Jul 26, 2010

Photo Tip of the Month - July 2010

When composing an image I often start out applying the "Rule of Thirds". I don't use it as a set rule; more as a guideline or starting point for a more interesting photographic composition. In landscape photography I like to place the horizon in accordance to the importance of the sky; with dramatic sky formations I like to place the horizon in the lower third giving the sky more preference, for images with stronger foregrounds and weaker cloud or sky formations I prefer to place the horizon in the upper third of the image. Usually locating the horizon in the middle makes a photo ordinary and static. An exception to what I just said here would be a grand landscape lake reflection. I often apply the same approach to my flower photography and lay the focus or point of interest within the flower at one of the four intersections, leaving room for the viewer to explore the image but also to be drawn back to the focus point.

Jul 25, 2010

At the White Mountain National Forest

A couple of years ago I hiked the Bondcliff trail, one of the most spectacular and scenic hikes in the White Mountain National Forest of New Hampshire. In preparation for this overnight hike I booked a bed at the AMC Galehead hut. I started out at the large parking area Lincoln Woods off the Kancamangus Highway; ahead of a 12 mile moderate to strenuous hike filled with many breathtaking vistas. From the parking area I followed the Lincoln Woods trail that leads into the Wilderness trail, easy hiking along the East branch of the Pemigewasset river. After a couple of hours the Bondcliff trails branches off the Wilderness trail and the 4,300 feet ascent to the Bondcliff starts. For most of the time you stumble through areas of woods and scrubs until you reach the crest of Bondcliff. Here I broke out of the scrubs, climbed a rather difficult scramble up the ledge, turned around and was awarded with a jaw dropping view across the Permigawasset Wilderness area. After a brief rest and taking in the moment I continued hiking above the treeline along the open ridge. I passed Mt. Bond (4,700 ft) to the left and climbed the peaks of Mt. Guyot (4,580 ft) and the South Twin mountain (4,900 ft). These sections provide by far the best and most magnificent views of the Pemigewasset wilderness and the White Mountains with no civilization in sight. From the South Twin mountain I descended along the Twinway trail to the Galehead hut where I arrived just in time for a spectacular sunset and a warm diner in the hut. Exhausted but happy I fell into my bunk bed for the night; awaiting what tomorrow would bring. My original plan was to make my way back the same way I came and take full advantage of the morning light, but I felt too tired to make any more climbs. Instead I headed back down towards the Kancamangus highway via the Twin Brook trail, Lincoln Brook trail, Franconia Brook trail and lastly Lincoln Woods trail completing the circular route through the beautiful and one of my favorite destination in New England. It's been too long, time to head back!








Jul 17, 2010

At the Kathryn Schultz Gallery

"Innocent Beauty" is now on display at the Kathryn Schultz gallery in Cambridge, MA. The exhibit features many local artists and runs from July 02 - 28, 2010 and is organized by the Cambridge Art Association. The Kathryn Schultz gallery is located at 25 Lowell Street in Cambridge MA 02138 near Harvard Square. Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 11am to 5pm; Phone: 617.876.0246

Full Bloom Flower Photography

Full Bloom was captured in the Minot Rose Garden of Brookline, MA during an early morning photo trip to the garden. The clouds had left in the morning after a typical overnight summer shower, providing me with great conditions for flower photography. The roses were blanketed in raindrops and the morning sun hit many of the flowers. Full Bloom caught my attention because of the sparkling droplets that were lit by the direct sunlight. It required a couple of attempts to position my camera and tripod in a way that did not produce any kind of shadow on the blooming rose petals that would detract from the beauty of the red rose. I focused on the petals in the center of the rose and positioned the floral a little bit off center. I used center weighted average metering mode that provided an aperture setting of f/7.1 resulting in an exposure time of 1/640 seconds. Because of the sunlight I underexposed by two steps and applied minimal post processing edits like sharpening, dust removal, lighting and colors adjustments.

Jul 7, 2010

In Jamaica Plain

Floral Abstract, Jamaica Pond and Spring Tree Carousel were juried into the Jamaica Plain Arts Council 2010 Annual Juried Exhibition. The exhibition features various artists and runs from June 19 - July 12, 2010 and is organized by the Jamaica Plain Arts Council. Artwork is on display in the Maliotis Cultural Center (MCC) at Hellenic College. The Maliotis Cultural Center is located at 55 Goddard Street in Brookline, MA 02445 and open to the public Mo. through Fr. from 9 am to 5 pm.

Jul 5, 2010

Fourth of July

These are two photographs of yesterday's fourth of July cloud formation at sunset. The sky was literally on fire. Lazy me didn't pull out the tripod out of the trunk and rested my camera on the porch railing to minimize the impact of camera shaking. I used auto-focus but had a hard time finding a focus point. The camera was set at about 50mm focal lens to concentrate on the clouds and cut out any trees or houses in the frame. I choose a f/5.6 aperture setting resulting in 1/50 seconds of exposure time. I used the 1/3 underexposed image to work off and applied minor noise reduction, dust removal and sharpening in the post processing steps. The spectacle only lasted a few minutes and afterward my wife and I made our way down to the Charles to watch the real 4th of July fireworks in Boston ... it was amazing as every year!

Jul 4, 2010

At University Place Gallery

Sabbaday Brook, Maple Tree in Autumn Glow and Tulips are now on display at the beautiful University Place Gallery in Cambridge, MA. The art fair runs from 01 July through 31 August 2010 and is open and Monday through Friday 9am to 6pm, Saturday 9am to 1pm. University Place Gallery is at 124 Mount Auburn St. Cambridge MA 02138.