Revealing my Intent: "Image 5 "Red Rain on Fire"

 

Red Rain on Fire

Some shoots include a well framed, photo with immense bokeh and an anticipation of interesting subject matter. In this case it was a Maple tree caught off center, with rain pelting the tree from an angle that to me screamed "Ah, but there's more to this image than just rain on a tree. The potential tugged at me until I decided there was work to do.

I had to decide if I wanted to simply fill out the shot with increased saturation and contrast or to make this as memorial as a cartoon cover on a comic magazine. I vacillated between the two for more than just a few days. I set it aside. I re-opened it. I kept screening it from different perspectives. How would I want this to look hung in a relative's home of a family member's home? Just punching up sounded good, but I couldn't help wondering just how much pop I could get into it. And this went on, while I was shooting other subjects, working on other images, and after several weeks, I made my decision.

The majority of us, when we hang our family and friend's photos, just want that face or that group warmth to remember. But when it comes to adding an explosive element in their living room, or their dining or bedrooms, they want POP!!! And from then on my scheduled work was invented. This was going to be a print that commanded attention, not just appreciation. Nothing else in the room would take away its power of color and action from the image.

Once I began, nothing else got in the way. Exacting details were left in the dust for that almost Andy Warhol flair and flexibility. It took on an energy that rebounded every time I added another feature. This was New York Flame, Los Angeles Punch, Parisian Fireworks, all in one. I spent an inordinate amount of time testing and rejecting changes over the better part of 2 weeks, on and off as I took breaks for freshness of mind and creativity. Over and over I'd add a layer, regenerate the image only to delete and start over. 

This was going to be the Gallery-in-the-home Print. And when I finally took the last step in sharpening and pushing its limits to the extreme, I saved the image and put it away for another few days. Then when I came back to it, I knew it was exactly what I wanted from the beginning. Absolute control of the room it would hang in.

My hope is that you find this the perfect print to add to your home or office. Here is where to find it and purchase it as a print, with or without matte and frame: Red Rain on Fire

Next Post iPhone 15 Pro case of your choice

 

Revealing my Intent: Image 4 "Sky on Fire"

Sky on Fire

As I was driving on an early afternoon in the Fall season, I noticed a thundercloud in the distance. It was astonishing how low it was and how powerful it looked. I pulled over into a small parking lot to set up the tripod and mount the Canon dslr with a 70-200mm F2.8L lens and took a few shots just in case it were to disappear quickly as it was moving along. But to my surprise it started bunching up and then the sun broke to reveal these powerful clouds as if they were 50 feet away. It was quite stunning, but I knew if I just kept shooting I might have the opportunity to do some editing at my Mac desktop.

While I liked the image I began working on the exposure and the shadows, contrast, and saturation along with sharpening after all the other tasks were completed. this one took less time than I thought it might, finishing it in a single session. But I had recently began using Affinity and opened the file again the next day. After an hour the results were beyond my wildest expectations. What caused me to be really pleased with Photoshop, found more pleased with Affinity. And here I am not comparing one photo editor with another, but the ease of use with Affinity allowed me to carry one finishing with the final image file being one of the very best 'even better than Mother Nature" images I've worked on to dat.

I can tell you that once I had edited this image and thought all was done, I could have easily closed it and moved onto to another, since it took so little time create. But after reopening it, I found a new level of energy and interest that propelled me to get the best I could out of that shot alongside the road. And not once since then have I seen such a cloud formation, and I travel that little backroad often. In fact this being Fall again I will continue to revisit that area, hoping for another rare opportunity. 

That's the great thing about photography, and here I am speaking of a DSLR camera rather than a phone camera. The images that phones are producing are just as beautiful, when viewed on the phones screen, or a tablet/iPad, or desktop. The limitation is in achieving an image size large enough to produce a large print to fit on your wall, that prints the size you want, with the clarity that a DSLR and a quality lens will. Thus the reason I keep shooting with a camera for prints.

I hope I've given you some insight into what it is that inspires me to move from what Mother Nature allows, to what taking that image file and giving us, me and you, what we didn't get before editing. The results are sometimes astounding and powerful. I hope you take the time to jump to my link below or comment here on this post.

My website

Next in this Series Red Rain on Fire

 

Revealing my Intent: Image 3 "Light from Beneath"

 

Light from Beneath

This image was taken mid-day. I had driven to up the Washougal river to Dougan Falls, as I have many times over the years. This particular time was after a freshet in the morning, and following a strong rain the day before. I was hoping that extra water force would give me what I was looking for, and it did. A very strong current over the falls and into the pool beneath. Yet it was missing essential light. Not just good light, but that early bright cast or golden afternoon light. I knew I had work to do.

The color of the water, is almost always a deep green, what is referred to as Steelhead Green, a local term among those who fish for steelhead, a member of the trout family. But that wasn't giving me the tones I wanted. I was looking for something spectacular, something that would stand out above all other art in the room, something one would find difficult to look away from once hung on the wall. It wasn't going to be just another waterfall print.

I took hours over a few days attempting to develop a finish that brought me that special look. I used my favorite Photoshop tools but I wasn't getting where I wanted, until I decided to go dark. And dark wasn't all it took. As I continued I had to add that special light I was looking for. And even then after adding back the light, I continued until it hit me. It wasn't the simple light it needed, I needed light from beneath the surface of the water in the pool, at the bottom of the waterfall. Once I mastered that, I began working on the coloring. It took perhaps 25-30 attempts to get it exactly how I wanted it. Then I sat on it for a few days. I needed fresh eyes. 

When I came back a week later, I knew I had created a winner. And to this day, it is  one of my favorites that I continue to re-hang on the living room wall, after a seasonal change out of prints.

You can see this at My Photography Website 

Next in this Series Sky on Fire

Comment below

Revealing my Intent: Image 2 ":Locomotive Engine 4449"

 

Locomotive Engine 4449

I had the intent to shoot a 70mph steam locomotive going through the area one morning. I arrived early and set up my camera and 70-200mm lens so I could capture enough light for fast shutter speed as it approached from a distance away, and to keep shooting as it very quickly flew by. These shots were strictly images, no video. The entire outing took just under an hour, while the entire shoot took less than 6 seconds. I had everything exactly as I wanted it. But.......

......what I discovered as I read the screen and viewed the result, were that the light while bright was a hazy bright and undersaturated the colors that I wanted to display in a printed image, while over saturating the whites to a point of blown out highlights. Now my work was cut out for me.

I worked on these images for a few days, then after not being able to achieve what I wanted, I decided I should try massaging the colors tones. This was a multi-step exercise and took a bunch of tries to end up with exactly what I wanted. In fact I liked it even better than just a straight out of the box standard photograph. After sepia-toning the ground and tracks, I added highlight and exposure to bribing to life the surrounding landscape, and moved on to the locomotive itself. The locomotive engine, not the entire boxcars following it, had to remain the focus and as I sampled many sets of adjustments, I finalized the colors with stainless, orange, black and blue as a reflective of the sky just above, even though the rest was cloudy bright.

Forcing the steam from the locomotive stack to take on a darker, moody appearance allowing for the engine to stand out above all else. This particular locomotive engine has been captured thousands of time, but I have not to date, been able to find it so creatively altered as to become a really special print for both those who are train enthusiasts, but for that special wall that screams our for something really dramatic and powerful.

The work it takes to get a ordinary photograph to this stage was for me, quite an effort, and I hope I have described it well enough for you to appreciate the effort.

My Photography Website

Next in this Series Light from Beneath

Revealing my Intent: Image 1 "Looking Down from St Helens"

 

Link to image 'Looking Down from St Helens'

As I stood looking across from the Johnston Ridge Johnston Ridge Observatory, more commonly known as the Mt St Helens Visitor Center,  the mountain itself, appeared while magnificent, not so spectacular. Rather ordinary to me. No smoke was emanating from its dome, no great lighting showing off early morning clouds. Nothing to remember other than the rock face itself. I didn't want such a dull print on my wall, and I didn't want to offer for sale such a dull print. So after walking around the viewing landscape I took several shots anyway, thinking I could take this back to my desktop to look it over more carefully. After an hour or so looking over the images, I decided I wanted to bring this image to life.

I wanted to remember it as a much more spectacular scene. Something with the colors that would inspire me to return to Mt St Helens and shoot more images as time allowed. And so the creativity took hold. I wanted color, so much color that it would be a standout print. I punched up the exposure, increased saturation and contrast, and in the end, I was able to mix it all together as if I were looking at the age of the mountain from the Mesozoic Era, some 252 million to 66 million years ago. As such it took on a completely new and customized look, as if I were in that time traveled feeling. No longer in the present, but back when dinosaurs roamed. When I finished I knew then I had accomplished a view of Mt St Helens that I had not seen before nor might I be able to duplicate it quite as ancient again. 

I hope this has revealed to you the breadth and creativity, and the time I spent in bringing this view to those looking for a very special print of this beloved mountain.

My photography website

How to get there

Next in this Series Locomotive Engine 4449

A New Series, Revealing my Intent, explained

 Why I've decided to explain my intent on each print, added to this new series

To be blunt, I have a history of intensive shooting for future creative results. What does that mean to you? My point in shooting a subject is to end with an image that is how I wanted the original image to end up, how much better I feel when my work is done, post editing. Most all images I shoot, are fairly ordinary, not referring to the subject, but considering the best light, shading, contrast, B&W or color, and other important factors. 

I gain, in most cases, an image for printing that is far better than the original shot.

This is done through editing with software only when the set up, that is, waiting for the right light, taking care to achieve the very best focus, finding a subject that is purposefully sought for intentional re-editing and so on,  is not immediately available to me. So the prints my customers receive, have a lot more work than can be imagined upon first glance, until they have an appreciation of that extra work. 

And so it takes a keen eye to really get my intent in many of my prints. The alternative is to simply accept the effect it gives one, from the first glance and not concern themselves with the work and the impact or the extra work involved. Both perceptions are perfectly acceptable. But as a photographic artist, I get more in return when I hear back about how this affected their appreciation as they share it with others.

I'll post my first image, print in this series soon. Leave a comment if you like, about a print subject you might be looking for, interested in, or have in mind for your consideration and if I have something that fits your purpose, I'll be sure to add something of that genre.

Let's take this journey together

First in this series Looking Down from St Helens

TODAY"S the DAY........... APPLE EVENT is Happening

 And Here it is........just tap on theater mode

Watch today at 10 a.m. PT. View online at apple.com or on the Apple TV app.

Heads Up......on the Apple USB-C Power Adapter

 Yes..........

this is a different post for me as a photographer,

but if you're planning on buying the new iPhone 15 from Apple's lineup, remember you'll need to purchase the Apple 20W USB-C Power Adapter separately

The 'Head's Up' warning is not about the cost, as they are not expensive. It will be the availability. And the new iPhones are not coming with this charger in the box. So the warning is to buy it at the same time you purchase their iPhones, not later. Reports claim Apple is ordering 70 million 20W USB-C Power Adapters, and that may not be enough.

Once the iPhones are available, these power adapters may be gone very quickly

Here is Apple's Charger

When you get there, after the iPhone 15's roll out in a week, scroll down to the Compatability list to be sure this is the same charger that is currently working with the past iPhones. Currently the iPhone 15's are not on that list, and it is probably because the new iPhones are not yet up for sale.

If you'd like to thank me for this Head's Up, take a stroll into my Photo Prints site and thanks for reading. I hope this helps and thanks for reading

Tabernacle 

Picking out the Best Room for the Next Wall Print

 

Elephant Seal ......

belongs in what room in your home or office? This is certainly of the class of humor, not sentimental or stunning. So which room would you choose?

Baby Raccoons ......

belongs in another room altogether. It is cute, cuddly and emotional, so what room now?

Shepherd's Dell Falls ......

Also belongs in a different room, but you will do the picking, not anyone else, so where? 

These examples are merely fodder for what you will be going through once you arrive at your destination, my photography website

Choosing the prints is only part of the exercise. Choosing the room, then the wall, tenth frame or matte are other considerations. You are just beginning your stroll, your hike, your trail to your goal of finding and placing your new wall art where it properly belongs. Wishing you the best of journeys.

Your Home or Office? My Photographic Prints

 You tell me... what will entice you to purchase my Prints It's your turn........

Quite honestly we all struggle to finalize a long-lasting purchase such as wall art. 

Even when I look over my own art, I have to take seriously the hanging on any of my walls since it will be there on some of my prints, for a few years. So I understand the permanence of such a purchase. But the only way you can start the journey is to visit my photo print site  to find out what you will be considering.

You'll be choosing from animal prints, landscape subjects, flowers, and so on

Here's just one to entice you to begin

Grand in Selective Color

It's not as hard as you might think, but you will have to pay close attention to your space to place it in. Best of luck.