In Cambridge

Cape Cod Solitude was accepted into the juried group art exhibit, Red: It's more than a color. The exhibition features many artists and runs from November 10, 2009 through January 14, 2010 in the Kathryn Schultz gallery and University Place gallery. The Kathryn Schultz gallery is located at 25 Lowell St. in Cambridge, MA 02138 and is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 5pm. University Place gallery is only a block away at 124 Mt. Auburn St. in Cambridge, MA 02138 and is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm and Saturday 9am to 1pm.

In New England

The 2009 Fall foliage season is now winding down here in the Boston area of New England and as every year has provided us with lots of black and white photo or color photos opportunities. Shooting Fall colors is an event I look forward to all year. This year was no different and I made mostly local trips but also finally got to experience Acadia National Park. All year I plan and look for Fall destinations and locations. I look forward to the first foliage report from the New England Fall Foliage network at New England Fall Foliage Network. The foliage network is my major source for finding beautiful Fall colors in New England. Every Wednesday and Saturday the network provides updates on color and leaf drops throughout the region. Usually I try to time my trips when the map shows high color. I found that best colors have already passed when peak is indicated on the maps.

Prior to my trips I look into where and what I am going to shoot. Local destinations like the Arnold Arboretum or State Parks within an hour of Boston are preferred when there is only limited time. Longer photo trips are dedicated to Acadia National Park, The Whites, Green Mountains or Cape Cod. Often I find myself browsing the local bookstore or the net to find information about new locations and photo objects. The AMC hiking guides come in handy when I decide to just take off for a hike into the woods or the mountains.

Although a pain to carry along, a tripod is a must. Filters like the polarizer or neutral density filters are indispensable for achieving stunning imagery. Cloudy, overcast mid-mornings provide optimal shooting conditions with minimal wind and good light. This is the time to get up close near brooks or creeks to photograph Fall colored leaves, rushing brooks or Fall foliage landscapes. The overcast sky does not add to the compositions and is eliminated from the frame. Wet vegetation in combination with the polarizer provide me with highest color saturation. I am always on the lookout to combine warm Fall hues with their complementary colors like red with green or yellow with blue. Photographing Fall colors on bright sunny days adds additional depth to images when including a blue sky in the compositions. The sunlight really makes the colors pop.

Artistic approaches for autumn photos include foliage in motion for example, solid trunks with leaves moving in the wind, fallen leaves against a milky, rushing brook or a batch of patterned color from atop a hill.

Win a Free Greeting Card!

Email me the number of photographers in this Granite Coast photograph from Acadia National Park and win a free greeting card from my Fine Art America portfolio for free! Click on the image to enlarge.

The first one to email me the correct answer at

Juergenrothphotography@gmail.com

will be awarded a free greeting card from my Fine Art America portfolio.

Please include in the subject line of your email "Free Greeting Card" and email me your choice of image for your greeting card.

Good luck!

Monthly Photo Tip - October 2009

Last weekend I spent 3 full days in Acadia National Park in Maine. On my last day I was looking to shoot Bass Harbor lighthouse. When I arrived the place was a mob scene. Not totally unexpected, but still surprising to see probably 25 to 30 people on the rocks at the bottom of the lighthouse. Other photographers had already marked the perfect locations their own. I had no choice but to back up and walk across the granite rocks and set up further away. Of course I had the whole crowd in my frame but I also knew what I was waiting for, twilight. These morning and evening limited minutes provide exceptional light for glorious and dramatic landscape photography. So, I chilled out, like my daughter frequently suggests. I turned around to capture the red granite rocks painted by beautiful evening light while most people were focusing on the lighthouse and the sunset. Once the sun set, flashlights were lighting the scene and cameras were released left and right. After a few minutes, people started to leave, including most of the photographers. In the end there were just three photographers left, one who claimed the top spot from the start, one who got lost on the way to the location and myself. A fourth gentleman was enjoying a bottle of wine, amused that I praised my fellow photographer for arriving just in time to capture Bass Harbor light at its best. The three of us now filled up our flash cards with I believe some of the best Bass Harbor lighthouse photographs taken that night.

At White Mountains

Sabbaday Brook is another photograph that I am often suspected of having staged. As discussed with Spiral Rose in an earlier post this is what nature provided me and I was lucky enough to stumble across this incredible setting that day. Call it being in the right place at the right time. The photograph was taken on the way back from the Sabbaday Falls in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The falls turned out to be quite a disappointment or maybe I simply was not inspired to produce something beautiful. On the way back I focused on the the rocks and stream instead and while walking downstream I discovered the setting. I composed the image so that the leaf leads into the photograph and keeps you right there. In order to do so I had to manoveur my tripod set up on other rocks and partly in the brook itself. I balanced myself from the edge of the stream to zoom in and managed to set up my camera including the self timer to limit camera shaking and picture blurryness. Besides the rock and the leaf, the photograph shows Sabbaday brook in the background. The moving stream provides a perfect border and keeps the viewers interest within the photo.

Photo of the Month - September