I gotta tell ya it is some kind of wonderful to have a creative person who enjoys being in front of the camera! I’ve never had a muse before. For those who might not know the term here’s the Dictionary definition.
Verb (used without object),mused,mus·ing.
to think or meditate in silence, as on some subject.
(in Greek and Roman mythology) each of nine goddesses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, who preside over the arts and sciences.
synonyms:
inspiration, creative influence, stimulus;
formalafflatus
“the poet’s muse”
2.
a person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist.
Having a person who is an artist in their own right is a gift. Pash has ideas, shares them with me and then lets the chips fall where they may. We start to make photographs with her thoughts in mind then we go wherever the first situation takes us. She has an intimate relationship with the environment which is usually the starting point. Then I add a couple of thoughts to refine, and we experiment and play, and this invariably leads me to create new imagery that I find exciting.
I usually end up pushing my personal boundaries as we work together. And then, even more, when I get into post-production.
Our latest foray into collaboration led to a photo session on Oak Creek in which she had a thought of ‘creating a mermaid.’ I had the urge to play with infrared and had her do some warm-up posing on the rocks with a dress, flowing cloth and au’ natural.
This Photo has the feeling of a Greek Statue to me. Infrared made with Lumix G6 converted by LifePixel
As the session went on, I added Tiffen neutral density filters to extend the time that the shutter would be open.
The neutral density filters extended the time allowing the wind to register in the trees.
This image reminds of one of the classic painters.
Living in Sedona is quite a blessing. When I want to experiment there is no lack of obvious subject matter. The red rocks all have different shapes and appear different at differing times of day and night leading to a veritable plethora of images that can be photographed with additional techniques and shared.
On Sunday morning I was up just before the sun made its appearance for the day. I grabbed my tripod. Well, if I must tell the truth, I grabbed my camera (lumixG9) and some lenses, rushed out the door, jumped into the car and headed off to catch the rising sun and quickly coloring clouds. Then I turned the car around and went BACK for the tripod wasting beautiful light in the process. But that’s why we are considered pros. We can come back from a less than perfect situation and still have some nice images. ( or… I guess a real pro would have had the tripod to begin with. But, I digress)
I took a different road than usual. I made a five exposure bracket with the camera on a tripod. I used three of the images processed in *Aurora HDR 2018. This angle made the red rocks feel rather majestic.
Today’s savior was the ability to bracket images and extend the range of light the image can show. Without HDR and the processing software in my tool-bag I would have had a pretty bland results. As it was I found some interesting angles and areas that in which I don’t often shoot.
Another not so frequented road let me see this rock formation with trees issuing forth. Again processed with Aurora HDR software from a three exposure bracket.
The back side of Cathedrlal Rock with the rock outcrop. Three exposure HDR with one stop oveand one stop under.
Without the hdr system the trees which were in shadow would have been very blocked up and noisy. Making multiple exposure allows the photo to repliatewhat the eye sees. The eye constantly is changing ‘exposure’ with the pupil opening and closing depending upon the brightness of the scene.
In a couple days I’ll show you the hero shots of the backside of Cathedral Rock.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – I was using the Lumix 12-60mm LUMIX G LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT PROFESSIONAL LENS
This lens has a great range from wide angle to medium zoom and covers a lot of my needs. There is also a kit lens with this range that is not as fast.
* Save $10 with the coupon code ‘COATES’ on AUrora HDR or other Skylum software
Here’s another installment of Marketing Monday from my friend Skip Cohen. He touches on a lot of the fears we as photographers can impose upon ourselves and offers some ideas on how to stay on track.
“Over the years, I’ve noticed a common theme when talking with photographers, especially those new to the business. Most of them think they’re alone in working through the challenges.
So, whether you’re new or a veteran, not only are you not alone, but there isn’t one of us in the industry who hasn’t felt your same concerns, doubts, and frustrations. We’ve all experienced those moments of just asking the question, “What am I doing here?”
Sadly there are some incredibly talented people in our industry who now and then they just give up. It’s not because they lack the skills. They lack a support group.
“Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success. They quit on the one-yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.” Ross Perot
Two months ago I celebrated nine years since I left Rangefinder/WPPI and headed out on my own. Every day has been an adventure, not always in the right direction, but a learning experience nonetheless. When I started this journey, a few members of my own family thought I was nuts. It was suggested that I should just be satisfied with where I was. After all, I was president of Rangefinder and WPPI, what could be better? It was suggested I was too old to be starting a new business. Then there were those who had to tell me I was nuts to start a new business in the worst economy since the Great Depression!
So, I set out and followed the wisdom of Dr. Seuss:
“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind. “
I’ve learned a lot in the last nine years, about the industry, chasing dreams and especially myself. There’s always more to learn. But along the way I’ve picked up some pointers that might just help you through the process:
Surround yourself with positive people
Listen to the advice you’re given, but make your own choices. Always go with your heart!
Short-term compromises are fine but don’t compromise your long-term goals.
Read, follow, watch, listen to and meet those people who you admire most in the industry.
Spend time just kicking-back and daydreaming! Some of your best ideas will come out of just being relaxed and thinking, “What if?”
Set a goal to understand every aspect of the photographic process and don’t let yourself be frustrated over how much you don’t know – just take it one step at a time.
Build your network by attending workshops, local meetings, national conventions and trade shows. Being a great photographer is about education – and you can never stop learning!
Never stop dreaming! And to quote my good buddy, Matthew Jordan Smith, “Always dream big!”
“The future belongs to those who believe in their dreams!” Eleanor Roosevelt“
Skip Cohen has been involved in the photographic industry his entire career and previously served as President of Rangefinder/WPPI and earlier, Hasselblad USA. He founded SkipCohenUniversity.com in 2013. Skip is a co-host for “Mind Your Own Business” and “Beyond Technique,” webcasts through Photofocus.com, writes for several publications including Shutter Magazine and is actively involved in several advisory boards for non-profit organizations.
A couple of weeks ago I shared some clouds and ideas about photographing them and some thoughts on using them in working on your art images. (see the post here)
Sunset was coming together looking over the clouds from the window seat.
I referred to Judy Collins’ song “Both Sides Now” referring to clouds and said I would share some images inspired by Julianne Kost’s book ‘Window Seat.’ After seeing her book, I thought about my pictures out the porthole of the plane as I traveled around the country on my Panasonic teaching forays. I have quite a collection of photos of clouds from above I thought that they deserved a post of their own. So here you go. Images are from the upper side of Both Sides Now.
Watching a thunderhead form from this angle is quite different.
I enjoy the ‘cloudscape’ with its own set of clouds above.
It turns out that all of the cloud photos in this post were made with the Pansonic Lumix LX100 which I refer to as the ‘professional’s point and shoot camera.’ It has a smaller chip, but the lens is sweet and fast. It’s on a magnesium body, and all the critical controls are available on the outside of the camera just as we had back in the day. That said, it has a ton of features we didn’t have then including eleven frames per second burst captures. If you go into 4K Photo Mode, you can pull 3,400-pixel stills at 24 frames per second. And plenty more.
On the downside, it does not have a superzoom so if you get this for travel photos you’ve got to do some zooming with your feet, but that’s what keeps the size down.
It’s on my list to work with the clouds from above and try to put them in art pieces. I’m hoping I can make it work and give almost a sense of ‘Something is wrong here, but I can’t quite figure it out.’ But that will be a post for another day.
Here’s another good review of things that you should be thinking about from my buddy Skip.
Making Assumptions
We all make assumptions, some more than others. We do it in our personal lives, business, on events for the future and decisions from the past. The big question is, why don’t we ever just talk to the people involved instead of coming to our own, often misguided assumptions?
Wandering through cyberspace a couple of years ago I found this on a site by Ken Lahuer:
“We have a tendency to make assumptions about everything. The problem with making assumptions is that we BELIEVE they are the truth. We make assumptions about what others are doing or thinking, we take it personally, and then we blame them and react by sending emotional poison with our word.
We only see what we want to see and hear what we want to hear. We don’t perceive things the way they are; we dream things up in our imagination. Because we are afraid to ask for clarification, we make assumptions that we believe are right, then we defend our assumptions and try to make others wrong.”
The photo industry is loaded with people who have turned assumption-drawing into an art form, and so often they’ve assumed wrong! I’ve heard stories about major companies in trouble, cameras being discontinued, even people being let go. I’ve heard stories so severe had they been more widespread, the companies involved would have actually seen a drop in sales.
Then there are the personal stories that run through our industry. Assumptions are drawn over why somebody left a company, why a new product was late for introduction, why a policy was changed, and the list goes on and on. Assumptions are drawn, then they hit the rumor mill and suddenly they’re FACT – and not once does anybody along the way stop and call the people involved for verification.
Last on the list are those of you who draw the wrong assumptions about your clients. You don’t ask the right questions and too often stereotype their behavior. Here’s a prime example of drawing the false impression at the retail level.
I was in my early fifties when I decided I wanted to buy a Corvette. I’d always wanted one, and the kids were adults, out of the house, and it seemed like great timing. I was in an old pair of shorts, and a t-shirt when I wandered into the showroom at the Chevy dealer in Morristown, NJ. I picked up all the brochures, spent time sitting in one that was in the showroom, looked at a few in the lot and not one person waited on me. There were easily six salesmen working, and no one came over to help me.
After twenty minutes or so, I walked into the middle of the showroom and announced,
“I honestly thought you guys were smart enough to recognize a guy in mid-life crisis ready to buy his first Vette. None of you are that smart, and I’m leaving now to drive to another dealership, and by the end of the day, my new Vette will be ordered. You guys need to work on your selling skills!”
They all looked like deer caught in your headlights! I left, and by the end of the day, the new Vette was on order. (And I learned it wasn’t a mid-life crisis. It’s only mid-life crisis if you order it in red! LOL) The bottom line is to stop drawing assumptions – meet every client with a clean slate and see where it goes. If you’ve worked on developing your skill set, you can handle any request they make, if appropriate.
For everyone who draws assumptions, and we’re all guilty, Don Miguel Ruis wrote:
“The way to keep yourself from making assumptions is to ask questions. Make sure the communication is clear. If you don’t understand, ask. Have the courage to ask questions until you are as clear as you can be. Once you hear the answer, you will not have to make assumptions because you will know the truth.”
Skip Cohen has been involved in the photographic industry his entire career and previously served as President of Rangefinder/WPPI and earlier, Hasselblad USA. He founded SkipCohenUniversity.com in 2013. Skip is co-host for “Mind Your Own Business” and “Beyond Technique,” webcasts through Photofocus.com, writes for several publications including Shutter Magazine and is actively involved in several advisory boards for non-profit organizations.
For infrared conversion of my cameras I use LifePixel. Infrared allows you to put an older camera to use and opens up a new time time of day for productive image creation.
Learn Photoshop in a fun environment. Aaron Nace applies the right amount of fun with easy to understand and follow tutorials. Actions and brushes are included with lessons!
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Platypod has become a great resource for being creative in getting your camera gear easily into unusual places. As an Platypod Pro I get to work/play with the gear even before it comes out. Head over to Platypod, subscribe to the newsletter and you will get special discounts reserved only for subscribers.
Pash in red. Made with Lumix G9
This Photo has the feeling of a Greek Statue to me. Infrared made with Lumix G6 converted by LifePixel 
The neutral density filters extended the time allowing the wind to register in the trees.
This image reminds of one of the classic painters.
