Cool.  My blog is the featured blog of the month over at PJ Finn’s website, photomontana.net.  If you aren’t already reading PJ’s blog, you should be.  He’s not worried about HDR this, or marketing that; he simply enjoys taking photographs and writing about the simple joy of it all.   PJ’s photos are unique, creative, and inspiring.

I’m honored and flattered to be featured over there.  Thanks PJ!

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Unbeknownst to you, I’ve been hard at work making some important behind-the-scenes changes to the website.  Those changes aren’t so behind-the-scenes any more though, because they’ve resulted in a few really cool upgrades.

First of all, I’ve made the entire site more interactive by removing the simple menu bar and replacing it with a Spry menu that had drop-down features.  Now, no matter where you’re at on the site, navigating somewhere else should be easier.  The menu bar is also now at the top of each page, so you don’t have to scroll all the way to the bottom to navigate.

The first change involved most of my time, but it isn’t the coolest.  I’ve separated images into two groups.  I still have all the images (and layout) you’re used to in the Image Library, but I’ve set a select few images aside in a series of Portfolios.  I have a landscape portfolio, one for flora and fauna, and one of my personal favorite images (with commentary!).   I’ve tried to keep the layout simple, while still leaving it functional and user-friendly.

Check out the new changes and tell me what you think!

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There seems to be quite a bit of buzz in the photography blogosphere lately on what constitutes art and–perhaps more timely–what is original.

David Leland Hyde has a great post summarizing others’ blog posts here, and leaves us with a question: Why do you photograph landscapes?  There are some great comments in the thread.  Incidentally, if you’re not regularly reading his blog, you should be.

On reading this, I know I’ve thought about this many times, and am happy to see this dialogue between photographers.  I’m reminded of a few of my past blog posts as well:

The Icons

The Icons, reinterpreted

And finally, some thoughts on inspiring your creativity.

Ultimately, none of this may matter to you; art and originality are subjective.  You may well say, “I enjoy it, and I like my photos…I don’t care what anyone else thinks.”  There’s certainly nothing wrong with this stance, but for me, it does matter.  Why do I photograph nature, and landscapes in particular?  Regardless of your opinion, I think its good to take a step back and evaluate your art from time to time.  Many thanks to David et al. for forcing me to do that!

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Having been pursuing the “photography business” for less than a year, I would consider myself a newbie.  I make no apologies for that, because I feel like I’ve always been able to follow the lead of my mentors well, and I am quick to learn from my mistakes.  However, its because I’m learning from my mentors that I’m having an issue.

One of the biggest complaints that I hear from people in the business is that with the availability of Photoshop and other image-editing software (both in-camera and in post-processing), “anyone can produce great photos.”  They note that creative vision is becoming less and less common, and its being replaced with the “I’ll fix it later” mentality.  I definitely see this (look around Flickr and you will too), and to some extent I’m guilty of snapping a photo, knowing that I’ll be cloning something out in post.  You probably do too.

My issue, then, isn’t with my mentors, but with myself.  How much can I justify altering a mediocre photo to make a good photo and still be okay with it?

Take for example this image I’ve recently reprocessed from the Fisher Towers:

The Fisher Towers, in color

My problem with this shot isn’t the harsh light, or the fact that its not at all representative of how pretty the Fisher Towers can be.  Its that I really want to like it.  But, its just mediocre.  Others on a Naturescapes.net forum recently agreed that its definitely not a wall-hanger.  But, when I convert the image to black and white, that harsh light is suddenly working its magic.

Fisher Towers in black and white

The image still won’t win any contests, but its drastically improved.  So, by digital manipulation, I converted a mediocre image into a better one.  The problem I have with this is that I didn’t set out to make black and white images that day.  Maybe I’ve just over-analyzed this.

I ask you, though: where does the creative process stop?  I have a feeling most will answer indicating that for them its a continuum, but where is the line drawn?  Knowing that I didn’t set out to make black and white images that day, are you okay with my displaying this as art?

I’d love to know your thoughts!

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Today is a great day to be outside with your mother, thanking her for all she’s done for you over the years.  I’d particularly like to thank my own mother, for always supporting my dreams, and my wife Stephanie for being a fantastic mother to our son, and wife to me.

Hope your day is a fantastic one!

These are some portraits I took of the irises I got my wife for Mother’s Day.  I took them in our kitchen, and of course Owen had to help…enjoy!

Mother's Day Iris I

Mother's Day Iris II

Helping Dad prep for Mother's Day

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The wind is your friend.

That’s what the spray-painted sign said as I drove along Highway 138 on my way to visit the Antelope Valley this morning.  Inspired by Phil Colla’s lovely poppy photos from last week, I decided to make a trip up there this morning for some much overdue wildflower photography.  I only hoped the sign would be wrong, and the wind would go away for the morning.

The poppies were present, but unfortunately the wind was as well when I arrived at a location near the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve State Natural Area (near Lancaster).  We had a front pass through earlier in the week, and I think the winds were still with us, making for difficult photography.  Between gusts, I was able to capture a few still flower portraits, but poppies tend to not open up when the wind is blowing like it was today, making them slightly less attractive, in my opinion.

California Poppies (Eschscholzia californica) with Owl's Clover (Castilleja densiflora) during a break in the wind

Something more abstract...and appropriate for the day

Despite the tough conditions, it was a fantastic morning to be out of the office, and in the field.  There are still many poppies blooming (some are a bit past peak, some were blown away this week, but many are still working towards peak bloom) if you have a chance to visit the Antelope Valley.  The next week or two should still be very good!

And, just as a reminder, being outside is always better than being at my desk…

Better than work

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Although I don’t normally consider myself a bird photographer, or much of a bird photographer, I do enjoy getting out to our local wildlife areas now and then.  Last week, I met Mac at Bolsa Chica Wetlands near Huntington Beach for an early morning, pre-work photo session.  I work about 10 minutes from Bolsa Chica so its the perfect place to hit before work during the week.  On weekends, you can expect to find several photographers on the bridge across the bay, all with more expensive glass than I can afford.  But, during the week, you have the occasional walker or runner, but otherwise it is just you and the birds.

Pied-billed Grebe, April 2010

Ecologically, Bolsa Chica is very important.  It provides a rich feeding ground for several migratory species of passerines and water birds.  It also has several unvegetated islands that provide a safe breeding ground for the endangered California Least Tern.  In a nearby eucalyptus grove you can find nesting Great Blue Herons, and multiple species of raptors are also common, including Red-tailed Hawks, Red-shouldered Hawks, American Kestrels, and Peregrine Falcons.  You can also find the uncommon Belding’s Savannah Sparrow here.

Common Tern, April 2010

As the seasons pass, you have the opportunity to shoot many species here.  Right now, several species of tern (Least, Common, Elegant, Forster’s, etc…) are beginning to get active near the bridge and with some luck you can get some good flight shots of these species (I quickly learned this is much easier said than done…see some results here and here).  In winter, you can photograph Brown Pelicans in breeding plumage.  Shorebirds like sandpipers and larger birds like egrets are present all year.

Common Egret, April 2010

In addition to birds, there is the opportunity to photograph wildflowers, sunrises/sunsets and various other fauna (rabbits, southern Pacific rattlesnakes) at the wetlands.  With this in mind, if you’re in the area, its worth your while to stop and spend a few hours at Bolsa Chica Wetlands.

Sunrise over Bolsa Chica Wetlands, December 2009

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A few posts ago, I talked about a great day at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park.  Its a fantastic place to visit, but with large crowds and harsh midday light, photographing animals can be difficult.  Maybe I’m just in an abstract mood lately, but I found a lot of interesting patterns in bird feathers, etc.  One particular shot I liked was of a Chilean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis), which I’ve honestly never found to be a photogenic bird (at least not in captivity).

By underexposing the image by 1 2/3 stops, I was able to largely blacken the background, and introduce some contrast to the contours of the feathers.  That allowed me to boost the vibrance and saturation a bit, giving an eye-popping splash of color to the Flamingo I’ve always struggled with.

Chilean Flamingo, detail

Not only have I been in an abstract mood lately, I’ve also been in a black and white mood.  Thus, I converted this to black and white as well, really cranking the red channel up to make it contrasty.

Black and White

I like both of these a lot, for different reasons?  Do you have a favorite?  I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

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For the last week, my parents have been in town visiting.  I was able to sneak away from work on Friday and take a three-day weekend, so we decided to go to the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park.  Driving down there, our two-year-old repeated “Amnal Pak” about 500 times, so we knew it was a good way to spend the day.  At the park, all of the usual suspects were out, and I got some interesting abstract shots of a few different animals.  My real hope, however would be that the Epiphyllums in the botanic garden would be be in bloom, but we were a little too early (save for one flower, below).  Such is life; their annual butterfly exhibit opened on Saturday, so it gives me an excuse to go back!

Desert Bighorn Sheep, March 2010

The lone blooming Epiphyllum, March 2010

On Saturday, our local airport hosted an air show, and in the afternoon several F-18 Hornets flew over our house; I was able to catch one as it made a low pass.

F-18 Hornet in flight

On the way to San Diego, I had a chance to look for more wildflowers, and as others have reported, it doesn’t look like much is happening this year.  There are a few small patches of poppies and other flowers here and there, but for the most part, things simply didn’t happen this year.  My wife and I went for a hike locally Sunday morning, and we noted that things are definitely past peak, even with the grass.

This week is my spring break, so I’m planning on getting caught up on my blog posts, as well as taking a couple of short trips–one to Joshua Tree National Park, and one to Channel Islands National Park–I’m excited to share some new images on here!

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I have to admit that although I’m fortunate to find great photography subjects close to home–often in my backyard!–the act of working really hard for an image brings a lot of satisfaction.  Sometimes working that hard for an image can bring big adventure–and some hair-raising experiences to the table as well.

As I write this, I’m reminded of two such days.  The first is last August, in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.  A friend and I drove up from southern California, and my dad drove out from New Mexico, and we spent a few days making images in the canyons of this wonderful wilderness.  On our second day–my dad’s day to pick how we spent the day–we hiked into Neon Canyon to visit the Golden Cathedral.  The hike was fantastic–7 miles round-trip, all cross country–and the photography was phenomenal.  However, it was August, and we were feeling the August heat–95+ degrees.  I remember standing knee-deep in the Escalante River that afternoon thinking that there really was no place on earth I’d rather be at that moment.  Hiking out of there was also the hottest, hardest work I’ve done in quite a while.

The second day was satisfying in a similar way, but a little more hair-raising.  Again I was with my dad, and we were hiking through the Left Fork of North Creek–the Subway–in Zion National Park.  If you’ve hiked it from top to bottom, you know that the descent from the upper bench into the canyon is a bit hairy.  Although I’m not normally one to flinch at such things, I decided to try an alternate route down that day, as I saw a small trail heading off to my left.  It seemed like a good idea for a while, but suddenly the earth gave out from underneath me, sending me head over heels down a gully…and toward a 75-foot drop off.  After the second turn in the gully, I slid out of my dad’s line of sight, so all he could hear was me cursing and grasping for roots as I slid by.  Finally one stuck, and I stopped, but not before I was bloodied and pretty battered.  To add insult to injury, I landed in someone’s cathole (fortunately I didn’t land in “it” but it was too close for my taste)–don’t ask me who would find that a convenient spot to relieve themselves.  I crawled back up and the rest of the day all I had to worry about was soaking my camera gear.  My elbow still hurts from that day.

Recently, I was talking to a big wall climber who sort of guffawed at my sense of “adventure”.  I guess because I’m not scaling El Capitan, my adventures weren’t quite worthy of praise–maybe because my pack is filled with an SLR body and a bunch of glass instead of a climbing rack, I’m not as cool.  C’est la vie.  Its important to remember that adventure comes in all sizes–its your perception of it that makes it special and memorable.

What are some of your adventures?  Do you have any especially memorable experiences that have come out of working for an image?  Maybe you got caught in an epic storm, or had to outrun a rabid badger.  These are the experiences that make our “backyard adventures” just as cool as redpointing a new route on El Capitan…

The Golden Cathedral, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

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