

This image is part of my “100 Series” and will be limited to 100 prints in all sizes. Prints are already available at my gallery online – HERE.

Lots of Snow this Year…..

It’s still winter, even though we hit 72F yesterday. In fact this whole winter has been crazy mild. We’ve had way above average temps, and very little snow — except in the form of geese! Several times in the last few weeks large flocks of these magnificent birds have dropped into the fields behind our farm. It has been such a wonderful display. Big, white birds flying in unison, sometimes against the dark hillside made for an exhilarating experience.

Over the last five years, most of my work has been done on our farm. The arrival of the Snow Geese has added a new element to my series done right here on our 7 1/2 acres. Although I have done several series on large flocks of blackbirds, the snow geese afforded me the opportunity to create an interesting contrast. I composed this piece to emphasize a strong yin and yang relationship — with white geese against the dark hillside balancing the dark trees against the light sky. It is important too that some of the white geese cross the dark trees which creates a unifying element in the image.

I am offering this image as a Limited Edition print as part of my “100” Series. Only 100 prints will be made across all sizes. Order it now on my website here.

 

A Kind of Escape

“The enjoyment of beauty is a kind of escape from, a going out from, the urgencies of place and time.” ~ Virgil C. Aldrich (American Philosopher, 1903-1998)

There was a point early in my career where I realized that the process of creation was no longer an option. The act of creating had became an escape from the everyday stresses of life. If I didn’t get into the field at least once a week, I went into a low level depression (withdrawal?). Being out in nature was a big part of what drove the creative process. The science is clear about the benefits of being in areas of woods, around water bodies; even just looking at pictures of nature lowers stress levels.

I have come to realize as well that beauty itself drives my creative process and can serve as an escape. One of the benefits of working in the arts is the ability to create things of beauty. I can create my own escape when I need it. In my farmhouse studio space I can explore subjects in detail at my own pace and experience a world of beauty all to myself. For me art is all about experiences.

The image above was the result of an exploration of a silk moth which I found on our farm earlier this spring. Discovering its intricate wing scale design was a joyful experience. It felt like I was looking at a mosaic of tiles when I viewed a section of wing close-up. For the period of time in which I created images I thought of nothing other than the wonderfulness of the color and pattern. With its rhythm of scales though, it was the curve of the wing that I was drawn to most.

Curves introduce a feeling of tension. While sensual in form, curves imply resistance. Straight is less tense while driving; a curved road requires more expenditure of energy to maneuver. A river that flows through an oxbow is constantly fighting the curves. Straightness implies a fight with gravity which is lost, or even a struggle with death no longer fought. Leo Stein (American art collector/critic, 1872 – 1947) remarked, “Tension in line can be observed if one will follow the outline of a vase and notice the force it takes to bend the line of a contour.” Curves to me speak to a life force, something I think art can convey uniquely.