Bainbridge Island Museum of Art Opens

Bainbridge Island has always been a creative community - dance, music, theater, writing.  Now you can add the visual arts!  The Bainbridge Island Museum of Art opened this past Friday, at the corner of SR-305 and Winslow Way, just a short walk from downtown and from the ferry terminal.  And I'm pleased to say that I have nine photographs included in the opening show - six in the community gallery on the 1st floor and three additional ones near the classroom upstairs.  Its great and a bit humbling to be included among the amazing artists represented in this space.  Hopefully you'll have a chance to visit the museum this summer (the opening exhibits will be up until sometime in September).  More info on the museum can be found at: http://www.biartmuseum.org/

Its All About the Light

When taking photographs, the difference between ordinary and special is usually in the light.  This applies whether its a portrait, architectural or landscape.  This is especially true in gardens.  I recently spent several hours at the Bloedel Reserve here on Bainbridge Island.  Most of my photographs from that morning were "OK."  But just as I was getting ready to leave, about 10 am, a full 4 hours after sunrise, I came across "the" shot of the morning.  The light was intense on this single tree, while the background was dark.  The limbs almost float in the air, since the tree trunk was also in the shade.  The resulting photograph is a study of light, and that's what an arresting photograph is all about.  So, be on the lookout for light and contrast, whether at sunrise, sunset or even midday. 

Great Vacation Photography Workshop

I had a great time the past two weekends leading a Vacation Photography workshop here on Bainbridge Island, Washington.  We discussed how to take great vacation photographs while still enjoying your vacation with friends and family (or even solo!).  The workshop participants were actively engaged and even did their homework assignment!  So did I - though I used my iPhone to take special shots here on the island.  One of my favorite spots to just "get away" (temporarily at this time!!!) is the Port Blakely Cemetery.  This image, with both black-and-white and color elements, struck me as simple yet with a clear story to tell.  While I usually shoot with a digital SLR (Nikon D300), I like experimenting with other tools from time to time, such as the camera phone. 

Anyway, I'm planning on doing another Vacation Photography workshop this fall.  If interested, please send me an e-mail to get on the list!

Event Photos - Its All in the Position

Yesterday was the annual Chilly Hilly bicycle tour on Bainbridge Island.  Considered one of the 4 classic bike tours in the country, the Chilly Hilly draws around 4000 cyclists from all over to ride the 33 mile course.  The "chilly" part was more than a tad absent this year, with temps around 50 degree (F) under partly to mostly sunny skies.  But the "hilly" part remained, with an estimated elevation gain of nearly 2700 feet over the 33 mile course (even more amazing when you consider that you start at sealevel, end at sealevel and pass along the shore several times during the course of the tour.

For a photographer, the event offers lots of options.  One of my favorite spots in the past has been the ferry terminal, taking photos as the cyclists get off the ferry (en masse) and reboard the ferry (again, en masse).  The great spot for this is the overhead passenger boarding area at the terminal (assuming the ferry is using slip 1).  Another spot is on the ferry itself looking down on the riders as they embark or disembark.

Since the tour is all about the hills, I focused my work this year on the granddaddy of all the island's
hills - Baker Hill.  The first place I went was the top of another section of Baker Hill (actually anothjer hill) to get a "full context" shot, showing the cyclists as they slowly (some VERY slowly) made there way up the long hill.  Then I headed to the bottom of the next hill to get the riders as they (kinda) slowed down to make the turn onto Crystal Springs Drive.

Being at a corner provides a great opportunity for head-on shots (and, possibly, head-on collisions which I managed to avoid!), as well as detailed shots as the cyclists turned the corner.  As I am accustomed to do, I like showing motion in my photos as well as context, so getting riders as they turn and others as they still are heading down the straight-away has particular appeal. 

The same thoughts concerning positioning yourself at corners applies to parades, processions and other "linear" events.  Practicing those skills at events near you will pay off when you're traveling elsewhere in the world.