A Damp Morning with Ingrid & Miranda

Digital original

This morning was the beginning of a weekend visit of Ingrid and Miranda to Shenstone, a friend's place 40 minutes from Moncton. I'd hoped to start photographing first thing in the morning, but it had rained quite heavily during the night, and I awoke to find the world rather damp.

Digital original

Not wanting to lose the morning's photography time, I decided to explore the extensive garden with my macro lens, and make what images I could. The above photograph of a butterfly,is probably the biggest surprise from the morning's explorations.

Digital original

Eventually, the models emerged, and we discussed the options; the day continued with spots of rain and occasional downpours, so extended sessions or walking far afield was of the question. Eventually we decided to hop in the rental car and drive around, looking for settings that appealed. Eventually we found an isolated field overlooking a small valley, and set about making some photographs. The portrait of Ingrid, above, is one of the few that really stood out from the first set of photos.

Digital original

After working with Ingrid for some time, I wanted to make a set of portraits of the two women; we shifted from using the nearby woods as a backdrop to placing the more abstract view over the valley behind the two models. Ingrid stood on a stump to get high enough to stand behind Miranda, and th above portrait, one of the best of the weekend, was created.

An Afternoon with Ingrid & Tanya Continues

When I first moved to Moncton, I was told about a beautiful grave with a headless statue, and it was one of the first things I went to find when exploring around the city. It turned out to be as lovely as described, but I couldn't help think, when I first photographed it, about how it might be a perfect setting for a nude.

Digital infrared original

I was a little hesitant about asking one of the models to pose in a graveyard, but after discussing it with Ingrid, we went ahead and made the image, and waited until we saw the results to judge it. In the end, the beauty of the results overwhelmed any hesitations I had before.

Digital original

Almost all the images I've made at the gypsum silos have focused on the exterior, so when Tanya sat in one of the windows, and looked so beautiful in the soft light of the building's shadow, I just had to make a portrait...and to make everything perfect, the wind whipped fine locks of her hair across her face just as I made the image.

Digital infrared original

Though you can’t tell from this image, it was pouring with rain when Ingrid and I made it - we’d fled into the old gypsum silo to keep dry, but didn’t see the point in wasting our time just waiting, so we did some images while we waited.

One of greatest advantage of working at the old silo is the beautiful light it provides; in this case, Ingrid is right by one of the largest openings,and I absolutely love how the light flows across her torso as she arches back - a lovely contrast to the ragged concrete and wood around her.

Digital infrared original, 2 frame exposure blend

The final set of images was almost the opposite to the one above of Ingrid; where she and I worked with the highlights the large windows provided, Tanya and I finished the day's photography working with the deep shadows of one of the smaller windows, looking out over the river. Where Ingrid was well lit and almost sculptural, Tanya's figure was wreathed in shadow.

Ingrid & Tanya by the Petticodiac River

This was one of the most incredible days I have ever photographed on, even after years of photographing in the great outdoors. All through the session, there were heavy storm clouds on the Northern horizon, and occasionally a brisk, blustery wind would sweep around us in the most wonderful way.

Digital infrared original

Minutes into the session I made the above image of Ingrid walking in a sea of grain; the perfect angle of her left hand is what makes the image sing for me.

In some ways, my favourite outdoor sessions are those with multiple models; first, it doubles the variety of images of single models that can be made (with the models taking turns posing, and then just hanging out), but secondly, the presence of two models opens up the possibility of making images with both models - not an easy thing, but when the space presents the opportunities, have the resources at hand to take advantage of it is always better than having to walk away without making the image.

Digital infrared original, 5 frame stitch

The above image is a great example of being able to realize an image with two models where it might have gone unmade during a more conventional (single model) session. The composition began with Ingrid posing against the tallest wooden post; I initially envisioned it as a vertical composition of Ingrid and the weathered wood. As we were working however, Tanya asked if I'd like her to pose on the next post - it was only then that I saw the potential of the two models working on the left side of the frame, and the deep riverbank arcing up to the top right corner. After a little experimentation and refinement of pose, the above image was created.

Digital original

Once the infrared images of both models was made, I walked in closer, and switched to colour for some closer portraits of both models - this image of Tanya is all the more perfect for the unexpected gust of wind the swept aside her hair.

A Waterfront Field Trip

Digital original

Over the years that I have been leading photo field trips along the Halifax waterfront, one of the most consistent sources for successful images has been the tugs which service the commercial traffic in the harbour; the hulls in particular, with layers of paint, rust, and in the above case, chains and tires, are a neverending source of inspiration.

Digital original

The real surprise for this field trip was a number of tulips which had suffered heavily in an early morning rain shower; their petals had been bent down, revealing the usually hidden pistil and stamen, and providing a very unusual look to the flower. I decided to have some fun with the image, and made a number of different horizontal compositions, focusing at different points. When I got home, I combined all the images, selectively choosing where the sharpest elements were, and created an impossible photograph. Ah the joys of digital!

Digital original, 4 frame focus blend, 3 frame stitch

A Forest & River Session with Fern

While I spent some time first thing photographing int he Irving Gardens, the real reason for driving to Wolfville was to spend the afternoon working with Fern. After picking her up, we drove to a space along the highway her father had described to us, and proceeded to hunt for a waterfall he'd provided directions to.

Digital infrared

As we walked through the forest towards the waterfall, we came across a small clearing filled with ferns; knowing how luminous the space would be in infrared, I asked Fern is she'd be interested in starting the session working with her name-sake. She was more than keen , and the above image was one of the most pleasing from the explorations.

Digital infrared, 5 frame stitch

As we hunted for the waterfall (the directions were only general, and it took some hunting), we eventually found the river that fed into it, and made a number of images as we followed it downstream. The above image was a compromise of sorts; we both expected that Fern would eventually work within the river itself, but wished to keep her from getting cool too early in the afternoon (there by bringing the session to an early end), so we found a way for Fern to pose with the river, without getting wet!

Digital infrared, 13 frame stitch

The above image was made  at the top of one of the steepest waterfalls I have seen in Nova Scotia; I really love the interplay between Fern's figure and the rocks around her, made all the richer for the luminous quality of the grasses on the rocks. I’m quite glad we stopped to work at the top of it, as after a good ten minute clamber down the sides, we arrived at the bottom to realize it was REALLY hard to make an image with such a larger, and vertical waterfall.

A Morning in Wolfville

Digital original

One of the many treasures in Wolfville Nova Scotia is the Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens which occupy more than six acres on the campus of Acadia University. The Gardens feature a wide range of flora native to the Acadian Forest Region. I had some time free after my drive to Wolfville, so I spent an hour working my way through the gardens with a macro lens.

Digital original

I absolutely LOVE the above image - the incredibly shallow depth of field, combined with the out of focus red on the lower left side really appeal to me. Though I always experiment with deeper depth of field in my macro explorations, images like this just make my heart sing.

Digital original, 2 frame focus blend

I have recently been experimenting with combining different images with different apertures, in an attempt to get both sharp and detailed portions of an image combined with incredibly shallow depth of field elsewhere - and in this image, it really paid off!

More Macro & Micro

Digital original

It has been a long time since something photographic has both engaged me, and frustrated me - but macro photography has provided both. I have been spending more and more time on my knees (or lower) pushing my understanding of the process, and working out my own preferences and vision.

Digital original

The greatest question in macro photography is how to approach depth of field; in a basic sense, there are two options, more in focus, or less; whenever I can, I have been making images at both extremes, hoping to learn which I prefer. Almost all the time, I find myself gravitating to those images with shallow depth of field (as in the above two), but I find the question of where to focus so crucial when the depth of field is this shallow so important (and frustrating) that  I keep making the alternative just in case, once in a blue moon, I find a subject that better suits deep depth of field.

Digital original

I'm continually experimenting with more and more magnification; the above image of forget-me-nots combined a macro lens and several extension tubes, to move the lens into a micro lens...creating a larger magnification that life-size on the camera's sensor.

The Halifax International Tattoo

Digital original

I was given the opportunity to photograph a performance of the Halifax International Tattoo, which was a great deal of fun. By far my favourite image is the above, of His Majesty's the King's Guard Band and Drill Team of Norway; the rich combination of the moving ring and the still piper is great.

A Waterfront Field Trip

Digital original

When taking students of field trips, I often turn my cameras to making "compositions" as I call them - photographs that are more about the use of composition and camera decisions than subjects.

Digital original

I have always loved shallow depth of field, but usually use it on portraits or images of the Nude; in this case however, the brass pins on the tall ship were too lovely to pass by - and the shallow depth of field was just perfect to focus the attention on the lead pin.

Digital original

On the walk back from the field trip, I noticed a lovely sky - just perfect for infrared - and quickly found a composition to take advantage of it.

Further Macro Explorations

Digital original

Working with flowers in a garden is very different from working with cut flowers; in this case, the only way I could get so close to the pansy, and keep it in sharp focus, was to lean the bottom of the flower on a rock…only then was the flower stable enough to get accurate focus on the centre of the bloom.

Digital original

I found this plant really interesting - it was very "flat" - like someone sat on it. I worked hard to get the camera absolutely parallel to it, so the plane of focus would match the plane of the plant, which in turn meant I could work at an even larger aperture than usual (f/2.8). The end result was a beautifully soft background, behind a tack sharp plant!

Digital original

The final images of this garden exploration were made with the camera almost at ground level, looking into plants, and through them. I found working this way really engaging, as composition became crucial to the success of the images.