A shot in the Dark

I was shooting some portraits the other night with my home studio set up when the power went off.I was stuck.My model was upset (my daughter),the studio was as dark as anything and we tripping about the cords and boxes and the evening was a total loss.Strobist's use the camera add on flash units off camera to shoot with.No electrical plug in and the likes.No wires cascading across the floor.Just batteries and wireless transmitters.I  bet if I  had this type of a set up not only would I have gotten the shot but I would have had a very interesting lighting effect with no ambient light.

An old Friend

To all that have read this Blog,
I have been a bad bad Blogger.I have neglected something that had started to take root.After several months of not posting only today have I realized what I have missed.I looked at the blog statistics only to be blown away by the number of hits and comments that the blog has received.So what now?Well its gut check time.Do I believe what I have to say has some merit or am I simply blowing smoke.With what I have read I must be doing some thing right.I must be on the right track with both my blog and my photography.So i thank you all in careing enough to leave a comment and now after a long artist block I will be back and as strong as ever.
Thank you
John

A long time coming

Well yesterday I finally blew the dust off of the lights and took some self portraits.I haven't really felt like shooting much lately as life has had me in a funk.how ever lately I have felt my creative juices flowing as the morning light has become lovely.
I must get back into the Tips From The Top Floors contests.Its hard .I really only have one day to shoot the theme so I am under a time crunch,but the competition is good to drive ones photography.

Reasearch,Computer Promblems and Life

Well its a Sunday and life is moving on.I came to a realization that the only hobby right now that I can do that doesn't cost me a small fortune is photography.That's a small victory.
Recently My main computer has had problems.This is the computer that I use for photo editing.It is my main computer.It sucks that it isn't really working.
I have done some research on finding covered bridges in New Brunswick.I didn't really realize how many that there were.It great.i cant wait til I get out and start to shoot these.I am trying to create a really nice book out of this.

experimentation

I have spent the weekend experimenting on HDR photography.I love the vivid colors and rich details that these type of photos produce.I have down loaded some plug in in gimp to help with this process.

For any one who doesn't understand hdr photography it is a combination of a series of photos taken at different exposures then combined in a digital editing photo program such as gimp.

Rain and the best laid plans

Yesterday I stated that I wanted to plan a project that would not only leave a body of work but also challenge my photographic senses.So after long thoughts I have decided to photograph as many of New Brunswick's covered bridges as possible.With the recent weather issues in the province I came to realize how important and fragile these wooden structures are.
The wooden bridge was the choice of builders during their day .The have provided a refuge from weather,a quiet place for young love and platform for young people to prove there bravery through bounding leaps through out the years.
I will start mapping the route that I must take .Weekday nights will be spent finding some these treasures and planing day trips through out the province.Many of these bridges are in Charlotte county,the county that I grew up in.Many of these bridges hold special meaning for me as I too was one those brave boys who would leap off of the bridge to the cool water that lay before.

A New Year and A New Decades

Well its a new year and a new decade.Its time for me to push my photography and my blogging to new heights.On the photography front I want to do a project.On the blogging front I ant to get a blog where I am a regular contributor of some meaningful information,thoughts or news.I hope that over the next year you will enjoy my ramblings.

On the photography front I really want to start to create a body of work.Something I can be proud of and a vision of how I see the world.With the flooding in south western NB this past December I realized how delicate the covered bridges that dot the area really are.I have decided to try and photograph as many of them as possible.I have decided to take these photo's over an extended period of time.I will post more as it develops.(Sorry about the pun)

Long Time Coming

Well its been a long time since I last posted anything on shooting from the hip.The daily routine of life has totally interfered with both blogging and photography.In the time since I last posted I have moved to north western New Brunswick.A big Move?Yes,but one that was well needed.
On the photography front I haven't had time to shoot much.But this weeks pics are some thing I see many mornings here in Grand Falls.The fog lays low in the valley and during the morning sunrise there are beautiful colors in the sky.There is a church just down the road from us and the steeple juts out of the fog.
This is one of the few photos that I have taken that I have previz the photo before I took it.Although the colors are a little different than what I had envisioned but overall its the photo I has seen.

Flight Time

It has been a while since I last updated the blog.I have been extremely busy in trying to find work and have spent most of free time doing that.I have however gotten a second paid photography job.I recently got photography some graduates from the local community collage at their graduation ceremony.
I am currently in Winnipeg and during the long flight down from the north I got the opportunity watch the sunset above the clouds.For years I have photographed the sunset from the bottom of the clouds but this was extremely different.The tops of the clouds also turned the most wonderful colors and all the hills and vallie's created by the clouds.

A rose by any othher name....

Its been a long while since I last posted to this blog.Many things have transpire to keep the photographer in me silent.I have taken some photos and done some experimentation but in general I have done very little in photography.
Today I took a different sort of photo for me.I generally don't do still life's very well.In this case how ever I manage to get a photo right out of the can .I haven't even tried to post process the image.
here it is.

Cloudy Weather

Well today I got up and wanted to go for a ride for some photography but of course it is overcast and the lighting is very flat.So it looks like an indoor shoot today.But what to shoot.My kids are starting to get fed up with being daddies models and my wife doesn't like her images,so I guess I will have to turn to my self.I will try and get some hints and tricks from YouTube and will try and post the results.

Late Night Photography

The other night I got the chance to do some party photography.Some of it good some of it not so good.The challenges of shooting at parties of course is lighting.I don't have a very powerful flash but we try and make do with what we have.Here are some results.

Inspiration

Inspiration is the hardest part of art.Some times it flow lie a river.raging with in the sole and other times it like a babbling brook in mid summer.The last month has been so busy that I haven't had time to dig out the camera.I had managed to blog almost every day and now I have hit blogger block.
Today is Easter.For most of world spring has arrived but here in the North it represent the second half of winter.We have more snow here today as we have had all winter.There is no chance for outdoor photography.So Its still life's or portraiture work till it warms up above the freezing mark.

Pratice Makkes Perfect

Well my favorite model must be my daughter.I have taken lots of photographs of here over the years and have talked about in this blog many times.I love her smile.It is infectious.When Jasmine smiles you cant help but feel better about the day.
I am struggling with two things with lighting.One the space that I have to work in and the ability to blow out the background with out back lighting.Here is my latest try at digital backgrounds.

A Windy Slow Day

Well the month February was a hectic one to say the least and March hasn't started off much better.I have been a bit lax at getting to the blog so here to a new start.
The weather here in the north has started to improve.The days are getting longer and the cold is starting to disappeared.Today however there is a bit of a blow on and I cant get out to do any photography.The clouds how ever are starting to line up for what might be an absolutely gorges sunset.I hope.I have a clear shot of the lake and the buildings are just peeking above the ground snow.
Tonight I have another photo shoot.I 4 month old baby boy.I will attempt to get some Anne Geddes type shots.I love her work.Her use of simple objects such as flower pedals and adding the beauty of the baby really inspires me.

A Warm Winters Day

Well its the last day of February and the weather here should be in the -30 c somethings,but when I awoke this morning It was only -11c.I know,I know that that sounds cold,but put into focus when you spend months of being in a deep freeze when the temperature start to rise so dose spirits.This has been a great week for me.Watching Canada put on one of the best Olympics games ever and the success that they are enjoying,doing a photo shoot that was very successful and selling my first photos.I also have become more aware of other photographic opportunities in my area for photography hopefully I can convert some of them into sales.

A Big Day

Well finally I did it.I got paid for a photo that I created.On last Saturday I did a photo shoot with a local family.Using digital backgrounds that I purchased back in last summer.I didn't make much but it is at least a start.I guess I can call my self a professional photographer now.

Shoot for the Day

Well after a revelation of street photography I decided to talk an indoor photo walk.I shoot a lot of black and white images of items and kids around the house.My daughter ,who is a natural at posing ,helped by being my main subject.I also did some work for the TFTTF photo challenge this week which is scape.My entry will be snow scape.

Revaluation

Today I had a revaluation.I was reading an article about street style photography from National Geographic magazine and they talked about being close to your subject.One of my favorite black and white photo's that I have taking was a street photo of a fiddle player in a market in Winnipeg Canada.I took it from a balcony and the subject wasn't aware of the shot.I have always loved candid shots.A quick glimpse into the life of someone else life.Today I realize that if I approach a person and they pose for me or act silly that is as much as a part of there story as the candid shot I seek.That is a key to street photography.I am shy in general but I could find a great home in street photography and cant wait till I can get out for my morning walks.

The Shoot

Well it finally happened.I had my first professional photo shoot.It didn't go quite as I had planned but it went well.The set up was easy enough.A small set of strobes set up in my kitchen.The space was tight but it worked.I planned to shoot a lot of high key images but that didn't always work.I like the images that I took.The posing was good.The post production work on them went pretty well.I hope the client like them as well.Here are some the images from the day.