When I picked up a camera, it all began with nature. Not very surprising really, I think a lot of photographers start here. A tree doesn't care how many times you walk around it to find the best angle, or how long you fiddle with the settings to get the right exposure, or even how many times you ask for another sitting, since you didn't get it right the first 5 times. As my journey into photography has evolved and matured, it's taken me into places that I NEVER would have imagined I'd be 5 years ago. It's taken me to even places that I didn't really want to go! Portraits, event and studio work is a long way away from the adventure I sought, and the purity I was out to capture with my first camera work, but I've grown immeasurably as a technician and artist because of it.



Unexpectedly, and the more I think about it, ironically, that avenue that has led me away from landscape, has led me back to it in a way that I may never have realized with confidence on my own. Through the generosity and well-wishing of a friend, I've been referred to, submitted a portfolio to, and been invited to join a selected group of invitation only fine art photographers to show their work with the Conejo Arts Council from for a two month gallery showing! From October 1st to December 15th, I'll be included in a show at "The Galleria", in the Hillcrest Center for the Arts!! (403 W Hillcrest Drive, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360)



The initial shock has led very swiftly to excitement and I can't wait to get started on selecting and printing the pieces I'll be showing. This comes, also, on the heels of being asked to do a small solo show at Moorpark College for the first half of the fall semester, 2008. This was less of a big deal, but again and again, ironically, it was the perfect preparation for the idea of showing my landscape work publically, and going through the process of framing and presentation.....life does prepare you for the challenges you'll face, whether you know it or not!



The show will open October 1st and will have a reception on October 4th. Please come and see what I'll have on display! I'd love to get some feedback. Until now, my more personal work has stayed relatively private, but that's not why one creates art.



My landscape portfolio can be seen here



Thanks Jenn!

Last week, Sunday, after having finished up my first front to back wedding, I found myself with a load of rented gear and nothing of note to shoot. What does one do in a situation such as this? Call up all the belly dancers you know, drag them out to stand between a cactus and shrub. Of course.



Even I had doubts about this one. The throng showed up 30 mins late, which effectively let slip away that "30 mins before sunset" light I was hoping to catch. Note to self, leave a bigger window, belly dancers are never on time. After some initial freakin' out, and ahem......location scouting......I found a patch of bare grass, much like the rest of the bare grass that blankets Wildwood Park in Thousand Oaks, CA. Things were set to develop in a rather uninteresting way. I tossed up a 36" umbrella , a rim light and a fill to pull out the green of the hedge line behind the dancers.



I wasn't really interested in the foreground anyway, I was all about the sunset. Having never attacked this kind of scene this before, I had no idea how little of a role the mid-ground was going to play in the final image. I didn't, at the time, take into account the fact that by exposing for the lit sky, the mid-ground would drop to black. Forms are all the matter in a situation like this, and the converging mountains in the bkgrd framed the scene wonderfully. And that "30 mins before sunset" light wasn't what I was looking for at all. It was the "3o mins AFTER sunset" light that I wanted, those wonderful bands of yellow and pink and mauve and sometimes green that you see every night, but never notice. Underexpose them by a stop or two and you'll be astounded with the results.



I literally can't even count on both hands how many things I learned that night about lighting, modifiers, ambient light, composition and people's willingness to have fun with photography. And I was terrified after I sent invitation email. I was sure the mediocrity, with a couple interesting accidents was going to be the order of the shoot. In reality, this is one of my favorite shoots, and favorite set of themed images to date! I was walking on air when the ambient finally dropped too far to expose handheld, a full 45min-1hr after the sun dipped behind the mountain.



Lesson I took home that night : ALWAYS try, an opportunity not taken is an opportunity lost.



Check out the rest of the shoot at http://www.weathervaneimages.com/archive/wildwoodgypsies

You may be asking yourself, "Why is Lee blogging? Why now?" "What important, earth serving, and sage advice will unfold from with the pages of this blog?" ....... you're probably aren't asking yourself anything of the sort. In fact, I'm sure you're going for the back button as we speak.....



To the point, I've realized that throughout my photographic meanderings, with each passing shoot and each posted photo gallery, the trail of my photo adventures, successes and failures is lost with the deletion or replacement of each individual gallery once it's served its purpose.



I've begun blogging keep tabs on my history.......Original idea? No. But then, who cares.

I'm jumping on the blogg-o-wagon. This is a big step.