I am extremely pleased that one of my images was featured in a full page advertorial by Canson Infinity in the March 2012 edition of PDN magazine. It was a great honor to be selected by Canson and PDN for this article, and of course I bought a copy as soon as it hit the news stands!
The editor sent me a bunch of questions that I answered as best I could, then she edited my responses down to fit the article. It wasn’t as easy as you might think, and it highlights one of the reasons I always advocate learning how to talk about your photography and why you are passionate about what you do. It clarifies your intent and helps with developing a creative vision. These are all topics I discuss often in the workshops, and I plan to write about more here in the near future.
Download a PDF version of the Ad
Last year I was contacted by REI, one of the largest outdoor retailers in the country, about licensing a few of my images for new stores they were opening in NYC. They specifically wanted images that conveyed and connected them to the beauty of the Hudson Valley. The images were to be used in two retail locations, one in the Soho district of NYC, and the other in Paramus New Jersey, and would be printed very large, upwards of 15 feet.
I was very happy and honored to help them out, and I am extremely pleased that they licensed a total of 4 images. I provided them with high-resolution files at the sizes they specified, and they took care of the rest. The stores finally opened this fall, and I finally made it down to the Soho store this weekend to check out the installations. One of the images was placed behind the main counter, and into a lightbox, which is basically a back lit enclosure with the image printed on a translucent film that allows the light to pass through the print.
I have to say it looked amazing, similar to a lcd display in terms of brightness, but better because it is a print, so the resolution and detail is much higher. I have been aware of light boxes for some time, but after seeing one this big, I’m looking into making this a presentation option for my prints together with canvas and framed. I’ll share what I discover here.
I have not had a chance to visit the Paramus store, but will post photos here when I get a chance.
I’ll be giving a talk/seminar at the Westchester Photographic Society tonight titled “Beauty Within – A Journey of the Landscape“, where I talk about my basic approach and philosophy to photography, and present some of my evolving work using a slideshow presentation.
As much as I try and prepare for these lectures, I seem to do best when I just talk from the heart and let the images and the places I’ve photographed inspire me. I do spend a lot of time preparing the actual slideshow (using Apple’s Keynote software), and make many notes about what I want to say. But so often as in photography, the feel of the setting and the audience will dictate my own tempo and direction, and I try and adapt to the people that are present. I guess I can’t get rid of the improvisational nature of my personality, which is why I studied jazz for so many years.
This isn’t always a good strategy for everyone, but it underscores how important it is for any photographer to have a really good grasp of their work, their preferred subjects, and most importantly why they photograph. There is an exercise I recommend to every photographer and you would be amazed at how much you can learn about your creative motivations, and even find some new direction in the process. There’s a great post over on the Pro Nature Photographer website (which I recommend highly) by Brenda Tharp which talks about this exercise - examining our motivations and discovering the gift that is photography and the benefits we all derive from it, including those who purchase prints for their homes or offices.
Becoming as proficient as possible in explaining your work allows you to speak with more authenticity, authority, and ultimately will improve your photography immensely. I know it has for me, an important reason why I love to talk to other photographers, whether personally or in lectures and seminars. I will be giving a free landscape photography seminar soon in my hometown of Beacon, and I’ll post the details here and on my Facebook page in the near future. I’m always available for speaking engagements, so please contact me of you’d like me to speak at an event, whether photography related or otherwise.
