This past week I had the opportunity to participate in the second of three workshops that are part of the Exposures program put on the by Agnes Etherington Art Centre.  The program was designed to bring together Kingston photographers and examine the changing Kingston landscape through photography.  This workshop was lead by Preston Schiedel, a Kingston photographer who uses a large format camera to capture desolate black & white Kingston landscapes.  The workshop was centered around his photography and raised some interesting questions about the images we capture and the process of photography itself.

It was interesting to hear Preston talk about his process, which is very different from my own.   His camera is large (40 lbs) and the film he uses is expensive, so he only takes one image.  This means that he will spend a lot of time studying a subject before photographing it and making sure that the exposure and other details are perfect before committing the image to film.  In my case, I have a small camera and I can take up to 400 RAW photos on one memory card, which allows me to take large number of images in one sitting.  What this means for me is that I’ll often walk around with my camera, photographing what I see along the way, often times taking several shots of the same subject. I don’t worry too much about exposure or composition as these issues can be dealt with in post-processing - I’m happy as long as the photo is in focus.

Before attending the workshop, I had an idea of the different processes we employed as photographers, having heard him speak before.  However, the point really hit home when he asked us to do an assignment for the workshop, which was to go to the Richardson Beach house down by Lake Ontario and take one photograph.  This exercise forced me to operate in a completely different mode and I struggled with myself to not hit the shutter button every time I saw something of interest.  Before going there I thought about what time of day would be best and when I arrived I walked around the building several times, looking for the right shot.  There were a few shots that I would have liked to take, however, when I saw the shadow of the railing on the stairs I knew I had my shot.  The assignment was an interesting challenge, however, I can’t see myself abandoning my “shoot now, process later” appraoch anytime in the near future.

Next up is a workshop with one of my favourite photographers, Edward Burtynsky.  Needless to say, I’m very much looking forward to the opportunity to participate in a workshop with him.

The third issue of Photosho is now on the stands and one of my photographs, Peacock, appears in this issue.   The theme of the issue was Water and there were lots of great interpretations of this theme from photographers across Canada.  Photosho started just over a year ago and it is has been a real pleasure to browse through each issue and see all of the amazing talent there is amongst Canadian photographers. They are currently accepted submissions for the next issue on the theme Green so if you’d like to support a great Canadian magazine and get your work published, head on over to their site.

The Annual Exhibition for the Kingston Photographic Club starts on Sunday June 1st and will run until June 27th. Three of my photos have been selected for the exhibit and two of my Flickr friends, David Tyner and Wayne Hiebert, will also have photos on display.

The opening is on Monday June 2nd at 7pm at the Wilson Room at the Kingston Public Library, so if you are in the Kingston area please come and check it out!

A photograph of a staircase against a red dumpster, which I took on a recent trip to Montreal, was selected for the Utata home page as the image of the day. This was a treat in itself but what is even nicer is that Greg Fallis has written a thoughtful piece of prose to go along with the image that reflects upon the human desire to decorate.

From the instant I saw the picture of the furry blond lobster, the Kiwa hisuta, I was mesmerized. Apparently I wasn’t the only one as Mark Murford has written a wonderfully insightful article about the recently discovered crustacean and it’s power to invoke wonder in us. After reflecting on the feelings invoked by this fury little marvel, he states:

Kiwa hirsuta is, in short, a reminder. Of how little we know. Of how much we have forgotten. Of the wonders that exist everywhere, from oak leaf to vestigial tailbone. Of how we have to remember to look around, to cultivate the skill, the ability to see, lest we slowly go blind. Some say we have lost our power to be awed. We are too jaded, too saturated with media images and the relentless barrage of unspeakable war horrors, too soaked in the info overload of the Internet to be able to process and filter and pick out the gems and stand back and say, Oh my God, would you look at that, and what might that mean, and isn’t that just the most amazing thing and doesn’t it put everything in a fresh perspective, just for a minute?”

The Kiwa hisuta is a wonderful example of something different inspiring a new way of seeing and as Murford suggests, the ordinary, like an oak leaf, can equally invoke awe and provide a fresh new perspective. As a photographer, I enjoy capturing both the mundane and the extraordinary and both serve to remind us of the importance of keeping our minds and eyes open to discover new ways of seeing.

I just submitted Asymptote to JPG magazine for the upcoming Creative License issue, which explores the abstract edge of what is considered photography look specifically at photos that feature strong design, composing with lines, patterns, geometry, contrast, saturation, simplicity and complexity. If you are a member of the JPG site (it only takes a moment to join) and would like to see Asymptote in the next issue of the mag, you can vote here to help get this puppy into print.

In JPG magazine that is. I just submitted The Light to JPG magazine for the upcoming Dreamscapes issue. If you are a member of the JPG site (it only takes a moment to join) and would like to see The Light in the next issue of the mag, you can vote here to help get this puppy into print.

The Annual Exhibition for the Kingston Photographic Club opens tomorrow and will run for the month of April. Three of my photos have been selected for the exhibit and two of my Flickr friends, Crag Spider and Wayne Hiebert, will also have photos on display.

The opening is on Tues April 3rd at 7pm at the Wilson Room at the Kingston Public Library, so if you are in the Kingston area please come and check it out!

When I arrived home from work today I was pleasantly surprised to find the premiere edition of Photosho in my mailbox. The magazine looks great and has an amazing selection of photographs from many talented photographers across Canada, including two of my Flickr friends Wayne Hiebert and Trevor Haldenby. I was fortunate enough to be chosen as one of the featured photographers and was given a two page spead to show some of the photographs from my Illuminated Watercolours and Industrial sets. I’m looking foward to sitting down with the magazine tonight and no doubt discovering some new Flickr contacts.

What do you get when you combine a 70’s drum track, an edgy beat, and several sweet string melodies? I asked myself that question while playing around with Garage Band this weekend and here is what I came up with.

Edgy Ballad.mp3

All of the tracks used to create the song were included with the Garage Band software. I couldn’t find any restrictions on how they are or are not to be used, so in the spirit of sharing I’m going to put a Creative Commons Attribution license on to this song.