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Stop and love your flowers….

Administrator — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:06:58 +0000

So spring is my favorite time of year. I like to work on my flower beds. I especially get excited with new blooms. After all the drab and monotony of winter it’s nice to have some punch of color and smells pop into your life. I have flowers up my walkway and I make a point to stop and “smell the roses.” I think it’s important in life to remember to do that especially in this day and age of fast food everything and the instant gratification mentality that has been going on. I also enjoy the smell of a spring rain and how it affects the look and feel of the beds and flowers. Overcast is the perfect lighting and the freshness the rain adds gives everything a clean and new feeling. All the bugs are hiding and I tend to bring a camera out if I have a minute.

I’m still recuperating from the round up incident if you remember that story from last year. I didn’t like my arrangement last year so I’m trying some new perennials this year. I think I finally have something I like but I won’t know til next year when everything comes up the way it’s supposed to. Some of my new plants include Annabelle Hydrangea, Delphiniums, Coneflowers and Sweet William. Some of these I’m starting from seeds. Here are a couple of shots I took this morning from flowers that are growing now and after it rained today:

My Chihuly rose I got this year. Yes, it’s named after the artist, not by me but it really is named after him:
I got this at a local nursery in Rossford on route 20. I can’t remember the name of the nursery off hand–I don’t think I ever looked for the name!– but I have visited there often and they have a farmers market where you can buy some good homegrown food. It’s right around Meijer’s and Kohl’s there. You can also find this variety here: http://www.heirloomroses.com/cgi-bin/browse.cgi?page=item&cat=37&item=779

Here is one of my peony buds. I love the peony. I wished it would bloom more than once a year:

And here we have the Robinson Red Chrysanthemum. Though it’s more magenta then red, and this photo happens to be black and white and you can’t even tell which red it is:

Here is a color version of the same type of flower:

I hope all your flowers are coming up and adding some color into your life. Remember to pause, smell and enjoy the flowers in your life!

TMA Show

Administrator — Tue, 12 May 2009 14:35:14 +0000

One of my landscapes made it into the TMA show. That’s the Toledo Museum of Art Area artist show. It’s a juried show with entrants all over local counties. Congrats to any of my fellow artists that made it in! More information on the Area Artist show can be found here: http://www.toledomuseum.org/Art_Exhibitions_main.htm. Though the show is not up until July. Show dates are July 10th-August 23rd at the Toledo Museum of Art. I like going to the show and seeing what neat things the local artists can do around here. Check out the website calendar if your looking for something interesting to do on Friday nights. The museum features many events and classes.

The piece that made it in: It will be a 20×30 canvas print. TITLE: Buffalo Console.

I took this shot at the Montana Bison range just north of Missoula, Montana on our vacation last year.

Working on a project…

Administrator — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 22:11:30 +0000

I worked on an art project for an upcoming gallery show I’m collaborating on the other day. I was invited last minute and I had a specific assignment I was supposed to participate in. I chose to use a child as part of the theme of the piece and since I have some running around here in the house I thought I’d use my son. It can be funny working with children. They always set the pace. I try and not ever force them into things too much as then they get cranky. I refer shooting them as to wild animals. You can’t make a wild thing do what you will it to do. You can coerce and train and perhaps coax it with cookies but mostly they do what they want. When you will them for things I notice shoots really go downhill from there especially if the parent gets agitated. It’s best it seems to watch, interact at their pace. They open up when they’re ready to. When you try and force them it’s like the door shuts and it’s almost impossible to find that good place again. People often wonder about my own children. “Oh they must be so used to having the camera in their face!” Actually no, they are really no different then other people’s kids. I don’t take my children to anybody to be photographed and since anytime I have the camera out it’s for work, I don’t shoot them very much. They get goofy and make funny faces or pose silly just like some of my clients do. They’ll stick their tongues out or put their fingers up. It’s just their nature to perform this way when the spotlight of a lens is pointed at them.

Anyway, back to my point. I got one snap off that I thought cute. It didn’t work for my assignment but I’ll have it in my private collection. Here he is waiting for me and he was doing something funny with his lips. Giving me a kiss I guess.

My other son at the time was having a total meltdown but I had to take one of him too so he wouldn’t feel left out. You can kind of tell he’s not looking so thrilled at me.

Anyway, the photographers kids aren’t any better than yours so don’t feel bad if during your shoot it doesn’t go as planned.

As far as the art piece goes one of the other frames ended working perfectly but I won’t share it till later after the show. I believe it’s starts April 1st down at Downtown Latte. It’s a collaborate show featuring some other local photographers. We all have pieces focusing on one theme then some of our other work as well. When I get more information on it I’ll try and post the information so you can come out. Downtown Latte (http://downtownlatte.com/) is a great little coffee house just a few store fronts away from Fricker’s at the Mud Hens field.

I have some new frames to blog about but haven’t had the chance yet. Just when I think I have some free time it gets sucked up by the time eating monster. I suppose that’s the life in a young family.

The Boys

Administrator — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:36:06 +0000

So my twins just turned four this past Sunday. We decided we better get their shoot in before the weather turns cold. This is the first time this year I’ve had a chance to really shoot them. People always think I must have a ton of photos of my kids. Actually it’s quite the opposite. There is some quote about the cobblers kids are the last to have shoes? That’s the way it works around here. My kids are the last to get squeezed in. You always seem to think you’ll have time and then time slips away before you know it almost a year goes by and the spring photos you were supposed to take end up being fall shots. As far as snapshots go I’m terrible about that too. We purchased a point and shoot this year so hopefully not having to pull out one of the big guns will make it easier to take more of those. Most mothers see their children doing something cute and pull out the camera and take a few snaps. I get too technical for that. It’s always is the lighting right, what extra gear do I need? It takes alot more thinking and most times a snapshot needs not to be thought about. Sometimes I just want to not be a photographer and be in the moment without glass in between me and them.

My husband came up with the theme for this shoot. He really wanted all three of them on a beach in wife beaters. So we were off to Maumee Bay again.

The next three shots are of my eldest. I took these for his school pictures. Somehow the ones I get from the schools just don’t do it for me. I don’t see his personality like I do in mine. He seems to smile funny for other photographers. He’s even claimed they are not his mother and he won’t give his good faces to them.

This one is my fave:

I still have yet another place I wanted to shoot with the boys. Hopefully I can get it in before it’s too late, otherwise I’ll just have to wait until next year to do it.

Long time….

Administrator — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:26:02 +0000

Ok so I’ve been a bad blogger this year. It’s been a busy time and we’ve had a lot going on. From the passing of my father-in-law, my 6 year old getting diabetes, a two week vacation back west, the wedding season, and now the holiday season is fast approaching on us. My twins start preschool this week for the first time. I keep waiting for the pause when things settle down but I feel it won’t be later until I retire that I have that feeling again.

I last left you when I was in Montana/Idaho. We had a good time. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen my family. I really miss the northwest. I love the scenery out there and come to appreciate it more living out here. The back roads in Montana have so much character and it’s such a different way of life. I can’t wait to go back. The following photo is a gate I saw across the street from a gas station in Montana off a non major exit.

I will be posting a few more posts to update what I have been meaning to get to but haven’t had a moment to spare.