Darien / October 10, 2007
not only the vehicle for exquisite moments locked in memory, but a good man. i've really enjoyed getting to know Gar these past few weeks. thanks for capturing time and being a friend. you sure you don't want a pom-pom hat? =P okay, you can have a scarf. :)

Jim / October 1, 2007
I really do enjoy meeting fellow photographers, and let me tell you what qualifies as a "photographer" covers a whole spectrum of "levels" of photographers. Gar stands out as an expemplary example of the quality and consistency provided by a true photographer (with out the attitude). I always look forward to seeing him, and his work.

Dennis/ September 25, 2007
You can buy the equipment. You can learn the skills. But you either have a good eye or you don't. Gar has a great eye, a superb sense of timing, a talent for seeing his subject's whole story in an instant. He's also a hell of a good fellow, which is something else you can't buy. No matter where you are or what you are doing at Faire, you may well be posing for Gar. Consider yourself lucky.

Steve / May 24, 2007
I'll jump on the bandwagon here to sing Gar's praise's; he's a terrific photographer and a hell of a nice guy. Talking with him has been very productive in regards to developing my own skills behind a camera; he's always open to discussion and very forthcoming with advice and technical tips. As I commented in one of my own blogs (in reference to his work) "I want to get that good." Thanks for the help and inspiration, Gar. Now pardon me while I mug you and swipe your lenses; nothin' personnal you understand. ;-)

Clare / May 22, 2007
I watched Gar at work last year.... his words about not taking pictures of people deliberately looking at him, resonated for months...
This year I had the chutzpah to talk to him.. I am so glad I did! He makes me strive to be a better photographer.

Dan / May 15, 2007
When things first started off, I wasn't all that pleased with how I looked in photographs taken at faire. It always seemed like the same picture, the same expression, the same moment. Gar has captured not only a sense of the moment, but often emotion and mood that no one else has ever caught. His photos are an amazing testiment to the work being done this season at RPFS. I've gotten to know him, and he's just as charming as the photos he takes. Thank you for giving me moments I'd normaly never see.

Roxanne / May 8, 2007
My grandfather was a photographer. He absoluely loved doing B&W photos. He said that a really good photographer could capture the inner soul and beauty of the subject. What I love most about Gar's photos is that it not only captures the soul of the subject, but the soul of faire. In a unique way, you have been able to capture the story of us, the reasons we do faire, and the magic that keeps us coming back. Gar uses light , shadow and color to tell a beautiful story.

Joseph / May 7, 2007
Gar,

I never thought I wanted to have wrinkles till
now. The defender is awesome, and so is
Ralegh's arms. I have to get you in touch with
our Sir Henry Lee, he gets some great
photographs as well, and I know he would love to
see your work. I know he got some of his
submissions to Renn Fair magazine accepted....
not to say that is the end all be all, but it is
another venue for people to see your work, which
is awesome. I am so pleased to be a part of
some of these photographs.

Joseph
(Ralegh)

"The Renaissance is studded by the names of the artists and architects, with their creations recorded as great historical events."

- Arthur Erickson


" We may affirm, then, that the main drift of the later Renaissance was away from a humanism that favored a free expansion toward a humanism that was in the highest degree disciplinary and selective."

- Irving Babbitt


"I feel, sometimes, as the Renaissance man must have felt in finding new riches at every
point and in the certainty that unexplored areas of knowledge and experience await at every turn."

- Polykarp Kusch


"No account of the Renaissance can be complete without some notice of the attempt made by certain Italian scholars of the fifteenth century to reconcile Christianity with the religion of ancient Greece."

- Walter Pater


"There are two kinds of light--the glow that illuminates, and the glare that obscures."

- James Thurber


"My theory is that all of Scottish cuisine is based on a dare."

- Mike Myers

"I don't suffer from insanity - I enjoy every minute of it."

"Why is it that brain cells die and yet fat cells live forever?"

"If it goes without saying, let it."

"No sense being pessimistic, it probably won't work anyway."

"Punctual people have nothing better to do."

"Doesn't 'expect the unexpected' make the unexpected expected?"

"The amount of sleep required by the average person is always five minutes more."

"Never wrestle with a pig. You both get all dirty and the pig likes it."

"If you get to thinking you're a person of influence, try ordering somebody else's dog around."

"Diplomacy is the ability to tell someone to get lost in such a way that they look forward to the trip."

"Assumption is the mother of all foul-ups."

"There is no snooze button on a cat who wants breakfast."

"Silly is you in a natural state, and serious is something you have to do until you can get silly again."

"I believe in an open mind, but not so open that your brains fall out."

"May I never miss a sunset or a rainbow because I am looking down."

This is my tentative photography (and generally where I will be).

If you notice I have nothing planned and you have suggestions, I'm willing to consider such from viewers.

November 7th: Poxy Boggards, Merry Wives of Windsor and Odds Bodkin @ the Galaxy, Santa Ana

Gar: Thank you for joining

Friend: I'm still gonna mug you for a piece of glass or two.

Gar: looking forward to the challenge....

Friend: Challenge? No challenge. gonna put a pretty photogenic girl in front of you, and while you are distracted while shooting hit you from behind and take a lens while you are unconcious!

Canon EOS 5D - BG-E4
12.8 Megapixels

Canon EOS 30D - BG-E2
8.2 Megapixels

Canon EOS 20D - BG-2E
8.2 Megapixels

Canon EOS 10D - BG-ED3
6.3 Megapixels

Canon EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM

Canon EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

Canon EF28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

Canon Normal EF 50mm f/1.8 II Autofocus

Tamron AF18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 XR LD Aspherical (IF) Macro

Sigma Telephoto 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro

Please note that my photography is not for sale. I do not photograph weddings, funerals or other occasions, though I may show up if you invite me and take a few photographs.

I give my photography to non-profit organizations for free - so if your guild is a non-profit or you are associated with a non-profit, I am your photographer. By advertising my services I must say that again I do not sell my photography and I am not doing what I do to encroach on other professional photographers who make money by offering their services.

If you see a photograph you would like to place in your Tribe album, by all means please do - those from my Tribe Album or from my web site. If you want to place them on another web site - just let me know where so I can see. You are welcome to say where it came from, but the copyright emblem © lets others know that the photograph is owned.

Also you may print a photo for your personal use - those which are posted should be of satisfactory quality for 5x7 or 8x10.

If there are guilds or groups which would like photographs, meaning those associated with the Southern California Renaissance Pleasure Faire or the Northern California Renaissance Faire, it would be my pleasure to capture the moment. Though I will not take payment for such, it would be greatly appreciated if a donation in the name of your guild or group could be made to R.E.S.C.U.

If you want to see most of the photographs in my Tribe album you must be "my friend" otherwise you may visit my website to see previous events: www.garphoto.com

The photographs placed in my album are the same size as on my web site. Often those which are horizontal are somewhat compressed. To see them full size you can left click with your mouse and drag an arrow to the address line and the image will appear on the screen by itself. To return to the photographs page, simply click your back button. This can be done with the verticle captures as well and the same applies on my web site also. Thank you and enjoy.

Automatic Mode

I suspect no one will need any introduction to this mode (as it seems most digital camera owners use it). Auto mode tells your camera to use its best judgment to select shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, focus and flash to take the best shot that it can. With some cameras auto mode lets you override flash or change it to red eye reduction. This mode will give you nice results in many shooting conditions, however you need to keep in mind that you’re not telling your camera any extra information about the type of shot you’re taking so it will be ‘guessing’ as to what you want. As a result some of the following modes might be more appropriate to select as they give your camera a few more hints (without you needing to do anything more).

Portrait Mode

When you switch to portrait mode your camera will automatically select a large aperture (small number) which helps to keep your background out of focus (i.e. it sets a narrow depth of field - ensuring your subject is the only thing in focus and is therefore the centre of attention in the shot). Portrait mode works best when you’re photographing a single subject so get in close enough to your subject (either by zooming in or walking closer) so that your photographing the head and shoulders of them). Also if you’re shooting into the sun you might want to trigger your flash to add a little light onto their face.

Macro Mode

Macro mode lets you move you closer into your subject to take a close up picture. It’s great for shooting flowers, insects or other small objects. Different digital cameras will have macro modes with different capabilities including different focusing distances (usually between 2-10cm for point and shoot cameras). When you use macro mode you’ll notice that focusing is more difficult as at short distances the depth of field is very narrow (just millimeters at times). Keep your camera and the object you’re photographing parallel if possible or you’ll find a lot of it will be out of focus. You’ll probably also find that you won’t want to use your camera’s built in flash when photographing close up objects or they’ll be burnt out. Lastly - a tripod is invaluable in macro shots as the depth of field is so small that even moving towards or away from your subject slightly can make your subject out of focus.

Landscape Mode

This mode is almost the exact opposite of portrait mode in that it sets the camera up with a small aperture (large number) to make sure as much of the scene you’re photographing will be in focus as possible (i.e. it give you a large depth of field). It’s therefore ideal for capturing shots of wide scenes, particularly those witch points of interest at different distances from the camera. At times your camera might also select a slower shutter speed in this mode (to compensate for the small aperture) so you might want to consider a tripod or other method of ensuring your camera is still.

Sports Mode

Photographing moving objects is what sports mode (also called ‘action mode’ in some cameras) is designed for. It is ideal for photographing any moving objects including people playing sports, pets, cars, wildlife etc. Sports mode attempts to freeze the action by increasing the shutter speed. When photographing fast moving subjects you can also increase your chances of capturing them with panning of your camera along with the subject and/or by attempting to pre focus your camera on a spot where the subject will be when you want to photograph it (this takes practice).

Night Mode

This is a really fun mode to play around with and can create some wonderfully colorful and interesting shots. Night mode (a technique also called ’slow shutter sync’) is for shooting in low light situations and sets your camera to use a longer shutter speed to help capture details of the background but it also fires off a flash to illuminate the foreground (and subject). If you use this mode for a ’serious’ or well balanced shot you should use a tripod or your background will be blurred - however it’s also fun to take shots with this handheld to purposely blur your backgrounds - especially when there is a situation with lights behind your subject as it can give a fun and experimental look (great for parties and dance floors with colored lights).


Semi Automatic Modes

Aperture Priority Mode (A or AV)

This mode is really a semi-automatic (or semi-manual) mode where you choose the aperture and where your camera chooses the other settings (shutter speed, white balance, ISO etc) so as to ensure you have a well balanced exposure. Aperture priority mode is useful when you’re looking to control the depth of field in a shot (usually a stationary object where you don’t need to control shutter speed). Choosing a larger number aperture means the aperture (or the opening in your camera when shooting) is smaller and lets less light in. This means you’ll have a larger depth of field (more of the scene will be in focus) but that your camera will choose a faster shutter speed. Small numbers means the opposite (i.e. your aperture is large, depth of field will be small and your camera will probably choose a slower shutter speed).

Shutter Priority Mode (S or TV)

Shutter priority is very similar to aperture priority mode but is the mode where you select a shutter speed and the camera then chooses all of the other settings. You would use this mode where you want to control over shutter speed (obviously). For example when photographing moving subjects (like sports) you might want to choose a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. On the flip-side of this you might want to capture the movement as a blur of a subject like a waterfall and choose a slow shutter speed. You might also choose a slow shutter speed in lower light situations.

Program Mode (P)

Some digital cameras have this priority mode in addition to auto mode (in a few cameras Program mode IS full Auto mode… confusing isn’t it!). In those cameras that have both, Program mode is similar to Auto but gives you a little more control over some other features including flash, white balance, ISO etc. Check your digital camera’s manual for how the Program mode differs from Automatic in your particular model.

Fully Manual Mode

In this mode you have full control over your camera and need to think about all settings including shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, flash etc. It gives you the flexibility to set your shots up as you wish. Of course you also need to have some idea of what you’re doing in manual mode so most digital camera owners that I have anything to do with tend to stick to one of the priority modes.

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