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The View Project – Joyce Tenneson

Books  Comment
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Joyce Tenneson is coordinating a fascinating new book The View and she’s looking for compelling images and stories.
“I am editing a book tentatively called “The View”.   I have already received submissions from photographers around the world and would like to invite you to participate as well.  There is no research that explains why certain views affect people so deeply – this project will attempt to shed light on this intriguing visual-psychological phenomenon.
I would be most grateful if you would send me a high-resolution photo or two (no smaller than 8×10”) of a “view” that has affected you deeply.  I would also like you to send along 1-3 sentences describing, in your own words and in a simple fashion, what you felt or still feel when thinking about that particular scene.  Thanks in advance for your time and perceptions!
I’d like to make it clear that I am not looking for a simply beautiful landscape – a picture postcard – quite the opposite.  I am seeking to uncover what it is about certain places or photographs that, for some unknown reason, speak to our heart in an unforgettable and poignant manner.”
Find out more and submit images here.
Find out more about Cig Harvey here.

Spend A Little Extra Time

Photography, Workshop  Comment
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Whenever you can, spend a little extra time before and/or after a workshop (or any business trip for that matter). You go to great places. You always want more time. You might want to see a location again. Or you might want to see a nearby location that you didn’t get to. Stimulating as groups can be, sometimes you want to work alone and at your own pace. There are so many reasons to spend a little extra time.
On the way back from my White Sands, New Mexico workshop my wife and I visited the Bosque Del Apache bird sanctuary. Every year this marsh is filled with Sand Hill Cranes, Snow Geese and countless other birds. They fill the sky at dawn. The sound of the waking birds is wonderful.
As you can tell, I’m no Arthur Morris (one of the world’s premiere bird photographers). I hear he was at the Bosque at the same time I was.
Find out about my 2010 White Sands Workshop here.
Find out about my Illuminating Creativity field workshops here.

Photography – My Favorite Form of Exercise

Photography, Workshop  Comment
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Photography is my favorite form of exercise. Sometimes you walk a lot. Sometimes you walk in challenging terrain. I love walking in dunes. It’s great exercise. Low impact. Lots of climbing. You lose your breath by the time you reach the top of a dune. But you’re so excited to make the next photograph, you forget about it. By the time you’re finished making the photograph, you’ve got your breath back. There must be another great picture just over the next dune. So you keep walking further. Just when you think you’re finished, you turn around and realize you get to do it all over again on the way back.
Find out about my field workshops here.

Stay tuned for more 2010 workshop dates.

Walk a Mile – Join the 1% Club

Photography, Workshop  Comment
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Want to feel like you have a National Park all to yourself? Join the 1% club. Rangers say less than 1% of visitors walk more than a mile. This can make a big difference when you’re photographing. For instance, when you’re photographing sand dunes, near parking lots and trail heads you’ll see more footprints than wave patterns, but one mile out, you won’t see a single footprint. So if you’re seeking solitude and pristine nature, walk a mile.
Find out about my field workshops here.
Find out about my 2010 White Sands Workshop here.

Take Inventory

Creativity, Creativity - Storytelling, Workshop  Comment
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When you first approach a subject it can be helpful to take an inventory of all of the components available to you.
At White Sands, New Mexico, I made a short list of all the elements available.
It quickly became clear that I was most interested in the sand dunes.
So I listed all the possible components of sand dunes.
Peaks
Valleys
Baselines
Crests
Ripples
Indentations
Slides
Wind blown sand
Hard pack revealed
Hard pack lines
Hoodoos
Shadow shapes
Light shapes
I quickly had a list of all the essential elements I had to work with.
I could search for one image that had them all.
I could gather one of each to tell a story of the composition of the place.
I could focus on just one element and find many meaningful variations.
I could look for images that had combinations of two (or more) interacting with one another.
Or I could look for them all to build an extended photo essay.
At this point, with so many ideas to pursue, it’s hard to get blocked creatively.
By taking notes, I was sensitized to and more conscious of my subject. I quickly gained many insights into how to best approach the subject, where to go, and when to be there. When you take this approach, you make visual search more efficient and focussed, saving time and energy for depth of perception. Being focussed doesn’t mean you can’t also work intuitively at the same time. There are always many surprises along the way if you just stay open to new discoveries.In fact, being focussed may help you realize more quickly what’s truly new and what’s the same old story. It’s easy to get fixated on a few things and miss other essential elements and creative opportunities.
Making notes on site can really pay off. And this is just one kind of note you can make.
Find free Creativity ebooks here.
Find out about my 2010 White Sands Workshop here.

Time the Light

Technique - Exposure, Workshop  Comment
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During my White Sands, New Mexico workshop, we’ll be photographing in the same area for the next four days. On our first sunrise shoot, I timed the light and how it affected subjects.
5:45    Color on horizon
6:00    Color in sky
6:15    Color bright on horizon
6:30    Highlights on dunes
6:45    Strong texture    Large areas of shadow
7:00    Less            Less
7:30    Less            Less
8:00    Less            Less
8:30    Dark sides of dune affected by substantial fill light
12:00  No shadow
3:30    Long shadows
4:00    Substantial shadow
4:30    Fifty percent shadow
4:40    Highlights are accents only
4:50    Sun below horizon, definition falls, pink mountains to east
5:00    Color in sky blooms
5:30    Color in sky largely gone
5:45    Dim light in sky
Now I know what the light will do and when. I’ll use this information everyday for the next three days. So will everyone else. Making notes on site can really pay off. And this is just one kind of note you can make.
Find free Creativity ebooks here.
Find out about my 2010 White Sands Workshop here.

Earth Under Fire on Exhibit in DC

Event - Exhibit  Comment
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Gary Braasch’s large-scale color photographs from the book  “Earth Under Fire: How Global Warming is Changing the World”  ( a book called “essential reading for every citizen” by Al Gore ) are currently on exhibit.
A companion exhibit for kids, parents and school groups, “How We Know About Our Changing Climate” will highlight how scientists study climate change and how youth can learn to be citizen scientists. Includes kids taking action, in the films “Young Voices on Climate Change,” produced by Lynne Cherry
The opening is tonight November 18.
The exhibit runs from November 12 – March 15, weekdays 8-5 at …
American Association for the Advancement of Science
1200 New York Avenue NW
Washington DC 20005
Find a preview and and the book here.
Read Gary Braasch’s insights on global warming here.

Packing & Shipping

Printing  Comment
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Getting there. It’s important. How you do this is a sign of professionalism.
Imagine. Your work is great. Your prints are great. Your mats are great. Your frames are great.  Your presentation and follow up materials are great. But, you ship it all in a thin cardboard box that looks like it was put together by a serial killer. You use a cheap delivery service, so, after having gone missing for several days, your work arrives late. The damp remains smell like they’ve been chainsmoking and they look like they’ve been stepped on by an elephant. Everything is damaged – including your professional relationships and your reputation. After all the care you put into your work, it looks bad and so do you. You’ll have to absorb additional expenses. You just made more work for yourself and for the person receiving your work. Your exhibit is in now in a state of crisis. Your customer is dissatisfied. You may lose the opportunity or the sale you just made. What can you do to avoid this?
1 Pack your work professionally.
2 Use a professional shipping service.
Read the rest in the current issue of Photoshop User.
Read more in my Printing Downloads.
Learn more in my Fine Art Digital Printing Workshops.

Use Writing to Help Clarify Your Story

Creativity, Creativity - Storytelling  Comment
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I’m getting ready for my White Sands workshop this coming weekend. Reviewing my sketches and writings from previous trips, I got more ideas. After many trips to White Sands, I thought I knew exactly what I needed to do but now I’m sure there’s more. So I’ll write and sketch more on the way there, while I’m there, and afterward.
If every pictures tells a Story …
Writing can help clarify your story.
You can read 8 different types of statements on White Sands in my free PDF.
Find out more about my White Sands workshop here.
Stay tuned for live blog posts during the workshop!