Columbus EPS Shoot Day 1

I wasn't kidding when I said I would be blogging this week! I know it's been awhile, but I would like to discuss the weekend Edison Photo Society (EPS) shoot in Columbus, OH this past May.  Typically, there is always a weekend shoot for EPS members.  A location is decided upon early in the year and members can come and go as they please and shoot whatever they want.  That is exactly what happened this year.  For those of you who don't know, I'm a huge fan of Columbus.  I love the vibe of the city, the different areas and suburbs, the restaurant scene, the arts scene, the list of countless things to do, etc.  It's no wonder that my wife and I decided to get married in downtown Columbus.  The weekend of the shoot, I arrived in Columbus between 8 and 9 a.m.  I knew a few members were starting at Inniswoods Metro Park, so I thought that would be a good place for me to start as well.  It was a warm and sunny day and the sun was shining bright by the time I had my gear ready to go. 

For those of you who haven't been, Inniswoods is a massive park located within a nature preserve.  There are streams, woodlands, wildflowers, gardens, rocks, structures and more located on the 123 acres that the park boasts.  The items I just named obviously provide a wealth of shooting opportunities, especially for the nature shooter.  While nature is not my preferred subject matter, I did enjoy the morning and walked away with some interesting shots.  The park is so big and I roam very slowly, I didn't cover much ground.  That didn't take away from my experience and I would be happy to shoot there again someday.  At this point in the day, it was already turning into a much better shoot than Loveland Castle.

After meeting up with some of the EPS members at Inniswoods and grabbing lunch, it was off to the Franklin Park Conservatory.  Franklin Park Conservatory was built in 1895 and is located just a few miles from the heart of downtown Columbus.  Franklin Park Conservatory is set on 88 acres of land and houses more than 400 species of plants from around the world as well as a special collection of glass from the world famous artist Dale Chihuly.  In addition to numerous exhibitions and workshops, Franklin Park Conservatory is also a premier event space.  Numerous weddings are held outdoors every year.  This was only the second time I've been to Franklin Park Conservatory; the first was a few years prior and I was only there for a wedding.  So, this was the first time that I was actually exploring the entire grounds.  I wandered around for a few hours, doubling back every place I went hoping to find something I missed the first time.  Again, plant life and nature is not my first choice of subject matter, but I enjoyed my time and got a lot of interesting shots. 

I doubt I'm the only one, but I can only look at so many pictures of flowers, plants, wildlife, etc.  However, I try to approach the subject in a non-traditional way and I hope to make an interesting image out of something that usually comes across as bland or ordinary in a number of photographs.  I'm not saying there aren't artists out there taking amazing and unique photos of flowers and plant life.  There are; I just think in general, a lot of shots are not worth a second look.  I also try to look for other things in the surroundings of the plants and flowers to photograph.  There some very interesting subjects and if you just take a moment to look, you'll find them.  By doing this, I feel like I capture a place in a unique fashion - a way that I'll remember my experience.  I take that approach every time I pick up my camera.  I purposely try not to take the standard shot.  When viewing my travel photography you might not see a lot of typical landmark shots, but you should definitely get a sense of my experience and what makes a location unique and exciting.  I took this approach on Day 1 of Columbus as well as Day 2.  Why the subject matter wasn't my favorite, I had a great time, I was very happy with the shots I did get and I would gladly shoot these locations again in the future.  Thank you Columbus, for giving me another reason to love you.

Photos and posts coming soon!

Hello all!

I'm sorry I've been away for awhile.  Now that the wedding is over, I have a little more time to devote to my photography.  I'm diligently working on selecting my best shots from the Columbus EPS shoot, my NYC trip and the England Honeymoon.  I have some slight, typical editing to do on some of the shots, but hopefully Imagery As Art will have a flurry of blogposts in the very near future.  The full Columbus EPS shoot will be reviewed and more images will be posted from it this week.  I hope you enjoy viewing my work and and reading my posts.  As always feel free to comment and share your thoughts.  I hope to get more experimental with my images as the year progresses and take my work to a new level.

Thanks for following!

Columbus Buildings, Doorways, Urban Decay Teaser

Columbus Day 1 Teaser

I will be posting a full review of the Edison Photo Society's (EPS) weekend photoshoot in Columbus, OH. As I prepare for the summer show, I wanted to post a few teaser shots from Day 1 at Innis Woods Metro Park and Franklin Park Conservatory on the blog as well as my Flickr account. Feedback is welcome.

Troy, Ohio

So, as you all know from my last post, I used my new camera for the first time at "Historic" Loveland Castle. That experience was not what I hoped for, so I wanted to go on another shoot to get better acquainted with the Canon EOS 50D. For me, the easiest thing to do is to go on a "walk-about" of downtown Troy, OH. On a Sunday morning, I got up early and went downtown and took about 50 to 60 images.

I didn't get any "show-stopping" images, but I worked with aperature, got to know my camera a little better, and generally had a good experience. Troy is a quaint little town and there are some interesting things to photograph. It was a good second experience with my camera and there's something comforting about walking around your neighborhood; for me, the goal is to always find something unexpected in something that's so familiar.

I've posted some images below with a few descriptions. You can see more from the shoot via my Flickr account.

The BREW 1831

I've recently begun experimenting with the deconstructing of a whole as the focus of my image, especially with signage. Let's take this shot for example. I actually hate the Brewery, but the historic and vintage nature of the sign is perfect for an image. So, instead of photographing the whole sign, I split it in two sections. I also added a sepia tone to give it a truly vintage feel. I have a B&W version over at Flickr as well.

ERY 1831

This is the second part of the Brewery sign. Again, I used a sepia tone to give it a vintage look. When I view these, I seem to think of Cheers. I did not shoot these as one image and crop them; they are two entirely separate images.

Aged Paint

If anyone is familiar with Troy, there is a brightly painted wall on one side of the small Mayflower Theatre. The paint has begun to peel, so I chose to highlight the paint peeling from below. This is my view looking up; I used aperature priority to get a shallower depth of field.

Is That a Cone?

I found this configuration on a side street. I liked the colors and the fact that the "?" was "pointing" towards the cone.

In Bloom

I'm not sure what type of tree this was, but I loved the texture of the blooms and the greens of the leaves, the pink blooms and the blue sky. Again, I used aperature priority for this shot. There is another version on Flickr.

Active Lifestyle

I saw this image on a porch as I was getting ready to get back into my car and drive home. I couldn't resist taking this shot and it was one of my favorites of the day. I posted a cropped version on Flickr, so head over and tell me what you think.

Loveland Castle Pics

The Dungeon Below

Tabletop

Knight vs. Knight

Sundial

Recent Shoot - Historic Loveland Castle

The first photo shoot that I used my Canon EOS 50D took place Saturday, March 27 at Historic Loveland Castle in Loveland, Ohio. For those of you who don't know, Loveland Castle or Chateau Laroche, was built by one man: Harry Andrews.

I was anxiously awaiting this shoot. For starters, I had a brand new camera that I hadn't used yet. I was also going to shoot a castle. I admit, I had grand visions of English and Scottish castles; picturesque views of structures that we don't see everyday. However, Loveland Castle was anything but picturesque. The structure itself is a sight and especially since it was built by a single man. However, that's where the intrigue ended. The castle was filled with random artifacts and pictures, providing the visitor with a cloudy picture of what they were walking through. The lighting was horrible, the landscape around the castle was shabby, and the "Renaissance" individuals in costume sat around and chatted among themselves. They didn't perform or offer any sort of insight into why they were there.

Overall, the shoot was disappointing. The subject matter was dull and I didn't walk away with many shots worth a second look. At the end of the day, I'll have to go to the source if I want to photograph a castle with character. Using the camera for the first time was exciting and I did manage to capture a few images that were worth posting, if nothing else, for a look at my work.

Harry Andrews, you may have been brilliant, but you were also odd. I don't believe your residence is worth the price of admission, because the so-called castle and museum lack cohesiveness.