Craig and Connie Clark Photography
While visiting the Evergreen Air & Spacer Museum in McMinnville Oregon,We were drawn to the abstract of these two tail sections. I really like the combination of the lighting on the back wall, the texture of light on the floor and the great lines of the two planes.
The road to recovery can be long and slow sometimes. This photo reminded me of an incident of the path, the hope and the reassurance to continue…. We were exploring this waterfall, not too far from the lodge when from up the path a young girl, maybe 14 or 15, appeared. She was obviously upset so I greeted her and asked if she was OK. She let the tears flow, she was lost and couldn’t find her parents. I introduced ourselves and used my best fathers voice to calm her down and reassure her she was close to the lodge & we would escort her back down. Just a pause for a moment and relax and then reunited with her parents…. I have faith and a path, I have hope, now I have a reminder of the reassurance in my hope & faith.
Thank-you everyone for your thoughts and prayers and words of encouragement. The road to recovery is paved with hope and trust. I’m reminded of a trip 3 strangers took into the night. Me, a young mom and an older gentleman with a bad leg and one eye. It was 4 AM and the absolute quiet of the Northern Cascades surrounded us, as we began our trek through the forrest. Filled with hope and completely uncertain of what lie ahead we made our way. Finally, a small rocky beach and then, sunrise….
Officially spent more time in September at Urgent care or the Doctors offices than out shooting for the whole summer! Most who know me know I am or try to be a man of faith. There is no need to copy & paste, you don’t have to prove anything to me, I just ask that all who know me join me in praying for healing and recovery. I love the pastels of the Oregon Coast in the early summer mornings….
My photo excursions are almost always planned and I have a goal of what I want to shoot. This week I had some ‘Planned’ outings with definite goals but they just didn’t happen as expected. When your plans get changed, find the alternate shot.
We went to the Tigard Balloon Festival on Sunday, arrived early and waited for the “Show”. Alas weather interfered and no flights. But no worries, a couple of inflates, some great light and an early morning walk around the carnival brought a plethora of other compositions.
I love car shows and recently visited a local favorite. I didn’t find a lot of the older hotrods so I turned my focus to the rich colors and lines of some newer models.
And the most challenging for this week was the Lincoln City Kite Festival. A quick afternoon trip to the beach with a billion others and there was no wind to be found. You would of thought with all that breathing there would have been a little wind. Anyway, it left us wanting… We grabbed a couple shots off the beach and ran up the coast and checked out the local driftwood, a low tide and some grass at a pier.
These were great options to the “Plan”
Summer brings many blooms and blossoms and Portland’s Rose Garden is exception. First recommendation is to go shooting either early in the day or late afternoon. Second, take a reflector to provide shade cover to reduce the summer’s harsh sunlight.
I like to expose for the highlights. This helps saturate the colors and reduce the background clutter. Sometimes including a bit of the surrounding leaves can help by adding an accent to the subject flower.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with black & white processing too. The B&W tones can add a fresh look to an old friend.
Try compositions that include foreground & background colors. In this shot I captured the sun spotlight on the center of the rose and some very interesting colors for the foreground & background.
For more samples you can check them out here… http://www.craigaclark.com/Flowers/Rose-Garden-May-2015
We took the opportunity to capture some late night skies near the Columbia River Gorge recently, It’s always fun to get out late at night and view the magnificent star-scapes from beyond! For the best results search out areas with little or no light pollution and be sure to get out when there is no moon. There are many ways to go at it, but I like to use a wide angle lens and shoot wide open. Generally my shutter speed is 20-25 seconds and I adjust the ISO starting at 3200.
Shot at sunset approximately 9:30 pm, and capturing the Deschutes River in the foreground
Shot 2 hrs later, about 11:30 looking towards a backlit hillside, and again we see the Deschutes River in the foreground.
And finally around midnight the Milky Way begins to appear over the horizon, and we reap the rewards of a midnight train painting the hillside.
It’s that time of year, when all of the classics and treasures come out of the garages for the summer months. I love the colors, lines and textures of these classic hot rods and collector cars. We each see them a little different, and that is OK! I like to shoot the deep rich colors and focus on some of the details of the cars.
My exposures values can be all over the meter, but I will usually shoot wide open and expose for the highlights. Look for some different composition angles as you approach the car, such as down low or off center. And try to get some other color in the background (like another car) to help accent and isolate your subject.
Be very patient as there will be a billion other car lovers and photographers doing the same thing you are doing.
Look inside the window for nostalgia and interesting perspectives
Shoot with a little bit of an angle to give some dynamic motion to your composition
Chrome rocks!
Discover the Light Photography will be presenting an evening workshop at the Big One, the Oregon State Fair, August 27th. Join us Tuesday evening at fair to explore the wonderful world of lights and motion! Get there early and try capturing some of the daytime sights and actions.
http://www.kerbercustom.com/discoverthelight/workshop/SummerAmusement.asp
Here’s a couple pics from the Clackamas County Fair to inspire you to get out and explore the Fair.
I used a zoom to crop in on the spinning ride to highlight the movement & color
By using a small aperture (f22) I was able to capture a nice starburst and some movement on this ride. Timing & the choice of an low angle help enhance the colors and elements of motion in this shot.
For this shot I chose an offset angle to highlight the height of the ride.
Even the children’s rides can present some interesting motion opportunities!
Sign up now and join Discover the Light Photography for an evening of Summer Amusement at the Oregon State Fair!
Masters and Mentors 